How to Fix ‘No Command’ Error on Android?

Users get stuck on the ‘No Command’ screen in an Android phone after the phone restarts due to any reason. This usually happens without any warning and in most cases, the phone was operating perfectly fine earlier on. The panic of that user cannot be expressed in words as he cannot bypass the screen and gets locked out of his phone. The issue is reported on nearly all Android phone manufacturers (Samsung, Huawei, LG, Dell, Google, etc.).

The No Command on Android means there is no command for the phone (usually, after an Android update) to work i.e., the phone checked the regular area but could not find any command to execute. Also, some manufacturers have included this screen as a security measure to stop the user from accidentally factory resetting his phone. Here, the user has to use some pre-defined key combinations to get out of this screen. Keep in mind that a hardware issue may also cause the No Command screen on Android.

Use Different Combinations to Bypass the No Command Screen

You can fix the ‘no command’ in Android in easy steps: the first step is to get out of this screen and then you can try other methods to stop the recurrence of the issue. Keep in mind you may have to try different key combinations (due to different mobile manufacturers) to either restart the phone normally or boot into the recovery mode. Also, if you boot into the recovery menu of the phone after trying any of the following key combinations, then you may follow the second portion of this article about using the recovery mode.

Moreover, you may have to use the volume up or down keys to navigate the menu, whereas, power (or home) button to select a menu item. Additionally, make sure to remove the SD card from the phone before starting the troubleshooting process.

Wait on the No Command Screen

In some cases, just waiting for the screen to resolve itself works.

1. Before doing anything on the phone, when the phone shows the No Command screen, do not touch the screen or press any other button (power, home, etc.). Leave the phone in this state for 15 minutes.
2. After 15 minutes, check if the recovery menu is shown, if so, then you may follow the recovery mode section of this article.

Restart Phone from the Power Button

In this scenario, we can force-restart the phone and see if this does the trick.

1. Press and hold the Power button on your phone.
2. Wait (it may take around 30 seconds) till the phone restarts and upon restart, check if the phone has passed the No Command window.
3. If the phone did not restart, press/hold the power and volume up buttons (around 10-20 seconds).
4. Wait till the phone restarts and check if that resolves the Android issue at hand.

Use the Power and Volume Up Buttons to Enter the Recovery Mode of the Phone

Every Android phone has a recovery mode through which you can enter Safe Mode or restart the phone.

1. Press/ hold the power button (around 3 to 5 seconds) of your phone and quickly press (do not hold) the Volume button while keep holding the power button.

   

2. Now release the power button and once in the recovery menu, then you may use the recovery mode options (discussed later in the article) to solve the no command issue. If it does not go into the recovery mode, then you may have to try the above key combinations at least thrice. For some phone models, the user may have to tap the volume up key twice.
3. If that did not work, press/ hold the volume up button (10 to 15 seconds) and slightly tap on the power button to check if that boots the phone into recovery mode.

Try the Volume Down and Power Buttons to Enter the Recovery Mode

This is another method to enter the recovery mode. If this doesn’t work, you can Google your make and see the method specific to your device.

1. Power off the phone, either from the power button or by removing the phone’s battery (if possible).
2. Now press/ hold the volume down and power buttons for 20-30 seconds.
3. Wait till the phone boots and check if the phone boots into the FastBoot or Boot Mode Selection Menu.
4. If so, then navigate to the Recovery Mode and select it. Afterward, you may follow the recovery mode section of this article.

   

Press the Home Key Along with Power, Volume Up, and Volume Down Buttons

1. Press/ hold the Power, Home, and Volume Up to check if that boots the system into Android or Recovery/ Boot Selection Menu. If so, then you may use the recovery options to proceed further.

   

2. If not, then check if pressing/ holding the Power, Home, and Volume Down buttons brings out the required menu.
3. If that did not work, then check if pressing/ holding the Home button with the power button makes the required menu appear.

Connect the Android Phone to a PC

In this scenario, we will connect the Android phone to a PC and then attempt to boot into recovery mode.

1. Power off your phone and then connect it to a PC through a USB cable.
2. Wait till the phone shows a battery sign.

   

3. Then hold the power and volume up buttons till the phone vibrates.
4. Release the power button on vibration but keep hold of the volume up button.
5. Once the Android robot logo appears, release the volume up button and press/hold the power button.
6. Then just press (not hold) the volume up key and check if the phone is booted into the recovery mode.

Use the Recovery Mode of the Phone

Once you are in the recovery mode by using any of the key combinations discussed above, then you can try the following options so that the issue does not reoccur.

Reboot from the Recovery Menu

1. On the Android Recovery screen, select Reboot System Now and let the phone restart.

   

2. Upon restart, check if has bypassed the No Command screen and booted into the Android.

Wipe the Cache Partition of the Phone

1. Navigate to the Clear Cache Partition option by pressing the volume down key and then press the Power key to select it. Keep in mind this option may not be available to all users especially, Google Pixel users.

   

2. Wait till the Reboot System Now option is available and then select it.
3. Upon reboot, check if the phone boots directly into Android without showing the no command screen.

Run Tests in the Recovery Menu of the Phone

1. In the Recovery Menu of the phone, navigate to the Run Graphics Test and press the Power button to run the test.

   

2. Once the test completes, revert to the Recovery Menu (if not done automatically shown by the phone) and select Restart Now.
3. Upon restart, check if the Android issue under discussion is resolved.
4. If not, once again boot into the phone’s Recovery Menu and Run Locale Test to check if that resolves the issue.

   

5. If not and your OEM equipped your phone with some other tests, then check if running any of those tests in the phone’s Recovery menu clears the No Command screen.

Wipe the Phone’s Data and Factory Reset it

If none of the above did the trick for you, then you are left with no other choice but to wipe the data and factory reset the phone. Keep in mind that you may lose your data if there is no backup of the phone’s data. Also, make sure to remove the SD card (if present) from your phone. Before proceeding, check if booting your phone into safe mode through the key combinations (see the OEM’s website) lets you overcome the Android issue at hand. Before factory resetting the phone, check if applying the OS update from the cache or SD card (if the issue occurred after an OS updated) resolves the issue as many tech-savvy users have reported to work it for them.

1. In the Recovery Menu of your phone, navigate to the Wipe Data/Factory Reset option by using the volume keys and then press the power button to select it.

   

2. Now, select Yes to erase all the user data and wait till the process is complete.
3. Once completed, select Restart System Now and upon reboot, hopefully, the No Command issue on Android is cleared.
4. If that did not work, then check if reinserting the battery (if possible) and wiping the phone’s data lets you solve the no-command issue.

If you are a tech-savvy user then may sideload the Android OS image on the SD card to repair the OS. Otherwise, either you re-flash the OS on the phone or get it checked for a hardware/software issue from the OEM service center.