[Q] Root for Wacom Cintiq Companion Hybrid - Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

A month ago I sold all of my tablets and have bought the Wacom Cintiq Companion Hybrid.
Primarily verifiable need for it to work. But since I now possessed no other tablet, I quickly found that my root right for certain things missing for recreational use. To use the Sixaxis app for example.
So I wanted to ask here if maybe a developer have already dealt with it, to root the device.
Would be really happy.
sorry for my english, my best friend is google translate
regards
Alex

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It's pretty much a Raw Android Tablet and should work with anything in the play store. No one seems to be looking in to doing anything with this tablet since it's so expensive and it's made for such a specific use. I asked questions about it for months and no one acknowledged me about it.

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Sinsecond said:
A month ago I sold all of my tablets and have bought the Wacom Cintiq Companion Hybrid.
Primarily verifiable need for it to work. But since I now possessed no other tablet, I quickly found that my root right for certain things missing for recreational use. To use the Sixaxis app for example.
So I wanted to ask here if maybe a developer have already dealt with it, to root the device.
Would be really happy.
sorry for my english, my best friend is google translate
regards
Alex
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
Tablet malfunctioned and I lost some files. Would love to be able to use a recovery program to get them back (need root to do so).

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Test this https://github.com/linux-shield/shield-root/blob/master/README.md
Use adb reboot bootloader
Test unlock bootloader only
Sorry for my bad english

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Any news ?
c4b4l3 said:
Test this ...
Use adb reboot bootloader
Test unlock bootloader only
Sorry for my bad english
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry to revive the thread but since I am considering buying one.
Did any one try to root it with success ?

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JediRemi said:
Sorry to revive the thread but since I am considering buying one.
Did any one try to root it with success ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I find it unlikely that anyone who owns it has tried rooting the CCH yet, Myself included. Of course, I am tempted to root it, but I wouldn't do it until I am sure I can restore everything in case it messes up. The android system recovery that comes with the tablet has no commands for the user, so even a custom recovery would be required to backup/restore. It's not exactly an easily replacable tablet, and the device is quite expensive after all. The reason I am tempted to root is not related to wacom and their tech at all, but once you have root, you end up wanting it across your devices. Unless you want root for a specific app, and unless you're ABSOLUTELY sure that app can benefit from the cintiq, I wouldn't take the risk that comes with trying to root.
That said, you will not be disappointed with the tablet without root, it really is a cintiq on the go, as well as a Tegra 4 android tablet. Really rock solid performance, excellent battery life( I actually did clock 12 hours straight on high performance), and pretty much pure android without any fancy changes.
Maybe I'll succumb and try to root someday, but that's a remote possibility. Unless I end up damaging it somehow, and replacement seems inevitable, in which case I'll try it before replacing.
This is Wacom's reply to an enquiry about rooting: http://forum.wacom.eu/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=15901

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This is a nearly two-year-old thread, but now that I have my own CCH thanks to a bit of luck on eBay, I should report that yes, you CAN root it!
Wacom's complete negligence in updating it does have one benefit: towelroot still works due to the old January 2014-dated kernel, but you need towelroot v1 and not v3 as currently offered on towelroot.com. I figured this out when I looked up other Tegra 4-based systems and how well towelroot worked on those.
From there on, just let SuperSU update the binary, and then you're good.
I feel like this is just the beginning of figuring out how to update the CCH to a recent version of Android, since Wacom themselves have been even less than useless with properly supporting it during its lifespan and have now discontinued it with no pretense of further support. @aniruddhahar, you with me here? We both know what this thing's capable of if they'd just updated it past Jelly Bean, and with Android N on the horizon and finally baking multi-window into base AOSP, the timing couldn't be better!

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This is indeed some heartening news, thanks @NamelessFragger ! The CCH hardware checks out to run at least lollipop/marshmallow, and frankly I'd be happy to even get past Jelly Bean to KK or Lollipop. However, the problem is the role the CCH plays at work. It's easy to replace a smartphone or a tablet, but a damaged Cintiq could mean 1000-2000 USD for replacement. Having said that, I'll be trying to root it at least. But unless we get some info about the hardware switch from android mode to desktop mode, I find it doubtful that we may be able to upgrade the device while still retaining the Cintiq capabilities which are vital to any CCH artist using the device in daily production work.
Also, I cannot find links to the v1 APK of towelroot anywhere. Could you please upload it here?
I wonder if this news should also be shared on the Wacom forums...

