Rooting (Android)
modification of Android devices to obtain root access
Rooting is the process by which users of Android devices can attain privileged control (known as root access) over various subsystems of the device, usually smartphones and tablets. Because Android is based on a modified version of the Linux kernel, rooting an Android device gives access to administrative (superuser) permissions similar to those on Linux or any other Unix-like operating system such as FreeBSD or macOS.
Rooting is often performed to overcome limitations that carriers and hardware manufacturers put on some devices. Thus, rooting allows the users 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 some devices, 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.
Root access is sometimes compared to jailbreaking on devices running the Apple iOS operating system. However, these are different concepts: jailbreaking is the bypass of several types of Apple prohibitions for the end user, including modifying the operating system (enforced by a "locked bootloader"), installing non-officially approved (not available on the App Store) applications via sideloading, and granting the user elevated administration-level privileges (rooting). Some vendors, such as HTC, Sony (except Japan and US region devices), Samsung (until One UI 8), OnePlus, Xiaomi, and Google, have provided the ability to unlock the bootloaders of some devices, thus enabling advanced users to make operating system modifications. Similarly, the ability to sideload applications is typically permissible on Android devices without root permissions. Thus, it is primarily the third aspect of iOS jailbreaking (giving users administrative privileges) that most directly correlates with Android rooting.
Rooting is distinct from SIM unlocking and bootloader unlocking.
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