[GUIDE] Root your HTC Desire 816!

[thoctor]

S off options

Is Sunshine still the best method of S-Off?
My Desire 816 recently broke (bent it somehow, so screen is a colorful mess of pixelation), and wife ordered me a replacement a couple days ago.

First off your screen name is hilarious and secondly yes. Unfortunately for those who vehemently disagree that any mod should cost money, as this one does , this is the only method currently available to obtain true S off. Having said that I have to disclose to you that I did pay to get the Sunshine app and S off. I'm happy with the results and I justified it to myself by saying that I've spent as much if not more on glass screen protectors and cases for my phones.

There is the WP_MOD.KO for lollipop in XDA that just enables the write permissions for the system partition and changes the SElinux settings from enforcing to permissive and allows apps like Link2SD to mount scripts in the system partition at boot. From what I've read about changing those permissions isn't good but heck we've all already unlocked our bootloaders so it's probably not a big deal but from what i've read it could be.

Having said that, that mod is not S off as some have called it but I call it partial S off. It is cheaper than Sunshine . I just recently found though that to do a stock OTA update not only do you need to reinstall stock recovery and unroot SuperSU you also have to remove the WP_MOD.KO from your system and restore the previous stock files. I didn't know that before and if true another reason to get true S off in my opinion.

But I don't like spending other people's money so what I usually say to anyone who asks me is that " at least our phone has options to obtain either true S off or partial write privileges while some other phones don't have any." I'm happy with my decision and I'm sure the others who did the mod are happy with theirs so that's a "win, win" in my book.

Hope I haven't been too long winded but I like to give complete answers . I'm not an expert by any means but I like to pass on my experiences as others here have done for me and let the individual decide what is best for them. That's the way it should be in my opinion. Good luck and let me know if you need anything else or heck maybe I'll need some help from you as well.

 

[YouArePoop]

First off your screen name is hilarious and secondly yes. Unfortunately for those who vehemently disagree that any mod should cost money, as this one does , this is the only method currently available to obtain true S off. Having said that I have to disclose to you that I did pay to get the Sunshine app and S off. I'm happy with the results and I justified it to myself by saying that I've spent as much if not more on glass screen protectors and cases for my phones.

There is the WP_MOD.KO for lollipop in XDA that just enables the write permissions for the system partition and changes the SElinux settings from enforcing to permissive and allows apps like Link2SD to mount scripts in the system partition at boot. From what I've read about changing those permissions isn't good but heck we've all already unlocked our bootloaders so it's probably not a big deal but from what i've read it could be.

Having said that, that mod is not S off as some have called it but I call it partial S off. It is cheaper than Sunshine . I just recently found though that to do a stock OTA update not only do you need to reinstall stock recovery and unroot SuperSU you also have to remove the WP_MOD.KO from your system and restore the previous stock files. I didn't know that before and if true another reason to get true S off in my opinion.

But I don't like spending other people's money so what I usually say to anyone who asks me is that " at least our phone has options to obtain either true S off or partial write privileges while some other phones don't have any." I'm happy with my decision and I'm sure the others who did the mod are happy with theirs so that's a "win, win" in my book.

Hope I haven't been too long winded but I like to give complete answers . I'm not an expert by any means but I like to pass on my experiences as others here have done for me and let the individual decide what is best for them. That's the way it should be in my opinion. Good luck and let me know if you need anything else or heck maybe I'll need some help from you as well.

I bought Sunshine on my current (broken) Desire. Kinda sucks I have to pay the $25 again, but its my own fault. wp_mod would probably suit my needs, as I run stock rom, but its nice to have full S-Off anyways, even if I don't fully utilize it. It was back in April I believe that I did Sunshine, so figured I'd see if another option came along so I could save some money, but its not the end of the world if I can't

 

[thoctor]

I bought Sunshine on my current (broken) Desire. Kinda sucks I have to pay the $25 again, but its my own fault. wp_mod would probably suit my needs, as I run stock rom, but its nice to have full S-Off anyways, even if I don't fully utilize it. It was back in April I believe that I did Sunshine, so figured I'd see if another option came along so I could save some money, but its not the end of the world if I can't

Yeah, that does suck. But it's not your fault it's just an accident. My brother recently dropped and broke his One Plus One and had to buy a new one so stuff happens. I would like to see an option from Sunshine where you could get a discount for the 2nd device you S off but they probably worry about people getting together and combining their devices for discounts but there should be a way to verify that the device is owned by the same person. Something like $25 for the first, $15 for the second, $10 for the third etc....

