Setup, Preparation and Prerequisites
I know there are already a few root guides out there for this phone, but I found that they weren't very detailed. This guide is thorough and explains each and every step in a noob-proof manner.
Basic tasks that I may refer to throughout this guide:
- Open command prompt - Press Window Key + R, type in "cmd" (without the quotes), and hit enter.
- Enter fastboot mode- Turn the phone off. Hold volume up + power until the "fastboot" screen appears.
ADB & Fastboot Installation:
- Download the full Android SDK here (scroll to the bottom of the page>DOWNLOAD FOR OTHER PLATFORMS>SDK Tools Only) or get a slimmed version containing only the essential components here
- Extract the zip and place the android-sdk-windows folder on your desktop.
**If you chose to download the slimmed sdk skip to step 5** - Only if you downloaded the full sdk: Go into the android-sdk-windows folder and run SDK Manager.exe. Install the following packages (there are a total of 4 packages):
- Tools > Android SDK Tools, Android SDK Platform-tools
- Extras > Android Support Library, Google USB Driver - Only if you downloaded the full sdk: Go back into the android-sdk-windows directory, and you should see a new folder named platform-tools. If you don't see this new folder, repeat the step above.
- To confirm that it is indeed working, open a command prompt window and enter the following commands:If it displays "Android Debug Bridge version x.x.xx" it is working. If it is gives an error saying that adb is not a recognized command, it has not been successful. Carefully repeat the steps above if this is the case. Close the command prompt window when you are done.Code:
cd Desktop/android-sdk-windows/platform-tools adb version
- Show File Extensions - Open a command prompt window and run "Control folders" (without the quotes). Go to the View tab and uncheck the "Hide extensions for known file types" option. This will help avoid confusion when renaming files.
- Battery - Ensure that your phone has at least 60% battery remaining, and that your PC is plugged in and wont shut down spontaneously during the process. The procedure doesn't take very long (5-15 minutes), but its best to have enough charge in case something goes wrong.
- Backup (Optional) - Unlocking the bootloader will completely wipe all data from the device. This includes apps, settings and even the contents of the internal sdcard (pictures, music, etc.). Copy all important files off the phone onto a PC or upload them to a cloud.
- Driver Installation - Download and install the Universal ADB Driver. Alternatively, use this method.
Download a custom recovery and the SuperSU zip below. Place both files (recovery image and root zip) in the platform-tools folder located on your desktop within the android-sdk-windows folder.
Custom Recovery:
TeamWin Recovery Project (TWRP)
Root:
SuperSU
Information
Rooting this device is actually quite a simple and easy process. Before you begin, it is recommended that you at least try to understand what each part of the process will do. Although this guide will elongate each step in order to show all of the details, the method used can be broken up into 3 main steps: Unlocking the Bootloader, Installing a Custom Recovery and finally Rooting. Each new step relies on the previous step to have been completed, and a basic summary of each part is:
- Unlocking Bootloader: Opens the door to the internal memory of the device to be written on to. This allows you to flash images onto the main partitions of the phone.
- Installing a Custom Recovery: A custom recovery is flashed onto the recovery partition of the device and overwrites the stock recovery that exists by default. Custom recoveries bring lots of functionality and give you the ability to perform wipes, install flashable zips, create full backups of your NAND (Nandroid backup), and various other features. An unlocked bootloader is needed to install a custom recovery.
- Rooting: You can gain root by either flashing via recovery a pre-rooted custom rom, or flashing a zip containing the SuperSU binaries. A custom recovery is necessary to do this.
After completing these steps your phone will be rooted, the phone will have a custom recovery installed, and the phones bootloader will be unlocked. This, in my opinion, is the most practical and beneficial method for rooting your phone. It gives you some basic adb/fastboot knowledge, and should hopefully help you have a decent understanding of what is going on. Also this method will work regardless of what android version your phone has.
Original Post - OnePlus
Author of OnePlus Developers Blogger Site
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