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I got a new iPhone 7 and wanna sell my old Android galaxy 5, so, my concern is whether the simple deleted data can be easily recovered by some data recovery tools, because there are many sensitive data on my old galaxy 5. So, i wanna know if it's necessary to completely erase data on Andorid before selling? and how?
PS: does factory reset can completely erase the data without recovery?
factory reset should be totally enough.
DeeZZ_NuuZZ said:
factory reset should be totally enough.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the data can be accessed by data recovery software with only a single factory reset. There is a CNET post about this. A more secure way is writing random data to the phone to overwrite the current device. You can see more details from this guide: how to safely erase android phone
A few steps.
1. Factory Reset.
2. After Factory Reset, go through with setup to be able to accept Files from your PC.
3. Copy and Paste Junk Files, Pictures, Audio, or whatever isn't important if accessed at all, but Move onto Phone MORE DATA than what was there before which Overwrites All of Your Previous stuff.
4. Do Another Factory Reset.
Now, your Phone is Safe to Sell.
S1ikIfy said:
the data can be accessed by data recovery software with only a single factory reset. There is a CNET post about this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so, if the factory reset can't wipe Android completely, do you have a great way to erase data from Android phone without recovery possibility?
Hey,
I want to completely wipe my Samsung S6 before I sell it/giver it away, so that when the new user won't find anything when they scan the device for deleted files.
What's the best way to achieve this?
I figured Encrypting my device and doing a factory reset or wipe within TWRP would suffice, but does it? Has anybody achieved a completely clean device and how?
freekystar said:
Hey,
I want to completely wipe my Samsung S6 before I sell it/giver it away, so that when the new user won't find anything when they scan the device for deleted files.
What's the best way to achieve this?
I figured Encrypting my device and doing a factory reset or wipe within TWRP would suffice, but does it? Has anybody achieved a completely clean device and how?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IShredder works for me.. Or just do it oldschool.. Delete and factory reset. Stuff your phone with crap files to overwrite old files and do that as many times as you feel safe and done.. And if you want to experiment with it try to use some recovery software after to see if you got rid of everything
Horgyboy said:
IShredder works for me.. Or just do it oldschool.. Delete and factory reset. Stuff your phone with crap files to overwrite old files and do that as many times as you feel safe and done.. And if you want to experiment with it try to use some recovery software after to see if you got rid of everything
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think that only works for traditional hard drives rather than on flash memory (SSD/NAND) -- It would seem to me encrypting and factory reset/full wipe in TWRP would work better.
Installing stock firmware encrypts the phone, factory reset/full wipe to completely wipe the data including the key that unlocks the data and doing that another time would probably make data inaccessible especially after a time of use.
AFAIK custom roms are usually not encrypted to allow root to be installed.
I could be wrong however... Has anybody got experience using this method?
The phone needs to be encrypted first before performing a factory reset. Factory reset will make it look like all data has been deleted but actually personal info like photos, texts, emails etc will still be stored in memory and just marked as deleted. This means they can be quite easily restored if someone decides to use a data recovery tool on your phone once it's out of your hands. Both data encryption and factory reset can be done easily from the phone's settings. Data encryption is in the Lock Screen and Security section. Reset can also be done remotely from the findmymobile.samsung website
Hi, I've been meaning to write this since 2016 or 2017, I think, butI think I can still remember all the important details of this crisis...
So I had rooted this 'Galaxy Avant' phone originally so I could disable/remove the extra stuff of the systems' in the hopes of improving the phones' performance, but I didn't change the OS from whag metropcs gave me at that time. I also had a password and/or a pin lock on both the sd card, startup, and internal memory. Everything was okay until I ran into a wifi issue where it wasn't connecting to a semi-public wifi hotspot, so I thought if I cleared the wifi apps' cache the issue would go away. Trouble was I didn't know that the wifi cache wasfor some reasin the same as the system's cache, and a few seconds after clearing it, my phone crashed, and continued to restart itself. So I panicked and tried removing the password/pin locks for easier backup to recovery/resetting. Well the external sdcard managed to decrypt, but when I proceeded to attempt the same for the device, it decided to factory reset itself.
