Is there a non-app tool for batch backup of APK files? Just as the other times, an answer to my question shall not contemplate an app from either the Play Store, or any other source. What I'm after, is a tool capable to backup user apps, system apps or both those categories, when launched from within a working Android OS.

Backing up the apps' external data is not relevant. The only thing that counts, is the ability to batch backup the base.apk file, found in each /data/app/appName/ directory, in order for me to be able to reinstall it either in order to revert to a previous version, or to install it from scratch.

Lastly, I would prefer for the tool to be freely customizable (e.g. not compiled). Maybe something like a shell script?

This script is outdated and no longer supported. For the newest version, which requires Android 5+ and Python 3.5+, and supports Arcus theme variants and Substratum overlays, see my GitHub repository.

Here's my revamped script, now dubbed NEMRIS, which satisfies the question. As usual, it's freely editable by anyone, and sh-compliant as well, meaning that it can be ran from the Android shell.

Actually, the script depends upon the aapt utility, can discern if the utility is installed, is able to determine whether the backupDir and the appsToBackup variables are empty or not and, if they are, it sets default values instead of aborting.

Still, the date binary cannot determine your true time zone, so everyone should manually edit their TZ variable.

Once it has been ran for the first time, the tool is able to discern whether an APK has already been backed up or not, by making use of an array filled with MD5 checksums.

It also stores said array into a dictionary, called md5sums.txt, which is a plaintext file located into the APK backup directory. This feature is able to reduce the elapsed time of a good half, but it depends on a stat binary able to measure a file's exact size in bytes. If stat does not comply, the checksums will be computed each and every time, as in the previous version of the script. This is to ensure that NEMRIS will depend only upon aapt. Remember to manually wipe the md5sums.txt if you do some cleanup in the backup folder.

As a plus, the script now has a maxDictSize variable, which accepts an integer value. The inputted value will be interpreted as bytes. This can be customized, and serves to recompute the checksums dictionary if its size exceeds the maximum.

Finally, I patched it to support third-party apps whose names have forward slashes in them. No more weird errors, I guess.

I hope it may prove useful.

License: GNU General Public License, version 3 or later.

#!/system/bin/sh

# nemris - an Android app backup tool

# Copyright (C) 2016 Death Mask Salesman
# <http://android.stackexchange.com/users/152843/death-mask-salesman>

# This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
# it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
# the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
# (at your option) any later version.

# This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
# but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
# MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
# GNU General Public License at <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/> for
# more details.

#This variable is used to calculate the total elapsed time
#DO NOT alter it, or the script won't be able to calculate it
SECONDS=0

#This variable is used to output the time when the script is launched
#Edit the plus/minus and the value after "UTC", to force date into displaying your correct time zone
timeAtStart="$(TZ=UTC-2 date +%H:%M:%S)"

#This variable stores the path where to backup your apps' APK files
#Edit it freely, but do not forget the quotes
backupDir=""

#This variable stores the path where the script is located
scriptDir="$(dirname "$(readlink -f "$0")")"

#This variable tells the script which apps to backup
#Supported values are:
# - "User": tells the script to backup only third-party apps
# - "System": tells the script to backup only system apps
# - "All": tells the script to backup both 3rd party and system apps
appsToBackup=""

#This variable contains the maximum size of the checksums dictionary, in bytes
#It is used to decide whether to flush the dictionary or not
typeset -i maxDictSize=20000

#This function outputs the time when the operations start. Purely cosmetic: can be disabled safely
#///Beginning of function "timeInfo"///
function timeInfo {
 echo "[ INFO ] Operations started at "$timeAtStart"."
}
#///End of function "timeInfo"///

#This function checks if the "aapt" and "stat" utilities are installed
#///Beginning of function "dependencyChecker"///
function dependencyChecker {
 echo "[ INFO ] Checking if aapt and stat are installed..."
 whence -v aapt &> /dev/null
 isAaptAbsent="$(echo $?)"

 whence -v stat &> /dev/null
 isStatAbsent="$(echo $?)"

 if [ "$isAaptAbsent" == "0" ]; then
  echo "[ INFO ] aapt has been found."
  unset isAaptAbsent
 else
  echo "[ FATAL ] aapt cannot be found. Aborting."
  exit
 fi

 if [ "$isStatAbsent" == "0" ]; then
  echo "[ INFO ] stat has been found."
  echo ""
  echo "[ INFO ] Checking if stat can measure exact file sizes..."

  stat -c %s "$scriptDir/nemris.sh" &> /dev/null
  if [ "$(echo $?)" == "0" ]; then
   echo "[ INFO ] Measurement successful."
   isStatUsable="1"
   unset isStatAbsent
  else
   echo "[ WARNING ] Measurement failed. stat will be ignored."
   isStatUsable="0"
   unset isStatAbsent
  fi
 else
  echo "[ WARNING ] stat cannot be found."
  isStatUsable="0"
  unset isStatAbsent
 fi
}
#///End of function "dependencyChecker"///

#This function verifies whether the values into "backupDir" and "appsToBackup" have anything inside or not
#In the case that the variables are empty, default values will be used, instead
#///Beginning of the function "variablesChecker"///
function variablesChecker {
 echo "[ INFO ] Checking if a backup path has already been specified..."
 if [ "$backupDir" == "$(cat /dev/null)" ]; then
  echo "[ WARNING ] A backup path has not been specified."
  echo "[ WARNING ] Setting the path to default (/sdcard/AppsBackup)."
  backupDir="/sdcard/AppsBackup"
 else
  echo "[ INFO ] Backup path has already been specified."
 fi
 echo ""

 echo "[ INFO ] Checking if the typology of apps to backup has already been chosen..."
 if [ "$appsToBackup" == "$(cat /dev/null)" ]; then
  echo "[ WARNING ] A typology of apps to backup has not been specified."
  echo "[ WARNING ] Setting the default typology (User)."
  appsToBackup="User"
 else
  echo "[ INFO ] A typology of apps has already been specified."
 fi
}
#///End of the function "variablesChecker"///

#This function emulates the case insensitivity for "appsToBackup", usually provided by brace expansion, but lacked by sh
#In the case that an unsupported value is found, a default value will be used instead
#///Beginning of the function "caseInsensitiveWorkaround"///
function caseInsensitiveWorkaround {
 systemArray="$(echo -n {s,S}{y,Y}{s,S}{t,T}{e,E}{m,M})"
 userArray="$(echo -n {u,U}{s,S}{e,E}{r,R})"
 allArray="$(echo -n {a,A}{l,L}{l,L})"

 case ${appsToBackup:0:1} in
  s|S)
   for i in $systemArray; do
    case "$appsToBackup" in
     $i)
      appsToBackup="System"
      ;;
    esac
   done
   ;;
  u|U)
   for i in $userArray; do
    case "$appsToBackup" in
     $i)
      appsToBackup="User"
      ;;
    esac
   done
   ;;
  a|A)
   for i in $allArray; do
    case "$appsToBackup" in
     $i)
      appsToBackup="All"
      ;;
    esac
   done
   ;;
  *)
   echo "[ WARNING ] \""$appsToBackup"\": invalid typology."
   echo "[ WARNING ] Setting the default typology (User)."
   appsToBackup="User"
   ;;
 esac

 case "$appsToBackup" in
  System|User|All)
   ;;
  *)
   echo "[ WARNING ] \""$appsToBackup"\": invalid typology."
   echo "[ WARNING ] Setting the default typology (User)."
   appsToBackup="User"
   ;;
 esac
}
#///End of the function "caseInsensitiveWorkaround"///