But it's their business model not mine. I've just been in higher end retail for 20 plus years so I'm wired to think like a consumer.

I put a Stilgut glass screen protector on mine with a generic minimal hard rubber case with a thin lip over and have dropped it multiple times but I'm sure concrete or a hard tiled floor would be it's undoing.

 

[YouArePoop]

BusyBox won't install without somehow disabling the write-permission issue correct?

 

[thoctor]

Busybox and write protection

BusyBox won't install without somehow disabling the write-permission issue correct?

Not sure about that but try installing Titanium Backup if you haven't already because they have their own version of Busybox built into the app and on its Titanium tracker faqs website it states that the app doesn't require S off , which has that write permission enabled , to work properly. I always thought differently but it's on their website so I assume I was wrong.

 

[YouArePoop]

Not sure about that but try installing Titanium Backup if you haven't already because they have their own version of Busybox built into the app and on its Titanium tracker faqs website it states that the app doesn't require S off , which has that write permission enabled , to work properly. I always thought differently but it's on their website so I assume I was wrong.

Eh, screw it. Bit the bullet, bought Sunshine again. Worth the $25 to not have to fiddle with installing things through recovery, or installed modded kernel files, etc. Peace of mind. (That is once this completes, the whole rooting process is a bit nerve racking, fear of something going wrong and all)

 

[thoctor]

duplicate post

Eh, screw it. Bit the bullet, bought Sunshine again. Worth the $25 to not have to fiddle with installing things through recovery, or installed modded kernel files, etc. Peace of mind. (That is once this completes, the whole rooting process is a bit nerve racking, fear of something going wrong and all)

That's funny as hell because that's EXACTLY how I would feel and state it so I'm right there with you on those sentiments and yeah I get nervous every time I have to reroot my device too even though it works the same every time. That's a good way to stay because it keeps you from getting to cocky and messing something up. Which I have done myself several times in the past on my phones.

---------- Post added at 09:48 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:32 PM ----------


Also I've read that our phone is going to get Marshmallow after the first of the year and with true S off you would technically only have to unroot SuperSU through the app and reinstall your stock recovery to be able to do the stock OTA as opposed to having to remove the WP_MOD.KO and replace your stock files, as I've read you'd have to, before being able to do a stock OTA. At least that's what I've read here in an XDA forum related to it.

 

[samrat3star]

Problem

Dear Sir I had completed step 3 and ran CWM_Recovery_en.exe from the command prompt and then from HBOOT selected Recovery now my phone shows only a blank screen nothing else.. is there something wrong is my phone damaged ? I cannot findout as the power off button is unresponsive and there is no way to take the battery out for reset please help me......

 

[thoctor]

Dear Sir I had completed step 3 and ran CWM_Recovery_en.exe from the command prompt and then from HBOOT selected Recovery now my phone shows only a blank screen nothing else.. is there something wrong is my phone damaged ? I cannot findout as the power off button is unresponsive and there is no way to take the battery out for reset please help me......

Was your phone in hboot/fastboot mode at the time and did you drag the exe program into the command prompt in the ADB file then hit enter? You can press your power button and hold then press and hold volume up to reboot phone or volume down to try to reboot into recovery. Try one or both of those and see if the recovery flashed properly. Even if it didn't you should still have your stock recovery and as long as you can still enter hboot/fastboot mode in your phone you can either try again or just flash the official TWRP zip for the a5 found linked in my previous posts in this forum or found directly at the TWRP website. Directions for flashing the zip are included at the website as well and I have several videos linked in this forum as well as detailed written instructions for flashing TWRP. The executable is just a different way to install a custom recovery if people had problems with the zip versions.

