S8+ factory reset, wiped micro SD card - Samsung Galaxy S8+ Questions & Answers

Hi all, I have had my S8+ for several months now, everything was fine until this morning when I woke up to unlock my phone, it unlocked as per normal. I enabled wifi and opened google chrome and checked the weather. The, the phone shutdown and within a few seconds the blue screen appeared with a message (erasing). It took a while for the phone to boot up and go through the initial setup like a brand new phone.
Now, all the data on the phone and my 32GB micro SD card are gone. I have tried half a dozen recovery software on my PC but none can see any files on the micro SD.
I have no idea what happened and why it has wiped the micro SD card. I have lost images and videos of the last few years, I know silly not to have them backed up.
Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Wow, that is a great disappointment losing all that personal info. I suspect you are running a recovery software app from a PC or a Mac? If you are not getting any meaningful results from the data restore apps, and you know those apps to be of good/high reputation, then I am wondering of your phone uses a type of 'wipe' function that performs a military/DOD sort of erase?
If that is the case, that stuff is likely gone forever. If that is not the case, hopefully you can find another app to try and restore your stuff.
Now, on the other note, that's an odd behavior for your phone to just reboot and do it's thing, wiping your system. Do you have any type of security going where it might have thought the phone had been stolen, and performed a wipe as protection for the owner. . . (you)?
Good luck.

I do have company email on my phone and I have agreed to their security policy which wipes all your data. This could be one of the reason, however could they erase data from SD card?
I had over 60GB of personal files on it and I thought the SD card will not get wiped in any case.
I have been reading around but can't find any solution. Stuffed to the max.

gunner007dc said:
You can check the phone's memory - sometimes it has a "SD RESTORE" folder if it backed up anything.
By chance is this a company phone, or had a company e-mail on it? Sometimes those e-mails require device administrator and can be remotely wiped.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good info.

gunner007dc said:
You can check the phone's memory - sometimes it has a "SD RESTORE" folder if it backed up anything.
By chance is this a company phone, or had a company e-mail on it? Sometimes those e-mails require device administrator and can be remotely wiped.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, where would I find this folder? I have checked by can't find it.

Related

Data lost from Storage Card

I have a very wierd problem with my storage card.
The last I recall. I was deleting a picture from the HTC album.
The next thing was all data in the storage card is missing.
The folders were all missing except for the DCIM folder.
On checking the disc space. It seems the files were all still there.
I even unhide all files however still not visible.
Anyone any idea wat to do?
Could it be the storage card is damage? Anyway to retrieve my files?
As far as I know, there is some programs, which restore files on on storage card. I had data lost about 3 months ago. To the best of my memory, I used Pocket Mechanic. Also you may try connect your device as USB-flash and try to restore data using programs for recover files from flash drives.
Good luck =)
x_coRe_x said:
As far as I know, there is some programs, which restore files on on storage card. I had data lost about 3 months ago. To the best of my memory, I used Pocket Mechanic. Also you may try connect your device as USB-flash and try to restore data using programs for recover files from flash drives.
Good luck =)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks you.
hi,
i have my cruise for 1 year now, and i also had encountered storage card data loss 2 times this month. with 2 different SDHC cards, 4Go and 8Go.
never happened before, i can't understand why now. (ROM M-AMINE).
a friend of mine who's got his cruise with genuine rom from htc had the same probleme last month.
when this happens, the only folder remaining in the card is "inbox.000xx" that's all. the thing is some hidden data still using space when you check on a laptop.
i could recover most of the pictures with a dedicated software.
i can't trust this phone anymore, so i will change soon.
cheers.
data loss and phone crashes due to SPB software
I've had similar problems with folders disappearing randomly and file corruption on the SD card. I'm guessing that the file system on the SD card gets corrupted due to the crashes.
I've nailed down the issue to Spb Wireless Monitor, since uninstalling this software my phone is a lot more stable and no data loss from the sdhc memory card. May want to give this a try.
This question has been asked a few dozen times, and the answer keeps coming back to the HTC encryption and how bad it is. TURN IT OFF it can not be trusted and it is on by default. Its not even worth explaining why it is so bad and the causes behind it.. just disabled it and forgetaboutit!
Hi,newbie question guys,how do i turn off the htc encription?
Start->settings->encryption
Obviously, my phone had never this encryption on...
If you have explaination other than the dozen you're talking about, i'm really interrested.
ciao
Thx silverpal
I'm having the same problem. Just turned off and will see. I hope that's it. Already bought new microSD...., nevermind.
I turn off encription and the problem continued, actually figured out that can't be turned off...

