The recently released new major version of Android (version 14) is causing major problems for many users on smartphones from Google’s Pixel model series because access to data in the device’s internal memory is blocked. Google has already recorded the error and is processing it with the highest priority. Now the company is also giving an outlook on the period in which users can expect a bug fix and explains what hopes they can have for saving the data. However, there is bad news for everyone whose Pixel smartphones remain in an endless boot loop: your data is probably lost, the device can only be completely reset. This is what a Google employee wrote in the bug tracker discussion forum.
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By Forum post by Google employee on Thursday it said that within the next two weeks the company would begin distributing an update “over the air” (OTA) that would restore affected devices to a “usable state”. In addition to the outlook, however, there is the caveat that the internal data of devices in a boot loop probably cannot be restored – they are lost.
Immediate participation in the update test possible
The forum post also mentions two short-term options to work around the problem until the update arrives. Firstly, resetting to factory settings, which is also possible with an endless boot loop using a key combination – the article recommends this to those users who have a current backup of their data and can import it after the reset. Secondly, Google offers users who are keen to experiment to test the update in advance, provided that the device is usable and the error with the data no longer being accessible occurs with the primary user of the smartphone; In this case, Google promises that the update can solve the problem and the user data will be available again without having to reset the smartphone. If you would like to take part in this second option, you will find a link to a form in the forum post that needs to be filled out.
Reports of Android 14 issues on Pixel smartphones first emerged last week. This apparently affects devices with multiple user profiles, with the first profile (main user) being locked out and no longer having access to internal data; other user profiles remain usable – as long as the device does not fall into an infinite boot loop (as in other cases). Google soon picked up the problem in the bug tracker, but initially did not give it the highest priority.
Samsung has now also started distributing Android 14, initially for the Galaxy S23 model.
(tiw)