Rooting Questions and Suggestions for Nexus 7 2013

[S.Prime]

Post your questions and Suggestions for the Step by Step Rooting Guide for the Nexus 7 2013 here.

[ivan]

Your rooting guide is excellent, thanks very much for posting that.

I'm a noob to rooting. I never did it with my Motorola Xoom or 2012 Nexus 7... but I'm stepping it up on my 2013 Nexus 7. It all seems pretty straight forward, but I have some questions on custom ROMS.

I understand that these are face lifts for Android. Is there a resource somewhere on the web (xda?) that has a summary of the different ROMs, and where I can get them? How is a ROM different than a launcher like Nova? Can I use different launchers with different ROMs? How do I actually install the ROM? Will installing it wipe all my data? What else do I need to know about ROMs?

Thanks very much.

[S.Prime]

Xda is an excellent source of ROM's for your Nexus 7 2013, Here. Since you are a self-stated noob, when it comes to rooting, let me make a couple of suggestions, to help you make the transition to the world of root and ROM's.

1) Purchase Mark Skippen's Root Toolkit pro version, you will have a latest toolkit version, minimizing your chance of root failure and problems. His free version and the free version from Wugfresh are slower to receive updates.

2) Get use to using your Rooted Nexus 7 2013, especially familiarize yourself with Nandroid Backup, before attempting custom ROM's

 

[JayJ]

To add to Primes reply. All Custom ROM's on a Nexus are AOSP based so will look just like your Nexus now. They offer enhanced features to stock Android. For example, battery percentage in the Statusbar, more toggle tiles in Quick settings including NFC, GPS, Tethering, Auto sync et cetera. There are many other great features added to Android in custom ROM's including Paranoid Androids PIE, Halo and Hybrid Engine. Another feature is the Theme engine, with this you can change the total look of your device from the icons and color if them in the Statusbar to the system settings and settings background.
3rd party launchers make minor changes compared to custom ROM's, a launcher is only the front end ofif your device. The homescreen and app draw.
Some custom ROM's come with custom launchers like CyanogenMods Trebuchet Launcher whereas other will come with the stock or a 3rd party launcher. Most 3rd party launchers from the Play store can be used on any ROM.

Finally when flashing a custom ROM it is mandatory to perform a factory data reset however this is done from within the custom recovery you use (CWM/TWRP) and will only wipe system user data, not internal storage. Yes applications will be wiped but we have applications like Titanium Backup and Helium which allows us to backup those applications and their data beforehand and then restore those after flashing a custom ROM. Titanium Backup or TiBu is a very popular root application and has many functions other that backing up applications.

So typically from stock you would, unlock the bootloader, root and install a custom recovery along with the su binary, the SuperSU and Busybox applications. As Prime has mentioned all this can be done with a Root Toolkit.
Once rooted, install and backup your applications with Titanium Backup. Boot your device into recovery and factory data reset, flash ROM zip and GApps zip, wipe Cache and Dalvik Cache, reboot. Once the device is fully booted, log in to your Google account as you would a new device and then install TiBu from the Play store and restore those backed up applications. Once restoration is complete your device should be as it was but with a custom ROM and more features than stock Android.

If you need anymore help, just ask.

Sent using The Force

[ivan]

Thanks guys for all the help. I'm all rooted, and installed the ParanoidAndroid ROM.

Quick question, what is BusyBox? And how do I know if it's installed/working?

[matt]

I believe busybox is an application that updates a number of linux commands. On my older tablets, superuser would not work correctly unless busybox was run.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 4

[JayJ]

Busybox does not need to be installed on a custom ROM...
It's an application as matt says, once the root process is complete you run the Busybox app to install the Linux/Unix commands that Android does not have. The application has a GUI which runs you through the process of installation.

Sent using The Force

[ivan]

Busybox does not need to be installed on a custom ROM...
It's an application as matt says, once the root process is complete you run the Busybox app to install the Linux/Unix commands that Android does not have. The application has a GUI which runs you through the process of installation.

So I don't need to worry about BusyBox if I have the ParanoidAndroid ROM installed? Will I lose any functionality if I don't have it installed? I only ask cause I'm having some issues with my bluetooth.

If I needed to install it, would I find it in my list of installed applications, or would I find it through TWRP?

Thanks for answering all my noob questions!

[JayJ]

No the Linux/Unix commands are not your problem, the commands are needed at the "root" level.

It'll be in your list of installed applications.

Sent using The Force

[ivan]

This might be interesting for those wanting to root, and install a custom ROM:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2471718

Also, I wanted to ask. What is a custom Kernel, why would I install one, and how do I install it?

Thanks!

[JayJ]

The kernel is the lower level of the software, it's the part that communicates directly with the hardware.
A custom kernel allows the set parameters of the stock kernel to be enhanced. Depending on the kernel and device that would include: Overclocking, Underclocking, Undervolting, governor, colour and gamma calibration.
Generally though the custom kernel developer is going to have tweaked the kernel to perform better than the stock kernel.
There will be other features, kernel dependent so it's advisable to read the developers thread on a development community such as XDA or follow the developer on Google+.

Sent using The Force

[ivan]

Do most custom ROMs already come preloaded with custom Kernels? Will I mess up my ROM if I install an outside kernel?

Or is it safe to install any kernel I want?

Also, where do I check to see which Kernels I am using?

Thanks a ton for all the help, I'm really enjoying making full use of my Android device!

[JayJ]

Sorry for the late reply Ivan.

It largely depends on the ROM most use a moderately tweaked stock kernel so a custom kernel may help with battery and include other features.

No it isn't safe to install any kernel. You need to understand flashing the kernel is considered the next level up to flashing a ROM and with the build versions of AOSP ROM's differing you must flash the right kernel to the right ROM. For example I use Paranoid Android on my Nexus 4 which is based on the JWR AOSP ROM so it must be used with a JWR kernel, whereas other ROM's are based on the JSS AOSP build and must be used with a JSS kernel.
It just means it's best to read the ROM thread on XDA and the kernel thread so you know what you are flashing.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

[ivan]

Here's a hopefully quick question.

I first rooted my device a couple of months ago. I've installed various kernals and ROMs since then. I rooted originally in Android 4.3, and now I'm at Android 4.4.2 (custom ROM - no OTAs). I have never re-rooted using the Skipsoft Toolkit.

Today I updated the Skipsoft Toolkit (which I haven't done since I first rooted) and I installed an updated TWRP Recovery using the toolkit.

Is there anything else that needs to get updated on my device via the rooting toolkit? Should I reroot my device or anything like that? I'm just worried that I might be breaking something by going up in the Android build number, but not doing a reroot.