Database Develop

[BOOTLOADER BYPASS -WIP] EternityProject Kexec method for Motorola Olympus (Atrix 4G)

Welcome to Eternity Project!
So... as most of you know I'm working on the Atrix solution from TOO MUCH time.
With the collaboration of people on #moto-atrix I've stated that FUSES on Tegra2 are really OTP, so there isn't any way to CRACK the BL, but we can still BYPASS it.
So... what is it?:
kexec is a "fastreboot" that won't pass through the Moto Bootloader, so with it it's possible to use custom kernels and, with some other development, custom Android systems like CM7 and many others.
Where's the poop?
Okay, that's it: I've successfully compiled and ran kexec on the Atrix 4G, so that kexec works, but it needs a kernel that can boot with kexec. On x86 we can build a relocatable kernel so no problems... but not on ARM and obviously not on Tegra.
The thing that is missing is exactly... _the address of the boot params_!
And now?
I'm only searching for help for completing the project and make a kernel that is bootable from my god-it-is-really-working-kexec. Any devs around?
Downloads:
- Kexec pack V0.01: DOWNLOAD
Kexec pack contains:
- ATAGS for MB860 (ATRIX_atags.tar)
- ATAGS hack module (eternity_procfs.tar)
- kexec module (eternity_kexec.tar)
- kexec tools/binaries (kexec-tools.tar)
- Kernel....that doesn't work. (eternity_kexec_kernel.tar)
So, what does work and what does not?
- ATAGS hacky hack: WORKING
- kexec module: WORKING
- kexec tools/binaries WORKING
- Kernel ToDo
How to run it:
0. FLASH AT&T 1.2.6 SBF PRIOR DOING ANYTHING
1. Extract all the archives
2. Insert the procfs_rw.ko module
3. cat atags > /proc/atags
4. Insert the kexec module
5. Run kexec for loading the kernel and jumping to it.
6. Boot! :|
P.S.: I won't release detailed how-tos because at this state I only need a DEVELOPER that can help me to build the kernel.
Thanks to:
- PAulyHoffman (special thanks!)
- unknown
- Sogarth
- the2dcour
- cranch
- eval-
- and many, many others....!

Awesome, i can verify that this kexec is working and will continue testing until we succeed.

random boot animation I made for eternity project
http://diamantephoto.com/bootanimation_red.zip
Also: 1.2.6 without losing /data, in case you were wondering exactly why I made this
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1073439

kexec pack updated. now kexec-tools is included

@kholk: Hai;
so basically this is a port of the unix kexec to run on tegra based devices?
From my understanding the android system uses a boot image that has the ramdisk and kernel combined together and they are dependent on each other... so won't overwriting the kernel at runtime give you us some issues since the core initialization of the system is ran from the ramdisk???
wouldn't be a better idea to tackle this issue too? but then again the only reason we can't flash boot images is because of the bootloader but ofcourse this is definitely a step forward for the tegra users.
now about the kernel, theoretically if we build an aosp tegra kernel from http://android.git.kernel.org/?p=kernel/tegra.git;a=summary shouldn't it work?
I can try building us a kernel if that would work
PS: people let's keep this dev ONLY if you want us to get some progress we need able to read through the thread without useless posts.
edit: also found this https://opensource.motorola.com/sf/frs/do/listReleases/projects.atrix/frs.olympus I'm sure having the source for the kernel we are currently running is also helpful

I know we should keep this dev only but please don't tell me this is for ATT only i already feel shafted enough being a Bell user and that would make it a hell of a lot worse if it was

Ratchet556 said:
I know we should keep this dev only but please don't tell me this is for ATT only i already feel shafted enough being a Bell user and that would make it a hell of a lot worse if it was
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When a kernel that works will be deployed I'll personally port it to Bell Atrix. This will take only some seconds.

kholk, perhaps we can ask a defy developer (or any of the phones that have kexec working) to help us build the kernel.
it's too bad da_g isn't around, he did a custom kernel but wasn't able to boot it.

I'm not a developer so I am hoping someone can help me understand this process better. From my understanding kexec is used as a reboot method that skips initial bootloader and hardware loading so how will this effect if we turn our phone off or pull the battery? Will the device need to be rebooted after initial startup to reactivate the kexec? Sorry to sound like the newbie that I am, I'm just interested in learning more.

lostinbeta said:
I'm not a developer so I am hoping someone can help me understand this process better. From my understanding kexec is used as a reboot method that skips initial bootloader and hardware loading so how will this effect if we turn our phone off or pull the battery? Will the device need to be rebooted after initial startup to reactivate the kexec? Sorry to sound like the newbie that I am, I'm just interested in learning more.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I'm also a little confused as to what exactly this means for all of us people who want to just flash Custom ROMs and such? In what ways is this different than just an unlocked bootloader and such?

lostinbeta said:
I'm not a developer so I am hoping someone can help me understand this process better. From my understanding kexec is used as a reboot method that skips initial bootloader and hardware loading so how will this effect if we turn our phone off or pull the battery? Will the device need to be rebooted after initial startup to reactivate the kexec? Sorry to sound like the newbie that I am, I'm just interested in learning more.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thebeardedchild said:
Yeah, I'm also a little confused as to what exactly this means for all of us people who want to just flash Custom ROMs and such? In what ways is this different than just an unlocked bootloader and such?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Assuming my understanding of kexec is correct, this would survive battery pulls. Basically, a custom rom would need to include two kernels: a Motorola kernel in addition to the custom one. The bootloader would run the Motorola kernel, which should pass any checks the bootloader would make. From there, the kernel would use kexec to load the custom kernel over itself in memory, effectively replacing itself. From there the custom kernel can continue loading the rom.
If the booloader were unlocked, the phone could directly boot the custom kernel. The downside of loading the custom one on top of the Motorola one is that the state of the phone might not be entirely known, so it would need to do more work checking what's been initialized and what hasn't. Its a little more work for the kernel/rom developer, but the end result is the same.

