[Q] Newly Rooted User With Questions.

Vic098 · Aug 23, 2014

First off, great forum, tons of awesome information.

I apologize in advance as I am sure these questions have been answered a million times but being new to a Rooted device, I'm looking for a little clarity and guidence.

I have the AT&T variant of the LG G3, awesome awesome device.
I rooted the device with Stump Root (doesn't get any simplier then that)
I then installed "Xposed Installer", "Titanium Backup", "SuperSu", and "G3 Tweak Box".

Questions,

Xposed
1) Seems pretty straight forward, is there anything as a newbie I should know, avoid, lookout for?

Titanium Back Up
1) Well, it all looks like chinese to me. First off, I have backed up all my apps, but when I check "Backup/Restore" I still see certain apps as "No Backup Yet". Why?
2) Also, how often should I backup the apps? Is once enough?
3) After backing up bloatware, is it then safe to remove and delete?
4) Schedules, should I be enabling either option?
5) Main Menu, whats the most important actions to take here?

SuperSu
1) Seems fairly straight forward, what are "logs" and do I need to pay attention to them?
2) Settings, is there any options I need to change, take advantage of? Anything I should avoid tampering with?

Misc Questions
1) When system updates come out, will this cause me to lose Root access, if so why and how do I avoid that?
2) Is there any prevenitive measures that I need to take to protect my device against any crashes, bricking, or any other general screw ups a newbie might cause with Root access?
3) Also, how do I not destroy my device while learning to take advantage of Root access?
4) In addition to what I have already installed, is there any other must have apps for the Rooted user?

I appreciate any & all help, thanks alot in advance!

Planterz · Aug 23, 2014

I'll answer what I can, as best I can.

Vic098 said:
Xposed
1) Seems pretty straight forward, is there anything as a newbie I should know, avoid, lookout for?

Make sure you have BusyBox installed as well.

It's best to change one setting at a time. It's tedious, especially if you have to reboot after changes, but if something goes awry, it's much easier to track down the conflict or bug, especially if you're using multiple modules.

Titanium Back Up
1) Well, it all looks like chinese to me. First off, I have backed up all my apps, but when I check "Backup/Restore" I still see certain apps as "No Backup Yet". Why?

There's a definite learning curve with TB. I'm not sure why some apps might not back up. It could be because they're core components of the OS and are write protected.

2.) Also, how often should I backup the apps? Is once enough?

When talking about batch backups, "enough" is at your discretion. No harm in doing them periodically, especially if you install a bunch of new apps. Backing up individual apps is good to do before updating them, in case you decide you preferred the older version. Or a game you don't want lose progress in or revert to an old "save".

3) After backing up bloatware, is it then safe to remove and delete?

Depends on the bloat. Some apps by AT&T or LG might seem unnecessary or unwanted, but actually are necessary and can cause crashes or force closes ("unfortunately XXXXX process has stopped"). Always back them up first, and remove them one at a time. It's better to freeze them first, then delete after testing. Personally, I don't delete bloat, just freeze it.

4) Schedules, should I be enabling either option?

Both, if you want to schedule period backups rather than just doing them youself. Again, your discretion .

5) Main Menu, whats the most important actions to take here?

Batch actions and Preferences (where to store them) are all you really should be messing with now. At least until you learn more.

SuperSu
1) Seems fairly straight forward, what are "logs" and do I need to pay attention to them?

The logs keep track of what was granted SU access and when. Not really necessary.

2) Settings, is there any options I need to change, take advantage of? Anything I should avoid tampering with?

PIN code is your choice. If you're the only one that ever uses your phone, it's not really necessary, but if if you let others use it frequently(for games, or to browse or log into Facebook), you might want to use a PIN so they don't simply hit "grant" whenever SuperSU requests rights. I use "prompt" as the default action, so I know what needs to access the system. For example, some apps that don't require root (like Clean Master) have additional functions if you are rooted, and this might not be clear in the description in Play. That way you know, and you won't accidentally screw something up. Also, malicious apps that have no business with root access can be identified and blocked.

Misc Questions
1) When system updates come out, will this cause me to lose Root access, if so why and how do I avoid that?

You can sometimes (usually?) lose root access after an update, but it's usually possibly simply to re-root with the same method. If not, it's best to wait to do the update until others can confirm/deny. SuperSU has a "survival mode" that can try to keep root during an update, but again, it's best to wait for confirmation by others.

