Related
Hey folks...I'm running into a problem I was hoping someone might be able to help with.
Earlier today I pulled my phone out of my pocket at work and saw that it was off...I thought that the battery must have died sooner than I thought. I started charging it in the car on the way home and it wouldn't boot up like normal. It would get to the google or "dots" screen and then reboot. I again thought that the battery might just be really low. After getting home and charging the phone all the way I still can't get it to boot up. As of now, one of 3 things will happen...
1-The phone will turn on, get to the google screen and bootloop (usually when plugged in).
2-The phone will turn on, get to the google screen and freeze.
3-Get to the "dots" screen and either swirl forever or eventually reboot and do one of the above again.
I've read some threads where people suggest this is a faulty power button, that doesn't seem to be the case for me though because I can get into fastboot and it won't select anything or turn off without me doing it.
I've used WugFresh NRT and wiped/reflashed android. I'm running out of ideas. Do you have any others?
I was running the stock 5.0.1, unlocked, not currently rooted.
Thanks!
kyle313 said:
Hey folks...I'm running into a problem I was hoping someone might be able to help with.
Earlier today I pulled my phone out of my pocket at work and saw that it was off...I thought that the battery must have died sooner than I thought. I started charging it in the car on the way home and it wouldn't boot up like normal. It would get to the google or "dots" screen and then reboot. I again thought that the battery might just be really low. After getting home and charging the phone all the way I still can't get it to boot up. As of now, one of 3 things will happen...
1-The phone will turn on, get to the google screen and bootloop (usually when plugged in).
2-The phone will turn on, get to the google screen and freeze.
3-Get to the "dots" screen and either swirl forever or eventually reboot and do one of the above again.
I've read some threads where people suggest this is a faulty power button, that doesn't seem to be the case for me though because I can get into fastboot and it won't select anything or turn off without me doing it.
I've used WugFresh NRT and wiped/reflashed android. I'm running out of ideas. Do you have any others?
I was running the stock 5.0.1, unlocked, not currently rooted.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you try flashing factory images?
ryukiri said:
Did you try flashing factory images?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, that was what I flashed :/
If you can get into fastboot you "should" be able to flash stock images... Obviously this will revert any root and you will need to flash TWRP/CWM recovery after.
I assume you have a Windows PC with fastboot/adb setup and all drivers etc..
- Download latest "stock" hammerhead images (I cannot post links due to XDA rules... so: "developers.google.com/android/nexus/images#hammerhead"
- Extract the .tgz archive contents on your PC into a folder
- Boot the N5 into fastboot and plug USB cable from phone into your PC
- Go to the folder with the extracted files and run the "flash-all.bat" script on Windows
**Hopefully at this point your device will start to respond.. I.e, on fastboot screen, at the bottom you will see "writing" or something, as the script runs on the command window on your PC.**
If this works, you should be able to reboot once complete and then wait to see if you can get back into your phone.. then you can fastboot again and flash custom recovery, and then whatever rom.
If however you have a hardware issue (i.e, even after the above process it fails) then I am not sure what you could do... I guess ensure it has a complete charge. If you can get into fastboot and the buttons are responsive then it should not be a faulty power button.
Hope this helps :good:
Have you tried a simple factory reset? Reason I ask is it was working fine so sounds like something needs "flushing out" clear cache etc.
kyle313 said:
Hey folks...I'm running into a problem I was hoping someone might be able to help with.
Earlier today I pulled my phone out of my pocket at work and saw that it was off...I thought that the battery must have died sooner than I thought. I started charging it in the car on the way home and it wouldn't boot up like normal. It would get to the google or "dots" screen and then reboot. I again thought that the battery might just be really low. After getting home and charging the phone all the way I still can't get it to boot up. As of now, one of 3 things will happen...
1-The phone will turn on, get to the google screen and bootloop (usually when plugged in).
2-The phone will turn on, get to the google screen and freeze.
3-Get to the "dots" screen and either swirl forever or eventually reboot and do one of the above again.
I've read some threads where people suggest this is a faulty power button, that doesn't seem to be the case for me though because I can get into fastboot and it won't select anything or turn off without me doing it.
I've used WugFresh NRT and wiped/reflashed android. I'm running out of ideas. Do you have any others?
I was running the stock 5.0.1, unlocked, not currently rooted.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you choose the right model and firmware before you flash in WugFresh NRT?
The above could be right, however when I've used it, it's pointed out if I made that mistake. Having used his software dozens of times I've found it will bring any Nexus 5 back to life.
howard bamber said:
The above could be right, however when I've used it, it's pointed out if I made that mistake. Having used his software dozens of times I've found it will bring any Nexus 5 back to life.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello! I am apologize for that I didn't read the OP carefully. This happened to me once in that particulary way, but it was immediately after flashing. OP says that it happened suddenly, without reason. So now I am the one, who doesn't read, right? Sorry for that.
Regards, Zagor
Thanks for the responses, but I'm still having trouble.
I have been able to successfully write the newest stock android 3 times (1 without full wipe, 2 with) and the phone still can't boot up and goes through one of the three issues above.
I've also been able to get to the system recovery from the bootloader and I've tried wiping the cache and doing a factory reset from there and the problem remains.
I'd contact google, but I bought it at launch so I don't think they'll do anything for me since it's been 1+ years.
kyle313 said:
Thanks for the responses, but I'm still having trouble.
I have been able to successfully write the newest stock android 3 times (1 without full wipe, 2 with) and the phone still can't boot up and goes through one of the three issues above.
I've also been able to get to the system recovery from the bootloader and I've tried wiping the cache and doing a factory reset from there and the problem remains.
I'd contact google, but I bought it at launch so I don't think they'll do anything for me since it's been 1+ years.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds like you have a bad nand sector. From fastboot try:
Code:
fastboot oem lock
Then reboot into fastboot and check if it's locked or not. If the device isn't locked your emmc is corrupt and there is nothing you can do. If that is the case call Google and they will most likely help you out with a RMA.
theesotericone said:
Sounds like you have a bad nand sector. From fastboot try:
Code:
fastboot oem lock
Then reboot into fastboot and check if it's locked or not. If the device isn't locked your emmc is corrupt and there is nothing you can do. If that is the case call Google and they will most likely help you out with a RMA.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was actually able to relock the phone.
