Root your Moto G - option 1: Superboot

[Guest me0000]

Just to confirm that Paul's second image for Alpha worked for me on a tesco 16 gb moto g (which had stock rom flashed to it).

 

Thanks Paul :)

[Guest varkey]

Would this method work for the CDMA version of the Moto G? (Boost version sold in the US)

[Guest kyan31]

Hey guys, i've been trying to root the Motorola g but now it has a problem:

 

It successfully completed the whole process in CMD, but after the phone rebooted to the motorola screen, then the purple screen, and now its just at a black screen. It's been like that for about 10 minutes now and nothing seems to be happening. Its similar to:

 

 

 

Win 7 x64    ^_^. Unlocked the phone (XT1032 16gb 4.4.2)   :wub:, fastboot, run the script as admin   :mellow:, the phone showed the white screen with motorola logo  :wacko:  and then became "vertical stripy multicolor"  :blink:   :angry:  and then smoothly changed to black   :unsure: ... After nearly having a heart attack  :( just rebooted (5 sec after black screen) and everything was fine  :blink:. Launched SuperSU and it worked   :D

 

...but its taking forever rather than just 5 seconds :(

 

Any help would be appreciated, thanks :)

[Guest kyan31]

Hey guys, i've been trying to root the Motorola g but now it has a problem:

 

It successfully completed the whole process in CMD, but after the phone rebooted to the motorola screen, then the purple screen, and now its just at a black screen. It's been like that for about 10 minutes now and nothing seems to be happening. Its similar to:

 

 

...but its taking forever rather than just 5 seconds :(

 

Any help would be appreciated, thanks :)

 

Nevermind, I just held the power button until the phone rebooted. There was no SU, so I booted back to fastboot and flashed CWM recovery. Now I can just flash a superuser zip and get root :)

[Guest somerandomhash]

I can confirm that this method does work on 4.4.2, and like in Konovolov situation I experienced exact same thing.

Running Windows 7 64

Motorola Moto G, UK Tesco running US 4.4.2 KitKat.

 

1. Got into bootloader

2. Run superboot-windows.bat (without "Run as administrator") and got the same purple melting Motorola logo, which looked like my phones gpu just burned,

then after a while (with just black screen) I started to check if ADB recognizes my phone, after about a minute of typing "adb devices" it did showed up.

3. Rebooted phone with "adb reboot" got "updating or optimizing application", after fully booted checked for SuperSU, but didn't see anywhere, so repeated same procedure from 1 to 3 (like Konovolov did) and after that I do have SuperSU and my 4.4.2 android is rooted.

 

Did this to just confirm it works for ME or not, turned out it did work.

 

+1 this was my experience too... (Windo$e)

 

- keep USB plugged into PC after approx 1 or 2 minutes you'll hear the 'USB' plugin sound

- adb reboot (or keep power button pressed till reset)

- took me x3 attempts on 'stock'

- worked 1st time after reflash of 'stock' falcon_retgb-user 4.4.2 KLB20.9-1.10-1.9 5 release-keysMSM8626BP_1032.340.63.00

Edited February 8, 2014 by somerandomhash

[Guest bongo_24]

What is this?

Superboot is a boot.img that when booted, will root your device the first time you boot (installing su and the superuser APK). No need to flash any partitions, no messing with the contents of your data partition, no overwriting the shipped ROM on your device, just boot the boot image using the instructions below and you're done!

What are the pre-requisites?

YOU NEED YOUR BOOTLOADER UNLOCKED TO CARRY OUT THIS PROCESS. It's easy using fastboot, which is included in the download below. The instructions on the Motorola site are very straightforward - visit this page to get started. Unlocking the bootloader will wipe your device.

Any caveats?

Aside from the bootloader unlock wiping your device and invalidating your warranty, you should note that while rooting may affect your ability to receive future OTAs, reverting back to stock is easy enough. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. ;)

Download

APPLY THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK!