Jotokun said:
Assuming my understanding of kexec is correct, this would survive battery pulls. Basically, a custom rom would need to include two kernels: a Motorola kernel in addition to the custom one. The bootloader would run the Motorola kernel, which should pass any checks the bootloader would make. From there, the kernel would use kexec to load the custom kernel over itself in memory, effectively replacing itself. From there the custom kernel can continue loading the rom.
If the booloader were unlocked, the phone could directly boot the custom kernel. The downside of loading the custom one on top of the Motorola one is that the state of the phone might not be entirely known, so it would need to do more work checking what's been initialized and what hasn't. Its a little more work for the kernel/rom developer, but the end result is the same.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see, thanks for the explanation! So, on the user end, would there be any noticeable differences? This kind of makes it sound like the phone will be doing a lot more work, so could we see performance decrease or perhaps startup lag or something of the sort? Or would this all pretty much function on the surface as if we had flashed a custom ROM on some phone without a locked bootloader?

thebeardedchild said:
I see, thanks for the explanation! So, on the user end, would there be any noticeable differences? This kind of makes it sound like the phone will be doing a lot more work, so could we see performance decrease or perhaps startup lag or something of the sort? Or would this all pretty much function on the surface as if we had flashed a custom ROM on some phone without a locked bootloader?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Boot time will be about twice as long. Other then that, everything will run about the same

Yes thank you very much for that explanation... though I do also have the question about stability. By replacing the current kernel in memory with the new modified kernel the phone state may get confused as you mentioned... could this cause instability as a whole or increase risk of kernel panics? Or once everything is loaded and complete does it stabilize with the modified kernel?
Again sorry for the questions. This topic intrigues me and I love learning how stuff works.

thebeardedchild said:
I see, thanks for the explanation! So, on the user end, would there be any noticeable differences? This kind of makes it sound like the phone will be doing a lot more work, so could we see performance decrease or perhaps startup lag or something of the sort? Or would this all pretty much function on the surface as if we had flashed a custom ROM on some phone without a locked bootloader?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Only difference would be that it might take slightly longer to boot up. Once the phone is finished booting, there's no difference in terms of performance because by that point the Motorola kernel isnt running, or even loaded.

thebeardedchild said:
Haha yeah I'm checking every like 2 seconds now. What exactly do we wait for then? Someone to just create the custom kernel, and then of course wait for some Custom ROMs to be created? I hope we get CM7!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Kexec isn't fully operational yet, still need to find boot params. Then custom kernel.

How easy will this be to install on our phones? will it just be something we need to flash through CWM or will it require some more work then that to install?

Ratchet556 said:
How easy will this be to install on our phones? will it just be something we need to flash through CWM or will it require some more work then that to install?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I imagine some of the preliminary stuff may need to be pushed with ADB but devs are always nice and give us very clear guides. And I'm sure either a dev or active member could easily create a batch script.
Even though I'm comfortable with ADB I always make scripts for myself because I regularly wipe me phone and whatnot. Because it's so engaging some people might want to wait until a few normal community members test this out so we can see if there are any glaring challenges with the instructions. Just remember to back things up, read instructions clearly and I'm sure we'll all be fine. We've got SBFs and all that good stuff to cover our asses too.

Would it be possible to bring fastboot off the htc to this? Then we won't have to worry about boot time at all. Even if it did double the boot time...
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App

PixoNova said:
This bypasses the bootloader
Swyped from my Motorola Atrix 4g using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Correct this method has nothing to do with unlocking the bootloader and previous attempts at that proved it maybe impossible.

Why ODIN? WHY?!

It's driving me nuts, and I would like someone to help me understand. I came here with a bricked and completely unrepairable phone, and I have since managed to get a new Note. The completely stubborn side of me went right away flashing ICS ROMS...Okay, that's all good and well...No harm done anyway. But why don't developers include the "base" and root kernel files in their frickin' ROMS?! It's incredibly annoying. Why do I have to go into "ODIN" and download mode to flash some repack, wipe wipe wipe, reboot, flash another base, wipe wipe wipe, reboot, and finally flash a "custom" ROM. I should be able to flash a single .zip file through CWM and be down with it. I'm not bad talking at all, and I greatly appreciate what developers do around here.
For example, MIDNOTE includes ICS kernel and base...one integrated file. EVERYTHING works, and I have full root access. I'm wondering what it will be like when Samsung comes out with an official ICS version, will I have to flash ten different files to use a custom ROM or will developers be able to integrate it into their work? Just a question...not meant to cause trouble in the least...it just erks me the wrong way. And I'm sure others are wondering the same too.

They does it because you dont need to get those annoying yellow triangle and increase those custom binary counters....Would you like having triangles and increase counters?And the ICS roms are too early releases and are still in beta stages.So you need to go with the process.GB roms dont have these problems and are less hectic.Thats why I still stay in GB.Custom ICS roms will be ok when Official ICS is released.

@smalmagal
you are aboulutely right...
its a shame that they dont make it even easier to flash...
i mean please, the only thing that they are doing is:
- Prepare a Rom from scratch
- Provide updates
- Try to fix bugs
- And that in their free time for free
why not make a rom that i click on and its installed on my device...
like windows popups...
Click on Link and choose:
a- Save
b- Open
c- Flash to my Phone, make all the settings and text my GF that i love her...
Pleaseeee mate...
Not everyone is a dev here but at least we should be able to flash a rom...
Cooking takes days and week, flashing in WORST case 1 hour...

Bulut.O said:
@smalmagal
why not make a rom that i click on and its installed on my device...
like windows popups...
Click on Link and choose:
a- Save
b- Open
c- Flash to my Phone, make all the settings and text my GF that i love her...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Made my day!!! LOL !! could you please add
d-
e-
f-
ha ha ha ha ha ha hah!!

