T-MOBILE GALAXY NOTE 3 ROOT GUIDE

The ‘Root de la Vega’ root by XDA member designgears for the Galaxy Note 3 was first developed for the AT&T Galaxy Note 3 and quite a fun is the fact that it was named after Ralph de la Vega, CEO of AT&T Mobility. However, it didn’t just ended up on AT&T variant of the device as it often goes in the world of Android or at-least in case of Samsung devices that tricks and tweaks often go same for various variants of one device and latest from Samsung’s labs — the Galaxy Note 3, is no different.

After AT&T and Verizon variants of the device, the (now famous) ‘Root de la Vega’ root has now been tweaked for the T-Mobile Galaxy Note 3 SM-N900T and is doing its job flawlessly.

Head on for a smooth (but long) ride to root your T-Mobile Galaxy Note 3 SM-N900T.

WARNING!

Warranty may be void of your device after rooting!

If anything given on this page damages your device and its components — you only will be held liable for it. theAndroidSoul.com takes no guarantee for the safety of your device.

CHECK DEVICE MODEL NO.

  • You must check your device’s model no. in ‘About device’ option under Settings. OR, you can also check the model no. on the packaging box of your device.
  • This page is meant only for the T-Mobile Samsung Galaxy Note 3, model no. SM-N900T. Do NOT follow the procedures provided on this page for any other device than SM-N900T, as this could damage that device.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN..

You must do this pre-installation stuff before attempting to root your Galaxy Note 3 in order to avoid any complications later, and have a smooth and successful process.

BACK UP YOUR DEVICE

Back up important data and stuff before you start playing around here as there are chances you might lose your apps and app-data (app settings, game progress, etc.), and in rare case, files on sd card, too.

For help on Backup and Restore, check out our exclusive page on that linked right below.

► ANDROID BACK UP AND RESTORE GUIDE: APPS AND TIPS

INSTALL GALAXY NOTE 3 DRIVER

You must have proper and working driver installed on your windows computer to be able to successfully root your Samsung Galaxy Note 3. In case you’re not sure, follow the link below for a definitive guide for installing driver for your Galaxy Note 3 on your computer.

► SAMSUNG GALAXY NOTE 3 DRIVER INSTALLATION GUIDE

CHARGE YOUR DEVICES

If either phone or your PC powers off due to lack of battery, it could damage the phone. So, make sure both your android device and PC are charged, 50% is what we would recommend.

OTHER THINGS TO TAKE CARE OF:

└ Use original USB cable to connect your phone to PC.

└ Do not use the procedures given below on Mac (using VMWare) as it works best on proper Windows PC only.

ROOT T-MOBILE GALAXY NOTE 3 SM-N900T

DOWNLOADS

Download the file given below and save them in a separate folder on your computer (just to keep things tidy!).

  • MI7_VEGA Firmware file: Download link
    File name: N900TUVUBMI7_VEGA.tar.md5
    File size: 1.79 GB
  • MI7 firmware CSC file: Download link
    File name: N900TTMBBMI7_CSC.tar.md5
    File size: 57.1 MB
  • Root de la Vega package: Download link
    File name: Root_de_la_Vega.7z
    File size: 2.2 MB

STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE

Follow each of the steps below very carefully as even a slight negligence could lead to a dead device in your hand!

