Data recovery if I root

[timhenn]

I'm not an android expert. My wife somehow hit factory reset and wiped out really, really important things on her phone. Yes, they were really important and not backed up (thats on me).

I've learned all about data recovery software, rooting the phone and I'm about to learn about unlocking a secure boot loader....if thats even possible. I think my chances of recovering pictures and files is pretty low. But before I try to figure out how to unlock the secure boot loader, cause the Verizon g935V has no auto root support, can someone tell me if I manage to root the phone and run data recovery, I will be able to retrieve pictures and edge memos? I've already got 4+ hours reading about how to root the phone but stuck because I believe the boot loader on this phone is locked.

Any information appreciated.

[GALLERY=media, 695]Build-and-Baseband by timhenn posted Jun 24, 2020 at 8:59 PM[/GALLERY]
[GALLERY=media, 694]SecureCheckFail-recovery by timhenn posted Jun 24, 2020 at 8:59 PM[/GALLERY]
[GALLERY=media, 696]OdinFail by timhenn posted Jun 24, 2020 at 8:59 PM[/GALLERY]

 

[Dannydet]

Were you using Google photos?

 

[timhenn]

Were you using Google photos?

you mean on the phone, no, i don't think she was.

 

[ocnbrze]

sorry but rooting will not bring back deleted data. i know nothing as far as data recovery programs and how they work. i have rooted many devices and never really come across anything that suggests that you can pull deleted data on a rooted phone. what kind of data are we talking about? photos, as @Dannydet is suggesting? text message? emails? downloaded files?

 

[timhenn]

sorry but rooting will not bring back deleted data. i know nothing as far as data recovery programs and how they work. i have rooted many devices and never really come across anything that suggests that you can pull deleted data on a rooted phone. what kind of data are we talking about? photos, as @Dannydet is suggesting? text message? emails? downloaded files?

Pretty much every data recovery application requires rooting to retrieve files from what I've seen (remember, I know nothing about Android, I'm just learning now). Here is an example of an application that claims they don't need the phone to be rooted but then goes on to say "NOTICE: If the Backup and Restore feature is not turned on, to fully scan the Android device and restore the permanently deleted files, you still need to root the Android phone. Also, you can follow the video here as a guide to root your phone." lol, they literally claim they can do this without rooting and then buried in the instructions tell you you do.
https://www.easeus.com/data-recovery-solution/android-data-recovery-without-gaining-root-access.html

Others don't say one way or another. But when you run the application they detect the phone is not rooted and warn you that it needs to be to get at the files. Its clear a rooted phone is required to scan for deleted files IMO.

Yes, we're talking about two file sources in my case. All pictures taken on the phone and all edge memos stored on the phone; these are stored as images from what I'm told. getting documents would be nice but its really about those two file sources in my case.

My big question is, if the data is lost (due to factory reset) before the phone is rooted, will rooting provide the access the data recovery programs require? I'm inclined to believe so. But I am unable to root this phone. Seems like rooting is very critical as I've reviewed 4-5 apps and used two of them. They all find contacts and a few misc files without rooting but then state the phone needs to be rooted to do deep scans to retrieve additional files.

 

[Hadron]

I don't think you've much chance. For one thing, Verizon have always been keenest on locking their phones to prevent rooting. But the big problem is that Android has encrypted the storage by default since Android 5, and the S7 was released with Android 6. So unless she specifically turned the encryption off any data recovery program will be faced with trying to recover encrypted data after the encryption key was deleted by the reset. Maybe there's some weakness in the S7's implementation that will let you recover the encryption key (which in modern devices should be in a special secure store, but just maybe they didn't do that properly), but I think the chances are very small.

If stuff stored on a removable SD card was deleted that's easy: those aren't encrypted by default, and you can just stick them in a card reader and run some file recovery software on a computer. But unless you changed the settings the camera was likely to be storing the data in the internal storage.