[GUIDE] Root & Unlock the Bootloader of Your Atrix (AT&T)

[Nickel3ack]

I decided to put together a nice, straightforward tutorial on how to root and unlock your device. I have recently joined the Android scene myself, and the XDA forums have been invaluable to my learning process. I did hit a few brick walls in the process (and nearly bricked my phone as well) before I finally achieved a 100% working, rooted, unlocked ROM installation. So, I just wanted to put together a short, easy to follow guide on rooting and unlocking, which will (hopefully) avoid you extra time / headache.

Note: It is quite possible (though not certain) that you may lose your current data after the unlock process, so make sure to make a backup before you proceed.

Pre-Requisites:
- Atrix 4G (AT&T)
- Any firmware up to 4.5.91 (which is currently the latest official - as of 8/4/11)
- A Windows PC
- Current Motorola drivers for your device installed on your PC

Required Files:
Android Root and Unlock (2011-08-04).zip

This archive contains Fastboot, ADB, Tenfar's ClockWorkMod, Pudding (v2), and RSD Lite 5.3.1 (which is all you'll need). I put it together into one package to save you a bit of time, but all the credit goes to the original devs / creators.


Step 1 - Unlock the Bootloader

1. Extract the provided archive into a folder on your PC. Let's assume this is "C:\Atrix\".
2. Install RSD Lite 5.3.1 program on your Windows machine.
3. Make sure the latest Motorola USB drivers for your Atrix are installed on your PC.
4. Run the RSD Lite program on your PC.
5. Power down your Atrix and connect to your PC via USB.
6. Power on your Atrix, and immediately hold the Volume Down button until you see a menu pop up. This will be a text menu which will appear at the top of your screen, and the first option you'll see will be "Fastboot". Cycle the menu by pressing the Volume Down button until you get to the "RSD" menu option. Press the Volume Up button to launch the RSD support on your Atrix.
7. You should now see the phone appear in the RSD Lite program interface on your PC (in the bottom menu). Click on it. You should see some data about your Atrix appear in the Device Properties pane.
8. Hit the "..." button in the RSD Lite program to bring up the file menu and select the "4547-fix-try2.sbf" (included in the archive above). This is Pudding. It will unlock your Atrix in just a moment.
9. Hit the "Start" button. RSD Lite will flash your phone. This process will be fairly quick, and your Atrix will reboot once or twice. After your Atrix boots back into Android, power down your phone and close the RSD Lite program on your PC (ignore the warning... the process is complete... if it wasn't complete, you would not be able to boot up into Android).
10. Power down your Atrix once again. Leave it connected to your PC via USB. Power it on again and hold the Volume Down key to get to the boot menu (as before). This time, select the "Fastboot" option by pressing the Volume Up button.
11. Open up the Command Prompt on your PC (Run 'cmd', or browse for it in your 'Accessories' application menu) and go to C:\Atrix\ (or the directory where you extracted the provided archive).
12. Type in the following command:
    fastboot oem unlock
13. You will see a message pop up with a warning about unlocking your device. Assuming you are here, you don't care about this, so just make note of the device id that the message provides.
14. Type in the command again, this time with the device id:
    fastboot oem unlock ### ,
    where ### is the device id you noted above.
15. Type:
    fastboot reboot

That's it! Your device now has an unlocked bootloader.


Step 2 - Flash the ClockWorkMod

ClockWorkMod ("CWM") will allow you to make backups of your current system, as well as install mods and ROMs.

1. Reboot your Atrix.
2. Hold the Volume Down button as the device powers up to get to the boot menu. (You should be familiar with this by now.)
3. Select the "Fastboot" option from the menu by pushing the Volume Up button.
4. Type the following command from the command prompt on your PC (assuming you're still in the C:\Atrix\ directory, or the directory where you extracted the provided archive):
   fastboot flash recovery recovery-en-goapk-0630-1029.img
5. Type into the command prompt:
   fastboot reboot

You're done. You will now be able to launch CWM from the boot menu by selecting the "Android Recovery" option. Again, the boot menu cycles with the Volume Down key, and you make a selection with the Volume Up key. If you selected the wrong option, just pull your battery and try again.


