Trying to delete my Contacts Storage using Clear Data button however it's Unavailable

[FattyFatty2by4]

Just recently upgraded to a Droid Razr (been a long time blackberry user) and really just beginning to understand some of the features.  During the initial setup I didn't handle my contacts the way I would have preferred and would like to start over.  From what I can decipher, I should be able to go to Settings>Applications>Storage Use> and then chose "Contacts Storage" to completely delete my contacts via the "Clear Data" button.

However, the "Clear Data" button is grayed out and unavailable.  I've tried using "Force Stop" thinking that if this application currently had the data in an open state then that might be why is was unavailable.  However, it doesn't appear that "Force Stop" ever actually stops the application and it certainly doesn't allow me to chose "Clear Data" afterwards.

Does anyone know how I could either make the "Clear Data" button available or another method to completely remove my contacts?

Some other info that might be helpful:

Hardware: Droid Razr

Android Version: 2.3.6

Data Size: 31.29MB

I do not want to "root" my phone at this time.  If I were going to make a wild guess, I think it could be related to Backup Assistant (same idea that if an application has locked the data, it's not read/writable).  However, I don't see any way in the phone to disable Backup Assistant to test this theory.  Furthermore, I have disabled sync with all other contact services (facebook, linkedin, etc.) so if I can ever delete my contacts... the deletion won't propogate to my original sources.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

[B33]

If your Wanting to Clear or Edit your Contacts why not just go to the Contact an Edit it or Delete the Contact..You can also if you got your contacts set up threw Your Gmail Account do your Editing there there is were i do Mine an it's a little easier on my Eyes as the Contact info is more spread out,,,b33 

[FattyFatty2by4]

I'm really wanting to delete all of my contacts (in excess of 500) and would rather not go one-by-one.  Also, if I understand things correctly... even those that aren't visable are still taking up disk space (because of the newbie way I setup my phone).  I think the best option for me is a complete delete of every contact record.

If that's even possible. 

[B33]

Take a look at these instructions i Found And you might be able to Get Rid of them by Tapping on the Contacts up on Top then hitting your settings and Tap Manage Contacts that might give you the option there to get Rid of them. You could Export them to your SD CARD Then once in there Format the Card. But a word of Caution if you have an Pictures or Songs in there they will be Wiped as Well..

How do I manage my contacts on my DROID RAZR?

How do I manage my contacts?

Quick links  Create a new contact Add recent calls to contacts Edit a contact View contact Unable to view contacts within the Navigation app      My contacts on Corp Sync account Stopped Syncing after I updated the phone software to 6.12.173   Delete a contact Add picture to contact      Create a new contact group Delete a group Sort contacts Set an individual ringtone for a contact Contact transfer assistant Choose which contacts to display

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Create a new contact

1. Touch ,tap contacts.
2. Press the Menu key and tap Add contact.
3. Choose an account to store new contacts
4. Add all the information you want to store for this contact in the appropriate fields.
5. Tap Save.

Add recent calls to contacts

1. From the Home screen, tap 
2. Tap the recent (second from the left icon).
3. Scroll to the number you want to add to contacts.
4. Touch and hold the number.
5. Tap Add to contacts.
6. Select Existing to add number to existing contact or New to create a new contact.
7. Add all the information you want to store for this contact in the appropriate fields.
8. Scroll down and tap Save.

Edit a contact

1. From the Home screen, tap .   
2. Tap Contacts.
3. Locate and tap the contact you would like to edit.
4. Tap the options key. (four squares located beneath the display screen)
5. Tap Edit contact.
6. Make your changes.
7. Tap Save.

View contact

1. Tap   
2. Tap Contacts.
3. Press and hold the contact that you would like to view and tap View Contact.

Delete a contact

1. Tap  
2. Tap Contacts.
3. Tap and hold on the contact.
4. Scroll down and tap Delete contact.
5. Tap OK to confirm.

Note: At this time multiple contact selection is not supported.Add picture to a Contact

1. From the Home screen, tap .   
2. Tap Contacts.
3. Locate and tap the contact you would like to edit.
4. Tap the options key. (four lines located beneath the display screen)
5. Tap Edit contact.
6. Tap on the image icon located on the top left corner
7. Make your selection
8. Tap Save.

