How to Root the Motorola Moto G (2014) on Android 5.0 Lollipop

The Motorola Moto G (2014) is one of the lucky devices to have gotten the latest Android update, dubbed as Android 5.0 Lollipop. If you got this update on your Moto G (2014) and are wondering how you could regain the root-access which you previously had on your device, here’s how you can do that. The following guide should help you with rooting your device and flashing a custom recovery on it. And 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 Motorola Moto G (2014), 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 Motorola Moto G (2014):

I. Before You Begin

1. This will void the warranty of your device. You’ll be the one responsible for the consequences of this procedure. Do it at your own risk.

2. This should work for XT1063, XT1068, and XT1068 (titan_retde) variants of the device.

3. You must have a Windows based PC to do this procedure.

4. Make sure you have Motorola USB drivers installed on your PC.

II. Downloading Required Files

1. Download CF-Root and save it to your desktop.

CF-Root for XT1063

OR

CF-Root for XT1068

OR

CF-Root for XT1068 (titan_retde)

2. Download Fastboot and save it to your desktop.

Fastboot

3. Download CWM Philz Touch Recovery and save it to your desktop.

CWM Philz Touch 6 Recovery (Download link’s available in the first post)

III. Rooting the Motorola Moto G (2014) on Android 5.0 Lollipop

1. Extract files from CF-Root to your desktop by right-clicking on it and selecting Extract here.

2. Enable USB debugging on your device by going to Menu > Settings > Developer options > USB debugging.

3. Turn OFF your device.

4. Reboot your device into bootloader mode. To do that, hold down Volume DOWN and Power buttons together.

5. You’ll reboot into bootloader mode.

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

7. Double-click on root-windows.bat available on your desktop and it’ll launch.

8. Follow the on-screen instructions for rooting your device.

9. When it’s done, head over to the Google Play store and download and install Busybox on your device.

10. You’re now fully rooted!

Congrats! Your 2014 version of the Motorola Moto G is now rooted and is equipped with SuperSU and Busybox to help you get started with installing root-only apps.

A rooted device without a custom recovery is like a bread without butter. You may not know, but a custom recovery does help you with a lot of things on your device. It lets you flash a custom ROM, take nandroid backups, wipe your device, and so on. Here’s how you can flash one on your device:

IV. Flashing a Custom Recovery on the Motorola Moto G (2014)

1. Extract files from Fastboot to your desktop by right-clicking on it and selecting Extract here.

2. Turn OFF your device.

3. Hold down Volume DOWN and Power buttons together and you’ll reboot into bootloader mode.

4. Once in bootloader, plug in your device to your PC via USB cable.

5. Launch a Command Prompt Window on your desktop. To do that, hold down Shift and right-click on any blank area on your screen and select Open command window here.

6. Type in following command into the Command Prompt Window replacing recoveryname.img with the actual name of the recovery image, and hit Enter:

fastboot flash recovery recoveryname.img

7. It should flash the custom recovery on your device.

8. When the recovery’s flashed, issue the following command:

fastboot reboot

9. Your device should reboot.

10. You’re all done!

Brilliant! You’ve successfully flashed a custom recovery on your Motorola Moto G (2014). You’re good to go for flashing custom ROMs and taking nadndroid backups on your device.

You can click here to find all of the Motorola Moto G (2014) How To’s.

You can also find all of the Motorola Moto G (2014) ROMs we have here.