• Superboot r2 - DOWNLOAD (ROMraid) - MD5: a4ca11f526f57f643a0a552ec234ad6f

How to use Superboot - Windows, Linux and OSX

• Download the Superboot zip file above and extract to a directory
• Put your device in bootloader mode - Turn off the phone then turn on with the 'volume down' button pressed to enter the bootloader.
• WINDOWS - run 'superboot-windows.bat' as Administrator
• MAC - Open a terminal window to the directory containing the files, and type 'chmod +x superboot-mac.sh' followed by 'sudo ./superboot-mac.sh'
• LINUX - Open a terminal window to the directory containing the files, and type 'chmod +x superboot-linux.sh' followed by 'sudo ./superboot-linux.sh'

Enjoy! :)

P

PS If you find this useful, please consider supporting MoDaCo by signing up for a MoDaCo subscription! Visit the store for further details!

 

 

Hello paul, I have a 16GB Moto G and updated to Kitkat via OTA.

yesterday I used your method 1 (superboot) on windows 7, to root my phone, and run it for the firs time and ended on a black screen with green bars. I power off the phone and turned on and load kitkat normaly and noted that the phone was not rooted.

y tried the metod for a second time ans have the same results, but when kirkat launched, on the initial screen i see a "System UIDs Inconsistent. UIDs on the system are inconsistent, you need to wipe your data partition or your device will be unstable." and the system didn't respond.

 

I performed a factory reset and kitkat showed the same message but let me in. there I noticed that my device is now rooted but non app was able to access the internal memory due to permissions as I think, because when I try to copy files to the phone via usb cable have the same denial, even whit ADB push i get the same message

 

I need a way to solve this because in this actual stage the phone works but the apps ave like no access to the memory making them unusable

 

(note: sorry for my bad English) 

[Guest diegohumanista]

It totally bricked my Moto G xt1032 :-(

 

It had installed falcon_retar_user_4.4.2_KXB20.9-1.10-1.9_7_release-keys-cid12-Latam_AR

 

After applying, there was some boot screen which faded with wrong colors (i think it was pink) and then it got black for a while...

I let it work (hoping that was working in background) for 1 minute or so, but after that nothing happened, so I powered it down with the power key,

 

And that was the end of my cellphone. Now it doesn't boot, it doesn't even show anything nor vibrate. It's completely bricked. Not booting with power, or volume down + power, or all the buttons at the time... It's dead!

 

Any Ideas on how I recover it? Or just let it go? :-(

 

=========== EDIT ================

I didn't quit trying things, and suddenly it started to work again!

I don't know exactly what I did, (I suspect that it was holding for very long time the power button with the usb cable connected), but something about 20/30 minutes later it went on again! (the problem was it did'nt boot even with volume down + power, or power, or anything). I don't know what happened.

Oh, and I'm root now.

So... Thanks!

Edited February 13, 2014 by diegohumanista

[Guest wuebbeling]

Worked out of the box for me, but there's one drawback (which most root-mechanisms share): The stock install-recovery.sh is overwritten, preventing OTA updates for the Moto G. This file has to be restored if you want to update. However, when boot.img is booted, the original file contents are lost. 

 

Could the contents of the file be preserved before overwriting it? Also, I wonder what else is being changed in /system?

 

Best wishes, Frank

[Guest pendribe]

@PaulOBrien

If it's any help, I am on Win 8.1 x64 and running your .bat at first didn't work.

 

I just ran an elevated command and manually ran fastboot boot boot.superboot.img  Job done, thanks.

Will you explain it, running.bat at first isn't working for me!

[Guest SkyGuardian]

Does anybody know if it works on the GERMAN Moto G with Android 4.4.2?

Edited March 6, 2014 by SkyGuardian

[Guest glossywhite]

Shouldn't this come with a warning? Something along the lines of:
 

"We have not tested this exhaustively, and cannot guarantee that it works on every conceivable firmware revision, hardware revision etc. Please flash this at your own risk; it HAS been known to cause obscure errors, and could cause you some concern, should they manifest."