Luckily I called google and they're going to send me a replacement.
If anyone else has any other ideas, I'll still take them...I'd rather not be without a phone for the next week!
You won't be without a phone - they are sending a refurbish unit to you , putting a block on your credit card and waiting for you phone to arive at them. Once that happens they will release the funds.
Long story short - I thought I had lost my phone so I used Google's ADM to lock my Mi4c, it asked for a password and I entered 8 characters incl. numbers and letters, as I normally would. Anyways found my phone and now it's asking for a 4 digit pin, which I've never set up, I have no idea what the it could be. I've tried all the usuals.
So in the past I've used the tutorials on here to flash my device (thank you very much ), but it seems which ever way I updated it last time, it has relocked the bootloader. I was just re-granted permission (I was surprised to find that the permission expires) to use the miflash unlock tool, which completed successfully (as far as I'm aware). I thought this would allow me to access the recovery but it seems to be gone, no Mi recovery or TWRP! Nothing happens when I hold down the vol up and power button. No trouble accessing the fastboot though.
My questions is, before I go messing trying to fix this device:
Can I flash TWRP without USB debugging enabled? I can't access the settings due to the pin.
What is the best approach to solving this? I was hoping to use TWRP to delete the *.key files and hope that would unlock the device, but honestly I'm not precious about my content anymore I just want my phone back.
cherbe.3 said:
Long story short - I thought I had lost my phone so I used Google's ADM to lock my Mi4c, it asked for a password and I entered 8 characters incl. numbers and letters, as I normally would. Anyways found my phone and now it's asking for a 4 digit pin, which I've never set up, I have no idea what the it could be. I've tried all the usuals.
So in the past I've used the tutorials on here to flash my device (thank you very much ), but it seems which ever way I updated it last time, it has relocked the bootloader. I was just re-granted permission (I was surprised to find that the permission expires) to use the miflash unlock tool, which completed successfully (as far as I'm aware). I thought this would allow me to access the recovery but it seems to be gone, no Mi recovery or TWRP! Nothing happens when I hold down the vol up and power button. No trouble accessing the fastboot though.
My questions is, before I go messing trying to fix this device:
Can I flash TWRP without USB debugging enabled? I can't access the settings due to the pin.
What is the best approach to solving this? I was hoping to use TWRP to delete the *.key files and hope that would unlock the device, but honestly I'm not precious about my content anymore I just want my phone back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can't you just use android device manager again?
If your phone still boots up to lockscreen and is connected to the internet (mobile or better Wi-Fi) you should be able to access it from your computer or another device...
Sent from my OnePlus 3T using XDA Labs
Sam Nakamura said:
Can't you just use android device manager again?
If your phone still boots up to lockscreen and is connected to the internet (mobile or better Wi-Fi) you should be able to access it from your computer or another device...
Sent from my OnePlus 3T using XDA Labs
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately not, I've tried changing the pin with ADM but it just tells me that a pin is already is place.
The phone is connected to the internet (both data and wifi), I just can't figure out how to get around it.
cherbe.3 said:
Unfortunately not, I've tried changing the pin with ADM but it just tells me that a pin is already is place.
The phone is connected to the internet (both data and wifi), I just can't figure out how to get around it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you contact Google support? Maybe they can assist a little or Google some more about the 4 vs 8 digits pin - there's something wrong, sure that the 8 digits aren't your PUK?
Maybe use ADM again, there're more options,
If you reset it via AMD?
Edit:
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Android+Device+Manager+-+Bypass+Screen+Lock+on+any+Android+Device/34600
Sorry, just have no time atm but I'll come back later
Sent from my OnePlus 3T using XDA Labs
Sam Nakamura said:
If you contact Google support? Maybe they can assist a little or Google some more about the 4 vs 8 digits pin - there's something wrong, sure that the 8 digits aren't your PUK?
Maybe use ADM again, there're more options,
If you reset it via AMD?
Edit:
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Android+Device+Manager+-+Bypass+Screen+Lock+on+any+Android+Device/34600
Sorry, just have no time atm but I'll come back later
Sent from my OnePlus 3T using XDA Labs
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately every time I tried to replace the lock pin, Google told me that there was already a pin assign and it wouldn't be replaced.
Anyways, I'm back into my phone! Ended up having to flash the Chinese official rom using fastboot and the MiFlash tool. From there I could enable USB debugging, and flash TWRP and then install a custom global rom. Lost all my content, but a lesson learnt. No complaints, I'm back to being connected to the world!
Thanks for taking the time to help, I really appreciate it
Hi All,
First, thanks for clicking into my question! This is my first post, but I've been lurking here since I used to flash new roms on my original Nexus on a frequent basis, and a Gen1 Kindle Fire before that.
My fiancee is in a bind with her Pixel 2, so I'm hoping you all can help me out.
Her Pixel 2 threw a bunch of app errors over the course of two days, so she opted to reboot -- unfortunately it now locks up at the loading screen, with the Google 'G' and a loader bar (she's running the latest 8.1, pre-Pie) and hangs there, overheating until the battery runs out and we shut it down. We can get into the Recovery menu, but none of the reboot options there seem to help, and there is only the Factory Reset option remaining that we haven't tried.
This happened in the middle of a huge camping excursion as her Bachelorette, so there was limited WiFi and data access to back anything up -- so locked behind that endless boot sequence is a lot of irreplaceable images and video.
What are my options to pull the user data out of there before a factory reset? Is it possible on a (stock, non-root, Google sourced) phone to flash the Pie update? Would that restore functionality?
Can I get to the data somehow through ADB without the phone booting up and unlocked?
Maybe something crazy, like a take a full image of the phone that I then shove on the replacement Pixel 2 that Google is sending us?
Any guidance would be much appreciated!
