Motorola Droid Ultra Erased....HELP. Thanks to anyone out there who even takes the time to read or reply. I get that my issue is probably petty in this forum but I just want a simple answer of move on it is impossible or you can try this. I am a complete newbie so pardon my lack of knowledge on the topic.
I had my phone locked with a pin. My darling six year old entered the pin however many times it take for it to magically start erasing itself. (BTW this is the second time this has happened and I thought I had safe guarded it from happening again.) I don't care about anything but the photos that I lost. Is there anyway to recover the photos or should I just move on and forget? I have not been using it hoping that there was a way to root the phone and recover something but upon reading lots and lots of things I think I am screwed because my phone is version 4.4.4. Can someone confirm or deny.
Thanks again for taking the time to read.
You can try to retrieve your photos using a data recovery program. Search Google for get data back or just do a general search for USB data recovery
CM12 Inside DROID Ultra
tecsironman said:
You can try to retrieve your photos using a data recovery program. Search Google for get data back or just do a general search for USB data recovery
CM12 Inside DROID Ultra
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried that but because the phone is not recognized as a drive on computers there is no way to access the files for data recovery. Even programs that say they can to end up failing and the phone needs to be rooted.
Wait are you using your phone now?
CM12 Inside DROID Ultra
tecsironman said:
Wait are you using your phone now?
CM12 Inside DROID Ultra
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No. I tried to recover the files immediately after it happened. And found out about the USB Mass Storage no longer being an option in Android 4.0 phones thus causing issues for recovery. Everything I read then said the phone would need to be rooted but I am running version 4.4.4 and everything I have seen has said thus far it has not been done.
Can't you just boot the phone up and use it ad a USB device in android. You can clearly see your downloaded files and such without being rooted
CM12 Inside DROID Ultra
tecsironman said:
Can't you just boot the phone up and use it ad a USB device in android. You can clearly see your downloaded files and such without being rooted
CM12 Inside DROID Ultra
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am not following what you are saying. The files were deleted so nothing shows. I need to use a recovery program to gain access to the deleted files but cannot get to them without being able to access the phone as a USB storage device...not a camera or device which is all that is able to be done with MTP/PTP.
unless you backed them up somewhere that's not on your phone then i don't think you can recover them
10timesacharm said:
I am not following what you are saying. The files were deleted so nothing shows. I need to use a recovery program to gain access to the deleted files but cannot get to them without being able to access the phone as a USB storage device...not a camera or device which is all that is able to be done with MTP/PTP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes nothing shows but you want to recover deleted data from your phone. The only way is to mount the phone. So you can mount the phone in android when you transfer music and pictures from computer and phone it shows up as a drive in my computer. You can use data recovery software and run it on that drive. You don't need root since your pictures were not stored in the root of the device
Recover Deleted Files on Android In a Few Minutes!: http://youtu.be/tGw1fxUD-uY
CM12 Inside DROID Ultra
i faced a similar situation and was not able to recover any photos. i tried a bunch of different methods and programs. i thought the most promising was an android app, that runs on the phone was diskdigger, but it didnt render any results.
i wish you the best
Hi, really looking for any advice or pointers. I have only now got round to trying to root my moto G xt1032 which is a very limiting 8GB of internal memory and no SD.
I manged to gain root access and install superuser and TWRP. Everything seemed to be ok but before messing around more i wanted to try to backup in some way (a recovery image sounded ideal). And then i just kept hitting walls; the 8GB was not enough to do a backup of the system, boot AND data. It seemed to say when i opened a (3rd party?) app TWRP Manager, that backups to external drives were not possible due to TWRP no longer supporting this feature.
Anyway I decided to risk just a backup of system and boot (leaving out data) before trying out a new ROM. After backing up i tried a slimkat rom....unfortunately the screen had a line constantly cascading down the display (this looked similar to the TWRP line running down the screen but just being a recovery console it made no difference to me - obviously it's no good having a buggy display on your handset proper).
