[Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact Android Development] ThemGo:
Just rooted!

[MENTION=615507]lowtraxx[/MENTION]:

Thank you for your guide to root Z3TC. Without it I would have been lost!

Nevertheless I experienced some difficulties and so I would like to make some additions to the guide.

I executed the steps on a windows 7 system with 64bit to install rooted stock 4.4.4 on my Z3TC / SGP621.

Rooted stock 4.4.4 because only here Xposed Framework currently works stable.

Always necessary:

- use the original USB cable (part of the charger) and use an usb socket on your pc which is directly connected to the main board. Best at the back, better than at the front because there might be a hub inbetween which unnecessarily prolongs the connection

- switch off anti-virus service of pc

- on pc open windows task manager (Ctrl-Shift-Esc) and keep an eye on it in order to take care that there is no adb.exe running before steps 17., 23., 24., 37. - kill it if it does!

- open every pc program which is mentioned in the steps as windows adminstrator (by right-clicking and selecting the appropriate menu item) - this includes cmd.exe!

- energy plan of windows: never switch off screen or shutdown system after some period of time

Before:

- get firmwares (1., 2.) and giefroot (3.)

- get flashttol (4.) e.g. from the location mentioned in http://www.android-hilfe.de/thema/g...upgrade-debrande-ich-mein-sony-archiv.556013/ (sorry, in German) . Install flashtool, then start Driver.exe - as windows administrator - as described and, besides the first two drivers for flashmode and fastboot, install also the drivers for Z3TC (your tablet) and Z3 (the firmware which will be installed at 5.).

- get Backup-TA (23.) from the mentioned location and unzip.

- get adb drivers and special Sony-Update of the android_winusb.inf file (24.) as said in the mentioned location and replace the original android_winusb.inf file with the downloaded file in the usb_driver folder. After that execute on the command line

SETX PATH "%PATH%;C:\Program Files (x86)\Android\android-sdk\platform-tools;C:\Program Files (x86)\Android\android-sdk\tools" -m

(adjust paths to your pc's paths if they differ) so that the installed exe files will be found by the command line programs. This will survive any reboot of windows.

- get unlock code from Sony (24.) as said in the mentioned location

- get advanced stock kernel (28.)

- get RicDefeat (29.)

- get SGP621-RIC-Defeat from http://xdaforums.com/z3-tablet-compact/general/ftf-sgp621-lollipop-23-1-0-690-noba-ftf-t3058400 and unzip (new 38.1.) if you want to have a writable system partition (you surely want!). Without a writable system partition, root is only half root. For example xposed framework cannot be activated.

- or instead get XZDualRecovery from http://xdaforums.com/z3-tablet-compact/development/tabz3c-xzdualrecovery-qa-t3014211 (new 38.2.). Additionally to a writable system partition due to the integrated RIC patch, it will add three (!) recovery systems.

Always necessary after each flash process:

- steps 10 and 11: do initial configuration, activate developer options, enable usb debug, allow mock location, select unknown resources in security. Your tablet will start the initial configuration itself and that way remind you to do the rest...

- if you connect the tablet to your pc by usb and your pc thinks it is a new device and therefore wants to install sony software - then cancel it

And do this before all the following steps, but after the installation of flashtool, in order to install appropriate drivers - otherwise flashtool will always fail at first try:

- switch tablet off, press volume up and connect with USB to pc: flashmode drivers will be installed (called "SEMC flash device", needed for 6., 27., 36.)

- switch tablet off, press volume down and connect with USB to pc: fastboot drivers will be installed (needed for 28.)

These are my comments to some steps:

4. If you have a 64bit windows then start flashtool64.exe instead of flashtool.exe, of course always as windows administrator as said before. While the flash process, flash tool shows a progress bar which is fast at the beginning at very slow at the end. So be patient.

8. it may instead show only few errors, this may depend on the apps already installed.

11. and switch to flight mode

12. the adb.exe of giefroot is meant. (Almost each program here brings its own adb.exe - and it probably will only work with exactly this version)

23. after backup do a 'restore dry-run' which does not restore but tests the backuped files, as said in the mentioned location

24. at least here the "setx path" from above is needed before. At the end of step 24 enter "fastboot reboot" to reboot the tablet

To install rooted stock:

28. to boot into fastmode, hold volume up. The led will go blue.

32. my pc did not find an appropriate driver, so I put the zip file on the sd card and installed it from there as suggested. This means: switch off the tablet, pull of the sd card, put the sd card into adapter, put it into the card reader of the pc, copy the zip on the sd card, close the windows explorer with which you copied the file, right-click on the appropriate icon in system tray to tell the pc that you want to remove the sd card, wait for the response of the pc that you can remove the sd card, remove the sd card from the pcs card reader, remove the adapter, put the sd card again in the still switched-off tablet, boot tablet into recovery as said in step 30. The recovery system named twrp allows then in the sideload section to select the file and install it.

36. after that step, twrp (28.) and RicDefeat (29.) will be gone again...

37. before that, start the root installer with the new icon of the same name on the home screen of the tablet

38. this is a new step. The system partition will not be writable, RicDefeat is gone with the flashing in 36. You have two choices now:

38.1. Either install SGP621-RICDefeat.zip. At installation there are some warnings which can be ignored.

38.2. Or install XZDualRecovery.

Done.