ADB & Fastboot: Install ADB Drivers, Setup and Use

If you want to unlock bootloader, install custom recovery, root your android device or flash a custom ROM on your device, you’re bound to encounter the terms such as ADB, ADB Drivers and Fastboot. In this guide we’ll talk about What is ADB and Fastboot? How to install ADB drivers and finally how to setup and use ADB and Fastboot for Android on your Windows operating systems.

What is ADB?

ADB stands for Android Debug Bridge and it is a command-line utility included with Google’s Android SDK. ADB provides you terminal/command-line based interface to communicate/control your Linux based Android device over a USB connection from your computer. You can use ADB to run shell commands, transfer files back and forth, install and uninstall apps, reboot, reboot into recovery, reboot into bootloader and more. Using ADB, you can even backup and restore your Android phone/tablet. ADB comes as a part of the platform-tools in Android SDK (Software Development Kit). ADB allows developers to tinker with internal components of the Android OS that not not available to the user otherwise.

What is Fastboot?

Fastboot is a new term that has joined in the ADB. Fastboot is a special diagnostic and engineering protocol that you can boot your Android device into. While in fastboot mode, you can directly flash the file system, unsigned partition images in your Android device over a USB connections. Not all the Android phones/tablets have the Fastboot mode. Nexus device comes with fastboot by default as well as some other new devices from other brands.

Now that we have discussed what is ADB and Fastboot, here’s a quick and easy to follow guide to install ADB drivers, setup ADB and fastboot on both Windows and OS X for your Android devices. We’ll discuss things in the following order:

• How to Install ADB Drivers
• How to Setup ADB & Fastboot for Windows
• How to Setup ADB & Fastboot for Mac

How to install ADB Drivers

1. To install ADB drivers for your Android device, you need to download PdaNet. PdaNet comes with drivers from all major manufacturers, so it should take care of your drivers installation part.

2. Disconnect your device from your computer (do not connect until the process asks you to) and install PdaNet after downloading. Hit “Yes” if the installation process ask you to replace or uninstall existing drivers.

3. On phone selection screen, choose your device manufacturer, it it’s not listed or you’re not sure about it, select “Others”.

4. A scary warning in red will appear telling you that Windows couldn’t verify the publisher of the software. Just click on “Install this Driver Software anyway”. This warning may appear multiple times, keep clicking on install drivers anyway until it stops appearing.

5. When PdaNet will ask you to connect your device in USB debugging mode. Connect your Android device to your computer and let the drivers installation to complete. Once the drivers installation completes, it means you’ve successfully installed ADB drivers for your android device.

6. Make sure to exit PdaNet from the taskbar. This is just a precautionary measure because PdaNet, running in the background, may interfere with ADB/fastboot commands.

7. To confirm whether the ADB drivers are installed properly or not, connect your device to your computer, open “Device Manager” in Windows Computer and see if there’s any sign of exclamation (!) with any ADB/your device listing. If there’s none, you’re good to go.