Bulut.O said:
@smalmagal
you are aboulutely right...
its a shame that they dont make it even easier to flash...
i mean please, the only thing that they are doing is:
- Prepare a Rom from scratch
- Provide updates
- Try to fix bugs
- And that in their free time for free
why not make a rom that i click on and its installed on my device...
like windows popups...
Click on Link and choose:
a- Save
b- Open
c- Flash to my Phone, make all the settings and text my GF that i love her...
Pleaseeee mate...
Not everyone is a dev here but at least we should be able to flash a rom...
Cooking takes days and week, flashing in WORST case 1 hour...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you serious???????Do you think rom flashing is like installing your favorite app???As I said when Stock ICS is released everything would become easy

Bulut.O said:
@smalmagal
you are aboulutely right...
its a shame that they dont make it even easier to flash...
i mean please, the only thing that they are doing is:
- Prepare a Rom from scratch
- Provide updates
- Try to fix bugs
- And that in their free time for free
why not make a rom that i click on and its installed on my device...
like windows popups...
Click on Link and choose:
a- Save
b- Open
c- Flash to my Phone, make all the settings and text my GF that i love her...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
vijai2011 said:
Are you serious???????Do you think rom flashing is like installing your favorite app???As I said when Stock ICS is released everything would become easy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@vijai2011 you completely missed the point!! Didn't you??
The things said by @Bulut.O is called SARCASM
Read again!! And this time carefully!!
Peace

I'm serious guys! This is the only device I've ever owned where I have to flash a million different files just to get my phone booting...so I'm just trying to understand what's up. And obviously I LOVE the Note or else I wouldn't have bought two.
Developers do this for free...okay, yeah...but they don't have to do it half-assed? If I was going to sell you a car, I'd probably give it to you one piece. I wouldn't make you take all the parts and put them together yourself only in the end to find out that you're missing the engine and have to start all over again. And honestly, that's how I feel around here sometimes.
And the comment about Windows is out of line. I don't use Windows...why does everyone assume Windows? Honestly don't know why more don't use Linux around here. Windows just plan ol' sucks.
Edit: Custom ROMS aren't build from "scratch" by the way...and not everyone around here who posts a ROM is a "developer."

This issue is not because of lazy developers. It is because Samsung is tired of replacing devices under warranty when the terms of said warranty have been broken, and as a result putting extra security measures in place.
Lazy developers would let you get the yellow triangle, and then let you foot the bill for your mistakes while flashing.

beestee said:
This issue is not because of lazy developers. It is because Samsung is tired of replacing devices under warranty when the terms of said warranty have been broken, and as a result putting extra security measures in place.
Lazy developers would let you get the yellow triangle, and then let you foot the bill for your mistakes while flashing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Huh? I'm talking about doing everything from CWM...not from ODIN. So no yellow triangle...and as far as I know, every custom ROM around here is a CWM flashable .zip file...minus the oh so coveted ICS repack...which needs ODIN for some unknown reason to me. So now, I'm not calling myself lazy, or the developers around here for that matter. There's a good reason, I know it...I want to find out. Samsung is a different beast for sure, and this is the first Samsung device I've owned, and I'm trying to avoid bricking again, so I'd like to learn all the procedures and such...and why they're necessary. It's for my piece of mind really.

smalmagal said:
Huh? I'm talking about doing everything from CWM...not from ODIN. So no yellow triangle...and as far as I know, every custom ROM around here is a CWM flashable .zip file...minus the oh so coveted ICS repack...which needs ODIN for some unknown reason to me. So now, I'm not calling myself lazy, or the developers around here for that matter. There's a good reason, I know it...I want to find out. Samsung is a different beast for sure, and this is the first Samsung device I've owned, and I'm trying to avoid bricking again, so I'd like to learn all the procedures and such...and why they're necessary. It's for my piece of mind really.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You just answered your own question. The process is long and somewhat complicated because it HAS to be done via recovery. If it were done via download mode in ODIN, it would be much simpler; but it would trip the counter. Using recovery instead of download mode sidesteps this problem, but it introduces others. That is why flashing to/from ICS/GB via recovery is so complicated.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium

I appreciate you bleeding edge types, but this is why I wait a few weeks AFTER an official rom is released, before I even consider a custom rom.
ICS is still an infant...I'd rather have one that was at least able to drive a car before I install it.

geo.samuel said:
@vijai2011 you completely missed the point!! Didn't you??
The things said by @Bulut.O is called SARCASM
Read again!! And this time carefully!!
Peace
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol....Ok.understood it now.Now generally as said in above post,lazy developers would let you get triangles and increase custom binaries.So they need to make multiple files which makes your phone ready for flashing your favorite firmware.If you probably own a galaxy s series you would know how easy it was to flash firmwares.Thats because sammy did not implement any security measures which Gnote has.Hope you understand

smalmagal said:
every custom ROM around here is a CWM flashable .zip file...minus the oh so coveted ICS repack...which needs ODIN for some unknown reason to me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's because of the kernel and root. Unlike GB kernels, this one seems to be a bit wonky, and your root permissions get lost easily in CWMR flashing or Nand restoring. Hence the convoluted flashing procedures. Lack of code sources, I suppose.
All of us have to accept this if we want a taste of Roms based on the Chinese leak. No-one is happy with the current state of the affairs, but we manage.
Nobody is forcing you to deal with it. If you can't, stick with GB Roms until the final version of ICS drops.

I have flashed several ICS Roms and only flashed the chainfire repack the very first time when I moved to ICS from gingerbread. I have flashed Criskelo, rocket and midnote just from CWM. Never had a triangle, SOD etc...just full wipe before I flashed and then cleared caches after.

[MINI-GUIDE] Roadmap to a Custom ROM!

Roadmap to Custom ROM​
1.Unlock Bootloader from htcdev.com.
2.Flash a multi hboot recovery.
3.Root using the permanent root solution flashed via recovery, found here.
4.Flash S-OFF Hboot from unlimited.io.
5.Flash custom ROM with no problems.
To check your Unlock Token, Flash Recovery and S-OFF you should use the tool provided by me here .

This is the easiest guide to follow.. I'm also using this step to install custom Rom on my SXL before I got One X.. I'm also don't get it.. why people don't use unlimited.io trick.. it easier for me.
BTW.. it good to see a new dev for sxl.. it a good device.. but lack of developer.. wish you good luck with your project.
Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

Agreed.
I've flashed on a lot of devices and the SXL guides are all a bit random.
The info is out there but sometimes you need to dig a lot to find it.
And a lot are out of date.
Hope this becomes the go-to guide for everyone and hope to see some dev work happening.
I think its time to move on for me..... getting flash withdrawal.

