In the land of Android, rooting is the national sport. It brings people together, is sometimes challenging but always rewarding. If you're yet to be initiated into the world of Android root, sit back while we explain the pros and cons of rooting an Android device, how to do it for each smartphone manufacturer and how to tell whether your phone is rooted.
What is root?
The term "root" comes from the Linux world. The root operation in Android is much the same as it is there: it gets you superuser rights and full access to the entire file system. This allows you to make profound adjustments and changes to the software.But for novice users, it also provides a great danger because very important system files can be just as easily be deleted as unimportant ones. This is one of the main reasons why Android smartphones are not rooted by default: to save the unwitting from unnecessary Android rooting nightmares.
Root access is often made by a script that you install in Android's download mode, which automatically executes itself, granting root access in the process. This script often uses a vulnerability in the operating system kernel by performing a so-called "privilege escalation".
As we said above, root privileges turn you from a regular user to a superuser with access to the full Android system. The simplest way to grant that superuser permission to apps as well is with an app called SuperSU.
You can do this on a case-by-case basis, for specific situations or for the long-term, to allow these apps to help you take complete control over your Android all the time. You can withdraw superuser permissions at any time too.
Will I lose my warranty if I root my Android?
We know many of you are concerned with the prospect of losing your warranty or guarantee if you root your smartphone. This a very real concern that those in our line of business tend to overlook because we can break phones and get new ones reasonably easily.Generally speaking, rooting your Android will void your warranty, but it's not always so clear cut. Some devices, such as those in the Nexus line from Google, are pretty much designed to be rooted and modified by Android developers in order to push the platform ahead, so you can't expect the same level of concern from all OEMs.
Manufacturer positions vs carrier positions
HTC is the only manufacturer we contacted that was absolutely accommodating when it comes to rooted phones. As you may recall, HTC famously decided to provide all HTC devices with an unlockable bootloader that would not affect the warranty.Unfortunately, even though HTC is happy to have you root your phone, carriers are not, and networks including AT&T and Verizon refuse to honor HTC's pledge by generally not stocking retail devices with bootloaders capable of being unlocked, preferring instead to offer Developer Edition devices instead that can only be bought outright, off-contract and unsubsidized.
HTC has a list of HTC devices with unlockable bootloaders but notes that there are some carrier restrictions and that if modifying the system software of your phone is deemed to be the cause of any problem for which you return the device, your repairs may not be covered under warranty.
LG, on the other hand, won't stand rooting at all. The company was very clear that rooting an LG phone immediately voids the warranty. Sony is less hard-line: “We look at these cases individually. If a modification [like root] is detected in the workshop that is not related to the defect being claimed, we tend to side with the customer.”
Samsung was less accommodating in its response though: “Since rooting modifies the device in ways that aren't allowed, Samsung won't grant any guarantees in these cases. As for the warranty agreement between the customer and the retailer, legal regulations apply, independently of Samsung's guarantee regulations.”
Is rooting Android legal?
That depends entirely on where you live. In the US, the modification of digital things like the software of mobile devices is covered by the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA). Critically, some exemptions to that law exist courtesy of the US Copyright Office and they include things like rooting.So while rooting in the US is technically illegal under the DMCA, one such exemption to the DMCA makes rooting Android devices legal “at least through 2015”. While this was a big win for fans of digital freedom back in 2012, it may not make you feel too secure as 2015 draws to a close.
For those in Europe, the case is much clearer: the Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) has worked intensively around the root issue and, after a detailed examination, came to the conclusion that rooting a device and installing unofficial software does not impact on your rights to a hardware warranty.
The good news for those in Europe is that the burden of proof lies on the retailer or manufacturer to prove that it was a custom ROM or the root process itself that caused the problem and not on you, the customer, to prove that it wasn't.
In the US, things are much less well-defined and basically come down to a mish-mash of manufacturer, carrier and retailer positions. The simple answer is: don't root unless you're happy to accept a voided warranty.
How do I know if my device is rooted?
If you've bought a second-hand Android device and want to know if it was previously rooted or modified, the simplest way is to check for root with a simple, free-to-install Android app. Fortunately, there are a couple of great apps for checking root access.Jared Rummler from JRummy Apps is responsible for Root Check, a great app that not only tells you if your device is currently rooted or not, but also provides a nice glossary of terms and links to other good root apps by JRummy.
Root Checker is the default root check app from the developer
Joey Krim. Root Checker does pretty much the same stuff as Root Check,
but some features are reserved for the pro version. But even in the free
version, you'll get an explanation of things surrounding root and links
to other root apps.
Benefits of rooting Android
Besides access to the best root apps on Android, the power to uninstall pre-loaded bloatware apps and the world of custom ROMs, there are plenty more reasons you should root your Android phone or tablet.For starters, backups are easier with root access. If you have root, you can grant a backup app like Titanium Backup root level permissions and make complete backups of your system periodically, so no matter what happens to your phone, you'll always have an up-to-date backup to save the day.
Root access also allows you to change the tiniest details in the Android system. Sure, you can flash a full blown custom ROM for a complete makeover, but you can also make minor tweaks with Xposed Framework. Maybe you just want to flash a new boot animation? Tweak some audio settings? Or overclock your CPU by just a smidge? All of this is possible with root.
With root access, you can also get better battery life out of your Android, by undervolting your CPU or through automatic app hibernation with apps such as Greenify. As mentioned above, removing pre-installed apps also lessens the demands on system resources, improving battery life further.
Ad blockers and full system automation with Tasker are another two of the big reasons to root Android, but your reasons to root will be about as personal as the things you can do once you have root. Maybe you want to change everything, maybe you only want to change one thing. No matter what you want to change, if you want to change anything about Android, you'll need root to do it.
Why you shouldn't root Android
“If root is so great, why isn't everyone doing it then?” I hear you ask. A few reasons really: the warranty issue we mentioned earlier, the fact that it can be complicated and dangerous, and that in many cases you'll no longer automatically get over-the-air (OTA) updates.Once you're rooted it is also much easier to have that level of permission abused by a clever but ill-intentioned app. Granting root access to an app when you're rooted should be handled with much more care than the average person exhibits when blindly hitting Accept in the Google Play Store when the permissions list pops up.
It seems fair to expect that anyone interested in and capable
of rooting their phone would also be capable of updating their system
software manually, but it can be a pain to always have to update your
device yourself, especially if you own several, simply because you are
rooted.There are also more potential complications when updating a rooted Android device than when updating a non-rooted one. Again, these are perfectly workable, but are potentially more annoying than root is worth to the average person.
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