#This function checks if the backup directory already exists
#///Beginning of the function "backupDirCheck"///
function backupDirCheck {
 echo "[ INFO ] Checking if the backup directory already exists..."
 if [ -d "$backupDir" ]; then
  echo -n "[ INFO ] Backup directory already exists, "

  cd "$backupDir"
  #echo "[ INFO ] Checking if the directory is empty..."
  if [ "$(ls | grep "\.apk$" | head -n 1)" == "$(cat /dev/null)" ]; then
   echo "and does not have any APK file inside."
  else
   echo "and has at least an APK file inside."
   isDirectoryEmpty="0"
  fi
 else
  echo "[ INFO ] Backup directory does not exist. Creating it now."
  mkdir -p "$backupDir"
  cd "$backupDir"
 fi
}
#///End of the function "backupDirCheck"///

#This function compares the size of the checksums dictionary and flushes it if too big
#///Beginning of function "sizeComparer"///
function sizeComparer {
 echo "[ INFO ] Comparing the dictionary size to the max value..."

 typeset -i dictSize="$(stat -c %s "$backupDir/md5sums.txt")"
 if [ $dictSize -ge maxDictSize ]; then
  echo "[ INFO ] The dictionary size exceeds the maximum value. The checksums will be recomputed."
  dictTooBig="1"
  unset dictSize
 else
  echo "[ INFO ] The dictionary size does not exceed the maximum value."
 fi
}
#///End of function "sizeComparer"///

#This function generates a MD5 array, filled with the checksum of each APK file
#///Beginning of the function "checksumsGenerator"///
function checksumsGenerator {
 echo "[ INFO ] Generating file checksums..."
 apkList="$(printf "%s\n" * | grep "\.apk$")"
 for i in $apkList; do
  tempMd5=($(md5sum $i))
  md5Array="$tempMd5 $md5Array"
 done

 cat << EOF > "$backupDir/md5sums.txt"
md5Array="$md5Array"
EOF

 echo "[ INFO ] MD5 array generated."
}
#///End of the function "checksumsGenerator"///

#This function creates a list of the apps to backup, based on the content in "appsToBackup"
#///Beginning of the function "appListGenerator"///
function appListGenerator {
 case "$appsToBackup" in
  System)
   echo "[ INFO ] Retrieving system apps list..."
   appList="$(pm list packages -s)"
   ;;
  User)
   echo "[ INFO ] Retrieving third-party apps list..."
   appList="$(pm list packages -3)"
   ;;
  All)
   echo "[ INFO ] Retrieving apps list..."
   appList="$(pm list packages)"
   ;;
 esac

 echo "[ INFO ] Applications list retrieved."
}
#///End of the function "appListGenerator"///

#This function creates an array, filled with each app's full path
#///Beginning of the function "apkPathRetriever"///
function apkPathRetriever {
 echo "[ INFO ] Collecting the path of each app's APK..."
 for i in $appList; do
  apkPath="${i#p*:}"
  apkPath="$(pm path $apkPath)"
  apkPath="${apkPath#p*:}"
  pathArray="$apkPath $pathArray"
 done
 echo "[ INFO ] Paths collected."
}
#///End of the function "apkPathRetriever"///

#This function extracts the label or the package name for the APK supplied to it
#It extracts the app label for any third-party app, the package name for any system app
#///Beginning of the function "appNameRetriever"///
function appNameRetriever {
 case "$1" in
  /system/*)
   appName="${aaptOutput#*name=\'}"
   appName="${appName//\'*/}"
   displayedName="$appName"
   ;;
  /data/*|/mnt/asec/*)
   appName="${aaptOutput#*application-label:\'}"
   appName="${appName//app*/}"
   appName="${appName%\'*}"
   displayedName=$appName
   appName="${appName//\//}"
   appName="$(printf "%s" $appName)"
   ;;
 esac
}
#///End of the function "appNameRetriever"///

#This function retrieves the version number of the APK
#///Beginning of the function "appVersionRetriever"///
function appVersionRetriever {
 appVersion="${aaptOutput#*versionName=\'}"
 appVersion="${appVersion//platformBuildVersion*/}"
 appVersion="${appVersion%\'*}"
 appVersion="$(printf "%s" $appVersion)"
}
#///End of the function "appVersionRetriever"///

#This function compares the MD5 of the APK in question against any MD5 in the array
#If it finds a match, then the function exits and the APK isn't backed up
#///Beginning of the function "md5Compare"///
function md5Compare {
 alreadyBackedUp=0
 appMd5=($(md5sum "$1"))

 for c in $md5Array; do
  if [ "$alreadyBackedUp" == "0" ]; then
   if [ "$appMd5" == "$c" ]; then
    alreadyBackedUp=1;
   fi
  else
   break;
  fi
 done
}
#///End of the function "md5Compare"///

#This function decides whether to backup an app or not
#It calls both "appNameRetriever" and "appVersionRetriever" for renaming any copied "base.apk"
#It also decides whether to call "md5Compare" or not, in order to see if an app has already been backed up
#///Beginning of the function "apkBackup"///
function apkBackup {
 for i in $pathArray; do
  aaptOutput="$(aapt d badging "$i")"

  appNameRetriever "$i"
  appVersionRetriever

  if [ "$isDirectoryEmpty" == "0" ]; then
   md5Compare "$i"

   if [ "$alreadyBackedUp" == "0" ]; then
    echo -n "[ INFO ] Backing up "$displayedName"... "
    cp "$i" "$backupDir"/$appName"_"$appVersion.apk
    echo "done."
    md5Array="$appMd5 $md5Array"
   else
    echo "[ INFO ] "$displayedName" has already been backed up."
   fi
  else
   echo -n "[ INFO ] Backing up "$displayedName"... "
   cp "$i" "$backupDir"/$appName"_"$appVersion.apk
   echo "done."
  fi
 done

 if [ "$md5Array" != "$(cat /dev/null)" ]; then
  cat << EOF > "$backupDir/md5sums.txt"
md5Array="$md5Array"
EOF
 fi
}
#///End of the function "apkBackup"///

#This is the core of the tool
echo "**************************"
echo " NEMRIS - App backup tool "
echo "  by Death Mask Salesman  "
echo "**************************"

timeInfo
echo ""

dependencyChecker
echo ""

variablesChecker
echo ""

caseInsensitiveWorkaround
echo ""

backupDirCheck
echo ""

#This section checks whether to analyze the dictionary size
#It also decides whether to compute the checksums
if [ "$isDirectoryEmpty" == "0" ]; then
 if [ -e "$backupDir/md5sums.txt" ]; then
  if [ "$isStatUsable" == "1" ]; then
   sizeComparer
   echo ""
  else
   dictTooBig="1"
  fi

  if [ "$dictTooBig" == "1" ]; then
   checksumsGenerator
   echo ""
  else
   source "$backupDir/md5sums.txt"
  fi
 else
  echo "[ INFO ] Checksums not calculated yet."
  checksumsGenerator
  echo ""
 fi
fi

appListGenerator
echo ""

apkPathRetriever
echo ""

apkBackup
echo ""

echo "[ INFO ] Operations took "$(((SECONDS/60)/60))" hours, "$(((SECONDS/60)%60))" minutes and "$((SECONDS%60))" seconds."
echo "[ INFO ] All done!"


