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Rooting 4.4 Questions

Hello Fellow of Xda members,
I have very amazing At&t 4.4 Kit Kat Moto X like everyone else.
Rooting Moto X is kinding overwhelming to me from I read some thread for few hours. I know some basic sdk. I don't know where to start since I'm new to Moto X yesterday as 12/27. I had previous phone S4 and Nexus 5.
I have tried to flashed 4.2.2 camera update but it failed on RSD Lite since it has no root permission (stupid me), I flashed back 4.4 instead and working, looking for rooting solution for it. Not calling out for help, taking time here.
Thanks!

LeonKnight12 said:
Hello Fellow of Xda members,
I have very amazing At&t 4.4 Kit Kat Moto X like everyone else.
Rooting Moto X is kinding overwhelming to me from I read some thread for few hours. I know some basic sdk. I don't know where to start since I'm new to Moto X yesterday as 12/27. I had previous phone S4 and Nexus 5.
I have tried to flashed 4.2.2 camera update but it failed on RSD Lite since it has no root permission (stupid me), I flashed back 4.4 instead and working, looking for rooting solution for it. Not calling out for help, taking time here.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From what I've seen it looks like you have to revert back to 4.2.2, and then unlock the bootloader, install a custom recovery (my favorite is CWM but some people use TWRP or something), and then flash your device. Here are a couple more comprehensive answers:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2538896
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2509590
I think the first one is better, but I think I'm going to give it a shot later today. I'll get back to you if either one of them works.

Kupua said:
From what I've seen it looks like you have to revert back to 4.2.2, and then unlock the bootloader, install a custom recovery (my favorite is CWM but some people use TWRP or something), and then flash your device. Here are a couple more comprehensive answers:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2538896
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2509590
I think the first one is better, but I think I'm going to give it a shot later today. I'll get back to you if either one of them works.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I went through all process and pain in the ass. I rooted and disabled write protection and flashed back to 4.2.2 camera update and redo root process again and as I go through it, seem I can't obtained root access. Is this lost root? Tried to use supersu from playstore and says "there is no SU binary installed and SuperSu cannot install it. This is a problem"
looks like do I have to wait for next update?
Please help.

LeonKnight12 said:
Hello Fellow of Xda members,
I have very amazing At&t 4.4 Kit Kat Moto X like everyone else.
Rooting Moto X is kinding overwhelming to me from I read some thread for few hours. I know some basic sdk. I don't know where to start since I'm new to Moto X yesterday as 12/27. I had previous phone S4 and Nexus 5.
I have tried to flashed 4.2.2 camera update but it failed on RSD Lite since it has no root permission (stupid me), I flashed back 4.4 instead and working, looking for rooting solution for it. Not calling out for help, taking time here.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you have the ATT variant of the phone (retail or Moto Maker), and want to be rooted on KitKat (Android 4.4) you need to follow SlapMyMoto -> http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2538896 .
RSDLite should not fail due to no root permissions. RSDLite doesn't care about root.
If you are following SlapMyMoto or RockMyMoto, when you are on KitKat (4.4) and need to revert to a 4.2.2 rom it says you have to flash to the "camera update" 4.2.2 rom. This is because you can't flash back to the initial 4.2.2 rom the phone shipped with. If you had problems with RSDlite, I would question if you are trying to flash the initial shipping 4.2.2 rom, not the camera update one.
If you are having problems with either process, I'd go into the appropriate thread and post a detailed account of what you've done (including exact file names for roms you flashed), and what the outcome was, asking for help. That is going to be the best way to find a solution.
---------- Post added at 12:57 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:54 PM ----------
Kupua said:
From what I've seen it looks like you have to revert back to 4.2.2, and then unlock the bootloader, install a custom recovery (my favorite is CWM but some people use TWRP or something), and then flash your device. Here are a couple more comprehensive answers:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2538896
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2509590
I think the first one is better, but I think I'm going to give it a shot later today. I'll get back to you if either one of them works.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
unlocking the bootloader, installing custom recovery and installing/flashing SuperSU only works for those with an unlocked bootloader. And it can be done on any rom version. If you can unlock your bootloader, it is the quickest and easiest way to root. NOTE: Unless your phone is the developer edition, unlocking your boot loader voids your warranty.
ATT variant of the phone can't unlock the bootloader, so SlapMyMoto is needed if you want to be running Kit Kat (android 4.4). And RockMyMoto is used if you want to be on Jelly Bean (4.2.2), but only works on the "Camera update" OTA rom. Not the initial rom the X shipped with which is also 4.2.2

