Galaxy Note 4 “Could not do normal boot, mmc_read failed” error, other boot problems

Do you have problems starting your #GalaxyNote4? Our post today may point you to the right direction. Below are some of the booting problems shared by some members of our community:

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Problem #1: “DM-verity verification failed” error after rooting Galaxy Note 4

I attempted to root my Galaxy Note 4 on Odin. Showed a message with the red logo that reboot would take place in 10 seconds, and phone showed the normal Galaxy Note 4, and then Samsung and then went back to Galaxy Note 4, and wouldn’t boot up for two days.

I took the battery out a few times, attempted re-rooting a few times, all to no avail. So went into the Recovery Mode but at the bottom of my phone, the message, “dm-verity verification failed” appeared. Attempted cache partition, wipe data and each time the message shows complete for each, except that when I did reboot system now, the same problem of  persisted and the dm-verity message is still showing in the recovery screen. — Adeola

Solution: Hi Adeola. Rooting has inherent risks and can sometimes lead to really nasty software glitches. One of such glitches is the error “dm-verity verification failed”, although it can also specifically result from installing an incorrect firmware. During most times, “dm-verity verification failed” error happens after damaging or changing some files in the EFS folder which keeps unique information about your device. Whatever the true cause is, there’s only one effective solution that we know of for this issue — re-installation of stock ROM or firmware. Once you’ve reinstalled the stock firmware, the phone should boot normally again.

We recommend that you be careful when rooting your device again. Doing so is risky and does not always guarantee that the device will work properly.

Problem #2: Galaxy Note 4 screen won’t lock up for 10 seconds after booting

This is the 2nd Note 4 I’ve owned, the one I’m now using replaced a new one.  When I updated to Lollipop 5.0.1 on the 1st Note 4, I noticed the screen would be unlocked for about 10 seconds upon power up. I thought it was the fault of the update, so I reset the phone and updated it a 2nd time.  Same issue. I searched for the problem in different forums and found nothing, so I assumed it was the phone.

Verizon sent me a refurbished phone and its doing the same thing. I haven’t  found anyone else having this issue, or at least no one has asked that I can see. So, can you tell me what may be going on?

These are my settings: I have the screen set to lock after 2 min of non use; the screen is supposed to be locked at startup but it’s unlocked, exposing my texts, email, contacts, etc. for at least 10 seconds on startup. Then, after about 10 seconds the screen will enter lock mode and the pin keyword will appear.  Can you tell how to fix that?  I prefer NOT to use a 3rd party screen lock app.  Thanks. — Jeff

Solution: Hi Jeff. You’re right. No one appears to have reported this particular issue to us or to any other Android forum although we think it’s a Verizon firmware bug. If this issue started happening after Verizon pushed an over-the-air update, other users might also be experiencing it though you may be the first to report it publicly. To be frank, we can’t think of any other solution other than letting Verizon technical support team, especially their developer team that maintains Android firmware for their devices. An issue like this runs deeper on how their firmware is coded so the solution is beyond us.

Try to visit Verizon Android community forum and post a thread there. Verizon’s community forum is monitored and if you’re in luck, you may get specific support from the right technical team.

Problem #3: Galaxy Note 4 keeps saying account passwords are incorrect

I can no longer log into any app or any website that requires a password. When I enter my password that I KNOW is correct because I just checked them by logging into all the same sites on my desktop and writing down the password exactly as I entered it, it tells me that the password is incorrect or invalid every time. I cannot change password either because when I enter the password it will always tell me that the password and confirmation passwords don’t match when I KNOW that they do. Even when I can SHOW passwords and confirm they match I get the same error. I also cannot create a new account on any website for that same reason.

I also frequently get error messages about password tips. For instance when I’m entering the new password and follow the password tips exactly it tells me I’m using characters that aren’t allowed when all I’ve used is letters and numbers, no special characters. It will always give me error messages that basically tell me I’ve not followed the password guidelines when I’m very careful to follow them exactly. This just started happening about 3-4 weeks ago I never had a problem before that and I’ve had the phone for almost a year now.