I lost nearly everything from that event. I did periodic backups to the sd card but not daily and since that phone was also responsible for my own memory retention, at least a month or two of my soul is still missing. Any new contact, commitment, itinerary, life decision, goal, deadline, or other important note from that time was wiped and can't be found anywhere else, and I still don't know who else is or was affected from this (especially if I had just made their acquaitance).
So all that to say I must get this device back to how it was before the cache-wiping incident. The phone hasn't been turned on since, except to dump the system image onto my linux desktop. With testdisk I can see what I assume are the deleted partitions from before the factory reset, but I don't know how to undelete+decrypt them and/or copy them back to the device. Please tell me honestly that there's a way to do this, and what that way is. My functioning really depends on it...
shmusername said:
Hi, I've been meaning to write this since 2016 or 2017, I think, butI think I can still remember all the important details of this crisis...
So I had rooted this 'Galaxy Avant' phone originally so I could disable/remove the extra stuff of the systems' in the hopes of improving the phones' performance, but I didn't change the OS from whag metropcs gave me at that time. I also had a password and/or a pin lock on both the sd card, startup, and internal memory. Everything was okay until I ran into a wifi issue where it wasn't connecting to a semi-public wifi hotspot, so I thought if I cleared the wifi apps' cache the issue would go away. Trouble was I didn't know that the wifi cache wasfor some reasin the same as the system's cache, and a few seconds after clearing it, my phone crashed, and continued to restart itself. So I panicked and tried removing the password/pin locks for easier backup to recovery/resetting. Well the external sdcard managed to decrypt, but when I proceeded to attempt the same for the device, it decided to factory reset itself.
I lost nearly everything from that event. I did periodic backups to the sd card but not daily and since that phone was also responsible for my own memory retention, at least a month or two of my soul is still missing. Any new contact, commitment, itinerary, life decision, goal, deadline, or other important note from that time was wiped and can't be found anywhere else, and I still don't know who else is or was affected from this (especially if I had just made their acquaitance).
So all that to say I must get this device back to how it was before the cache-wiping incident. The phone hasn't been turned on since, except to dump the system image onto my linux desktop. With testdisk I can see what I assume are the deleted partitions from before the factory reset, but I don't know how to undelete+decrypt them and/or copy them back to the device. Please tell me honestly that there's a way to do this, and what that way is. My functioning really depends on it...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Go to Sammobile .com or samsung-updates .com, enter your model number in their search feature to find your stock firmware. If you can find the firmware, you can use Odin to flash the firmware to restore the device to normal function.
Sent from my LGL84VL using Tapatalk
Droidriven said:
Go to Sammobile .com or samsung-updates .com, enter your model number in their search feature to find your stock firmware. If you can find the firmware, you can use Odin to flash the firmware to restore the device to normal function.
Sent from my LGL84VL using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, but the device already functions normally; it reset itself to factory defaults, after all.
I just want to be able to restore the device to as it was before the accidental cache wipe—apps as they were, files, and all...
shmusername said:
Thanks, but the device already functions normally; it reset itself to factory defaults, after all.
I just want to be able to restore the device to as it was before the accidental cache wipe—apps as they were, files, and all...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh, you mean you want to recover your lost data. All I can say is try some data recovery software on PC, there isn't any guarantee that it will work though. Data recovery on android is not very reliable.
Sent from my LGL84VL using Tapatalk
So a little bit of backstory to explain my question: I bought a brand new Nokia 8 this February and it was shipped with Android 8. I updated to Pie, but it pretty much bricked my device. I RMA'd it, and they exchanged it with another phone which I received a few days ago and again had Android 8 installed. However, since automatic updates was enabled, it has already started updating to Android 9. Currently, the update menu shows the following message:
Code:
Installation will automatically resume when the device is idle.
I have since disabled autoupdates by using the developer menu, but the message is still there. Now I'm kinda wary about updating to Android 9 again considering that it already bricked my device before, and besides I feel like Android 8 worked better for this phone, so I'd like to prevent this update.
So here's my question: Can I cancel this update by doing a factory reset through the Android menu (not recovery)? And if it is possible, is there any risk of bricking the device?
There's nothing I want to save on the phone since it's pretty much brand new, so resetting it don't bother me.
Thanks in advance!
