[Android Central Question]

I need to recover multiple text conversations from up to 3-4 months ago.
There was never any back up.
I figured this would be a straight forward easy thing to do.
I downloaded a couple PC programs like Dr.fone.
The program said it had to temporarily root the phone.
But upon trying it failed... so did the other program that I cannot remember the name of.
They both told me I needed to root it myself.

So... is there a way to recover these without root?

If not can someone throw some 'rooting' advice at me. I know I can search for it but there is more unreliable info out there than valid on the subject.

My phone details are as follows.
Samsung S7 Edge
SMG935A
Version 8.0.0
AT&T

Thanks for any help.

[ManiacJoe]

The SMS messages are stored in a SQL database located in a hidden folder.
As such, there is no such thing as either undelete or recover. Sorry.

Since you are on ATT, check the ATT website. There should be a way to see your text messages from a web browser. Not sure how far back in time you can go there.

Now is the time to start that backup routine if you have not done so already.

[DerHof]

The SMS messages are stored in a SQL database located in a hidden folder.
As such, there is no such thing as either undelete or recover. Sorry.

Since you are on ATT, check the ATT website. There should be a way to see your text messages from a web browser. Not sure how far back in time you can go there.

Now is the time to start that backup routine if you have not done so already.

So, you're saying that all the software saying this can be done is false advertising and all the YouTube videos are BS?

[belodion]

I accidentally deleted a Conversation instead of a Message on iPhone once - in fact I’ve done it twice - and the software I used allows you to view the deletion, but not recover unless you pay $60. Whether it works I don’t know since I did not buy.

[DerHof]

I accidentally deleted a Conversation instead of a Message on iPhone once - in fact I’ve done it twice - and the software I used allows you to view the deletion, but not recover unless you pay $60. Whether it works I don’t know since I did not buy.

Do you remember what it was because I'm pretty certain that I've done this some years ago myself but can't remember what I used. Actually at this point I'm can't even remember if it was Android or ios. Whatever it was there was definitely no rooting involved...

[Rukbat]

There's software that will do it but, like software to recover uninstalled apps, it's not free. To do it for free you need a SQLite editor - and you have to understand SQL, because the SMS messages are in a SQL database file, so you have to locate the record for that text, then figure out which is the "active/deleted" field and change it to active. Trivial if you know SQL and the particular file's format, days of learning, then days of searching for the file, and searching the file to figure out the format, if you don't.

[belodion]

Do you remember what it was because I'm pretty certain that I've done this some years ago myself but can't remember what I used. Actually at this point I'm can't even remember if it was Android or ios. Whatever it was there was definitely no rooting involved...

The words Dr. Fone and Wondershare come into my head, but it was a long time ago and I don’t recall for certain. No rooting was involved, it being an iPhone, so I suppose I just plugged the phone into the laptop on which I’d downloaded the software, and ran the latter.

[DerHof]

The words Dr. Fone and Wondershare come into my head, but it was a long time ago and I don’t recall for certain. No rooting was involved, it being an iPhone, so I suppose I just plugged the phone into the laptop on which I’d downloaded the software, and ran the latter.

Wondershare makes Dr.fone... version for ios and Android.
I'm thinking that is what I used back then as well... and I think it was an iphone.

Hard to believe that as much as apple sucks with not letting you do anything to their phone that the Android would need to be rooted for this task.
But maybe these days an iphone would need to be jailbroken...

Wondershare has been around for awhile... hard to believe they would claim it could be done if it couldn't... I'm questioning the validity of ManiacJoe's reply...