Help Cannot restore backups after factory reset

[Ensemble]

Hi guys,

I'll try and keep this short. My sister's phone (Samsung Galaxy S4) recently had a problem with apps instantly closing after opened. I tried a couple of things and eventually decided to go for a factory reset . She didn't have any backup apps (Titanium, etc.) installed, but I did see an icon that said "Backup", accompanied by a SIM card icon on the phone, and a screen that came up with the options to backup data and application settings. I backed up both successfully. The app didn't mention where the data was backed up, but I assumed (foolishly) that the data would all be backed up onto the SIM card, judging by the icon. Possibly the SD card. Anywhere but the phone itself, which seemed redundant.

My sis has important notes on her phone, so to be safe, I specifically opened her note-taking app (Note Everything) and exported all her notes to SD card. Just in case, I also removed both the SD card and the SIM card before resetting the device.

After resetting, I placed SIM card and SD card back in and tried to restore. Opened the "Backup" app, tried to restore, and was told there was nothing to restore. Went through the file directory and found only empty folders. Couldn't even find the notes I'd double-backed up.

Questions: What happened to my backups? Did I stupidly back them up to the phone prior to the reset? Is there any hope of salvaging any data at all? Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'm just a little desperate.

 

[ironass]

Hello and welcome to Android Forums Ensemble!

Just a few thoughts before your sister becomes an only child.

Hi guys,

I'll try and keep this short. My sister's phone (Samsung Galaxy S4) recently had a problem with apps instantly closing after opened. I tried a couple of things and eventually decided to go for a factory reset . She didn't have any backup apps (Titanium, etc.) installed, but I did see an icon that said "Backup", accompanied by a SIM card icon on the phone, and a screen that came up with the options to backup data and application settings. I backed up both successfully. The app didn't mention where the data was backed up, but I assumed (foolishly) that the data would all be backed up onto the SIM card, judging by the icon. Possibly the SD card. Anywhere but the phone itself, which seemed redundant.

Was, "Backup", an app or is it part of the S4, GT-i9500, firmware? I can't see a Sim card being used for storage as you describe.

My sis has important notes on her phone, so to be safe, I specifically opened her note-taking app (Note Everything) and exported all her notes to SD card. Just in case, I also removed both the SD card and the SIM card before resetting the device.

Because the S4 has an internal memory and an external SD card, some apps refer to the internal as, "SDcard", and the external memory as, "extSDcard". Therefore, you may have stored the data on the internal memory. This usually does not get wiped in a Factory data Reset unless you specifically do so in Settings > Storage.

After resetting, I placed SIM card and SD card back in and tried to restore. Opened the "Backup" app, tried to restore, and was told there was nothing to restore. Went through the file directory and found only empty folders. Couldn't even find the notes I'd double-backed up.

Questions: What happened to my backups? Did I stupidly back them up to the phone prior to the reset? Is there any hope of salvaging any data at all? Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'm just a little desperate.

Note Everything has a add-on app called NE Online Backup which allows backups to DropBox and I am wondering if this could be where the backup is installed.

 

[Ensemble]

Was, "Backup", an app or is it part of the S4, GT-i9500, firmware? I can't see a Sim card being used for storage as you describe.

...It might actually be firmware. It's located in the apps list, but judging from the layout and icon it doesn't look like some third-party app.

Because the S4 has an internal memory and an external SD card, some apps refer to the internal as, "SDcard", and the external memory as, "extSDcard". Therefore, you may have stored the data on the internal memory. This usually does not get wiped in a Factory data Reset unless you specifically do so in Settings > Storage.

So it's looking like as if I didn't end up backing up anything into the external SD card at all, huh? Though, isn't the internal memory what usually gets wiped in a factory reset? Or am I confusing it with something else? I removed the external SD card, so it couldn't have been that. I didn't touch the Settings > Storage option. Went to Settings > Accounts > Reset.

Note Everything has a add-on app called NE Online Backup which allows backups to DropBox and I am wondering if this could be where the backup is installed.

You had my hopes up for a minute there, but nope. I checked out the app, and it doesn't look familiar to me. I'm pretty sure my sis didn't have it installed.

 

[ironass]

Just installed Note Everything. Try...

Note Everything > Menu > More > Import > Import from SD-Card > [Parent Directory] > 0 > noteeverything > backup, paintings, photos, text, videos, voices

 

[lotus49]

So it's looking like as if I didn't end up backing up anything into the external SD card at all, huh? Though, isn't the internal memory what usually gets wiped in a factory reset? Or am I confusing it with something else? I removed the external SD card, so it couldn't have been that. I didn't touch the Settings > Storage option. Went to Settings > Accounts > Reset.

The way Android describes memory is absurdly ill-thought out and thoroughly confusing whether you are familiar with Linux or not.

There are 4 separate elements of memory.

1. Internal RAM used for running programs. Nothing is stored permanently here. This is like the RAM in a desktop PC.
2. Internal memory. This is where the OS and associated files as well as most apps are stored. This is the bit that gets wiped when you do a factory reset.
3. SD card. This was originally a separate SD card in early versions of Android but is now built into the phone. This is where most application data is stored. This normally isn't wiped when you do a factory reset although it is of course possible to wipe it. The chances are that this is intact. You may be able to examine what's on this disk from a PC by connecting your sister's phone to a PC with a USB cable.
4. External SD card. This at least has a clear name. This is the removable SD card which many phones do not have. Almost nothing is stored here by default but the user can use it for all sorts of things.

If I were you, I'd try to connect the phone to a PC and examine the contents of the two drives carefully. The SD card and external SD card ought to mount automatically and you can use PC tools you are familiar with to examine what's left.


I really hope you get the data back. It's pretty embarrassing offering to help someone and then deleting their data. Fingers crossed.