You could try booting to TWRP with "fastboot boot <filename here>". Then copy the files from there. I'm not sure if this will work if she had the screen locked beforehand though. You could also try flashing the latest factory image but make sure your remove the "-w" from the flash-all.bat file before running the script so it will not wipe user data. Both of these options might not be possible though if you do not have the boot-loader unlocked.
cynnican said:
Hi All,
First, thanks for clicking into my question! This is my first post, but I've been lurking here since I used to flash new roms on my original Nexus on a frequent basis, and a Gen1 Kindle Fire before that.
My fiancee is in a bind with her Pixel 2, so I'm hoping you all can help me out.
Her Pixel 2 threw a bunch of app errors over the course of two days, so she opted to reboot -- unfortunately it now locks up at the loading screen, with the Google 'G' and a loader bar (she's running the latest 8.1, pre-Pie) and hangs there, overheating until the battery runs out and we shut it down. We can get into the Recovery menu, but none of the reboot options there seem to help, and there is only the Factory Reset option remaining that we haven't tried.
This happened in the middle of a huge camping excursion as her Bachelorette, so there was limited WiFi and data access to back anything up -- so locked behind that endless boot sequence is a lot of irreplaceable images and video.
What are my options to pull the user data out of there before a factory reset? Is it possible on a (stock, non-root, Google sourced) phone to flash the Pie update? Would that restore functionality?
Can I get to the data somehow through ADB without the phone booting up and unlocked?
Maybe something crazy, like a take a full image of the phone that I then shove on the replacement Pixel 2 that Google is sending us?
Any guidance would be much appreciated!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ADB sideload the latest OTA zip in stock recovery, that should get you up and running again without needing a wipe
crixley said:
ADB sideload the latest OTA zip in stock recovery, that should get you up and running again without needing a wipe
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you! I'll be giving this a try as soon as she's home on Monday.
Does recovery mode automatically enable the USB Debugging that ADB uses?
cynnican said:
Thank you! I'll be giving this a try as soon as she's home on Monday.
Does recovery mode automatically enable the USB Debugging that ADB uses?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep you can sideload without needing it toggled in developer mode
crixley said:
Yep you can sideload without needing it toggled in developer mode
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This worked perfectly, thank you!
cynnican said:
This worked perfectly, thank you!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm glad to hear! Nothing worse than having to wipe and losing important things you can't get back. I've had that happen a few times. Happy to help.
I'm not very technical - please keep this in mind with my query below.
I have a Pixel 2 which overnight stopped working - my guess is that it rebooted due to an automated software update.
I now only get the page with the robot on it's back.
Options in green on this page are Barcodes, Power Off, and Start.
After reading a lot online I've tried all the usual key press combinations to no avail.
I've also downloaded ADB and FASTBOOT to my Mac.
ADB doesn't see the phone when plugged in via USB (ie. ADB DEVICES doesn't return anything)
FASTBOOT DEVICES does, however, show the serial number as listed on the page with the robot on it's back (and the -l option adds "usb:" plus an 8 digit number and the letter "X"
FASTBOOT REBOOT restarts the phone and brings me back to the robot on it's back page.
Other information on the Robot on it's back page include -
Product Revision: walleye MP1
Boot-slot: b
Console: DISABLED
Secure Boot: yes (PRODUCTION)
Device State: locked
Advice online suggests I need to unlock the phone, so I've tried FASTBOOT FLASHING UNLOCK, and FASTBOOT OEM UNLOCK but neither work.
When I try these I get "FAILED (remote: Flashing Unlock is not allowed)"
An article on Android Police suggests this may have been a bug on the Pixel 2 originally and that it's now resolved.
Unfortunately, my cat 22 situation seems to be that I need to do a factory reset, but the steps I've found as to how to do a factory reset all lead back to the Robot on it's back page, so I can't see how to move forward to with recovering my phone?
Can anyone help please?
Really frustrated that my new phone can put itself into this state without me having done anything and that it's seemingly impossible to recover from this state now that it's in it.
At very least I'd like to wipe all data from the phone so I can send it off for repair.
Thanks in advance.
hey there,
(new account since i can't access or recover my old one right now )
first of all, i'm on stock android 10, C3 update i think (the latest before yesterday's nov. update), neither rooted nor bootloader unlocked. here's my issue:
Final edit (smaller edits below):
No attempt worked, device had to be factory reset. Now Google can deal with the original issue of the screen behaving weirdly. (Seriously though, the display issues weren't even consistently present. Imagine a slightly greenish tint across the whole system, affecting and muddying the darker tones the most. Black was okay, because it's off on OLEDs anyway, but the launcher adds a brighter gradient with low color depth on top of black, ridiculing the desire of the pixels to be off. Weirdest thing ever, because it's not even visible on screenshots, but is following screen orientation. Now imagine not realizing that and sending a non-existing issue on a screenshot to Google support chat, then making a photo of it with another phone.)
edit: tldr version, because lots of text below: (edit: this didn't age well)
- stock android 10 (latest before nov.), bootloader locked
- sudden systemui crash loop (after changing wallpaper, green tint days before) on lock screen even in safe mode
- adb probably not enabled; fastboot lists device, no luck with adb (edit: adb sideload in recovery works)
- no backups; wanting to rescue my data;
additional attempts:
- safe mode also ended in sysui loop
- can get the loop at least stuck with its dialog box in emergency call ui, as well as with work profile switcher pattern prompt
- google's "find my device" inconsistently connects, seemingly by getting system stuck like above. could make it ring though, locking function reports success sometimes, but no further feedback
- adb sideloading . same version ota in recovery (is always enabled? system adb seemed disabled, so i wonder) didn't seem to change anything, sideloading nov. update processed at the G logo loading for a while, but systemui looped again afterwards.
edit: maybe incomplete? terminal ended both times at 94% and recovery at "...completed with status 0, so I thought is was normal (edit: it looks like it is, my Redmi reports even less percentage and status 0 with a successful flash)
Final edit:
- "fastboot continue", as well as parameters to switch boot slots didn't help in this case, both slots were affected and these commands aren't allowed on this locked bootloader
- "fastboot boot recovery.img" isn't either
- recovering data after a wipe is also a no; device is encrypted and therefore wipes the key to decrypt
- ADB sideloading already switches boot slots, no point in forcing it afterwards
- Getting the crash loop stuck by enabling the work profile seemingly provides enough time to input the pattern, but the system still prompted me to put it in before re-enabling fingerprints. Strangely enough, the profile successfully triggers, but that particular pattern has no effect on the regular lock screen (which essentially seem to trigger the exact same function. For God's sake if they had accepted that pattern to also unlock my fingerprints, I would have been able to recover all data.)
