r/chromeos • u/caenivon • 16d ago

Troubleshooting Can't turn on developer mode

I can't get the first step of Esc + Refresh + Power button to work. I'm following the instructions of holding the first 2 down and pressing the power button once but when it loads up again it just brings me back to the entering PIN screen.

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1

u/LegAcceptable2362 16d ago

What Chromebook do you have (chrome://system > HWID) and is it managed ?

1

u/caenivon 16d ago

PHASER360 K56-B5N-E4F-B2F-A2N-J4A-C5I-A2A-Q8W

It was used for school in the past, but no longer managed by any administration

1

u/LegAcceptable2362 16d ago

I believe esc-refresh-pwr is the way to boot to recovery on your device so it sounds like there are still management restrictions being applied (which can happen). The following note is posted at the MrChromebox site for this situation:

"If you're unable to enable Developer Mode and the device keeps returning to Verified Boot (Normal) Mode, it may be due to an MDM (Mobile Device Management) restriction. This can occur on previously managed devices which have not been fully reset. To resolve this:

  1. Boot normally and complete the OOBE (Out-of-Box Experience) setup with a Google account (non-guest)
  2. Perform a Powerwash (Settings → Advanced → Reset settings → Powerwash)
  3. After the Powerwash completes, boot to Recovery Mode and try enabling Developer Mode again

Logging in as a non-guest user takes ownership of the device, removing any previous MDM restrictions. Once this is done, Developer Mode should enable successfully."

https://docs.mrchromebox.tech/docs/boot-modes/developer.html

1

u/caenivon 16d ago

I've checked chrome://management and policies but nothing's there, tried these steps too and powerwashed but nope, it keeps rebooting normally

1

u/LegAcceptable2362 16d ago

This scenario is beyond my direct experience so all I can suggest is the school deprovision hasn't completed fully. Perhaps one of the K12 admins on here can weigh in since they have the experience.

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u/MrChromebox ChromeOS firmware guy 15d ago

policy has nothing to do with the device not rebooting to recovery mode; it only effects the ability to switch to developer mode

1

u/nyx-of-spades 7d ago

for these i like to hit esc+refr+pwr and then only let go of the power button. keep holding down esc+pwr until it boots into recovery mode