Develop Bugs

HTC Inc2 Update- My thoughts

We're all trying to be really patient with the status of our phone S-Off, and I was thinking about the update that may (or may not) be coming to our phone. I am personally not going to update when it comes out, just to be on the safe side. alpharev is obviously doing good work for us behind the scenes, and I don't want to screw up my opportunity to get S-Off and root when they release; on the off chance that an update might prevent that from happening.
Obviously, this is just my paranoia kicking in, but I've seen some people on HTC FB that are claiming that they updated, and now can't root. Thoughts?

lol, ease off the crack rock budy, it will be here any day. I havent heard any news of an update comeing the next few days anyways, so you wont have a choice most likely.

The unlock is rumored to be released "soon" (within a week was mentioned, but probably a bit optimistic), while the next update is rumored to be August (this is only a couple months away, btw). Keep in mind these are rumors.
AlphaRev will likely want to break the update to maintain device compatibility so more than likely they will keep up.

bod1ggity said:
lol, ease off the crack rock budy, it will be here any day. I havent heard any news of an update comeing the next few days anyways, so you wont have a choice most likely.
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Not sure how I'm on the pipe? I'm just saying that I'm not going to install the update right away if I have a choice. Thanks though.

I was wondering about the GPS fix that HTC is working on for the Dinc2. What if we are rooted and that is pushed out? What happens then?

mountaineerndixie said:
I was wondering about the GPS fix that HTC is working on for the Dinc2. What if we are rooted and that is pushed out? What happens then?
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Someone will dump the updated rom, and make it available for rooted users. The only way this update can mess something up is if HTC decides to fix the exploit that currently allows the phone to be rooted... but from what they have stated publicly, they are moving away from that direction and mind set (thank god).

Eventually a DEV will incorporate all the fixes that the OTA update has into their ROM/stock ROM, whatever. and I think it's great we have a recovery ready for when alpha drops the S-OFF. it's better than getting S-OFF and having no way to flash anything..

bod1ggity said:
lol, ease off the crack rock budy, it will be here any day. I havent heard any news of an update comeing the next few days anyways, so you wont have a choice most likely.
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Just quoting you again, and bumping the thread, in case you missed this:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=15053499#post15053499

Once rooted, a RUU can be torn apart and made into a root friendly ROM. We can still get all of the benefits of updates even if they do patch exploits.

[Q] Why was Evo 4g's bootloader locked?

So, I've searched and not been able to find an answer to a question. Why was the original Evo's bootloader locked in the Gingerbread OTA? It seemed like HTC was beginning the process of keeping the bootloaders unlocked, then WAM. We get an update that broke more than it seemed to fix and killed my battery life. I was not rooted, but my phone's overall performance was so poor after the OTA, I was ready to root it. Then, I find out there is no way to do so.
It is annoying that they do an update that hurts my phone's performance, and at the same time, block any chance I have of improving the performance.
So, have we got an answer as to why it was locked?
Thanks!

Because Sprint has the final say so on it, and they wanted it locked....

HTC stated they would be locking the bootloaders on their phones. There was a small public outcry, and HTC said they would have an unlock solution for their future phones. At this point the GB update for the Evo was finalized, and was too far in the game to make a change. Maybe the Evo will be on the "list" for HTC to unlock the bootloader. But it really only has about 5 months left on its support cycle (18 months for updates), so who knows.

Thanks!
So, it was a Sprint thing and not HTC that locked it. That makes more sense. Thank you.

I emailed HTC referencing their decision to not lock future devices and requesting help unlocking my bootloader. Here is the response I received:
I understand you would like the bootloader unlocked on your EVO. While the statement notes that locked bootloaders will not be occurring on future devices, the official policy is still being reviewed as it pertains to existing devices. Please keep an eye on htc .com and twitter .com/htc for the latest news.
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I guess that enough for a little hope. We'll see what happens...

I just want to point out for those new to the Evo, that the Evo's bootloader has always been locked since Eclair on launch day. This is not new with this update, after each ota update a new root exploit has had to been found to get past the locked bootloader.

wfrandy, thank you for that clarification.

