[Verizon] Galaxy Nexus root / un-root without unlocking bootloader

[acceler9]

Thanks Scary, this fills a much needed gap! I used this method back a month ago or so, and it worked flawlessly. I do however have a question.
I am stock and just got the OTA 4.0.4 update notice from Verizon. I've used your tool to 'Save root', but I'm feeling nervous. I would hate to loose root and not be able to get it back!
Has anyone actually tested the 'Save Root' function on a stock OTA upgrade? Is there anything I should be wary of?

Thanks again! For every person that says thank you, there are hundreds out there that don't post. Your handi-work has touched many!

 

[scary alien]

Thanks Scary, this fills a much needed gap! I used this method back a month ago or so, and it worked flawlessly. I do however have a question.
I am stock and just got the OTA 4.0.4 update notice from Verizon. I've used your tool to 'Save root', but I'm feeling nervous. I would hate to loose root and not be able to get it back!
Has anyone actually tested the 'Save Root' function on a stock OTA upgrade? Is there anything I should be wary of?

Thanks again! For every person that says thank you, there are hundreds out there that don't post. Your handi-work has touched many!

Thank you, acceler9, that is very much appreciated and very nice to hear!

Awesome username by the way (very clever! )--and welcome to the AndroidForums!

You can also save root with OTA Rootkeeper (I have, too )--I modeled my root saving / restoring off of that utility--that app has more features, etc., but they both use the same method for saving and restoring root.

I have tested my root saving/restoring across OTA updates (it was 4.0.2 and not 4.0.4, however--but that should not change or affect your ability to restore root).

Save it both ways if you need to--just be sure to pick one to restore with (my app saves the su binary with a different name, so it won't conflict with OTA Rootkeeper) and verify that you've still got root after the 4.0.4 OTA is applied.

You'll be fine .

Cheers and have a great day!

edit: I am having an issue with my app regarding root...??? , so be sure to use OTA Rootkeeper for now...thanks!

edit 6/6/2012: I've published a new version of the app that fixes an issue that was caused by a recent busybox update. This should fix the issue I mentioned in the above edit.

 

[acceler9]

Awesome news, SA! Thanks again (and so fast!) I do have one minor question. I got your update from the market. When I go to save root it tells me that Root has already been saved. Will I be ok to restore from this?

Thanks!

 

[scary alien]

Awesome news, SA! Thanks again (and so fast!) I do have one minor question. I got your update from the market. When I go to save root it tells me that Root has already been saved. Will I be ok to restore from this?

Thanks!

Yep! You should be good-to-go. My app will save a copy of the su binary in /system/su-backup-atr (LOL, looks like transposed the app's initials for the suffix ).

Also, if you use OTA Rootkeeper, it saves it su binary just like mine, but with a different name, so they won't interfere with each other (but should both behave identically).

Cheers and let me know .

 

[acceler9]

It worked perfectly! Thanks again!!!!! Woot!

 

[PhilD]

i just purchased a copy of Scary Alien's Android File Verifier-Donate app as a way of saying thanks for all the time s/he spent creating this root-without-unlock tool, and i encourage others who have successfully used this tool to do so too...

 

[scary alien]

i just purchased a copy of Scary Alien's Android File Verifier-Donate app as a way of saying thanks for all the time s/he spent creating this root-without-unlock tool, and i encourage others who have successfully used this tool to do so too...

Phil,

Thank you very much, sir!

That's a very kind and much-appreciated gesture and sentiment.

I'm happy to help-out and do what I can to contribute to the members here at AF and the Android community in general. Your and other's kind words and sentiments are what makes this a wonderful community to be part of.

 

[Dignan17]

Scary Alien,

Thank you so much for your work with this root process. I followed it to unlock my 4.0.2 GN in order to fix a bluetooth bug in that version. I was completely happy for around two weeks before I got the notice of the OTA update and foolishly updated my phone before checking what would happen if I did so. Naturally, I am no longer rooted.

That would be fine for me, if there weren't a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT bluetooth bug in 4.0.4 that's actually even worse than the first one. Now I'm considering returning the phone.

My question: If I were to factory reset this thing, would VZW know I'd done any rooting at this point?

Again, thanks for all your great work.

 

[scary alien]

Scary Alien,

Thank you so much for your work with this root process. I followed it to unlock my 4.0.2 GN in order to fix a bluetooth bug in that version. I was completely happy for around two weeks before I got the notice of the OTA update and foolishly updated my phone before checking what would happen if I did so. Naturally, I am no longer rooted.

That would be fine for me, if there weren't a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT bluetooth bug in 4.0.4 that's actually even worse than the first one. Now I'm considering returning the phone.