Create a new contact group

1. Tap   
2. Tap Contacts.
3. Tap on the group icon  located next to the magnifying icon.
4. Press the menu button
5. Tap New Group.
6. Enter the name of your group.
7. Tap OK.
8. Tap the check box of the names you would like to add to the group..
9. Tap Done.
10. Repeat steps 7-9 until you are done adding items into the groups.

Delete a group

1. Tap   
2. Tap Contacts.
3. Tap on the group icon located next to the magnifying icon.
4. Tap and hold on the group name you wish to delete. 
5. Tap delete group.
6. Tap Yes to confirm.

Sort contactsTo sort contacts or set display options, press Menu > Display options and touch:

• Only contacts with phones: hide email-only contacts.
• Sort list by: sort by first or last name.
• View contact names as: view contacts as first name or last name first.
• Choose contacts to display: select which source to use contacts from.

Set an individual ringtone for a contactYou can assign a custom ringtone for each of your contacts.

1. Touch and touch the name of the person.
2. Touch > Options.
3. Touch Ringtone and select the ringtone to use.

To switch back to the default ringtone for a contact, select Options > Ringtone > Default ringtone. CLICK HERE to visit our web based contact transfer assistant.
Contacts Menu OptionsWithin your contacts Menu you will have other options to help manage and share your contacts such as, Add contact, Display options, Accounts, Import/Export, Share name cards and More.Notes:

• Exporting contacts to the SIM card does not currently save the contacts. You can export and save contacts to the SD card.
• If you have multiple SIM cards, you will need to power cycle the device for all the SIM contacts to be visible.
• Under More, you can see My info - Which contains all of your contact information.  And Settings - Access toDisplay suggestions and Contact storage, which allows you to choose which account new contacts will be saved to.

   You can also remove the Display suggestions under you Contacts settings as well by removing the check from this location as well.

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Unable to view contacts within the Navigation appIf you're unable to view your contacts within the Nagivation application, try updating your Google maps application. Touch Market > Menu > My apps and select maps to update to the latest version.

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Choose which contacts to display.
Q: I have several accounts set up in my phone. How do I choose which contacts to display for the account i have set up such as Facebook, Corporate/Enterprise, Gmail/Google etc..? A: From the home screen, touch Apps > Contacts, touch the Menu key> Display options. Under Choose contacts to display, select the account which contacts the contact you wish to display or not display and check to display or uncheck to hide the contacts.

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My contacts on Corp Sync account Stopped Syncing after I updated the phone software to 6.12.173If you experience the issue with the contact sync after the update, please follow the steps below:

1. Under Accounts, select the corp sync account, General Settings, and UNCHECK the Contacts check mark.
2. Tap on - OK, OK.  Go to your Corp Sync email account and tap on the Manual Refresh (two arrows) to perform the Sync.
3. Power Cycle the device and repeat the steps above by CHECKING the Contacts check.

Details 

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[FattyFatty2by4]

Thanks for the info, I appreciate it.

What I'm trying to accomplish is outside of just managing contacts.  I have no issues adding, modifying, or deleting contacts.  I'm wanting to delete the underlying contact data (as can be seen from Settings>Applications>Storage Use>.

Since I originally posted this thread, I have been able to completely remove my contacts (you can do this yourself by turning off all contact sync services).  Now when I go to Contacts, I get the message "you have no contacts to display".  But just because they don't display does not mean they are deleted.  The contact data still occupies over 31MB of space.

I'm hoping someone has a suggestion to delete (or purge) that data.

[FattyFatty2by4]

I'm beginning to think the same thing and guess I will have to weigh the cost/benefits.  >Posts concerning hacking/rooting/jailbreaking etc, are not permitted on this forum<

Do you have a recommendation or any experience using an app to backup your phone and restore the applications or is it just better to install each app from scratch?

