Device stuck in boot loop: restore Esper Agent and Remote Viewer connectivity

Android

Title: Device stuck in boot loop — restore Esper Agent and Remote Viewer connectivity

When a device gets stuck in a boot loop, Remote Viewer becomes unavailable and remote management through the Esper Console stops working entirely.

Why this happens

Remote Viewer requires the device to complete its full boot sequence and have an active Esper Agent running. If the device stalls or continuously restarts before the launcher appears, the Esper Agent never initializes, which severs both the Remote Viewer connection and the device's communication channel with the Esper Console. An outdated Esper Agent, an app conflict, or a corrupted system partition are the most common triggers.

Before you begin

Because remote management channels are unavailable during a boot loop, physical or local network access to the device is required for all steps below.

Identify the boot state. Physically observe the device and determine which scenario applies:
- Device is frozen on a boot logo or animation — may indicate a hardware or firmware fault.
- Device reaches Android partially but stalls before the launcher — may indicate an Esper Agent or app conflict.
- Device cycles repeatedly between rebooting and a partial boot — classic boot loop.
Knowing which stage the device stalls at narrows the root cause before you take any action.
Collect a bug report if the device reaches the home screen. If the device eventually boots far enough to show the launcher, collect a bug report immediately — rebooting clears the log data needed to identify the root cause.
- Via Esper Console: navigate to Devices & Groups → [Device Name] → Actions → Request Bug Report.
- Via ADB:
```
adb bugreport bugreport_output.zip
```
Save the output file before proceeding.
Update the Esper Agent once the device is stable. Outdated agent versions can contain bugs that cause or worsen boot issues. In the Esper Console, navigate to Devices & Groups → [Device Name] → Device Details → Esper Software Updates, select Update, and wait for the update to complete before moving to the next step.
Reboot the device. After the agent update completes, navigate to Devices & Groups → [Device Name] → Actions → Reboot. This confirms the updated agent survives a full boot cycle.

Verify: After the reboot, the device should show an Online status in Devices & Groups within 5 minutes, and a Remote Viewer session should connect successfully from Devices & Groups → [Device Name] → Remote Viewer.

If the device never completes boot

If the device remains frozen or continues to loop after these steps, the issue likely indicates a corrupted Android system partition, a failed firmware update, or a hardware fault. At this point the device requires a hardware-level recovery:

Attempt a factory reset using the device's hardware key combination — typically Volume Down + Power to enter the recovery menu. Refer to the OEM documentation for the exact key sequence for your device model.
If the recovery menu is inaccessible, contact the OEM for a firmware reflash or device replacement.

Important: A hardware-based factory reset will unenroll the device from Esper. The device will need to be re-provisioned before it reconnects to the Esper Console.

If Remote Viewer still fails after the agent update

If the device boots successfully but Remote Viewer still cannot connect after updating the Esper Agent, the issue may be network-related rather than agent-related. Collect the following before contacting Esper Support:

The bug report file collected in Step 2.
The device's current Esper Agent version, visible at Devices & Groups → [Device Name] → Device Details.
The Activity Feed for the device, found at Devices & Groups → [Device Name] → Activity Feed, showing events around the time the boot loop began.
Confirmation of whether any apps, firmware updates, or Blueprint changes were applied shortly before the issue started.

Contact Esper Support with the above information.

Still need help?

If your device remains stuck in a boot loop after attempting to restore Esper Agent and Remote Viewer connectivity, please submit a support ticket and include your device serial number, the specific error messages displayed during boot, and details about any recent changes made to the device.