What Does Reset App Preferences Mean?

Android devices are loaded with a long list of settings many of which a lot of users never even get around to using. One major reason for this is probably because they simply don’t understand what this setting means. One of such popular but rarely used settings for many people is the reset app preferences option.

You’ve probably been advised to reset app preferences on your phone to fix an issue or you just came across the setting at some point. So, what exactly does it mean to reset app preferences and when do you use this setting?

What is reset app preferences and what does it do?
You will find the reset apps preferences settings under the installed app settings on your android device. Selecting this option alters some settings related to how some apps on your phone behave. Note that this setting does not affect any of your data or files. It only changes some app settings. These include:

1. Default apps
One of the things that will be affected by this option is the default app settings on your phone. Apps that you have set as your default app for particular actions such as playing music, gallery, playing videos, or opening certain file types will be reset to the default android option. So, for instance, if you download a new gallery app for your photos instead of the default file explorer and you set the new app as default. Choosing to reset app preference will restore file explorer as your new gallery app.

2. Disabled Apps
Resetting your app preferences will also enable all previously disabled apps on your device. If you have any apps disabled on your phone for any reason at all, resetting the app preference will enable all of them again and you have to disable them manually again if you want them disabled.

3. App Notifications
Each app on your phone has a notification setting which you can hide or disable. However, if you decide to reset your app preferences, all notification settings and preferences will be reset to default. This means notifications you chose to hide earlier will no longer be hidden.

4. Background Data Restrictions:
To control excessive data usage, it isn’t uncommon for users to set limitations for background data usage individually for each app. But by resetting app preferences, all the restrictions you have set will be removed and you’ll have to manually set them again if you intend to restore them.

5. Permission Restrictions
One final setting that resetting app preferences will affect is the permission restrictions for your app. Each app has a set of permissions that must be enabled for them to operate. This may include access to your camera, contacts, microphone, and other phone features. If you have set any limitations to these permissions, resetting app preferences will remove any changes you have made. All the permissions you granted earlier will be revoked and you’ll be asked for permission again to use the feature.

When do you need to reset app preferences?
Generally, this setting is often used as a possible fix-it-all to resolve phone issues. If your phone or apps are misbehaving, the first recommendation would be to restart your device. Then you can try clearing your app cache. However, when these two options fail, you can try resetting your app preferences. If any of the settings above are the cause of the issue your phone is experiencing, resetting all preferences back to default should get it fixed.