I am not sure what happened, I tried an Over The Air update but no available update was reported by the Nokia server so I plugged the N96 into USB as normal and started the Firmware update process using Nokia Software Updater. The download went fine and the update started okay, after about 10 or 15 minutes I got the “Recover Phone” screen which requested that I Unplugged the Power, Removed the Battery, Replace the Battery, Plug In The Charger and Press the Power Button on the phone which I did which was followed by a loud bleep from the Phone accompanied by the D Pad light. After a few minutes it returned to the Recover Phone Screen, which it did continuously. After about 2 Hours I was getting really fed up of this and the device looked completely dead, no lights or bleeps anymore!! So I took drastic action and unplugged everything including the data cable, re-booted windows and re-started Nokia Software Updater, which found the N96 and requested a Re-Install of the update. The phone still looked completely dead (no light or bleeps after battery replacement) but after about another 30 minutes of removing battery etc the Update progress indicator seemed to show proper progress rather than going from 15 Minutes directly back to the “Recover Phone” screen, then bingo up it booted to the white screen, which had “Test Mode” on it below the Nokia text which I haven’t seen before.

Anyway I am happy to report that the N96 seems to be working fine now, complete with all my data thanks to UDP. Interestingly after the last Firmware update that I did (i.e. the first N96 update) I had to do a Soft Reset and format the Mass Storage because the phone was so slow after the update, but this time it seems fine without having to do that, so despite the initial problems at least I don’t have to reload all my data again !! Nick

Is it okay to upgrade the firmware now?

Hey Nick,
I have the same problem. However, still it doesn't work and now I cannot even connect my N96 to the Pc...really strange!

Now I don't know what to do...

Is the phone "going slow" after a firmware update a common problem?

I realise formatting the memory card is a v good idea as there may be system files etc lurking in hidden directories, but why would a soft reset help? I thought a firmware upgrade wiped EVERYTHING off the phone? Is this not the case? Am curious!

Unregistered

When you say you can't even connect your N96 to your PC what do you mean?

I think you are just going to have to keep trying or try the following that Steve recommended:

"Battery out for 5 mins, then try the hard reset sequence. hold down
green-*-3 (all three keys) and then press power on. Keep the three
keys held down for 10 secs.

Once it comes up, however far, try plugging it into NSU and see if
it's salvageable...."

How much data did you have loaded, I am wondering if this is what cause my problem, I had about 6GB?

How do I format the mass storage?
Do I need to recreate all the folders?
Or the N96 will create the folders after?