Root privileges are what we call the powers behind the root user account. It is considered a privilege to be able to modify the things the person in control of the root user account can modify because not all accounts can. The root user account is the account that has absolute control over everything and has access to all three objects that Linux has, including read, write and modify.

The root user account also has the final say over what other accounts on the Linux operating systems are going to have. If you get your permissions revoked, then it is the person who is in control of the root account that did that to your account. Sometimes that happens by accident if you are working and your work computers run Linux and your find that you are unable to do the things that need doing as requirements to do your job correctly.

Android operating systems don’t come with the different permissions for user accounts like a working environment running Linux on computers does. The only two options you get with Android is either being in control of the root user account or not being in control of it. From then on things are relatively self-explanatory: if you don’t have root access, then you cannot run any of the applications that require root access, and thus the root apps do not work. Everything regarding root access on Android is to do with the apps that you find online—either from the Google Play Store or the XDA-Developers website. Occasionally you can find apps available from official websites the developers have set up also, but mostly the links from those sites direct you to the Google Play or XDA website links anyhow.

Notes:

  • Chainfire had the MMB29M.P555XXU1BPF4 firmware running on his Samsung Galaxy Tab A SM-P555 tablet that he was suing when he developed the version of the rooting file that is available in this guide. That does not mean you have to be running on the same firmware build number that he was running. It just means you can use that firmware information as an indicator of the information ever becomes relevant down the track. However, for now, it should work on all firmware that is part of the Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow software updates.
  • You can leave messages on the CF-Auto-Root tool thread found on the XDA-Developers website if you flash the rooting file and it causes your tablet not to boot up after the flashing. Those are the times when the rooting files may need updating. The message that you send needs to contain the recovery images from the firmware you are running. The way you get the recovery image files is by downloading the firmware files online (usually from the Sam Mobile website) and then unpackage it on the computer to find that recovery image.
  • You need to have the Samsung Galaxy Tab A tablet that comes with the SM-P555 model number to use this guide. The CF-Auto-Root files are only ever developed for the one model number, and that is why you can find a different file available for each device. Flashing the wrong file often means that the device is bricked until you flash the stock ROM on it again.
  • You need to use a computer to flash the rooting file with Odin, and the computer needs to be running on the Windows operating system. Otherwise, the Odin flashing tool cannot run.

Download Samsung Galaxy Tab A SM-P555 CF-Auto-Root and Drivers

How to Root Samsung Galaxy Tab A SM-P555 on Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow Using CF-Auto-Root

  1. Start off by turning on the computer running Windows and then log into one of the accounts as the administrator so you can use the Odin flashing tool with the admin permissions. (If you cannot log into the admin account because it is your parents or somebody else’s that you do not have the credentials for, then log into the standard user account and try your luck right-clicking on Odin and then selecting to run it as the administrator from the menu).
  2. Unlock the Developer Options menu on the Samsung Galaxy Tab A SM-P555 tablet so that all of the options that Android has available to developers becomes available for you to use.
  3. Turn on the USB Debugging Mode from the Developer Options menu that you just finished unlocking on the tablet, so the Android software allows for the rooting tool to get flashed correctly on the tablet.
  4. Install the Samsung USB Drivers on the Windows operating system that is running on the computer so your USB cable can bridge the connection between devices correctly and the Odin flashing tool can then detect your device.
  5. Open up the Downloads folder that is on the computer to find the rooting file that you downloaded earlier and then extract the rooting file to that same Downloads folder.
  6. Run the Odin flashing tool application that then becomes available from the Downloads folder after you extracted the rooting file.
  7. Turn off the Samsung Galaxy Tab A SM-P555 tablet if it is already on and then boot it up into its Download Mode and connect it to the computer with its USB cable once it is in the Download Mode.
  8. Check that Odin is showing an added message which is there to let you know the device has been added and is ready for the flashing to happen.
  9. Do not make any changes to the settings that are available from the Odin Options tab.
  10. Click on the AP button that is available from the Odin user interface and then browse to the Downloads folder on the PC where you then need to click on the rooting MD5 file so that it uploads to the Odin.
  11. Click on the Start button from Odin and then read everything that rolls down the display of the Samsung Galaxy Tab A SM-P555 tablet so you know what is happening and what you can expect next from the rooting process until completion.
  12. Wait until the screen shows that the tablet is about to reboot in ten seconds time and then verify that Odin shows a pass message inside a green box.

That is everything that is required to root Samsung Galaxy Tab A SM-P555 tablets running on the Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow software version by flashing the CF-Auto-Root tool by Chainfire which installs the SuperSU on the device and enables it correctly, so the rooting applications are ready to run immediately.

Related Tutorials