[Q] Help with SD card

I was wondering if anyone has any ideas or can point me in the right direction to solve this. Yesterday I started getting messages that the apps that were installed on my sd card stopped working...........then the gallery was gone (all my pics) now there's a message in the corner that says Blank SD card......(card is bland or has unsupported filesystem) do you want to format...........I've tried taking the card out and plugging into a PC however it says its a read-only. I don't want to format, is there any way to get all my pics and data back
any help is appreciated
anesh01 said:
I was wondering if anyone has any ideas or can point me in the right direction to solve this. Yesterday I started getting messages that the apps that were installed on my sd card stopped working...........then the gallery was gone (all my pics) now there's a message in the corner that says Blank SD card......(card is bland or has unsupported filesystem) do you want to format...........I've tried taking the card out and plugging into a PC however it says its a read-only. I don't want to format, is there any way to get all my pics and data back
any help is appreciated
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately this is mostly a lost cause. This is a known issue on the Galaxy S3, and I've heard a couple of other phones as well, including the Note 2. I've had this happen THREE times on my phone, to the point that I just don't even use an SD card anymore.
From what I've read the brand and size of the SD card doesn't make a difference.
You may be able to recover some of your pics and other files by using file recovery software on your computer. I used a program called Pandora Recovery, and while it spit out the files using different random names, at least I got a majority of my pics back (I had over 1000 on the card).
Beyond that there is no way to recover the data on the card. Once you try recovery software, you'll have to let your phone format the card if you want to use it again. Even Windows won't read the data from the card in it's current state.
Thank you for your help........im going to give Pandora a try and see what happens. I did hear about a program called DiskDigger Pro........so wish me luck..........I wish I was more pro active in reconizing the signs but it just happened out of no where
anesh01 said:
Thank you for your help........im going to give Pandora a try and see what happens. I did hear about a program called DiskDigger Pro........so wish me luck..........I wish I was more pro active in reconizing the signs but it just happened out of no where
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe you should able to cause it happened to me a few times and I able to recover all my stuff (videos, photos). The trick is find a good SDcard recovery software.
This may or may not help, but it's worth a shot.......http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=367912&page=2
This problem is why I will not be buying Samsung phones again. It is BS that I can't even use my 32GB SD card because it will eventually fail I will lose everything on it. It has happened twice in 7 months with the phone already.
Sent from my SCH-I535
disk digger worked great for me except for the occasional corrupt. You have to format first.
Thanks a lot for sharing information about other products. However, while scanning the corrupt SD card encountering error messages and unable to recover entire data. In order to overcome such problems, use Remo Recover tool to restore data from corrupt or formatted SD card.
Just wanted to let you guys know that my old SD cards got corrupted because I tried to configure the metadata of my songs through such apps like player pro and etc. I have a 64gb right now and its been working fine for over a year because I just manually configure everything when I connect it to my computer.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda app-developers app

Random Reboots (OG shield tablet)

