How to fix a Galaxy S9 that won’t install updates for Samsung apps

As Samsung’s Galaxy flagship (#GalaxyS9) reaches its mid life, issues for the devices become more apparent as well. While this doesn’t mean that the phone is generally bad, the increasing number of common issues that were once displayed in older Galaxy models are also becoming common. To address these common issues, we bring you this new S9 troubleshooting article. We hope you’ll find it helpful.

If you are looking for solutions to your own #Android issue, you can contact us by using the link provided at the bottom of this page. When describing your issue, please be as detailed as possible so we can easily pinpoint a relevant solution. If you can, kindly include the exact error messages you are getting to give us an idea where to start. If you have already tried some troubleshooting steps before emailing us, make sure to mention them so we can skip them in our answers.

Problem #1: How to fix Galaxy S9 with weak or no signal after an update

Hello. I purchased my S9 earlier this year (April 2018) and everything was running smoothly until the last software update. I have a SIM card that I use with Cricket Wireless and there are no outages in my area (Chicago) but all of a sudden I’m getting little to no service. I usually have full bars all the time everywhere in Chicago, but now I can barely load a page using mobile data. Please help 🙁

Solution: There’s a number of possible factors that can cause this problem, including ones that you can’t do anything about (coding- or network-related). To see if the problem is fixable on your end, follow our troubleshooting steps below.

Clear cache partition

Android uses a number of different caches but one of the most important is the system cache. This cache is used by Android when loading apps and when doing similar tasks. Sometimes, updates may corrupt the system cache resulting to slow performance or bugs. To ensure that your phone’s system cache is working normally, you can refresh it with these steps:

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 Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
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).
Press the Volume down key to highlight “wipe cache partition.”
Press the Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight “yes” and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

Reset network settings

There may be a bug in your phone’s network settings. See to it that you refresh your S9’s network settings with these steps:

Open Settings app.
Tap General management.
Tap Reset.
Tap Reset Network settings.
Tap RESET SETTINGS button to confirm.
Restart your S9 and check for the problem.

Reseat SIM card

Some users were able to fix network issues by simply disconnecting and re-inserting their SIM card. If you haven’t tried it yet, be sure to do so.

Clear app preferences

Resetting app preferences is oftentimes overlooked in many Android troubleshooting articles but when it comes to an issue like yours, it might help a lot. It’s possible that one or some of your default apps may not be set correctly, causing this glitch to occur. Because there’s no way to know if this guess is true, what you need to do is to simply ensure that all default apps are turned on. Here’s how to do that:

Open Settings app.
Tap Apps.
Tap on More settings at the upper right (three-dot icon).
Select Reset app preferences.
Restart your S9 and check for the problem.

Reset all settings

This procedure is separate from the previous one as it covers all settings of your Android device and not just the apps. To do this, follow the steps below:

From the Home screen, swipe up on an empty spot to open the Apps tray.
Tap General Management > Reset settings.
Tap Reset settings.
If you have set up a PIN, enter it.
Tap Reset settings. Once complete a confirmation window will appear.

Factory reset

Finally, you want to see to it that you return all software information of your device to defaults should all of the suggestions above fail. If an unknown firmware bug is the reason behind the problem, wiping your phone with factory reset might help.

NOTE: If your phone was previously unlocked because it was designed to work for another network, factory reset might remove the network unlock codes, making it unable to connect to your current network. In this case, it’s best to avoid doing a factory reset unless you can get an assurance that the phone will remain unlocked.

Get support from your carrier

Should any of these troubleshooting steps fail to fix the issue, then you should work with your network operator to identify why this problem occurs.

Problem #2: Galaxy S9 Plus keeps showing Activation incomplete error

Hello. just a few days ago I bought an S9 Plus, since I started it I have a notification that I could not remove: Sprint OMADM Activation not completed. I have the phone connected to the Internet perfectly, even so, when I try to run this operation it gives an error: “Activation incomplete. Please contact your service provider to activate your device. Connection Error (6602) ” Can you please help me?

Solution: The error message appears to show that your phone may not be properly configured when using your carrier’s network. You must contact Sprint to fix it. Activating CDMA phones requires a special tool that only your network operator has so getting support from them is the only way to go.

Problem #3: How to fix a Galaxy S9 that won’t install updates for Samsung apps

I have a Galaxy S9. The problem I’m having is after receiving notifications to update any PRE INSTALLED apps, (Samsung Internet & Clock), I’ll click on update (in the app itself) and nothing happens. NEITHER of the apps will install. I was setting my alarm and noticed in the corner, on the 3 dots, there was an “N”, so I clicked on it, and it opens a section about clock , I click on that and it says NEW VERSION AVAILABLE, UNDERNEATH THAT IS UPDATE. I CLICK UPDATE, NOTHING HAPPENS. SAME thing happens with Samsung Internet. I click on the “Internet” icon, on the 3 dots in corner there is a “1”, I click on it, and beside the word settings is a 1, I click on the 1, scroll to the bottom where it says “About Samsung Internet” click on that, it states NEW VERSION AVAILABLE.. I CLICK UPDATE… AGAIN NOTHING HAPPENS! WHY WON’T MY PRE INSTALLED APPS UPDATE? My boyfriend has same exact phone, he doesn’t have this problem. Please help!

Solution: If Samsung apps won’t install updates, you can try to delete your Samsung account from the device, restart the phone, then sign back in. Many users found this workaround effective in configuring Samsung services again afterwards. To remove your Samsung account, follow these steps:

Open Settings app.
Tap Cloud and accounts.
Tap Accounts.
Find your Samsung account and tap it.
Tap Remove account.

To sign back in to your Samsung account, the steps are similar:

Open Settings app.
Tap Cloud and accounts.
Tap Accounts.
Tap Add account icon.
Select Samsung account.
Enter your Samsung account username and password.

Factory reset

Should re-signing with your Samsung account won’t help, consider wiping the phone by doing a factory reset. This is an inevitable solution that you should do if all our suggestions above won’t help. To factory reset your S9:

Create a backup of your data.
Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby 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.

Problem #4: Galaxy S9 headphone stops working

So this is quite the interesting issue. I have a Samsung Galaxy S9 and all of the sudden one of my headphones stops working and I tried cleaning out the headphone jack area cuz I know a lot of people say that there is lint in there but I connected a Bluetooth headset to my phone and I’m still having the same issue. I’ve tried toggling the mono setting and as well as troubleshooting the sound and device settings. I’ve plugged my headphones and connected my Bluetooth headphones to other devices just fine and both earpieces work.

Solution: There may be an audio bug in the operating system causing this problem. To check, wipe the phone with factory reset. We know for a fact that headphone function works in factory state software. If our suspicion is correct, factory reset should help. Refer to the steps above on how to factory reset your S9.

If nothing changes after resetting the phone though, you can assume that there’s a hardware malfunction behind the issue. If you want to resolve the issue, contact Samsung so they can examine the hardware and do appropriate repair.