Hello everyone
I am not a developer but would appreciate any helpful feedback, preferably in layman's language, that anyone might be able to offer to a problem that I am having with my android device, running version 4.2.2, a large Hannspree 13.3 tablet. I bought the tablet about six months ago and I am happy with the general performance. However, recently I downloaded a number of streaming media apps from Google Play Store including the Sky Go and Sky Movies apps and also the All4 Channel 4 on demand app. When I tried to run these apps, I got a message saying 'These apps are not supported on rooted devices'. I am led to believe that the Hannspree 13.3 is rooted by default at manufacture although I did not know this at the time of purchase and indeed, at that time I was totally ignorant about 'rooting'. For this reason, I have not yet opted to do a factory reset of my device because, if true, then this would not solve the issue. After researching comments on a number of internet forums, I came across several suggestions as to how to resolve the issue. I opted for downloading the SuperSU app, which then enabled me, via the app settings, to perform a 'full unroot', which I duly did. By downloading a root checker app, I was able to verify that my large Hannspree tablet is now unrooted. However, when I tried the Sky Go and Sky Movies apps after unrooting, I still got an error message 'Not supported on rooted devices'. I no longer get the 'rooted app' message when I play the All4 app, but the app doesn't play, it simply hangs. Therefore, and I have been in touch with the Sky Community forums, these streaming media apps all still perceive my device to be rooted but it is not, although someone from the Sky Community forum suggested that there still must be traces of the original rooting in the OS/firmware which the Sky apps and other streaming media apps are picking up on. I tried, on advice, a hide root app but when I tried this, I get a message saying 'Cannot find the su binaries'. When I tried to reinstall SuperSU I got a similar message 'Cannot locate the su binaries and SuperSU cannot install them. This is a problem'. It seems that the original unrooting has removed the su binaries and I cannot now try hide root apps. However, there must be some trace of root that the streaming media apps are still picking up on.
Would anyone know how to remove these traces of root. I did read somewhere, another suggestion from a forum, that it was possible to manually unroot a device by using a file manager app and deleting su binaries from system/bin and system/xbin directories and deleting superuser.apk from system/apps directory. However having browsed system directory with root browser in the ROM toolbox app, the su binaries are not present in the system/bin or system/xbin which, I suppose, is further verification that my device is now unrooted. But it can't be fully unrooted, otherwise surely the streaming media apps would play.
Should I do a factory reset to restore the device to its default (presumably rooted) state and then manually delete the su as described above?
The curious thing is that the streaming media apps work perfectly on my smaller Hannspree 10.1 device, which obviously is not rooted and not perceived as rooted.
Is it possible to install the operating system of my smaller Hannspree device onto my larger Hannspree device? I tried the 'check available updates' in the About tablet tab in Settings but I get an error message on my large Hannspree device to the effect of 'Error invalid ROM ID' so cannot do an update, or check for an update.
Can any of you techies out there help?
Thanks, in anticipation.