Prof Peach said:
Agreed.
I've flashed on a lot of devices and the SXL guides are all a bit random.
The info is out there but sometimes you need to dig a lot to find it.
And a lot are out of date.
Hope this becomes the go-to guide for everyone and hope to see some dev work happening.
I think its time to move on for me..... getting flash withdrawal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm just getting familiar with the forum and the device (almost 4 days since i bought it).
Soon enough if i have time (back2school), i will try to work on CM9 or CM10, depends, CM9 seems the obvious road to take as some work was previosly made by [vertigo], and some fixes are needed (he said that are kernel related), so i think i will try to fix his CM9 rather than port it again form scratch.
As for CM10, i think the best road to take is to compile AOSP JB from source and edit the kernel so it likes the jelly flavour.
If everything works as intedend, in a couple of months we should see both CM9 and JB/CM10 up and going.
(The worst thing is that i will surely need help, i think i can find around the forum, some testers already enrolled to the call to arms thread, so maybe we can build up a team., i really like this device )

I will say that some of the guides are if you were on a GB rom, and then installing a custom rom wasn't so easy, but since the upgrade to ICS it has become a lot easier, although I had noticed that it is easier to softbrick the phone if you don't flash the chinese boot.img and then chinese rom. Also s-off isn't essential for flashing custom roms...

[vertigo] said:
I will say that some of the guides are if you were on a GB rom, and then installing a custom rom wasn't so easy, but since the upgrade to ICS it has become a lot easier, although I had noticed that it is easier to softbrick the phone if you don't flash the chinese boot.img and then chinese rom. Also s-off isn't essential for flashing custom roms...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, i'm fairly new to this device, but from what i've learned, the chinsese rom is optional if you have s-off, as s-off let's you to access all the partitions, system and other things you need.
Maybe i'm wrong, that's why i've started this thread, i think this is easier, and softbricking a phone with Android seems almost impossible to me...as i said, to me

Yeah I know the chinese rom is optional, but as I said from my point of view, once I'd flashed the chinese rom, I didn't manage to softbrick the phone where as before when I was trying various ports I managed to softbrick it a few times. Just my opinion and what I'd noticed with my device...
As for s-off mine (although broken) is still s-on and I've never felt the need to make it s-off. Again just my opinion

[vertigo] said:
Yeah I know the chinese rom is optional, but as I said from my point of view, once I'd flashed the chinese rom, I didn't manage to softbrick the phone where as before when I was trying various ports I managed to softbrick it a few times. Just my opinion and what I'd noticed with my device...
As for s-off mine (although broken) is still s-on and I've never felt the need to make it s-off. Again just my opinion
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, i know what youre pointing at, i was just wandering when i first read te forum, why on earth should i install a Chinsese ROM when i will change it anyways for a new ROM...so the boot.img is a different one in the custom one, and other things.
I'm not so expeirenced with S-Off/On, as this is my first HTC phone i have and changed ROM (not too many HTC's in my area), but from what i've read online, S-Off is the best road to take to ensure you don't softbrick your phone, as you have the real "Full Control" over the Device and the ROM parts you can flash, like you, this is my opinion, a begginers opinion

Double Post because reedited thread

Hi Lexmazter,
Thanks for making this guide, it is easy to follow. But I'm stuck at a small point and face below response; -
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>'fastboot' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file.<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Please let me know where did I do wrong? Thanks.
My steps were: -
factory reset
root via DooMLoRD_v4_ROOT
titanium backup worked and restore all apps and settings
unclocked the bootloader from htcdev.
all data gone, no more, like factory reset again
superuser app still exist, didn't root again
booted and rooted as you said
connect PC to phone via USB in charge mode only.
run your tool
doing select 5 Flash HBOOT S-OFF Unprotected (via adb) - choose hg hi both failed - but face above message 3 repeat lines.
reboot to bootloader FASTBOOT, >>>>>USB<<<<< appear
UNLOCK at top also appear
then select 4 Flash Recovery. (via fastboot) - then choose rei reg both failed - but face above message. 1 line.
Hope can teach me, thank you very much in advance.
And I'm sure I didn't do something right before hand.

cx5 said:
Hi Lexmazter,
Thanks for making this guide, it is easy to follow. But I'm stuck at a small point and face below response; -
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>'fastboot' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file.<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Please let me know where did I do wrong? Thanks.
My steps were: -
factory reset
root via DooMLoRD_v4_ROOT
titanium backup worked and restore all apps and settings
unclocked the bootloader from htcdev.
all data gone, no more, like factory reset again
superuser app still exist, didn't root again
booted and rooted as you said
connect PC to phone via USB in charge mode only.
run your tool
doing select 5 Flash HBOOT S-OFF Unprotected (via adb) - choose hg hi both failed - but face above message 3 repeat lines.
reboot to bootloader FASTBOOT, >>>>>USB<<<<< appear
UNLOCK at top also appear
then select 4 Flash Recovery. (via fastboot) - then choose rei reg both failed - but face above message. 1 line.
Hope can teach me, thank you very much in advance.
And I'm sure I didn't do something right before hand.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Extract the contents of the archive in C:/ and try again, it is most likely because you are running from a folder that has spaces (" ").

Thanks for replying so quickly, some questions before sleep tonight.
I moved the folder to c:\xmtool and run as administrator as usual. But without connecting the phone, and select 5 flash H boot. The 3 repeat message appear still. Hahah, may be I want to test in theory.
Anyway, reading more more other post and try again this weekend.
Thanks !!!! many of your post and reply has been insightful.

