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Magisk gets its biggest update in months, bringing features like Android 11 support and a brand new UI to stable
Rooters are rejoicing
For advanced Android enthusiasts, Magisk is one of the most popular tools for achieving systemless root access to a device. Since each yearly Android release introduces new underlying code changes, there's usually a lot of work to be done before Magisk can be made compatible. Developer John Wu started with the first canary builds back in April, and now it looks like Magisk version 21 is officially ready for Android 11 — as well as a completely rewritten version of Magisk Manager.
Google's dreaded SafetyNet hardware check has been spotted in the wild
The end of an era — unless a solution is found
If you're part of the root and ROM Android enthusiast crowd, then you probably freaked out a bit back in March when it was revealed Google's SafetyNet check was getting a hardware-backed component with no easy workaround. Now, these changes have been spotted live in the wild, and some phones are already using hardware-backed SafetyNet attestation. Cue "the end is nigh" wailing.
Latest SafetyNet improvements threaten to finally kill Magisk Hide
The developer has overcome other big obstacles before, though
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Magisk and Google have been playing a game of cat and mouse for years: Google's SafetyNet technology is supposed to be triggered when it notices a rooted device, but MagiskHide does its best to keep banking apps, Pokémon Go, and other root-despising applications going, no matter what you do with your phone. However, the latest update to SafetyNet, apparently rolling out via the Play Services, seems to put an end to the game permanently. Magisk developer John Wu isn't convinced he'll find a solution that would keep his tool intact once Google fully implements the change.
A custom recovery such as TWRP allows you to install custom ROMs and root your devices more easily. Unfortunately, the development of the software for the Pixel 4 and 3 on Android 10 has hit major roadblocks. Some changes in Google's implementation of the recovery and personal circumstances of the main contributor to TWRP could mean that it'll take a while until it's available.
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TWRP is the most trusted Android custom recovery around at the moment and is adding support for more devices all the time. Over the past month or so, 14 new phones and tablets have appeared on the TeamWin Recovery Project site, including the beastly new OnePlus 7 Pro. Support has also been added for all Android One Fifth Generation handsets.
Substratum is one of the best theme engines around and was even a good option for non-rooted phones until the Android 9 Pie update stopped it from working. Even so, it's still popular in the custom ROM community, so news of a lighter, more stable version will no doubt be welcome.
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- In short order, v17.3 has been promoted to Magisk's beta channel. Pixel 3 owners won't need to worry about using the canary releases now — if that's something that bothered them. Magisk developer topjohnwu has also published a changelog which details a few of the particulars behind the Pixel 3-specific tweaks, as well as other patches and improvements that happened with this latest release.
Magisk developer topjohnwu is nothing if not prolific. A mere two days after the Pixel 3's formal launch (and just a day after receiving his own phone), he's already achieved root via Magisk on Google's latest flagship. Those hoping for root on their own Pixel 3s probably won't have much longer to wait for a stable release.
Mobile games don't tend to look favorably on rooted devices — i.e. smartphones where the user has root access to the system code — due to the potential for cheating. However, not many go to the extreme that Niantic has just imposed with a recent update for its massively popular Pokémon GO game.
Android has evolved quite a lot into the operating system we know and love today, but years ago, many enthusiasts (including me) actively plugged its earlier feature gaps via a process called "rooting." In brief, rooting allows us to make modifications at the system level—though it does so at the cost of potentially reduced security, among other risks.
Finding stock firmware for phones can be a pain, but Chainfire is here to help. He's launched a new website at firmware.mobi, where you can find official firmware for a variety of devices. It also simplifies the process of using CF-Auto-Root, if that's your goal.
We don't talk about rooting nearly as much these days. It's not that plenty of people aren't still doing it, but the popularity of modding has slowly dropped off as Android continues to mature. One of the leading deterrents to rooting is the hassle of manually staying current with updates, which can take more effort than it's worth–especially with Google adopting a monthly rollout schedule for Nexus security updates. Chainfire, developer of SuperSU, has updated his app FlashFire to take the pain out of keeping up-to-date by adding support for OTA packages and Android 6.0 Marshmallow.
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If you're going to do any serious modding on your Android smartphone, your first step is going to be unlocking the bootloader. This is a simple procedure on Nexus devices and a few other handsets, but many of the top OEMs have added security measures to prevent regular users from mucking about with their stock software. For these devices, there's a tool called Sunshine by recognized developers Justin Case (jcase), beaups, and friends. Version 3.0 just came out, and it can unlock the bootloader and acquire S-Off with almost every modern Motorola and HTC smartphone on the market.
Back in March, Justin Case released a root tool called WeakSauce for HTC's flagship lineup on Verizon. Unfortunately, a steady procession of updates to each handset has patched the original exploit, leaving many without root. Now there's a new version of WeakSauce, and it can root just about every HTC phone on Verizon running Android 4.4.4 and below.
The final round of Developer Preview images released on Friday left a number of users without root access on their devices, but a lightning fast quick-fix by Chainfire had them back in business the following day. Yesterday, he took to Google+ with a follow-up of how it works and the issues that are making it more difficult to acquire root on the latest version of Android.
Much to the chagrin of cell carriers and hardware manufacturers, there are still many in the Android community that choose to delve into the world of hacking and modding their phones. Owners of the Verizon Moto G are certainly in this crowd, and they've been eagerly awaiting a reliable method for unlocking their bootloaders. It turns out that their wait ends today. Sunshine, a tool built by Justin Case, Beaups, and others to unlock HTC and Motorola phones, just gained support for the Moto G on Verizon.
You saw Android Wear a couple of months ago when Google unveiled the SDK and both LG and Motorola presented the first promotional pictures. Then you watched the Google I/O keynote that officially launched the LG G Watch and Samsung's surprise addition of the Gear Live. And now you've got a shiny, brand new Android Wear watch before you... but all you can think about is ripping into the digital guts of that thing and doing all of the awful things that Google never intended. Admit it, you're one of us.
You've taken the plunge and thrown down some cold hard cash on a brand new HTC One M8, but you're feeling stifled because Verizon doesn't want to allow the bootloader to be unlocked? You might want to check out WeakSauce, a handy new root exploit by XDA recognized developers Justin Case (jcase) and beaups. It's a simple tool that can set up root on both the HTC One M8 and last year's model, the HTC One (codenamed M7).
If you like to mod your Nexus devices but you're also a fan of tight security, you probably already know BootUnlocker. It's a simple app that allows rooted devices to lock and unlock the bootloader without wiping user data. The developer, segv11, is back with v1.5.1 of this handy little utility. The latest update adds support for the WiFi (flo) and LTE (deb) variants of the 2013 Nexus 7 and the ability to set the tamper flag on the Nexus 4 (mako) and Nexus 5 (hammerhead).