Galaxy J7 Pro freezes and becomes unresponsive after an update
In today’s troubleshooting episode for the Galaxy J7 Pro, learn what to do if your device freezes or becomes unresponsive during or after an update.
Problem: Galaxy J7 Pro freezes and becomes unresponsive after an update
My Samsung J7 Pro did an update and now it’s frozen. I have tried everything you suggested but it doesn’t work. I have tried volume down and power button, I’ve tried volume down, power and home button. Nothing works. Can you suggest anything else? I plugged it into power to charge it because it got down to 38% but still didn’t work.
Solution: Android devices usually encounter problems during an update if the installation is interrupted. Interruption can be due to a user intentionally turning off the device, or the system turning off for lack of battery.
Do not power down when updating
Sometimes, system updates can take a long time to complete making the appearance that the system have become unresponsive. As an end user, all you need to do in this case is simple: wait. This is the main reason why Samsung devices allow a user to pick an option to let system update be performed overnight. Restarting an updating Galaxy device is a sure way to bricking the software and sometimes, causing permanent corruption in the device’s internal storage device.
If your Galaxy J7 Pro turned off during an update because its battery runs out, this can be another reason for the problem right now. Just like when you intentionally turn off the device, letting a device shut down in the middle of an installation can be a death sentence. This is the reason why you must ensure that there’s at least 80% battery before you start an update. Better still, only update the system when it’s plugged in to the charger. Doing so will lessen the chance of the device turning off in the middle of the installation.
What to do if J7 Pro freezes and becomes unresponsive after an update
If any of the above scenarios happen on the device while it’s updating, there are two things that you can do:
- perform a master reset
- reflash the stock firmware
Master reset is factory reset using a combination of hardware buttons. Here’s how it’s done:
- Turn off the device. This is important. If you can’t turn it off, you’ll never be able to boot to Recovery Mode. If you are not able to shut the device off regularly via the Power button, wait until the phone’s battery is drained. Then, charge the phone for 30 minutes before booting to Recovery Mode.
- Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
- When the green Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
- Press the Volume down key several times to highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset’.
- Press Power button to select.
- Press the Volume down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted.
- Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
- When the master reset is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
- Press the Power key to restart the device.
If nothing works after a master reset, or if you are unable to boot the phone to Recovery Mode at all, you should consider flashing stock firmware via Download Mode. Flashing procedures vary by phone models and is not guaranteed to work in all cases. Use Google to find a good flashing guide for your device.
Get Samsung support
Should master reset nor flashing won’t help, contact Samsung for help. The least that can happen now is repair (if there’s any hardware issue) so make sure to talk to a Samsung tech for other options. If the phone is still under warranty, repair of this type (as long as they can’t find traces of you tampering with hardware and software) will be free. If your S9 is no longer warranty protected, repair or replacement will cost you at least about $200 depending on your case.