PART 1: Remove External SD Card and Extract the downloaded file
  1. Remove the external SD Card of your T-Mobile Note 3 if you got it. It’s a MUST-DO! (Tip: Go to Settings and Unmount the SD Card first for safe removal.)
  2. Now, extract the root package, Root_de_la_Vega.7z, to any folder to get the files listed below. (Tip: You can use free 7-zip software on PC for this!)
    • Root_de_la_Vega.zip
    • Odin3 v3.09.exe
    • Odin3.ini (it’s okay if you don’t get/see this file.)
PART 2: Flash the MI7_Vega Firmware with CSC
  1. Boot your T-Mobile Galaxy Note 3 into Download Mode:
    1. Power Off your device first. Wait for 6-7 seconds after display is off.
    2. Now, press these 3 keys together until you see warning screen: Volume DOWN + Power + Home.
    3. Press Volume Up to continue to Download Mode. Galaxy Note 3 Download Mode
  2. Start/Run the ‘Odin3 v3.09.exe‘ file that we extracted in Step 2 of Part 1
    Odin window:
    Odin window
  3. Connect your Galaxy Note 3 to PC. Odin window will show an Added!! message in bottom left box.
    Odin’s screen would look like this:
    Odin Added!! Message
    If you don’t get the Added! message, here are some troubleshooting tips:
    • Make sure you have installed driver for Note 3 as said above in ‘Before you begin..‘ section.
    • If you have already installed driver, try uninstalling it and then reinstalling it.
    • Try a different USB cable. The original cable that came with your phone should work best, if not, try any other cable that’s new and of good quality.
    • Connect using a different USB port on your PC.
    • Reboot phone and PC and then try again
  4. Load the firmware files we downloaded above to AP and CSC tab in ‘Files [Download]’ section on Odin
    • Click on AP tab and select file → N900TUVUBMI7_VEGA.tar.md5
    • Click on CSC tab and select file → N900TTMBBMI7_CSC.tar.md5
  5. In the ‘Option‘ section of Odin, keep only the ‘Auto Reboot‘ and ‘F. Reset Time‘ boxes checked. All other boxes in the ‘Option’ section should be kept unchecked
  6. Double check the above two steps carefully. You must not make any mistake with the steps above or else you may brick your device. Your Odin’s screen should look like the screenshot below: Root T-Mobile Galaxy Note 3 SM-N900T
  7. Hit the big Start button on Odin now to start flashing on the Note 3.
  8. Click the ‘Start‘ button on Odin to start flashing the CWM Recovery on your Galaxy Note 3, and wait until you see ‘PASS!’ message on Odin’s top left box
  9. When you get PASS! message, your phone will restart automatically. You can then disconnect your phone from PC. Odin Pass Screen
    └ If you see FAIL instead of PASS in Odin’s top left box, disconnect Galaxy Note 3 from PC, close Odin, remove phone’s battery and put it back in 3-4 seconds, open Odin and then repeat PART 2 and PART 3 of this guide again
PART 3: Root the T-Mobile Galaxy Note 3

Once your Note 3 has restarted successfully, head on with the step below to finally root your T-Mobile Galaxy Note 3 SM-N900T.

  1. On PC, extract the Root_de_la_vaga.zip to get these (one file and one folder):
    • root_de_la_vega.sh (file)
    • root_files (folder)
  2. Connect your phone to PC and Copy the file (root_de_la_vega.sh) and folder (root_files) to the root of internal SD card on your Galaxy Note 3
    └ It’s very important that you transfer the file and folder to the root on your phone’s internal SD card.
  3. Now, restart your Galaxy Note 3
  4. Once your phone has restarted, delete file and folder you copied to SD Card in Step 2 above. Yes, delete the file (root_de_la_vega.sh) and folder (root_files), both of them.
  5. Important! Now, after you’ve deleted the files, restart your phone again.
  6. Once your Note 3 has rebooted, Root Access should be there. You can now insert your external SD Card back if you want to
    └ Put the external SD card back only after rebooting the device (as instructed in step 5)
CONFIRM ROOT ACCESS

You must have a new app installed now: SuperSU. Check it in app drawer. Also, to check whether you got root access or not, use this simple made-for-this-purpose app, Root Checker.

FEEDBACK US!

So, how the whole process went for you? Hard, very hard, or easy? Also let us know what you plan to do now, with root access gained.

Suggestions are most welcomed!

If you need help regarding rooting the Galaxy Note 3, feel free to ask us in comments below.

via XDA