Step 3 - Root Your Device

Rooting will give you the "Superuser" program in Android and allow you to provide superuser permissions to apps.

1. Reboot your device. As it powers on, hold the Volume Down button to get into the boot menu. Select the "Fastboot" menu option using the Volume Up key.
2. Type the following commands into the command prompt on your PC (assuming you're still in the C:\Atrix\ directory, or where you extracted the provided archive):
   fastboot flash preinstall preinstall.img
   fastboot reboot
3. Wait until your device boots fully into Android.
4. On the command prompt on your PC, type in the following commands, sequentially (executing each one-by-one, i.e., hitting the enter key after each):
   adb shell
   /preinstall/dosu
   /bin/mount -o remount,rw /system
   cp /preinstall/su /system/bin/
   chmod 6755 /system/bin/su
   PATH=/system/bin:$PATH pm install /preinstall/Superuser.apk

Done! You should now see the "Superuser" program as one of your Android's apps.

You are now unlocked, rooted and have CWM installed! You are ready to mod / ROM your Atrix.

 

[antoniolcrd]

what if...? At step 4 always get permission denied after

/preinstall/dosu ?

Rgds

 

[defnow]

what if...? At step 4 always get permission denied after

/preinstall/dosu ?

Rgds

Keep typing commands. It'll look like an error but keep going.

Sent from my MB860 using XDA App

 

[antoniolcrd]

Maybe out of luck...

check this pls:

C:\tools>adb shell
$ /preinstall/su
/preinstall/su
Permission denied
$ /bin/mount /system -o remount,rw
/bin/mount /system -o remount,rw
/bin/mount: permission denied
$ cp /preinstall/su /system/bin/su
cp /preinstall/su /system/bin/su
cp: /system/bin/su: Read-only file system
$ chmod 6755 /system/bin/su
chmod 6755 /system/bin/su
Unable to chmod /system/bin/su: Read-only file system
$

 

[Deggy]

This is one of the most n00b friendly guides I ever read. I can picture each step in my head as I read the instructions.

EDIT: This can go either way. I find it easier just to flash a ROM that's pre-rooted after unlocking the BL and installing CWM when it comes to step 3.

 

[Nickel3ack]

Did you run through steps 1-3 as well?

The second command should be "/preinstall/dosu".

check this pls:

C:\tools>adb shell
$ /preinstall/su
/preinstall/su
Permission denied
$ /bin/mount /system -o remount,rw
/bin/mount /system -o remount,rw
/bin/mount: permission denied
$ cp /preinstall/su /system/bin/su
cp /preinstall/su /system/bin/su
cp: /system/bin/su: Read-only file system
$ chmod 6755 /system/bin/su
chmod 6755 /system/bin/su
Unable to chmod /system/bin/su: Read-only file system
$

 

[antoniolcrd]

No way.

Did you run through steps 1-3 as well?

The second command should be "/preinstall/dosu".

I´ve tried this command also. Pls check:

C:\tools>adb shell
* daemon not running. starting it now *
* daemon started successfully *
$ /preinstall/dosu
/preinstall/dosu
bash: groups: command not found
[email protected]:/# /bin/mount/system -o remount,rw
/bin/mount/system -o remount,rw
bash: /bin/mount/system: Not a directory
[email protected]:/# cp /preinstall/su /system/bin/su
cp /preinstall/su /system/bin/su
cp: cannot create '/system/bin/su': Read-only file system
[email protected]:/# chmod 6755 /system/bin/su
chmod 6755 /system/bin/su
chmod: /system/bin/su: Read-only file system
[email protected]:/#

 

[sonnyjame5902]

Holy Crap I Think I'm Bricked

Ok guy, I just knew this was gonna happen.
Step one, part 8. After my phone rebooted my Atrix says:
failed to boot 0x1000

No OS detected, going to RSD mode in 5 seconds

Okay, now what? LOL HELP!

 

[Nickel3ack]

Don't Panic

Ok guy, I just knew this was gonna happen.
Step one, part 8. After my phone rebooted my Atrix says:
failed to boot 0x1000

No OS detected, going to RSD mode in 5 seconds

Okay, now what? LOL HELP!

No... don't worry. It's not a brick. Worst case you can restore the stock ROM.

