How to Root the HTC Desire 816

HTC Desire 816 is one of the great smartphones from the HTC’s Desire smartphone series. If you have got this beautiful smartphone and are wondering how you could root it, then the guide below is all you need. It walks you through the steps to root your Desire 816 and flash a custom recovery on it. A custom recovery is what helps you flash custom ROMs on your device. So here you go:

Rooting is the process of gaining administrative rights on your Android device.  Once we root our Android device, we can then make changes to it to customize it well beyond what it normally can do.

Once you have root access on your HTC Desire 816, you’ll be able to:

  • Remove apps that were preinstalled by your carrier/manufacturer from your device.
  • Free up storage space (because of the above benefit).
  • Increase battery life (apps that might have been running constantly can be removed).
  • Increase performance (after removing apps that are always running, the device will be less bogged down and run smoother).
  • Update to a new version of Android (by flashing a custom recovery/ROM, see the end of this procedure for more info on that).
  • Tons of other customizations when you use your new found administrative rights to flash a custom ROM (again, see the end of this procedure for more info on that).

Interested? Here’s how to root your HTC Desire 816:

I. Before You Begin

1. This will void the warranty of your device. We won’t be held responsible if you end-up bricking or damaging your device. Do it at your own risk.

2. You can unroot your device to reinstate the warranty, though.

3. You must have unlocked your bootloader. If you haven’t done so yet, please visit the official HTC website and get your bootloader unlocked first.

4. You should’ve HTC Sync Manager installed on your PC. You can download it from here.

5. This procedure flashes a custom recovery as well.

II. Downloading Required Files

1. Download CWM Recovery and save it to your desktop.

CWM Recovery (Download the version that has .exe extension)

2. Download SuperSU .zip and save it to your desktop.

SuperSU

III. Flashing a Custom Recovery on the HTC Desire 816

1. Turn OFF your device.

2. Turn it back on by holding down Volume DOWN and Power buttons together.

3. Your device should reboot into HBOOT mode.

In the HBOOT mode, the Volume buttons are used for navigation and the Power button for making a selection.

4. Select Fastboot.

5. Plug in your device to your PC using the USB cable.

6. Double-click on CWM Recovery executable and it’ll launch.

7. Follow the on-screen instructions for flashing a recovery on your device.

8. And you’re all done!

Great! You’ve successfully flashed a custom recovery on your HTC Desire 816 smartphone. Here’s how you can gain root-access on it:

IV. Rooting the HTC Desire 816

1. Connect your device to your PC using the USB cable.

2. Copy the SuperSU .zip file from your desktop over to the root of your SD card.

3. Once it’s copied, disconnect your device from your PC.

4. Turn OFF your device.

5. Turn it back on by holding down Volume DOWN and Power buttons together.

6. Your device should reboot into HBOOT mode.

In the HBOOT mode, the Volume buttons are used for navigation and the Power button for making a selection.

7. Select Recovery.

8. Your device should now be in CWM Recovery mode.

In the recovery mode, the Volume buttons are used for navigating through options and the Power button for selecting an option.

9. Select install zip from sdcard.

10. Select choose zip from sdcard.

11. Choose the SuperSU .zip file you copied earlier to be flashed on your device.

12. It’ll begin flashing the SuperSU file on your device.

13. When it’s flashed, select reboot system now and your device should reboot.

14. You’re all set!

Excellent! Your HTC Desire 816 now has root-access and you can verify the same by installing the Root Checker app.

You can click here to find all of the HTC Desire 816 How To’s.

You can also find all of the HTC Desire 816 ROMs we have here.

21 thoughts on “How to Root the HTC Desire 816”

  1. Once i opened CWM recovery, and started the program it was simply stuck on “waiting for device”, please help! My bootloader is unlocked and i made sure to select the fastboot option from hboot.

  2. Where do I put the zip do I unzip it or? Cause when I try to find the file in my phone it doesn’t show up after recovery and boots up normal

  3. So I successfully unlocked my phone I just can’t install the zip folder it’s not showing up what am I doing wrong?

  4. why i cannot find anything about htc desire 820……..no roms…..no root and unroot procedure…….please post these for 820

  5. I think i forgot to uncheck the fast boot mode in the power setting before i go the fast boot mode, now my phone is not going to normal mode evertime it goes to fast boot, can you please help me in getting back to normal mode (OS)

  6. Rajath Rathnakar Acharya

    after flashing the custom recovery, my phone didnt start up. it just got stuck in a black screen and nothings happening!! HELP PLS.

  7. bro,i need to unroot my device desire 816 dual sim Indian set could you please provide me with the required steps or links…..
    i would be very thankful….

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