[Q] Locked Bootloader?

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Evo_Shift

Senior Member
Jan 17, 2011
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I would be concerned if there wasn't some sort of protection built into a processor to prevent ruining it from an overclock. My core 2 duo processor from like 6 years ago has this.
 

Gnurou

Senior Member
Aug 9, 2010
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I would be concerned if there wasn't some sort of protection built into a processor to prevent ruining it from an overclock. My core 2 duo processor from like 6 years ago has this.
I chose my example poorly but hopefully you get the idea. Anyway, only an official answer from NVIDIA could definitely answer wwjoshdew's question. I suggest not to hope too much still.
 
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JordanKeyes

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Jan 7, 2011
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You answered one part of that question... Will NVIDIA fix something that's hardware related and in NO WAY related to your bootloader being unlocked, or will they tell you to buy another Shield...

I don't know if the Warranty is void JUST FOR the Software, or the Hardware too... Like if the screen just dies, fan stops working, or something like that.

Hey, Josh! I asked a contact at Nvidia if they had any official response to your question, and here was their response:

“NVIDIA’s warranty policy does allow us to reject RMAs if a device has been rooted or boot loader has been unlocked. Our goal isn’t to keep people from rooting their devices though (it’s your device, and we want you to enjoy it), but rather give us a course of action if folks start to abuse the hardware through software modifications.”

Which is basically saying that if you root or unlock your device, then something goes wrong that's unrelated, like a fan dying or the screen going out or something, they're not necessarily going to just turn you away flat. The legalese there just protects them from people trying to abuse the system, completely bricking the device and then demanding a new one. :D

Hope that helps!
 
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wwjoshdew

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Dec 30, 2008
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Hey, Josh! I asked a contact at Nvidia if they had any official response to your question, and here was their response:

“NVIDIA’s warranty policy does allow us to reject RMAs if a device has been rooted or boot loader has been unlocked. Our goal isn’t to keep people from rooting their devices though (it’s your device, and we want you to enjoy it), but rather give us a course of action if folks start to abuse the hardware through software modifications.”

Which is basically saying that if you root or unlock your device, then something goes wrong that's unrelated, like a fan dying or the screen going out or something, they're not necessarily going to just turn you away flat. The legalese there just protects them from people trying to abuse the system, completely bricking the device and then demanding a new one. :D

Hope that helps!

Thanks Jordan! I appreciate it. And on another note, SquareTrade lets you purchase their warranty on devices you've had less than 30 days. I only had to pay 62 dollars to get warranty and accidental drop protection. So that's another "outlet"! :)

Check it out here >>> http://www.squaretrade.com/videogames-warranty
 
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joshua_

Senior Member
May 23, 2010
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Agreed, although I'm somehow doubtful that a signed nvflash image won't make it's way into the light, which can repair a destroyed bootloader (as well as other partitions).

Speaking in my own capacity (I do not have any knowledge of how we manage SBKs for SHIELD, nor will I be looking it up at this point) I would be surprised if it did. My understanding is that all of the SBK leaks so far have come from OEMs, not NVIDIA.

Then again, kmdm and IEF can be magicians sometimes...
 

agrabren

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Mar 28, 2011
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Speaking in my own capacity (I do not have any knowledge of how we manage SBKs for SHIELD, nor will I be looking it up at this point) I would be surprised if it did. My understanding is that all of the SBK leaks so far have come from OEMs, not NVIDIA.

Then again, kmdm and IEF can be magicians sometimes...

Not all the teams were warned about letting nvflash images out in the wild. And it's known that a few have already been given out.
 

agrabren

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Mar 28, 2011
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eman2001

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Oct 2, 2012
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eman2001

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    AFAIK it does and I'm not sure you even want to risk trying this :). There is no purpose, SHIELD will not boot if the bootloader is changed even the slightest bit anyway, and if anything goes wrong before you restored the bootloader your device will become a brick.

    If you want to play with fire anyway, make sure you raw-copied the partition from rooted Android first so you can restore it immediatly after.

    And no matter what, don't reboot while the bootloader partition is altered!

    I'm the technical lead for SHIELD Android. I can just reflash any of the 4 units I have. :)

    I'm not playing with fire. I'm protecting you guys from playing with fire. :)

    Sent from my HTC One using XDA Premium HD app
    7
    You answered one part of that question... Will NVIDIA fix something that's hardware related and in NO WAY related to your bootloader being unlocked, or will they tell you to buy another Shield...

    I don't know if the Warranty is void JUST FOR the Software, or the Hardware too... Like if the screen just dies, fan stops working, or something like that.

    Hey, Josh! I asked a contact at Nvidia if they had any official response to your question, and here was their response:

    “NVIDIA’s warranty policy does allow us to reject RMAs if a device has been rooted or boot loader has been unlocked. Our goal isn’t to keep people from rooting their devices though (it’s your device, and we want you to enjoy it), but rather give us a course of action if folks start to abuse the hardware through software modifications.”

    Which is basically saying that if you root or unlock your device, then something goes wrong that's unrelated, like a fan dying or the screen going out or something, they're not necessarily going to just turn you away flat. The legalese there just protects them from people trying to abuse the system, completely bricking the device and then demanding a new one. :D

    Hope that helps!
    5
    Since a few people asked for root in this thread, here is a way to obtain it using fastboot:

    https://github.com/linux-shield/shield-root

    It's definitely not the regular way to do this, but until we get proper recoveries that should do the trick for those few who can't wait. Unguaranteed and unsupported of course, all I can say is that it works on my retail device.

    Edit: I can start a new thread for this, but would like to see a few success reports before doing so in case it turns out to be horribly broken.
    3
    Cool. Thanks for testing everyone.

    It seems like agrabren will come with a recovery sometime soon, so I'll not advertize my rooting method more to avoid cannibalizing his efforts. And the real SHIELD nerds are reading all the posts anyway. ;)

    Keep your devices safe and happy hacking.
    2
    I don't think he has any relation to the warranty claims department, he probably didn't give insight because he has none to offer. In my opinion, the risk is clearly spelled out before you perform the root. You give up any and all claims to warranty if your proceed.

    Sent from my SGH-T889 using xda premium