S6 Lock Screen on Restart - Pin required?

[AC Question]

I have had my S6 for a few months without any problems at all, and never needed to take the SIM out or power down the phone.

Now I need to change the SIM and on restart it is asking for a PIN code.

I have only ever used Fingerprint scanning, and the backup passcode - never a PIN so i can no longer access the device.

I don't have Findmyphone so cant open it online, Android device manager will only lock the phone and cannot unlock it. I even get a message telling me it is already locked so no need to send the request.

What can i do to get access to my phone (without a hard reset and losing all my data and files on the phone)

 

[B. Diddy]

Welcome to Android Central! Is it asking for a SIM unlock code (i.e., a PUK code)? Did this only happen after inserting a new SIM card?

 

[TheEndisNigh]

Hi Diddy,

Unfortunately it's asking me for a PIN code instead of using my fingerprint, not a pin code for the SIM (i'm actually changing SIMS and one requires a PIN and one not). It just happens to be the first time the phone has been switched off.

As i selected and use a passcode as backup to my fingerprint, should it not give me a text box option to log in as opposed to a numerical keypad?

I never get the option to log in via my google account or any other option either. I am just allowed 1 input of a numerical code every hour. It doesn't seem upset giving me unlimited attempts to guess a pin code i have never used. i'd actually prefer it to ask me another option, like passcode, google but none of these are (infuriatingly) available

 

[lucianus_luciferus]

if this only happens on one of the sim cards i would say its the sim pin.
try this. put the other sim card in. power on the phone. go to lock screen settings and disable fingerprint. when you do that it will probably ask you for the backup password. if that is a pin the the screen would look like a numerical keypad and then you will know if thats what the phone is asking you when you change sims.

 

[TheEndisNigh]

Lucianos,

The pin lock appears with both sim cards, one sim card asks for a pin code, which works fine.

I receive the following message in both cases

"Enter PIN instead of using fingerprint recognition after restarting device to protect fingerprints"

Funnily enough this is a very efficient way of protecting the fingerprints, as nobody, not even the person with the fingerprint and passcode can access the device

 

[lucianus_luciferus]

ah then that would be the backup pin you created when you enabled fingerprint lock screen.

 

[TheEndisNigh]

And herein lies the problem. I didn't create a backup in, but a backup passcode...which i have used on various occasions.

Now the phone refuses to open without a PIN, which is weird as I have never created a PIN for this device.

 

[lucianus_luciferus]

What if you start the phone with no sim card?
Or just enter the wrong pin several times until it asks you for the Google password

 

[TheEndisNigh]

Oh i've been trying since yesterday around lunchtime....

At first i had quite a few guesses in quick succession. but very very quickly it only allows once attempt per hour. I must have tried easily 20 times already. Still no Google log in.

i'm thinking its a lost cause.

 

[B. Diddy]

That is strange--I could see from YouTube videos as well that when setting up the fingerprint scanner, it asks the user to set up an alphanumeric backup password, not a numeric PIN. Have you contacted Samsung about this? The fact that it's forcing you to enter a numeric PIN rather than an alphanumeric password seems like some sort of glitch. Unless you have some other 3rd party security app installed, like CM Locker.

 

[pxdash]

Has this issue been resolved yet? If so, how? I just ran into the same problem today.

 

[Tomela25]

Has this issue been resolved yet? If so, how? I just ran into the same problem today.

Same problem!! Any suggestions?

 

[Tina Gonzalez]

here has to be a glitch... ive been locked out for a week now and have very important data that I can not delete. I can not do a factory reset and delete everything... please help...

 

[prglife]

I've ran into the same problem.. Can't do factory reset because of all my data on the phone...

 

[myandroidgs6]

Folks ...
If you don't want to do a Factory reset ,
You might have to call your providers for help to reset the password through Google acct ,

I did the same thing 2 days ago , that I ran out of solution .

Good luck.