 

[samrat3star]

Probelm

I did try to restart after the battery died the whole night as HTC desire 816 battery cannot be manually opened so waited and in the morning after the battery died I restarted the phone and it started correctly with time date everything and the as the battery was drained it switched off and not it only shows a blinking orange led on top and the power button does not respond and also does not start... please what to do ?? and yes I was in HBOOT Fastboot mode when I started the Recovery
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Was your phone in hboot/fastboot mode at the time and did you drag the exe program into the command prompt in the ADB file then hit enter? You can press your power button and hold then press and hold volume up to reboot phone or volume down to try to reboot into recovery. Try one or both of those and see if the recovery flashed properly. Even if it didn't you should still have your stock recovery and as long as you can still enter hboot/fastboot mode in your phone you can either try again or just flash the official TWRP zip for the a5 found linked in my previous posts in this forum or found directly at the TWRP website. Directions for flashing the zip are included at the website as well and I have several videos linked in this forum as well as detailed written instructions for flashing TWRP. The executable is just a different way to install a custom recovery if people had problems with the zip versions.

 

[thoctor]

I did try to restart after the battery died the whole night as HTC desire 816 battery cannot be manually opened so waited and in the morning after the battery died I restarted the phone and it started correctly with time date everything and the as the battery was drained it switched off and not it only shows a blinking orange led on top and the power button does not respond and also does not start... please what to do ?? and yes I was in HBOOT Fastboot mode when I started the Recovery
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I believe there's a way in most phones with non removable batteries using the physical buttons to basically do a battery removal/reinstall but I don't know the combination of buttons but I do know you hold them for like 15 to 30 seconds instead of the normal "press power button/volume up to reboot , press power/volume down to enter boatloader". First you need to power your device up somehow with the charger and then try to enter your boatloader using the physical buttons. If you can get into your boatloader you can reenter hboot/fastboot mode and flash TWRP custom recovery using ADB/fastboot. Your phone is "soft bricked" and I have had my phone soft bricked and in bootloops before and was able to get into my boatloader somehow over several devices so that's some good news. Power your device up on a charger first so the battery isn't low and then attempt the physical button pushes I described and see if the second button scenario gets you into your boatloader. From there you can enter fastboot and then flash TWRP recovery if that's what you want to try. I use TWRP and it's very good and easy to use plus it's an official custom recovery for our phone.

And when I said"power up" I mean charge your phone then press power button/volume down and hold until you enter boatloader then from there You can either enter fastboot and flash TWRP or enter your recovery to see if CWM ever really flashed properly and if it did you might clear your cache and dalvik cache then reboot system. The next step would be a factory reset but that wipes most of your phone internal memory just not personal data files. I'd verify what recovery you actually have and if it's still stock I'd flash, using ADB/fastboot, TWRP official zip file found on their website under our model a5.

 

[Rahul125125]

How to root 816g tried all aapp framroot oneclickroot pc

 

[thoctor]

How to root 816g tried all aapp framroot oneclickroot pc

Don't have your variant but the last post in this 816 g
forum linked below seems to have a way as long as your variant is not the octa core version. Verify that yours is this correct version before your try any root method .

http://forum.xda-developers.com/desire-816/help/root-desire-816g-dual-sim-t2950583/page9

After checking some more there's also an iroot exploit in another XDA forum for the octa core version so that link might not be for your version. Sorry I'm not really that familiar with the Mediatek Desire 816g.

 

[Ajayd0700]

Sir i follow your all processure neatly i got sucessfully bottloader unlock...now my mobile htc desire 816 dual sim unlocked...but i stuck in recovery i sucessfully flash recovery i got message but..when i boot my mobile in recovery mode screen black nothing to show dislpay..what happen i dont know my mobile htc d816 lollipop version i stuck in recovery i caanot go further procesure becoz of recovery...reply what happen this i am having trouble to root my htcd816

 

[thoctor]

Sir i follow your all processure neatly i got sucessfully bottloader unlock...now my mobile htc desire 816 dual sim unlocked...but i stuck in recovery i sucessfully flash recovery i got message but..when i boot my mobile in recovery mode screen black nothing to show dislpay..what happen i dont know my mobile htc d816 lollipop version i stuck in recovery i caanot go further procesure becoz of recovery...reply what happen this i am having trouble to root my htcd816

If you ran the exe CWM recovery linked in this forum it should work but it may not for your model and firmware. Reflash TWRP official zip again found on TWRP's website and then unplug your phone after it reboots and power down your phone then press power button/volume down to enter boatloader then volume down to select recovery and press power button to enter recovery. TWRP recovery should be there. If not then download a fresh zip file of it to your computer and try again as the first might have been corrupted in the first download.