My question: If I were to factory reset this thing, would VZW know I'd done any rooting at this point?

Again, thanks for all your great work.

Dignan17,

You are most welcome--glad it worked for you.

Re. the factory reset thing, if they looked in your app drawer, they'd see the left-over Superuser app. Also, there'd be a non-functional su binary in /system/bin (or /system/xbin, I can't remember).

I'm sure that they'd bother looking though. If you wanted to make certain, though, you could unlock the bootloader, restore back to stock, and re-lock the bootloader:

How to un-root (return to stock)

Its actually not that bad...I've done that process about 20 times now .

Let me know if you have any questions.

Cheers and good luck!

 

[Dignan17]

Thanks so much, you rock. If I decide to return this thing, I'll need to wipe my phone anyway, so unlocking the bootloader won't be as painful anymore

Thanks again for all you're doing here.

 

[praveenjohri]

Hi, I am a nobb on phone geeky aspects but generally understands computers and tech okay. I am trying to work my way to understand the complete process which goes around in different tweaks.

Anyway, I want to know if my gnex is having stock 4.1 rom is there a way to root it without unlocking the bootloader since I don't want to back it up first before I do it. I think your 1-click app does unlocking and rooting for google galaxy nexus gsm phone on android 4.1. I am still learning what CWM recovery utitlity does and what kind of back up it takes etc...so ideally i want to root and use some great apps while i am learning more here and probably i might like to try custom roms one day.

what a wonderful forum and great people. Thanks.

-Praveen

 

[scary alien]

Hi, I am a nobb on phone geeky aspects but generally understands computers and tech okay. I am trying to work my way to understand the complete process which goes around in different tweaks.

Anyway, I want to know if my gnex is having stock 4.1 rom is there a way to root it without unlocking the bootloader since I don't want to back it up first before I do it. I think your 1-click app does unlocking and rooting for google galaxy nexus gsm phone on android 4.1. I am still learning what CWM recovery utitlity does and what kind of back up it takes etc...so ideally i want to root and use some great apps while i am learning more here and probably i might like to try custom roms one day.

what a wonderful forum and great people. Thanks.

-Praveen

Welcome to the AndroidForums, Praveen!

Well, are you talking about 4.1 JellyBean? If so, then I'm afraid that this method won't work for you...

This method only worked on 4.0.1 and 4.0.2 (Ice Cream Sandwich) since the exploit used was actually a kernel exploit which was subsequently patched after 4.0.2 .

If you are talking about 4.0.1 (or 4.0.2), then yes, this method will work just fine for you .

You can still root in other ways, but they do involve needing to unlock your bootloader first.

Cheers and again, welcome to our forums!

 

[praveenjohri]

Well, are you talking about 4.1 JellyBean? If so, then I'm afraid that this method won't work for you...

Thanks for super quick response, i am talking of 4.1 JB indeed, what is the way to get rooted on this? could your 1 click app deal with it, does it have to be using bootloader unlock ?

can you point me to the steps to follow for getting rooted.

-Praveen

 

[scary alien]

Thanks for super quick response, i am talking of 4.1 JB indeed, what is the way to get rooted on this? could your 1 click app deal with it, does it have to be using bootloader unlock ?

can you point me to the steps to follow for getting rooted.

-Praveen

You are most welcome, Praveen .

I'm guessing you have the international version of the Galaxy Nexus since you've already got JellyBean?

If so, you can use this post to root (remember, unlocking your bootloader will wipe your device):

http://androidforums.com/international-galaxy-nexus-all-things-root/470831-how-all-things-root-samsung-galaxy-nexus.html#root

(there are also lots of other goods posts in that thread that might prove helpful to you).

If you're looking for a nice utility to help you install the drivers, etc., take a look at this tool:

Wug's Galaxy Nexus Root Toolkit

(I haven't used it myself because I like to know how to do the steps manually, but I've heard lots of folks had good success with it and it basically automates all of the manual steps for you).

Also, be sure to peruse the stickied threads here:

(International) Galaxy Nexus - All Things Root - Android Forums

Cheers!

 

[praveenjohri]

Before unlocking the boot loader I would need to make a back up of my phone including contacts,sms,mails, state of games played etc. Could someone suggest a utility, prefereably free to get this on stock rom. Once rooted I plan to buy titanium backup.

Suggestions are welcome.

-Praveen

EDIT : I can ask this question in another thread if needed( mods point me ), it is not the intention to hijack this thread to something else.

EDIT 2 : Found MyBackup to be the one for Job & got indications that app progress will not be sasved without root access. So, if anyone has a better option let me know.

 

[scary alien]

EDIT : I can ask this question in another thread if needed( mods point me ), it is not the intention to hijack this thread to something else.

