Unlocking the bootloader and rooting your Galaxy Nexus is really only half the battle. There may come a time when you need need to lock everything back up, including that bootloader. Thanks to the Android team, we have the factory images that can not only fix a bootlooping or soft-bricked device, but make it look like you just pulled it out of the box.  

Time to root your Galaxy Nexus now that @Koush has released official Clockworkmod Recovery for the LTE version. We have gone ahead and posted the manual instructions for you, because well, if you have a Nexus you should probably know most of these standard adb and fastboot commands. It’s not hard by any means, especially knowing that you all have the SDK set up after unlocking your bootloader. Should take all of 5 minutes, maybe less.

Ready?  

And two hours after releasing the Android 4.0.1 factory images for the Verizon Galaxy Nexus, Google drops the Android 4.0.2 images on us. The build for 4.0.2 is ICL53F and is the build your phone will be on once it updates shortly after activation. Just like the other the file, you will want to tuck this one away for safe keeping in case you ever run into issues with your phone. We will have instructions on how to flash these files at a later date.

Download Link

Via:  Google

If you just unlocked your bootloader and are planning to go beyond that with root or a custom ROM, then get to download the factory images that were just released by Google for the Verizon Galaxy Nexus. These files will allow you to return your phone back to stock at any moment no matter what you do to it on the software side. Tuck them away and tell the Android Team that you love them.

Download Link - ITL41D (Android 4.0.1)

Via:  Google

If your Galaxy Nexus future includes custom ROMs and kernels, you should stop what you are doing and unlock the bootloader of the device first. With an unlocked bootloader, your phone is opened up for you to essentially do as you please. Not only that, but you get that sweet little unlock icon on the boot screen.

To help you with this process, we tossed together this quick video. For the full written instructions, you will want to check out this post.  

Motorola phones on Verizon may be locked up forever, but that hasn’t stopped the dev community from continuing on in their quest to produce ROMs for all of them. We saw pre-alpha ICS ports for both the DROID 3 and Bionic already that made many of you smile. Today, the DROID RAZR joins in on the fun. While this particular Android 4.0 ROM isn’t available publicly yet as it needs a lot of work still, you can bet that droidth3ory is puttin’ in the time to get it there.

Via:  DroidRzr

We may be just days away from the release of the Galaxy Nexus on Verizon, and I’m sure that many are starting to think about this whole bootloader unlocking process. As a Nexus device, the bootloader does not have to be bypassed or hacked like you have probably had to do to your last couple of phones. It’s a developer device that is made to be open. You can unlock your G-Nex within a couple of minutes as long as you have all of the right tools in place.

To get you prepared, we have put together a set of instructions that should cover the whole process. The big trick here is to get the Android SDK installed and to have it recognize your device through adb. Once you have done that, you should be able to unlock your phone with 2 simple commands and a quick volume press on the device.

And we are telling you about this now, because unlocking the bootloader of your Nexus should be step 1 before you get into customizing it to your like, downloading your favorite apps, etc. Unlocking the bootloader wipes your phone clean, so you will want to take care of this step from the get-go instead of having to start over on your phone down the road. Once your phone is unlocked, you won’t have to worry about unlocking it ever again.

So your homework until the phone arrives, is to check out the first 7 steps that we have below to get your Windows computer all set up for adb through the SDK. If you can get your phone to reboot to the bootloader by typing “adb reboot bootloader” then you should be all set. Your current Android phone should work just fine in getting this all set up.

Ready?