----
a couple of days ago i noticed my 3a was suddenly having a slight green display tint, which i was planning to fix or get fixed (haven't factory reset yet since i couldn't backup yet).
i recently started using cf lumen again to further dim the screen at night, so i assumed it was fixable misbehavior. i always disabled it in the morning.
occasionally i switched to a solid black wallpaper, because of the shadows/tints systemui uses to easily verify it is still there (the gradient shadow at the top of the launcher, which expands/darkens when you swipe the apps up, showed harsh steps, kinda like an image when lowering color depth).
Edit: Screenshots don't capture it, but it's following screen orientation and isn't present on settings in dark mode, maybe higher software layer that screenshots don't capture (looked silly, telling Google about it and sending a screenshot with no visible problem, 7/10 comedy).
Anyway, second troubleshooting with Google concluded with repair under warranty.
fast forward to today, i changed the wallpaper again (using an old quickpic version for an accurate portrait ratio, which has worked fine for months, and even longer on my phone before) and right after successfully applying it, systemui started its crash loop.
i could still temporarily unlock with my fingerprint, but it obviously locked again after crashing.
what made things worse, i rebooted and now i can't even temporarily unlock, because it asks for my pattern (which is default behavior), but i have barely a second to swipe up and enter it.
leaving the screen on and letting it loop now also reboots it into recovery mode after a while, prompting me with a notification that android couldn't boot and if i wanted to factory reset or try again, however, the booted ui looks functional and even quickly toggling the quick settings does work. i guess the failsafe triggers early, only because of systemui crashing.
----
so, i am now asking you helpful folks, what are my options to recover from this state?
i can't really afford deleting all of my files by factory resetting.
i don't have a google drive backup or a backup of my media. and correct me if i'm wrong, but i can only access the storage via usb by unlocking lock screen first, right?
i think i haven't used adb on it yet, if there's something i need to have enabled.
fwiw, i can also confirm that it shouldn't have any mechanical damage, since i used a spigen tough armor almost since i have my 3a and never did it drop with or without.
edit: i also booted into safe mode already, but the crash loop persists.
----
as of now, i'm gathering my options, so i apologize for not trying anything yet. i'm in the process of catching up to todays standards (e.g. a/b devices and stuff) and my time as a power user came to a stop late into the lifespan of my beloved nexus 5.
i'll probably update this post in case i have anything to report or forgot to add any details.
anyway, thank you for reading and for hopefully providing some directions in advance.
The simplest solution would be to just reflash the stock OTA. You can try dirty or do a factory reset first which should for sure work but is obviously more extreme.
Download the OTA here and move it to your PC
Reboot to bootloader
Reboot to stock recovery
Select ADB sideload
Open a terminal and adb sideload sargo-ota-qp1a.191105.003-a8fe1786.zip
Alternatively you can simply try reflashing the stock boot.img from the Nov update but if the SystemUI is corrupted that wont fix it.
ctfrommn said:
The simplest solution would be to just reflash the stock OTA. You can try dirty or do a factory reset first which should for sure work but is obviously more extreme.
Download the OTA here and move it to your PC
Reboot to bootloader
Reboot to stock recovery
Select ADB sideload
Open a terminal and adb sideload sargo-ota-qp1a.191105.003-a8fe1786.zip
Alternatively you can simply try reflashing the stock boot.img from the Nov update but if the SystemUI is corrupted that wont fix it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks for your suggestions and the steps you provided. flashing the boot.img reflashes the kernel, doesn't it?
like you said, systemui seems corrupted, or was fed something invalid and is now struggling, so i would try to reflash the whole update via sideload.
i already had something similar in mind, but since i had adb disabled, i thought that wouldn't work. so i just booted into recovery, selected the sideload option and (little did i know) it showed my device in "adb devices".
since i was on the october update (c3? the latest before november's), would you recommend grabbing the same version and dirty flashing it, or go right to the november one?
and because i'm dirty flashing, i guess i would to keep my internal storage intact, maybe even app data?
i've seemingly got nothing to lose anyway, an extensive chat with google support also ended in resetting as the only option.
flashing the boot.img reflashes the kernel, doesn't it?
Yes
since i was on the october update (c3? the latest before november's), would you recommend grabbing the same version and dirty flashing it, or go right to the november one?
You could start with Octobers. That will have the smallest risk.
and because i'm dirty flashing, i guess i would to keep my internal storage intact, maybe even app data?
Yes, all will remain in tact
ctfrommn said:
flashing the boot.img reflashes the kernel, doesn't it?
Yes
since i was on the october update (c3? the latest before november's), would you recommend grabbing the same version and dirty flashing it, or go right to the november one?
You could start with Octobers. That will have the smallest risk.
and because i'm dirty flashing, i guess i would to keep my internal storage intact, maybe even app data?
Yes, all will remain in tact
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
unfortunately, flashing the existing version didn't change anything, still was force closing systemui...
after that, i sideloaded the november update, which was processing at the G logo loading screen for a while, but in the end, it resulted in the same systemui crash loop.
what i did try in addition, was visiting google's "find my device", successfully making it ring after getting the fc loop stuck with the emergency call ui as well as by switching to the work profile and triggering a pattern prompt. however, only the locking command acted like it was working, but didn't help. installing anything remotely from the play store also didn't give any feedback whatsoever.
right now, i'm out of options... it seems the only obstacle is the lockscreen (which i can almost unlock in those 2 seconds to re-enable my fingerprint) and adb not being enabled. the quick settings toggle properly though, and the ui including the wallpaper render correctly.