 

[Adamek2]

What does "Use the wp_mod.ko module" mean, what do i do

 

[thoctor]

What does "Use the wp_mod.ko module" mean, what do i do

For rooting purposes you don't have to do anything other than use V superuser's instructions in this forum and /or add viewing the videos I've linked here with a few extra tips ( I.e. flashing TWRP instead of running CWM exe, which I prefer TWRP) if you want to . The mod you are referring to is a limited workaround for those who don't want to pay for full S off to enable write permissions to their system partition only so that they can fully utilize apps like Link2SD that require write permissions to that partition to work properly on device boot up.

It's a script basically with a program that also changes your phones SElinux( secure linux) permissions from " enforcing" to "permissive" , basically removing the last security feature for your phone to be able to work properly as it is not full S off. Full S off leaves those permissions "enforcing" as the Sunshine app works on a deeper level in the Android system. You can just "root" and not use either of these methods and be fine but to use certain root apps, not all, or modify certain things you would need either full S off or this partial WP_MOD.KO (write protection modification script). The paid Sunshine app has its own forum here and a website and the mod has forums here with links to the firmware/model specific mod to flash.

Bear in mind if you opt to use the latter(mod) then if you ever want to do a stock update you will have to remove this mod and restore your SElinux permissions to permissive to update. With full S off you don't. You just unroot and update. This is separate from any other modifications you may make to your device that might need to be undone, as signed updates from the manufacture check your system files before allowing a stock update. Hope this explanation helped.

Also, I don't use the mod I used the Sunshine app and paid for full S off so I don't have have any fixes or knowledge about support for any mod issues They have to be made in the mods specific forum. Another reason I paid for full S off. They offer support for problems but the choice is solely up the individual.

 

[Adamek2]

For rooting purposes you don't have to do anything other than use V superuser's instructions in this forum and /or add viewing the videos I've linked here with a few extra tips ( I.e. flashing TWRP instead of running CWM exe, which I prefer TWRP) if you want to . The mod you are referring to is a limited workaround for those who don't want to pay for full S off to enable write permissions to their system partition only so that they can fully utilize apps like Link2SD that require write permissions to that partition to work properly on device boot up.

It's a script basically with a program that also changes your phones SElinux( secure linux) permissions from " enforcing" to "permissive" , basically removing the last security feature for your phone to be able to work properly as it is not full S off. Full S off leaves those permissions "enforcing" as the Sunshine app works on a deeper level in the Android system. You can just "root" and not use either of these methods and be fine but to use certain root apps, not all, or modify certain things you would need either full S off or this partial WP_MOD.KO (write protection modification script). The paid Sunshine app has its own forum here and a website and the mod has forums here with links to the firmware/model specific mod to flash.

Bear in mind if you opt to use the latter(mod) then if you ever want to do a stock update you will have to remove this mod and restore your SElinux permissions to permissive to update. With full S off you don't. You just unroot and update. This is separate from any other modifications you may make to your device that might need to be undone, as signed updates from the manufacture check your system files before allowing a stock update. Hope this explanation helped.

Also, I don't use the mod I used the Sunshine app and paid for full S off so I don't have have any fixes or knowledge about support for any mod issues They have to be made in the mods specific forum. Another reason I paid for full S off. They offer support for problems but the choice is solely up the individual.

Will i need to use this for Cyanogenmod 12?

 

[thoctor]

Will i need to use this for Cyanogenmod 12?

No, only for the reasons I specified or flashing radio or boot images but most never do that and it's not required when flashing a custom Rom. Just be aware that if you have a dual SIM device( a5_dwg/a5_dug) that they have SIM card issues with Cyanogen mod roms.

 

[zevilbofh]

unroot?

I have had my phone rooted for quite a while and get constantly prompted to install a system update, which fails since the phone is now tampered.

I have tried to remove the supersu from the phone so I can ruu reflash the phone back to factory so I can then run the updates. but each time I reboot the phone I supersu is back..

I have tried to remove su via adb but again after reboot bang supersu is back..

How can I clean my phone from this?