So i decided to see if going through TWRP to restore the backup i made (of boot and system, omitting data) would work. At first everything booted but then i realized something was seriously wrong - no WIFI for example being available. So i have now come full circle and now flashed back to a stock rom that took about 4 hours to download from filefactory. I seem to be back up and running on the stock 5.0.2 vers (without bootloader unlocked i think?)
So my question really is - is there a way to backup using TWRP in my scenerio of only having an 8GB version which alone is not enough to include data in the backup? I also was not able to interact between the PC and moto whilst in the bootloader menu (by which i mean the files were not visible on my pc i was still able to use fastboot commands).
Sorry for the convuleted post - mainly I'm doing this as an experiment - would rather not brick right away but no great loss if i do. I'm just wondering how i can overcome this issue with doing a proper backup in TWRP as all i could backup previously was the boot and system which turned out no use as a recovery.
Simply use an OTG cable and any USB flashdrive (MotoG supports it, contrary to motoE)
In TWRP, you can choose the destination drive (sdcard0 or USB)
matmutant said:
Simply use an OTG cable and any USB flashdrive (MotoG supports it, contrary to motoE)
In TWRP, you can choose the destination drive (sdcard0 or USB)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks!...that makes sense. I have nevertheless rerooted last night without going further into installing custom ROM's. The motoG seems much snappier and I have adaway working (which has always been a big incentive to rooting for me). I will try the OTG method for doing backup and more soon no doubt cheers
Forgive if I put this in the wrong section.
Q: my father recently passed away and I'm trying to recover some data that is on his phone. I physically have his phone. Blu G90. Is there a way to bypass or disable the native pin lock?
Usb debug not enabled. Default set to charge only for pc.
Pretty sure wipe at 15 is set so can't brute force.
I have a couple of forensics applications that can see it when it goes to bootloader but then they crash as soon as I try to grab an image or mount /system.
I'm literally begging for any assistance I can get.
Thanks in advance
AntiMatter2112 said:
Forgive if I put this in the wrong section.
Q: my father recently passed away and I'm trying to recover some data that is on his phone. I physically have his phone. Blu G90. Is there a way to bypass or disable the native pin lock?
Usb debug not enabled. Default set to charge only for pc.
Pretty sure wipe at 15 is set so can't brute force.
I have a couple of forensics applications that can see it when it goes to bootloader but then they crash as soon as I try to grab an image or mount /system.
I'm literally begging for any assistance I can get.
Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Since the device is locked (bootloader locked) so the permissions to change/modifiy/copy something into phone cannot obtain the internal storage files.
Only unlocking bootloader and for it is need format phone as internal storage so the device erasing all files. The pin lock can remove with adb-fastboot commands or TWRP.
But again, with locked bootloader, without chance to have internal files.
DragonPitbull said:
Since the device is locked (bootloader locked) so the permissions to change/modifiy/copy something into phone cannot obtain the internal storage files.
Only unlocking bootloader and for it is need format phone as internal storage so the device erasing all files. The pin lock can remove with adb-fastboot commands or TWRP.
But again, with locked bootloader, without chance to have internal files.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks for the reply. i was afraid of that. even after factory reset, if i root, theres a chance at partial data recovery? or is it completely gone?
AntiMatter2112 said:
thanks for the reply. i was afraid of that. even after factory reset, if i root, theres a chance at partial data recovery? or is it completely gone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can try an official unlock. Maybe it can have some result or maybe not. Trying is the attitude.
Write Google support and try to legally show some death certificate and supporting documents over your father's phone number. Write down the situation and wait for some response from them.
The only practical way would be to try a backup of the internal partition. But it depends on your knowledge with Smart Phone Flash Tool. Also you must know how to "cut" the file in the right parts.
There would be a very small possibility of restoring the internal files with a backup of userdata or in its entirety (called ROM_1).