----
again, if it's of any use, i can get the loop stuck without being able to interact with anything afterwards by opening the emergency call interface or the work profile switcher. it displayed the fc window at least, which got the loop stuck, but going nowhere.
sysuicrash0511 said:
unfortunately, flashing the existing version didn't change anything, still was force closing systemui...
after that, i sideloaded the november update, which was processing at the G logo loading screen for a while, but in the end, it resulted in the same systemui crash loop.
what i did try in addition, was visiting google's "find my device", successfully making it ring after getting the fc loop stuck with the emergency call ui as well as by switching to the work profile and triggering a pattern prompt. however, only the locking command acted like it was working, but didn't help. installing anything remotely from the play store also didn't give any feedback whatsoever.
right now, i'm out of options... it seems the only obstacle is the lockscreen (which i can almost unlock in those 2 seconds to re-enable my fingerprint) and adb not being enabled. the quick settings toggle properly though, and the ui including the wallpaper render correctly.
----
again, if it's of any use, i can get the loop stuck without being able to interact with anything afterwards by opening the emergency call interface or the work profile switcher. it displayed the fc window at least, which got the loop stuck, but going nowhere.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Time to clean flash it sounds like.
ctfrommn said:
Time to clean flash it sounds like.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i'm afraid you're right... i'll probably get a spare phone soon and let the 3a sleep for a couple of days, in case a miracle happens.
another question, and sorry to bother you barely on topic, but do you think i could recover some data from the internal storage after factory resetting or even clean flashing? (partitions/mounts don't use reserved memory sectors, i guess?) i mean, a wipe does only delete and doesn't overwrite for the most part, right? i'd look for a recovery solution another day, if deemed viable.
You should be able to backup everything. When you plug it in the internal storage mounts, yes? If not, you may have to try adb pull. And a clean flash these days with the way Google backs up and restores everything isnt near as big of a deal as it once was.
Alternatively, you could try just wiping the system partition(s) and leave internal storage alone. Not sure if thats an option anymore with the way this phone is partitioned though.
ctfrommn said:
You should be able to backup everything. When you plug it in the internal storage mounts, yes? If not, you may have to try adb pull. And a clean flash these days with the way Google backs up and restores everything isnt near as big of a deal as it once was.
Alternatively, you could try just wiping the system partition(s) and leave internal storage alone. Not sure if thats an option anymore with the way this phone is partitioned though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
basically coming from a nexus 5 as my main device, everything was straightforward, or it was because i had it for that long.
in case i miss something or lack the knowledge, mounting it over usb requires the screen to be unlocked once, right?
since adb sideloading worked, this doesn't imply i had usb debugging enabled, does it?
at this point, i only care about my internal storage, my app data isn't as important and i didn't back it up in drive anyway. and before posting the thread, a google search seemed to confirm, that a reset would indeed affect the internal storage partition, which is why i've been hesitant.
i would reset the device in a heartbeat if i could pull my media before. :/
anyway, thank you for your help so far, really appreciated.
I also came from Hammerhead and Shamu so this device is still a learning curve for me as well. I think youve exceeded my ability to help as Ive never dealt with this. Reflashing the OTA should fix this so the fact it didnt is very odd. The combination of this device and Android 10 has introduced a lot of oddities which is why development is so slow right now.
Still haven't reset my device, really wanting to keep the internal storage (app data not as important), so I apologize for bumping.
Quick summary (full story and attempts above), if there's still anyone wanting to help me salvage my data:
- stuck in infinite SystemUI crash, thus retriggering screen lock
- bootloader locked, adb probably disabled (sideloading in recovery works)
- completely unmodified stock 10, crashing started after checking for update (didn't initiate on mobile data) and upon changing wallpaper a couple of minutes later
- wiping would include storage afaik
- sideloading update didn't recover (see below)
- was on October version, can't confirm successfully sideloading November's (terminal always finished at 94% and recovery told "completed with status 0"
- can't mount via USB because can't bypass lockscreen
Yet to try (need to use a friend's laptop)
- remotely booting TWRP (on 10 though, so not fully compatible afaik)
What's seemingly holding me back, or "entry points"
- remotely enabling adb (hopeless I guess?)
- disabling screen lock (although crashing, toggling quick settings persists)
- mounting internal storage from wherever
- wiping app data from SystemUI, or factory resetting without wiping storage
- any exploits, since it's my very own phone (I can provide proof, if needed)
Any further help appreciated, thank you for reading.
Have you tried flashing full factory image?
Edit the flash-all.bat file and remove the -w to keep your data also make sure you have latest platform tools (adb,fastboot).
kc6wke said:
Have you tried flashing full factory image?
Edit the flash-all.bat file and remove the -w to keep your data also make sure you have latest platform tools (adb,fastboot).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't yet, no, thanks for the suggestion. I'll try it when I get my hands on that laptop again.
It's running Xubuntu (so probably a flash-all.sh), updating adb/fastboot should be child's play.
To be clear, by "keeping [my] data", do you mean the internal storage, app data, or possibly both?
I assume -w is the parameter for wiping, but not sure how that affects partitions on our Pixel.
(Also sorry for not responding sooner, didn't see the notification :/ )
sysuicrash0511 said:
I haven't yet, no, thanks for the suggestion. I'll try it when I get my hands on that laptop again.
It's running Xubuntu (so probably a flash-all.sh), updating adb/fastboot should be child's play.
To be clear, by "keeping [my] data", do you mean the internal storage, app data, or possibly both?
I assume -w is the parameter for wiping, but not sure how that affects partitions on our Pixel.
(Also sorry for not responding sooner, didn't see the notification :/ )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The -w is for wiping the internal storage. if you remove it you don't lose anything (apps and data, pics, etc..)
if you don't remove it, it wipes internal (as if it was new).
kc6wke said:
Have you tried flashing full factory image?
Edit the flash-all.bat file and remove the -w to keep your data also make sure you have latest platform tools (adb,fastboot).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hey, quick update:
i wasn't able to flash the factory image unfortunately. it fails the flash command because of the locked bootloader...
----
additional question to anyone regarding sideloading:
the process always seems to run fine in my terminal window, however, it always ends at
Code:
serving: '/home/myname/Downloads/sargo-ota-qp1a.191105.003-a8fe1786.zip' (~93%
serving: '/home/myname/Downloads/sargo-ota-qp1a.191105.003-a8fe1786.zip' (~94%
Total xfer: 2.00x
while the recovery log on my phone says
Code:
install from adb completed with status 0
after something going through something like "step 1/2" and "step 2/2" (cant remember exactly, but there wasn't much more).
anyone got a clue?
