Rooting

ectoplasm · 11-25-2011, 07:13 PM

These are my notes and some guidance on rooting the Fire and installing Android Market.

NOTE: This is an advanced procedure. You should not try this unless you understand the goal of the steps involved, and are capable of making adaptations if the steps don't work as expected.

Original Root Procedure - Looks to me like every new guide was spawned from this source
Reformatted Root Procedure - One of the many reformatted procedures spawned from the original
Notes:
- Installing the Android portion takes a while
- Could not install the drivers correctly on my Win7 64 machine. Worked on my XP laptop.
- Make sure to install busybox when prompted! This will be needed when installing market.

Install Android Market
Notes:
- You do not need to use the Root Explorer app!
- Instructions linked above are wrong in several ways, impossible to follow unless you know what you are doing
- There is no vendor.apk - it is com.amarket.apk

My procedure (adb steps borrowed from posts in the same thread, busybox required or will not work) :
1) Download the APKs from the link above - only need the GApps zip
2) Install GoogleServicesFramework.apk using ES File Explorer
3) Use the following to copy com.amarket.apk and set permissions (adb was used to root the device and should still be available)

Code:

adb shell
su
mount -o rw,remount -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
cp /where/you/put/apk /system/app
chmod 0644 /system/app/yourfile.apk
exit
exit

4) Install com.amarket.apk using ES File Explorer and confirm prompts. May need to change settings so root is not /sdcard/
5) Reboot

Market Opener - Launch Android Market without changing stock Kindle Fire launcher - Nice! Save a copy of this somewhere safe

OTA RootKeeper - Toggle root on/off to allow video. Tested and confirmed to work. Reboot required after change.

CIFSManager - Mount windows share - can't get this to work, need cifs.ko for Kindle Fire. If anyone can recommend something that duplicates this functionality, please do!

Jessica Lares · 11-25-2011, 07:41 PM

You lose the video playback, which is my only problem and why I haven't done it.

ectoplasm · 11-25-2011, 08:19 PM

I think the way it's done is root it, do what you need to do, then unroot it, and video still works.

TechnoCat · 11-25-2011, 09:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jessica Lares

You lose the video playback, which is my only problem and why I haven't done it.

Voodoo OTA RootKeeper allows you to unroot and reroot with a press of the app button. I usually keep it unrooted except for certain operations; re-rooting takes like 15 seconds, and then fire up Root Explorer or SQL Explorer, and then re-rooting takes another 15 seconds.

Noah98 · 11-25-2011, 11:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jessica Lares

You lose the video playback, which is my only problem and why I haven't done it.

After I installed the market, I unrooted and video playback works fine.

Xeddicus · 11-26-2011, 08:11 AM

Have any of you who have rooted noted what version of the Firmware your Fire was on (6.0.0 or 6.1.0 or other)? No one ever mentions that, so I assume it doesn't matter, but it be nice to have confirmation.

weatherman · 11-26-2011, 07:06 PM

is rooting the only way to get apps out of the Market wohpit having an Android phone? I right on.the verge of rooting but I'm reluctant because I only really want two apps out of the store...

SCION · 11-26-2011, 07:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by weatherman

is rooting the only way to get apps out of the Market wohpit having an Android phone? I right on.the verge of rooting but I'm reluctant because I only really want two apps out of the store...

You can ask folks here to provide the .apk files for you. If they can, they may send a private message or they may post the link for everyone. This only applies if they're free apps obviously.

ectoplasm · 11-26-2011, 07:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by weatherman

is rooting the only way to get apps out of the Market wohpit having an Android phone? I right on.the verge of rooting but I'm reluctant because I only really want two apps out of the store...

Unless you can get the APKs somewhere else, I'm afraid rooting is the only way I know. I'm also getting to the point where I don't like downloading APKs from random locations on the net. The Market is a central trusted location with user feedback. I would rather deal with the Android Market, or Amazon.

I'm in the process of getting it working on my Fire. I'm finding it harder than rooting. I can help out if you decide to go that way.

TechnoCat · 11-26-2011, 07:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by weatherman

is rooting the only way to get apps out of the Market wohpit having an Android phone? I right on.the verge of rooting but I'm reluctant because I only really want two apps out of the store...

There are plenty of legitimate Android markets that allow downloading to your PC and moving it to the phone yourself. It's pretty common in Europe.

ectoplasm · 11-26-2011, 08:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by weatherman

is rooting the only way to get apps out of the Market wohpit having an Android phone? I right on.the verge of rooting but I'm reluctant because I only really want two apps out of the store...

I have the Android Market working on my Fire. If I go to the Market via the web, I can push an app to my phone, or the Fire. If I open the Market on the Fire, it will download the app as expected. I tested it both ways.

One thing I noticed is I tried to push Angry Birds from the Market, and it won't let me push to the Fire. It said the device is incompatible. Other apps work. So even with the Android Market installed, you won't necessarily be able to install everything to the Fire.

ectoplasm · 11-26-2011, 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TechnoCat

There are plenty of legitimate Android markets that allow downloading to your PC and moving it to the phone yourself. It's pretty common in Europe.

How do you determine "legitimate"? Just curious. We know that Android Market is controlled by Google:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_Market

The Amazon Appstore is obviously controlled by Amazon.

Both are backed up by considerable user feedback, so if malware is involved, we can expect comments posted. I don't know the source of these "alternative" app locations, and I generally don't see user feedback.

weatherman · 11-27-2011, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SCION

You can ask folks here to provide the .apk files for you. If they can, they may send a private message or they may post the link for everyone. This only applies if they're free apps obviously.