Message was edited by: Verizon Moderator

[B33]

I understand it's the space you wish to Remove Well unless Some else has a better Suggestion than Mine i would say a F.R. would be the only way to get it Completely Removed as it take the Phone back to Factory New.. An Formatting the SD CARD !

[FattyFatty2by4]

Thanks for the info.  I didn't know about that functionality built into the "Play Store".  That's pretty cool.

As far as violating the TOS, I assume you are referencing: "posts that discuss hacking and/or rooting a wireless phone from any carrier will be removed."  Once again (like our previous interaction from another post) I'm completely bewildered by your logic.  My initial post states: "I do not want to root my phone".  The post you deemed a violation is just referencing the fact that your suggestion of factory resetting is valid and appears to be the only way of doing what I'm requesting without doing something that is not an option.  This is called a juxtaposition.  While you look that up, I also recommend "illusory superiority".

Then again, maybe you feel that using the word root is what the TOS is trying to prohibit (and not necessarily discussions involving hacking and/or rooting).  But hopefully we can root out the real issue and get to the root of the problem... that's what I'm rooting for!

[B33]

That's good you Don't want to do it to your phone.  But just writing it on here will get the Violation an in your post just above mine you wrote about it again So Don't be surprised if they pull it an give you Some strong advice about putting it on here. Don't get me Wrong we Welcome you Here.!   You just got To remember the T.O.S an you will be Fine..  

[FattyFatty2by4]

For others who are hoping to delete/purge all contacts from their phone... I'll post what I've found.  Do not confuse this with just deleting contacts, I'm talking about purging the contacts and reclaiming the occupied space.  A forum moderator posted a guide that should help users who just need traditional contact management.  Also, if you're here looking to bulk delete all your contacts, instead of going into each individually... I'll post a possible solution at the end of this reply.

Please remember that I'm a newbie when it comes to the Droid and this is really just my opinion.  I welcome anyone with more expertise to correct me.

Completely Remove (purge) All Contact Data

1. Bottom line is that it appears it cannot be done within the current OS or even with approved applications from the "Play Store".  There are some risky options, but I believe they would probably void your warranty.
2. I could not conclusively prove that the reason the Clear Data button was unavailable was related to Backup Assistant having put the file in a read-only mode, but it seems reasonable.
3. There is another possibility that the core Gmail account is the process that is actually locking this data from being deleted.  I tried to test this by removing the Gmail Account, however, I was unable as it is required.
4. I did locate a second Contacts database that can be deleted:  Settings>Applications>Manage Applications> then chose "All" from the top of the screen.  Scroll down until you find "Contacts".  You will see a similar screen as to the one I referenced from the original post, but you can delete this data.  However, this is not the complete contacts file and is much smaller.  I didn't bother researching exactly what data this even contains.
5. Ultimately, the idea of reclaiming this space is probably not critical.  You can "hide" these contacts by deleting them in the Contacts app.  If you decide to "join" contacts with one you've already deleted, it appears to reference this "deleted" data which makes the process much faster instead of initiating a new sync.
6. If reclaiming this space becomes critical, it MIGHT be possible to use an app that can move data files to other locations (such as a SD card).  I did not test this, but a cursory review of some online materials seem to suggest it is possible.
7. Finally, the suggestion from the moderators that a Factory Reset would delete the data does appear to work.  It is up to you to decide if taking this nuclear option and performing a Factory Reset is really worth reclaiming the space.

Bulk Delete of Contacts:

Within the document posted by the moderator, it clearly states that you cannot select multiple contacts and therefore you cannot delete multiple contacts (i.e. bulk update).  So if you are deleting contacts you must go to each individually.  And as discussed, deleting contacts really doesn't delete (or purge) anything.  It simply removes them from being viewed within the Contacts app.

As far as I can tell, contacts appear within the app when they have a corresponding application that is in sync.  If you were to remove the sync option from all your contact applications... your Contacts app would be blank.  So though you cannot bulk delete, if you wanted to delete all the contacts that were added from a 3rd party email application (like mail.com)... no need to go to each contact and delete, simply go to Settings>Accounts> and change the sync option for the specific application.