As you found out, the only option available to you with a locked bootloader is the "side load" option - which you have already tired. Just to be sure, you did flash the correct factory image - the Google page lists every Pixel device and you have to make sure you download the correct one.
Outside of that very small possibility that you flashed the incorrect version, I think you will have to contact Google support for help/repair.
sic0048 said:
As you found out, the only option available to you with a locked bootloader is the "side load" option - which you have already tired. Just to be sure, you did flash the correct factory image - the Google page lists every Pixel device and you have to make sure you download the correct one.
Outside of that very small possibility that you flashed the incorrect version, I think you will have to contact Google support for help/repair.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm pretty sure I flashed/sideloaded the correct one, I think I even verified the November update version in my quick settings (during the one or two seconds the UI takes to crash)...
I've thought the 94%/status 0 messages were normal, something like finishing the remaining 6% in an instant (for checks or so).
I have yet to try factory resetting, and I'm sure that'll fix it (which the Google support chat concluded as well), but I don't want to wipe my internal storage just yet.
Ironically, I rebooted the first time it crashed, hoping it would fix it. But all that did was forcing the pattern lock. Before, I was able to fingerprint unlock it instantly and even interact with the system for a second (probably to enable ADB, USB, ...).
But now, I have to swipe up and put in a complex 9 point pattern in 1-2 seconds, which I can physically get to 8...
It seems, the remaining single point of my pattern could rescue every single bit of my data.
I had forgotten that you haven't tried to factory reset the phone. Unfortunately I think that is your best/only option at this point. I do think that will work, but if not then it's going to have to be escalated to Google for more assistance.
If anyone cares, I updated the mess of my OP to be even more of a mess.
TL;DR: No idea worked, was forced to factory reset.
Now it's Google's turn to repair my display issue, which I almost forgot about.
Thanks to anyone who read and tried to help. Probably not a useful post for anybody, maybe the collection of ideas are, though.
Have a great day.
have you given any thought to unlocking the bootloader now that you have to start over?
Hi all,
I recently imported a used Japanese Pixel 4a (I wanted the jp-exclusive "Barely Blue" model), and immediately upon receiving it, installed LineageOS 19 on it.
The phone originally came in with some form of android 12 (I didn't check that very precisely unfortunately, could have been 12.0 and not 12.1)
Installing LineageOS went mostly fine, the phone managed to boot and I was able to use it for a few hours ... then wifi and mobile data stopped working. I thought rebooting would fix that, so I tried rebooting, but the phone never rebooted completely.
I've tried a lot of things to get it back to a working state :
Flash LineageOS again
Flash Google's Factory Image for the last 12.1
both via the online tool AND the flash-all.sh script
both on slot A and B
also tried the very old 10.0.0 JP-carrier-specific image
with a different USB cable
on a different USB2 port on my computer
on a USB3 port on my computer
Flash Google's Full OTA Image for the last 12.1
by using fastboot to boot into lineageos's recovery image
At one point in my attempts at making it work it even displayed the "Your device is corrupt" error message (it's now gone btw).
My phone is now in a state where I can reach fastboot, but everytime I try booting up any ROM (Google or LineageOS), it shows the boot animation for something like 2 seconds then shuts down.
Any help you guys could provide would be awesome
Stepland said:
Hi all,
I recently imported a used Japanese Pixel 4a (I wanted the jp-exclusive "Barely Blue" model), and immediately upon receiving it, installed LineageOS 19 on it.
The phone originally came in with some form of android 12 (I didn't check that very precisely unfortunately, could have been 12.0 and not 12.1)
Installing LineageOS went mostly fine, the phone managed to boot and I was able to use it for a few hours ... then wifi and mobile data stopped working. I thought rebooting would fix that, so I tried rebooting, but the phone never rebooted completely.
I've tried a lot of things to get it back to a working state :
Flash LineageOS again
Flash Google's Factory Image for the last 12.1
both via the online tool AND the flash-all.sh script
both on slot A and B
also tried the very old 10.0.0 JP-carrier-specific image
with a different USB cable
on a different USB2 port on my computer
on a USB3 port on my computer
Flash Google's Full OTA Image for the last 12.1
by using fastboot to boot into lineageos's recovery image
At one point in my attempts at making it work it even displayed the "Your device is corrupt" error message (it's now gone btw).
My phone is now in a state where I can reach fastboot, but everytime I try booting up any ROM (Google or LineageOS), it shows the boot animation for something like 2 seconds then shuts down.
Any help you guys could provide would be awesome
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Could you walk us through the steps you took to initially flash LOS?
Also, have you tried flashing versions other than 12.1 of Google's factory images?
Can you boot into recovery? Did you root LOS?
How did you import the device? Are you sure it was a trusty site/seller? Could they have tinkered something with the device to not make it work?
Could you walk us through the steps you took to initially flash LOS?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The very first time I flashed LineageOS I just followed these "official" installation instructions from the LineageOS website. The only mistakes I remember making were :
I forgot to really check that the phone actually was on the latest stock 12.1, the phone may have been on 12.0 or an older 12.1 prior to flashing LOS
I forgot to reboot between flashing LineageOS and GApps (MindTheGapps in my case), noticed my mistake, rebooted then flashed GApps again
After I saw things weren't working, I double checked the version numbers and the sha256 hashes of everything I had downloaded and they were all correct
Also, have you tried flashing versions other than 12.1 of Google's factory images?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes,
I tried flashing factory images of
10.0.0 (Android 10) QD4A.200805.001 (6583866) (JP carriers and Verizon)
12.1.0 (SP2A.220405.003, Apr 2022)
12.1.0 (SP2A.220505.002, May 2022)
12.1.0 (SQ3A.220605.009.A1, Jun 2022)
12.1.0 (SQ3A.220705.003.A1, Jul 2022)
13.0.0 (TP1A.220624.014, Aug 2022)
Can you boot into recovery?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes
Did you root LOS?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No
How did you import the device? Are you sure it was a trusty site/seller? Could they have tinkered something with the device to not make it work?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
By asking a person who's used to proxying things, this phone was from a listing on rakuten, it came from this seller. Since it came in with stock 12 (or 12.1, don't remember), I think it's unlikely they tinkered with it
Stepland said:
I forgot to really check that the phone actually was on the latest stock 12.1, the phone may have been on 12.0 or an older 12.1 prior to flashing LOS
I forgot to reboot between flashing LineageOS and GApps (MindTheGapps in my case), noticed my mistake, rebooted then flashed GApps again
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
These likely have nothing to do with the issue you're facing.