Hi
Can't remember whether or not this has been asked and answered, but here goes...
Shield tablet
5.1.1
Non-root
For the past 2 months or so I've been plagued with random reboots ( up to 2-3 times a day)
I've tried to
wipe cache 2 times
delete a whole bunch of apps
Change power settings
I have NOT YET tried to do a full wipe, due to the fact that I've got waaaay to many apps that don't sync data with google so it would be a major hassle to fix settings, copy data out and so on.... But am looking at backup solutions that include DATA ( helium)
I haven't been able to ascertain pattern.
Any suggestions on what I can do , or for that mater any way to find out why the hell it restarts.
Thanks in advance!
D
That's strange. So just reboots, no shutdowns?
I can only assume, maybe a rogue app with reboot access.
Just reboots
And It seems totally random.... everywhere from 4 times a day to non... Load dosen't seem to matter . From netflix and web to plain and simple spotify. It's driving me up one wall and down the other... can't figure it out, and really don't want to factory reset
Any form for event viewer or something that I can take a look at?
Worst part is I use it to take work notes and on a few occasions it's died (rebooted) on me in the middle of notetaking... starting to really mess with things ... and yes I know, do a factory reset, and I will if I run out of options. But my fear is that after I reinstall all the apps I'm back to square one, and it all starts all over again.
Maybe hibernating all non stock apps with Greenify could solve the riddle; if it's indeed a software issue. Once the problem ceased, activate one app at a time till the reboot bug reoccurs..
Hi
Sry for the slow reply
Been testing the Greenify for about 2 days and the same is still happening. I've more or less put all non stuck apps into hibernating list.. and run it every so often, as well as activated the hibernate at screen off. And it still happens... wish there was an event log or something that could point me in the right direction.
That's too bad. What if it is malware? I'd say make a factory reset. Stay clear of non stock apps and watch and see. If it still reboots, it must be a hardware issue. You still have warranty, aye?
Nope warranty is out, I think. I mean 2 year but got it back in 2014 at some point.
A damn it, was hoping to id the damn offending app and fix it without having to factory reset....
No one knows of any event / log feature in android ( akin to event viewer in windows)...??
I just read on Amazon that someone had the same issue inconsistent reboots and the culprit was a micro SD card.
Do you have on inside your Shield?
I had this problem like 3 months ago. When tablet was charging the led indicator was blinking on green an orange. The problem was that the cable from battery was connected bad, I just had to connect it with solder. (My tablet is replaced )
Niii4 said:
I just read on Amazon that someone had the same issue inconsistent reboots and the culprit was a micro SD card.
Do you have on inside your Shield?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I do have an NTFS formated sd card installed...
Do you know of any easy way to check...or even better fix it?
Replace the SD card with another one or don't use one for now. You can still backup via USB or WiFi.
It may be a incompatible issue or a damaged SD card.
Backup via usb? As in copy paste the content of the SD card?
I have a lot of apps on the SD card, and not enough space on local storage to move back to tablet ....
Was hoping for some software based diagnostic or test to check the sdcard
Yes, you can copy n paste. Or save new data on a new SD card etc.
I presume there are Android SD card checker apps. But I think that won't help if it's an incompatible issue. Anyway, unmounting the current SD card won't erase its data. It's the sour apple you've to try.
Just somehow experienced the same.
Android 7.0 - no root no anything.
It's weird. Now it rebooted with 1% and then died. Before it just rebooted around 40%. Anyone found a solution?
Thanks

