Rooting yes/no/maybe/why

[LarryKingsShoes]

This thread has some great information for those considering the option of gaining root access on their Android devices. It definitely takes some research and consideration because, without knowing why you're doing it in the first place, there is no way to actually benefit fully from having it done. Even then, the benefits probably won't live up to the hype that a lot of members of the Android community seem to promise.

In the end, my primary motivation to root my TF101 was for AdFree Android and SetCPU. I like the cleaner look of apps without ads (though buying the paid version is a completely viable alternative, and it goes a long way to showing appreciation to the developers) and I had hopes of squeezing a little bit more battery life by tweaking the processor settings. From there, I decided to try a custom ROM (Revolver) in hopes of better performance. Admittedly, the stock configuration was no slouch. I can't actually say with concrete proof whether or not my Transformer is faster post-flashing. What I do get out of it, however, is the psychological aspect of feeling like it has to have gotten faster. For some people, myself included, that may be enough of a reward.

I would be completely fine running a stock Android install without root access. We are fortunate that Asus is supporting our tablets with an Ice Cream Sandwich update to keep things current. I could definitely see the advantage of rooting and flashing custom ROMs on devices that don't get that kind of prolonged support. In our case, new Android updates isn't that big of a game changer, for now. Ice Cream Sandwich is another story altogether. I'm curious if it will live up to the hype or if it's just an instance of the "newer has to be better and it will fix everything" mentality. Regardless, I'm excited to try it out because newer has to be better!

I'm happily rooted because I put the time in to consider all of the benefits and weigh them against the possible risks. In the end, I ruled that it would be worth it for a few key reasons. I was fortunate enough to not encounter any issues and I look forward to getting back to just using my tablet to do the tasks that it was meant to do.

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[bogolisk]

I'm going to root my TF. Not now but within months after ICS.

Reasons:

• CIFS: mounting the shares in kernel space will be much more efficient than by the file-managers and will cure many lan-based video playing problems
• ext3/ext4 (I'm a linux guy and I have 6 1TB ext3/4 formatted HDDs with my data on them). Compared to real filesystems, fat32 and ntfs are so crappy.
• ethernet-over-usb. Last year (2011), I've been at a couple of resorts and wifi was un-usable between 8AM and 8PM (when all the kids have their ipod-touch ON.)
• trouble-shooting: the ability to read kernel logs and tweak procfs/sysfs is extremely powerful to figure out problems such as unresponsiveness, hi-cpu-usage, etc.

The sad thing is: Google/Asus could/should have included the first 3 items in the stock OS. There's nothing unsecure about providing cifs/ext3/ext4/ethernet-over-usb support. And then there's NFS. From what I can measure (a while ago) the xfer between my nas (a sheeva plug) and my mediaplayer (a sigma-based network media tank), nfs is significantly more efficient than CIFS/SMB.

[Chris]

I'm going to root my TF. Not now but within months after ICS.

Your post summarises my feelings almost exactly. I'm waiting for the ICS update and then I will give it some time for the bugs and issues to be resolved. I have two more reasons for rooting:

• Access to some of the hidden data
• Capability to run Debian/Ubuntu in a chroot environment

I'm not interested in a custom Android ROM and the only ROM that I would consider, would be a full Debian/Ubuntu ROM.

[janner43]

@bogolisk
To me, you are the first person who has made a sensible case FOR rooting. You clearly need to do so for the reasons you have stated & equally have demonstrated the knowledge that means you could root without causing yourself issues that you woud not be able to resolve.

Unfortunately, IMO, you are in a minority of those who choose to root. Many users seem to be of the opinion that rooting is somehow essential for them to have a fully functional device. Sometimes they think this because they are uninformed, sometimes it is because they haven't taken the time to understand Android & find out how to do things that they need to do in a way that will already be possible. Sometimes it is simply because they think it is "cool" - ah the young at heart

The difficulty is, that with this majority group of rooters, when they get into difficulties, they don't possess enough knowledge to be able to resolve their problems. This causes hours/days/weeks? of uneccessary problems - it is this group that the OP was really aiming his post at.

