Rooted the Note 4 and now I have a Brick

[smooth3006]

Actually that's not quite true. Knox has 3 systems. Knox counter, which keeps track of whether you rooted your phone, and will void your warranty on anything that got damaged do to you rooting. Then there is knox personal (my knox ) which is a free service for anyone. My knox creates a container. Any app in that container cannot access anything outside of the container on your phone, and nothing on your phone can access the apps in that container. This is similar to private mode but with no limits as to what can go in there. My knox is currently available only for the s5, but it is expected that it will soon be available on the note 4 and other phones. Finally there is knox enterprise which works like my knox but with a bunch of added features and it cost money. A word of warning to those who are interested in rooting. If you do, obviously you will trip knox and MAY loose all knox functionality, my knox, knox enterprise, and private mode and never be able to get them back, even if you go back to original unrooted rom.

Posted via the Android Central App

anyone who roots shouldn't be worried about warranty anyways.

 

[monsieurms]

I think I fixed it.

I found this link on XDA

Found my exact model number and used that. ODIN installed it and all appears well.

So, now that you're back up and running and presumably rooted, do you feel you gained anything by rooting that was worth this hassle? Serious question, no harassment implied!

 

[Jaime Cormier]

Don't root it next time

 

[JW0914]

So, now that you're back up and running and presumably rooted, do you feel you gained anything by rooting that was worth this hassle? Serious question, no harassment implied!

Quite a bit is gained by rooting, of which has nothing to do with custom ROMs... Until Android 5 [Lollipop] is loaded onto a device, Android remains the least secure OS on the market. There are ways to lock down your phone's security and prevent malicious code and malware from infecting your device; prevent apps from gaining network access via IP Tables, only allowing apps access to WiFi or 3G/4G (vice versa) or both; killing the insane list of startup apps, of which almost every app you install sets itself up to startup when the phone boots which bogs down the responsiveness of the device (Windows users are familiar with this); use a SD card (for those that have the option) for swap, set up an ext3/ext4 partition for apps; and so many more, all of which require admin access to the OS (think "Run as Administrator" on Windows). Root is literally the equivalent of the built in Administrator account on Windows and is why it's called "root".

Most are uninformed about what root really means and what it actually does. Root, in and of itself, does not alter system files... it simply gives you the superuser (Administrator for Windows users) permissions to access system files. Think of it this way... you probably own a Windows PC, and you probably have yourself set as an administrator account on that PC... imagine not being able to use your control panel, alter your firewall settings, edit/change system files (like your hosts file), run system utilities like System File Checker (sfc /scan), create your own Windows PE/RE WIM image, which requires DISM and DISM requires itself to be run as administrator, install software or drivers, run an executable (which requires administrator permissions due to User Account Control), alter group policy, use Hyper-V or a VM equivalent, and the list goes on, simply because you're barred from having an administrator account by the OEM of your computer.

Most are also told rooting voids your warranty, which if you've actually taken the time to read the warranty, you find is completely false. If you root your device, the ONLY way, I repeat, the ONLY way it voids your warranty is if the problem you're experiencing can be directly traced to your activities from rooting. In other words, if a software glitch or hardware failure results in a warranty claim, it has to be honored by federal law; however, if you alter your build.prop or delete a system file AND the OEM/Carrier can prove this, your warranty is voided. The burden of proof lies with the OEM/Carrier, not the end user (you do not have to prove you didn't root your device and caused the issue... they must prove you rooted your device AND activities related from rooting caused the issue). It's sad that instead of actually reading your warranty T&Cs, most users simply choose to parrot what they've been told by others that never bothered to read the warranty. It doesn't matter that customer service, a sales person, or a corporate employee of a carrier tells you differently... the only thing that matters is what's in black and white in the contract the OEM has with an end user, which is known by the term "Terms & Conditions". T&Cs are not some silly piece of paper... it is a federal (and sometimes state) binding contract between the OEM and the end user.

 

[monsieurms]

Most are also told rooting voids your warranty, which if you've actually taken the time to read the warranty, you find is completely false. If you root your device, the ONLY way, I repeat, the ONLY way it voids your warranty is if the problem you're experiencing can be directly traced to your activities from rooting.

Well, yes. I always thought that was fairly obvious.

Of course, most average people if forced to sue for small amounts--these may be claims worth only a couple of hundred bucks-- won't. When the subject is breached, chaos can ensue. So, if yelling at the carrier or manufacturer has no effect, and it often doesn't, a typical consumer is screwed. It can be like talking to a wall. Theory is one thing. Reality is another. If you're a lawyer who can represent yourself for free and make arguments about contracts of adhesion, construing contracts against the drafter, unfair trade practice claims and so on, and then ALSO act as your own expert and argue the tech well enough to convince a court against the line of attack from the Defendant, you may be in good shape. That may not be many people. If you have to sue the manufacturer all by yourself and you deliver pizza for a living, it may not be pretty.

Which is to say, avoiding arguments about when your warranty is breached and why is probably a pretty prudent course of action for most. If you still have rights after rooting, many will also find that they have a right without a practical remedy because it is just too difficult to sue. That is the equivalent of "no rights" if the manufacturer or carrier takes a hard line and/or disagrees with the claim that the rooting did no harm. I believe you are correct in your description of how the burden of proof shifts in court, but that may not be how it works on the telephone dealing with a CSR.

As for being a superuser, I wonder how many will take full advantage of that....? When you talk about things like "set up an ext3/ext4 partition for apps;" I suspect most who are rooting are doing it for far simpler reasons.

 

[wase4711]

I've rooted tons of phones, and taken many of them back to the CARRIER when there was a replacement needed and NEVER EVER ONCE was denied because the phone was rooted...
No one returns a phone with problems back to Samsung; 99% of the time they take them back to their carrier, and unless you are a total jerk when you take your phone in with a problem, no one is going to refuse warranty because it is rooted; plus, with almost EVERY rooted phone, there is an easy way back to a stock like configuration, and if your phone looks like its "stock", and you have a verifiable issue that requires a replacement, you wont have a problem 99% of the time..

The amount of mis information and paranoia surrounding rooting is incredible..

 

[monsieurms]

The amount of mis information and paranoia surrounding rooting is incredible..

You mean the paranoia coming from participating in a thread about how a phone was just turned into a brick?

I'm happy for your good luck in making returns--but were any of your honored returns based on problems caused by rooting? That is all we're talking about at the moment. That issue has already been narrowed and was not in dispute.

Carriers and manufacturers do reserve the right not to honor warranties if you do something that breaks the phone. That's just common sense. If you wreck the phone, that's on you. It isn't terribly complicated. It is great you haven't had a problem. Hope that continues. It may not. They also have to figure it out. You can also show up at the carrier and not tell them you're rooted. When you walk out of the store, they may never know; the phone just goes back to the shop for formatting. Silence is golden. Luck is a wonderful thing. There's no guarantee any of that is forever.

I personally have little interest in buying $800 phones so I can sort of redesign them myself. Your mileage may differ. Fair enough. This aspect of it is a minor tangent to be sure, but most certainly not risk-free. That's all.

 

[wase4711]

obviously, nothing in life is risk free; you can get killed walking across the street, but does that mean you should never leave the curb by your house?
I choose to live my life the way I want to, and not be paranoid of every possibility out there.
If I try to return a phone and the sales clerk says sorry, its rooted, we cant do it, I will just go to another store where they dont check and take care of me there.
drinking and driving is illegal; does that stop people? taking drugs? shoplifting?
not that any of these can be compared to rooting, but my only point is that not every one is paranoid about taking some sort of chances in their lives, and if you are afraid of the consequences of rooting, then dont do it.