KidJoe said:
If you have the ATT variant of the phone (retail or Moto Maker), and want to be rooted on KitKat (Android 4.4) you need to follow SlapMyMoto -> http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2538896 .
RSDLite should not fail due to no root permissions. RSDLite doesn't care about root.
If you are following SlapMyMoto or RockMyMoto, when you are on KitKat (4.4) and need to revert to a 4.2.2 rom it says you have to flash to the "camera update" 4.2.2 rom. This is because you can't flash back to the initial 4.2.2 rom the phone shipped with. If you had problems with RSDlite, I would question if you are trying to flash the initial shipping 4.2.2 rom, not the camera update one.
If you are having problems with either process, I'd go into the appropriate thread and post a detailed account of what you've done (including exact file names for roms you flashed), and what the outcome was, asking for help. That is going to be the best way to find a solution.
---------- Post added at 12:57 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:54 PM ----------
unlocking the bootloader, installing custom recovery and installing/flashing SuperSU only works for those with an unlocked bootloader. And it can be done on any rom version. If you can unlock your bootloader, it is the quickest and easiest way to root. NOTE: Unless your phone is the developer edition, unlocking your boot loader voids your warranty.
ATT variant of the phone can't unlock the bootloader, so SlapMyMoto is needed if you want to be running Kit Kat (android 4.4). And RockMyMoto is used if you want to be on Jelly Bean (4.2.2), but only works on the "Camera update" OTA rom. Not the initial rom the X shipped with which is also 4.2.2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I get it, I was flashing initial 4.2.2 and failed to flash and I did flash camera update and went through fine and rooted and write protection off. After this I flashed back to 4.2.2 and tried rockmymoto again and It all I can get system warning "system is not write protected executing step 3" reroot has been lost.

?? What do i use to ROOT Verizon DE stock.. I am confused..

I have rooted every phone i've had and for some reason the MOTO X is confusing me! The phone is a bone stock developers Ed. 4.2.2 pre camera.
I am confused as to which jcase method to use or if there is another option.
I am guessing PwnMyMoto 1.4.3 verizon. but i'm not sure.
Any help would be fantastic.
Thanks,
J

ejason said:
I have rooted every phone i've had and for some reason the MOTO X is confusing me! The phone is a bone stock developers Ed. 4.2.2 pre camera.
I am confused as to which jcase method to use or if there is another option.
I am guessing PwnMyMoto 1.4.3 verizon. but i'm not sure.
Any help would be fantastic.
Thanks,
J
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
PwnMyMoto and jcase's methods are for locked bootloaders. You first need to unlock your bootloader. Then you need to decide if you want to take the OTA to 4.4 or not because once you upgrade to 4.2.2 post-camera, you can never downgrade to 4.2.2 pre-camera without bricking your device.
If you want to upgrade to 4.4, here are the instructions to unlock and gain root:
[STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS] Unlocking and Rooting a Dev Ed Moto X Running Kit Kat
I have read of others who kept the 4.2.2 bootloader and other partitions and just selectively flashed those partitions they wanted as each new upgrade's sbf firmware was released. I don't know what advantages there are to doing that.

ejason said:
I have rooted every phone i've had and for some reason the MOTO X is confusing me! The phone is a bone stock developers Ed. 4.2.2 pre camera.
I am confused as to which jcase method to use or if there is another option.
I am guessing PwnMyMoto 1.4.3 verizon. but i'm not sure.
Any help would be fantastic.
Thanks,
J
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a Developer Edition. Take all the updates available (4.2.2 camera update, 4.4 and now 4.4.2). Get the unlock code from Motorola and unlock your bootloader. Once that is done, flash twrp recovery and then install root via twrp.
Very simple on Dev Editions just because you can unlock the bootloader and flash an alternate recovery (twrp, cwm, etc..).

