I love a clean start. There’s nothing like the feel of a smartphone (or PC) after a factory reset.

I’m using my Nexus 5 for almost a year now. For a while, I’ve been wanting to do a factory reset and start clean. The upcoming Lollipop upgrade is exactly the push I needed to do it.

My game plan:

1. Before upgrading:
   1. Perform general app cleanup, so I upgrade only with the apps I want.
   2. Document my settings and configuration (system and apps), so I can re-apply it if needed.
   3. Backup data.
2. Upgrade.
3. After upgrading:
   1. Restore apps, data, settings and configuration, as needed.
   2. Explore what new built-in features can replace 3rd party apps I’m using. I always prefer built-in over 3rd party.

After I upgraded my Nexus 5 to Lollipop, it’s time to set up the device the way I want it. Since my upgrade process involved full data wipe, I’m starting clean.

In this post, I describe how I use the preparation steps I’ve taken before the upgrade. Not unlike the previous posts, this process is highly personalized and detailed, so the post is just a description of the method with some highlights.

I love a clean start. There’s nothing like the feel of a smartphone (or PC) after a factory reset.

I’m using my Nexus 5 for almost a year now. For a while, I’ve been wanting to do a factory reset and start clean. The upcoming Lollipop upgrade is exactly the push I needed to do it.

My game plan:

1. Before upgrading:
   1. Perform general app cleanup, so I upgrade only with the apps I want.
   2. Document my settings and configuration (system and apps), so I can re-apply it if needed.
   3. Backup data.
2. Upgrade.
3. After upgrading:
   1. Restore apps, data, settings and configuration, as needed.
   2. Explore what new built-in features can replace 3rd party apps I’m using. I always prefer built-in over 3rd party.

I have lots of data on the sdcard. My Nexus 5 is the 32GB model, and before going through with factory reset & upgrade, I have about 24GB used. In this post, I describe what I backup, and how I get it off the sdcard over to my MacBook.

I performed this backup procedure right before going through with the upgrade, so the backup is as up-to-date as possible.

I love a clean start. There’s nothing like the feel of a smartphone (or PC) after a factory reset.

I’m using my Nexus 5 for almost a year now. For a while, I’ve been wanting to do a factory reset and start clean. The upcoming Lollipop upgrade is exactly the push I needed to do it.

My game plan:

1. Before upgrading:
   1. Perform general app cleanup, so I upgrade only with the apps I want.
   2. Document my settings and configuration (system and apps), so I can re-apply it if needed.
   3. Backup data.
2. Upgrade.
3. After upgrading:
   1. Restore apps, data, settings and configuration, as needed.
   2. Explore what new built-in features can replace 3rd party apps I’m using. I always prefer built-in over 3rd party.

In order to be able to restore all of my set up, layout, customization, etc., I want to document in detail my starting state. This documentation should include anything that I might need to re-apply after factory reset & upgrade. It’s OK to skip things that are restored automatically (cloud-based, etc.). If I’m not sure about something, better be safe than sorry…

The method: Go over everything, and write down and/or take screenshots of anything I want to document.

This process generated a lot of data. Some of it includes sensitive stuff that I don’t want to document publicly (like account names on various services). All of it is highly personalized, and is probably of little interest to most readers. So instead of writing a post with 425 screenshots (really!) (and pixelating out many of them), I decided to just keep a few highlights, and describe the method. Feel free to ask for more details if you’re interested in something specific.