How to fix Play Store “Error retrieving information from server. [RH-01]” on Galaxy S9

One of the errors many Android users encounter is the “Error retrieving information from server. [RH-01]” bug. If you are getting the RH-01 error with your Galaxy S9 and it’s unable to use the Play Store app, find out how to fix it below.

Why your S9 has “Error retrieving information from server. [RH-01]” or RH-01 error

There’s a number of known reasons for “Error retrieving information from server. [RH-01]” error or RH-01. In most cases, RH-01 comes up if Google Play Store app encounters a bug. Below are some of the known causes of RH-01 error:

Google Play Store app is outdated.
Android version is old.
Android needs an update.
There’s an Android misconfiguration.
A core system app or service has been disabled.
Cache partition is corrupted.
Partitions overwritten with a custom ROM image

Solutions to fix “Error retrieving information from server. [RH-01]”

Fixing this error is not straightforward so you’ll have to do a number of things to know which solution will work. We’ve compiled all the known solutions for this error below. Make sure to follow them in the order presented to follow logical troubleshooting.

Solution 1: Forced restart

Making sure that the system is refreshed should be the first troubleshooting step that you want to do here. Some app bugs are temporary and usually goes away after the system has been rebooted. If you haven’t tried it yet, these are the steps that you can do:

Press and hold the Power + Volume Down buttons for approximately 10 seconds or until the device power cycles. Allow several seconds for the Maintenance Boot Mode screen to appear.
From the Maintenance Boot Mode screen, select Normal Boot. You can use the volume buttons to cycle through the available options and the lower left button (below the volume buttons) to select. Wait for up to 90 seconds for the reset to complete.

Solution: Clear cache partition

Making sure that your S9 has good cache partition is usually not known to effectively prevent or fix issues. Android uses this cache to load apps quickly but if it becomes corrupted, it can affect the device’s performance, as well as cause other side effects. To get the system cache in top shape, be sure to clear the cache partition with these steps:

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 cache partition’.
Press Power button to select.
Press the Volume down key until ‘yes’ is highlighted and press the Power button.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

Solution 3: Restart Google Play Store

The simplest troubleshooting step that you can do in this case is to close Google Play Store app, restart the phone, and re-launch the app. Like Android OS, apps may become slow or develop a bug after running for some time. Closing it, even for a bit, may bring it back to its normal functioning order.

To close an app, just tap on the Recent Apps button, the one on the left of Bixby (previously called Home) button. Once the apps appear, select the Google Play Store app and tap on the X to close it.

Alternatively, you force close it with these steps:

Open Settings app.
Tap Apps.
Find Google Play Store app and tap it.
Tap FORCE STOP button.
Tap FORCE STOP to confirm.

Solution 4: Uninstall Play Store updates

Another way to fix this RH-01 error is by removing all updates for Play Store app. Here’s how it’s done:

Open Settings app.
Tap Apps.
Find Google Play Store app and tap it.
Tap More options icon at the upper right (three dots).
Tap Uninstall updates.
Tap Ok to confirm.

Solution 5: Reset app preferences

Apps need core or default apps and services in order to work properly. If an important app or service has been disabled for some reason, an app that needs to use it may not work properly. Your Google Play Store app depends on default apps as well so to ensure that these apps are enabled, you can do one particular step called Reset app preferences. Here’s how to do this reset:

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.

Solution 6: Clear Google Play Store cache

Since you apparently have a problem with a particular app, it’s best to deal directly with it. One of the things that you can do is to clear its cache. Like Android OS, each app needs a cache to keep its operation as streamline as possible. However, there are a number of things that can corrupt an app cache. Once the cache is corrupted, it may lead to bugs or performance problems. In other cases, it can make the app unuseable. To ensure that you Google Play Store app has a good cache, you can clear it. Don’t worry about losing anything since you’ll only be deleting temporary files compiled by the system. This cache will simply rebuild the cache over time. To clear an app’s cache:

Open Settings app.
Tap Apps.
Tap on More settings at the upper right (three-dot icon).
Select Show system apps.
Find and tap your app.
Tap Storage.
Tap Clear cache button.
Restart your S9 and check for the problem.

Solution 7: Reset Google Play Store app data

Another troubleshooting step that you can do in this case is to clear the data of the app. By doing this step, you are effectively clearing the settings of the app to their defaults. This will return the app to its default setup since you are clearing user data, settings, and cache. Here’s how it’s done:

Open Settings app.
Tap Apps.
Tap on More settings at the upper right (three-dot icon).
Select Show system apps.
Find and tap your app.
Tap Storage.
Tap Clear Data button.
Restart your S9 and check for the problem.

Solution 8: Reset data of Google Services Framework

Some users were able to fix Play Store errors in the past by dealing with another Google app called Google Services Framework. What you want to do here is to return this app to its defaults by clearing its data.

Open Settings app.
Tap Apps.
Tap on More settings at the upper right (three-dot icon).
Select Show system apps.
Look for Google Services Framework and tap it.
Tap Storage.
Tap Clear Data button.
Restart your S9 and check for the problem.

Solution 9: Delete Google account from device

Many users have found removing their Google account from the device helpful in fixing Play Store errors. Be sure to try this solution should none of the steps above work.

To delete a Google account:

Open Settings app.
Tap Cloud and accounts.
Tap Accounts.
Tap the Google account you want removed (must be the account you’re using on Play Store app).
Tap Remove account button.
Tap REMOVE ACCOUNT to confirm.

Solution 10: Factory reset

Should not one of the above solutions work at all, the cause of the problem must be a software bug. Make sure to factory reset the device to return every software bit to their defaults.

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.