How to fix Samsung Galaxy J5 that frequently / randomly shuts down [Troubleshooting Guide]

Power and performance related issues seem to have bugged many of Samsung Galaxy J5 owners recently and it’s not clear whether it’s because of some updates or it might be due to some issues with apps. Among the common complaints we received is the random or frequent shutting of the phone, which is very frustrating and annoying especially if it occurs while you’re doing something important.

In this post, I will tackle this issue with the J5 as the subject of the troubleshooting in order to help our readers who contacted us and asked for our help. However, there are issues that we cannot fix online such as hardware problems that may have been caused by liquid and/or physical damage. As the owner, you should know if your device suffered any of those damages because if so, you need a technician that can do further tests or check the integrity of the hardware components. But if you are sure the problem just started without apparent reason, then you better try troubleshooting it.

But before we jump right into our troubleshooting, if you have other issues with your phone, make sure you drop by our troubleshooting page for we have already addressed a lot of issues with this device. Try to find problems that are similar with yours and use the solutions we suggested. If they don’t work for you and if you need further assistance, contact us by filling up our Android issues questionnaire.

Troubleshooting Galaxy J5 that shuts down randomly

The purpose of this troubleshooting guide is for us to know what the problem is all about, why it occurs, what triggers the shutdowns and what needs to be done to fix it. Now, here’s one of the messages we received that best describes this issue…

“Hello. I don’t know if you have already encountered the problem wherein the phone shuts down on its own even if it’s placed on the table without any intervention from its owner. Mine is doing that it’s worrisome because I just bought it a couple of months ago and took care of it ever since. I mean, it’s the only phone I have, I just bought it and I used it for my job. I don’t want to buy another phone because this one’s new, I hope you understand my point. About the problem, well, I really don’t understand why it has to shut down without being told to do so. It’s Galaxy J5 and I bought it brand new so I’m really worried and frustrated at the same time. Can you help me please?”

Troubleshooting: The course of our troubleshooting would be to rule out the possibilities until we can pinpoint what the problem is and formulate a solution to fix it. Here’s what we suggest you do:

Step 1: Make sure your phone doesn’t have liquid / physical damage

First off, if your device got soaked in water or was dropped, then there is always a possibility that the problem is caused by either liquid or physical damage. Take the back cover off and find a rectangle sticker. If it’s white, then the phone is free from any liquid damage, otherwise, it’s confirmed the device came in contact with any liquid that may have found its way into it. In this case, you need help from a technician.

As to the physical damage, it’s pretty obvious; if the phone has some scratches or dents on the outside, then the cause of the problem is most likely physical. However, I still want you to check if the battery is loose or not because if it is, the random shutdowns may be caused by it.

If the battery snaps right into its holder though, try to check it physically for some lumps or leaks. If it has one of those, then the reason your phone is shutting down randomly is due to its faulty battery that might fail from time to time. Of course, buying a new battery would be the best solution for this.

But assuming your phone neither suffered from liquid nor physical damage, continue your troubleshooting.

Step 2: Find out if third-party apps have something to do with it

We’ve seen cases wherein the phone shuts down to a third-party app that keeps crashing and creating conflicts in the system. So, it’s possible this problem is due to one or some apps you downloaded or installed. To rule out this possibility, we need to start your phone in diagnostic state wherein all third-party elements will be temporarily disabled to find out if the problem still occurs. Here’s how you boot your phone in safe mode:

1. Press the Power key to display power options on the screen.
2. Touch and hold “Power off” option until “Restart to safe mode” prompt appears, then release.
3. Tap Restart.
4. The restart process may take up to 45 seconds to complete.
5. Upon restart, Safe mode appears in the lower-left of the unlock/home screen.

If the problem still occurs even if the phone is already in safe mode, then it might already be a firmware issue. Otherwise, you just have to find the apps that cause the problem and uninstall them one by one until the phone won’t shut down on its own anymore. Here’s how you uninstall apps from your J5:

1. From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
2. Tap Settings.
3. Tap Applications.
4. Tap Application manager.
5. Tap the application in question.
6. Tap Uninstall.
7. Tap Uninstall again to confirm.

I know it’s easier said than done but begin your search for the culprit from your recently installed apps.

Step 3: Wipe cache partition so system caches will be replaced

Firmware updates are often the cause of corrupt and obsolete system caches but these things may also occur from time to time and when they do, performance issues are among the first to emerge. We really don’t know if this is the case with your phone but it’s a possibility that needs to be ruled out before we proceed. Follow the steps below to wipe the cache partition of your phone:

1. Turn off your Galaxy J5.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
3. When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
4. When the Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
5. Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
6. Press the Power key to select.
7. Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘yes’ and press the Power key to select.
8. When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
9. Press the Power key to restart the device.
10. It will take a little longer for the phone to reboot after this procedure but wait until it reaches the home screen before using it.

If the random shutdowns continue, move on to the next step.

Step 4: Reset your phone so it will be brought back to factory default settings

We need to rule out the possibility that the problem is caused by some corrupt system files and/or data. It’s also possible that some settings are incorrect and cause conflicts in the system. So, we have to reset your phone to see if it makes a difference. But before that, make sure you create a backup of things you don’t want to lose like your contacts, pictures, videos, etc. After which, disable the anti-theft feature and proceed with the reset.

How to disable anti-theft

1. From the Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
2. Tap Settings.
3. Tap Accounts.
4. Tap Google.
5. Tap your Google ID email address. If you have multiple accounts setup, you will need to repeat these steps for each account.
6. Tap More.
7. Tap Remove account.
8. Tap REMOVE ACCOUNT.

How to Master Reset Galaxy J5

1. Turn off the device.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
3. When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
4. When the Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
5. Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset.’
6. Press Power button to select.
7. Press the Volume down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted.
8. Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
9. When the master reset is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
10. Press the Power key to restart the device.

If the problem still shows up after this, then try to see if there’s an available update for your phone and if there is, download it. Or, you may directly go to a tech and have the phone checked.

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