2) Is there any prevenitive measures that I need to take to protect my device against any crashes, bricking, or any other general screw ups a newbie might cause with Root access?
3) Also, how do I not destroy my device while learning to take advantage of Root access?

Read, ask, and learn. It's easy to grow confident and think you're more clever than you really are and really screw something up (I know from experience). If you look at the first couple pages of general Q&A/Help forums, you'll see lots of people who did stupid stuff and now have bootloops and crashes and bricks. Do lots of searches, here, on google, and youtube. You can often find guides for what you're wanting to do.

4) In addition to what I have already installed, is there any other must have apps for the Rooted user?

AdAway or other ad blocker. Not only does it block ads in your browsers, it blocks Google ads in free apps. Apart from being cleaner and more convenient, since ads don't get loaded, pages load faster and you consume less data.
BetterBatteryStats gives you much more info on what's draining your battery than the stock Android function.
Some sort of root browser/explorer is essential. You can use it to completely delete folders/data that got left behind even after an app is deleted (which can sometimes cure Google Play Store errors), among other things.
I personally like ROM Toolbox Pro. It doesn't really do anything special, just packs a ton of utilities that you can get elsewhere into a single app.
SQLite editor is necessary to do some things, but you'd better make sure you know what you're doing before doing anything with it.
WiFi Tether Router might be able to bypass AT&T's tether app. Changing some settings with SQLite might be necessary. You'd have to research this for your device.

Those are the root apps I use, as well as Xposed and assorted modules to do theming or other functionality tweaks. Xposed is quite powerful, and you should familiarize yourself with what the multitude of different modules can do. The possibilities are seemingly endless, as developers come up with no mods every day to do new things that nobody else has done yet (or ported other mods to work with other devices).

I appreciate any & all help, thanks alot in advance!

Good luck and have fun!

Vic098 · Aug 23, 2014

Planterz said:
I'll answer what I can, as best I can.

Make sure you have BusyBox installed as well.

It's best to change one setting at a time. It's tedious, especially if you have to reboot after changes, but if something goes awry, it's much easier to track down the conflict or bug, especially if you're using multiple modules.

There's a definite learning curve with TB. I'm not sure why some apps might not back up. It could be because they're core components of the OS and are write protected.
When talking about batch backups, "enough" is at your discretion. No harm in doing them periodically, especially if you install a bunch of new apps. Backing up individual apps is good to do before updating them, in case you decide you preferred the older version. Or a game you don't want lose progress in or revert to an old "save".
Depends on the bloat. Some apps by AT&T or LG might seem unnecessary or unwanted, but actually are necessary and can cause crashes or force closes ("unfortunately XXXXX process has stopped"). Always back them up first, and remove them one at a time. It's better to freeze them first, then delete after testing. Personally, I don't delete bloat, just freeze it.
Both, if you want to schedule period backups rather than just doing them youself. Again, your discretion .
Batch actions and Preferences (where to store them) are all you really should be messing with now. At least until you learn more.

The logs keep track of what was granted SU access and when. Not really necessary.
PIN code is your choice. If you're the only one that ever uses your phone, it's not really necessary, but if if you let others use it frequently(for games, or to browse or log into Facebook), you might want to use a PIN so they don't simply hit "grant" whenever SuperSU requests rights. I use "prompt" as the default action, so I know what needs to access the system. For example, some apps that don't require root (like Clean Master) have additional functions if you are rooted, and this might not be clear in the description in Play. That way you know, and you won't accidentally screw something up. Also, malicious apps that have no business with root access can be identified and blocked.

You can sometimes (usually?) lose root access after an update, but it's usually possibly simply to re-root with the same method. If not, it's best to wait to do the update until others can confirm/deny. SuperSU has a "survival mode" that can try to keep root during an update, but again, it's best to wait for confirmation by others.
Read, ask, and learn. It's easy to grow confident and think you're more clever than you really are and really screw something up (I know from experience). If you look at the first couple pages of general Q&A/Help forums, you'll see lots of people who did stupid stuff and now have bootloops and crashes and bricks. Do lots of searches, here, on google, and youtube. You can often find guides for what you're wanting to do.

