yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] kirbee213:
Very bleak outlook there. You could always enjoy the stock phone as it is still an amazing device. If we ever get a permanent root, then you just got icing on your cake. Yeah, AT&T did some shady stuff with the latest galaxy devices, but Samsung didn't have to do it. They made a business choice that didn't favor open source development. Sucks for us, but they still make a profit at the end of the day.

Honestly, I think that in the end, the community can count the win. Our development teams only get better and better because of the hoops they have to constantly learn to jump through. Innovation is hiding just around a corner for one of the many men and women that are daily staring and reading through countless lines of code, developing new scripts, and giving the android community what the manufacturer and carrier will not.

We force the hands of the already great developers at Samsung, Google, and even AT&T, to be better at system security, and then the cat and mouse game continues with the community getting better to counter.

Yes, it sucks, but never give up hope. You didn't buy a pos phone. You bought a great phone. Enjoy it for what it is, not what it could be.

Derailment over, sorry for the zen.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] spexwood:
The idiot was just trolling. Look at his name and profile. That was his first post, so he registered under WeAreSxrewed just to post here and be negative.

Root may not come to our phone, but people are still trying different things, so there's still a tiny bit of hope.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] tonys.94:
I have an idea, maybe it's already been tried but, if you have the entire OS and access (sort of) to the protected partitions, can't you just hack into it. Instead of trying to flash custom kernels and such, why not perform an active hack or brute force attack on the phone to gain access to the protected partitions. I'd have to probably do more research on this, and I know others don't know how to code so of course it wouldn't work for mass deployment, but I'm sure you could develop a script/program that runs automatically. It seems these side routes and such aren't providing any permanent results, why not try a head on approach and force your way in, then figure a way to create root from inside :) Just a thought. Curious though as to how many developers are going/are working on the Note 5 now. I have both the Note 4 and Note 5 on AT&T.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] vonerk:
Two words... write protection.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] Puppy69us:
Brute force

A lot of things are write protected. They still get bypassed. Will the WP on this phone "completely" prevent a brute force attack? And can you even truly do a brute force against the phone? My guess would be the only way we disable WP and get perm root is to find a vulnerability in the actual device and get boot level access. Thanks again devs for the temp root. U guys rule.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] phaniblaze:
Damn it!! I've been waiting for a root and wanted to see the android development section with lots of custom roms since the release of att Note 4. But it's like having a brand new ferrari without a key!! :(
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] elliwigy:
thats why you read up on what you purchase before buying.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] tonys.94:
Sure things are WP on the protected partitions like the bootloader, but if you can gain admin level access that lets you forcefully disable/delete WP by performing a brute force attack on WP I'd imagine you could get it sort of. Idk, I'm just trying to come out with new ideas since this whole signed encrypted keys prevents Odin access and WP isn't getting disabled by these side routes, a head on approach may work. Force your control over WP. I'd imagine it can be done as anything is possible its just finding the right person who can figure it out. I'm more familiar with networking and brute force attacks can work in situations where side routes don't work. Take for example DDoS'ing, its a brute force request overload to a server or servers. I just hope some of the dev's are seeing this cause it could work. Idk, maybe I'm grasping straws.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] giga8547:
Im kinda wondering why we couldnt use the trusted credential certificate installer to give us a form of root access. I know its totally far fetched but man there has to be s9me back door or backwards way around it. That is unless the devs have given up
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] KennyG123:
I do not think lack of visible progress = developers have given up
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] Android.Ninja:
Rest assured any/all developers working for root haven't given up. I can't speak for other developers. I myself don't always update the forums as progress is made. Sometimes, not until a resolution is in place. ?

Developers don't need no stinkin' signature!

If I've been able to help you, please hit the "Thanks" button. * ;)
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] borijess:
Looking at history with android phones. What was the longest before a phone had full root not temporary root? Did our phones make history or are there others?
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] giga8547:
Lol so true just seeing the security and how the holes are slowly being patched there may come a time when how should i put it "resistance is futile"

I am glad to hear that someone is possibly working on it. If i knew what i was doing i would help out but im not much for root development i can do some android development such as games and the visual aspect but when it comes to the system its self not so much.

I fully understand the silence and the need for such silence seeing as at&t could patch any progress if they knew what was going on in advance.

I just cant understand what at&t's problem is why are they so anal about root
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] elliwigy:
there might even be phones that have never been rooted lol
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] borijess:
Are these popular phones?
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] elliwigy:
of course the note 4 is.. maybe not to the rooting community lol
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] Ciloteille:
You sir sound like a "nay-sayer"
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] KennyG123:
Not anymore...LOL.

