Rooting might be perfect for you if you’re the type of person who enjoys pushing the limits of technology and making the most of your devices. By giving your Android phone or tablet root access, you can take total control of it and get access to features and customization options that aren’t available on stock devices.
In essence, it gives you access to the “behind the scenes” of the Android operating system, enabling you to customize, improve, and tweak your phone as you see fit. But before you become too excited, there are pros and cons to rooting.
Even though it may sound exciting to be able to customize every inch of your phone, it’s crucial to understand what you’re getting into. Rooting your Android phone can void your warranty, put it at risk for security issues, and even make some apps stop functioning properly.
However, it also offers an abundance of options, like removing pre-installed bloatware, improving performance, or even installing a whole new operating system. So, keep reading to learn everything you should know about rooting your device.
Table of Contents
What is Rooting?
Rooting an Android phone or tablet is just like jailbreaking an iPhone. It lets you access a phone’s subsystem more deeply. Rooting your Android device gives you access to the whole operating system, allowing you to tweak almost anything and bypass any restrictions imposed by your carrier or manufacturer.
However, it is advisable to root your Android phone cautiously. Before installation, or “flash,” as it is called in rooting terminology, you must back up your phone’s software.
Rooting terminologies to note:
- Bootloader: The phone’s lowest-level software that launches recovery apps before the main operating system.
- Recovery: Low-level software capable of creating and restoring complete system backups. It is first accessed before the main operating system.
- ADB (Android Debug Bridge): A command-line tool included in the Android SDK that facilitates computer-to-Android device communication.
Read this article: What Is Android System Intelligence? Full Guide
How To Root an Android With No PC
Normally, you’d need a pc to root your Android phone. However, you can still do this without a pc depending on your phone’s model. Follow the instructions below to root your Android with no pc:
- Go to your Android’s Settings.
- Select Security or Biometrics and Security. You may also see it as Security & Privacy in some Androids.
- Enable Allow app installs from unknown sources.
- Download the Framaroot APK to your Android. You can only install the APK package since it’s not on Google PlayStore.
- Open your Downloads folder to see the app.
- Click the Framaroot APK file, and tap Install.
- Now click Open to launch Framaroot.
- From the menu, tap Install SuperSU.
- Next, restart your Android once the rooting is complete.
- Launch SuperSU once your phone comes back on.
- If prompted, select Update Binaries and tap Continue.
So, this is how to root your Android with no pc!
Should You Or Should You Not Root Your Android Phone?
Another thought that will eventually cross your mind is whether you should or shouldn’t root your mobile device. Well, it all depends on your choices and what you want. However, each comes with its pros and cons.
Rooting your phone or tablet allows you access to many customization options and apps. You can even upgrade your older Android version to the latest one even though your carrier and manufacturer no longer support it.
Generally, rooting an Android device allows you to tweak things that the manufacturer will normally restrict you from doing, plus it will enable you to use some cool applications.
What Can You Do With a Rooted Android Device?
Here are a few things you can do when you root your Android mobile phone:
- Install apps with greater performance.
- Discard preinstalled bloatware apps.
- Apply more customization to your phone’s looks.
- Underclocking to improve battery life.
- Largely improve the power of Tasker.
- Install custom ROMs.
- You can also install Ubuntu for desktop.
- Underclock or overclock the CPU.
- Perform complete backups, even up to the system level.
After all, some people feel they have express right to use their phone as they wish because they purchased it with their money. So, they can remove and add/install whatever they wish.
Besides, rooting your device comes with this sense of fulfillment—-more like, you’ve been able to successfully hack a device for the first time. Moreover, you must start from somewhere, especially if you’re a software developer/engineer looking to build something substantial too.
Will Rooting Damage Your Device?
While there seem to be many benefits to rooting your Android device, there are also some downsides associated with it. Don’t be too excited even though you know how to root an Android mobile phone. But why? you may ask.
If you do it wrongly or make any silly mistakes, you could brick your device. The rooting process is safer and simpler to perform on some devices than others. So, you must really be overconfident in your tech wizardry skills to carry out this procedure. Otherwise, you should leave your phone as it is.
Additionally, rooting can result in problems with official OTA handset updates. However, you can always install new software updates manually after rooting. Updating can make you lose root permissions. Once this happens, you’ll need to start the process afresh.
Also, an update will sometimes block outdated root techniques, and rooted phones can sometimes fail to install updates. If you notice that your Android phone stops booting after trying to root it, don’t panic. Just restore it to factory settings and you’re good.
Is Rooting Legal?
Let’s discuss another grey area when it comes to rooting—warranties. Carriers don’t want you to fiddle with their software and hardware. However, some manufacturers have become lenient to rooters, including those that install third-party software.
At the same time, some manufacturers have pointed out the changes that will void your warranty. So, don’t expect to get a repair or fix if something goes wrong while rooting your device.
Meanwhile, phones with locked bootloaders are produced to prevent rooting. So, don’t expect some sort of magic from such devices. And to the big question? Yes, rooting is legal in the United States.
But even though you unroot your Android mobile after rooting it, sellers and manufacturers can always identify such devices. You may try to hide traces of a rooted Android phone but manufacturers will always find out. So, you just can’t conceal such. For this reason, most people would rather root an older Android mobile phone that’s already out of warranty.
Although rooting has been legal in the US since 2013, this varies based on your country’s laws. Many countries allow it as long as you don’t use it for illegal acts, like circumventing copyrights.
Security
Note that once you root your Android phone, some features and applications will no longer work. Bank apps will cease to work because you’ve posed a security risk on your device. In addition, you’ll be unable to use Pokemon Go and Snapchat after rooting.
That said, it is safe to say rooting can expose your phone to more dangerous malware attacks. While the process might seem enjoyable, you may want to rethink it before proceeding.
FAQs
Rooting an Android device can lead to many problems, such as losing data, making the phone useless if done incorrectly, and allowing malware access.
Although most devices have one-click rooting abilities, rooting typically requires access to a PC.
You can root your Android device with Root, a free utility app.
Even if rooting an Android device is legal, manufacturers still make an effort to combat it. At the moment of gaining root access, your phone’s warranty is voided.
Conclusion
Although rooting your Android device gives you a great deal of customization and control, there are drawbacks, such as potentially voiding your warranty and creating problems with security.
While optimizing the performance and flexibility of your device is a fantastic idea, it’s important to consider the advantages and disadvantages before making a decision.
If you choose to root, be sure to adhere to reliable procedures to guarantee a seamless and safe process.