How to fix Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017) that won’t turn on after an update (easy steps)

The Samsung Galaxy J7 2017 was released with Android 7.0 Nougat already installed so any updates that were rolled out for the device should have been small ones. I’m saying this because some of our readers contacted us about the problem with their J7. Many of them reported that their device would no longer power on after an update while others said that their phones only have black screens but they seem to be powered on.

After several years of providing support to our readers, we’ve encountered issues like this several times already and we know a thing or two that might help fix it. I will be providing you with the solution that worked with many of our readers so continue reading. However, we don’t give a guarantee that we can fix every problem that’s why after the solution, I would also be providing a simple troubleshooting guide for you to follow so you can do something about the problem before you decide to bring it to the service center.

Before anything else though, if you have other issues with your device, then visit our Galaxy J7 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed several common problems with this phone. Odds are that there are already existing solutions to your problems so just take time finding issues that are similar with yours. If you can’t find one or if you need further assistance, feel free to contact us by completing our Android issues questionnaire. Please provide us with as much information as possible so that it would also be easier for us to troubleshoot the problem. Don’t worry as we offer this service for free, so all you have to do is give us sufficient information about the problem.

Solution for Galaxy J7 that won’t turn on after an update

More often than not, this problem is basically just a system crash that’s why the device no longer responds when you press and hold the Power key. A system crash maybe caused by some corrupt caches or system files, crashing apps, liquid and physical damage, serious firmware issue and hardware problem. When it comes to software-related concerns, there’s always a chance you can fix it on your own but when it comes to hardware issues, you may need a technician for them.

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So, going back to our main topic, to address this problem, here’s what I suggest you do:

  • Press and hold the Volume Down button and the Power key simultaneously for 10 seconds.

Assuming your phone still has enough battery left and that there’s no problem with the hardware, it should boot up normally like it always does. This procedure is what we call Forced Restart which simulates battery disconnect, which has similar effects to the battery pull procedure we often do to phones with removable batteries. It’s very effective in dealing with system crashes as well as minor software-related problems so it’s worth doing it. After all, it’s easy and safe to do.

If the phone however, doesn’t respond to this method, the next thing you should do is basically the same but has a slight difference:

  1. Press and hold the Volume Down button first and don’t let it go.
  2. Press and hold the Power key while holding down the Volume Down button.
  3. Keep both keys held down for 10 seconds or untils the screen turns on.

Pressing and holding the Volume Down button first won’t trigger the phone to power up but pressing the Power key will immediately make the device react to it because it’s hard-wired for every electronic device to turn on/off when the Power key is pressed and/or held. Since you’re doing a combo, you have to first press and hold the Volume Down before triggering the phone to power up using the On/Off key.

But what if the device still doesn’t respond to this? Well, here’s another thing you should try…

  1. Plug your device’s original charger to a working wall outlet.
  2. Connect your phone to its charger using the original data cable that came with it in the box.
  3. Regardless whether the phone responds to the charger or not, keep the phone connected to the charger for 10 minutes.
  4. Try doing the Forced Restart procedure once again to see if the phone responds this time.

After doing this and your Galaxy J7 is still not turning on, then you really have to troubleshoot your device. Continue reading as I also prepare a troubleshooting guide for you to follow below.

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Troubleshooting Galaxy J7 that won’t turn on after an update

I understand there are some of you who are not comfortable doing some procedure you may not understand so I suggest you immediately bring the phone to the service center if you feel that way. For those who are willing to try and troubleshoot their devices, continue reading as one of the methods may work for you.

Before we begin, I want you to check your phone for possible physical and liquid damage by doing the following:

  • Look for scratches, dents and cracks as they’re the most common signs of physical damage. Any force that could damage the inside components should leave a mark on the outside.
  • Try to see if there are some traces of liquid in the USB / charger port because it always serves as the gateway for water. I understand your Galaxy J7 2017 is water resistant but it’s not waterproof so liquid can still find its way into the phone.
  • Use a cotton swab to clean the area or you may insert a small piece of tissue paper in it to absorb the moist.
  • Check the Liquid Damage Indicator (LDI) to see if it’s tripped or not. A tripped LDI should turn red or purple. The LDI is location in the SIM slot.