If I recall there was a Motorola phone that was pretty much unrootable.

You have to understand past rooting methods required the flashing of an insecure kernel. The locked bootloaders of AT&T and Verizon prevent that method. Trying to break through the locked bootloader will brick a phone..so it really takes a super dev with access to a Jtag to even attempt. So instead developers have to dig and dig through millions of lines of code and 100's of files to see if they can spot a possible vulnerability in which they need to try and exploit...then if they have some success, have to see if it broke anything. The amount of time this requires is astronomical..so often it may be a team working on it. And as we have seen, even temporary root does not mean you have write access. As vulnerabilities are found, Samsung and the Knox team work to patch them. Their goal is security, not to intentionally hurt the rooting community. It is the hackers they are after. With more and more personal and financial information stored on cell phones, the higher the security is required to make the average consumer safe from hacking and identity theft. Our phones are our computers, banks, credit cards, Diaries, businesses, etc.

TL;dr?

Higher risk of identity theft = need for higher security = tougher to root and even more so with locked bootloaders.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] Gods Son:
Hey KennyG123 you're right but I really don't think that anyone cares about the rooting community other than the rooting community. I know I definitely care because I enjoy the freedom of really owning my device I paid for. I'm tired of feeling like I'm on a guest account on my own phone. AT&T's CEO is a damn idiot. I've ordered a new phone but that doesn't mean that its an AT&T phone. I'm sure that idiot will figure out a way to keep people from using non AT&T phones on the carrier. I'll just hold on to my great phone til root becomes available. Crazy thing is that AT&T did the same thing to the Note 5 but this might be even worst. I tell you I don't know anyone who wants to own an AT&T branded android phone. A friend said to me it feels like they're just renting something they paid for.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] KennyG123:
Yeah, I hear ya! They have made attempts to try and reduce the need for rooting...that's obvious with themeing, ability to disable certain system apps...but there is so much more we like to do. I guess a good example would be to imagine how Nascar drivers would feel if Nascar supplied everyone the same car that they had to race without any adjustments or customization...but they can choose how it looks. My job supplied me with a phone to use and their carrier is AT&T. I chose the LG G3 which also has a locked bootloader but a method was found to get TWRP on it and root it. It seems Samsung did something "right" with their security, at the cost of this community. Phones are getting tougher and tougher to root with each new iteration of Android, but the locked bootloaders are what really makes it a herculean task.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] eklipz3:
I believe the bottom line is is that the heavy hitting devs were hired by companies such as Google and maybe even Samsung and once that's done they can't come back and do anything to help out I'm sure they had to sign something preventing them from doing so, I could be wrong but I'm sure that's part of the problem like hashcode, and geohot just to name a couple.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] Gods Son:
Yep its true considering that I'm sure that just like any job the money offered wad to good to ignore and that's nothing against them at all. It really does suck that the root community is suffering right cause of companies doing this. I find myself just reading through the T-Mobile side of the Note 4 & Note 5 forums and thinking that could us on the AT&T side by that company just don't care about what their own customers want. I still don't know anyone who uses AT&T bloatware at all. Can't wait til my new phone comes in so I can use it on the AT&T network. I'm going to root it and enjoy it to its full potential unlike the Note 4 on the AT&T network it's full potential might never be seen. Thanks AT&T for being greed dicks. Never again buying another AT&T branded android phone from you guys. I'm sure that there's AT&T employees on here reading through these forums and going back reporting what they find out.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] stealyourface1:
When shopping for a new device through a particular carrier say for instance Verizon or at&t, it would be nice to at least make available the option to purchase the developer editions or bootloader unlockable devices, say on a revised contract being clear that if ya brick it ya buy it...something to that affect...my 2 cents
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] omair2005:
Android 5.x Lockscreen Bypass (CVE-2015-3860)

http://sites.utexas.edu/iso/2015/09/15/android-5-lockscreen-bypass/
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] elliwigy:
wont help.. it simply crashes the lockscreen/security and allows you access to the device .. this does not give priveleges outside of the devices owner to my knowledge..

so basically if you forget your password you can bypass the screen and access the device as normal without putting the password in?

i dont think it allows you to write to system to obtain root or anything like that
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] AsylumWolf:
Well

Theory crafting I've thought of a idea that may or may not be possible..

