Google working to bring upcoming Pixel’s repair mode to all Android-powered devices: report

Samsung introduced a new feature called maintenance mode for its Galaxy devices not too long ago. This mode can be used by the device owner and activated before handing over the device to a service technician at the service center. Maintenance mode by Samsung basically creates a new user profile, locking the main user data after the mode is activated. Samsung has come up with this feature so that users don’t need to backup and reset their smartphones while handing them in for service. It also reduces the need to log in to a new device and setup everything again. According to a Recent reportsGoogle is also working on such a mode for its Pixel devices. But now it looks like Google is working on adding the feature natively to all its Android-powered smartphones.

The code called “Repair Mode” is seen Mishal Rahman Those who claim it will work locally and can be enabled and disabled using the preferred authentication method set by the user. According to Rahman, Google’s system works very differently compared to Samsung’s maintenance mode.

when Samsung’s maintenance mode By creating a new user profile, Google’s same method essentially mimics a factory reset. This is done using a process called Dynamic System Update (DSU), which was introduced in Android 10. DSU basically makes it possible to boot without overwriting the existing installation, which preserves user data.

The swap happens at the next boot, when the original system is replaced by the new data image. This was only until Android 14, where it was possible to swap only the data partition (eg with a factory reset) while leaving the original data intact. And this is likely happening when a user activates repair mode on a Pixel device.

According to Rahman, once Google activates the new repair mode in source, smartphone manufacturers will be able to decide whether they want to use their own version of the repair mode versus Google’s soon-to-be native repair mode. For users, who hand in their phone for service, the technician servicing the phone will essentially see a factory reset phone, which can then be used to test the hardware during a service. Google is expected to release Repair Mode first as a feature of the Pixel feature drop in December.