The next step would be to unlock the phone, install TWRP and restore the file made from userdata.
Perhaps at that point you have a 1% chance of removing the PIN and booting the device without a password.
But this should only be done if Google gives you a negative answer.
Another way is with carrier company. But I think help in nothing.
Understand that despite having a userdata file with PIN, there is encryption involved and that is what makes the whole process difficult.
I know the TWRP made for BLU G90 has active decryption. But I don't know how it will behave with a userdata file made with stock ROM.
Unfortunately there is no guarantee that files like photos, docs, etc can be in userdata as this refers to internal storage. Already userdata is in ROOT storage.
So even if there is an application or software capable of restoring files, there is also the possibility that it will not be successful or have corrupted files. This will depend on your choice and risk carrying out the process.
DragonPitbull said:
You can try an official unlock. Maybe it can have some result or maybe not. Trying is the attitude.
Write Google support and try to legally show some death certificate and supporting documents over your father's phone number. Write down the situation and wait for some response from them.
The only practical way would be to try a backup of the internal partition. But it depends on your knowledge with Smart Phone Flash Tool. Also you must know how to "cut" the file in the right parts.
There would be a very small possibility of restoring the internal files with a backup of userdata or in its entirety (called ROM_1).
The next step would be to unlock the phone, install TWRP and restore the file made from userdata.
Perhaps at that point you have a 1% chance of removing the PIN and booting the device without a password.
But this should only be done if Google gives you a negative answer.
Another way is with carrier company. But I think help in nothing.
Understand that despite having a userdata file with PIN, there is encryption involved and that is what makes the whole process difficult.
I know the TWRP made for BLU G90 has active decryption. But I don't know how it will behave with a userdata file made with stock ROM.
Unfortunately there is no guarantee that files like photos, docs, etc can be in userdata as this refers to internal storage. Already userdata is in ROOT storage.
So even if there is an application or software capable of restoring files, there is also the possibility that it will not be successful or have corrupted files. This will depend on your choice and risk carrying out the process.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply. Google was pretty useless. They told me to contact Blu and Blu said to contact Google. I successfully hard reset and root. Went through setup to try a restore from his drive backup and it wanted the unlock pin in order to restore. Google was again quite useless. Since this is a matter if his estate i served Google with a notice of preservation on the backup, since it expires pretty soon. I'm going to try next to roll back to an older version, before the unlock pin requirement to restore Google backup. Grabbed a cellebrite image earlier so I can mess around with it later tonight. I'm hoping that because of the unlock requirement that the pin file is still there after reset.
Hey guys,
I have a query on recovering data from Android phone's internal storage.
The phone is J7 Pro (SM-J730GM) and I am trying to recover some deleted data from the phone.
I have tried UltData for Android but it only lists the data that is already present on the phone...it does not show the deleted data.
I tried DroidKit and it clearly states that 'Root required for Deep Scan'. Only quick scan available which is same as UltData (lists only data that is already present).
I did some research and it seems that without root, it is not possible to recover lost/deleted data.
I was wondering if anyone here has some knowledge/experience about this topic?
Is there any reliable tool out there that can recover data WITHOUT root? Or using commands via ADB shell ?
Root is the last thing I want to go for as it may sometimes brick the device.
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jwoegerbauer said:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
mru007 said:
Root is the last thing I want to go for as it may sometimes brick the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First of all, unlocking the bootloader will erase all data of your internal storage.
To recover deleted files you investigate your storage to find file signatures.
When deleting a file only the corresponding entry in the partition table will be erased. But the data of your file itself remains physically on your storage until it gets overwritten.
Best practice for that is to create an image file of your entire storage. But at least you will need full access to your data partition '/userdata'. That requires an unlocked bootloader to install a custom recovery like TWRP and/or root. Both give you full access to /userdata at all levels, increasing your chances of successfully recovering your files.
