How to Root Nexus 4 with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and Install CWM Recovery
Android 4.2 was released earlier today and with that, the new Nexus 4 has also gone to sales as well – which from the early reports is said to be sold out in 30 minutes. You can easily root Nexus 4 on Android 4.2 JOP40C Jelly Bean using the tutorial below. You will need to have ClockworkMod Recovery installed in order to get this root method working.
As you continue reading this tutorial, we will tell you how to root Android 4.2 JOP40C on Nexus 4 with complete steps and how to flash custom recovery on your phone. We will use ClockworkMod recovery as our custom recovery and SuperSU as our rooting package. For more details, continue reading. Let’s get on with the tutorial now.
Disclaimer: All the tools, mods or ROMs mentioned below belong to their respective owners/developers. We (TeamAndroid.com) or the developers are not to be held responsible if you damage or brick your device. We don’t have you on gun point to try out this tutorial 
Make sure you have installed all your USB drivers for the Samsung Nexus 4 to connect it with the computer. Download Samsung Nexus 4 USB drivers! Apart from just the USB drivers, there are a few more things that you need to take care of.
1. You need to enable USB debugging mode. This helps to connect your Android phone with the PC. See here: How to Enable USB Debugging.
2. Your phone battery should be 80-85% charged. If your phone goes off suddenly because of battery, during flashing ROMs or installing mods and updates — your phone might go dead permanently. See here: How to Check Battery Percentage.
3. Backup all your important data that you might need as soon as your flash a new ROM, or make a backup for just in case, you never know when anything might go wrong. See below on how to backup data:
- Backup your SMS messages. How? –> How to Backup/Restore SMS Messages.
- Backup Contacts, Gmail and Google Data. How? –> Sync with Google Sync.
- Backup Call History. How? –> How to Backup Call History.
- Backup WhatsApp Messages. How? –> How to Backup/Restore WhatsApp Messages.
- Backup APN Settings: GPRS, 3G, MMS Settings.
4. Your phone should be factory unlocked. Additional instructions for locked Android devices will be added in the tutorial for unlocking devices.
You may also want to read:
Now, let’s proceed with the tutorial below and root Android 4.2 JOP40C on Nexus 4 using ClokworkMod recovery.
HOW TO: Root Android 4.2 JOP40C on Nexus 4
We have put together a detailed step-by-step instructions guide on how to root Android 4.2 JOP40C Jelly Bean on Nexus 4. Please read the complete tutorial once before actually performing it.
Just To Remember:
- This root method is only for Android 4.2 (JOP40C) installed on Nexus 4 and I am not sure if it will work on the other variants of the Nexus 4 on other carriers.
- Your Nexus 4 bootloader should be unlocked.
- Make a Nandroid backup of your previous phone set up before proceeding – for just in case anything goes wrong.
Complete Step-By-Step Instructions:
Step 1 - Download Android SDK from the Android Developers website and install. Also set it up with downloading platform-tools and USB drivers package in SDK. See: How to Set up ADB and Fastboot on Windows.
Step 2 - Enable USB Debugging mode in your Nexus 4.
Step 3 - Download Fastboot and extract it in android-sdk-windowsplatform-tools directory. Create directory if not already there.
NOTE: Skip Steps 1, 2, 3 if you already have them.
Step 4 - Download SuperSU v0.97 (CWM-SuperSU-v0.97.zip) for Nexus 4 on your PC, if you haven’t already.
Step 5 - Connect and mount your Nexus 4 USB memory on your computer using the USB cable.
Step 6 - Now copy/paste the CWM-SuperSU-v0.97.zip file to your SD card. Make sure the file is in the SD card root (not in any folder).
Step 7 - Then turn OFF your phone.
Step 8 - Download CWM 6.0.1.0 (recovery-clockwork-touch-6.0.1.0-maguro.img) and save it to your android-sdk-windowsplatform-tools directory on your computer.
Step 9 - Now go into Fastboot/Bootloader Mode on Nexus 4. How? Press Volume Down + Power keys for a few seconds till you see some text on the screen. This is Bootloader Mode.
Step 12 - Once completed, choose RECOVERY from the Fastboot menu and enter Recovery Mode.
Step 13 - In ClockworkMod recovery, scroll down to “flash zip from SD card” and press the power button to select it.
Step 14 - Press the Power button again and select “choose zip from sdcard”.
Step 15 -Now using your volume keys, navigate to CWM-SuperSU-v0.97.zip and select it using the Power button. Confirm the installation on the next screen and the installation procedure should start now.
Step 16 - After the installation completes, go to “+++++Go Back” and reboot the phone by selecting “reboot system now” from the Recovery menu. The phone will boot now and it might take about 5 minutes to boot on your first time. So, please wait.
That’s it! Your Nexus 4 is now rooted on Android 4.2 firmware installed on your phone! Check for the SuperSU app in your apps list to verify.
To make sure you have correctly installed the above root method and it’s working, verify with Root Checker as given in the link.
Hit +1 or LIKE to thank us!
Have fun playing with it! If you have any issues, please fire them up in the comments below!