[HOWTO] Simple root and recovery on a brand new Galaxy S4 on MK2

To start and get it out of the way:
DISCLAIMER: Typical legal stuff. Use this guide at your own risk. Author makes no claim as to guarantee, or warranty any software described in this document. The author cannot be held liable for any damages caused to your device or any other harm as a result of attempting to do anything described in this guide or anything that you choose to do with your device whatsoever. USE THIS GUIDE AT YOUR OWN RISK! MODIFY YOUR DEVICE COMPLETELY AT YOUR OWN RISK!
This is a basic guide for those wanting to root their brand new Galaxy S4 and get it to what I call general working condition. This is specifically written for and tested on the SPRINT Galaxy S4 (sph-L720) preinstalled with and running the MK2 firmware, and the links provided are for the sprint model listed. Although these basic steps may work on other galaxy S4 variants, the software specific for your model of phone will need to be downloaded. The relevant threads do link "main" threads where you can find information and downloads specific to your device model. Again, be careful.
what I call "general" working condition includes:
Root access (using CF-Auto-Root found here)
Advanced recovery (in this case using PhilZ CWM found here)
I know this is all basic stuff, however I have found that the guides so far are either overly complicated or too specific for a certain step. Don't misinterpret this as an attack or insult to the other authors of those guides. They are all very well written and great resources in their own right for their own purposes, and I had referenced many of them myself before taking the steps I chose to take. However I found that many of them are written for older stock ROM versions migrating to MK2 or again very specific for just rooting or just installing CWM. What I was looking for was what to do if you just bought an S4 a week ago preinstalled with the latest MK2 official ROM. I found that the procedure was far simpler than what I was worried about.
First, what you'll need:
samsung usb drivers, I got them directly from samsung's website and you should too. Download here.
When it comes to drivers I am far too paranoid about viruses and such to download them from anybody but the device manufacturer and I highly recommend sticking with official drivers only. Use downloaded drivers from other sources AT YOUR OWN RISK!
Odin (download here)
CF-Auto-Root (found here)
The next ones are optional and are required ONLY if you want a custom recovery installed. Currently I only have instructions for PhilZ CWM however at this point I think TWRP or any other custom recovery should flash just fine assuming they work well for your Galaxy S4.
(optional, required for custom roms, etc)PhilZ CWM found here).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What I used (for reference): AMD A8 on Windows 8.1. Not sure if OS/System type has anything to do with it, but it is conceivable and is there for reference and possible troubleshooting. For example if this doesn't work as well on windows XP systems, we may want to know that. For now until a reason develops, assume this works well on all MODERN versions of windows (I will laugh if you fail on windows 9x/ME, seriously, laugh hard. Don't try to flash your phone on *old* OS's!)
Before you start, verify your phone is on MK2. I got my phone brand new with it preinstalled but if you got it from the store for example, it could've been sitting on a shelf for the last 3 months and not on MK2 yet. Again I wrote this guide and tested it using a phone with MK2 preinstalled and not having even seen a connection to a PC yet, root, custom flash, or anything outside of normal stock usage. This should theoretically work on a completely stock phone upgraded to MK2 however that's not what I tested with. Results may vary with variables changed. To verify your current build version, from your home screen: menu button > settings > more > about device. Look at both "software version" and "build number". if the last 3 characters in both are "MK2" then you're on the latest and greatest and can proceed. Otherwise do a system update and take your chances once your phone is finished doing its stock update. DO NOT TAKE AN OTA UPDATE IF YOUR PHONE HAS BEEN MODIFIED IN ANY WAY WITH ROOT, CUSTOM ROMS, RECOVERIES, OR ANYTHING FLASHED THAT DIDN'T COME OTA FROM SPRINT!!!!!! You may end up with a very expensive paperweight.
FIRST PART, ROOTING:
Now let's get to business. First thing, make sure you downloaded all the files listed above, including PhilZ CWM if you want a custom recovery. Most people who want root also want a custom recovery, and I like it for the backup capabilities but since it's not *absolutely* necessary I listed it as optional.
1. Install the samsung USB drivers. Your computer needs to know how to talk to your phone before we can do anything. I reccommend the official ones from the samsung site as I am incredibly leery of downloading device drivers from anywhere but the manufacturer for ANY hardware ever. Call me paranoid but that's why I don't end up with viruses and malware on my systems either I'm not saying that all of the non-samsung site downloads are bad, I'm sure others have reuploaded the official drivers to other mirrors but like I said I'm paranoid when it comes to "system modifying" type of files like drivers.
1a. reboot your computer. Yes I shoehorned this step in and didn't want to renumber everything. I didn't reboot because I was lazy but you probably should. Really, don't be lazy like me, even though it worked for me. Ok, be lazy, but at your own risk.
1b. Also, at this point if you're at all familiar with ADB and are so inclined (or paranoid) you may want to consider making a backup of your phone, however to be honest I'm not certain how well this works since ADB doesn't get root access by default. I'm sure there's a guide somewhere if you really want to make a backup of your original phone prior to flashing anything. I should do this step myself but I generally opt to wait until I get a custom recovery installed and make a nandriod backup that way because I'm lazy.
2. take a deep breath, it really isn't that scary. Take it from a guy who's now on his 4th rooted samsung device (T-Mobile Galaxy s4, Sprint Samsung Conquer, Sprint Galaxy S3, and now Sprint Galaxy S4). As long as you follow instructions CAREFULLY you should be just fine.
3. Extract the CF-Auto-Root zip file you downloaded. Again use windows explorer for two reasons: it handles zip files just fine, and it also DOESN'T handle .tar.* files so you don't run the risk of accidental double unzipping. Just copy the .tar.md5 file from the zip and place it somewhere you can find it, like your downloads folder. At this point you may want to consider moving all your downloaded and extracted files to a folder just for Galaxy S4 stuff, but that's a suggestion to help manage things easier.
4. Power off your phone if you haven't already. FULL power off, don't reboot. You may want to drop the battery to be absolutely certain, or wait another 15-20 seconds after you think it's off if you don't feel like it because you have an otterbox or something. Once you're 100% certain your phone is off, boot into download mode. This must be done *somewhat* carefully, read the following procedure completely before attempting. it's not hard but you can get frustrated by accidental aborts if you're unfamiliar with this. To boot into download mode: hold down the volume down button and press power until you feel the phone vibrate and the very second the screen lights up. RELEASE BOTH KEYS. You should see a screen come up with a warning about downloading a custom OS and asking you if you want to continue. Press Volume UP on your phone to continue. (volume down aborts and reboots the phone, now you see how this can be frustrating....). In some cases you may see the samsung logo first, but in my case it goes straight to the download screen. If you have problems going into download mode and see the samsung logo when the screen lights up instead, try holding volume down until you see a "recovery booting" or something similar message in tiny letters in the upper left corner of your screen with the samsung logo, then release volume down. DO NOT CONNECT YOUR PHONE TO YOUR COMPUTER YET!