KissShoto said:
So a little bit of backstory to explain my question: I bought a brand new Nokia 8 this February and it was shipped with Android 8. I updated to Pie, but it pretty much bricked my device. I RMA'd it, and they exchanged it with another phone which I received a few days ago and again had Android 8 installed. However, since automatic updates was enabled, it has already started updating to Android 9. Currently, the update menu shows the following message:
Code:
Installation will automatically resume when the device is idle.
I have since disabled autoupdates by using the developer menu, but the message is still there. Now I'm kinda wary about updating to Android 9 again considering that it already bricked my device before, and besides I feel like Android 8 worked better for this phone, so I'd like to prevent this update.
So here's my question: Can I cancel this update by doing a factory reset through the Android menu (not recovery)? And if it is possible, is there any risk of bricking the device?
There's nothing I want to save on the phone since it's pretty much brand new, so resetting it don't bother me.
Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Factory resetting will temporarily remove the notification but it will come back after some time.
It may or may not be possible to block it for good, it depends on if anyone has found a working method for your specific model number. If it is possible on your device, it will probably require at least rooting the device.
Sent from my LGLS755 using Tapatalk
Try a factory reset + clear cache partition.
Droidriven said:
Factory resetting will temporarily remove the notification but it will come back after some time.
It may or may not be possible to block it for good, it depends on if anyone has found a working method for your specific model number. If it is possible on your device, it will probably require at least rooting the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for answering.
What if I factory reset the phone, then enable developers options and disable auto updates from there? Wouldn't that prevent the phone from downloading the update? And is there a any risk involved with factory resetting the phone while the install is pending? That's my biggest fear at the moment.
I don't want to root the device since it's still under warranty, I don't want to void it if there's a risk of the phone getting bricked again at some point in the future.
James_Watson said:
Try a factory reset + clear cache partition.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for answering.
I thought about doing that, but I'd rather avoid messing around with the cache. The warranty mentions that the only things covered by it are software wise are updates, so if I go around messing around with things I'm not theoretically supposed to I'm afraid it might void the warranty.
KissShoto said:
Thanks for answering.
What if I factory reset the phone, then enable developers options and disable auto updates from there? Wouldn't that prevent the phone from downloading the update? And is there a any risk involved with factory resetting the phone while the install is pending? That's my biggest fear at the moment.
I don't want to root the device since it's still under warranty, I don't want to void it if there's a risk of the phone getting bricked again at some point in the future.
Thanks for answering.
I thought about doing that, but I'd rather avoid messing around with the cache. The warranty mentions that the only things covered by it are software updates, so I go around messing around with things I'm not theoretically supposed to I'm afraid it might void the warranty.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If it is already downloaded and pending install, that means it has been downloaded and is being held in cache until you accept and start the process. You "might" be able to delete it from cache somehow and stop the process, possibly a factory reset from within system settings and then disabling update checks could work. It is worth trying.
Sent from my LGLS755 using Tapatalk
Droidriven said:
If it is already downloaded and pending install, that means it has been downloaded and is being held in cache until you accept and start the process. You "might" be able to delete it from cache somehow and stop the process, possibly a factory reset from within system settings and then disabling update checks could work. It is worth trying.
Sent from my LGLS755 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The actual message that's displayed on the update screen is this:
Installation will automatically resume when the device is idle.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So the installation might already have started, I'm not sure. Would it still be safe to attempt a factory reset in these conditions? My biggest fear is that it might brick the device.
KissShoto said:
The actual message that's displayed on the update screen is this:
So the installation might already have started, I'm not sure. Would it still be safe to attempt a factory reset in these conditions? My biggest fear is that it might brick the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It may have started the process but it can't actually flash anything until the device is rebooted. I would still try the factory reset, if it doesn't work then you haven't lost anything as long as you backup your personal data and files before you reset. You can restore your data after the reset.
Sent from my SM-S767VL using Tapatalk
Droidriven said:
It may have started the process but it can't actually flash anything until the device is rebooted. I would still try the factory reset, if it doesn't work then you haven't lost anything as long as you backup your personal data and files before you reset. You can restore your data after the reset.
Sent from my SM-S767VL using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
So it's 100% safe then? There's no risk of bricking the device by factory reseting it even though the update process has supposedly already started?
