How To Unroot Samsung Galaxy S3 to Go Back to Normal
Did you just root your Samsung Galaxy S3 and are not comfortable with a rooted phone? Are you tired of flashing custom ROMs and want to go back to stock ROM? Do you want to update your phone directly through the OTA updater like you used to before rooting your phone? If you answered yes, then continue reading to find out how you can unroot Samsung Galaxy S3.
The Galaxy S3 might be really old, but it is still a great Android smartphone even without root access. However, rooting can make Android devices a lot more awesome.
If you feel that rooting didn’t bring any benefits to your Galaxy S3, then you might be interested in reading about the 10 best ROMs for Galaxy S3 before finalizing your decision on unrooting the device.
Why Unroot Galaxy S3?
You’ll find many guides on rooting the Galaxy S3 along with the benefits of rooting, but you won’t find many benefits for unrooting the phone. That being said, unrooting does have some advantages.
- Send your phone for repairs under warranty. If you send your phone to Samsung in order to claim warranty, they’ll refuse to repair your phone if it’s rooted or if there is a custom ROM installed. Unrooting alone will not fix it and you’ll have to reset the flash counter. I’ll show you the steps for resetting the flash counter in this guide as well.
- Sell your phone to someone else. If the buyer of your phone finds out that you rooted your phone or if the phone doesn’t have its original firmware, he/she may refuse to buy it.
- Install regular Over The Air updates. Once you’re unrooted and back on stock ROM, you’ll be able to install OTA updates like you used to before rooting your phone.
What You Need To Do Before Unrooting Your Samsung Galaxy S3
Resetting the flash counter and unrooting the phone are both risky processes which is why you should only attempt them at your own responsibility. If you’ve made up your mind to unroot Galaxy S3, then follow the tips mentioned below.
- Charge your Samsung Galaxy S3 at least 70% in order to avoid your phone running out of power during the unrooting process.
- Backup your phone. Feel free to read our list of the best backup apps for Android.
- Sync your Galaxy S3 with your Google account so that you can get some of your data back when logging into your Google account after unrooting the device.
How To Reset The Flash Counter
This is an optional process before unrooting your Galaxy S3. This basically resets your flash counter. If you’ve flashed custom firmwares on your Galaxy S3 and you want to send it for repairs under warranty, then you’ll need to reset the flash counter.
Step 1 – Download Triangle Away
Go to this XDA forum thread and download the TraingleAway APK file from Attached Files. Also, make sure that your Galaxy S3 variant or model number is supported from the Supported devices list in the same thread. The app is also available on the Google Play Store, but it costs $2.49.
Step 2 – Transfer The APK File To Your Phone
Once you’ve downloaded the APK file, transfer it to your phone.
Step 3 – Enable Unknown Sources
Go to Security in Settings and enable the Unknown sources option.
Step 4 – Install The App On Your Galaxy S3
Go to your file manager and install the TriangleAway APK file.
Step 5 – Launch Triangle Away
Make sure that your internet connection is enabled and working. Open the Triangle Away app and tap on Grant if you get a Superuser request popup. Tap on Continue and press the Download button. Wait for the download process to complete.
Step 6 – Press Reset Flash Counter
Once the download process is complete, tap on Reset flash counter and press the Continue button.
Step 7 – Reset The Flash Counter On Your Galaxy S3
Your phone will now boot into a new screen with a Triangle warning sign. Press the Volume Up button once to reset the flash counter. Your phone will now reboot. That’s it!
How To Unroot Galaxy S3
Follow the steps mentioned below in order to unroot your Galaxy S3. The entire process is not that difficult and you’ll be able to unroot your phone in just several minutes.
Step 1 – Download Odin
Download Odin on your PC. You can get it through this link. Once downloaded, extract the ZIP folder on your PC.
Step 2 – Download Your Firmware
Download your phone’s stock firmware. This is a vital step. Make sure that you get the right firmware for your Galaxy S3 variant. There are various sources for downloading firmwares and two popular ones are sammobile.com and samsung-updates.com.