Samsung Galaxy S7 Boot loop

Well, this is rather vexing.
I've been hard at work trying to backup / transfer data from my extremely old Samsung Galaxy S5 that seems to be coming to the end of it's useful lifespan. The S7 was next, but aside from running out of internal storage, I thought I still had time on that one (I wasn't experiencing a lot of slowdown or any crashes).
I went out for a couple hours (taking my newer phone), and when I came back, I saw my S7 on the insert the pin code screen. When I put the correct pin code in, the "unlocked padlock" stays on the screen for ages, before the phone restarts and I am shown the pin screen again (if I insert the wrong pin, it says so, so I am sure that I am not inserting the wrong pin).
So for the first time in my life, I am dealing with a spontaneous boot loop. This device has never been rooted, had a custom recovery installed or even the bootloader unlocked (it's the Exynos version, so presumably it would have been possible, but I decided that I wanted *one* unrooted device just in case, and given Knox, I decided that this was the device that will remain unmodded).
Anyway, that's for the story, but the question is, is there anything that I can try before the nuclear option (factory reset etc.).
Fortunately most of the photos are on the MicroSD. There are perhaps two or three apps that I would have liked to backup (they did not have a convenient built-in backup system) but I am just wondering if there is anything I might be able to do at this point? For instance, would wiping the cache be an option? Or is there anything I might be able to do with adb?
(Note: The device is running on Android 7)
Thanks.
Don't set security passwords for device access as you are the one most likely to be locked out.
If the boot loop wasn't caused by a hardware failure it's likely a app you loaded. Launchers and power management apps are prime candidates. Leave at least a couple gb of headroom on internal storage.
A factory reset is the easiest solution. Be careful what you load next time... take out the trash.
Use the SD card as a data drive, all critical data and everything you need for a reload goes here. No apps. Only apps, and the temporary download folder go on the internal memory.
The DCIM folder can be set to the SD card as well, but there can only be one DCIM folder and don't change its name. If a second backup folder is used on the SD card instead do not name it DCIM.
ApkExport can be used to make installable copies of apps for transfering them and added the data drive as well, no Playstore needed.
Do not use Kies or SmartSwitch when going between different type devices or OS versions. It can cause issues.
Cut/paste critical data, verify the data is readable and all there. Don't trust Kies or SmartSwitch with critical data.
Never clone data drives.
Never encrypt data drives.
Regularly redundantly backup the SD card data drive to at least 2 hdds that are physically and electronically isolated from each other and the PC.
Thanks for the reply.
1. No app was recently installed (past couple of weeks)
2. Hardware failure? Maybe, but it is rather out of the blue. Phone has not displayed any unusual behaviour, it hasn't been taken out of the house for a week or so (it is really in the process of getting retired). And I would like to ascertain it.
3. I am aware I can just nuke the whole thing with a factory reset, but before taking that easy option and effectively lose some data I'd like to retrieve if possible, I would like to other options.
And rather than tips on what I should've done or can do next time (much of which I am already doing), I am looking for advice on anything I might be able to try -before- nuking the whole thing.
For instance, could the log-files (there are quite a few of them) provide hint in what went wrong? Any option of re-installing the OS without wiping the data partition? Since I am on a fairly old version of Android I may also have the option of doing a minor update. That kind of things. I am thinking that there might also be the possibility that the system files somehow got corrupted and perhaps a re-install or system update might be worth trying.
I am basically looking for options that will not, for the time being erase the data partition. If it comes down to it in the end, then fine, but that is the last option not the first.
It sounds like it got spontaneously corrupted. Perhaps a flash memory cell failure. If so it may or may not be "self healing" with a factory reset or a reflash.
If you have ADB access you may be able to fix it.
Otherwise your options are limited to what's on the boot menu.
Try doing a hard reboot (simulates pulling battery).
If you try booting it a bunch of times it may go into go safe mode. I've seen that behavior in Android 9.
That's extent of my skills, sorry.
The reason why I posted how to prevent data lose is because sometimes that's all you can do.
Internal memory data I consider expendable, the SD card data... potentially expendable.

