Chromebooks are known for their simplicity and reliability, but even these sleek devices can experience occasional glitches, performance slowdowns, or frustrating errors. These issues can arise for several reasons, from problematic extensions to altered settings, making your device less enjoyable to use. In the past, resolving such problems often required a factory reset, known as Powerwash in Chromebooks. While effective, this method has a significant downside: it wipes all your personal data, including files, apps, and settings, requiring you to set up your device from scratch. Thankfully, the ChromeOS M131 update brings a handy feature called "Back to Safety" that can help.

"Back to Safety" allows you to restore your Chromebook to a stable state without affecting your personal data. Unlike a factory reset, this feature preserves your files, bookmarks, saved passwords, and browsing history. It works by resetting Chrome's settings to their default state, disabling extensions, and clearing temporary files like cookies and cache. The process also doesn't alter your sync settings. However, it ensures that changes -- such as updated settings and disabled extensions -- are synced across other devices linked to your account.

This feature is useful for resolving a variety of issues with your Chromebook, such as persistent pop-up ads, unwanted changes to your homepage or search engine, slow performance, or network-related problems. Below, we'll guide you through how to use the "Back to Safety" feature effectively to troubleshoot and fix common Chromebook issues.