Factory reset: Files that have been deleted by a factory reset are due to encryption of internal storage (file based) almost unrecoverable. Wiping all data also deletes the decryption key stored in the system. During the next boot process /userdata (which is empty) gets encrypted again but with different keys.
It's not mandatory to have root permissions but you must have an unlocked bootloader.
An USB connection to your PC is not suitable to recover deleted files. Both, ADB and storage access, won't open your file system directly. There's at least one system service on your phone that manages the data transfer, e.g. MTP.
WoKoschekk said:
First of all, unlocking the bootloader will erase all data of your internal storage.
To recover deleted files you investigate your storage to find file signatures.
When deleting a file only the corresponding entry in the partition table will be erased. But the data of your file itself remains physically on your storage until it gets overwritten.
Best practice for that is to create an image file of your entire storage. But at least you will need full access to your data partition '/userdata'. That requires an unlocked bootloader to install a custom recovery like TWRP and/or root. Both give you full access to /userdata at all levels, increasing your chances of successfully recovering your files.
Factory reset: Files that have been deleted by a factory reset are due to encryption of internal storage (file based) almost unrecoverable. Wiping all data also deletes the decryption key stored in the system. During the next boot process /userdata (which is empty) gets encrypted again but with different keys.
It's not mandatory to have root permissions but you must have an unlocked bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the detail info!
When I go to Developer options -> OEM unlocking, it says here "Bootloader already unlocked." So it's a good thing for proceeding further I suppose.
For TWRP installation, I checked the method but it says 'unlocking bootloader will Wipe Data.
Does installing TWRP automatically attempts to unlock bootloader (and hence the risk of wipe data?)
Here is the blog that list steps to root with TWRP and gives a bright red warning -
Root Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro SM-J730GM and Install TWRP Recovery
Easy tutorial to Root Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro SM-J730GM in easy steps. For rooting, you have to flash TWRP Recovery first through the guide.
www.androidweblog.com
So my q. is -
If I just install TWRP, does it pose a risk to automatically wipe data?
Any options in TWRP itself to recover deleted data?
The other way is to root the device using Magisk app which does not require TWRP, but a bit complicated process.
This is the blog I came across to root J7 Pro without TWRP -
Root Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro SM-J730GM/G using Magisk Without TWRP
Easy tutorial to Root Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro SM-J730GM/G in easy steps using Magisk. For rooting, you we have described Magisk method, without installing TWRP.
www.androidweblog.com
Hope TWRP method does not Wipe Data & rooting method does not brick the device.
Even if we follow all the steps properly, there is always a little chance that it may brick the device
WoKoschekk said:
An USB connection to your PC is not suitable to recover deleted files. Both, ADB and storage access, won't open your file system directly. There's at least one system service on your phone that manages the data transfer, e.g. MTP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Interesting.
I also tried mounting the phone internal storage as a 'disk drive' (with letter) using a tool called MTPdrive but then no data recovery software recognizes it as a 'valid' partition. It says invalid.
mru007 said:
If I just install TWRP, does it pose a risk to automatically wipe data?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If your bootloader is already unlocked, it is very good news for you. TWRP doesn't unlock bootloader or wipe your data.
mru007 said:
Any options in TWRP itself to recover deleted data?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No.
Follow the steps properly with the correct files to root your device.
Once successfully rooted, install a good data recovery app and try to recover your lost files.
Important thing to remember is that the more files you copy or install (i.e. the more changes you make to your file system), the lesser chance there will be to recover data because the system tries to use the space occupied by deleted data to write new files to it.
So do one thing at a time and make as little changes as possible to root your phone and install the data recovery app. Do your research first to find out the best options.
