Hi all, ultimately I’d like to experiment with a whole new os, but I gotta save up a little to buy a pixel. I’m currently working with a galaxy s21 ultra.
I never quite understood the reason to root and so I never really researched it. But now that I’m venturing more into the foss world and learning a bit more about tech, I’m realizing it might be useful for utilizing certain apps that require root and possibly helping to get rid of google and such services for good, but again idk the extent of what root offers and I also read it can be dangerous, so I’m lost to say the least.
My recent interest in rooting is purely because I have some foss apps that require root for me to use the full capabilities that I want. I also heard about adb and that it may be similiar to rooting but without actually rooting?
I’m just quite not sure how I should approach this and what things I should be aware of or NOT to do, to ensure I don’t end up bricking the thing lol
Thanks for reading
adb = connect your phone to your pc and send commands to it. Can do things that aren’t included in the Android user interface, but can’t touch the core system or give you extra rights. Necessary for the Universal Android Debloater and flashing custom ROMs.
root (most common method is Magisk) = gives you access to functions that are normally off limits. Its utility is overestimated if you just want to use your phone as a phone, but it lets you use it for purposes it wasn’t designed for. Not necessary for degoogling, microG installation or flashing custom ROMS.
unlocking bootloader = necessary for rooting, flashing a custom ROM or replacing Google Play Services with microG. Degoogling without a custom ROM and microG is possible, but a pain in the ass and limited in functionality. You want this.
custom boot loader (most common is TWRP) = necessary for flashing custom ROMS and installing microG.
If your phone is supported by TWRP or a custom ROM (look at LineageOS first), installing that is the easiest way to completely degoogle.
If it isn’t, then you can still root it, remove Google apps with adb and use Netguard to keep any Google apps you still need from phoning home. But getting push messages, location and speech recognition/synthesis to work in your apps is a crapshoot. You will probably be limited to the functionality of open source apps that don’t depend on Google services.
One correction, you don’t use
adbto flash custom ROMs, it’s just for interacting with a working Android device.For flashing you use other tools which can write partition images to the phone’s partitions and know the format that the vendor packages those images and the partition structure on the phone.
fastbootis a standard tool for that but some manufacturers don’t follow standards and there are other tools made specifically for them.Also, TWRP is not a bootloader, it’s a recovery. The recovery is sort of a cross between a PC BIOS and a rescue disc, it’s a mini-OS you can boot into and perform maintenance operations. Phones already come with a recovery built-in but it’s super-basic so most people prefer a TWRP-made recovery because it has much more features.
location works fine without google
there are foss apps for speech synthesis
once you degoogle there are few (none) that can’t notify without push
reminding in order not to discourage op
Thanks a lot, I am weary about rooting and will probably not do it. So what are some other similar ways you could utilize the adb route?
First step would be to install the universal Android debloater. It can remove unwanted preinstalled apps over ADB. If your phone is supported by TWRP it might be possible to replace Google Play Services with microG, but I’m not entirely sure if that works without root. Didn’t manage it on my phone but that might be sure to the fact it isn’t supported by TWRP and I had to hack a custom version of it which kept getting uninstalled by the stock ROM on every reboot.