5. Extract and open ODIN (I used odin V 3.07, it seems to work just fine). This should work fine in typical windows explorer. Just open the zip file, copy the ODIN v3.07 folder (not the exe file in that folder) to a directory of your choice. I just slapped it in my downloads folder with the zip because I'm lazy like that.
6. Now that ODIN is open, connect your phone. If you have already connected your phone prior to this, go back to step two and reread that part about following directions CAREFULLY
Assuming everything is going well, you should see a box that sasys ID:COM something light up like 0:[COM3] Don't be alarmed if it's not exactly the same com port, as long as there is one. The important part is that it has a valid com port, which will only happen if it detects your phone properly.
7. Click PDA and select the CF-Auto-Root...tar.md5 file you extracted. By default "auto reboot" and "F. Reset Time" are selected. Leave them checked. MAKE CERTAIN THAT Re-Partition IS NOT CHECKED!!!!!! Also, make sure everything else is unchecked besides PDA, auto reboot, and F. Reset time. Take a deep breath, then click "Start"
At this point your phone will reboot and do some automated stuff. You will see a big box light up in odin, ending up with "PASS!" if everything flashed well. Keep your phone connected until the phone reboots to your normal start screen. If your device goes as smoothly as mine did, it should flash the file, reboot the phone, do it's auto root process, reboot again, then go to the normal start screen. Essentially you end up with your phone exactly as you had it before, but with root. So root is *mostly* installed but we require one additional step to make sure things work smoothly.
8. open your app drawer, and then open the SuperSU app. It will load then it should inform you that KNOX is detected and ask you if you want to disable KNOX. Select yes. If you select NO and try to use root with KNOX enabled, root may not work well if at all, cause the earth to fall out of orbit, and god to punch your favorite cute furry animal. Also, you can disconnect your phone at this point, and should before continuing on.
Now you should be done. That's it. Really simple, You have root. Go forth and try not to destroy your phone with your newfound power, or read on and get a custom recovery installed and really do some stuff.
SECOND PART, INSTALLING PhilZ CWM RECOVERY:
1. READ ALL DIRECTIONS LISTED BELOW THOROUGHLY FIRST BEFORE ACTUALLY DOING ANYTHING!!! Also, this should only be done AFTER all the above steps are completed. Place phone into download mode as described in step 4 above. Quick reference: hold volume down, then press and hold power until the phone vibrates and screen lights up. Press volume up to continue.
2. Close ODIN from your previous flash if you haven't already. Once it's closed re-open it. This is in here to make sure we have a fresh ODIN window and aren't accidentally flashing root again. Once we have a nice and clean ODIN window, connect your phone. You should see the lovely COM box light up.
3. This process should look familiar to what we just did, since it basically is the same thing. This time click PDA and select the philz_touch...tar.md5 file. Also make sure "Auto Reboot" and "F. Reset time" as well as "PDA" are all checked. PDA should automatically get checked when you click the button and select a file. Make sure nothing else is checked ESPECIALLY MAKE SURE RE-PARTITION IS NOT CHECKED!!!
4. Click start. Again ODIN will send the file, and end up with "PASS!" in the big box above the COM:x box. Once it's done the phone will reboot. The original directions say it should go to recovery but my phone rebooted as normal. Disconnect your phone. To get to recovery at this point you should simply just need to power down the phone completely. Then press and hold Volume up and then press and hold power until you see "recovery booting" in tiny letters in the upper left side of the screen with the samsung logo. MAKE SURE you hold volume up before power as this makes booting into recovery MUCH easier. If you see a custom CWM looking recovery (if you have never seen cwm before, the "philz options" menu option in recovery should be a great clue that the flash was successful). If you see a charging icon come up when powering off your phone, disconnect it from your computer.
So now if everything went as smoothly as it did for me, you should have a rooted galaxy S4 with a custom recovery at the ready to help with installing fancy ROMS, firmwares, modems, mods, etc or simply making really good nandroid backups. I HIGHLY suggest that you boot into recovery and make a nandroid backup of your rom before you play around with it too much, preferably saving your backup to your external SD card. Also be sure to follow any additional instructions for any further customizations.
IMPORTANT NOTES: DO NOT take an OTA update once this is done. From what I have read it *may* brick your phone. Typically in the past on other devices it just fails and reboots but other devices didn't have things like KNOX for example. Just don't risk it. However this shouldn't be an issue as your phone should already have the latest MK2 firmware installed as of the date of this article, at least until the next update comes up. it is highly recommended that you disable the "system update" notification, and there are guides available here on XDA on how to do that. Maybe one day I will find and link them, or someone nice may find and link it for me in the replies ;p This will keep you from "accidentally" trying to install an OTA update and bricking your phone.
Any problems? You probably didn't follow a step properly, but it is possible that I forgot something or left something out. I thought I was pretty thorough however I am human and make mistakes. Just reply here and I will do my best to get back when I can, however I do have a full time job and a personal life so no guarantees on how soon replies will come.
THANKS goes to:
The entire XDA community, for all the help, resources, and everything else over the years despite my less patient moments.
Chainfire for his work on the CF-Auto-Root utility and instructions contained therein, which were included here and expanded upon. Also for his work on SuperSU which not only helps manage root access, but is nice enough to have the ability to disable KNOX automagically for us.
Phil3759 (aka PhilZ) for his work on his modified version of CWM for the galaxy S4 and other devices, and instructions (adapted for flashing the S4 specifically)
Spiricore for his reference material. I didn't use much, if any of it, here however it was very helpful in researching the galaxy S4 and rooting options. It is a great resource for those having issues flashing their phone for one reason or another. Some of the steps I *think* may be superfluous however if you REALLY want to make sure things will work, it should help. It's a nice alternative and can be found here.
daerragh for posting the download and info for ODIN, and possibly writing it unless I am misinformed. Otherwise thanks to the author of ODIN as well.
Unknownforce for more reference material, modem firmwares, kernels, and cool GS4 ROMS. Only researched his material for this article much like spiricores work, but worthy of a thanks nonetheless.
runwithme for more reference used for research in rooting for this article and my phone, and for the stock roms.
Anybody else I may have forgotten, or who have contributed to the works described above or used in this article.

