How To Bypass/Disable Pattern Unlock On Android via ADB Commands

• Pattern unlock is one of the many device protection mechanisms available to Android users, and there are quite a lot of people out there who actually rely on said method to secure their devices from unauthorized access.

• The problem, however, arises in case you forget the pattern that you set to unlock the device. Worse yet, there could be a situation where your friend may have tried to play a prank on you by setting a pattern lock that you are completely unaware of. Past the break, we’ll be taking a closer look at two solutions in detail.
  

• First things first, and you must have good knowhow of installation and use of ADB.
• To toggle USB Debugging on Android 4.0 and higher, navigate to the Developer options on the general settings screen. On non-ICS devices, said option can be found by navigating to the Settings > Applications > Development screen.
• Provided all prerequisites are in place, here’s what you need to do in order to nullify pattern unlock on your Android:

Method 1

• Connect your device with the computer via USB cable
• Open Command Prompt and key in the exact code as displayed below:

Quote:

adb shell
cd /data/data/com.android.providers.settings/databases
sqlite3 settings.db
update system set value=0 where name='lock_pattern_autolock';
update system set value=0 where name='lockscreen.lockedoutpermanently';
.quit

• Reboot your device
• You may now unlock your device providing whatever pattern you like

Method 2:

• If the above method doesn’t work, try using the following code instead:
• adb shell rm /data/system/gesture.key

After rebooting, unlock your device using ay preferred pattern.
 As evident from the above, neither method disables the pattern unlock. Instead, they just nullify the pattern order on the lock screen.

Both methods have successfully been tested using a combination of HTC Desire Z (running CyanogenMod 7.2) and Windows 7 (64-bit Edition), and a good thing about these solutions is that they work independent of, as well as in tandem with, each other, so no harm in deploying them both simultaneously. Once you regain access in to the OS, head over to the system security settings, reselect your preferred unlock method, and you’re good to go.

Special Note: The purpose of this guide is to help users with employing an effective pattern unlock bypass solution only on their own devices, instead of using it for malicious (read: unethical) purposes. On the other hand, it begets the need to keep USB Debugging disabled on your device if and when not required in order to be on the safe side.

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