How To Root the Nexus 4 (MSkip Toolkit Method)(Video)

Google’s latest iteration of their Nexus line up, the Nexus 4, is quite the looker. Enclosed in glass, subtle etching to resemble the original Nexus wallpaper, and a slightly raised glass on the front. But besides it’s good looks it also has quite a powerful internal spec sheet as well with it’s 1.5 Ghz quad-core processor, 2Gbs of RAM, etc. Despite all this, maybe it’s still not enough. Maybe you need to overclock it, push it to it’s limits, or maybe you just want to change the look and feel of the thing? No problem, just root it. You can root the Nexus 4 using the procedure below then head to the next one to flash a custom recovery image and a custom ROM giving you the ultimate in customization options. Ready to get started?

Thanks to Wugfresh over at XDA, Galaxy Nexus users now have an even easier way to unlock their bootloaders, gain root access, and even flash a custom recovery image all with a neat little program. So, ready to set your Nexus free? Here’s how.

I. Before You Begin

1. This will only work on Windows.

II. Install the Toolkit and Drivers

1. Download the MSkip Toolkit for your device below and save it to your desktop.

LG Nexus 4 (Click on the Download link in the first post under the list of functions)

2. Double click the Toolkit to launch it.

3. Click Next

4. If the next screen asks you for what version of the Nexus 4 you have, select that option and hit enter.

5. Type 1 and hit enter to install drivers.

6. On the phone, pull down the notification shade and click on Settings, then click on About Phone then keep tapping on Build Number until it says you are a developer. Then hit back and select the new Developer Options and turn ON USB debugging mode.

7. Once done, plug in your Nexus 4 via USB cable to your computer.

III. Root the Nexus 4 and Install ClockworkMod Recovery

1. Get back to the main menu, type 2 and hit enter to get to the rooting options.

2.  Type 8 to do the 1-Click for All option (if he has updated his toolkit the number may be different, just look for whatever option is for all in one).

3. When it asks you if the device is in fastboot mode, turn off the phone, then turn it back on by holding down volume up, volume down, and power at the same time until it turns on.

4. Unplug and replug in the device to have it install fastboot drivers.

5. After drivers install, continue with the on screen instructions.

6. *If you have issues getting fastboot drivers to install as seen in the video above, download the manual drivers here and extract them to your desktop. Then, with the device plugged in, go to Search and look for control panel, then search for device manager and open it. Scroll down and look for a device called Android with an exclamation point next to it. Right click it and say update drivers. Select browse my computer for drivers and then select the usb driver folder that was created on your desktop when you extracted the .zip file you just downloaded and then click open. Make sure check subfolders is checked on and then click next and wait for it to install the drivers.

IV. Load a Custom ROM (Optional)

1. Head to our how to load a custom ROM procedure to flash a custom ROM.

If this procedure helped you, please thank/donate to the developer, MSkip, for his amazing toolkit!