First, what about gutting the phone and replacing the part that holds the bootloader? Obiously if it's the motherboard then this idea falls appart but at the same time I can't help but wonder even if it is the motherboard having it professionally switched out with a t mobile version might be cheaper then buying the T mobile version outright. Especially if your simply trading out the motherboard maybe even get a discount for giving over the locked crap for it. Might be better just to do this.. now if it's actually just the hard drive or something small in the guts this might actually be a really nifty workaround as my concerns are that not having the att bands and frequencies may gimp the phone. I wish I knew about phone guts like I do pc guts cause I'd prolly attempt it myself. Assuming that all note 4 s have the same basic parts it might work, but I'd like to read what you guys think or this.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] vonerk:
I'm gonna throw some dirt and seeds in mine, fill it with water and bury it in the backyard. Then I think it will be permanently rooted
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] Tomsgt:
best comment i have read in a while LOL
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] edjahman:
There are times when it randomly hard reboots after temporarily rooting it that I'd like to run it over actually, but burying it will suffice!
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] gatesjunior:
Or selling it on a certain site for money..
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] spexwood:
Something like this was brought up before and it was turned down due to a few reasons. The main reason was because it would mean that everyone who wants root would need to replace the parts necessary and not everyone is capable of doing so. Some people don't have somewhere to take their phones to have it done or can't do it themselves. Thus, this procedure wouldn't benefit everyone. Root needs to be easily repeatable by people of all skill levels, and can't involve rebuilding their phones.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] Gods Son:
?????

Couldn't stop laughing at your comment. This actually made my day. Thanks for the laugh!
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] xRuisuCepi:
LOL:good:
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] AsylumWolf:
As it may not be ideal for everyone, the fact that you didn't say that it was not possible gives me some hope. You see, some people tend to not take care of their phones like my sister who went through more phones then I could ever list for you guys.. there are people out there that think because their phone has a cracked screen it's time to get another one often pawning them off. Now I know the note 4 is expensive but if you could find one at a pawn shop that's in rough condition on the outside that's reasonably priced, (I've seen some for like 40$ just because the screen was busted and the touch wasn't working and I think it was missing the stylus). Taking it to a chop shop or replacing parts yourself isent as hard as I thought I've seen the break down videos or the note 4 for replacing screens ect. If it's not worth looking into then Ill simply drop the subject, nothing ventured nothing gained.

That being said you make a good point, a very solid point that I can respect. Not everyone would be able to do this, thus me speaking of it is not helping the community as a whole. I was simply asking if root was possible If replacing the component that holds the evil bootloader was any at all possible. Thank you for your reply, I really do appreciate any feedback.

Also with all things considered and that halarious yet bleak post about digging a hole to plant you phone for perminent root. I may as well just wait like everyone else, who knows root may be possible today or weeks from now. It just really sucks not being able to use any apps you need root for, yet I have them ever waiting on my phone for that glorious day that a root is possible. :)
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] tonys.94:
There is a problem here. I could easily swap the motherboard which would also have the internal memory chip or "HD" as you called it. The bootloader is partitioned and protected by WP on the internal memory chip soldered to the motherboard. So you would have to swap the entire MB with maybe a T-Mobile one. The problem lies in the fact that now you have to get it on to AT&T and accept the AT&T sim card. Idk if this can be done by rooting, but I know there used to be lots of places that could move a phone from one provider to another in my state CO, but those are few if any now since laws changed regarding that. It's a good idea that actually should work no problem since everything hardware wise is the same. But good point in that it is not good for mass deployment. We need scripts that can be easily ran by anyone.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] yamaha_wins:
I'm not sure.. but you'd think! A Nand hack of some sort would work. But does xda have anyone with that ability?

As far as swapping mother boards, etc.. you might as well cash in on your current phone and purchase a developer phone. (Verizon) or just use a tmobile note 4.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] AsylumWolf:
Okay so the location is known physically in the components, knowing that and that it's actually soldered in makes my idea pretty much fall appart. They sure are crafty Sobs I'll give them that, but unlocking a phone for other carriers from my searching I've gathered isent that hard.. correct me if I'm wrong of course, but swapping motherboards might actually work if I come across a severely reduced price model of the T mobile variant due to it having a damaged outside ect ect. Then unlocking it, for att use might actually work....

Also, there are developer variants of the note 4? If this is true I'm guessing you cannot get them through att? Where might I be able to get one of these note 4s? If they work with ATT bands and frequencies then I should be golden, because if they have root and with my note 4 bought outright through att I might even be able to trade/pay to get it for cheaper then I would have if I was locked in a contract with owing money on this phone. However I'm still chained to att because of the service contract...