I agree. Unlock your bootloader (Doesn't void warranty on Developer Edition), flash TWRP recovery, then boot to TWRP and install/flash SuperSU. And it doesn't matter what ROM version you're running. (there is a TWRP for 4.2.2 and one for 4.4/4.4.2).
As mentioned, the bootloader included in the android versions can prevent you from downgrading the rom version. (i.e. bootloader in 4.4.2 prevents you from downgrading to any previous ROM). Why would you want to downgrade? If you have a locked bootloader, you'd want to downgrade to be able to use the root processes needed when you have a locked bootloader. But if you have an unlocked bootloader, because you can flash an alternate recovery (not possible with locked bootloader) and root no matter what ROM version you have installed, the only reason to downgrade would be if you encounter a bug you can't deal with that isn't present in the older roms.
because 4.4.2 fixes the exchange and bluetooth issues, and doesn't introduce anything new, its suggested you update to 4.4.2 if you have an unlocked boot loader (4.4.2 isn't rootable on locked bootloaders and may not be, so its recommended that those with locked bootloaders who want to root stick with 4.4).

KidJoe said:
I agree. Unlock your bootloader (Doesn't void warranty on Developer Edition), flash TWRP recovery, then boot to TWRP and install/flash SuperSU. And it doesn't matter what ROM version you're running. (there is a TWRP for 4.2.2 and one for 4.4/4.4.2).
I didn't know there was a different TWRP for 4.2.2.
As mentioned, the bootloader included in the android versions can prevent you from downgrading the rom version. (i.e. bootloader in 4.4.2 prevents you from downgrading to any previous ROM). Why would you want to downgrade? If you have a locked bootloader, you'd want to downgrade to be able to use the root processes needed when you have a locked bootloader. But if you have an unlocked bootloader, because you can flash an alternate recovery (not possible with locked bootloader) and root no matter what ROM version you have installed, the only reason to downgrade would be if you encounter a bug you can't deal with that isn't present in the older roms.
because 4.4.2 fixes the exchange and bluetooth issues, and doesn't introduce anything new, its suggested you update to 4.4.2 if you have an unlocked boot loader (4.4.2 isn't rootable on locked bootloaders and may not be, so its recommended that those with locked bootloaders who want to root stick with 4.4).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From what i have read 4.4.2 isn't rootable at all. Even if you have an unlocked bootloader. Is that correct?
Great info, thanks.
I thought that the Verizon DE already had an unlocked bootloader? Or is it like an HTC where i have to go the the MOTOROLA webite and get a code?
I did something like that for an HTC ONE i have on straight talk. I unlocked the bootloader from the HTC website, then installed TWRP, and then rooted and its running a 4.4.2 ROM that is great.

ejason said:
From what i have read 4.4.2 isn't rootable at all. Even if you have an unlocked bootloader. Is that correct?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Incorrect. You can do whatever you want with the DE, regardless of what version of Android you're on.
Sent from my Moto X

ejason said:
I thought that the Verizon DE already had an unlocked bootloader? Or is it like an HTC where i have to go the the MOTOROLA webite and get a code?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are directions on a 1 page pamphlet that came with your VZW DE on how to unlock the bootloader.
Sent from my Dev Edition Moto X

ejason said:
I thought that the Verizon DE already had an unlocked bootloader? Or is it like an HTC where i have to go the the MOTOROLA webite and get a code?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is all in that step-by-step link I gave you above.

