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What exactly does a "factory reset" mean?

While I have been using my Note for about a week and a half now I have been carefull to use it in a way that does not keep any stuff on it that I would hate to lose. My plan has always been to do a factory reset after two weeks to a month when I was clearer on how exactly i use it.
So now that I'm thinking about it. i would like to know what a factory reset means for the Note.
I know what it means with a PC. In the old days, it would reformat a disk reinstall the OS and preinstalled crap.
In newer days basically the same thing, but as a restore from an image. This meant that, other then for a little wear, you could not distinguish a the computer from the day you bought it.
How does this differ from a tablet reset?
My understanding is that you get an updated version of the tablet -- ie-- the one you would get if you bought it now versus the one that you get when you actually bought it.
Do I get a choice about what version of Android I get? ( Meaning that if JB is the present store version, could I still get ICS if I don't want the upgrade? )

All it does is wipe the /data and /sdcard partitions so all your settings and files are erased. . It does not touch the Android OS. You will remain on the same version of Android.

As above, all data is wiped. It is restored to out of the box condition however if you have upgraded your OS it will be the newer OS that is restored.
If you have put a custom rom on it this will be the rom restored, it will NOT return to stock even though I've met people who argue otherwise....:silly::laugh:

ultramag69 said:
As above, all data is wiped. It is restored to out of the box condition however if you have upgraded your OS it will be the newer OS that is restored.
If you have put a custom rom on it this will be the rom restored, it will NOT return to stock even though I've met people who argue otherwise....:silly::laugh:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sigh. "Stock" is one of those terms that no one likes to admit they don't know. Since no one admits they don't know what it means it picks up a variety of similar but different meanings. So what do you mean by "stock".
The truth is that since I got my note, I've been ( looking down at crotch in shame) practicing unsafe computing. Nothing Illegal ( in other words no warez ) but I have been goofing around with it and making a mess. Plus adding apps from other stores then the app store, most notably the Opera store. Now I am a bit worried about viruses especially those based on the "Exynos exploit". On top of that when messing around, I'm sure that I accidentally created empty folders and empty files. Knowing those are there even though I can't find them is annoying.
So I would like to make it like it was brand new. That's what I would do for a desktop or laptop.

Its okay. As long as you are on the latest 4.1.2 rom your device and stuff is safe from being exploited since Sammy fixed the exploit.
Stock is basically the state the device came out of the factory in. Except in the case of rom updates explained above. All the apps on the device are whatSamung have installed on the device. There is NO user information. Basically, it reverts back to the state when you first unpacked the box and cast your eyes upon it for the first time. In other words, it goes from being a two bit whore to a vestal virgin untouched by human hands.
The only way to jump Android versions is via Odin for non rooted devices. Rooted devices can install updates via custom recoveries and mobile version of odin.
If a user wanted to go back to ICS from Jelly Bean they would need to download the Stock Rom from either Samfirmware or from a link found on here via the search. Once downloaded they would need to flash via odin using a PC. Updates arrive via Kies, Over The Air or where most of us get them Samfirmware or a link on here.
IF you are worried that you might have downloaded something cheap and nasty that will nick your wallet while you're asleep then I suggest performing a full factory reset. Give the lady her dignity back To do this you need to boot into recovery mode. Switch the device off, hold down volume down (nearest the power button) then press and hold the power button until the samsung logo appears, keep holding the volume down button until it enters recovery. Using the volume up/down buttons scroll down to perform factory/data reset. Click the power button to select it. Scroll down to confirm and press power button again.
Make sure you back up anything you want to keep on the device. Save it to the external SD card which doesn't get wiped during a reset. Once the device resets you will have a fresh out of the box experience to set up and abuse as you see fit. Just stay away from those red light app stores and you will be fine

This only applies to stock recovery, NOT CWM...
As I said though, if you have updated to a new OS (OTA, Official from another area or custom), this is the OS that you will reset to.
It's not quite out of the box as it doesn't store the original rom supplied. However all user data, apps, system settings and call/sms logs are wiped to be like it was out of the box...
If you have something on the internal memory you want to keep, photos or music/video, then you nee to back it up to PC or external sd because after you run the factory reset then it won't be there.

Quick question. After back up your apps to your sd card using Titanium, do you have to take your card out when performing the factory reset? So will the factory reset wipe the sd card as well?
In order to get your apps back you need to install titanium first thing and then run the back up to get all your apps back, correct?

deeselcyde said:
Quick question. After back up your apps to your sd card using Titanium, do you have to take your card out when performing the factory reset? So will the factory reset wipe the sd card as well?
In order to get your apps back you need to install titanium first thing and then run the back up to get all your apps back, correct?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No need to remove sdcard.. And yes you are correct..
Sent From Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 [N8013]

Just make sure you have backed up to external sd card as backing up to sd card may mean internal card... Real good idea except you then loose everything when you factory reset... Lots of people make this mistake...

Remove personal files securely

Hi there. So I sell my OPO. Well, i got myself a OP3, mainly because of LTE in Germany (band20) and the dual sim.
Someone will buy it on sunday, so by then, I will obviously go through the sticky "[GUIDE] Return your OPO to 100% Stock"
My question would be, after I backed my files up on my PC, what method should I use in order to delete my files on the phone?
Many people say factory reset is enough, some say it isn't. My idea was to encrypt the phone via settings and then perform a data wipe via stock recovery. Will that work? Shouldn't then theoretically every file be - even if recoverable after factory reset - encrypted, thus useless?
Or am I overthinking things here?lol
thanks!

You are certainly overthinking about it. Just do a factory reset and erase all your personal media .
Sent from my A0001 using Tapatalk

TheCoon324 said:
Hi there. So I sell my OPO. Well, i got myself a OP3, mainly because of LTE in Germany (band20) and the dual sim.
Someone will buy it on sunday, so by then, I will obviously go through the sticky "[GUIDE] Return your OPO to 100% Stock"
My question would be, after I backed my files up on my PC, what method should I use in order to delete my files on the phone?
Many people say factory reset is enough, some say it isn't. My idea was to encrypt the phone via settings and then perform a data wipe via stock recovery. Will that work? Shouldn't then theoretically every file be - even if recoverable after factory reset - encrypted, thus useless?
Or am I overthinking things here?lol
thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That guide to 100% stock will wipe the internal storage. No need to do anything extra. Fastboot flash latest available images for returning to stock includes flashing a userdata image. That will wipe it clean of everything

Renosh said:
That guide to 100% stock will wipe the internal storage. No need to do anything extra. Fastboot flash latest available images for returning to stock includes flashing a userdata image. That will wipe it clean of everything
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
yeah. I did this, then encrypted the phone, got the whole (empty) internal storage full with big dummy files, did a factory reset inside the phone.
Even if recoverable, it would still be encrypted. Even if decrypted, it would be (like) 58GB of dummy files and nothing else.
I know, I am a bit paranoid, but I got lots of personal and important stuff on there.

Selling my S6 - How can I complete wipe everything on the device?

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

SMG386T1 Partition Recovery

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

Is it possible to cancel a pending Android update by factory resetting the device?

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
Click to expand...
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
Click to expand...
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.