With the amount of functionalities that new operating systems include, the number of possible errors or vulnerabilities multiplies every day. Since hardware or software problems, at some point we accessed the "safe mode" to configure something on the device.
The detail is that this mode generally changes the flow to which we are used to in the system a little, to the point of not knowing how to deactivate it to return to normal.
If you entered by mistake or got lost in the options and now you need disable safe mode on android, we will explain the procedure step by step. The information in this article was obtained directly from the official Google support, so external applications will not be required for this task.
Reasons why "safe mode" is often used on Android
Just like on Windows, android safe mode is used when we have some problem in the device and using it as usual is not an option. Among the reasons why it is advisable to activate safe mode are the following:
- The device started to reboot itself.
- The screen keeps freezing.
- Third party or factory apps close with some error message.
- The system runs much slower than usual.
How does safe mode work on Android?
When you enter safe mode, the system disables all applications that are not factory or strictly necessary for the Android device. If the phone is crashing by some third party app, you will find out thanks to this safe mode. Not even important applications like WhatsApp or Telegram will be able to work.
Below the screen the system will indicate that you are in safe mode, take the opportunity to uninstall the suspicious app that may be causing problems or perform actions that you could not do before.
When you turn off safe mode, the organization of apps or widgets on the home screen is lost and all services or apps that were turned off start working again.
This mode is very similar to what Windows or iOS do as operating systems: deactivate services, applications, themes, or add-ons in order to further lighten the load on resources and be able to diagnose, solve, or simply perform basic tasks on the affected system.
How to restart an Android device in safe mode
This is a procedure that can vary depending on the device in question: if you have the manual that came with the phone or tablet, it is probably indicated there the combination of buttons that can be pressed or the route to get there from the Android interface.
It is important to remember that when using safe mode the layout of widgets is affected. To avoid inconvenience it is recommended to take a screenshot of the widgets before rebooting the device in safe mode.
A more or less general method of entering safe mode would be the following:
- Unlock the device.
- Close all the applications you are using.
- Hold down the power button.
- Between the options to turn off or restart the device, press and hold the power off option.
- It will probably ask you if you want to reboot in safe mode, say yes.
If now you don't have the problem that was present before, try disabling some app you recently installed (it's probably the cause of the problems on the device). If the phone still fails in safe mode, then further investigation is needed.
How to disable safe mode on Android
When we have finished reviewing everything that was pending with the safe mode, exiting it will be quite simple: just you have to hold down the on/off button and reboot the device. This time you will return to the normal Android state.
If you had widgets added and now they're gone, refer to the screenshots you took earlier in the article.
Common cases for which an application can fail
In the following I will explain in more detail the situations that can occur so that the Android system begins to fail and a safe mode reboot is required.
After installing an unsafe app from a platform other than the Play Store
The apk files are very easy to modify or infect from some computer virus, when they are downloaded directly from other application stores that are on the Internet, there are a higher risk of having a problem with our device.
Another way to receive files with malicious applications would be through Bluetooth technology, receiving an apk from the attacker.
There are a wide variety of vulnerabilities that can be exploited if a malicious app is installed on your device (and it's even worse if it's given sensitive permissions like call logging or storage management). For this reason safe mode takes care of deactivating all installed applications, except the factory ones, which are apparently safe.
While it is true that we are not 100% safe either just because of download apps from the play store, the filters that Google applies to its store are usually stricter than average, and they do some help in mitigating vulnerabilities.
After updating the operating system with the manufacturer
This depends a lot on your internet connection and device hardware. If one of the files that you were downloading to update the operating system becomes corrupted, the failures that will appear can be very varied and difficult to detect. In those cases you have to reinstall system after backup.
It doesn't always necessarily have to be an internet problem, there is also a factor of "chance" or error, the possibility that the manufacturer has made a mistake when sending an update and whatever else.
From Android's safe mode, you can try to diagnose a problem of this type and take action immediately, speeding up the process of making a backup or factory reset by formatting a phone or tablet.