Is there a reason to install, say, VLC from F-droid instead of play store? I'm a fan/contributor/user of FOSS, but not an RMS-style purist. Is there some advantage I'd get installing OSMAnd or VLC, etc. from there instead of the playstore? Some privacy thing or frequent updates?

I'm basically worried that I'd be hurting VLC's exposure by not adding to their download numbers in the playstore with no real advantage for me or VLC or FOSS in general. I'm explicitly asking if I know an app is FOSS and ensure the author's the right one, why not download from the playstore?

Given the second para of your question, where you are sure of developer, I would go with downloading from Play Store -:

Faster updates. Updates from F-Droid are typically slower than Play Store, more noticeable if developer updates app very frequently. For instance, check out open source email app "FairEmail" and see the versions on Play Store and F-Droid. Admittedly, this is an extreme example because developer at times pushed out 3 updates per day!
If it is a paid app, it is easier to use Play Store while installing on a new device.
Not sure of this but I have noticed that non Play Store apps are at times not backed up by Google and restored on new devices. Backing up and restoring has too many factors, so wouldn't weigh this heavily.


Sending linux commands over serial I have a question about being able to send Linux commands over a serial connection to an Android device.

I have heard of putty and tried to use it, but i am ultimately lost with it. Like if I was in the Linux shell of the Android and could type, reboot and the device would reboot. The Android device has a virtual serial connection, and I have been able to connect to it using putty, but I don't know where to go after that. I know this is confusing and may be completely wrong, thank you for your time in advance.

I also have been able to connect to it with QPST, and see a 100mb drive come up with some files in it.

what do you want to do with linux commands?.You can check for devices in the i2c bus and you'll get to see the debug messages.If you want to test something specifically  please mention it.


Is it possible to recover apps removed from Google Play? I recently discovered that on my new phone (the old one died suddenly because of eMMC failure) some apps are no longer on Google Play. They are not incompatible with device; they are not listed at all.
I have some old backups by Helium Backup, but I am 100% sure that newer versions were released.

Is it somehow possible to download these apps? Most of them I purchased, but I can't find them even in "Library". I contacted their respective developers, but got no answer at all...

You can try to find the app on a site such as apkmirror.com or apkpure.com. Download the .apk file for the app, and install it using adb. This is called "sideloading," and you can find instructions for it here or here.


How many additional numbers can I set in one contact? How many additional numbers can I set in one contact?

I was playing around with a script and I was able to get only 400 of them in on a simulator. However, I would like some official response about what is the maximum, and does it vary based on the Android version.

Clarifying on your comment asking for a rough estimate, it is 499 and that seems to be not rough but pretty much fixed . Source- from SE webapps- What is the maximum number of phone numbers per one contact in Gmail?

It is relevant in the sense ultimately your contacts are going to be synced using Gmail , while the Android capacity may be more or less, it doesn't matter and by the same logic Android version shouldn't either


Check hardware performance S5 series Is there an App that can be used to check the status of the hardware? I want to know the processor and memory performance.

there is many methods like overclock,

it means you can check the performance or check the Power of Android hardwares.but, this is dangerous for users and then you can check the performance of this hardwares (as GiantTree said) ;

for example :

The best App (AnTuTu Benchmark - Google Play)

but, excuse us.there is one community for Suggested apps.you need to ASK this question on :

http://softwarerecs.stackexchange.com/questions


Will I get OTA updates after installing Android L Developer preview? I installed Android L developer preview on my Nexus 5. Now I was wondering if I still would get over-the-air updates. If not is there a way of fixing this?

For the developer preview versions, there will not be an over the air (OTA) update.

This is clearly mentioned in announcement at Android Developer Blog.

So, when the actual Lollipop comes out on November 3rd, Google will create factory images for Nexus Devices and upload to Factory Images for Nexus Devices. Fetch it and flash it again to enjoy Lollipop on your Nexus 5.


can i unlock my phone with voice command? i have a samsung galaxy edge with android 7.0. i want to rule my phone with my voice without touching it even if its locked. i mean some basic functions, like unlocking phone. so whenever i say my secret word my phone will unlock, or if i say "how many notifications" it will say "no new notifications" for example (without unlocking phone). is this possible or is there an app for this?

thanks in advance!

I think if you search about it you may find application to do this, but i don't recommend it. because application like that need to turn on mic and process voices coming from it whole the time which shortens battery life.


Why doesn't pin code/pattern work? I have a Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime and when I set a pin code it would show up, but it would switch back to swipe to unlock even though I have it secured as PIN. It just occasionally switches my screen lock to swipe and to PIN and I can't figure out how to make it stay as PIN.

Did you consider trying other screen lock screen apps from playstore?(If not please do!)

If this doesn't work then a factory reset might do the job.


How to migrate accounts and data from one Android phone to another? I have a HTC Magic phone with Android 2.2.1 and I want to migrate all accounts (9), apps, sms, settings, etc... to a new phone with Nexus One.

Do you known some Android service/option or free app on Market to do it?

Thanks a lot!

UPDATE

I have migrated successfully :)

Old phone: HTC Magic rooted with Android 2.2.1
New phone: Nexus One rooted with Android 2.3.3

At first, backup google accounts with Titanium Backup Rooted
Then, backup SMS and Call logs with Life Saver 2
At end, restore in the new phone

Some problems with settings restore (Wifi, Bluetooth, apps, etc...).

Thanks!

If you are rooted, use Titanium Backup.  You won't be able to restore some things, since the Nexus One and HTC Magic have some very different system apps, but most should carry over.  After backing up with TB, copy /mnt/sdcard/titaniumbackup/ to your PC.  Then on the N1: install TB, copy the folder from your PC to the same location on the phone, then run TB and restore.

If you're not rooted, it's difficult to back up most things, especially all at once.  I'd rely on Google's backup for your list of apps and that sort of thing, as the other answer suggests.


Does the Android specification include minimum sensor parameters? Android apps can access sensor data.  How do I know how accurate the sensor readings are?  Is there a universal standard that specifies operational parameters of a sensor?

E.g., a temperature sensor on an Android device must be able to accurately read temperature with an accuracy of 0.01C over a temperature range from 0C through 100C.

If there is such a standard, is it available for reference online?

Google has an Android Compatibility Definition Document (CDD) (see http://source.android.com/compatibility/overview.html) that specifies the minimum (and suggested guidelines) for what a device must physically support to be allowed to use the Android branding (and to get the Google Market and Google's android apps).

The latest CCD in section 7.3 lists the minimum requirements of the sensors.  The temperature sensor (section 7.3.7) is actually listed as something that Android devices should not include.  There are not specs for this sensor's sensitivity.


Battery temp too low? I have a Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and it doesn't want to charge. When I plug it it it says "Charging Paused: Battery temperature too low." Sometimes it will charge but most times it won't. It's really annoying and I can't afford to buy a new battery or phone. Any suggestions? Please, I'm desperate.

I've personally never seen anything like this before.

I decided to look it up to see whether it has been resolved before. According to forums the reason for this issue is that the battery has been tampered with. Now I'm sure you haven't touched your battery so I kept looking. The main other suggestion I could find was that the battery is simply damaged, and a lot of people within forums are suggesting that a new battery may be required. I see that you say you can't afford to buy a new battery, so may I request that you search online to see, and if there are any other methods available, to try them? If you do have a small source of income from anywhere batteries are not too expensive online, so maybe have a look if you can :)

I wish you luck,

Regards


How to lock screen besides pressing Nexus S right side power button I was wondering, besides locking screen by pressing Nexus S right side power hardware button, is there any way to lock screen, using software button press instead of hardware?