Thank you for explaining the technicalities of situations that NEED rooting - for most of us, not only do we not understand everything that you said but we don't have the knowledge to fix it when we break it

As someone once said, "just because you CAN do a thing, does not mean that you SHOULD do a thing".

[The_Cageybee]

@bogolisk In regards to NFS, that requires the same cifs kernel mod to be installed/running. So we're still SOL on that one.

I also like to use Adfree, but only because I can't stand using the web with ads plastered all over the place. As far as I'm concerned, blocking ads in ad-supported apps is an unwanted side effect. But not much I can do about it until Google open the browser to plug-ins.

The final thing I like to run which requires root is a firewall. Personally I don't like the idea of having no control over what is allowed access to the outside world. Lets face it, how many of you don't run any type of firewall on their desktops? Not many, because you'd be stupid not to. So why should it be any different for a tablet/phone.

ICS does include a data usage monitor for apps, but how far that will go is still to be seen. Will it allow us the option to block apps access or will it simply be a case that if you think an app is doing things you don't like your only choice is to uninstall.

So, I wait with baited breath for ICS to see what issues and what I consider serious holes in the Android platform are addressed. However, the more I read about it the more I'm certain, for me, rooting will be necessary.

[buzzman]

I rooted back in May when the firmware was less than optimal. And I accidentally factory reset and lost everything. Titanium BU was my priority. After the major updates it was pretty much acceptable unrooted and stock. I'll be looking to unroot and go back to stock to upgrade to ICS. Then Root won't be necessary for me.

[a.robinson9321]

I went back and forth on rooting my prime for the longest time. After the OTA update I decided to go for it and have not regretted it in the slightest bit. Although there are various benefits, the one that impacted me SUBSTANTIALLY was the ability to overclock the cpu on the prime. Before overclocking, my browsing experience was good but not great. After using setcpu to overclock, the browsing was noticeably better. Pages load much quicker, and my browser rarely freezes/crashes like it once did. If anyone is somewhat disappointed in browsing experience on the prime, I would recommend rooting.

[Ollie]

Due to my job I have to root to use Market Enabler. Or, continue to use Appsaver to push the apks I need from my rooted phone and Touchpad to the 101. I haven't even begun to look into it yet though. I may wait until after ICS.

[justin82]

i am going to root after ICS when it becomes available . reason are to dual boot with ubuntu. i think this is already an option i have not played around yet. i would like to dual boot so that i can run just a few programs so i can work some from home.

i will research it to death before i root, i have rooted every device i have owned since the D1 ( and i owned a bunch D1,DX,incredible,iphone4 (mistakethunderbolt,nexus. but i also know how to get them out of a bad situation .

[Jaydon]

I want to root to use Six Axis. It allows you to pair a PS3 controller for gaming. For my EVO 4G, removing bloatware on already very limited resources, like the blockbuster or NASCAR apps, WiFi tethering, setcpu, etc.

Why I wouldn't: alternatively you can use a Wii controller using wiimote (free app), and you can use Easy Tether to share your fonz internet via usb, ($10 but worth it). There is a free version but with limited access.

CUSTOM ROMS: You can use ADW Launcher or other launchers to fully customize your device, paired with a multitude of themes (IPad, Windows7, Honeycomb,& ICS etc) ,without rooting. It's not a full OS, but looks cool. Show it to your friends, and many wouldn't know the difference.

Myself, I'm Still learning about all this, and from what I have found, "UnrEVOked" may be the best choice for a novice (with an Evo 4G that is). Viperboy has probably the best (easiest) solution for a Prime user. Just Google it with your device. There are a lot of youtube tutorials on this.

Edit: after reading this.... I may not root my Prime
Wireless PS3 Controller with no root

Also thanks to all who post good and helpful info for people like me who know just enough to get into trouble. Any better advice on what I posted? Feel free