How to Root the Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 12.2 (Android 4.4 Kitkat)

With its 12.2 inch display, the Galaxy Tab Pro 12.2 from Samsung has got to be one of the biggest tablets available right now.  And the display isn’t the only department that this device is big on, as it boasts of other features such as a quad-core 1.9GHz CPU (coupled with another 1.3GHz quad-core processor on the side) with 3GB RAM, 8MP camera (with 2MP on the front for video calling and selfies), and a massive 9500 mAh battery.

Rooting this device will definitely make it better and opens up a world of opportunities with its octa-core configuration (imagine what kind of clockspeeds you could achieve if you could just root it!).  That’s what the guide below will help you do.

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 Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 12.2, 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 Galaxy Tab Pro 12.2:

I.  Before You Begin

1.  This procedure is intended only for the  Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 12.2 (running Android 4.4 Kitkat); do not try this on any other models of the Galaxy Tab Pro or you’ll end up bricking your device!

2.  Charge your device to 75% or more and back up everything you feel is important before you begin.

3.  Install the necessary drivers before you start; if you haven’t already done so, installing the Kies program on your PC should take care of this.

II.  Necessary Downloads

CF-Auto-Root-v2lte-v2ltexx-smt905.zip

III.  Rooting the Galaxy Tab Pro 12.2

1.  Extract CF-Auto-Root-v2lte-v2ltexx-smt905.zip to a folder on your desktop.

2.  From the extracted folder, double-click on Odin3-v3.07.exe to run Odin.

3. Click on the AP button in Odin, navigate to the location of CF-Auto-Root-v2lte-v2ltexx-smt905.tar.md5, select it, and then click on Open to load the file into Odin.

5.  Shut down your device and put it into Download mode.  To do this, press and hold Volume Down + Power + Home buttons simultaneously and release them when you see the warning screen.  Now, press the Power button again.

6.  Connect your device to your PC using a compatible USB cable.  Odin should now recognize the device and the ID:COM field should light up yellow, signifying that Odin has detected your device without a problem.

7.  Make doubly sure that Repartition is not checked as you will surely brick your device if this is checked.

8.  Click on Start.

All set! Now, you can head to our How to Flash a Custom ROM procedure for the Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 12.2 to open up a whole new world of customizations for your Android device!

By the way, don’t be scared, you can always put your device back to stock by heading to our Rooting How To’s section, finding your device, and doing the How to Unroot listed for it there.