HELP: Accidentally did a bad root on S4 i9500 while recovering photos

[Kamran Hassan]

Dear Android Experts,

I was trying to recover lost photos on my S4 using Dr.Fone on my PC. Apparently i didn't recover the photos and my phone seems to have been rooted.

I noticed a strange icon on reboot (only once) and checked my phone STATUS which now says "CUSTOM". Also when i tried to update the software through OTA updates it says "DEVICE MODIFIED. SOFTWARE UPDATES ARE NOT AVAILABLE".
In ODN Mode: Current Binary Status says "OFFICIAL" & System status says "CUSTOM"

I have checked the phone with root explorer and it confirmed that phone is not rooted. i then did a factory reset. However, the status still reads "CUSTOM"
I don't like rooting my androids and have never done so in the past. I want the upcoming KITKAT update and want to bring my S4 back to stock.

The phone was bought brand new from an official Samsung dealer. The model is i9500 and is not a carrier phone. This phone was not rooted when i bought it. Its the first thing i check every time i buy a new android.

Also, I've already received OTA updates twice on this set..but not anymore.

Please help!

Cheers.

 

[Golfdriver97]

Welcome to the forums.
Seems strange....The only thing I can think of is to flash a stock firmware via Odin and see if that removes the status.

 

[Rukbat]

Or root the phone, use Wanam to reset the status, then unroot the phone.

 

[UJ95x]

Welcome to the forums.
Seems strange....The only thing I can think of is to flash a stock firmware via Odin and see if that removes the status.

This is the best option, although he could root and use triangle away to remove the custom status. That might be what is preventing the OTA since he doesn't have root

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Golfdriver97]

This is the best option, although he could root and use triangle away to remove the custom status. That might be what is preventing the OTA since he doesn't have root

Posted via Android Central App

Another possible method.
Anyone else reading this, be advised: Messing around with Triangle Away can be tricky. Any mistake made can lead to a bricked device.

 

[UJ95x]

Another possible method.
Anyone else reading this, be advised: Messing around with Triangle Away can be tricky. Any mistake made can lead to a bricked device.

Agreed. There are many tutorials on YouTube on how to do it too, not very hard so definitely stick to only the steps shown.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Kamran Hassan]

Thank you for all your suggestions guys. I have never rooted any of my android phones.. so i have no clue how to unroot either or what the triangle method is. I just started reading about it. I'm a just your average stock user. So, I'm posting screen shots of my phone for you all to see so you can spot anything unusal. The phone however is working just fine without any issues. I ran a antivirus check using Mcafee and that turned out fine as well.

 

[UJ95x]

Thank you for all your suggestions guys. I have never rooted any of my android phones.. so i have no clue how to unroot either or what the triangle method is. I just started reading about it. I'm a just your average stock user. So, I'm posting screen shots of my phone for you all to see so you can spot anything unusal. The phone however is working just fine without any issues. I ran a antivirus check using Mcafee and that turned out fine as well.View attachment 103189View attachment 103188

Hmm, you're on 4.3; so there's no way to reset the flash counter and get back to "Samsung official" status instead of the "Custom." I'd try flashing the stock firmware with Odin.
You can try either sammobile.com or samsungupdates.com to look for your model number and download it from there

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Kamran Hassan]

@ Golfdiver & UJ95x. I'm gona try and flash with odin.
I appreciate all your suggestions. Learned some valuable stuff from you guys in very little time.
Let you know if it worked.
Cheers.

 

[Kamran Hassan]

@ Golfdiver & UJ95x...It worked This morning is i flashed my phone with the stock firmware with Odin. Status is back to official and my phone is ready
to accept new updates through OTA. Thank you so much guys, i really appreciate your time and help. You guys are awsome.

 

[UJ95x]

@ Golfdiver & UJ95x...It worked This morning is i flashed my phone with the stock firmware with Odin. Status is back to official and my phone is ready
to accept new updates through OTA. Thank you so much guys, i really appreciate your time and help. You guys are awsome.

Woohoo! Glad you got it working again

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Golfdriver97]

@ Golfdiver & UJ95x...It worked This morning is i flashed my phone with the stock firmware with Odin. Status is back to official and my phone is ready
to accept new updates through OTA. Thank you so much guys, i really appreciate your time and help. You guys are awsome.

Sorry for the delay in reposting. Glad you got it to work. See you around the forums.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using AC Forums mobile app