Here’s what I’ve done so far: soft reset then wiped the cache partition, uninstalled almost every downloaded app, cleared all browsing history including saved  passwords and auto-fill and even turned both of those off in Settings. Last week I took the phone to the Samsung Repair Center in Plano, TX because I had a couple other issues as well and they removed the entire OS and reinstalled Android Lollipop 5.0.1.

I thought the problem was fixed because I was able to log into Google and set everything up but obviously it did not fix this problem.

Also the Samsung keyboard was always freezing and it didn’t fix that either, it still freezes even now while typing this email. I’m so frustrated because I can’t get into any of my accounts. Please help! — Teresa

Solution: Hi Teresa. Did you install the exact same set of applications after Samsung reflashed the firmware? There’s a chance that one of your apps may be hosting a malware or virus that may have compromised the operating system and your accounts. If the phone works normally right after the OS was wiped out  and reinstalled, something you’ve added afterwards is most likely to blame. Try doing these basic solutions to see which one will work for you.

Boot the phone in safe mode

Restarting in safe mode can help you narrow down possible factors because it prevents third party applications from running. Safe mode won’t help you point which of your apps is the culprit. However, it will give you a general idea that one of them is behind this trouble.

Here’s how it’s done:

• Turn off the phone completely.
• Press and hold the Power key and the Volume Down key.
• When the phone starts to boot, release the Power key but continue holding the Volume Down key until the phone finished restarting.
• Safe mode will be display at the lower left corner; you may release the Volume Down key now.

Keep in mind that some malicious apps may ignore safe mode to protect itself from being uncovered so if the problem continues even when on safe mode, proceed to  factory reset.

Perform a factory reset

Doing a factory reset has many uses and in your case, it is to wipe out phone storage to make sure that you set it up clean again. Don’t forget to create a copy of your personal data (photos, videos, contacts, etc.) first before proceeding. If you haven’t done master or factory reset before, here are the steps to do it:

• Turn off the Galaxy Note 4 completely.
• Press and hold the Volume Up and the Home keys together, then press and hold the Power key.
• When the Note 4 vibrates, release both the Home and Power keys but continue holding the Volume Up key.
• When the Android System Recovery shows on the screen, release the Vol Up key.
• Using the Volume Down key, highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset’ and press the Power key to select it.
• Now highlight ‘Yes — delete all user data’ using the Vol Down key and press the Power key to begin the reset.
• When the master reset is complete, highlight ‘Reboot system now’ and hit the Power key.
• The Note 4 will restart but it will be longer than usual. When it reaches the Home screen, then begin your setup.

Because there’s no way for you to know which of your added apps is the problem, we recommend that you check for the problem after installing an app to identify the culprit. We know this solution will take time but it’s the most effective way to deal with it.

Problem #4: Galaxy Note 4 “Could not do normal boot, mmc_read failed” error

Hi, this would be a lengthy post. (My apologies).

I updated to 5.1.1 recently via OTA update. Things were fine for about a few days. Suddenly, my phone keeps random rebooting, frequently crashes and freezing. Often when I power down, I cannot boot up the phone, and had to resort to taking out battery, doing soft reset, then boot up. Although this may require repeated tries).

Sometimes while booting up, the phone would boot to Odin mode saying “Could not do normal boot, mmc_read failed”. These persist even after I did factory reset and wiping of cache partition. My phone would even hang when I’m plugged into the charger. There would be a black screen and nothing comes up when I press the buttons. What exactly happened? I’m really at a loss and phone is out of warranty.

I tried to flash firmware via Odin but apparently unable to do so.

I found out the only way to prevent my phone from hanging, showing black screen or rebooting was to play the music player or watch video. Is this a software or hardware issue?

I’m really at a loss and it’s really frustrating.

Really really would appreciate your reply and thanks in advance. — Jake

Solution: Hi Jake. Did you try to make any operating system level modifications like rooting? If you did and that modification failed, the error “Could not do normal boot, mmc_read failed” usually shows up. Sometimes, a flash memory failure may also result to boot problems (usually due to rooting or OS modification). Unfortunately, there’s no way for us right now to know exactly what’s causing the boot failure problem.

Try to call your carrier and convince them that your phone needs to be replaced due to operating system bug.

If you want to fix the issue yourself, consider flashing a custom ROM to see if it will any difference.