There are many widgets available on the Android Market that provide this functionality.

If you are running a custom ROM on your Nexus S (e.g. CyanogenMod) you might already have this feature within the Notification power widget.  Go to Menu -> Settings -> CyanogenMod Settings -> Interface -> Notification power widget -> Widget buttons and enable the Go to sleep button (also enable the widget itself in the previous screen.)  Now when you pull down the notification bar you can tap the "zzZ" button to lock the phone.


Preventing the uninstall of an app - samsung tab I know that in android 5.0 there was a package system file named "package installer" , I used to delete it so I could prevent users from uninstalling any application.
WHO knows what is the file name of the same file for android 6 - 7 for the samsung tablets?

Same question for the settings.apk for android 5 - what did it become for android 6 & 7??

Now it's called "GooglePackageInstaller" and it's located in root/system/priv-app/GooglePackageInstaller/

Settings app is called "SecSettings2" and it's located in root/system/priv-app/SecSettings2/

The screenshots are from an S7 running 7.0, should be the same for the tablets as well.


Using a stylus on my Android device Is there any way to use a stylus with an Android device like Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo or HCL Me U1 Tablets?

Definitely, yes. I can't see any problem using stylus on Android devices. But you need the one for capacitive screen (or "Capacitive stylus", as mentioned by eldarerathis)

As a proof, there is an article that lists some of the best styli for tablet devices.

Disclaimer: I'm not affiliated with the site or its creator. The site is used only as a proof that there are styli for Android tablet.


Android: how to find application locking xtables? I have Pixel Experience (Android 10) installed on my Redmi K20. + Magisk 21.4.
In terminal I enter command iptables -t mangle -L -n | grep TTL which throws Another app is currently holding the xtables lock. Perhaps you want to use the -w option?. How to find the this application? Or how to drop xtables lock?

/system/bin/iptables binary holds an advisory lock on /system/etc/xtables.lock file (which is usually /run/xtables.lock on normal Linux distros).
It's the native netd service which performs operations with NetFilter but on a rooted device normal apps (e.g. AFWall+) may also execute the binary to add or remove firewall rules.
Use the lslocks command to list all the system locks currently held and the applications holding them. Or read the /proc/locks file directly.
You should not try to drop a lock, instead (using iptables [-w|--wait] option) wait for the ongoing execution to end.


How to establish a LAN directly between an Archos G9 (Android 4.0, WiFi) and a linux box? I am buying an Archos G9 (Android 4.0). And a Raspberry Pi. I'd like to take them along for trips, and they need to be able to communicate over a network so I can use stuff like VNC etc.

How do I do this?

AFAIK ad hoc WiFi is annoyingly unsupported on Android, but can I connect to the Raspberry Pi if I manage to set the latter up in Master Mode with a usb wifi dongle? That might be hard though.

How about LAN over bridged usb cables? Does Android support that?

Any other ways of getting a network between this device and a generic linux box? It has WiFi, Bluetooth and Usb connections.

I've recently bought an Archos 101 G9 Turbo (running ICS 4.03) with the intention of using it for work purposes to replace my slow Windoze netbook. The only shortcomming I though I would experience was having access to an ethernet port on the device.

I found an old USB LAN adapter that's been lying around in a drawer for a few years and out of curiosity. I thought it can't do much harm to try it. I plugged it in the the micro-usb port via a host cable and much to my surprise a grey Ethernet icon immediately popped up in the tablet's system tray. I plugged in an Ethernet cable from my network switch into the adapter and lo-and-behold it picked up an IP address via DHCP and connected to the net! No software, no configuration - true plug-and-play!

The Ethernet icon 'lights up' when connected so you can see it's good to go. The only thing I can't find is any configuration options under settings, so it looks like it might only work with DHCP and default settings (if anyone can throw any light on this It would be appreciated).

Even better, these things are still available and really cheap to buy, the host cable (micro USB male to USB A female) was GBP £1.99 and the USB ethernet adapters can still be bought for less that GBP £2.50 online. The USB ethernet adapters are available from the usual online sources. The one I have uses an SR9600 chipset if that's any help.

FWIW I've just tried this on my old Archos 7c G2 tablet running Froyo 2.3.3 and it doesn't work with that. I've tried it on a Samsung, Galaxy tab running Honeycomb 3.2 and this too doesn't recognize the device so I guess it's just ICS it works with.


How do i connect my Galaxy S3 to my computer? I Have tried everything i can find to connect my galaxy S3 to my computer, I have used different cables, and Different ports on my computer. My phone will connect to other computers just fine, but on mine it says "Can not recognise USB device. please reconnect and try again." Is this a computer issue, or just my phone?

In my experience, this happens when there is another program or driver that is monitoring the USB ports for the operating system. I have had problems with my Logitech gaming device drivers causing this sort of problem.


Samsung Galaxy A5 screen has broken, want to retrieve data My samsung galaxy A5 mobile is dropped and its screen has been broken though the hand set is ringing when some one calls my nomber but I am not able to receive it.
Now I want my all media and whatsapp data back before going to give it to service center.
I would be very thankful if anyone help me to provide solution.
Thanks.

Perhaps it is achievable if the "USB Debugging" option is enabled on the phone and you authorized the computer for this USB Debugging purpose.

I know of 1 method which doesn't require you to touch your phone only if you have USB Debugging enabled:

  adb pull /sdcard/ %USERPROFILE%\Desktop\

this shall copy every file and directory from your sdcard to your Windows Desktop

Note: For internal memory you will have to check the internal memory folder, you can check it by the ls command in /storeage/ where you should cd(change directory) to folders inside and check if it is your internal memory stored files.

There's another way to get a backup of your whatsapp app and whole system backup as well(system backup, not data files like whatsapp media, pictures and songs etc.) but it can only work if you are able to touch the bottom of the screen so that you can authorize for the backup, you can do so by adb backup and the steps are listed here :http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-nexus/general/guide-phone-backup-unlock-root-t1420351


(Red triangle)Device is corrupt after flashing Android N Dev Preview on rooted Nexus 6P Just got my brand new Nexus 6P about a week ago (Yeah, stupid me). I immediately began to root my device using this thread on XDA:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/nexus-6p/general/guides-how-to-guides-beginners-t3206928

What I've done along following the guide:

Unlocked the bootloader using fastboot;
Installed TWRP custom recovery using fastboot;
Rooted my device by flashing the stable version of SuperSU through the custom recovery just installed.

This process went flawless. Booted up my device, noticed no bugs/weird problems at all.

As I watched some Android N Dev Preview videos, I decided to flash it myself. Now, my experience in flashing images on android is not low as I've done it a couple times before. The installation seemed flawless, as I followed these steps in order (yes, my bootloader is unlocked):

flashed the bootloader.img
flashed the radio.img
flashed the recovery.img
flashed the boot.img
flashed the system.img
rebooted bootloader after each step

When I booted my devices, It displayed an message saying something like: couldn't verify if device is corrupted. I've seen this before, and I know this occurs when the bootloader is unlocked, so I waited 10 seconds till another similar message occurred:

  /!\
  Your device is corrupt. It can't be trusted and may not work properly.

  Visit this link on another device:
  g.co/ABH

I haven't seen this before so I looked it up and realized my device is bricked.

