Great news for the Magisk users! Even though the world is going through the tough phase, the developer behind Magisk is not sitting idle. Thanks to him for releasing Magisk 20.4, which is primarily focusing on stability and bug squashing. Yesterday night, John Wu tweeted about the latest update!
What’s new on Magisk 20.4?
As I mentioned earlier, Magisk 20.4 is mainly focusing on stability and bug squashing. But one more important thing you need to know that MagiskHide is no longer enabled by default. The reason is Google has enabled hardware-based key attestation in SafetyNet. So there is no practical way to pass full CTS SafetyNet anymore.
The fully redesigned Magisk Manager isn’t completely ready for prime time yet, so the developer releases this time around no Magisk Manager update. The WIP manager shall continue to be improved, and it is available for testing through the canary channel.
BusyBox Standalone Mode
From the Magisk 20.4, the script on Magisk, including boot scripts and module installation scripts, will run on BusyBox’s shell (ash) in standalone mode. Here, every single command will be forced to use the one that is in Magisk’s BusyBox (if available). No matter how you change the environmental variable PATH, the rm command will always use the one in BusyBox, not the one in the system, external BusyBox, vendor, or included in custom recovery.
The reason behind these changes is for better relatability and extend of device support to have 100 percent consistent results, no matter how the environment is setup.
What is Magisk root? (in case you are new)
Magisk root is the most popular root solution right now in the Android community. With its straightforward and systemless approach, along with the wide range of compatibility, most of the enthusiasts and developers rely on Magisk to gain root access on their phones. Recently, John Wu (aka topjohnwu), the developer behind Magisk, announced Magisk 20.4 iteration, which is meant to address bugs and carry general improvements.
Apart from the systemless approach, Magisk also comes with its own set of proprietary modular support, which is called a Magisk Module. You can access it from the Magisk Manager app itself. These modules can give you extra features that you won’t be able to find in stock firmware. Further, a third-party developer can create Magisk Modules and publish on their platform for specific devices. If you are looking to root your phone in 2020, Magisk 20.4 ZIP is here for you. The download link for Magisk 20.4 is given below, along with the tutorial to install; read ahead!
Magisk 20.4 changelog
- [MagiskInit] Fix potential bootloop in A-only 2SI devices
- [MagiskInit] Properly support Tegra partition naming
- [General] Load libsqlite.so dynamically, which removes the need to use wrapper scripts on Android 10+
- [General] Workaround possible bug in x86 kernel readlinkat system call
- [BusyBox] Enable SELinux features. Add chcon/runcon etc., and ‘-Z’ option to many applets
- [BusyBox] Introduce standalone mode. More details in release notes
- [MagiskHide] Disable MagiskHide by default
- [MagiskBoot] Support patching special Motorolla DTB format
- [General] Detect API level with a fallback method on some devices
- [MagiskHide] Add workaround for Xiaomi devices bootloop when MagiskHide is enabled on cross region ROMs
- [MagiskPolicy] Support ‘genfscon’ sepolicy rules
- [Scripts] Support Lineage Recovery for Android 10+
- [MagiskHide] Add more potential detectable system properties
- [Scripts] Better addon.d (both v1 and v2) support
- [Scripts] Support NAND based boot images (character nodes in /dev/block)
Download: Magisk 20.4 ZIP and Magisk Manager
- Download Magisk 20.4 ZIP package
- Magisk Manager v7.5.1
- All versions: Full downloads repository
- Magisk-uninstaller-20200323.zip (in case, you decide to uninstall it later)
Previous releases
| All packages: Download Magisk [all versions] ZIP here, in case you are looking for older Magisk versions. |
| SuperSU: Download SuperSU ZIP [latest] to root your Android phone using TWRP |
The new Magisk 20.4 version can be flashed via TWRP Custom Recovery. If you are already in the previous version of Magisk, you don’t need to install it using recovery. You can directly update it using the stable channel. Check out how to update Magisk in the tutorial ahead.
HOW TO: Install Magisk 20.4 Stable
There are two methods to install Magisk:
- Flash the Magisk 20.4 ZIP using TWRP recovery.
- Patch the stock boot image of your current firmware and flash it using fastboot.
However, the second method is not recommended for novice users since it is quite tricky. You need to familiarize with the steps before you proceed with it. Both methods are described in our detailed tutorial below:
For those who have already installed Magisk 16.4 or older, follow these steps to update it:
HOW TO: Update Magisk root to Magisk 20.4 stable
[NOTE: The screenshot given above is taken from an older version of Magisk. But the process will be the same for version 20.4]
- Open the Magisk Manager app.
- Find ‘Settings’ on the menu icon on the top-left.
Scroll down to find ‘Update Channel’ and tap it. Select the option ‘Stable’ since that is the latest version that you will be upgrading to. Return to the Main screen and refresh by swiping the screen down. The refresh will automatically provide a pop up which provides an option to update the software.
Tap on ‘Install’ or in some devices ‘Direct Install.’ The latest Magisk 20.4 installer will do the work automatically. Reboot the device by tapping the ‘Reboot’ button.
Remember that the Magisk Manager will also be automatically be updated to the latest version.
- Use the MagiskHide to prevent apps from accessing root or root detection.
After the reboot, the Magisk Manager 7.5.1 will be automatically installed, and you can proceed to browse through the official repository and download required modules to add extra features on your Android device.
That’s it!
So you are done with this tutorial! You had successfully installed the latest Magisk 20.4 Stable using our guide. If you faced any problem with performing this tutorial, please let us know by dropping a comment below. Our team will reply you back as soon as possible.
Done with the rooting? Here’s some extra goodies:
Check out our root based post for any Android devices:
- [ZIP] LG G8 ThinQ System apps, LIVE wallpapers, and Static wallpapers
- Install Android 11 on Mac / Windows PC using Android Studio [GUIDE]
- Download TaiChi Module to run Xposed Framework on Android 10
- HOW TO: Install ViPER4Android on Android 10 / Android Q
- MX Player Custom Codec [AC3, DTS, MLP, TrueHD, and more]
- Download Galaxy S20 Cut-out Wallpapers (Infinity-O, Hole-Punch) collection
Why Magisk?
It is a very common question that people ponder over if they haven’t yet tried it.
For those who are new to Magisk, these points will certainly peak your interest in Magisk:
- Constant and continuous app testing by Magisk for better properties integration
- Systemless approach
- It doesn’t modify any partition or memory of the device, so installation and un-installation is easy
- Magisk modules are available in Magisk Manager only.
We know the necessity to root, how to install and update Magisk and why to choose it. I hope you have a better understanding of Magisk and willing to try it out for your Android device.
[If you don’t like it, there is always the option to remove it with just a few clicks.]
Verdict
There is numerous root software but, many don’t sustain the community due to various reasons like stability, too many bugs and errors, zero improvement and more.
Magisk doesn’t belong to that category since the latest version explains a lot about its stability and the increase in users proves its popularity among Android community.
I hope you will try to install Magisk to have your Android device more personalized by customizing it to suit your style and taste.