1st Thing to try:
Basically, just wait a bit after it says "failed to boot"... don't press anything... then a menu will pop up. Before it can go to RSD, press the Volume Down key to get to Fastboot. Press Volume Up to get into Fastboot. Continue with steps 11-15. If this unlocks the bootrom, your error should disappear and you'll have your fully functional Android back.

2nd thing to try:
Just wait a bit after it says "failed to boot"... don't press anything... then a menu will pop up. Let the phone go into RSD. Go back to the RSD Lite program on your PC and repeat the Unlock process. Hopefully this time it will work.

3rd thing to try:
If not.... go to the Firmwares Superthread here on XDA and download the ROM appropriate for your carrier. Flash it onto your device via RSD (same method for flashing as above, except select the SBF you downloaded from the thread). This will get your device back into operation at least (you will lose all your data tho, so I'd try the other 2 methods first).

 

[sonnyjame5902]

Friggin Cheers Mate! Got it all set up with option 2, and now I'm rooted and SU! And they said it couldn't be done after the Gingerbread OTA update! Bollocks!

 

[Dell2]

You should recheck your steps, cause I can't get CWM without being rooted. Cannot use root explorer to delete install.recovery. sh without superuser permission.

 

[Nickel3ack]

You should recheck your steps, cause I can't get CWM without being rooted. Cannot use root explorer to delete install.recovery. sh without superuser permission.

The method for CWM described here is to flash the CWM directly to your recovery partition. All it needs is for the device to have an unlocked bootloader. You don't need to be rooted for this. Rooting only affects the way your Android OS permissions apps. You'll definitely need to be rooted to install CWM via ROM Manager or Titanium Backup. This is not that method.

 

[sanriver12]

can i just root with step 3 or do i have to unlock first?

 

[phobos512]

Just out of curiosity I see in the OP that this should not affect data - what evidence is there of this being the case with 4.5.91 OTA?

 

[Nickel3ack]

This unlock method modifies the boot sectors only. Your data is basically untouched. The method is actually well documented here on XDA. I just made this brief guide to be noob friendly. It actually summarizes a few working techniques. I unlocked and rooted by own, new AT&T Atrix using this method, which had the 4.5.91 OTA.

Anyway, not sure why people think they are bricking their phones. As long as the device turns on and you can get to the boot menu and back into RSD mode, you can always flash a stock ROM and be back to a functioning device. Only thing you risk losing is your data in any case.

 

[phobos512]

This unlock method modifies the boot sectors only. Your data is basically untouched. The method is actually well documented here on XDA. I just made this brief guide to be noob friendly. It actually summarizes a few working techniques. I unlocked and rooted by own, new AT&T Atrix using this method, which had the 4.5.91 OTA.

Anyway, not sure why people think they are bricking their phones. As long as the device turns on and you can get to the boot menu and back into RSD mode, you can always flash a stock ROM and be back to a functioning device. Only thing you risk losing is your data in any case.

This is just the first time I've read about being able to work on 4.5.91 without wiping the user data, so I was curious how this method differed from the others that were out there (mrramirezusa and the original pudding). Thanks for the info.

 

[jeffhwitz]

Really dumb question, but before I start, do I want my USB connection to be USB Mass STorage, None, WIndows Media Sync, or Motorola Phone Portal?

 

[usman.daud]

im getting error when i click start button it gives error of failed flashing

 

[phobos512]

Really dumb question, but before I start, do I want my USB connection to be USB Mass STorage, None, WIndows Media Sync, or Motorola Phone Portal?

For RSD, none.

EDIT
Now having done this I can say it doesn't make any difference because this is all done outside of the Android Operating System.

 

[phobos512]

Well, I did it and I did irritatingly lose everything in my /data. Luckily I've got everything backed up. Came from the 4.5.91 OTA and other than rooted was totally stock. Did give me a failed to boot 0x1000, pulled batt, restarted and did fastboot, did the unlock successfully (i.e. didn't flash any additional files so per the posts no reason I should have lost everything but I still did).

So, it does seem like more often than not doing this from the real actual unmodified OTA will cause a loss of user data as has been stated even though sometimes it doesn't seem to.