There was once a time when you visited the nearest electrical store to get your electronic item repaired, be it a television, a tape recorder, or even something as big as a refrigerator.
Today, we live in a smartphone era, which controls 95% of our day to day affairs. Some we can manually manage to do, while the others are left with the ability of ‘smart’ machines. Machines that can fix themselves with a little or no help from us. All it needs is the installation of an app, and off it goes!
Speaking of smartphones, some of you Android users out there are certainly nerdy enough to try and fix it yourself, eh? You would like to believe that your omnipotence can right anything wrong with your beloved smartphone, so you venture out on the lonely road and soon find yourselves in an unchartered territory whence you don’t know how to get back.
By the way, what we are speaking of, is entering Android Safe Mode. When you’re tweaking an open source Operating System, such as Android, you’re surely going to run into Safe Mode without fail, because that’s where the good stuff exists! Well, without further ado, let us dig deeper into the unknown world of Android Safe Mode and how to enter and get out of Safe Mode. Shall we?
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Android Safe Mode- Everything You Need To Know!
What Is Safe Mode?
Safe Mode is when you enter the rear end of your phone’s managerial functions. A place where you get to decide what survives and what doesn’t!
Remember when you entered Microsoft Windows Safe Mode option to fix the newly found Trojan Horse virus on your computer? And, do you also recall what you could and couldn’t do? A Safe Mode basically renders any third-party apps and relevant data, useless. All you can do is use the back-end managerial functions, or simply put, whatever features came pre-installed with the Operating System.
In Android, a safe mode means much the same thing. Except, it can get a bit tricky at times to get out of it and return back to using your dear Android the way you have always used it. So Keep reading to find out how to enter, and then, return to normalcy!
How To Enter Safe Mode In Android?
Just like your Personal Computer’s Operating System, your Smartphone/Tablet also works on an Operating System; it’s called Android. So, when there’s malware, spyware, or a virus intrusion (yes, that’s possible!), it is possible that your device may take one of those ‘smart’ decisions to go into safe mode automatically to prevent any further damage.
Most of these intrusions are mitigated during a software update or a device update. But, if there are some very resilient intruders residing your phone, then you may need to get your hands dirty by putting the device on a manual safe mode option and then root out the underlying cause.
Manual Trick:
A commonly followed manual trick that many technicians do, is to remove the battery from the back of your Android phone. Doing so can sometimes let the capacitors drain of the built-in charge. In layman terms, let the air out!
After about a minute or two put the battery back in, and turn the smartphone back on in normal mode to see if the problem persists. If it doesn’t, try the Safe Mode.
To do this, there are two options:
#1. In Android versions older than 4.1, the following method holds true for most devices.
Give the Power button your device a long-press until you see the menu showing you options to turn off the phone, then turn off your device.
Then press the Power button again, to turn on your device, in the same long-press manner.
When you finally see a logo appear on the device screen, hold down the Volume Up and Volume Down keys simultaneously. Keep at it until your device finally turns on in the Safe Mode. The proof of that you can see in the bottom left corner of the device screen, where the words ‘SAFE MODE‘ appear highlighted.
#2. Entering Safe Mode for Android Versions Newer Than 4.1.
If you are carrying a newer and higher-end version of Android in your pocket, which means, the most current set of smartphones, Xiaomi, Samsung Galaxy 6, etc., then this method holds true for you:
Long-press the Power button. When you see the device turn-off menu options, long-press the ‘Turn Off Phone‘ option until you see a pop-up asking, whether you wish to enter the device in safe mode? Click Yes.
What Is The Next Step?
The next step in the Safe Mode saga is to make sure that you did follow the steps above correctly, and you are indeed in the safe mode! You can verify by observing the bottom left corner of your smartphone or tablet screen where it will indicate in a nicely highlighted text “SAFE MODE.” That is how you can be sure that you are IN!
Now, you need to get down to the bottom of the problem and resolve the issue that’s been bothering your device. When you send your Personal Computer or a Laptop to a service center, the technical agents first run a diagnostic, which is done in Safe Mode. Similarly, you can run a diagnostic on your device by using Android codes.
Once you run a diagnostic, you will probably figure out the root problem and will use the proper tools to sort the issue. In case you don’t know, you can simply install a custom ROM and let it do the job for you. You can find a whole list of Android Crush’s recommended custom ROMs over here.
NOTE: Be warned that rooting your Android device may immediately end the manufacturer warranty!