Since you're able to boot into recovery, would you be open to try to flash literally any custom ROM (with the provided custom recovery), and see if that works?
You can flash whatever you like, since you said you wanted to go for LOS, I'd recommend you flash PixelExperience, since it's the closest to that (I think). You can download the regular or the plus edition, doesn't really matter. Make sure you not only download the build (flashable zip), but also the recovery image.
I assume you're familiar with the process of flashing custom ROMs. Should you be unfamiliar, I followed this guide when I first flashed a custom ROM on my 4a.
(If you don't feel like watching a video made for newbies, here are some notes I took a while back, just so I can know I never skip a step):
Spoiler: Flashing steps
adb reboot bootloader
fastboot devices
fastboot flash --slot all boot <img_name>.img (i think this can be skipped?)
use power buttons to enter recovery mode
apply update
apply update over adb
adb sideload <zip_name>.zip
*/ if you don't want to root, you can skip everything below /*
reboot recovery (to change to active slot so that magisk flash goes to correct slot)
apply update over adb
adb sideload <magisk_name>.zip
Oh my GOD thank you SO much I'm finally getting somewhere !
I tried flashing PixelExperience, both recovery and the ROM itself, the flashing part went well.
Then I rebooted and the following things happened in order :
static google screen
phone reboots (before the animated G even appeared)
PixelExperience screen that warns "your data may be corrupt you may need to perform a factory reset"
I chose the factory reset / wipe data option
phone reboots
boot animation that lasts WAY longer than in any of my previous attempts, goes as far as 3/4 of the progress bar
phone reboots before reaching the welcome screen
PHONE SUCCESFULLY REACHES THE SETUP/WELCOME SCREEN ON THE NEXT BOOT
phone seems to freeze for a moment
"Bluetooth keeps stopping" message pops up
phone reboots + reaches welcome screen a few times
phone reboots, reaches welcome screen, then plays the "charging" chime (didn't hear it before even though it was plugged in the whole time)
It has now been a solid 10 minutes and my phone is showing the welcome screen and hasn't crashed !?!
What should I do to troubleshoot what caused the crashes ?
Thank you SOOOOOO much for your help so far !
Stepland said:
PixelExperience screen that warns "your data may be corrupt you may need to perform a factory reset"
I chose the factory reset / wipe data option
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, yeah, my mistake. You are supposed to perform a factory reset whenever you flash a different ROM. Step can only be skipped when performing a dirty flash.
Stepland said:
It has now been a solid 10 minutes and my phone is showing the welcome screen and hasn't crashed !?!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you mean by "showing the welcome screen"? Can you use your device? Can you log in to your Google account and set it up? If we don't take Bluetooth crashing into account, would you be able to use your device regularly?
Stepland said:
"Bluetooth keeps stopping" message pops up
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Stepland said:
[...]the phone managed to boot and I was able to use it for a few hours ... then wifi and mobile data stopped working.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
See, these malfunctions you get regardless of the OS makes me think somebody tinkered with your phone/gave you a faulty unit to begin with.
You could try to flash any / of / these kernels to see if they stop the "bluetooth crashed" notification. If you do flash a new kernel, I'd suggest you do another factory reset after the kernel has been flashed (and before you boot your device up). Just to make sure nothing stays in cache and no configurations remain that could cause this error again.
If that doesn't help, for starters, I would suggest you flash radio.img provided by Google on this site. Make sure you download the one corresponding to your build number (which you can find out by going to Settings -> About phone -> Build number (it will be at the very bottom of the page)).
You can flash this downloaded radio.img using "fastboot flash radio radio.img"
If that doesn't help either, I would try to use the Android Flash Tool. I assume the PixelExperience you downloaded is A12.1, so I would choose the latest 12.1 version in the Flash Tool. Be sure you have the "Wipe Device" and "Force Flash all Partitions" boxes ticked!!
Lada333 said:
What do you mean by "showing the welcome screen"?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It reached the setup assistant you are presented with the first time you power on a phone, without crashing
Lada333 said:
Can you use your device? Can you log in to your Google account and set it up? If we don't take Bluetooth crashing into account, would you be able to use your device regularly?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately no :
Wi-Fi doesn't work
I can access the Wi-Fi menu in the settings, I can "turn it on" but it never finds any network. My other phone is doing just fine on my home wi-fi so it's not just that there's no network reachable
my SIM card is not recognized
Not much to say, I placed it in and the phone says it has no SIM card inserted, even after I reboot
it takes many attempts to successfully boot the phone
Last reboot took 8 tries
Surprisingly, Bluetooth seems to be working just fine ? I was able to connect to a bluetooth speaker and play some sounds
Lada333 said:
You could try to flash any / of / these kernels to see if they stop the "bluetooth crashed" notification. If you do flash a new kernel, I'd suggest you do another factory reset after the kernel has been flashed (and before you boot your device up). Just to make sure nothing stays in cache and no configurations remain that could cause this error again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tried blu_spark, exact same problems :
Takes many attempts before a "successful" boot
Wi-Fi broken
Can't detect my SIM card
Lada333 said:
If that doesn't help, for starters, I would suggest you flash radio.img provided by Google on this site. Make sure you download the one corresponding to your build number (which you can find out by going to Settings -> About phone -> Build number (it will be at the very bottom of the page)).
You can flash this downloaded radio.img using "fastboot flash radio radio.img"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That worked almost perfectly !
fastboot was refusing to flash radio when the phone was on fastbootd, regular fastboot worked just fine, I also flashed with --slot all because ... why not ?