Ok, so i have my phone unlocked, updated to 4.4 and for some reason i can not flash the TWRP.
I get the error (bootloader) variable not supported!
Any ideas.
I have tried both mfastboot and fastboot and i get nothing.
I also moved all files into another folder and CD into that folder and still the same error.
Can i install the TWRP with goo manager?

ejason said:
Ok, so i have my phone unlocked, updated to 4.4 and for some reason i can not flash the TWRP.
I get the error (bootloader) variable not supported!
Any ideas.
I have tried both mfastboot and fastboot and i get nothing.
I also moved all files into another folder and CD into that folder and still the same error.
Can i install the TWRP with goo manager?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
did it finish flashing? mine says that when i flash a recovery also, but it flashes.
after you flash it dont reboot, just go into recovery (volume down to move the selection, volume up to execute)
then select reboot system, and it will ask if you want to root.

ejason said:
ok, so i have my phone unlocked, updated to 4.4 and for some reason i can not flash the twrp.
I get the error (bootloader) variable not supported!
Any ideas.
I have tried both mfastboot and fastboot and i get nothing.
I also moved all files into another folder and cd into that folder and still the same error.
Can i install the twrp with goo manager?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ok, thanks for everyones hellp. Done and done..

Just bought a Developer Edition and have some questions!!

I just bought a DE Moto X that's on 4.4.2. The bootloader is unlocked, phone is rooted with TWRP installed. My first question is what do i need to do to update to 4.4.4. If I'm understanding everything correctly I need to flash the stock recovery image..where do I get that??
Once I do that I will need to then reflash TWRP and root again, correct??

mpetruzz said:
I just bought a DE Moto X that's on 4.4.2. The bootloader is unlocked, phone is rooted with TWRP installed. My first question is what do i need to do to update to 4.4.4. If I'm understanding everything correctly I need to flash the stock recovery image..where do I get that??
Once I do that I will need to then reflash TWRP and root again, correct??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes. Here is the 442 recovery. Extract the img & Flash it with the play app: recovery tools/ Rashr-flash tool.
Once on 444 you do not want to go back.
https://mega.co.nz/#!FQI0zKxR!lS5oSAZiu0Z3dm1OCgkqKE5LqGv9rIT0zAku8juIxPk
---------- Post added at 08:16 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:07 PM ----------
Good to hide root too with super SU.

mpetruzz said:
I just bought a DE Moto X that's on 4.4.2. The bootloader is unlocked, phone is rooted with TWRP installed. My first question is what do i need to do to update to 4.4.4. If I'm understanding everything correctly I need to flash the stock recovery image..where do I get that??
Once I do that I will need to then reflash TWRP and root again, correct??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First, which DEV Edition X do you have? GSM Or VZW? I'm going to Guess VZW, since you say you are on 4.4.2, and the latest for the GSM is 4.4.3.
If GSM, 4.4.4 OTA isn't out yet. So even if you flash back to stock, right now you wont get an update to 4.4.4, but you should get 4.4.3 which will be needed to take 4.4.4.
If Verizon, 4.4.4 OTA and FXZ is out, so you can go either way.
To take any OTA, you need to be aware of several things...
First, the most important, you can't flash an OTA from custom recovery like TWRP. You need STOCK recovery or you will bootloop. (so yes, you can fasboot flash stock recovery on your phone, immediately reboot to booloader and enter recovery to make sure its there). If you are already rooted you can use Rashr (and there is another tool that I can't remember the name of) to put stock recovery back on there.
Next, there is a pre-flash verification check the OTA performs. It makes sure you are on the correct ROM before it installs. It checks files and parts of your phone. It looks to make sure stuff is there, and matches the expected checksum or hash. If you haven't made any mods, and you have stock recovery back on there, you should be OK to take the OTA.. BUT if you've deleted, renamed, modified files or parts and they no longer match close enough to "stock" the OTA will fail to install.
XPosed gets in the way. It must be disabled (there is a zip for that), or uninstalled.
If you manually undo any modifications and take the OTA, you shouldn't have to re-root, and flashing TWRP back on is optional.
You could use mfastboot to re-flash System.img and Recovery.img from 4.4.2 onto your phone, that will usually be enough to allow you to pass the verification checks and take the OTA. But if you do this, you will have to flash TWRP and re-root after you get 4.4.4 on there.
Because many modifications could have been made, and the fact the 4.4.4 FXZ is out for Verizon, if you have a VZW Dev Edition, you can just use RSDLite (or mfasboot) to flash the Verizon 4.4.4 FXZ. Just make sure you remove the ERASE USERDATA line before flashing. This will get you directly to 4.4.4 without you having to manually, one by one, undo any mods you might have made that get in the way of the OTA Verification checks. If you do it this way, you WILL have to flash TWRP and re-root.