Related Article: Learn how you can root your Android device without a PC in 2017.
In safe mode, you can only have access to the most primitive Android options, the ones that came pre-installed on the phone by the manufacturer, and unless you have some technical know-how, it can get really hard to proceed, and you may even find yourselves lost in the sea of the unknown! So, a fair amount of warning and caution must be followed beforehand!
Alright, assuming you’re a tech genius, you should be aware, that at this point pretty much all of your third-party apps are absolutely useless! If you found that one of these third-party apps was the real reason your phone has malware, bot or any unwanted bug, then take them out one by one!
After you’ve deleted all the apps, you can re-install, while in Safe Mode, and then figure out which one of them is giving you a nose-buzz!
After Steps
Once you’re done with the previous options, restart your phone, this time normally. Before re-installing all the apps, make sure that your phone is truly bug-free. Run diagnostics, perform manual operations, and install the same app that you suspected earlier of showing signs of trouble. If it crashes a lot or behaves in a way that you don’t find satisfactory, then go back and repeat the whole process over again. Although, it may simply mean that the app is problematic, not your device.
It is generally a good idea to root your device after the manufacturer warranty expiration. This way you can root without losing anything. Plus, rooting gives you many admin controls that you previously never had permissions to take charge of.
The Final Solution
If all else fails, Android has a secret up its sleeve. It’s called Factory Reset. A Factory Reset is the ultimate final solution when nothing else works for you. Using this option, you can reset your phone to the way it was at the time of purchase, at least in terms of software and Operating System.
If you have not backed up your data before performing a factory reset, you will end up losing everything that was on your device, permanently. It is highly advised that you perform a complete backup and save it to a cloud service. Google Drive is a good place to start. After backup, perform a factory reset, and wait for your phone to restart several times during this process.
Later, set it up as a new device and then sync your data once you have the phone controls back to you. Whatever you had backed up, will come back if you use the same Google account. Anything else will have to be loaded manually. Also, install the apps manually, if you really need them. Now, let us learn how to perform a Factory Reset.
How To Factory Reset Your Android Smartphone?
Once you’re ready, go to- Settings –> Backup & Reset –> Factory Reset
You will receive a prompt pop-up window informing you of the consequences that a factory reset will bring, which is, deleting all the third-party apps, photos, videos, files and other documents that you should have backed up before reaching this point.
If you are still willing to pursue this option, just go ahead and click “Reset Phone” or “Erase Everything”. Pressing this option will put the phone in a sort of trance. It will turn off and reboot several times in the process of a factory reset, so do not be alarmed!
Other Ideas?
Some users have reported to being troubled with a phenomenon that we call forever safe mode! Simply put, on older devices running Android, you might sometimes find the volume keys sticking in, and this may automatically put the phone in Safe Mode since the device assumes that you are trying to enter the safe mode.
A better idea would be to upgrade your older device with a newer one, to avoid the sticky-key situation. Many times, the older devices with a keypad will stick keys when the device is in your pocket. You do not want to pocket safe mode your phone, that literally kills the joy of having a mobile phone.
Another problem with having older generation mobile phones is that they have a very poor battery life. If anybody in the world is still using them, it is unlikely that they have found a suitable replacement battery to keep it going until today. Every time you charge that phone, when it comes to life, you find it opening in safe mode.
In Conclusion
Putting your phone in safe mode, and getting out of it, can be a real pain for some users, especially the latter. Safe Mode is the ultimate key to fixing things, and in order to do that, you need to be an expert and know exactly what you to do once you are in there.
Do not attempt to do this if you are a newbie or just doing this for fun. If you can’t get out, and none of the above-mentioned methods work, or you’re stuck at the start screen, you may need to send it in for a service repair, which may or may not be covered under your regular warranty! Also, when it comes to customer ROMs, they can be a great option for your rooted Android device, but it is also a very cautious option which you should only get, with a technical perspective in mind.
For example, there are developers out there who play around and tweak with several phones, and jailbreak or unlock devices with the intention of demonstration or basic education about a phone’s functionality. Do not attempt to imitate them, since they are professionals and know what they are doing, which means they can fix the phones that they break!
This was our guide on Getting In and Out of Safe Mode for Android, and everything you needed to know regarding Android Safe Mode. If you liked this article and found it useful, humorous, easy to read, give us your valuable comments and share with your friends on social media circles.
Also, do check out our other related content listed in the article above, it is a MUST READ!