After making sure the problem is not due to physical or liquid damage, try doing the following procedures to know if your phone is still capable of turning into one of the modes.

Try running your Galaxy J7 in Safe mode

We usually run phones in safe mode so that all third-party apps will be temporarily disabled but in this case, we simply want to know if your device is still capable of turning into this mode because if so, then you can already consider this problem fixed. Follow these steps to boot your J7 in safe mode:

  1. Turn the device off.
  2. Press and hold the Power key past the model name screen.
  3. When “SAMSUNG” appears on the screen, release the Power key.
  4. Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key.
  5. Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting.
  6. Safe mode will display in the bottom left corner of the screen.
  7. Release the Volume down key when you see Safe Mode.

If the phone actually turns on and boots into this mode, reboot it like you usually do but at this point in our troubleshooting, the problem is already downgraded to a simple booting issue, which is very easy to fix most of the time.

Now, if the phone still has issues booting up, then reboot in safe mode once again and then find the app that’s causing the problem and uninstall it.

  1. From the Home screen, tap the Apps tray.
  2. Tap Settings > Apps.
  3. Tap the desired application in the default list or tap 3 dots icon > Show system apps to display pre-installed apps.
  4. Tap the desired application.
  5. Tap Uninstall.
  6. Tap Uninstall again to confirm.

I know that it’s easier said than done especially if you already have hundreds of apps installed on your device. So, if you think it would be a lot easier and quicker to just backup your files and data and do the reset, then do it. You should still be able to backup your important files while in safe mode. After the backup, follow these steps to reset your phone:

  1. Back up data on the internal memory. If you have signed into a Google account on the device, you have activated Anti-theft and will need your Google credentials to finish the Master reset.
  2. From the Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
  3. Tap Settings > Cloud and accounts.
  4. Tap Backup and reset.
  5. If desired, tap Back up my data to move the slider to ON or OFF.
  6. If desired, tap Restore to move the slider to ON or OFF.
  7. Use the back key to move back to the Settings menu and tap General management.
  8. Tap Reset > Factory data reset.
  9. Tap Reset.
  10. If you have screen lock turned on, enter your PIN or password.
  11. Tap Continue.
  12. Tap Delete all.

On the other hand, if the phone also refuses to turn on in safe mode, then try the next method.

Try booting up the phone in Recovery mode

It’s time to invoke the power of Android system recovery. It’s what we often refer to as the Recovery Mode and as the name suggests, it can help you regain control over your phone. Here’s the thing, Recovery Mode is actually the fail-safe of Android devices so even if your phone has some serious firmware issues, you may still be able to boot it up in this mode. That’s what we want to know and that’s all you need to determine if the problem is with the hardware or only in the firmware.

Assuming the phone successfully boots up in this mode, you may try to reboot it immediately to know if it would boot up in normal mode without doing anything. You may choose “Reboot system now” while in Recovery mode. Again, the moment the phone boots up in this mode, the problem is downgraded from not turning on to a boot issue. With that said, if there’s an issue starting up in normal mode, then you should try wiping the cache partition first. If that won’t work, try doing the Master Reset. Here’s how you do these things:

How to boot in Recovery Mode and wipe the cache partition
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.

  1. When the Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds, then ‘No command’ before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
  2. Press the Volume down key several times to highlight “wipe cache partition”.
  3. Press Power button to select.
  4. Press the Volume down key to highlight “yes” and press the Power key to select.
  5. When the wipe cache partition is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
  6. Press the Power key to restart the device.

How to boot in Recovery Mode and do the master reset

Take note that all your files and data including the apps, contacts, messages, pictures, music, videos, etc. that are stored in your phone’s internal storage will be deleted.

  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 Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds, then ‘No command’ before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
  4. Press the Volume down key several times to highlight “wipe data / factory reset.
  5. Press Power button to select.
  6. Press the Volume down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted.
  7. Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
  8. When the master reset is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
  9. Press the Power key to restart the device.

If the phone still refuses to boot up in Recovery mode, then it’s time to bring it to the service center so that a technician can take a look at it for you. I hope that this troubleshooting guide can help you one way or another. If you still have other concerns, feel free to contact us any time.

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