It caused my 8Gb to go black with green lines; I'm grateful for you trying here, but if it's buggy (which it appears to be) and comes with risks, surely it is better not to exist at all, than to exist with such precarious uncertainties present? I am not the irrational panicking type - it's just a slab of circuits when all is said and done, but some people panic...

Thanks for posting, anyway. 


 

Edited March 7, 2014 by glossywhite

[Guest Serrin_mi_th]

I try to dowload the Superboot.zip on first page, but every time i´m forwarded to any obscure sites "download new codecs" and so on.

I´ve try it with Opera and IE. It doesn´t work.

Any ideas how i get the zip file?

 

Now it works.

Edited March 8, 2014 by Serrin_mi_th

[Guest Chris57]

I got it using my Moto G and Chrome.

 

Havent tried it yet as I only got the phone today.

 

Its a 16Gb Virgin one and for once its not filled with Virgin branding, links to Virgin shops etc.

 

If I coud control the Home Screen better and have a more customisable internface then I may not go with a custom rom. Seems a nice phone.

[Guest glossywhite]

I got it using my Moto G and Chrome.

Havent tried it yet as I only got the phone today.

Its a 16Gb Virgin one and for once its not filled with Virgin branding, links to Virgin shops etc.

If I coud control the Home Screen better and have a more customisable internface then I may not go with a custom rom. Seems a nice phone.

There's extremely little, if anything that s custom ROM could give to such a well polished and optimised, almost stock version of Android. I'm absolutely leaving this beautiful, simple OS as it is; I'd even say that I think a ROM would *detract* from the experience - its not as if it is bogged down with a custom ui and pages of useless apps. KitKat on Moto G is as good as it could ever be, out of the box :)

Remember - this is hardware made by Motorola; the company who *invented* the mobile phone, who are owned by Google, the people who invented, and whom build and release Android. I think that with Moto's vast experience of phone hardware, coupled with the fact that their parent company invented the software, I doubt very much that any ROM developer could come anywhere close to their intimate knowledge of the symbiosis that is Moto G, all the proprietary electronics and undocumented custom silicon, and make enough of an improvement to make it worthwhile forgoing stock KitKat.

Edited March 9, 2014 by glossywhite

[Guest RugerRedhawk]

How long did you guys wait after the screen goes all wonky to try and reboot? After about a minute I heard a beep-boop from windows... that's about it. Now it's just the black backlit screen

[Guest RugerRedhawk]

This method did not work for me at the first try. WIndows 8.1 64Bit

 

How it did NOT WORK for me:

 

What I did: 

# Follow instructions :)

# Rebooted and installed SuperSU

 

WHat happened:

# No SuperSU binaries available

 

 

How it did WORK for me:

 

What I did:

# Follow instructions until running the .bat file

# DO NOT run the .bat file with right click --> run as admin

# INSTEAD open CMD as admin --> navigate to the .bat file --> execute the .bat file

 

What happened:

# Binaries are there. SuperSU should find them now

 

If this is of help for anyone I'm happy as I wasted 1 hour trying to root my Moto G (somehow harder than nexus :( and I'm not talking about Toolkits hehe)

Thanks, these were the exact steps I had to try, I'm grateful that this works because this is a great phone, but it's a spooky process when the screen gets screwy!

[Guest glossywhite]

Thanks, these were the exact steps I had to try, I'm grateful that this works because this is a great phone, but it's a spooky process when the screen gets screwy!

Please DO NOT use the tutorial in this thread; is is outdated, and the post has all but been abandoned, as has the other one by Paul. Just because he releases it first, doesn't mean it's guaranteed to work - there's no mention of 4.4.2 compatibility.

Right then - go HERE and watch it work well:

http://www.modaco.com/topic/370636-the-clearest-simplest-up-to-date-rooting-tutorial-ive-found-so-far-works-on-442/

[Guest Jazzi]

Just unlocked and rooted my phone using the tut linked to above - everything worked perfectly and I'm a happy bunny again! :)

 

TBH, I don't plan to flash a ROM on this just yet, but I installed TSH Shell for the bling factor. I might however need to downgrade (temporarily) from KK to JB as I can't get it to pair with the Touch & Connect thingy in our new Vauxhall (Opel) Zafira...