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@aniruddhahar: I figure that's one of the major reasons the CCH dev scene is nonexistent - the likelihood that anyone who is willing to pay well over $1,000 for one of these things depends on it working reliably and without issue to make a living. Not only would it be expensive to replace, but the downtime until replacement is a major setback to an artist's livelihood who needs it to work.
It's not a toy - it's a tool, and one that can do something that almost no other tablet computer can do nearly as well as it does.
However, while Wacom doesn't feel like handing out the source code that would reveal whatever kernel modifications they made to make the monitor mode switch work, I have a feeling that with enough effort, we could reverse-engineer their implementation. The Tegra 4 sources for other devices like the NVIDIA Shield Portable is already floating around out there, and that could be a potential launching point for an updated Android ROM, even if it might take a while before we get the monitor mode switch going. We might even have pen digitizer-related sources from Samsung's various Galaxy Note products that may also help to a limited extent, differences in digitizers aside.
There's more important things to tackle before any custom ROM efforts, however, like getting a custom recovery set up so that we can easily flash Nandroid backups and future custom ROMs.
As things currently stand, I haven't seen Wacom put out any ROM images and PC-based flashing utilities like most other Android manufacturers, so unless your idea of a recovery is hard-dumping the NAND with an eMMC reader and hard-flashing it with a known good dump if your system becomes unbootable, tread carefully.

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towelroot v1
any safe links to towelroot v1?
did you try v3 and it failed?
I am a dev... In fact, I'm working on a custom filesystem at work right now. I have a CCH and like many.. I find it difficult to look at knowing how awesome the hardware is and how Wacom abandoned it. I was doing everything with this unit... movies, video games, video conferencing, etc. I read comics, and holding the unit vertically makes for an excellent digital comic book experience.
It is, quite frankly, the best tablet experience I've ever had. And it's sitting there on Jellybean.
How close are we to pulling he trigger on a GPL violation submission? I understand they've "lost" the source?

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bumpity bump bump
Would really like to see some progress here.
Did someone actually root the Hybrid with towelroot v1? Did we ever hear back from Wacom on getting the source?
They shut their forums down, unfortunately. This is really the only other thread on the internet discussing the cintiq hybrid. Such a shame.
-toad

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I rooted my Hybrid last November, but I didn't use towelroot, so I can't speak to that method. I used KingoRoot v1.4.2 for PC. It's been a while (not to mention the long parade of root tools/apps that failed before that), so I don't remember exactly, step-by-step, how I originally did it.
In the hopes that this might help other Hybrid owners, I've scoured my Hybrid and computer for any related files, zipped them and posted a link below for posterity.
EDIT: Unfortunately, I mostly lurk here, and the site won't let me post outside links until I have at least 10 posts--which I don't--so I had to get creative with the urls. :\
Files I'm including:
KingoRoot Apk v1.9
com.kingoroot.com-2.apk
KingoRoot v1.4.2 for PC
android_root.exe
KingoUser Apk v2.0.5
KingoUser.apk
Kingo Android Root.url
The files are provided AS-IS. I make no guarantee that they won't blow up your device. If your device explodes into a barrage of radioactive shrapnel, I am NOT responsible. These files worked for me. They may not work for you, and I have no idea if newer updates work either. Your mileage may vary.
**TRY AT YOUR OWN RISK**
So... Doom and gloom aside...
dracolusus.com/xda-developers/devices/cintiq-companion-hybrid/cintiq-root.zip
You can visit KingoRoot's website here:
kingoapp.com/android-root.htm
I think I installed the PC program first, plugged the tablet into the comp, and the program pushed KingoUser.apk (SuperUser) to the device. I'm not sure about the KingoRoot apk, though; I may have downloaded it from the play store separately either before or after rooting, or it could have been pushed by the program too, but I don't remember now.

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More Bump
I got my Companion Hybrid about a year ago, and was astonished that Wacom didn't even try to provide updates for the Cintiq. I love the thing, but there is no immersive mode, the notification bar crashes the UI sometimes, and whatever background I have set will reset to the default jelly bean one after about a week. It's infuriating that someone could put so little effort into providing stable software, but still lock out people who are willing to put the work in.
When I called Wacom's support about getting root access, the guy who helped me just said its not possible, that there will be no updates ever, and that Wacom no longer supports the Companion Hybrid at all beyond the 1-year replacement warranty.
My biggest complaint of all is that when the tablet is in Android mode all the hardware buttons are pretty much useless.
This is all just a big rant I guess, but I would LOVE to see this thing running Android 5 or 6. This tablet has so much untapped potential.

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Slightly off-topic but CCH owners are very hard to track down and Wacom forums are down so cannot ask there. I recently acquired a CCH by pure luck but the previous owner reset it before sending and that wiped some fix to the camera that he had applied which means when I open camera app in Android mode it shows 'Cannot connect to Camera'. He swears there was a fix for this which he can no longer find.
I don't want to send it back but just trying my luck here to see if anyone knows of this issue and the possible fix? When connected to PC, the front camera works fine with Skype with notification blue LED and all..
Sorry if it is the wrong thread but since my new thread will probably not catch you attention I thought I will post here.
Thanks.

