How to Recover a Forgotten Password on a Galaxy Note Tablet Without a Factory Reset

By Randall Blackburn

Use your Google Account or security question on your Galaxy Note if you forget the password.
i David Becker/Getty Images News/Getty Images

If you have forgotten your Galaxy Note's password, you can unlock the device without a factory reset, but only if you can answer your security question or if you have a Google Account set up on the phone. Note that the Google login prompt only displays after several unsuccessful attempts with your password. If you do not have a Google Account associated with the tablet or a security question configured on the device, you must do a factory reset to recover your device's password.

Step 1

Enter an incorrect password on the Galaxy Note lock screen five times. A warning dialog box displays the message, “Tap Next to unlock with security question or try again in 30 seconds. You have 5 tries left.”

Step 2

Tap “Next” to display the Unlock Screen options: answering your security question or logging in with your Google Account.

Step 3

Tap “Answer Question” to display your security question. To log in with your Google Account, tap “Enter Google Account Details.” Tap “Next.”

Step 4

Type the answer to the security question in the Answer field, and then click “OK” if you chose to answer the security question. If the answer is correct, the device unlocks and the operating system loads. For the Google Account method, type your Google username and password in the Google login screen, and then tap “Sign In.” Your Galaxy Note unlocks and you can now reset your device password from the Settings menu.

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