AdAway or other ad blocker. Not only does it block ads in your browsers, it blocks Google ads in free apps. Apart from being cleaner and more convenient, since ads don't get loaded, pages load faster and you consume less data.
BetterBatteryStats gives you much more info on what's draining your battery than the stock Android function.
Some sort of root browser/explorer is essential. You can use it to completely delete folders/data that got left behind even after an app is deleted (which can sometimes cure Google Play Store errors), among other things.
I personally like ROM Toolbox Pro. It doesn't really do anything special, just packs a ton of utilities that you can get elsewhere into a single app.
SQLite editor is necessary to do some things, but you'd better make sure you know what you're doing before doing anything with it.
WiFi Tether Router might be able to bypass AT&T's tether app. Changing some settings with SQLite might be necessary. You'd have to research this for your device.

Those are the root apps I use, as well as Xposed and assorted modules to do theming or other functionality tweaks. Xposed is quite powerful, and you should familiarize yourself with what the multitude of different modules can do. The possibilities are seemingly endless, as developers come up with no mods every day to do new things that nobody else has done yet (or ported other mods to work with other devices).

Good luck and have fun!

Thanks for the detailed response. Just a follow up, when googling AdAway, I see some long threads and what I think are different versions, is there a link, or a place that I can find the latest (and safe??) version to download?

Again, appreciate the feedback.

Planterz · Aug 23, 2014

Vic098 said:
Thanks for the detailed response. Just a follow up, when googling AdAway, I see some long threads and what I think are different versions, is there a link, or a place that I can find the latest (and safe??) version to download?

http://d-h.st/BZs

If you haven't done so already, you'll have to go into your settings and check the box to allow app installation from unknown sources. Then just go to that link on your device, download the .apk, then install. Go to a site with a heavy amount of ads like phonearena.com (Verizon ads up the wazoo) and see how long it takes to load. Then reboot, and load the app. It'll update sources, and it'll be good to go. Go back to that website and marvel at how quickly it loads without the ads.

Radigen · Aug 23, 2014

Vic098 said:
Thanks for the detailed response. Just a follow up, when googling AdAway, I see some long threads and what I think are different versions, is there a link, or a place that I can find the latest (and safe??) version to download?

Again, appreciate the feedback.

Is this a Xposed Module or some APK off the google market? Because if it's an Xposed Mod then links are direct.

Vic098 · Aug 23, 2014

Radigen said:
Is this a Xposed Module or some APK off the google market? Because if it's an Xposed Mod then links are direct.

Gotchya.

Planterz said:
If you haven't done so already, you'll have to go into your settings and check the box to allow app installation from unknown sources. Then just go to that link on your device, download the .apk, then install.

The link downloads a file called mobogenie. Is that correct?

Planterz · Aug 23, 2014

Vic098 said:
The link downloads a file called mobogenie. Is that correct?

No. I don't know what that is, and I can't recreate whatever you did to get that. Whatever it is, don't install it.The file to download will match the name in the description. Make sure you're not clicking an ad (oh, the irony).

Try this link instead. https://f-droid.org/repository/browse/?fdid=org.adaway or try downloading on your computer to Dropbox or Drive or whatever cloud storage you use, or just download it to your computer, plug in your phone, copy it to your phone's storage, and run it from there.

Radigen said:
Is this a Xposed Module or some APK off the google market? Because if it's an Xposed Mod then links are direct.

Neither. It's not an Xposed module, just a regular app, but it's not available from the Google Play Store because they don't want you blocking your ads, so you have to side load it.

Radigen · Aug 23, 2014

Planterz said:
No. I don't know what that is, and I can't recreate whatever you did to get that. Whatever it is, don't install it.The file to download will match the name in the description. Make sure you're not clicking an ad (oh, the irony).

Try this link instead. https://f-droid.org/repository/browse/?fdid=org.adaway or try downloading on your computer to Dropbox or Drive or whatever cloud storage you use, or just download it to your computer, plug in your phone, copy it to your phone's storage, and run it from there.

Neither. It's not an Xposed module, just a regular app, but it's not available from the Google Play Store because they don't want you blocking your ads, so you have to side load it.

Oh alright, thanks then, good thing we're all developers here.

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[Q] Newly Rooted User With Questions.

Vic098

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Planterz

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Radigen

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