I'm sorry for being so paranoid, but I'm not very familiar with Android and considering the terms of the warranty, I reaaaaally don't want to screw anything up.
KissShoto said:
So it's 100% safe then? There's no risk of bricking the device by factory reseting it even though the update process has supposedly already started?
I'm sorry for being so paranoid, but I'm not very familiar with Android and considering the terms of the warranty, I reaaaaally don't want to screw anything up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If the initialization of the update was only implemented at the system level, factory reset should wipe it. If it has initiated anything at the kernel/hardware level, resetting "might" cause issues.
Sent from my SM-S767VL using Tapatalk
Droidriven said:
If the initialization of the update was only implemented at the system level, factory reset should wipe it. If it has initiated anything at the kernel/hardware level, resetting "might" cause issues.
Sent from my SM-S767VL using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is there any way to know if it has done anything of the kind by any chance? And what sort of of issues could potentially arise?
By the way thanks for taking the time to answer my questions, I greatly appreciate it.
KissShoto said:
Is there any way to know if it has done anything of the kind by any chance? And what sort of of issues could potentially arise?
By the way thanks for taking the time to answer my questions, I greatly appreciate it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Another safe way to get rid of it is to just reflash the exact same firmware that you have(your current version, not the updated version). Flashing your current stock firmware via PC will reset everything exactly as it is supposed to be like before you triggered the update. Then you can try blocking the update before it happens this time.
Sent from my SM-S767VL using Tapatalk
KissShoto said:
So a little bit of backstory to explain my question: I bought a brand new Nokia 8 this February and it was shipped with Android 8. I updated to Pie, but it pretty much bricked my device. I RMA'd it, and they exchanged it with another phone which I received a few days ago and again had Android 8 installed. However, since automatic updates was enabled, it has already started updating to Android 9. Currently, the update menu shows the following message:
Code:
Installation will automatically resume when the device is idle.
I have since disabled autoupdates by using the developer menu, but the message is still there. Now I'm kinda wary about updating to Android 9 again considering that it already bricked my device before, and besides I feel like Android 8 worked better for this phone, so I'd like to prevent this update.
So here's my question: Can I cancel this update by doing a factory reset through the Android menu (not recovery)? And if it is possible, is there any risk of bricking the device?
There's nothing I want to save on the phone since it's pretty much brand new, so resetting it don't bother me.
Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello! Yes, you can do a factory reset and get the Oreo back if you have updated to Pie.
https://www.techjunkie.com/perform-factory-reset-android-oreo/
esparkinfo said:
Hello! Yes, you can do a factory reset and get the Oreo back if you have updated to Pie.
https://www.techjunkie.com/perform-factory-reset-android-oreo/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Absolutely not, you can not got back to Oreo from Pie by performing a factory reset. That is not how factory reset works. Factory reset wipes the data partition and user settings, it does not do anything to the system partition at all. It especially does not "replace" the system with another system, it does not even "flash" anything, it only wipes.
Factory reset for android is nothing like the "restore to factory defaults" option that PC's have. They do not do the same thing. One "wipes" anything that was not factory installed to return to factory settings and the other formats and then "flashes" or "restores" a complete copy of the factory installed software to return to the original factory state. One wipes anything that doesn't belong and the other just replaces "everything", leaving nothing behind that was there before the replacement was applied.
I hope I made that make sense.
Sent from my SM-S767VL using Tapatalk
Droidriven said:
Absolutely not, you can not got back to Oreo from Pie by performing a factory reset. That is not how factory reset works. Factory reset wipes the data partition and user settings, it does not do anything to the system partition at all. It especially does not "replace" the system with another system, it does not even "flash" anything, it only wipes.
Factory reset for android is nothing like the "restore to factory defaults" option that PC's have. They do not do the same thing. One "wipes" anything that was not factory installed to return to factory settings and the other formats and then "flashes" or "restores" a complete copy of the factory installed software to return to the original factory state. One wipes anything that doesn't belong and the other just replaces "everything", leaving nothing behind that was there before the replacement was applied.
I hope I made that make sense.
Sent from my SM-S767VL using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
Thanks for correcting my myth. I understood what exactly factory reset is and which can't be the solution of going back to Oreo from Pie. Then what would be the solution? Now I also have the curiosity to know more about preventing Pie updates.