What I have done so far after the message

Carefully applied the steps again in the same order;
Carefully applied the steps again but with recovery and boot swapped;
Factory reset (result is very obvious I know);
Waited for a long, long time

What is, in my situation, your advise for me to at least unbrick the device? I've downloaded the latest version of Marshmallow on the Google Factory Images for Nexus devices page. Should I just flash this image?

Please remind that I'm rooted.

Many thanks!

There is nothing to worry about. It means you just flashed a ROM.

More details: https://support.google.com/nexus/answer/6185381?hl=en


How to tell which application has pushed a notification Android allows notifications to be pushed and some times when we install certain applications, they push adverts to the notification bar.

For example, this screen shot shows a notification icon that a download is in progress (and the notification is also shown in more detail when we expand the notification area).

My question is, how do we find out what posted any given notification. You can probably guess that I'm getting unwanted notifications (adverts/spam).

The advice is usually start uninstalling apps, reset the OS etc and whilst I don't disagree that those methods don't work, they're not easy either.

So, is it possible on stock Android 5 or higher to find out what application sent the notification?

Just long-press the notification. That should either directly lead to the corresponding app in Settings › Apps – or at least reveal a button to go there:

The ⓘ button brings you to the details, where you also can configure notifications for that app (Android 5.1 here)

AFAIR that feature was added somewhere around Kitkat (Android 4.4), but not before JellyBean (4.2), so it should definitely be available with Android 5 (Lollipop).


Samsung Galaxy S2(Format or restore factory setting through pc?) I accidentally sat on my Samsung Galaxy S2 and it has resulted in screen crack. I am planning of repairing it instead of buying a new one.

The phone with the cracked screen works (except the screen) and contains personal and sensitive data.

I do not want to expose it in any way while I give it for repair.  It would be nice if I can factory reset or wipe the phone before I give it to service.

A hard reset restores the original factory settings and erases content, including downloaded ringtones, images, programs, and contacts stored in the internal memory. This feature allows for resetting of sound profiles, display settings, and phone or memory card settings.

To perform a hard reset using the hardware keys, follow these steps:

Turn off the device.
Press and hold both Volume Up and Volume Down keys at the same time.
Press the Power key only until the phone vibrates once, then release only the Power key.
Continue to hold the Volume up and Volume Down keys until the Android System Recovery screen appears.
Press the Volume Down key to highlight Wipe Factory Data.
Press the Home key to select.
Press the Volume Down key to highlight Yes - Delete all user data.
Press the Home key to select. Press the Home key to reboot.

But as you said, your screen is broken. Check the screenshots and see how many times you want to use down and up volume key, so that the according to number position you can do it.


What does it mean when I select to 'clear data'? If I look at the options to manage an application and select to clear data, what data is specifically being cleared? Is there a way to find out?

All the data stored by the app in the folder /data/data/app_name/ will be cleared. You cant specify which data to clear. The app would be like when it was installed or updated.


What represents 'bootloader' in the possible outputs of `adb get-state`? I recently employed the use of adb get-state and decided to know further about it. Running adb inter alia shows:

adb get-state                - prints: offline | bootloader | device

I intend to know under what circumstance(s) would that command return bootloader.

As of now I'm aware of these outputs:

device: booted into Android OS, debugging enabled and authorized
recovery: booted into recovery environment
sideload: during side-loading
unauthorized: booted into Android OS, debugging enabled but not authorized yet
offline: wireless device not in reach. (There may be other reasons.)
unknown: When adbd not detected at other side. At least that's what I understand of it. Occurs in case of debugging being disabled or device not plugged in.

I'm yet to know about the following two outputs:

host
bootloader

I found all those outputs here with no added explanation.

Before you ask,

yes, I've already ran that command when my Nexus 6 was booted into bootloader mode and I received unknown as output;
it is mere curiosity with nothing that it would solve in particular as of now.

There are some hints in implementation details of ADB protocol and overview.

As communication starts between ADB server on host (PC) and ADB daemon (adbd) on device:

  Both sides send a CONNECT message when the connection between them is established.

Syntax of CONNECT message is:

CONNECT(version, maxdata, "system-identity-string")

  The system identity string should be "<systemtype>:<serialno>:<banner>"
  where systemtype is "bootloader", "device", or "host"

The connection state is set when the identity string is parsed. device and host are obvious i.e. if the CONNECT message is sent by device or host. We can't see host state on PC with an Android device on other side because it's set only when it's none of bootloader, device or three recovery states (recovery, sideload and rescue).

For bootloader part, it seems that ADB can have a "simplified / embedded implementation... for limited environments, like the bootloader":

  The bootloader will support two streams.  A "bootloader:debug" stream, which may be opened to get debug messages from the bootloader and a  "bootloader:control", stream which will support the set of basic bootloader commands.

Also:

  The BOOTLOADER and RECOVERY states correspond to alternate states of devices when they are in the bootloader or recovery mode.

ADB server:

  maintains a list of "connected devices" and assigns a 'state' to each one of them: OFFLINE, BOOTLOADER, RECOVERY or ONLINE
  ...
  considers that a device is ONLINE when it has successfully connected to the adbd program within it. Otherwise, the device is OFFLINE

Other connection states (available to date) include:

Connecting    Haven't received a response from the device yet.
Authorizing   Authorizing with keys from ADB_VENDOR_KEYS.
Unauthorized  ADB_VENDOR_KEYS exhausted, fell back to user prompt.
NoPerm        Insufficient permissions to communicate with the device

With the addition of authorizing and connecting states:

  Previously, devices would transition as follows:

  offline -> unauthorized -> offline -> online
  offline -> unauthorized (when actually unauthorized)

  With this patch:

  connecting -> authorizing -> online
  connecting -> authorizing -> unauthorized (when actually unauthorized)

It seems that now device offline state appears only when a wrong AUTH type is requested or responded by client or server (1).
no permissions or connecting states are set soon after device is connected.
authorizing or unauthorized are set when AUTH message is conveyed between client and server.
unauthorized is set either if host's private key(s) failed or if waiting for on-screen confirmation from user to add new public key.

If none of the above states is detected for any reason, it's returned unknown.


Determine android:installLocation in Play Store BEFORE install I'm familiar with moving apps from internal to external memory. In fact I have to with the limited internal memory I have.

Some apps don't allow that. I know it's the android:installLocation line.  I try to avoid the apps that don't allow moving to the external memory. The only way I know is to install it, and try to move it. Seems like an impractical method to me.

So, the question is: Is there a way to determine this setting before installing?

Specs if needed.
Phone: Samsung Galaxy S5, SM-G900V, Android ver 6.0.1, not rooted.
Computer: Windows 10 Pro.

You will need to examine the app manifest on PC to determine if the app can / cannot be moved to external SD card

Manifest declarations that determine this are explained in  my answer here App can't be moved to SD Card , Option not available. To summarize

  Only if android:installLocation is set to auto or preferExternal it can be moved to external SD

For more details on reading the manifest file on PC see this SO question


Android ICS spell checker does not know how to spell (English)? English (United Kingdom) is set as the system language and regardless of whether I set the Android spell checker to use the system language or "English" it just doesn't know how to spell. Almost everything is underlined in red! Basically, the spelling dictionary (which should be built in to Android 4) appears to be empty? The same goes for French (I have not tried the other languages).

How do I correct this?

I have not seen these Android spelling dictionaries available for download anywhere. This does appear to be the same as the Android completion dictionary - which appears above the keyboard as you type; suggesting possible words. The only suggestions that show are names from my Contacts List! (I have later realised that "fox" in the example below would seem to be part of a name in my Contacts List!)