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I wasn't aware of any camera issue, since my camera has always worked fine. I got mine second hand off e-bay, though, so maybe its original owner applied the fix. I didn't pay too close attention to whether or not it had been reset before being sent to me; I was more focused on getting it rooted.
I did a quick google search for the issue, but only this thread and some post about the Surface Pro camera app came up. If you could post some more info about it, I'll see if I can find any useful files on mine.
Hopefully, a more experienced user will grace us with their expertise...

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Camera never worked on mine, any camera or gallery app just crashes. I got it off eBay on July 2014 and it was factory reset when I got. Did some firmware update using Wacom settings app but didn't fix camera.
As for original question: KingRoot (kingroot.net/tutorials) worked perfectly for me.

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Me 2!
if anyone ever figures this out- please please email me! I use cch as my daily work tool and so disappointed from day one on the android mode. Thought I would be able to use it as a bring home, over coffee at Starbucks, hotel lobby art pad; but instead its locked in at work, poorly connected with its craptastic matrix like cable system, nearly immobile.
need to crack this egg [email protected]

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I realize this is a bit old, but for anyone looking to do this, New King Root works just fine.
Sinsecond said:
A month ago I sold all of my tablets and have bought the Wacom Cintiq Companion Hybrid.
Primarily verifiable need for it to work. But since I now possessed no other tablet, I quickly found that my root right for certain things missing for recreational use. To use the Sixaxis app for example.
So I wanted to ask here if maybe a developer have already dealt with it, to root the device.
Would be really happy.
sorry for my english, my best friend is google translate
regards
Alex
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

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Bump
Any progress? I found this thread a few years ago and have waited for it to update lol
I've basically had mine since release, neither camera worked. It just crashes.

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I still don't trust KingoRoot after all the reports of stealing IMEIs and other such data. towelroot is proven, and I'll toss up a Dropbox link for you all if needed. It's actually taken from an archived version of the site anyway.
http://web.archive.org/web/20140616011907/http://towelroot.com/
Both of my cameras work, though neither are particularly good in the image quality department. Not sure what to say there regarding the camera app crashing.
Also, I apologize for being many months late to this, but ever since the Wacom forums went down and this thread got buried, I didn't think I'd get in contact with the CCH community at large again:
cloudtoad said:
any safe links to towelroot v1?
did you try v3 and it failed?
I am a dev... In fact, I'm working on a custom filesystem at work right now. I have a CCH and like many.. I find it difficult to look at knowing how awesome the hardware is and how Wacom abandoned it. I was doing everything with this unit... movies, video games, video conferencing, etc. I read comics, and holding the unit vertically makes for an excellent digital comic book experience.
It is, quite frankly, the best tablet experience I've ever had. And it's sitting there on Jellybean.
How close are we to pulling he trigger on a GPL violation submission? I understand they've "lost" the source?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried v3, and it failed. v1 worked.
I've had no updates on the source code situation over these past few months, so consider that trigger pulled, even if they've lost the source.
Anyway, let me reiterate my findings, many of which are going to make development on this a pain:
-There is no fastboot mode. Seriously, I have yet to find a way to get it to work, because the usual adb commands don't work. It may not even be present. Because of this, I don't even know if the bootloader's locked or unlocked. We can only pray it's the latter.
-APX mode is present like you'd expect on a Tegra device (assuming ExpressKeys on left, hold the top two buttons down while powering on until the status LED flashes red), but without a proper image to use with Nvflash, it's of no use. I doubt Wacom has such a recovery image to give us in the first place.
-The stock recovery is the most useless stock recovery I've ever seen! Your only option is to hit the center rocker button or the power button to reboot normally, as there's no menu.
-Backing up the boot and recovery partitions is trivial with Flashify, or more recently, FlashFire once you're rooted. What ISN'T trivial is just unpacking and repacking them consistently, such that the repacked version with no change to the contents is identical to the original. Maybe I just haven't found the right tools yet.
-I have not tested any attempts to reflash the recovery partition yet. Compiling TWRP is a bit in over my head, especially for a device without proper kernel sources, and the CWM Builder site's long dead. TWRP has no equivalent. At least you don't have to worry about things like getting Cintiq mode working in recovery, which should simplify things should we have to resort to using generic Tegra 4 sources.
-NVIDIA's dropped software support for Tegra 4, so it doesn't have official kernel/driver/whatever code updates for Android Marshmallow onward. Porting the latest Nougat over may prove even more troublesome as a result, and it's already confirmed that the Remix Ultratablet (which uses the same SoC) won't be getting RemixOS 3.0 officially because of it.
The cards are stacked against us, but nevertheless, I still feel this is one piece of hardware that deserves some community support since Wacom let everyone down on updates.