The 4G's bootloader is not locked like the 3D's. The 4G's bootloader still isn't unlocked but it is a lot easier to circumvent. This article explains it better than I can.
http://www.androidpolice.com/2011/0...r-recovery-and-kernel-images-all-locked-down/

HipKat said:
Because Sprint has the final say so on it, and they wanted it locked....
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This is not true. HTC controls the bootloader on their devices. Sprint just gets the img file from them and they add it to their own updates, They don't get the source or the ability to change it in any way, aside from switching to a different version.
Besides that, look at the release date in the bootloader menu... it says March 8, It was developed and released BEFORE that announcement. And THAT is the real reason why it's still locked. The only reason the update came out in June was because Sprint took forever to lock down everything that they COULD and put in all their crappy bloatware and whatnot. In the future when HTC develops and releases the next version of the hboot, I would guess that it would be unlocked from that point forward.
But again, nothing Sprint can do about it, other than choose not to release it.

Please Pledge to the Root Cause!

Just a friendly reminder that there aren't many of us smart enough to figure out how to root this beast. If we throw a bunch of cash at them that might motivate them to work even harder. Plus, it's totally worth it! What's $50? Too much? Fine, give $5. Whatever you can afford! I bet if we got that pot up to 100k it would get solved pretty darned quick. Let's do it! Don't be a cheapskate!
Thanks for reading. I promise not to tell you what to do other than this one time. Ha!

I agree man
Just sucks so sad that ATT screwing us like this, while T-Mobile gets all the root Recovery love they want, and even Sprint is better, and dare I say Verizon not as bad as ATT is lately
I remember just two years ago, the ATT Note 2 had root and Recovery immediately after release, and the ATT XDA Note 2 forums were jammed packed with ROM's and kernels. Why did ATT make such a drastic change to lock it down so hard now ? Where as T-Mobile allows it to be unlocked with ease ?
ATT allows HTC to still be unlocked, you can buy the ATT One M8 and root it and install custom Recovery out of the box with ease. But no way is that possible with the ATT S5 or Note 4, but why ATT ?

tfpHumorBlog said:
Just a friendly reminder that there aren't many of us smart enough to figure out how to root this beast. If we throw a bunch of cash at them that might motivate them to work even harder. Plus, it's totally worth it! What's $50? Too much? Fine, give $5. Whatever you can afford! I bet if we got that pot up to 100k it would get solved pretty darned quick. Let's do it! Don't be a cheapskate!
Thanks for reading. I promise not to tell you what to do other than this one time. Ha!
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Just thinking out loud...but at this time shouldn't you all wait for Lollipop to be released on this beast? Word is that it has more security and will be even tougher to root. So say someone roots KitKat..claims the Bounty, then Lollipop comes along and kills root again and those buying new phones with Lollipop preinstalled would be SOL. JM2C...but I also know it takes time to build up pledges.

Umm.. iiif we gain root I'm sure people would be smart enough not to upgrade to Lollipop but wait for a dev to make a Lollipop ROM.

Android300ZX said:
Umm.. iiif we gain root I'm sure people would be smart enough not to upgrade to Lollipop but wait for a dev to make a Lollipop ROM.
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That won't help people buying phones after the update with Lollipop preinstalled though. They will be stuck without root and have to start another bounty...just thinking out loud. And you would be surprised how many just hit that "update" button while rooted and get stuck in a boot loop.

Assuming root is achieved and someone bought a new note4 it came w 5.0.. couldnt one of those just take the official NIE firmware and flash it via odin.. then they could root and install a 5.0 custom rom?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using XDA Free mobile app

xlr8shun said:
Assuming root is achieved and someone bought a new note4 it came w 5.0.. couldnt one of those just take the official NIE firmware and flash it via odin.. then they could root and install a 5.0 custom rom?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using XDA Free mobile app
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In theory..however Samsung has been matching bootloaders, basebands and OS release. So as seen on other models not having the 5.0 bootloader and baseband will cause the 5.0 ROM to be stuck in a boot loop. So it may be some time before developers crack that. Even an unlocked rootable phone like the Sprint S3 required you to Odin 4.4 before running any stock 4.4 ROMs...the wrong baseband there caused a hard brick. So it is not as simple as it sounds.