Its just two free apps; NYTimes and Pogoplug. The NYtimes is the most important because whether or not I can read the Times on the Fire without paying extra may be the determining factor in whether I keep the Fire at all.

I guess I could root, but its a bit of a hassle at this point for just a couple apps and a device I'm on the fence about keeping. anyone who would be willing to send me apk, I would greatly appreciate it...

ectoplasm · 11-27-2011, 11:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by weatherman

Its just two free apps; NYTimes and Pogoplug. The NYtimes is the most important because whether or not I can read the Times on the Fire without paying extra may be the determining factor in whether I keep the Fire at all.

I guess I could root, but its a bit of a hassle at this point for just a couple apps and a device I'm on the fence about keeping. anyone who would be willing to send me apk, I would greatly appreciate it...

If you trust Androiddev, you can get the APKs here. There is a tablet version of the NYTimes app which I see on Android Market but not on Androiddev. If you want the tablet version, let me know and I'll install it and send you the APK (correction, Android Market says the tablet version is not compatible with the Fire and won't let me download):
http://androiddev.orkitra.com/downlo...82201264756324
http://androiddev.orkitra.com/downlo...62425004254566

weatherman · 11-27-2011, 12:12 PM

Big thanks for those links, ectoplasm - I looked for an hour yesterday and couldn't find them. The NYT app works just fine - I don't know if it's as good as the "tablet" version, but its good enough for me since it lets me use my existing digital subscription and not have to pay $20 extra per month. Plus the interface is better.

The Pogoplug app didn't work and I had to uninstall, but that's not a big deal. Pogoplug will no doubt be working on a Fire version and I can wait for it.

So I guess its "no root" for me, at least for now.

11-25-2011, 07:13 PM	#1
ectoplasm Addict Posts: 255 Karma: 1151364 Join Date: Aug 2009 Device: Aura HD and H2O	Rooting These are my notes and some guidance on rooting the Fire and installing Android Market. NOTE: This is an advanced procedure. You should not try this unless you understand the goal of the steps involved, and are capable of making adaptations if the steps don't work as expected. Original Root Procedure - Looks to me like every new guide was spawned from this source Reformatted Root Procedure - One of the many reformatted procedures spawned from the original Notes: - Installing the Android portion takes a while - Could not install the drivers correctly on my Win7 64 machine. Worked on my XP laptop. - Make sure to install busybox when prompted! This will be needed when installing market. Install Android Market Notes: - You do not need to use the Root Explorer app! - Instructions linked above are wrong in several ways, impossible to follow unless you know what you are doing - There is no vendor.apk - it is com.amarket.apk My procedure (adb steps borrowed from posts in the same thread, busybox required or will not work) : 1) Download the APKs from the link above - only need the GApps zip 2) Install GoogleServicesFramework.apk using ES File Explorer 3) Use the following to copy com.amarket.apk and set permissions (adb was used to root the device and should still be available) Code: adb shell su mount -o rw,remount -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system cp /where/you/put/apk /system/app chmod 0644 /system/app/yourfile.apk exit exit 4) Install com.amarket.apk using ES File Explorer and confirm prompts. May need to change settings so root is not /sdcard/ 5) Reboot Market Opener - Launch Android Market without changing stock Kindle Fire launcher - Nice! Save a copy of this somewhere safe OTA RootKeeper - Toggle root on/off to allow video. Tested and confirmed to work. Reboot required after change. CIFSManager - Mount windows share - can't get this to work, need cifs.ko for Kindle Fire. If anyone can recommend something that duplicates this functionality, please do! Last edited by ectoplasm; 11-27-2011 at 04:14 PM.

11-26-2011, 08:11 AM	#6
Xeddicus Member Posts: 15 Karma: 10 Join Date: May 2009 Device: none	Have any of you who have rooted noted what version of the Firmware your Fire was on (6.0.0 or 6.1.0 or other)? No one ever mentions that, so I assume it doesn't matter, but it be nice to have confirmation. Last edited by Xeddicus; 11-26-2011 at 08:15 AM.

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11-25-2011, 07:41 PM	#2
Jessica Lares Wizard Posts: 2,240 Karma: 5759170 Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Near Dallas, Texas, USA Device: iPad Mini, iPod Touch (5th gen)	You lose the video playback, which is my only problem and why I haven't done it.

11-25-2011, 08:19 PM	#3
ectoplasm Addict Posts: 255 Karma: 1151364 Join Date: Aug 2009 Device: Aura HD and H2O	I think the way it's done is root it, do what you need to do, then unroot it, and video still works.

11-26-2011, 07:06 PM	#7
weatherman Addict Posts: 385 Karma: 1010052 Join Date: Apr 2008 Device: (previous: Kindle 2, Kindle Fire) Kindle 4 WiFi, K3K, KPW	is rooting the only way to get apps out of the Market wohpit having an Android phone? I right on.the verge of rooting but I'm reluctant because I only really want two apps out of the store...

11-27-2011, 12:12 PM	#15
weatherman Addict Posts: 385 Karma: 1010052 Join Date: Apr 2008 Device: (previous: Kindle 2, Kindle Fire) Kindle 4 WiFi, K3K, KPW	Big thanks for those links, ectoplasm - I looked for an hour yesterday and couldn't find them. The NYT app works just fine - I don't know if it's as good as the "tablet" version, but its good enough for me since it lets me use my existing digital subscription and not have to pay $20 extra per month. Plus the interface is better. The Pogoplug app didn't work and I had to uninstall, but that's not a big deal. Pogoplug will no doubt be working on a Fire version and I can wait for it. So I guess its "no root" for me, at least for now.

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