Palm™ Support Knowledge Library Solution ID: 887 Resetting your device (Soft, System/Warm, Hard, In-Cradle, Power Down, Battery Disconnect, Zero Out) You can perform several types of resets on your device, in order of severity ... Soft Reset System (Warm) Reset Hard Reset In addition, you can perform other "special" resets under rare circumstances: In -Cradle (for rechargeable devices only) Power Down (for AAA battery devices only) Battery Disconnect (for Treo 600 only) Zero Out (for Tungsten T5; Treo 650 only) Quick Erase, Secure Erase (for LifeDrive only) Recovering your data after a hard reset Soft Reset All devices A soft reset is similar to restarting a desktop computer. It's the most useful trick in your toolbox for fixing a variety of issues. Soft resets usually do not affect your personal data on your device, unless your battery is low. If see battery warnings, change or charge your batteries immediately even if there is an error message onscreen. Also, it's a good practice to perform a HotSync operation before any reset (assuming that synchronization is not the problem you are trying to fix). 1. Use an unfolded paper clip, or the reset tool at the tip of your stylus. 2. Gently press the RESET button inside the hole on the back panel of your device ( where's the reset hole? ). 3. All data on your device should be retained. If you do lose data after a soft reset, you may have a more serious issue with your hardware that requires a repair. 4. After a soft reset, a logo screen appears, followed shortly by a Preferences screen asking you to set time and date. If a soft reset does not resolve your problem, you may need to try one of the other resets below. Top of page System (Warm) Reset All devices A system reset tells your device to stop what it's doing and start over again, bypassing any system extensions. This can help you with "boot loop" errors, allowing you to remove any recently installed third- party applications that might be causing the problem. 1. Press and hold the UP button on the front panel of your device. 2. While holding the UP button, use an unfolded paper clip, or the reset tool at the tip of your stylus, to gently press the RESET button inside the hole on the back of your device ( where's the reset hole? ). 3. The Palm Computing Platform screen will appear. Release the UP button when you see it. Depending on your device, this logo looks like: On some devices, you may see a Palm or palmOne logo and a progress bar first. Do not release the UP button until the second, circular Palm Powered logo appears. Keep holding the UP button When you see this screen, during this screen. you can release the UP button. - or - Keep holding the UP button When you see this screen, during this screen. you can release the UP button. 4. Because this reset is a bit awkward to perform, sometimes it doesn't actually happen when you think it does. Test to see if it worked: a. Open the Applications launcher . b. Choose the application named "Prefs." c. Access the General preferences (on some devices, you may need to access Power). d. Tap on the pick list for Beam Receive. Choose "On." If it still displays "Off," then your device was correctly system reset. 5. Once you've tested that the system reset worked, perform a soft reset . Otherwise, some functions will not work. Sometimes a system reset fails to break out of a loop. These extra steps may break the loop without having to perform a full hard reset. 1. Perform the first part of a hard reset but stop when you see the option to press UP to erase all data. 2. Then perform a system reset as described above but make sure to depress the RESET pin first and then the UP button; otherwise you will complete the hard reset. Be careful! Don't accidentally perform a hard reset, or you will lose all data on your device. Top of page Hard Reset All devices Warning: A hard reset will erase everything on your device. All your data will be removed, and formats, preferences and other settings are restored to their factory default settings. Don't perform a hard reset unless you've backed up your data, or you're willing to lose everything. HotSync note: Some third-party applications change the way your handheld backs up data. Other third- party applications do not back up data. If you have third-party software on your device, please contact the developer to learn what components are backed up during a HotSync operation, and if HotSync conduits are altered. Any data not backed up will be lost. LifeDrive users: Instead of following these steps, see our info for Quick Erase and Secure Erase instead. 1. Hold down the power (on/off) button on your device. Note: Treo 600 smartphones have two power buttons. Hold down the one on the top of the unit next to the antenna. 2. While holding down the power button, turn over your device so that you can see the back of it. Still holding the power button, use an unfolded paper clip or a similar small object, to gently press the RESET hole on the back ( Where's the reset hole? ). 3. When the Palm Computing Platform or Palm Powered logo appears, release the power button. Depending on your device, this logo looks like: Note: On some devices, you may see a palmOne logo and a progress bar first. Do not release the power button until the second, circular Palm Powered logo appears. When you see this screen, Keep holding the power you can release the power button during this screen. button. - or - When you see this screen, Keep holding the power you can release the power button during this screen. button. 4. A message will appear warning that you are about to erase all the data stored on your handheld. In response, do one of the following: Press the UP button to complete the hard reset, erasing everything on your device or Press LEFT or RIGHT to begin a soft reset, leaving your data intact. 5. Your device will then take you through a series of screens to calibrate the digitizer and verify the time and date. Note: A hard reset does not delete the current date and time. It does restore other settings to the factory default. In-Cradle Reset Rechargeable devices only An in-cradle reset will reset the charging circuitry in a rechargeable device. This is helpful if your device turns off as soon as you turn it on, or if it doesn't seem to be charging when you connect it to a power source. The charger can be any type of cradle or cable that charges your device. The important bit is to make sure the power adapter is plugged in and supplying power to your device during the reset. 1. Connect your device securely to its charging cradle or cable, and connect the cradle/cable to a power source. 2. Use an unfolded paper clip, or the reset tool at the tip of your stylus. 3. Gently press the RESET button inside the hole on the back panel of your device ( where's the reset hole? ). 4. All data on your device should be retained. If you do lose data after a soft reset, you may have a more serious issue with your hardware that requires a repair. 5. After a soft reset, a logo screen appears, followed shortly by a Preferences screen asking you to set time and date. Note for Visor Edge: it can be tricky to perform this operation with a Visor Edge since the reset hole is below the back of the cradle when your handheld is correctly seated. The trick is to rotate the handheld very slightly clockwise (assuming you are looking at the front face of your handheld) until you can see the reset hole appear over the back of the cradle. If your charge light is functioning (sometimes it won't be when the recharging circuitry needs to be reset) you can use it as a guide: don't move it so far that it is no longer lit. Then perform the soft reset. Top of page Power Down Reset AAA battery devices only A power down reset erases all the data on your device, including a few settings (like date and time) which are untouched by a hard reset . By removing your AAA batteries, you allow the capacitor to drain, essentially returning your device to its "factory state." A power down reset is only for devices that use AAA alkaline batteries (i.e. not a rechargeable handheld). Warning: A power down reset will erase everything on your device. All your data will be removed, and formats, preferences and other settings are restored to their factory default settings. Don't perform a power down reset unless you've backed up your data, or you're willing to lose everything. HotSync note: Some third-party applications change the way your handheld backs up data. Other third- party applications do not back up data. If you have third-party software on your device, please contact the developer to learn what components are backed up during a HotSync operation, and if HotSync conduits are altered. Any data not backed up will be lost. 1. Remove the AAA batteries from the back of your handheld. 2. Leave the batteries out of the handheld for at least 30 minutes.