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Make sure your phone is unplugged from your computer until I tell you to plug it in!
If you already have the Android SDK and HTC Sync set up on your computer, skip to Step 4 now

Step 1: Download the Android SDK here

Step 2: Extract the Android SDK zip. Move the contents of the extracted zip to C:
Your Android tools folder path should now be C:android-sdk-windowstools

Step 3: Download HTC Sync 2.0.40 here
Run the installer. Move on once installed. If reboot is required, do so and then move on.

Download my evo-root.zip.

It contains a few files necessary to root the EVO.
Unzip the contents of the zip to your android sdk tools folder.

Download the unrevoked-forever.zip
Place this zip in your tools folder as well, as a zip, not extracted.

Download this PC36IMG.zip (This is the same as running an RUU, so it will delete all of your user data when we use it later in the guide, so backup everything you want to save on your phone first)

Put this zip in your sdk tools folder as well, as a zip, not extracted.

After unzipping the contents of evo-root.zip to your android sdk tools folder and placing the PC36IMG.zip and unrevoked-forever.zip in the folder, move on.

Step 4: Make sure USB Debugging is ON (checked) on your EVO. Go to Settings > Applications > Development > and make sure it is checked.

Step 5: Plug your phone into the computer via USB, Make sure that the connection type in the Notification Pull-Down Bar is "Charge Only", not "Disk Drive" or else this won't work.
If your computer asks you to restart after the new drivers were installed, do that now.

Once ready, type these commands in cmd prompt from your adb tools directory.

Code:

adb push unrevoked-forever.zip /sdcard/
adb push flash_image /data/local/
adb push rageagainstthecage-arm5.bin /data/local/tmp/
adb push mtd-eng.img /sdcard/
adb push PC36IMG.zip /sdcard/

now we chmod a few things

Code:

adb shell
chmod 0755 /data/local/tmp/rageagainstthecage-arm5.bin
chmod 0755 /data/local/flash_image

Ok now for the root shell.

On your phone, go to Settings > Wireless & Networks

After you do these next 2 commands, start toggling Airplane Mode over and over until you acheive the desired results mention in a few steps.

(still in adb shell)

Code:

cd /data/local/tmp

Code:

./rageagainstthecage-arm5.bin

(This is where you start toggling airplane mode)

You will now see some text on your cmd prompt screen explaining the exploit.

Wait for the adb shell to go away, and it will dump you into your windows command prompt again (no shell) should look something like this:

C:android-sdk-windowstools>

If it dumps you to a $ instead, repeat those 2 commands again, toggling airplane mode again.

Once that dumps you out of the shell, type

Code:

adb shell

and you will see you now have a

Code:

#

instead of

Code:

$

now type

Code:

cd /data/local
./flash_image misc /sdcard/mtd-eng.img

that will flash your misc partition with Toast's mtd-eng.img.

after that, you need to type

Code:

reboot bootloader

Remember how you pushed that huge PC36IMG.zip to your sdcard earlier? This is where that comes in handy. Once you booted into hboot, Select "bootloader" with your volume up/down buttons and hit the power button. Let it sit for a little bit while it loads the PC36IMG.zip. This can take up to 5 minutes. When it finally asks if you want to apply this zip, choose YES. (Remember, this is the same as running an RUU, so it will delete all of your user data).

Once it is finished, select restart. You now are on the stock 2.1 build of Android.

Next step, mount your sdcard on your computer, and delete the PC36IMG.zip from it. This is because the next step requires using hboot, and you don't want to sit and wait while it loads up again, just for you to say "no" to the install. Please follow this step, for it saves 5-10 minutes of waiting ahead.

I worked extensively with Matt Mastracci, so this rooting guide will use the unrevoked method to root 2.1. This is what worked for me testing on my brother's EVO, so if you do end up trying something else to root 2.1 with, PLEASE do not post it here or ask questions, for I will only support the unrevoked team.

Now open up your web browser on your computer and navigate to http://www.unrevoked.com

Click on the little EVO picture, and then on unrevoked3. Go here for more info on unrevoked3.

Choose the correct operating system to download for. Once downloaded, run the program on your computer. Make sure your EVO is plugged in with USB DEBUGGING ON! Do not touch your phone while this process is going. It will reboot to the bootloader, and pause for a little while and then do some reboots.

As soon as it is booted into recovery, you are done with that.

Next in recovery go to

Code:

Flash zip from sdcard

and choose the

Code:

 unrevoked-forever.zip

This will flash the unrevoked forever hboot unlock. You are now completely rooted. You can now reboot to recovery and flash a custom rom, or reboot into the rom and accept the OTA update. Even if you accept the OTA update, you will still have the s-off flag from unrevoked forever, so you can flash a custom recovery from the bootloader using

Code:

 fastboot flash recovery /sdcard/recovery.img

assuming that you are booted in the bootloader and have the recovery image on your sdcard as recovery.img.

I am sorry if this is a little confusing, but I had to get this out tonight. I will update this as best as I can tomorrow. Thanks again for all of your patience tonight!

Dan Wager