[SOLVED] Apps suddenly unable to access SD card for seemingly no reason

SOLVED
Found the thing!
This bug is caused by activating the option Disable permission monitoring in the Developper Options.
This is an option that is specific to a handful of phone manufacturers (Oppo in my case).
Enabling this option is needed for using some tweak apps such as Shizuku. However, if it is enabled on phone boot, SD card will be unaccessible.
FIX
Disabling this option and rebooting the phone fixed it.
If you still need to use this option, you can enable it while the phone is on and disable it before rebooting. It will work fine despite this minor inconvenience.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Solution answer
So this one is weird.
Everything was working fine untill I rebooted my phone earlier today.
For some reason, since this reboot, apps are unable to access my SD card storage. As far as I know, no update was applied with this reboot. I do not recall tinkering or changing anything related to this recently.
Symptoms
SD card is still visible in the storage tab of the settings (there is no available option to unmount or eject it) or in select cases when choosing a folder from an app, however the content does not show up past the root.
My music player (Oto music) sends an error message "Cannot play this file" while trying to play a song from the SD card
File explorer will not show the SD card directory at all
Resillio Sync has a synced folder on the SD card. It now says "Can't open the destination folder". If I try adding a new synced folder on the SD card and select the root of the SD card, I get the message "Android OS restricts access to this folder"
Google file is stuck in a loop trying to get permissions to access the card
SD card works just fine on another phone.
Other SD cards have the same problem with my phone, not just this one
SD card does not show up when using file transfer with a Windows PC
Rebooting the phone did nothing
Removing the card and putting it back in again did nothing
Formatting the card did nothing
I factory reset the phone. It worked, but the problem came back at the first reboot.
Current state of investigations I have reset the phone a second time and reboot it every time I install an app, uninstall or disable a system app or change some settings. So far the SD card is still accessible so I know what it's not:
it's not the fault of disabling system apps
it's not related to using a work profile (Insular)
still haven't found an app that causes it
Apps I have not tried re-installing on my second reset and that might be the curlprit:
Shizuku (I have my suspicions on this one, let me know if this one is known for causing similar bugs) Not Shizuku per se but a developper option needed for it (see solution answer)
I have no idea what could cause this, all I know is it's related to my phone in particular and it appeared out of nowhere.
I am using Android 13 on ColorOS.
Thanks to anyone who can help.
Format card in phone before using. Do Not share the card with other devices; upload/download to the card through the phone.
Hardware or firmware issue. Inspect phone sd card contacts.
blackhawk said:
Format card in phone before using. Do Not share the card with other devices; upload/download to the card through the phone.
Hardware or firmware issue. Inspect phone sd card contacts.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for answering.
I did format the card to no avail.
I did not use the card on other phones before it stopped working.
As I previously mentioned however, the card WAS working fine until now, and unless I am mistaken you seem to address the problem as if this is a new card or something. The card has been in this phone working fine for months.
It seems pretty clear to me this is a permissions issue so firmware perhaps indeed.
How would I go about checking the phone SD card contacts?
Iune said:
Thanks for answering.
I did format the card to no avail.
I did not use the card on other phones before it stopped working.
As I previously mentioned however, the card WAS working fine until now, and unless I am mistaken you seem to address the problem as if this is a new card or something. The card has been in this phone working fine for months.
It seems pretty clear to me this is a permissions issue so firmware perhaps indeed.
How would I go about checking the phone SD card contacts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're welcome.
If other cards don't work... regardless just stating things that can cause issues.
Light and magnification if needed to inspect the contacts. Use anhydrous isopropyl alcohol to clean if needed.
I sort of doubt it's firmware. Try a hard reboot and clear the system cache if possible.
blackhawk said:
You're welcome.
If other cards don't work... regardless just stating things that can cause issues.
Light and magnification if needed to inspect the contacts. Use anhydrous isopropyl alcohol to clean if needed.
I sort of doubt it's firmware. Try a hard reboot and clear the system cache if possible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The reason I believe it is firmware is that when setting permissions the SD card IS shown in the list. For instance in my music player if I use the option to authorize access to the SD card it is here. It just does nothing when I authorize it.
I am leaning towards a permissions issue because when I use one of these permission windows to try and create a folder on the SD card, I get an error message that says "Android OS restricts write access to this folder". Hence the problem is not that the SD card is not detected, but that apps are somehow not allowed to use it.
