[Peachy Red]

I have locked myself out of my Samsung Tab 4 and there is no option to retrieve forgotten password. Every time I try now it extends the time before I can try again and I am up to 2 minutes (not sure if it will get to a stage where it will not give me anymore time between tries/ factory cutoff time) and I just do not want to try anymore in case there is an option. I have ran out of possible options of what the password maybe anyway as I only have a few passwords but remember changing it as after someone I know closely had to look at something for me and I did not want them to know the password. Everyone so far said my only option is to do a factory reset but for obvious reasons I do not want to do this, as it has a lot of info on it plus overseas holiday photos. Please help.

[hallux]

Welcome.

Do you have a Samsung account linked to the device? https://account.samsung.com sign in and click Services, scroll down to Find my Mobile In that section, sign in and select to unlock after selecting the device on the left. This allows you to reset all of the device login info (PIN, password, pattern and fingerprint if equipped and configured) and set up new.

If you didn't have a Samsung account or didn't have the device connected to it, this won't work.

[Rukbat]

Even a factory reset won't work, unless you remember your Google account login and password.

In the future, instead of relying on your memory of a few passwords for everything (if a site gets hacked and they get your login and password, they get your login and password to all the sites you used the same one on), use a password manager that can keep its data file in the cloud. (A lot of people here like LastPass Password Manager. [I've been using Keepass2Android Password Safe with the data file in the cloud for so long that I keep it.]) That way you only have to remember one password, the one to the password manager. And you can use a different 50 or 60 random character password for every site, every app. That way, if someone gets one, they only get one. And if you keep the password to your tablet on it, and keep a copy on another device (a phone, a PC, a laptop - or all of them), if you're locked out of your tablet, you just look up the password in some other device.

[Peachy Red]

Hi Hallux
I am sure I do have a Samsung account so I will try that. If it works you have no idea how happy I will be, as it has been about 8 months I have been locked out
I have asked so many people including Samsung and most have said I will have to do a factory reset which I really wanted to avoid. I will let you know how I go. Thank you.

[Peachy Red]

Hi RukBat
Thank you for your info and I have a secure password App called MSecure which I had all my passwords in. It was great until two things happened.
1. Msecure updated there app and it was supposed to automatically update and sync on my mobile, tablet and computer. However, there was a clitch and it did not sync with other devices. (I did not realise this for a week)
2 It was this same day that I changed my password of my tablet and did not automatically put it in MSecure.
MSecure took some responsibility for the problem but at the emd of the day they could not find a workable option. I like your idea and will do the cloud thing. I just get confused as to what I have and do not have as a lot of things automatically sync and then my husband puts things on it for me and I just lose track. Thank you again for your response and recommendations Cheers