I mentioned in the comments below that I have installed the Hacker's keyboard. Together with this I have also installed the (Hacker's) English Completion Dictionary - this works great, but only with the Hacker's keyboard and only in portrait mode (I don't really have enough room in landscape). Could this break Android's own spell checking dictionaries?!

This appears to be a "fix" for the issue.. but it requires root to write to /system/app. I don't want to root my device just to get a standard feature.

  Download these two files: LatinImeGoogle.apk & LatinImeDictionaryPack.apk
  Put the apk's onto your sd card
  Copy the apk's
  Navigate to /system/app and paste the apk's into the directory
  Rename (or delete) the file titled "LatinIME.apk"
  You now have a working dictionary for your keyboard!


Bypass FRP RCA Tablet ~

My friend recently purchased a RCA tablet second hand, he came to me to root the device as i have helped him before. Although I have made a mistake this time. I factory reset the device with a google account still on the device. My friend can no longer get in contact with the original owner. I've looked everywhere and other FRP bypass guides don't work because the have all been patched. I managed to bypass setup and open settings, but when pressing on build number many times, and nothing happened. I installed a app that would pull up developer options, but it just says that it's not available for this user. I've factory reset via settings, no luck. I've force killed the setup application, home button reappears, but doesn't do anything when pressed. I disabled google in a attempt to prevent it from asking for an account to be setup, still no luck. I've now run out of ideas, and I'm wondering if anyone can help me.

~

OMG

I figured it out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Step 1
First normally boot up.
Sign into a network.
Allow it to check connection.
Then when it askes u to verify your account, press the back button until you get back to networking.
Choose a different network, type a bunch of random letters/numbers then press show password select it, press assist.
Then google will open.
Search for settings.
From settings go to backup/reset.
Reset the device.
Boot normally once again.

Step 2
You will be asked to verify again. Turn your device off.
Reboot into safe-mode.
Then re-bypass into settings.
Head to device info.
Enable developer mode. (press build number 7 times)
You cant enable dev mode unless your in safe mode as there is protection for it.
Once you have dev mode enabled you need to turn on usb debugging and OEM unlock.
WHATEVER U DO DONT PRESS THE HOME BUTTON, IF IT WORKS ALL OF THE SETTINGS WILL BE UNAPPLIED AND SETUP WILL RESTART

Step 3
Now reboot to recovery. (Poweroff, then hold the volume up button while turning the device back on)
Next we need to scroll to
Press the power button to select it.
You will boot into fastboot.
Now you will need a pc...
First lets check if OEM unlocking is enabled.
Run fastboot flashing get_unlock_ability
From CMD/TERMINAL (You have to have adb/fastboot installed)
You will get (bootloader) unlock_ability = 0 If it isn't enabled

BUT if it is you will get (bootloader) unlock_ability = 1XXXXXXX

If it's enabled we have to unlock the bootloader.
THIS WILL VOID YOUR WARRANTY
We have to do this as, OEM unlock isn't really enabled.
What we've done is made it so the the system see that it's both enabled and disabled.
This means the only command that will work is
fastboot oem unlock
Were going to run this command.
When you do, spam the volume up button to select yes.
Now we're almost done.
We have to unlock it from flashing too, and unlock system critical (In the security update from 2016 the FRP partition was marked as critical and unless we unlock critical partitions the FRP lock won't ever go away)

First Flashing Unlock
Run fastboot flashing unlock
Spam the volume up again
Then run fastboot flashing unlock_critical
Spam volume up again
Now close adb/fastboot on your pc.
And unplug your device.
Since security is still enabled fastboot reboot doesn't work.
So we have to wait for the device to drain completely.
Then charge it a bit and turn it back on.
It will wipe the FRP partiton alone with all the other ones, except for the /boot partition.

FRP is disabled.

This will work on any android device.
Did this from a RCA tablet, so it does XD
Good Luck and Happy adb'ing :)

EDIT:
Works on device with fastboot.... got a bit to excited that i found a bypass for FRP, which has been a issue of mine for a while.


Android Font Deleted/Not Working I was trying to change the font for BENGALI language in my phone. I have my phone rooted.

Copied these six fonts to someplace else and then Deleted these six fonts from system/fonts. I could not install my intended font. So, wanted to revert back to the originals.

When I copied the original fonts back, and restarted the phone, the BENGALI fonts are still not working. What to do??

I am using Derpfest rom on Android 10.

I got it. The permission bits for the font files should be rw-r--r-- . When you copy some file from someplace else to any system folder , check for this pattern in the permission bits and make necessary corrections to do that. It should work.


Is there a (decentralized) open source "Google Latitude" alternative? Is there an open source application which allows to share my location in real time? I'm looking for a fully open source solution, that is open source client as well as open source server software.

It doesn't have to be scalable or anything, I just want to share my location to whoever has the link to the application on my server.

This is not a duplicate of Alternative to Google Latitude? - I want a self-hosted application (on my own server), not on some non-Google third party server

OpenGTS provides fleet tracking, and there is a (paid) Android App on the market.  Given that it's open source, it's always possible someone (you?) could develop a free app as well.


Can dual-sim phone use one sim for voice\sms and second solely for internet access? Is it possible with dual-SIM Android phone to use one SIM-card for voice and SMS but not internet access and second solely for internet access? I tried reading PDF manuals for such phones but it's a bit unclear.

I'm moving abroad for work and will need to keep my current work SIM to communicate with the main office but I'd also like to use a local operator to access internet because it's going to be way too expensive to continue to use internet via my work SIM abroad. And I really don't like to carry a second phone or portable router for this. Looking at HTC One Dual sim at the moment, looks good but I never used dual-SIM phones before and have no idea how those actually work. Will it be able to function the way I need it to?

Yes you can. Both sim can be used for internet and voice calls. You can also select which sim can be used for internet and which can be used for voice calls.The settings can be found under Settings-> Wireless & networks.


Download Region or State for offline Map Is it possible to download an entire state offline map for Google Maps via a 3rd party app?

I know that if you download the offline map through Google Maps it allows you to download an area roughly equivalent to a city. Currently I've been stitching the offline maps together but its a very long and tedious process.

I'm not concerned about size or bandwidth that it may use.

It should work with Maps (+) (or its ad-financed free version Maps (-) Offline Navigation). This app was developed for exactly this purpose (even before Google Labs introduced the "pre-caching" feature). I never tried it myself, but the comments look promising as well.

Maps (+) (Source: Google Playstore; click image to enlarge)


Restart sound engine in Android (4.1) I am Running AOKP on my HTC Desire S and it has a weird issue with sound - If I reboot the device with headphones plugged in, the sound (specifically the bass) is OK but if I remove the headphones and if any kind of sound is played through the Phone's speaker (a touch, a keystroke, a song, a notification anything) and then try to plug in the headphones again, the bass cracks. Of course, I have reported the issue to original developer who has ported the build, but for now if I could just restart the sound engine, I may be able to solve it temporarily. Is there any such service that runs or is there any way to do so?

AOKP 4.1 milestone 1

EDIT: This is not an answer to my original question (so not putting as an answer) but this kind of solved my problem. Well when you lose bass, just plug the headphones in, call a number (I always call my customer care which is toll free and not human :P) wait for the ring, cut the call and Whoila! The bass is back! :D I know it sounds crazy, but it works!

