How to root your HTC Desire HD?

Back in 2010, HTC introduced its Android device the HTC Desire HD, powered by 1 GHz processor and sporting 4.3 display. Then an 1.72.405.3 OTA update was rolled for it officially which upgraded the phone but disappointed the owners by breaking root on their device.

If you are one of the HTC Desire HD owner who want to gain the root access on his device, then make sure the only method to it is to downgrade your phone.

If you are willing to do so, XDA Developers has once again make sure not to let you  down. Developer attn1 along with friends has created an Advanced Ace Hack Kit (AAHK) to downgrade your phone, root it and install ClockworkMod Recovery and Superuser to your Desire HD. The kit will make your carrier-locked phones to flash ROMs by turning the SD card into a goldcard.
Before you rush to know more, note that the process will void your warranty. Neither we nor the developer would be responsible for any damage to your device, so you are advised to do proper research before running the tool. For complete assistance you can tap the source sink below.
Now here are the following things which should be checked before you start the process. Make Sure that you have

• An HTC Desire HD and PC running Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows XP, or Windows XP Home
• Download Advanced Ace Hack Kit from here or here (aahk-13012012.zip, md5sum: d04975c6d085419c7c15f6d1934f7852)
• Backup your important data.

• Go to Settings > Applications > Development > USB Debugging- to enable USB Debugging
• On Your Desire HD, set the default USB connection type to “Charge only”.  Do this at Menu > Settings > Connect to PC.
• Fully Charged battery
• Remove all the unnecessary software and services from PC like Droid Explorer, Apple services (e.g., Apple Mobile Device, Bonjour Service, iPod Service), phone, PDA, or tablet software
• Remove all he antivirus, firewall, and anti-malware security suites (including Windows Defender); Uninstall HTC Sync.
• Replace all the drivers on your phone with the one provided in the AAHK package (see the installer file inside the “windrivers” subfolder inside the “tools” folder).

Now here are the instructions

1. Log in with an Administrator account onWindows XP or Windows XP home.
2. Download the Advanced Ace Hack Kit from the links and extract the AAHK archive’s contents into a folder on your PC.
3. Using USB cable, connect your HTC Desire HD to the computer.
4. Open the extracted AAHK files’ folder and run the script:
• Windows 7/Vista — Right-click on hack-ace.cmd and select “Run as Administrator” from the popup menu.
• Windows XP — Double-click on hack-ace.cmd.  The script will work only if you’re logged in as Administrator.
• Windows XP Home — Double-click on hack-ace-xph.cmd.  The script will work only if you’re logged in as Administrator.
5. Open AAHK script and you will appear in main menu.
6. Select option 1 (“Hack Ace”) to set off the series of procedures for rooting your HTC Desire HD.  The script will:
• Copy required files
• Root the phone temporarily
• Convert your SD card into a goldcard
• Enable S-OFF on your phone
• Set SuperCID and remove the SIMLOCK for your carrier
• Flash ClockworkMod Recovery
• Root your phone permanently
• Flash Superuser app and binaries
7. Now your phone will be rebooted several times but don’t touch the phone unless the process is completed.
8. Open a command prompt and enter the following commands (in italics), if you want to make sure whether the hack kit worked well.

1. adb reboot recovery – ClockworkMod Recovery should start without any problem.
2. adb reboot bootloader – This reboots your phone into the bootloader.  The text on top of the screen should show S-OFF, and not S-ON.
3. fastboot reboot – Reboots your phone.
8. Once the reboot is completed, go to phone’s app drawer, locate BusyBox Installer (included by the kit) and install BusyBox from within the app.

Now you can enjoy your rooted HTC Desire HD.
Source: XDA Developer (attn1)