Zorachus said:
I agree man
Just sucks so sad that ATT screwing us like this, while T-Mobile gets all the root Recovery love they want, and even Sprint is better, and dare I say Verizon not as bad as ATT is lately
I remember just two years ago, the ATT Note 2 had root and Recovery immediately after release, and the ATT XDA Note 2 forums were jammed packed with ROM's and kernels. Why did ATT make such a drastic change to lock it down so hard now ? Where as T-Mobile allows it to be unlocked with ease ?
ATT allows HTC to still be unlocked, you can buy the ATT One M8 and root it and install custom Recovery out of the box with ease. But no way is that possible with the ATT S5 or Note 4, but why ATT ?
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Probably has everything to do with Gov't contracts... Samsung has been singing the praises of it's KNOX system to businesses and the Gov't, to to truly make KNOX effective, it needs to be locked so that you can't disable or remove it. This way if one of their phones gets lost or stolen (and they are using the enterprise security packages) it is even more difficult to get to the data.
Why not allow the folks who want them locked and secure buy special ones so the rest of us can have free and open devices you ask? Because it costs more (time as well as money) to divide up your inventory that way. you'd have to forecast how many of the secured phones you will need and order them that way. But what if that big gov't contract falls through? you are now sitting on potentially thousands of phones that your general users won't want given that they can choose to get the unlocked version. OEM won't simply take them back, unless you pay some sort of restock fee. You could re-flash them yourself with the unlocked ROM, but now you are talking about manually unboxing, flashing and then re-sealing thousands of phones. (Not optimal,)
In the end, you're better off buying an unlocked device up front as opposed to hoping that someone can crack the bootloader later on after the release. It's obviously getting harder and harder for even the truly talented DEVs to crack these bootloaders. I honestly doubt that root will be achieved on this thing prior to Lollipop beginning it rollout. There is a build for it being tested right now with very few issues remaining.
Clock is ticking.... Me? I personally could care less for root at this point. I get un-Godly battery life and performance as it is based upon my usage. Not a popular view with many in this forum, I know. I used to long for root and flash ROMs like crazy myself. It was almost like an addiction.

[Q] Noob questions about rooting for this phone

1) Is this phone likely to get root soon after release? Just based on LG history or whatever is known about the phone so far.
2) Does being on Verizon usually mean waiting longer or not getting root access at all? If Verizon-rooted phones are rare, please let me know some good alternatives.
Thanks all for putting up with me.

89titanium said:
1) Is this phone likely to get root soon after release? Just based on LG history or whatever is known about the phone so far.
2) Does being on Verizon usually mean waiting longer or not getting root access at all? If Verizon-rooted phones are rare, please let me know some good alternatives.
Thanks all for putting up with me.
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Click to collapse
Im sure there will be root. but it will take a while, and i dont see anybody posting on the dev section talking about root. so probobly in afew months, once they read the source of the OS, and figure out how to make root.
Im from big red, and they always lock there bootloaders. so thats alittle more work and codeing which turns into abit more waiting time if you want custom roms. but G4 seems like a pretty popular phone, so im sure root will come eventually

89titanium said:
1) Is this phone likely to get root soon after release? Just based on LG history or whatever is known about the phone so far.
2) Does being on Verizon usually mean waiting longer or not getting root access at all? If Verizon-rooted phones are rare, please let me know some good alternatives.
Thanks all for putting up with me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This phone hasn't been fully released yet. It will def get root. I'd give it a month or so.
I have Verizon and the G3 was unlocked within 3 months. I'm hoping since this is Qualcomm's first hexa-core, there'll be some exploits to gain root/unlock BL faster. Take it from a Sammy guy, WAIT THE FEW MONTHS. Samsung hasn't seen an unlocked BL for Verizon in 2 years.
Sent from my S5 using your mom

yep, probably gonna pull the trigger on the att g4 with their nasty corporate locked BL crap. I'd normally be concerned about root, but in this case I'm not terribly worried, because this phone will have SO much attention in the dev community. now, getting the att BL unlocked to run twrp... that's another story and could be a very long time if at all (just for the att version).

5.1 Update and s-off

The official 5.1 update is on it's way from Verizon next week. For those of us waiting patiently for jcase to release an s-off method, I'm thinking it might be better to avoid updating? I can only imagine the hboot will get an update with this 5.1 update. With that, it will probably undo all the work jcase has done up to this point.
Am I wrong to think this?
Is it harmless to take the update?

guitarist5122 said:
The official 5.1 update is on it's way from Verizon next week. For those of us waiting patiently for jcase to release an s-off method, I'm thinking it might be better to avoid updating? I can only imagine the hboot will get an update with this 5.1 update. With that, it will probably undo all the work jcase has done up to this point.
Am I wrong to think this?
Is it harmless to take the update?
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Harmless unless you want to meet up the next time I drive down to Delaware.