Praveen,

Yeah, it might be best to make another thread re. this since you might only get the folks that have already posted/subscribed to this one reading your questions.

Also, there's likely several theads about your question already out there, but it might take a little forum searching to find them (I usually do whole-phone Nandroid backups and restores or just re-setup things from scratch, so I'm not the best person to answer your questions).

Cheers!

 

[MaskedJackal]

I'd like to preface this with a huge apology for the necropost.

Scary, I'm attempting to return my GN to unrooted stock so when I send it back to Verizon they don't charge me $300 for a refurbished one. I've successfully downloaded your ZIP of scripts and ran the unroot one. It detects my phone just fine, but somehow none of the scripts are getting copied, and none of the chmod or /data/local directories can be found. I have a screenshot uploaded to Imgur to display this, but the spam protection on these forums won't let me insert or link it.

Why would this be? What can I do?

Thanks so much, please let me know if there's a better way I should go about posting.

 

[scary alien]

I'd like to preface this with a huge apology for the necropost.

Scary, I'm attempting to return my GN to unrooted stock so when I send it back to Verizon they don't charge me $300 for a refurbished one. I've successfully downloaded your ZIP of scripts and ran the unroot one. It detects my phone just fine, but somehow none of the scripts are getting copied, and none of the chmod or /data/local directories can be found. I have a screenshot uploaded to Imgur to display this, but the spam protection on these forums won't let me insert or link it.

Why would this be? What can I do?

Thanks so much, please let me know if there's a better way I should go about posting.

Hey, MaskedJackal, very sorry for the belated reply--I was away from internet access this weekend until just now.

If your bootloader is still locked (which I'm guessing that it is since you're referencing this thread), then VZW mostly likely won't look or care that you rooted.

But, if you want me to help you debug the unroot, send me a PM with the link included as best as the forums will let you or email it to me at scary.alien@gmail.com and I'll take a peek at it.

Its been a while since I've looked at all of this (as you referenced ), but we should be able to get you sorted-out.

Let me know!

Cheers!

P.S., welcome to the AndroidForums!

 

[acceler9]

Hi SA, it's me again. Your app worked wonders for the last OTA update! I'm wondering if this will still work for the Verizon 4.1.1 (Jellybean) OTA update? I have the latest version of your app, and it indicates that I have a good backup. My bootloader has always and still is locked.

Thanks!

 

[scary alien]

Hi SA, it's me again. Your app worked wonders for the last OTA update! I'm wondering if this will still work for the Verizon 4.1.1 (Jellybean) OTA update? I have the latest version of your app, and it indicates that I have a good backup. My bootloader has always and still is locked.

Thanks!

acceler9,

I think it will only "partially" save root for you (if that's what you are asking about ).

The issue/reason is that the su binary and it's paired Superuser.apk file need to be updated for JellyBean. So, if you restore the su binary that is saved from either my app or the OTA RootKeeper app (excellent app, btw), then your apps' root access might not work, but you'll have root access via the adb shell.

So, what you really need is the new JellyBean compatible su binaries:

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/7460142/jb_su.zip

(URL courtesy of iowabowtech ).

Normally, you'd have to re-flash this .zip file from ClockworkMod, but since your bootloader is locked, you won't be able to directly do this (since you can't soft-boot CWM via fastboot).

So, what I think you'll have to do is either manually install the su binaries (from the above .zip file) and you'll have to do this via and adb shell or a on-phone terminal session (not as easy as adb). Or, you can manually flash ClockworkMod using the flash_image command and flash the above su.zip file. That all assumes that you really do have partial root from the saved-off su binary.

If you want, I can write-up instructions for you re. this... I don't know what your comfort level is with adb, but you must already have good USB access to your phone since you used this thread's scripts.

Let me know and I'll be able to get back with you this evening.

Cheers!

 

[acceler9]

Thanks for the prompt response! I'm OK with ADB and have a good USB connection to my PC. Can I copy the commands from your original bat file? Should I copy the files before or after the OTA update?
Thanks a million!

 

[scary alien]

Thanks for the prompt response! I'm OK with ADB and have a good USB connection to my PC. Can I copy the commands from your original bat file? Should I copy the files before or after the OTA update?
Thanks a million!

So, you are still on 4.0.4 ICS?

If you've already taken the JB OTA, then you'll need to use / reference the squirreled-away su binary in order to do the root binaries install.

I'm guessing / thinking that you might be able to install the new JB root binaries from the aforementioned .zip file ahead of installing the JB OTA...not 100% sure, though, but if your backed-up your su binary with my app and/or OTA RootKeeper, you still should be able to retain root access via adb.

