Google is pushing out a fix for the big Android 14 multi-user bug

Help is on the way

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If you’ve been keeping up with the latest Android 14 bug news, you’ll know that a serious issuehas been affecting Pixel ownerswith multiple profiles on their devices. Now it seems help is on the way, asGoogleis rolling out a fix.

The fix is part of theNovember 2023 updatefor Pixel devices, and (as spotted by9to5Google), it mentions a bug that has been “occasionally causing devices with multiple users enabled to show out of space or be in a reboot loop”.

Pixel users should start seeing the update appear from today (November 7), though as usual it’ll take a few days to reach everyone. You can manually check for updates on a Pixel phone by going toSystemandSystem updatein Settings.

At this stage there’s no confirmation that people affected by this particularly nasty bug have had their issues resolved, though we’re taking Google’s word for it that the software update will be effective. However, there’s no mention of a fix for the screen tint problem that some Pixel 8 ownershave been reporting.

Data recovery

The note attachedto the software update confirms that the storage and reboot issues have been noticed on Pixel 6, Pixel 6 Pro, Pixel 6a, Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, Pixel 7a, Pixel Tablet, Pixel Fold,Pixel 8, andPixel 8 Prodevices – so everything Google has released since late October 2021.

Googleacknowledged the problemlast week, and confirmed that it was related to having multiple user accounts on a device running Android 14. At that point it said it was “investigating” ways of recovering lost data – but based on the most recent update, that’s looking unlikely for those most seriously affected.

As peran updated support post, those users who can get into their phones but can’t access files should be able to access their data again once the update is installed. However, for those users whose devices are stuck in a reboot loop, the new software patch “may not enable data to be recovered”.

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If your phone or tablet is constantly rebooting, you cando a factory resetusing the buttons on the device. This will reinstall Android, and enable you to install the latest update – but any data (like photos and documents) you’ve not already backed up somewhere else will almost certainly be lost.

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Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you’ll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.

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