After that the phone booted just fine on the FIRST TRY ! Wifi and mobile data both work !
Unfortunately it's still a bit unstable, after the first boot the phone shut down after about 10 minutes (while I was playing back a youtube video, if that's of any importance ?). It rebooted just fine without crashing even once, and it's now been running for half an hour without a problem.
If that doesn't help either, I would try to use the Android Flash Tool. I assume the PixelExperience you downloaded is A12.1, so I would choose the latest 12.1 version in the Flash Tool. Be sure you have the "Wipe Device" and "Force Flash all Partitions" boxes ticked!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well actually it was 13, so I tried flashing 13. it all went fine ! The phone rebooted fine on the first try, wifi and mobile data both work ... I'm speechless, I don't even understand what I did that made it work ... but it works !
I'll try using the phone for a few days and report back any problems if I don't forget about it.
Thank you so much for your help ! I owe you big time
Well uh, the joy was short-lived. The phone lasted a couple hours before shuting down and going back into a short series of failed boot attemps, but now every failed boot attempt gets noticeably "further" in the boot animation than they did at the time of my initial post.
The phone managed to boot yet again, wifi + data + bluetooth still work.
Keeping an eye on it for now
Stepland said:
Well uh, the joy was short-lived. The phone lasted a couple hours before shuting down and going back into a short series of failed boot attemps, but now every failed boot attempt gets noticeably "further" in the boot animation than they did at the time of my initial post.
The phone managed to boot yet again, wifi + data + bluetooth still work.
Keeping an eye on it for now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I honestly don't have any experience with custom ROMs on Pixels, but if you want to return to bone stock, you can use the Android Flash Tool. Since you've been using custom firmware, make sure you check the Force flash all partitions option.
Otherwise, you can refer to my guide to flash the factory firmware and root using Magisk.
Yup, that's what I did to get it to its current state.
The phone is still unstable, it rebooted itself twice just this morning.
If this is a hardware issue, how do I diagnose it ?
Stepland said:
Yup, that's what I did to get it to its current state.
The phone is still unstable, it rebooted itself twice just this morning.
If this is a hardware issue, how do I diagnose it ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you tried a stock rom, a custom ROM , with all the same results it's probably a hardware issue, have you noticed excessive heat coming from the phone? You could always trade it in for a 6a and get 300.00 credit as long as the screens good and it turns on.
hammered58 said:
have you noticed excessive heat coming from the phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes in fact I have ?! How did you guess that, that's weirdly specific ?
It was heating up a bit, at least enough to be noticeable and to feel abnormal but not uncomfortable. I can't remember if it got warm while it was doing its updates or before. I would have guessed it was just working pretty hard if it had been happening during some updates. Weirdly enough now that it's doing nothing it's not warm anymore
hammered58 said:
You could always trade it in for a 6a and get 300.00 credit as long as the screens good and it turns on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm, that's good to know. I think I'll pass tho, I chose the 4a specifically because it's small and lightweight while not being a completely out-dated phone, the 6a would take me back to more or less the same size and weight as my current phone (xiaomi vince) which I find too big and heavy. Oh the things I'd do for a flagship phone that's like, actually small
Stepland said:
Well uh, the joy was short-lived. The phone lasted a couple hours before shuting down and going back into a short series of failed boot attemps, but now every failed boot attempt gets noticeably "further" in the boot animation than they did at the time of my initial post.
The phone managed to boot yet again, wifi + data + bluetooth still work.
Keeping an eye on it for now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As the others have pointed out as well, it is likely a hardware malfunction. Your radio partition (?) was likely corrupt, so we got rid of that, but if random reboots still happen PLUS your device overheats, it's 99% not a software issue.
Not sure about the RMA process, since you imported the device from overseas. Try contacting your POS?
Stepland said:
Yes in fact I have ?! How did you guess that, that's weirdly specific ?
It was heating up a bit, at least enough to be noticeable and to feel abnormal but not uncomfortable. I can't remember if it got warm while it was doing its updates or before. I would have guessed it was just working pretty hard if it had been happening during some updates. Weirdly enough now that it's doing nothing it's not warm anymore
Hmm, that's good to know. I think I'll pass tho, I chose the 4a specifically because it's small and lightweight while not being a completely out-dated phone, the 6a would take me back to more or less the same size and weight as my current phone (xiaomi vince) which I find too big and heavy. Oh the things I'd do for a flagship phone that's like, actually small
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your right though,, it's the size and weight of the 4a that brought me here in the first place so I can see your point in not switching, good luck!!
You seem really ticked off, I'm sorry if my answer came out as snarky or something ? that really wasn't the intent
Nevermind, completely misread your answer, non-native english speaker moment
Hm, just when I was about to post that the phone seemed to be working fine because it hadn't rebooted for 30+hours ... it just rebooted again.
And yeah it also got warm again while I was installing some apps ... so uh ... no luck
Stepland said:
And yeah it also got warm again while I was installing some apps
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's not necessarily an issue. Installing apps uses the CPU, which, in term, generates heat.
What we and hammerhead meant by 'the phone heating up' is it randomly becoming inexplicably hot.
Like for example when it's just sitting on your desk, not doing anything. No notifications popping up constantly, no music/video playback, nothing. Just when it's supposed to be in deep sleep.
This app is rather outdated and you need to type in 3 adb commands for the advanced stats to show up, but it still works perfectly for finding out if any apps are draining the battery in the background and to see if you have any wakelocks.
You could give it a shot, install it, enable in settings -> general "App Usage," "Device Usage Access" and "Record History," and wait a few days, see if you have any apps misbehaving.
Again, I'm still leaning toward it being a hardware issue, but hey, worth a try.
I give up, it just has to be a hardware defect.
Since with stock 13 it looked like the phone was almost stable (it would only reboot every 10 hours or so) I tried using it for a day, unfortunately it quickly went back to the exact same state it was in when I created this thread : the phone won't boot, it crashes two seconds into the boot animation.
Still, massive thanks to everyone who helped me through this !
I ordered a replacement.
If anyone wants the broken one my DMs are open