Hope this isn't patronising, but did you go to sound settings and check that the "safe headset volume" button is deselected?


Chrome browser immediately crashes and I cannot get to my bookmarks Does anyone know why I'm no longer able to access my Mobile Bookmarks on my Galaxy S3 since the last major Android update several months ago? Prior to that update I had no problems with my bookmarks. Now all I get is a "Aw Snap" error message. The bookmark page will appear for a split second then turns into Aw Snap. So aggravating! I don't think the problem is directly within Chrome because I've followed nearly all the online fix instructions others have given to no avail. I think those fixes were for those having Aw Snap issues on their desktops.

My last hope was one giving instructions to add Chrome To Mobile Extension on the desktop first but I was shocked that the Extension is not even a Google product! Needless to say I removed it immediately. I'm a baby neophyte in this tech world... All I want to do is get my Mobile Bookmarks that I've had for the 2 yrs that I've owned my beloved Galaxy S3...

The bookmarks would be synced to Google servers if the browser is signed in. Then try clearing the cache of the app. Uninstall any updates to the app to see if that's causing the issue. If it still crashes, clear the app data, but if the bookmarks aren't synced they'll be erased


How do I REALLY sync ALL contacts to a new phone I have an old phone (LG P350) with Android 2.2.2, where I obviously have a few contacts. Most of them are contacts with telephone numbers, which I manually created (few got automatically imported from facebook or email).

Now I have a new LG phone with Android 2.3.6.
I want to have on the new phone all the contacts I had on the old one. I mean the contacts that you see when you tap on the Contacts icon.

It should be a complete no-brainer, but apparently it isn't.

Note: I don't use the GMail application neither on the old phone nor the new one, and I don't want to. I do have my @gmail.com account set as the main account for both phones.

On both the old and new phone, under Settings -> Accounts and Sync, the "Auto-sync" option is enabled.
Also, under the ...@gmail.com account listed below "manage accounts", I have enabled both "Sync people details" and "Sync contacts", both on the new and old phone.

However, my contacts don't get synced. I have a lot of contacts in the old phone that I can't find in the new one.
The new phone apparently has imported all the mess of useless contacts from gmail (i.e. email addresses some with and some without names) but no phone numbers.

So how do I sync, or export and then import ALL my contacts?

As you've already figured, a built-in solution is:

Open the contacts app on the "old device"
In Menu → Import/Export, chose to export
Copy the resulting 0001.vcf file to your "new device"
On the new device, open the contacts app and chose to "import" from Menu → Import/Export

Hint: take care there's enough free space available on the "exporting" device (file might get large, as contact pictures are stored inside it as well). You might not always get a warning when storage runs full, but instead end up with some "incomplete export", which then cannot be imported on the other end.

Now for the second part: why didn't they sync automatically? First, there are a few different "storages" to be considered:

On SIM
Google Contacts

These two are available on all devices. Depending on device and ROM, there might be additional "storages", e.g.

Exchange
PC Suite

Assuming you're speaking of Google's sync: That only takes care for Google contacts. As the PC Suite would only cater contacts in PC Suite to sync them with its desktop counterpart, and Exchange would not care for anything but Exchange contacts (you wouldn't want your personal contacts appearing in your company's address books, would you?). SIM contacts are a very special case: Nothing cares to sync them anywhere. I'm not even sure whether Import/Export is touching them.

So as parts of your contacts have been stored as "LG PC Suite contacts", these have not been sync'd with Google (and your "Google contacts" not with LG Suite), which explains the miss.


Why does Samsung GS4 pattern lock sometimes change to side-by-side layout? I have the SGS4 SGH-M919, Android 4.2.2,  WickedV8 ROM.

Normally my lock screen looks like this:

Once in a while, my lock screen unexpectedly changes to this side-by-side arrangement:

I have not done anything to cause this change, and I am unable to find a way to change it back to normal other than rebooting the phone.
The "pencil" icon does not cause anything to move.  If I try long enough, a message will appear that says something like "your security settings prevent changes to the lock screen".  I can still unlock the phone, but the small pattern is less convenient.

I do not find anything in Settings that would control the layout of the lock screen.
Can anyone explain why this changes and how I could prevent it or change it back to normal without a reboot?

That seems like it is a bug in the custom ROM you are using. Many custom ROMs (or Xposed modules) that add a rotate lock screen function may have that bug. If it is disabled, and the bug occurs, there only ways to reverse it are to either restart com.android.systemui or to enable auto-rotation of the lock screen and then turn the phone into landscape mode, then back to portrait (it may take several attempts; it may not fix itself at all for both methods).

Alternatively, if you do not have that option, you can install Xposed Installer and either the module Wanam Xposed for TouchWiz or Gravitybox JB / KK for AOSP. To change lockscreen rotation settings.

Personally, I recommend adding a shortcut to your homescreen to kill systemui. You can do this by installing an app like ROM Toolbox Lite. Create a homescreen shortcut from ROM Toolbox (or whichever script app you installed) and make it a script. In the script, issue the command pkill com.android.systemui. Make sure that you have root privileges and to (if necessary) tell the app to run it with root.

BUG: There is an existing bug where, if YouTube is running in the background, may inadvertently cause lockscreen rotation. This can be solved by killing the background process YouTube.


Taking photo and storing it directly to OneDrive/365 At work, we draw on white boards a lot and at the end of the session, we take pictures of the boards (with our personal camera phones) with a goal of putting the pictures on our intranet.

Whilst it's minor, having to plug my phone in to the computer via USB, find the relevant images, copy them to my computer and then add them to our Office 365 storage / OneDrive is just an additional process I'd like to remove.

I can't sync the DCIM folder because it would include personal pictures as well.

Is there way to always save images to OneDrive/365? I found http://www.uploadcamapp.com/ which is perfect other than it only uploads to Drive and Dropbox

It needs to be OneDrive/365 as that is what the business uses.

It appears as if OfficeLens does this, but it is slow and manual. With uploadcam the photo was just automatically uploaded where as OfficeLens asks you to choose where to upload on each photo taken


How to start a bootlooping phone in Safe Mode Exactly a week today, I updated Podcast Addict on my Alcatel One Touch M'pop 5020D. It shut down immediately I opened it. And then other apps started shutting down too. So before going to bed I restarted the cell. I woke up at dawn to realize it was stuck in bootloop.
I've tried wiping the cache partition and performing a factory reset in Recovery Mode, but that hasn't helped. Fortunately or unfortunately (I'm currently in a state of confusion as to whether or not this was a good decision after all) my phone is not rooted. I therefore can not apply several options in fixing this. I'd like to know if there's any way, any medium at all, that I can boot into Safe Mode so I can uninstall the Podcast Addict. Thanks for the help.

Sorry for the disappointing news, but there is no way to boot into safe mode without USB debugging enabled and already authorized by Android, and  root access or a custom recovery.

The content of the file named persist.sys.safemode must be set to 1 for the device to boot into safe mode. The file is located under /data/property, is  owned by root user and is part of root group only. If only the root privileges are granted, the file can be edited.


How to recover files from SD card on HTC Merge? So today somehow my phone completely reset itself. I went into my local wireless office and they helped me a bit. My phone has lost all of it's contacts and apps (no biggie) but the employee told me that pictures and video would still be on the SD card. I can't find my pictures anywhere on my phone. Would they still be on the SD card? If so, how can I get to them?

