Factory Reset?

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shinnen

Senior Member
Aug 24, 2018
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I bought a used Allwinner A23, and then read that, for some reason, it has to be 'factory reset' before it will run properly. My question is .... If I factory reset this thing, will it spoil any of the games that are already installed?
Thanks,
.... john
 

Traveller

Administrator
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Jun 16, 2012
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A factory reset will erase everything. Unless the save data is stored somewhere on one of Google's servers, all progress in game will be lost.
 

shinnen

Senior Member
Aug 24, 2018
57
5
Hi Traveller,
You say, "... all progress in game will be lost."; but the game will still be there? Can you give me a better idea of what you mean by "... reset will erase everything."
Thanks,
..... john
 

Traveller

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Staff member
Jun 16, 2012
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A factory reset erases all user apps, all user data, all user settings, and all user accounts. It does not touch user storage nor does it touch the system and boot partitions. Did you think I was kidding when I said "everything"? ;)

The only way an app's executable will remain after a factory reset is if the executable is stored in the system partition, which a factory reset won't touch. Also, if you perform a factory reset you will need the username and password of the Google account to avoid being locked out of the tablet by Google's factory reset protection.
 

shinnen

Senior Member
Aug 24, 2018
57
5
Hi Traveller,
OK. Well, it's beginning to not sound like such a good idea, especially for someone who doesn't know what they're doing. Is there an way of backing up the current installation, so that things which are erased during the reset can be re-installed?
Thanks,
... john
 

Traveller

Administrator
Staff member
Jun 16, 2012
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Google will back up any apps downloaded from the Play Store. On a factory reset those apps can be restored from the cloud, but the data will still be gone. If you're looking for a full and complete backup, you need to root the tablet.

EDIT: To clarify, there are ways to back up the tablet without needing to root it, but restoring the tablet from a backup is not possible without root.
 

shinnen

Senior Member
Aug 24, 2018
57
5
OK. Thanks Traveller. I think I'll just leave it alone.
One other thing.
I only have a CD player and a cigarette lighter in my car, no USB port. It will change from the USB port on the computer; and I do have the cigarette lighter plugin with a USB port; but I'm not sure about charging it from the cigarette lighter. What do you think?
..... john
P.S. The cigarette lighter plugin did not come with the tablet. I bought it separately.
 

Traveller

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Jun 16, 2012
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Does the tablet in question have a dedicated power plug like what you would find on a laptop? If it does, then forget about charging in the car unless you purchase a power inverter. Otherwise, so long as your car charger is outputs 2.1 amps or more, you'll have no trouble.
 

shinnen

Senior Member
Aug 24, 2018
57
5
Hi Traveller,
The tablet does have a dedicated charging port; but it will also charge from the USB port, using the computer. I don't know if what I have is a power inverter. It's one of those cigarettes lighter plug-ins with a USB port. It says "iessentials" on it.
Thanks,
... john
 

Traveller

Administrator
Staff member
Jun 16, 2012
2,858
982
You'd know if you had a power inverter. They're much larger than a cigarette lighter adapter and are specifically designed to accept two or three-pronged house plugs. Anyway, forget about charging in the car without one. The USB connection on the tablet is intended solely for data transfer and is limited to one-half of an amp (500mA), maximum. The power supply itself is going to have a rating of 1 to 3 amps.
 

shinnen

Senior Member
Aug 24, 2018
57
5
OK. Well, that explains why the USB to computer is so slow to charge it.
Thanks again for your help.
.... john
 
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