How to Root Your Xperia Phone’s ICS Firmware Without Voiding Warranty
Some time back, I wrote an article on how to root your Xperia phone without voiding warranty. That’s a bold statement because you are technically voiding warranty when you do something that Sony don’t want you to. But if you flash back with the latest ROM using PC Companion or SUS, you’ll have a fresh, and unrooted phone. Hence you have done no permanent modification to the phone and for all practical purposes you have the warranty intact. Now, Sony has released an Ice Cream Sandwich update to all its Xperia 2011 phones sans Play. The latest firmware version as of this writing is 4.1.B.0.431 . You cannot root this firmware. But that isn’t going to stop us from rooting it.
How to Root Your Xperia Phone’s ICS Firmware Without Voiding Warranty
If you are not on ICS and wanting root after upgrading, don’t upgrade to ICS. To root your Xperia ICS firmware, you need to first downgrade it to a rootable Ginger Bread firmware like 4.0.2.A.0.58 if you have already upgraded. Anything above 4.0.2.A.0.58 cannot be rooted easily. You can find the firmware from the links given below. So backup all your apps and data like SMS, call logs etc. before proceeding. Once you downgrade, you need to root it (preferably using the Do0omlord’s method). Then you have to edit the /data/local.prop file. Don’t worry, I’ll show you an automated process. Once done you need, to upgrade the firmware to ICS using PC Companion, or SUS or Flashtool (if you have your ICS FTF file) without clearing user data. Then you need to execute a file to root your Xperia Firmware. It may sound too daunting but it’s pretty easy. This tutorial is based on this XDA thread.
What You Need to Root Xperia ICS
- An Xperia phone of course and the data cable
- PC Companion
- Doomlord’s Easy Rooting Toolkit
- ICS rooting files
- Flashtool
- Your Gingerbread Firmware (This is not a full list). Another list of Firmware, see under Downloads.
If you can’t find your firmware:
- Wotan client (register for a free account) and its driver (if you are willing to pay)
Downgrading and Rooting
Follow the steps in my article how to downgrade and root Xperia phone. After you have downgraded the firmware and rooted, go to the next step.
Rooting ICS
Download the ICS rooting files and extract all files to somewhere.
Connect your phone to PC with USB debugging enabled and run the file 01-local-prop.cmd from the folder where you extracted the file. This will automatically edit the /data/local.prop file. Don’t do anything else and go to the next step.
Now upgrade the firmware using PC Companion, SUS, or Flashtool. Don’t wipe data.
Go to the same folder and run 02-push-root-files.cmd. Re remember to close PCC, SUS or Flashtool before doing this.
That’s all. Your phone is now rooted.
what is the advantage of rooting
also pls tell me of updating rom and kernel
Thanks for the info. Just wanted to know that can we unroot by repairing by SEUS.
Yes. If you reflash with SEUS with factory reset selected, your phone will get unrooted.
After reflashing a rooted android with SEUS the phone gets unrooted..but can we root that phone again after flashing it with SEUS..or is it that the SUS prevents the phone from getting root againg…?
You can root provided the latest ROM has a known method to root.
How about xperia s? It got ICS software 🙂
Hi, not sure and I don’t have that phone. You may want to have a look at the XDA forums.
I went through the procedures on my Active, and it works like a charm! My phone is offering me to update further to 4.1.B.0.587 but I don’t know if I will loose root again by doing so?
IIRC, you will lose root.