How to Create a Nandroid Backup on the OnePlus 5 and OnePlus 5T

Right after you install TWRP as your Custom Recovery on the OnePlus 5 or OnePlus 5T, you can follow these steps below to create your first Nandroid backup.

Apple has a great backup system in place for iOS, but that’s something that has been lacking on Android for quite some time. Sure, there is an ADB backup method in place, but it won’t backup data for every single application. Then there’s the new backup system that Google added for individual applications, but unless the developer adds the code to the application, then your application data does not get backed up to the cloud.

This has resulted in many of us enthusiasts to turn to alternative methods from things like a Custom Recovery.

You’ve likely seen this feature in multiple Custom Recovery solutions, but today I’ll be focusing on TWRP as it is the most popular and commonly available one out there. In order to do this though, you will need to have TWRP installed on the OnePlus 5, which also requires that you have the OnePlus 5 bootloader unlocked a well.

Once you have followed those guides and are all setup though, then you can proceed with the steps below.

OnePlus 5 Create Nandroid Backup

1. Boot the OnePlus 5 into Recovery Mode
2. Tap on the Backup button on the left side
3. Choose which partitions you want to backup
4. Give the backup a name that describes the ROM (optional)
5. Choose if you want to compress or encrypt the backup (optional)
6. Then swipe the white arrows to the right to begin the backup process
7. Wait until the backup has been completed
8. Then tap the Reboot System button at the bottom when it appears

Explanation

So as I was just explaining, the reason why a Nandroid backup is so great is because it includes just about everything on our OnePlus 5. From application and game data to system settings and even the partitions (like the modem and EFS) that we generally do not have access to. This just isn’t possible with other methods (Helium is a popular backup app but just uses the ADB method and won’t work for all apps), and that is why we have to have a Custom Recovery in order to do this.

So once you are ready, and I recommend you creating one right after you install TWRP, then go ahead and boot the OnePlus 5 or OnePlus 5T into Recovery Mode. This should be the TWRP main menu and it you’ll see the Install button on the left that you’ll want to tap. This screen is where you want to choose the options for your backup. From the partitions to be included, to the filename, and even things like encryption and compression can all be setup right here.

For a full backup, you’ll want to just go ahead and choose all of the partitions that are available. This is the safest choice since you will have all of the data that is available in this single backup. Even if you don’t end up restoring the modem or EFS, you’ll still have it on hand just in case you want to. I generally do not add an encryption password or enable compression, but it’s your choice here. I do, however, come up with a custom filename so it’s easy to see what the backup is of.

Once you’re ready though, simply swipe the white arrows to the right and the backup process will begin. The amount of time it takes for this backup to be completed will depend entirely on how many apps, games, pictures, videos, etc. you have on your OnePlus 5 or OnePlus 5T. Just wait for it to be completed and then tap the Reboot System button at the bottom right as it appears. This will reboot the OnePlus 5 and take you right back into the regular Android OS with a backup on hand.

From here, you can install a modification that you feel might have messed with your device, or even move that Nandroid backup onto your desktop PC.