There is no sense in waiting on an update for a root exploit that may or may not ever come. S-Off already works on 5.1 but Verizon users are still waiting for a root exploit as before. Odds are you could be waiting a long time. Might as well enjoy the new software while you wait.

guitarist5122 said:
The official 5.1 update is on it's way from Verizon next week. For those of us waiting patiently for jcase to release an s-off method, I'm thinking it might be better to avoid updating? I can only imagine the hboot will get an update with this 5.1 update. With that, it will probably undo all the work jcase has done up to this point.
Am I wrong to think this?
Is it harmless to take the update?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Plenty of helpful members with Java Cards to get you S-Off now. Best if you can find someone in your area to meet with to avoid shipping the device.
Went that route a couple of months ago and been happily flashing custom Rom goodness ever since.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/verizon-one-m9/general/m9-java-card-t3063247

guitarist5122 said:
...it will probably undo all the work jcase has done up to this point.
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There's nothing (public) to undo. Unless by chance jcase discovered an exploit and HTC found it as well and fixed it....
It's starting to appear that many of these folks who can figure this sh*t out are losing interest in working on devices from Verizon and other carriers who go to extreme lengths to lock them down. I mean, my previous phone was a Galaxy S3 and Samsung / VZW locked them down tight. The S4 uses presumably the same security (my wife had one so I was a little up to speed on them). I haven't bothered checking the S5 or S6 but I'm confident they're not exploitable either.... Just to be clear, I'm not criticizing those folks if they're no longer trying. That's 150% their decision and choice !

hallstevenson said:
There's nothing (public) to undo. Unless by chance jcase discovered an exploit and HTC found it as well and fixed it....
It's starting to appear that many of these folks who can figure this sh*t out are losing interest in working on devices from Verizon and other carriers who go to extreme lengths to lock them down. I mean, my previous phone was a Galaxy S3 and Samsung / VZW locked them down tight. The S4 uses presumably the same security (my wife had one so I was a little up to speed on them). I haven't bothered checking the S5 or S6 but I'm confident they're not exploitable either.... Just to be clear, I'm not criticizing those folks if they're no longer trying. That's 150% their decision and choice !
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Surprisingly the SG6 is able to flash ROMs. no bootloader unlock, but still surprising considering how hard SG3/4 was locked down when I was on them.

andybones said:
Surprisingly the SG6 is able to flash ROMs. no bootloader unlock, but still surprising considering how hard SG3/4 was locked down when I was on them.
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So going forward, after our edge programs are eligible etc etc, what is the best alternative to have an unlocked bootloader and root even be an option without extreme measures? Pay off the edge program and go to T-Mobile and HTC? That way the bootloader can be unlocked from HTC? I'm very thankful to have my M9 rooted and unlocked but thinking ahead, what's the best course of action? Thoughts?

andybones said:
Surprisingly the SG6 is able to flash ROMs. no bootloader unlock, but still surprising considering how hard SG3/4 was locked down when I was on them.
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Is it the same as can be done on the S3 with a locked bootloader ? I'd have to go back to that forum to get the name as I don't remember it.... Safestrap ?
Looks like it's not Safestrap after all. I'm quickly scanning but don't see much details yet. I do see quite a few ROMs available though !

hallstevenson said:
Is it the same as can be done on the S3 with a locked bootloader ? I'd have to go back to that forum to get the name as I don't remember it.... Safestrap ?
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I hated SS.
I'm not exactly sure how it's done I just have a buddy on SG6 on VZW and loves it, being able to mke ROM.
I do know it isn't SS
"ping pong root"
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s6/general/root-pingpongroot-s6-root-tool-t3103016

andybones said:
I hated SS.
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Never had to deal with it.... I rooted mine the same day I rec'd it ! Same with my previous phones - all rooted in less than (2) days. Well, except for my HTC Eris. That one took a couple of months after I got it before jcase came up with an exploit.
I had scott123 "free" my M9 the day after I rec'd it.

hallstevenson said:
Never had to deal with it.... I rooted mine the same day I rec'd it ! Same with my previous phones - all rooted in less than (2) days. Well, except for my HTC Eris. That one took a couple of months after I got it before jcase came up with an exploit.
I had scott123 "free" my M9 the day after I rec'd it.
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only reason i had to use SS was cos my dad got a new phone and gave me his old sg3, and at this point it had 4.4.4 so bootloader couldnt be unlocked anymore and had to use SS, it was horrible imo