reserved for future use

Another guide on how to root your S4!! Yeah!! And way to complicated again. Let me give you my simple guide and easiest method. This method also doesn't trip the knox warranty counter.
1. Turn on usb debugging on your phone.
2. Install Samsung USB drivers. If not already installed.
3. Connect your phone to your Windows PC. (No need to enter download mode, just connect as an MTP device.)
4. Run Safe Root .bat file found here & attached below(unzip the bat file from the zip file): http://www.droidviews.com/root-verizon-galaxy-s4-sch-i545-on-android-4-3-vruemk2/
(This file works on Sprint, Verizon, and AT&T so don't worry about the Verizon reference)
5. Follow instructions on screen and profit.
If you want a custom recovery installed, WHICH WILL TRIP THE KNOX WARRANTY FLAG, download goo manager from the play store and install TWRP.
Now that was easy!

cruise350 said:
Another guide on how to root your S4!! Yeah!! And way to complicated again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dude cut OP some slack, I got my s4 about a month ago and can honestly say that after reading all I can about rooting an out of box s4 with knox/4.3 and mk2, no mod has set a sticky in place to explain a simple way.
All I hear is all the prior MK2 people whining about how we should read.. Guess what, we do, it's not as clear cut as pre-knox, and I can promise you, if you recently came from another phone, you would be in our boat.
Ive read where your safe root gives all your private info to someone other than nsa. Oh, that sounds like something I want to do.. Is it true? No clue, but I'll pass to be safe
All the countless posts, threads would go away if a mod would simply put a sticky near qb77's, that way we wouldn't be posting and whining to drive you all nuts!
By the way, thank you to the OP for taking your time to do this, it's more than most would do
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

ibcenu said:
Dude cut OP some slack, I got my s4 about a month ago and can honestly say that after reading all I can about rooting an out of box s4 with knox/4.3 and mk2, no mod has set a sticky in place to explain a simple way.
All I hear is all the prior MK2 people whining about how we should read.. Guess what, we do, it's not as clear cut as pre-knox, and I can promise you, if you recently came from another phone, you would be in our boat.
Ive read where your safe root gives all your private info to someone other than nsa. Oh, that sounds like something I want to do.. Is it true? No clue, but I'll pass to be safe
All the countless posts, threads would go away if a mod would simply put a sticky near qb77's, that way we wouldn't be posting and whining to drive you all nuts!
By the way, thank you to the OP for taking your time to do this, it's more than most would do
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well now there are 4 threads on the first page of the general section on how to root MK2. Besides the fact that cf autoroot works on all versions of the software and is the reason why the mods haven't stickied another thread since qbkings method is still valid. Safe Root is not the Chinese method and is safe to use. And if this forum didn't need another simple thread that is actually way over complicated. As others have said, a little searching will turn up the answers. I don't mean to rain on anyone's parade but at least when I added my post, I offered a truly simple method to root opposed to the OP.

cruise350 said:
Well now there are 4 threads on the first page of the general section on how to root MK2. Besides the fact that cf autoroot works on all versions of the software
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Many people have reported issues with chain fire method on newer preloaded 4.3 phones, so how can you say it works on all..
Others have reported safe root, not safe
It's just way to many threads, to many people reporting different issues with (after mk2) newer phones, to say that what's on the 1st page works for everyone
So my 02 cents worth, a sticky of after mk2 newer phones root method would be very helpful.... Ask anyone who has a newer preloaded phone
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

Saferoot and Kingo app are very easy to root. You literally click one button.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

Safe root is easy, but can I flash a recovery simply by installing goo manager and flashing from inside the app? I've been flashing and rooting since the g1, and honestly this mk2 update is difficult to figure out. There are a lot of mixed answers out there. So I appreciate this post very much. Thank you sir.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

Installing recovery will trip Knox.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

princebabyeater said:
Safe root is easy, but can I flash a recovery simply by installing goo manager and flashing from inside the app? I've been flashing and rooting since the g1, and honestly this mk2 update is difficult to figure out. There are a lot of mixed answers out there. So I appreciate this post very much. Thank you sir.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If this is correct, can I just do this to flash custom rom without having root first? Not really worried about knox, as surely there will be a fix..eventually?

slothicka said:
If this is correct, can I just do this to flash custom rom without having root first? Not really worried about knox, as surely there will be a fix..eventually?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Goo manager requires root.
Sent from my icrap 2 using Tapatalk HD

slothicka said:
If this is correct, can I just do this to flash custom rom without having root first? Not really worried about knox, as surely there will be a fix..eventually?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, a custom recovery is still required to flash a different rom. In order to first flash a custom recovery, root is required.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

FireTV Partial Bootloader Unlock

Well it's a little early for Christmas... but here is a special gift. This will allow the bootloader to load things from boot or recovery without them needing to be patched. This is not a full unlock and will not enable fastboot boot or fastboot flash. Obviously this will only work if you are rooted.
As usual, this WILL void your warranty and I am NOT responsible for anything you do with this. Using this tool won't brick your Fire TV, but doing stupid things afterwards might. I will stress here that flashing something bad to boot is a guaranteed way to brick because if the kernel can't boot you have no way to get back to recovery. For testing kernels, it's best to flash recovery to the boot partition and the new kernel to test to the recovery partition.
To use:
Downgrade: You must first downgrade to 51.1.0.2. If you already have CWM installed, you can skip this.
adb push aftv-unlock /data/local/tmp/
adb shell
chmod 755 /data/local/tmp/aftv-unlock
su
/data/local/tmp/aftv-unlock unlock
Afterwards you should see this message:
Code:
Attempting to unlock...
All done!
If not, something went wrong. If for whatever reason you want to relock the bootloader, you can use this command:
Code:
/data/local/tmp/aftv-unlock lock
You can download it here.

