Boot Image Header v1 in Google Pixel 3 (XL).Similarly, the 2018 Google flagships come with a rather small change in the kernel, that prevented users from rooting their phone. Things like the all-new A/B partition system and certain security features in the kernel have hindered the developers from gaining root access for a long time. But ever since the first Pixel phones were released in 2016, we have seen some difficulties when it came to the rooting scene.