Thanks so much for the help!! I flashed the stock recovery image via flashify, accepted the ota and was all set. Then I flased twrp via flashify again and was back and all good!!
So glad I got the DE, this should hold me off til the x+1 drops.

How to root UK moto x (xt1052)

Hi there, I have a UK moto x model xt1052. I am looking to root and flash custom ROMs onto my device, but am concerned that I will brick the device by using a method intended for a different model of moto x.
The UK moto x was shipped with android 4.4.2, later updated to 4.4.4 so there are no earlier builds of android to downgrade to.
Any help will be appreciated.
Timsteels

Figure out if you can, and want to unlock your bootloader.... Then go to the One Stop Shop root thread sticky at the top of the general section. It has all your options.
---------- Post added at 07:31 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:30 PM ----------
And root methods have nothing to do with your model. It mostly has to do with locked or unlocked bootloader state.

timsteels said:
Hi there, I have a UK moto x model xt1052. I am looking to root and flash custom ROMs onto my device, but am concerned that I will brick the device by using a method intended for a different model of moto x.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Process to root the X is the same whether you have an XT1052, XT1053, XT1056, XT1060, etc. As KJ said, with 4.4.4 its all about can you unlock your bootloader or not. (and do you mind voiding your warranty doing so since you don't have a Developer Edition X).
See the One Stop Shop thread, in particular this post -> http://forum.xda-developers.com/mot...-confusion-t2826159/post54671918#post54671918
timsteels said:
The UK moto x was shipped with android 4.4.2, later updated to 4.4.4 so there are no earlier builds of android to downgrade to.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And you do NOT WANT TO DOWNGRADE!!!!! Doing so you will risk bricking your phone now, or when you later take an OTA. There are many warnings posted in the forums to not downgrade, and many threads started by those who have ignored the warnings and tried to downgrade and have bricked their phones!!!
Besides that, two key parts, GPT.Bin (partition table), and Motoboot.img (contains bootloader, TZ and a few other parts) will NOT downgrade successfully once on 4.4.2, 4.4.3 or 4.4.4. so any past exploits requiring the older roms wont work anyway.

So unlocking the boot loader is the same process as the us variants of the moto x? I just don't want to turn my phone into a paperweight! I'm not too worried about the warranty, as I am usually careful with my phones.

Unlocking and recovery and ROOT is all the same on any X. What matters is Android version (cause locked 4.4.4 guys can't root in any way), locked or unlocked bootloader and that's about it.
An unlocked X is the same no matter a Dev Edition or any other. All the same.
As far as bricking... The only time that's a giant threat is trying to downgrade. Not saying an X has never been bricked another way, cause everything we do has some risk to it. But most issues are curable.

Ok thanks for the info! And in terms of custom roms, do I need to install one built for the xt1052, or will other ones also work?

That is not something I know about. Never flashed one. Just stock and gravity box.
Read the opening post of rom threads, should have what devices it's for. ?

Ok thanks again! Is there much point in installing the exposed framework or anything similar?

I think many rooted X members here use Gravity Box while on stock rom... So they can customize some things. ?