Starting to feel as if I'm getting off topic, my apologies and thank you kindly for the information now I can rest my mind at ease knowing that it's most likely not worth the time and effort to gut my phone for a rootable motherboard. Still would love to know where I'd be able to aquire a rootable developer note 4 that runs on ATT service. :p

---------- Post added at 09:10 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:06 PM ----------

Where would I aquire a developer note 4 that runs on ATT bands? Thank you for your help as well! :)
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] Ragnar:
I dont know why you guys are banging your head for something which has existed for ever. Yes you can get the T-Mobile Note 4 and unlock it to use AT&T Sim on it. There is no Jtag or motherboard change or any thing you really need to do. They give you the unlock code if you own the phone outright and have no balance with T-Mobile.

Please use the search feature on XDA and all these answers become very clear.

here is a sample of one thread here.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] Adaken13:
has anyone try debian no root from playstore ? I wonder if it will help any , just wondering.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] Gladhatter:
Well sir, I read the coment about how the idea was dismissed due to not benefiting the masses. Not sure about all that as if one can do this, then he can hire out to do it for the ones that chose not. I will do this and more soon. Willl offer the service to others then. My issue is I am such a noob to android and do not even understand simple terms used yet that it makes me seem invompetent to the point I vannot get any serious replies generally. Was told to tske my note4r4,to a shop recently on best advice and I and tenacity had it un bricked 30 minutrs later. Could not get a helpful reply or likely could have in 10 minutrs. Oh well much to learn and while this forum is a wealth of knowledge as they say, they are not a help desk. I remain lost why they do not have a help desk area and a paid help area but I do not need to know.

I have fixed over 50phones in past 6 months for others and still cannot speaka d lingo .... Not yet any ways....better daze comin...
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] DamnCampers:
I know it was mentioned once before but has CVE-2015-3636 been looked into for our phone? It is a kernel exploit that affects android >= 4.3. It was discussed at BlackHat this year.

https://www.blackhat.com/us-15/briefings.html#ah-universal-android-rooting-is-back

Could this be used to turn off WP or disable verification of any checks that are preformed to detected system changes? Being that it affects 4.3+ would this also allow root in Lollipop? I'm not a developer and currently don't have the knowledge to try using this, so unless this has been patched it might work. That is unless that is what is already being used to gain temp root.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] elliwigy:
to my knowledge this was used in ping pong and inking root already since theyre the ones that released it at blackhat i thought?

isnt king root keen team?
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] DamnCampers:
Yes king root is made by keen team. I just looked over their BlackHat slide show then googled king root and they are the same people.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] elliwigy:
thanks for confirming..

if 3636 is stagefright then thats a dif story as i think stagefright came after ping exploit by keen team but wu is part if king team so unsure if stagefright has been developed or not..

i kno ive been saying for some time im not patching stagefright on my devices in hopes of it being used for root down the road.. sone said it couldnt be used for that but im not knowledgable on that level.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] DamnCampers:
Stagefright seems to be a exploit that effects video. What I can find is that it has been reported under a number of CVEs. Here is the list that I found that concern the Stagefright exploit.

CVE-2015-1538

CVE-2015-1539

CVE-2015-3824

CVE-2015-3826

CVE-2015-3827

CVE-2015-3828

CVE-2015-3829

CVE-2015-3864

These only pertain to Stagefright. CVE-2015-3636 was deamed not as critical and was not patched that I know of.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] elliwigy:
i kno stagefright consists if multiple exploits.. its basically mms/video as you stated.. i just remember reading somewhere that some of it could not be used to gain root
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] DamnCampers:
From what I can gather from reading the white paper from keen team for CVE-2015-3636 it looks like they are filling the memory by doing a spray then reading from it to find the place they want. After which they use are using a function of how the cpu frees up to do their injection. When the cpu frees up they are left at a root privilege level. That's the best way I can explain it as I'm not a dev. Maybe someone that understands it better can read thru it and see if it's viable as its also seems to also affect 64 bit processors.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] spexwood:
If masses don't benefit, then not all developers will do it, which means that root will be pointless because we would have root with not much to use it for. No custom roms, no apps that can be used with root, etc. It was all said before. Read back in this thread. No one will support gutting the phone. It's too costly and not worth it, especially since you could just get a T-Mobile phone for cheaper than an ATT one and doing all the swaps + new parts.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] AllanonMage:
I'm confused. I see the last post in this thread about the thread being closed due to achieving root. However, I also see another, more recent, thread where a user is giving up on the AT&T Note 4 ever getting (permanent) root, and the first thread doesn't seem to mention a (permanent) root. Yet, this post was closed due to "root being achieved":

I am familiar with temp root achieved with Kingroot, and I'm also familiar with SuperSUMe, an app that does some stuff after KingRoot to remove the KingRoot apps and replace them with SuperSU.

What is the current status on root for the AT&T Note 4? Just temp root? Or is there something more?
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4] chrisctb:
Still just temp root