All the best!
mru007 said:
Any options in TWRP itself to recover deleted data?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, but you could do the following when TWRP runs:
1. Download the ADB/Fastboot tools here.
2. Extract the downloaded ZIP to C:\ and open the new created folder C:\platform-tools. You should see single files like adb.exe or fastboot.exe
3. In the address bar of your Explorer windows type cmd and hit Enter.
4. Connect the phone in TWRP mode via USB to your desktop PC and execute
Code:
adb devices
which should give you a output like this:
Code:
C:\platform-tools>adb devices
* daemon not running; starting now at tcp:5037
* daemon started successfully
List of devices attached
<SERIAL_NO> recovery
If any errors then tell us!
5. Execute
Code:
adb pull /dev/block/by-name/userdata
This pulls an image of your data partition right into the current folder C:\platform-tools.
But be aware!! The data image is as big as your total internal storage!
So, make sure there is enough free space on your storage.
If you successfully pulled the image, then I will explain you how to rescue the deleted data on it.
Even if you can recover files... the file and folder structure is lost forever. Jpegs will have no exif data, no time stamp etc. It will be a real mess.
The most you can do then is search for file type, for example jpegs. A sea of juxtaposed jpegs; every bloody jpeg on the drive.
You learned a valuable lesson on how fragile digital data can be, the hard way. Why didn't you use a SD card as the data drive? All critical data should be redundantly backup at least twice in addition to the SD card.
blackhawk said:
Even if you can recover files... the file and folder structure is lost forever. Jpegs will have no exif data, no time stamp etc. It will be a real mess.
The most you can do then is search for file type, for example jpegs. A sea of juxtaposed jpegs; every bloody jpeg on the drive.
You learned a valuable lesson on how fragile digital data can be, the hard way. Why didn't you use a SD card as the data drive? All critical data should be redundantly backup at least twice in addition to the SD card.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I learnt my lesson the hard way in 2013 or 2014, but I was eventually lucky after spending 2 sleepless nights. Lost all files on my laptop hard disc by passing a command that I didn't fully understand. After 2 days and 2 nights which looked like eternal, and trying a dozen data recovery softwares that did nothing, I eventually found one that, in hindsight, was Godsend. That software actually recovered almost every single file and was also free back then. It was then that I created a backup plan for myself and it has worked well so far.
But you missed talking about cloud backups. They are actually much more secure since they are managed professionally, although they come with some privacy concerns.
TheMystic said:
I learnt my lesson the hard way in 2013 or 2014, but I was eventually lucky after spending 2 sleepless nights. Lost all files on my laptop hard disc by passing a command that I didn't fully understand. After 2 days and 2 nights which looked like eternal, and trying a dozen data recovery softwares that did nothing, I eventually found one that, in hindsight, was Godsend. That software actually recovered almost every single file and was also free back then. It was then that I created a backup plan for myself and it has worked well so far.
But you missed talking about cloud backups. They are actually much more secure since they are managed professionally, although they come with some privacy concerns.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I never use cloud except for Gmail and text messages backups. Otherwise it's backed up at least 3-6 times on different drives, in different locations including time staggered copies. I may lose some data but never all...
blackhawk said:
I never use cloud except for Gmail and text messages backups. Otherwise it's backed up at least 3-6 times on different drives, in different locations including time staggered copies. I may lose some data but never all...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's one reason why you stick with the N10+ which is the last Samsung flagship with an external SD card. Since this feature isn't coming back on future flagships, you'll either have to settle with a budget device going forward, or get the 1 TB variants of Flagships, if you want access to your entire camera roll all the time.
In either case, you'll eventually run out of storage and may have to setup your own personal cloud server, if you have the required expertise to keep it safe for online access.
Cloud is not just about backups. It is also about having access to files all the time on multiple devices.
TheMystic said:
That's one reason why you stick with the N10+ which is the last Samsung flagship with an external SD card. Since this feature isn't coming back on future flagships, you'll either have to settle with a budget device going forward, or get the 1 TB variants of Flagships, if you want access to your entire camera roll all the time.
In either case, you'll eventually run out of storage and may have to setup your own personal cloud server, if you have the required expertise to keep it safe for online access.