Hi. i have an issue with my tablet and samsung support wants me to do a factory reset.
My question is then if i flash a firmware from samfrew.com will that remove as much data as a factory reset? or is the data stored in another partition or something similar to that?
A Factory Reset - as it name implies - only restores Android phone to the state it was brought into the market, it does NOT alter phone's Android as flashing a firmware does.
ok? so are you saying that doing the factory reset will rollback all the software updates samsung has rolled out?
Masterkong said:
ok? so are you saying that doing the factory reset will rollback all the software updates samsung has rolled out?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, but factory reset, will wipe your internal drive completely. If you have a sd card store all your photos/music etc on sd card.
Only real time, you want to flash stock firmware
etc, is if you eg... want to upgrade your firmware to newer versions, or come back from root.etc.. etc.
Chances are... if you don't know what you doing... you can soft brick your device etc.!
Factory reset, seems like the better options.?
Even though once or twice (in the past) , a factory reset, did not help, where flashing correct, Official firmware version, actually help solved my issue.
So it's your choice.!
Good luck.
to
Masterkong said:
Hi. i have an issue with my tablet and samsung support wants me to do a factory reset.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What's the issue?
Try clearing the system cache; it never hurts, it's easy and can cure erratic behavior.
Old loads will probably benefit with a clean load but for minor issues it's a shotgun overkill approach to troubleshooting.
Techs like because it works and makes things real easy... for them, not you!
Worse the issue can easily reoccur if it was caused by an app, setting, etc. Normally it's best to find the root cause rather than do a factory reset.
Exceptions are old loads and if you did a OS upgrade, in which case a factory reload fully warranted.
A reflash should only be done to upgrade or if the original factory load image has been corrupted (very unlikely).
ok.
i have an samsung galaxy tab S6 and since the upgrade to Android 11/OneUI3.1 international key on any hardware keyboard stopped working. regardless of layout set. Dvorak etc. does work though.
so i think it is a software bug and not some lingering configuration.
support asked me first to clear the cache on samsung keyboard app and when that didnt work they asked me to reset all settings in general management. no bueno there either. next thing they want me to do is facory data reset.
so my thinking is if this is a software bug that won't do any good. but reflashing the tablet with android 10 should work if the faulty software is in android 11, or rather in samsungs OneUI i guess.
does this make sense?
but i digressed. what i wanted to learn was what data is affected in a factory reset compared to a firmware flashing.
Masterkong said:
but i digressed. what i wanted to learn was what data is affected in a factory reset compared to a firmware flashing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I basically answered your questionin above post..!
Factory reset will wipe your internal data.!
Where as flashing correct Official Firmware depends...... .!
eg If you do a dirty flash... you keep your data..! Data stays intact, but chances are "anything" (system apps) can get corrupted.?
Resulting eg, in excessive battery drain or an app not working properly.
(In Samsung devices when flashing you use /if you flash... eg Home_CSC etc with the other relevant files)
Otherwise/alternative, if you flash
(.. with the correct Official Firmware using)
eg CSC_XXX file, your device will automatically factory reset..!
Bottom line is, it depends how you flash your device.
example.....
HOME_CSC_xxx -> data will stay intact.
CSC_xxx-> device will factory reset.
Note,
If you knew the basics, about flashing official firmware......
you should have known, above information.?
So i suggest that either you do some reading /research, regarding flashing correct official
Firmware etc or you stand risk of soft
bricking you device..
Good luck
Masterkong said:
but i digressed. what i wanted to learn was what data is affected in a factory reset compared to a firmware flashing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All critical data photos, contacts, music, vids, etc should already fully backed up, redundantly.
The whole idea of a reload or flash is a fresh start from issues that are present.
OS's are 100% expendable, critical data is not.
It's a little game to see how long you can keep a OS copy running well, but that's all it is.
Erratic behavior could indicate a virus or rootkit.
A benign instability could end up corrupting important data, even backups.
I'm ready to reload -now- should be how you roll; keep your data organized and backed up.
If you have a SD card slot, use it as a data drive. OS/programs/download folder on the internal memory or primary drive, and all critical data on the the data drive. You can nuke the OS but your data is safely (hopefully) still on the data drive, you backup that drive at least twice.