WOW, just WOW, awesome work rbox!
I was definitely not expecting this.

rbox said:
Well it's a little early for Christmas... but here is a special gift. This will allow the bootloader to load things from boot or recovery without them needing to be patched. This is not a full unlock and will not enable fastboot boot or fastboot flash. Obviously this will only work if you are rooted.
As usual, this WILL void your warranty and I am NOT responsible for anything you do with this. Using this tool won't brick your Fire TV, but doing stupid things afterwards might. I will stress here that flashing something bad to boot is a guaranteed way to brick because if the kernel can't boot you have no way to get back to recovery. For testing kernels, it's best to flash recovery to the boot partition and the new kernel to test to the recovery partition.
To use:
Downgrade: You must first downgrade to 51.1.0.2. If you already have CWM installed, you can skip this.
adb push aftv-unlock /data/local/tmp/
adb shell
chmod 755 /data/local/tmp/aftv-unlock
su
/data/local/tmp/aftv-unlock unlock
Afterwards you should see this message:
Code:
Attempting to unlock...
All done!
If not, something went wrong. If for whatever reason you want to relock the bootloader, you can use this command:
Code:
/data/local/tmp/aftv-unlock lock
You can download it here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Congrats to you
And Merry Christmas to us FTV users!
BTW, could you please tell me the console messages for lock failure and unlock failure? (may they never occur)

..

JJ-KwiK said:
Awesome!
Thanks man!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
maybe we can get some real mods for this device now. different roms and what not.
just ran the unlock and it worked like a charm

Rbox do you know if the bootloader can boot from usb?

Does this require a minimal CWM version of yours?
I installed your Recovery (CWM) - on all 4 of my AFTVs - when you first released it ..
I've not had any reason to upgrade to the latest versions.... I'm just using the heck outta the AFTV as it is built, with all the nice rooted options. I really don't need anything else yet, so ...
with that said " can I just install this unlock-lock feature? "

Truly amazing. Can't wait for full fledged android on this.

Nice to see this, but it doesn't help much when you have a Fire TV with a non-rootable firmware.

jmandawg said:
Rbox do you know if the bootloader can boot from usb?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The bootloader will only boot from the boot partition or the recovery partition on the mmc. But I'm working on a boot menu that will allow you to easily boot additional kernels which can then load your os from wherever you want.
toe-rag said:
I installed your Recovery (CWM) - on all 4 of my AFTVs - when you first released it ..
I've not had any reason to upgrade to the latest versions.... I'm just using the heck outta the AFTV as it is built, with all the nice rooted options. I really don't need anything else yet, so ...
with that said " can I just install this unlock-lock feature? "
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes. This is independent of anything. The only dependence is the latest version of CWM requires it.

I installed ccm when you first released it then upgraded to the latest firmware the other night. Thanks a lot btw! But, can I assume (as a novice) this is not something I need to do right now. What I mean is is this just for people that want to experiment with new kernels or is there some advantage I'm missing? Thanks again and sorry if my question is a little too basic for this thread. I'm just genuinely curious.

KLit75 said:
I installed ccm when you first released it then upgraded to the latest firmware the other night. Thanks a lot btw! But, can I assume (as a novice) this is not something I need to do right now. What I mean is is this just for people that want to experiment with new kernels or is there some advantage I'm missing? Thanks again and sorry if my question is a little too basic for this thread. I'm just genuinely curious.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you don't care about updating your CWM version, or using any of the other cool things I'll release in the future that needs it, then no. You don't need to do this.

Thanks for the response. I did, in fact just update cwm and am running your latest fw update. I guess "need" isn't the right word. But if I unlock it tonight the cool stuff is still forthcoming.
Sorry just 2 questions:
1. Unlocking and keeping it unlocked indefinetly is ok?
And here's one that s on a slightly different subject...
2. I noticed updating with your fw saves my settings. Is there a safe way to factory restore using cwm without the risk of losing root?
That's actually the one I'm most interested in now. My aftv has been having issues that are hard to troubleshoot. An option to factory restore would be great. I mostly use it for xbmc so the only thing I care about losing is root. Thanks.

KLit75 said:
Thanks for the response. I did, in fact just update cwm and am running your latest fw update. I guess "need" isn't the right word. But if I unlock it tonight the cool stuff is still forthcoming.
Sorry just 2 questions:
1. Unlocking and keeping it unlocked indefinetly is ok?
And here's one that s on a slightly different subject...
2. I noticed updating with your fw saves my settings. Is there a safe way to factory restore using cwm without the risk of losing root?
That's actually the one I'm most interested in now. My aftv has been having issues that are hard to troubleshoot. An option to factory restore would be great. I mostly use it for xbmc so the only thing I care about losing is root. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Of course keeping it locked is fine... i wouldn't have released the tool if it wasn't.
As I've stated in MANY OTHER THREADS... factory reset in CWM is perfectly fine and has nothing to do with root.

rbox said:
If you don't care about updating your CWM version, or using any of the other cool things I'll release in the future that needs it, then no. You don't need to do this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's great. Thanks again

Thanks for this! Was very happy that the AFTV i ordered from eBay was rootable.
at the risk of being "that guy", can someone explain to a relative dummy like me the future potential with an unlocked bootloader? are we talking maybe an Android TV rom down the road? .. Apologies in advance

Hi, I unlocked the bootloader and it was successfully. Thank you rbox

barrist said:
Thanks for this! Was very happy that the AFTV i ordered from eBay was rootable.
at the risk of being "that guy", can someone explain to a relative dummy like me the future potential with an unlocked bootloader? are we talking maybe an Android TV rom down the road? .. Apologies in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nothing that people couldn't already do with my old CWM. Custom ROMs and whatnot has been possible for a while. This just makes things a little easier because kernels don't need to be patched.

Yea! Install failed yesterday. I've had SU problems I think. Couldn't get the # prompt. Reinstalled latest ROM and SL'd SU from the store. The Unlock finally took. Thanks.

nice, thanks rbox, you rock.