Google has confirmed that it is aware of an Android 14 bug which is causing storage issues on some Pixel phones. It is now warning users to avoid setting up multiple accounts on one device.
After updating to Android 14 a few weeks ago, some Pixel 6a and Pixel 6 Pro users noticed that they no longer had access to their local files, or that their devices were stuck in a boot loop and experiencing crashes.on Google’s support forums, said they were unable to take pictures or install apps. 573 people said they had the same issue, with some claiming that their internal storage had dropped from 128GB to 4GB.
Google said it is working on a fix and that it has already pushed out an update that will prevent the issue from happening on more devices. For those affected, Google says that it expects the update to restore access to files without having to factory reset the phone, which would ultimately cause users to lose all of their data.
But for more serious cases where a phone is stuck in a “Pixel is starting” boot loop, Google says that it is “investigating methods that may be able to recover some data.” For unaffected users, Google is warning against creating secondary users on their Pixel devices until a full fix has rolled out. This is one of the more serious issues affecting the Google Pixel line. Particularly because there’s a lack of certainty that users stuck in a boot loop will be able to retain their media without having to factory reset the handset., do not appear to be affected by the same bug. But Google’s advice to avoid setting up—or logging into—secondary user profiles suggests that the new phones could be prone to the issue too.