Cloud is not just about backups. It is also about having access to files all the time on multiple devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung. If they can't put out they will be kicked out. Another manufacturer will pick up the slack. Both Samsung and Gookill Android are a mess now; I will continue to use what fullfills my mission for the next 3+ years. No hurry here.
Currently I'm using about 510 gb of my 1tb capacity, plenty of room left. I also have 350/100gb available on internal.
With cloud you're at the mercy of your internet connection/bandwidth, always. It wastes battery and they will charge you for the "privilege" of high capacity storage.
Multiple more layers to cloud introduce new failure modes and vulnerabilities, KISS.
Lol, do you still trust Samsung servers?
In the future you will own nothing and be happy. Not me.
blackhawk said:
With cloud you're at the mercy of your internet connection/bandwidth, always. It wastes battery and they will charge you for the "privilege" of high capacity storage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Internet today is cheap and convenience has a price. So it is okay.
blackhawk said:
Multiple more layers to cloud introduce new failure modes and vulnerabilities, KISS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They have multiple redundancies built-in and I am positive they have systems in place to prevent catastrophe. I do use multiple cloud providers though, just in case.
blackhawk said:
do you still trust Samsung servers?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have the expertise to keep a personal cloud server safe online.
blackhawk said:
In the future you will own nothing and be happy. Not me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have local backups too. It's not like I'm completely dependent on them. The local backups are just backups, and I cannot access them online.
TheMystic said:
I have local backups too. It's not like I'm completely dependent on them. The local backups are just backups, and I cannot access them online.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you had an SD card* you don't need to have internet access at all to do a full reload, anytime, anywhere. If you phone OS crashes the data on the SD card usually remains intact as well as in most hard display smashing drops.
A dual drive device trumps a single drive device every time.
*A OTG flashstick can be used but they are much slower. Backups can't be done in real time and one more critical piece of hardware to lose.
blackhawk said:
If you had an SD card* you don't need to have internet access at all to do a full reload, anytime, anywhere. If you phone OS crashes the data on the SD card usually remains intact as well as in most hard display smashing drops.
A dual drive device trumps a single drive device every time.
*A OTG flashstick can be used but they are much slower. Backups can't be done in real time and one more critical piece of hardware to lose.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're focussing only on backups.
I'm also looking at multi-device access to all files. This is possible only with cloud, whether 3rd party or personally hosted one.
blackhawk said:
If you had an SD card* you don't need to have internet access at all to do a full reload, anytime, anywhere. If you phone OS crashes the data on the SD card usually remains intact as well as in most hard display smashing drops.
A dual drive device trumps a single drive device every time.
*A OTG flashstick can be used but they are much slower. Backups can't be done in real time and one more critical piece of hardware to lose.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're focussing only on backups.
I'm also looking at multi-device access to all files. This is possible only with cloud, whether 3rd party or personally hosted one.
TheMystic said:
You're focussing only on backups.
I'm also looking at multi-device access to all files. This is possible only with cloud, whether 3rd party or personally hosted one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly. Android is the only internet portal I use.
My other Android only shares cloud Gmail and texting for security. My laptop internet/wifi access is always offline; completely physically firewalled. You might hack one device but never all three. All backup drives are always physically/electronically separate from the PC unless being used for backup. In the case of malware none of the backups are connected until the victim device is clean.
I've seen a Gmail account get hacked and become unrecoverable. Never had that happen to a backup hdd... in the end the only protection you have is sound data management. If you fail to do this you may lose your whole database.
blackhawk said:
Exactly. Android is the only internet portal I use.
My other Android only shares cloud Gmail and texting for security. My laptop internet/wifi access is always offline; completely physically firewalled. You might hack one device but never all three.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is a very special use case. For most people, multi-device access is pretty common.
blackhawk said:
I've seen a Gmail account get hacked and become unrecoverable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As in all emails got permanently deleted? And Google couldn't help?