Ok cool. I will have a look and decide if I want to go ahead. Thanks for all the assistance

timsteels said:
Ok thanks again! Is there much point in installing the exposed framework or anything similar?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Many root, install Xposed and some modules to customize their phone rather than running any Custom Roms because the custom roms often lose the Moto features like the notifications and such.

Ok and if I root, unlock bootloader and install xposed, will my phone still receive the ota updates? Or is it a case of reversing the procedure to get the ota updates?

timsteels said:
Ok and if I root, unlock bootloader and install xposed, will my phone still receive the ota updates? Or is it a case of reversing the procedure to get the ota updates?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First you can't install an OTA with a custom recovery (like TWRP, CWM, Philz) on the phone. You'll get stuck in a boot loop.
Next, in every OTA there is a "pre-validation check" (a manifest file which contains a list of items to be checked and a SHA type hash code for a type of check sum verification of each part/file its looking at.)
Anything that alters your phone from what the Pre-Validation check is looking for will cause the OTA to fail. So if you modify or remove and system files, have the wrong recovery, etc., those parts would not pass the pre-validation check so the OTA would fail.
Xposed also needs to be disabled, or it will cause the OTA's pre-validation checks to fail.
So it really comes down to what you do after you root.
If you flash TWRP, Root, install Xposed and a few modules, and nothing else, then to take an OTA, you'll need to disable Xposed (there is a flashable zip on your /SDcard to do this), then flash stock recovery.img back on your phone, then you can take the OTA. Once the OTA is successfully installed, you can re-flash custom recovery, re-root if necessary, and re-enable Xposed.
If you rename/delete/modify files from /system (like some do to get rid of bloat), you'll need to un-do that.
If you're like me, I just unlocked, rooted, and installed apps that use root (like Root Explorer, Greenify, Wifi Tether for root), so all I do is flash stock recovery on, take the OTA, and if I lost root, flash TWRP and re-root.
For more see -> http://mark.cdmaforums.com/MotoX-OTA.html

Ok that's good to know. I'll have a think about it. I may wait until lollipop comes out for the moto x.

Want either to cancel forced AT&T update or flash the 5.1 OTA zip without formating

Want either to cancel forced AT&T update or flash the 5.1 OTA zip without formating
Hello, recently, my step-father got a dip with's LG G2 and decide to buy a Moto X from Ebay and it came bootloader unlocked with AT&T Kitkat 4.4.4. Today, we opened it and it asked to do the update at which i heard there was some issue with the update and they pulled it off. He's an user who only want stability, so that why when he got it and i saw it was bootloader unlocked i install TWRP and roooted it.
So i have 2 choose, try to cancel the force update because he reboot to recovery for trying to install it and it's not flashing at all or simply try to update without losing the data. If i need to, i would like to flash the stock recovery of AT&T. It's not a contract phone, i buyed it on ebay and i am using it with Roger in Canada, so i don't want to get it brick. Thank you.

If you update it, you will never be able to unlock the bootloader on the AT&T phone again. It is unlockable after update. If you want to flash kit kat 4.4.4, why don't you just flash a Rogers 4.4.4 rom from xda on it? Why even take an ota to lollipop when you don't want to because of issues? You won't be able to go back. I would just flash Rogers stock modded with twrp, or in my opinion, flash eclipse 4.4.4, it has all moto stock options and is faster and better battery life. But if you want to flash lollipop ota, you have to flash back original at&T recovery.
---------- Post added at 10:39 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:59 AM ----------
http://www.filefactory.com/file/2kmrq89bx1h/XT1058_GHOST_ATT_5.1_LPA23.12-21.1_cid1_CFC.xml.zip
That's the stock [email protected] rom lollipop rom. You can flash that and it will lock your bootloader, put stock recovery and unroot but you can't unlock the bootloader again and can't go back. If you want the stock lollipop KitKat rom, I can get that

Well, finally, i freezed the update module with titaniumbackup on the stock 4.4.4 kitkat from AT&T on the moto x, i will wait for a modded zip file debloated to flash later.