[Guest T3h vICE]

Dude this superboot.img gave me the shock of my life!!!

I just bought the moto g today and ofc i need to root it.

Unlook Bootloader no probs at all.

Then i clicked on that batchfile and....SHOCK my moto got a black screen with 2 purple lines and stoped doing anything.

On my old htc desire my next step would be to plugin and out the battery, but... you know xD

After loooong pressing the powerbutton for 10sec or so the screen turned completly black.

Another press on powerbutton startet the normal boot then.

Everything works now, but maaaan i was so afraid 200€ thrown out of window the first day.

Is this intended or just a bug that only happened to me?

 

Anyways thx for the great work =)

[Guest LeeroyJenkem]

I followed this process, step by step, but after running superboot-windows.bat, my screen first turned purple, glitched out, and then went black with the backlight still turned on. My phone is now doing nothing. What can I do to fix this so I can try other options?

=EDIT=

Just saw the post above. Did the same thing, turning off then back on. So far so good...

Edited May 4, 2014 by LeeroyJenkem

[Guest gleesonger]

When I ran the tool everything seemed to be fine,got the same output on the console as others but the phone didnt reboot (waited 1 min).

 

I tried to restart it by;

pressing the power button, nothing

pressing power and volumn-down, nothing

"adb devices" responded with nothing attached

 

at this stage I was getting a bit worried,

 

but thankfully "adb reboot" worked *phew*

 

not sure what happened, should I have waited longer? dunno, hopefuly my little input will help somebody else

 

My phone was bought off Amazon.co.uk

[Guest dvdgremlin]

I'm a noobie and decided to root my Moto G

 

BIG PROBLEM.

 

I followed the instructions here with  superboot and I didn't get supersu and did checks and it seemed that  the root hadn't worked.

 

so I ran it again and got the blue/black flashy screen as usual  and then nothing, zilch....  I couldn't get any response from any buttons.

 

After about 20-30 mins I got the standard moto screen (I took off the bootloader message before)  but it never boots. It sits there.

If I close it then it immediately reboots and does the same into the Moto screen.

If I get into bootloader I can then get into recovery but cannot reboot into a working phone.

 

So HEEEELP !!!!

 

I've tried recovery and it says MD5 mismatch.

 

any suggestions reallly needed and appreciated. I now have an expensive paperweight showing the recovery screen at the moment.  :(

[Guest dvdgremlin]

It gets better, NOT !

 

I did a factory reload which I had hoped to avoid.  m/c loads OK and then says there is an update for android to fix some bugs.  I load it and it gets half way and then says

"Signature verification fail"

at the bottom of the screen and

" Install Untrusted Package"

The options are yes, no or go back

at the top....

 

whichever one I try it then tries to boot shows the Android / Motorola screen and starts for 2-3 seconds...  it then goes back to Android recovery with the same options as above and repeats the process.  again and again and again.

 

any ideas ?

Edited June 13, 2014 by dvdgremlin

[Guest Meuuks36]

I rooted my phone and it seems fine.

The only thing that itches me is that SuperSu is saying that binary needs update and will use CWN recovery.

Should I do it because only the apps downloaded after rooting are shown in SuperSu and not the preloaded ones.

[Guest abcrahul]

Thank you very much Paul O Brien it worked really great.. thanks for your instructions..

 

Thanks creambyemute and i followed below instructions for windows 8 64 bit os

# Follow instructions until running the .bat file

# DO NOT run the .bat file with right click --> run as admin

# INSTEAD open CMD as admin --> navigate to the .bat file --> execute the .bat file

 

it is rooted now and i am able to install all the applications i need.

 

After running the batch file,i switched on my system after 20 mins and it is working great.

My phone is Moto G 16GB and i am from india..

Edited July 8, 2014 by abcrahul