Even if your screen smartphone O Tablet is corrupted and has stopped working, there are several ways to get your data back. However, there is no guarantee. If none of that works, you will need to have your device repaired.
But before you do that, you can try for yourself to try to recover your data by following the instructions below. To do this, we imagine several different scenarios in which you might need it.
Scenario 1: No lock screen configured
If your mobile doesn’t have a lock screen configured, you’re in luck. In this case, start your smartphone as you usually do, connect it to your computer and copy all the data you want to save.
If you do not know where they are stored, it is recommended to use the Software that the manufacturer includes with the smartphone in question, which in many cases comes with an option to make backup copies of mobile data.
Scenario 2a: With lock screen, no USB debugging enabled
One of the most difficult cases is when the lock screen is on, but USB debugging is not on. This prevents direct access to your mobile. You can unlock it if your mobile uses USB OTG interface.
You will need to search for it using your preferred search engine. In this case, it is possible to use an OTG adapter to connect the mouse or keyboard and enter the pattern or PIN code. Then the mobile will be unlocked and you can save your data as in scenario 1.
You can buy an OTG adapter cheaply from Amazon and other specialty stores.
Scenario 2b: Lock screen available, no USB debugging enabled
However, there is a specific solution for Samsung devices if they are compatible with the ‘Find my mobile’ service and you have registered it. Go to the service page and enter your email address and password associated with your Samsung account.
Select the registered device with the broken screen, turn off the lock screen, and then use the Samsung Kies app to backup your data.
Scenario 3: Lock screen available, with USB debugging enabled
This option won’t work on all devices, but it’s worth a try. You smartphone does not necessarily have to have undergone a rooting, but it might help.
To do this, you will need the Android Debugging Dridge (ADB) files. You can find them on the Android SDK website. Since Android Studio is quite heavy and takes up almost 2GB, you can find an alternative package that only includes ADB files.
After installing the ADBs, connect your smartphone on your computer and open the command prompt. Use the cd command to navigate to the ADB drivers installation folder and check if your smartphone as a device. Enter “adb devices” to display the list of all connected Android devices.
Then enter the command “adb shell rm /data/system/gesture.key” and wait for the response. If you don’t get an error for having low permissions, the action will have succeeded. You will be able to restart your device and save your data.
Scenario 4: Lock screen present, custom recovery, no USB debugging enabled
This is for smartphones which have custom recovery like CWM (ClockWorkMod) or Team Win Recovery Project (TWRP). This is the case if you have a custom ROM installed.
The first step is to reboot into recovery mode. From there you can drag the necessary data onto your computer using ADB commands or even drag the files using a file manager in the case of TWRP.
The best way to restart in recovery mode is to use the buttons on your smartphone. To do this, turn it off completely. Press and hold all three buttons, the volume up button, the start button and the power button (this may vary depending on the device), and wait for the recovery menu to appear.
That’s all you have to do on your mobile.
Connect your PC with the USB cable. Even if you have not enabled USB debugging, your computer will recognize the mobile in this state. Open the command prompt and run “adb.exe”. Navigate up with the command “cd ….” and into the directory with cd.
Before you start copying, check the connection with your smartphone with the command “adb-devices”. If it’s listed, you have access to it.
Now drag all the data from your smartphone to your PC. It may take a while, but you can search for them later. The “adb backup” command is available for this.
adb backup -all -f: backup.ab
With the first parameter, “-all”, you will make an almost complete copy of your smartphone. The second parameter changes the way data is stored. Replace “my directory” with the desired path.
Alternatively, there is an interesting graphical user interface with “Ultimate Backup Tool”. Open the program after restarting in recovery mode. Backup options are available on this interface. They are particularly useful if you also want to copy your SMS.
The main locations to copy are:
- SMS: /data/data/com.android.providers.telephony/databases/mmssms.db
- Contacts: /data/data/com.android.providers.contacts/databases/contacts2.db
- Agenda: /data/data/com.android.providers.calendar/databases/calendar.db
- Notes: /data/data/com.sec.android.app.memo/databases/Memo.db
- WhatsApp: /data/data/com.whatsapp/databases/wa.bd // /data/data/com.whatsapp/databases/msgstore.db
- Pictures: / storage / emultades / 0 / DCMI // / storage / emulated / 0 / DCIM / Camera
Of course, saving your photos is only practical in this case if you have saved them all in the internal memory of your device and not on the SD card.
conclusion
Backing up your data without being able to access the screen can be very difficult. So, you should always make a copy of important data. Manufacturers’ timing programs help a lot.
Everything else can be easily copied with the adb command when USB debugging is enabled or using Titanium Backup or other tools. If your device already has a custom recovery, you can make a full copy of your smartphone.
You can find the Software official list of each manufacturer below. Unfortunately, these apps are generally compatible with Windows, but sometimes also with macOS and almost never with Linux:
Original article published on Webwereld.
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