What is Rooting ?

 

 

Rooting is the process of gaining administrative access on an android device. You may have seen occasional prompts in windows like this or that program is asking for administrative access. Rooting allows you to grant such permissions in android to trusted apps which would help you to carry out more functions.

This includes overclocking the processor to improve performance. However if overdone can cook your phone. Other functions include enabling firewalls which can block apps you don't trust the permission to access internet or wifi or other mobile services. This would also allow you to install apps that can completely block ads(you won't get them from google play they are banned however you will from F-Droid which is the Cyanogenmod appstore which can be installed in Android).

Also rooting makes you lose your warranty and if you damage it in such a condition you won't get any free service. However the people who service it would be unable to understand whether it is rooted or not if it is not able to boot to recovery mode(which can be entered by pressing a particular combination of buttons which varies for different devices google to know how to enter recovery mode in your device).

However you can regain warranty by flashing the original stock ROM which is quite easy in Samsung devices through odin. It varies across devices and in some you just need to insert an sd card containing the zip file for the OS to get the original OS back.

Also if you root your device you won't get any further updates to it. However this can be installed even if it is rooted. Rooting would also allow you to install custom Operating Systems like CyanogenMod etc which are Android based but with great tweaks. You have a very low chance of bricking your device through rooting almost negligible if proper precautions are taken like making sure it has enough charge and the device you are using to flash the file wouldn't turn off if the power goes. However you have a high risk of bricking the device by flashing a custom OS after rooting it.

Rooting also doesn't lead to any data loss. However if something happens to the device during the process then you need to reflash firmware where all data would be wiped.

Once you root if you lack the common sense to judge which apps can be trusted and which can't be then you would be vulnerable to viruses and spyware which can be much dangerous now since it can gain admin access. These software can destroy your device which is the best that can happen actually. Worse it could use your device for some illicit activity, track you, be used to blackmail you. However the person who roots the device if it is not you must be the one you must worry about. However if your phone password is known to anyone they too can do just the same. However if you give admin permission to the wrong apps it would be far worse.

 

In short,Rooting gives the ability (or permission) to alter or replace system applications and settings, run specialized applications ("apps") that require administrator-level permissions, or perform other operations that are otherwise inaccessible to a normal Android user. On Android, rooting can also facilitate the complete removal and replacement of the device's operating system, usually with a more recent release of its current operating system.