Step 3 – Extract The ZIP File
Once you’ve downloaded the firmware, extract the ZIP file on your PC. The file should have a .tar.md5 extension.
Step 4 – Install Samsung Kies
Download and install Samsung Kies if you don’t have it installed on your PC. You can get it through this link.
Step 5 – Enter Into Download Mode On Your Galaxy S3
Press and hold the Volume Down, Home and Power buttons simultaneously until your Galaxy S3 reboots and shows a warning screen. Press the Volume Up button once to enter into Download mode.
Step 6 – Connect Your Galaxy S3 To Your PC
Launch the Odin app on your PC and connect your Galaxy S3 to your PC using a micro USB cable while your phone is in Download mode.
Step 7 –Â Select Firmware In Odin
Click on the PDA button in Odin and select the firmware .tar.md5 file that you downloaded and extracted earlier.
Step 8 – Check Options In Odin
Make sure that only the Auto Reboot and F. Reset Time options are checked under the Option tab.
Step 9 – Click On Start
Click on the Start button and wait for the process to complete.
Step 10 – Wait For Your Phone To Reboot
Once the process is complete, you’ll see a PASS message in Odin. Wait for your Galaxy S3 to reboot and this might take a while. That’s it! You have successfully unrooted your Samsung Galaxy S3.
Conclusion
Rooting is a process that opens up many possibilities on Android devices, from custom ROMs to installing third party apps that require root access. If you have rooted your Galaxy S3 and you’re not comfortable with it, then you can easily unroot your phone using the method mentioned above.
Please do this only at your own risk and make sure that you follow all the instructions properly. If you miss something, you might brick your Galaxy S3. If you have any questions about how to unroot Samsung Galaxy S3, feel free to ask them in the comments area below.
I’m trying to unroot my galaxy S3 (SCH-R530M) with android 4.3, but cannot find the stock firmware. Does anyone know where I can get it?
Thank you.
Maybe this is the firmware you’re looking for?
http://samsung-updates.com/details/23590/Galaxy_S_3_LTE_Metro/SCH-R530M/MTR/R530MVQUBNA1.html
Odin just says “SetupConnection”
It’s not doing anything and I don’t know what to do
can you find me firmware where i dont have to pay money to properly download? for my galaxy s3 GT-I9300
Model GT -I9300
FCC ID: A3LGTI9300A
SSN I9300GSMH
made in vietnam by samsung
need stock rom firmware
hello Baiju… did u get the firmware of GT -I9300… I’m also looking for the same.My handset is also made from Vietnam with same configuration of yours.
If you have the firmware site details please share it.
GT-I9300
fcc id :-A3LGTII9300A
SSN:-I9300GSMH
*Does anyone know where I can get it?Please help me
Hi ABHILASH,
I found this site for your where it says you can get any firmware ever released by Samsung. Hope this helps.=-) Thanks for commenting!
http://www.sammobile.com/firmwares/
I’ve tried this several times without success. Odin keeps saying the following:
Enter CS for MD5..
Check MD5.. Do not unplug the cable..
Please wait..
KIES_HOME_T999VVLDMF2_T999VYVLDMF2_CL1189444_REV04_user_low_ship.tar.md5 is valid.
Checking MD5 finished Sucessfully..
Leave CS..
All threads completed. (succeed 0 / failed 0)
Can you help?? Any ideas why it doesn’t load?
I’m having the same problem. nothing happens
having the same problem. did anyone fix it?
I can’t find my rom for s3 neo gt i9301i 4.4.2 italy. Pls help
Hi Ashik,
Do you mean that you can´t find a custom ROM for your S3? Are you asking for a suggestion?
i want to un root my samsung galaxy s3 (I9300).but when i try firmware not down lode my prodduct.