I currently not have what it takes to check the contacts (neither the tools nor the knowledge). This phone is only a couple months old so I also doubt the contacts are damaged as they have been working fine until now and I had never removed the card or opened the tray since day one.
A hard reboot should be last resort, but anyway I did it. It worked and my SD card was accessible again, so I reinstalled all my stuff. But then at the first reboot the problem was back. I am now pretty sure this is a software issue as on my second phone reset, the SD card is still usable as long as I don't isntall the wrong thing (still trying to figure out what that is). I added my investigations to the main thread.
SOLVED
Found the thing!
This bug is caused by activating the option Disable permission monitoring in the Developper Options.
This is an option that is specific to a handful of phone manufacturers (Oppo in my case).
Enabling this option is needed for using some tweak apps such as Shizuku. However, if it is enabled on phone boot, SD card will be unaccessible.
FIX
Disabling this option and rebooting the phone fixed it.
If you still need to use this option, you can enable it while the phone is on and disable it before rebooting. It will work fine despite this minor inconvenience.
Iune said:
The reason I believe it is firmware is that when setting permissions the SD card IS shown in the list. For instance in my music player if I use the option to authorize access to the SD card it is here. It just does nothing when I authorize it.
I am leaning towards a permissions issue because when I use one of these permission windows to try and create a folder on the SD card, I get an error message that says "Android OS restricts write access to this folder". Hence the problem is not that the SD card is not detected, but that apps are somehow not allowed to use it.
I currently not have what it takes to check the contacts (neither the tools nor the knowledge). This phone is only a couple months old so I also doubt the contacts are damaged as they have been working fine until now and I had never removed the card or opened the tray since day one.
A hard reboot should be last resort, but anyway I did it. It worked and my SD card was accessible again, so I reinstalled all my stuff. But then at the first reboot the problem was back. I am now pretty sure this is a software issue as on my second phone reset, the SD card is still usable as long as I don't isntall the wrong thing (still trying to figure out what that is). I added my investigations to the main thread.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A hard reboot is not a factory reset! It simulates pulling the battery... It's always better to find the root cause of a problem than to factory reset because the problem is likely to reoccur
Sounds like a trashware 3rd party app is to blame... try in safe mode. If it fails to function in safe mode start uninstalling the 3rd party apps one by one until (if) the problem resolves to find the app that screwed up the hidden user settings*. If that fails to work, another factory reset and start over, being careful what you load, then rebooting and checking after each install.
Meh, you got a real can of worms to play with...
*poorly coded apps can alter hidden user settings and fail to revert these settings to default even after the offending app is uninstalled. Alternatively see if the behavior caused by the offending app can be corrected using the settings in that app.
ADB editing could maybe be used to correct to hidden user settings misconfiguration but finding that setting may prove difficult. Beyond anything I ever had to do.
blackhawk said:
A hard reboot is not a factory reset! It simulates pulling the battery... It's always better to find the root cause of a problem than to factory reset because the problem is likely to reoccur
Sounds like a trashware 3rd party app is to blame... try in safe mode. If it fails to function in safe mode start uninstalling the 3rd party apps one by one until (if) the problem resolves to find the app that screwed up the hidden user settings*. If that fails to work, another factory reset and start over, being careful what you load, then rebooting and checking after each install.
Meh, you got a real can of worms to play with...
*poorly coded apps can alter hidden user settings and fail to revert these settings to default even after the offending app is uninstalled. Alternatively see if the behavior caused by the offending app can be corrected using the settings in that app.
ADB editing could maybe be used to correct to hidden user settings misconfiguration but finding that setting may prove difficult. Beyond anything I ever had to do.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I searched on Google about hard reboots and the explanations literally described a factory reset haha. I have yet to understadn the difference. Wipe all data VS wipe all data ?
Anyway I investigated and found the cause of the problem, so marking this post as solved! Thanks for the help
Iune said:
Well I searched on Google about hard reboots and the explanations literally described a factory reset haha. I have yet to understadn the difference. Wipe all data VS wipe all data ?
Anyway I investigated and found the cause of the problem, so marking this post as solved! Thanks for the help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yay! Well done. So many settings...
Traditionally a hard reboot is killing the power to the mobo... I believe, or maybe I just watched too many sci-fi movies You do it by holding the power button (or combination of buttons) down for 20-30 seconds.
On cams and older phones you simply remove the battery for a few seconds. It clears any volatile memory settings in the chipsets or semiconductors by cutting to power to everything.

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