~ ~ ~

Hey, acceler9, before I continue with the above, I totally forgot about the Bootloader Lock/Unlock Options I put into the app a couple of weeks ago.

You should be able to temporarily unlock your bootloader without wiping / losing your current setup.

So, I think you'd even be able to use the bootloader unlock feature from my app to unlock your bootloader prior to accepting the JB OTA. Then, after you've accepted and installed the JB OTA, you should be able to soft-boot CWM and simply flash the new JB-compatible su.zip to install the new root binaries.

Then, just use my app again to re-lock your bootloader.

This should be a little more straightforward for you than the path I started to send you down...

Let me know which path sounds more palatable to you so I can detail all of the steps for you (not too hard either way).

Thanks!

 

[acceler9]

Whoa, didn't even know a non-wipe boot loader unlocker was available! Very nice! So I've done the unlock (a reboot shows a padlock under the Google logo) and would like to use the CWM Soft-Boot method you mentioned. I have the jb_su.zip file both on my phone and on my laptop. What are my next steps (I've never used CWM; I assume that is ClockWork mod?)

Thanks!

 

[scary alien]

Whoa, didn't even know a non-wipe boot loader unlocker was available! Very nice! So I've done the unlock (a reboot shows a padlock under the Google logo) and would like to use the CWM Soft-Boot method you mentioned. I have the jb_su.zip file both on my phone and on my laptop. What are my next steps (I've never used CWM; I assume that is ClockWork mod?)

Thanks!

The padlock is showing as unlocked, right? It will need to be in order to use the fastboot utility.

Yeah, CWM is indeed ClockworkMod (we all get tired of writing all those letters out, LOL )...

CWM is pretty easy to use, but you'll also have to have the fastboot USB drivers installed (if you used the Samsung Naked drivers, you should be okay) in order to soft-boot CWM.

You'll need the fastboot utility which you can get form the sdk-tools.zip found in the "Mini-SDK" section of this thread: http://androidforums.com/faqs/443072-adb-guide-updated-12-05-2011-a.html

If you like, you can just extract the "fastboot.exe" and/or the "fastboot-windows.exe" file (they are both the same) to the same directory that you created when you first used this thread's process.

You'll also need the ClockworkMod custom recovery image, too, so download it from here:

http://download.clockworkmod.com/recoveries/recovery-clockwork-5.5.0.4-toro.img

File name: recovery-clockwork-5.5.0.4-toro.img
MD5: b2d31c29b7ef785f9c0802a12264d322
File size: 5,263,360 (bytes)

Okay, here we go:

0. if you haven't already, be sure to backup your su with my app and/or the OTA RootKeeper app (that will give us options to recover your root if need be)

1. if you haven't already, put the JB su.zip file we talked about earlier in the top-level of your /sdcard

2. make sure your USB cable is plugged in between the two

3. put your phone into fastboot / bootloader mode by one of these two ways:

A. with my Android Root Toolkit app under Reboot Options -> Reboot Bootloader

B. from a powered-off state, press (and hold!) volume-UP and volume-DOWN and power (keep holding all three until you see the little green Android laying down with his chest plate open)

4. verify fastboot USB connectivity:

c:\android-sdk-windows> fastboot devices

You should see something like "########## fastboot" where the #s indicate your device's serial number.

If you don't see this, then you might not have the fastboot USB drivers properly installed.

5. if the above looks good, then you can go-ahead and soft-boot CWM (i.e., this will NOT flash it overtop of your stock recovery, so you will retain your stock recovery setup):

c:\android-sdk-windows> fastboot boot recovery-clockwork-5.5.0.4-toro.img

This should launch / run ClockworkMod on your phone. Use the volume-rocker to navigate up and down on the screen and the power button to select an entry.

6. In CWM, to flash the su.zip file, select "install zip from sdcard" on the first screen, then select "choose zip from sdcard", then you should see your su.zip file, select it and choose yes to install/flash it.

After the flash is successful, return to the main menu and select reboot.

After rebooting, you should have the new root binaries installed which should work great for the 4.1.x OTA.

Let me know if you have any questions before you begin.

Cheers and best of luck!
-SA

For reference purposes, basically all of the above is covered in one post or another in this thread:

http://androidforums.com/verizon-galaxy-nexus-all-things-root/474570-how-all-things-root-samsung-galaxy-nexus.html

 

[acceler9]

Awesome! Thanks once again SA! I had two moments of sheer terror (lock up in bootloader mode, and drivers not working in bootloader mode). A battery pull and PDANet drivers solved both issues, and all went well after that. I can confirm Jellybean 4.1.1 with root on my Galaxy Nexus after following your guide.

Thanks again!