Hi Ravikant Shrivas,
Could you please rephrase your question, I don´t understand, thanks. =-)
I had rooted my s3 but did not install a different os. I performed your unroot instructions and everything seemed to work. Custom Binary Download: No, Current Binary : Samsung Official, System Status: Official . However nothing else changed. Triangle away is still there and Astro & Root Explorer still work. Also Kies does not work with my phone,SCH-R530U, tried 2.6 & 3. Any thoughts on why?
Hi David,
Root explorer and Astro will of course still work, they are file explorers. They just won’t have root privileges. But the proper unroot for most Samsung phones is to download the most recent stock .tar for your specific model and flash using Odin with a PC. If you did that, then it is no longer rooted. If that app (triangle away) is still there, uninstall it. Hope this helps. Thanks for commenting. =-)
sir can you give me a firmware of my samsung s3 korean variant?
Os. 4.4.4
Hi Juliemer,
In the link below you can download any firm ever created by Samsung. Hope this helps and thanks for commenting. =-)
http://www.sammobile.com/firmwares/
hey I just want to ask how long is “a while” (the last reboot)….because i am waiting an hour already and it is still rebooting
Hi Lulu,
Have you tried a factory reset? =-)
what is your suggestion about if I do factory resetting to un root my s3 device.
Hi Shafi,
No, a factory reset won’t unroot state of your phone. You should still have 1) the custom recovery partition installed, 2) the su program, and 3) the SuperUser app, and 4) whatever custom ROM you installed (unless you did an in-place root). Have you tried any of the methods above? =-)
Hi
I followed all your steps and my S3 rebooted but is stuck on the SAMSUNG screen. What now?
How long did it stay stuck on the Samsung screen?
Same here…after ODIN says pass but i’m stuck with SAMSUNG screen…
boot the phone into recovery mode by holding down Volume Up, Power and Home until the boot logo of the phone would appear. This starts the recovery mode. Run the following two commands (using Volume up and down to navigate and power to select):
Wipe data / factory reset
Wipe cache partition
After that select reboot.
Hey, I made sure I followed all the steps but I’m getting a “FAIL” response. I have a SGH-I747 model. Any suggestions on how to fix this? Thank you!!!!
Hi Kevin,
Do you get this at the end or during the unrooting process? =-)
I tried to follow your instructions, but msgBox shows and says that: triangle away could not locate hidden partition. Are you not running ICS? So, i have a question: what to do to make this work?
What variant of the S3 do you have and what Android version?
Hai there, what if the ODIN says ”reset” instead of pass, can it consider as ”pass”?
Try rebooting phone and then remove the phone from the USB cables.
Hi everyone i have rooted my Samsung Galaxy S3 AT&T SGH I747 but i am not satisfy with this root now i wana unrooting my phone what to do kindly guide me did my phone will be unrooted?
Did you try any of the methods in the article? Did you get stuck on any of them?
Sometime my phone also hang up and no keys and touch works i am very confused kindly tell me how to unroot my device as well build no KOT49UCUFNE4.
did anything happen to the phone? it sounds like it may have gotten wet or dropped and something is affecting the screen.
Nice Post Tho’..I Have Been Having Network Problem Ever Since A Friend Of Mine Rooted My Phone. .Will The ” Unroot ” Process Fix It Or….It’s Just Something Else? ..Just Wondering.
did you just root it or did you change the ROM or change settings too? Rooting, in itself wont really change much. It mostly unlocks the access to the root of the system. You can definitely try the unroot if you didn’t flash a new ROM. it should be pretty straightforward.
Hi I am looking for the this firmware to unroot my cell phone, but the web is not available to download. Anyone has this file?
Model name GALAXY S â…¢
Country
Version Android 4.3
Changelist 2713958
Build date Wed, 16 Jul 2014 08:28:54 +0000
Security Patch Level N/A
Product code VIA
PDA I9300XXUGNG3
CSC I9300VIAGNG1
Hi! Did you try the sources for the firmware linked in the post?