Thanks

If there are video or photo on sdcard you see it to plugin your sdcard on device to can read an sdcard. On htc there are no encrypt of data on sdcard by default


How do I make my email alert *annoying*? I'm on call a lot and need to know when I get an email. The little dings and dongs available as alert tones don't cut it - I might be asleep, or in the shower, or whatever. I need it to be persistent, annoying, loud, and not shut up until I acknowledge that I heard it. Unfortunately, this seems to be difficult.

I found an app in the store that claims to do it, but it only supports POP - I need Exchange. I'd rather something that hooked into existing notifications so I could use the normal mail client, but that seems to be impossible.

I can't be the only one with this need - does anyone know of a good solution?

Thanks

There's Missed Message Flasher in the Play Market.

Note: I haven't actually tried the app.


My Galaxy Tab 10.1 fell straight from the bed. Will this influence the Tab life? Last night, I left the Tab next to me and it fell from my bed onto the floor. The Tab now has a crack in the upper right corner and a little depression between the frame and the screen.  Will this affect the Tab's lifespan/usability or is just cosmetic?

Anytime you have a crack or gap in a device where it isn't supposed to be can mean you may run into additional issues. The device will now be more prone to issues from moisture and/or dirt and it may not be as sturdy and could be more likely to break even more when moved the wrong way or dropped (even from a lower height).

If there are cracks in the digitizer (the glass that you touch), it can cause issues with recognizing input from your fingers. And you have the possibility of glass splinters ending up in your finger (depending on how the glass cracked). To help with the possibility of splinters or having it crack further, a screen protector could help (but it isn't guaranteed to prevent anything else).

But the act itself of being cracked (as long as it didn't cause internal hardware damage or too much damage to the screen), shouldn't cause any shortening of life of your product. It is just what may happen after the crack (moisture, dirt, etc) that can shorten the life of the tablet.


Where to put supersu zip file while rooting HTC One M8 I'm following the instructions at http://htc-one.wonderhowto.com/how-to/unlock-bootloader-root-your-htc-one-m8-0154444/ and have found a stage where I don't have enough information, which is at Step 9 in the instructions, which says "Start by grabbing SuperSU from Chainfire directly on your phone, or download and place the file in your device's "Download" directory."

I tried doing it directly on the phone, but that didn't install it properly --- it seemed to want the phone already rooted, but I'm doing this as a stage of rooting the phone.  When I then try running supersu, it complains it can't find the su program.

So now I'd like to "place the file in the Download directory", which presumably means using "adb push", but I can't find where I should be putting it, i.e. any directory called "Downloads" or anything like that.  I've looked around, using "ls" in the adb shell, and I suspect it might be in /data, but I can't look in there (perhaps because the device isn't rooted yet?)  The instructions expect the supersu zip file to be unpacked by the TWRP recovery, which I have installed.

http://androidadvices.com/root-install-custom-recovery-twrp-image-htc-m8-android-phone-guide has alternative instructions, which just say to put it in "a suitable location"; could I, for example, just dump it in "/" ?

Download the zip to your computer, boot up the phone in normal mode (just press the Power on button when turned off - no bootloader, fastboot or anything like that) and connect it to the computer via USB. The phone memory that opens up on your computer is where you should put it. It really doesn't matter the exact location, as long you can access it later in the TWRP recovery (the Download directory mentioned in the guide is also there). Then you can proceed with Step 10 (or Step 15 if you have already installed the TWRP recovery).


Is the back Chassis for the Canadian Rogers I747M the same as I747 T999? The camera protection lens on my Samsung Galaxy S3 I747M broke some time ago. The camera itself stopped focusing correctly some time ago as well due to that. At some point, I had to have the camera replaced, though the establishment did not have replacements for the camera protection lens unfortunately. The gentleman I talked to said I could find 2 methods of replacing the lens.

Go on EBay and purchase only the protection lens that attaches with a 2 sided tape.
Go on EBay and purchase the back chassis piece of my phone. This was the method he said would be preferable as it's the better option for the phone. I think he also mentioned something about OEM but I don't remember that part. (If someone knows, do tell)

After looking on EBay, the majority of Chassis replaces seems to be that of the AT&T's I747 T999. From what I understand, the phones are almost identical. Though, I'm not sure this includes the chassis.

So, my question is, is the back chassis of the Canadian Rogers I747M, the same as the American I747 T999?

Below is a link to an example of what I'm talking about. This is actually my best option so far. At least, from what I've found. If anyone has anything better or that would pertain more so to my phone, it would be appreciated.
http://www.ebay.ca/itm/R036-New-Housing-Back-Chassis-Frame-For-Samsung-Galaxy-S3-i747-T999-Black-Tool-/190875018764?&_trksid=p2056016.m2516.l5255

There's no such thing as an "i747 T999".

The I747 is the model used by AT&T.  There is no relevant difference between the i747 and the i747m used by Bell and Telus, or the i747R used by Rogers.  They're identical as far as software or repairs are concerned.

The T999 is a different model used by T-mobile, Wind Mobile, and possibly others.  The only real difference is the supported frequency bands, though this means they're not intercompatible for ROMs.  Casings are identical, as are common parts like the camera or screen.

I would presume that by "I747 T999", they mean the part is compatible with both the i747 model and the T999 model, which it should be, as the physical form of them is identical.


Any screencasting apps thatll let me get audio only? who has a method for me to record the audio which is playing to an mp3 or whatever? i just wanna bounce these sounds im listening to to another program but im not sure how to demux videos and its hard to use keywords to find a screen casting app that does what im looking for.  thanks! hey also... if anyone has details on some android audio interface techniques to record line out 3.5mm to like some kind of usb otg connected interface, i would really appreciate this.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nll.asr

ASR works good for me. Hope you get what you needed. It can record audio from apps running in background.


How can I fix internal storage growing for no reason? Why does internal storage keep growing over the time for no reason? At some point it becomes simply impossible to update apps, due to lack of sufficient memory space. Not even cache cleanup can save it, and I have moved as many apps as I could to SD card with no help.

Apps need to be uninstalled then installed again on every update. Depending on the app this is problematic since they have lots of custom settings, and I have never seen that automatic Google servers backup and restore working whenever I needed it. Fortunately for stock preloaded apps your settings are not lost, since you can just remove updates since stock version, not remove it.

This indicates one of the main causes of this problem at least: app updates are somehow incremental, and performing the above workaround will somehow save some space, with same result of app updated to latest version. So innocent everyday app updates are no reason for causing internal storage to fill up.

What workarounds can I do in order to overcome this problem, besides the obvious ones like removing stuff or buying a new phone? I think I heard about re-partitioning phone memory to make internal storage point to external SD card, but I wonder if it will make things too much slower, for example. Please, point me to good solutions, even if they require rooting.

Before you can fix the issue you have to identify the cause. We have a few answers that deal with tracking down storage usage. But usually they target the external storage/SD-card. Here we are dealing with the internal storage, which is usually protected from normal user access and hence it's good (if not required) to have root. But other then that, the tools mentioned in the question should give you a good idea of how your internal storage is used:

Izzy's Answer on "Something is secretly eating up my Acer Iconia A500 internal memory and I need help finding it"
What can I do to manage my phone's internal storage?


Can you reprogram the motorola-droid-razr-m screen buttons? Does it require Rooting? I'm not a big fan of the Droid-Razr-M's screen buttons (missing the menu and search buttons, but includes a Programs button (which is a waste b/c you can long hold the Home button for that).

Since those buttons are actually on the screen, can you reprogram them?
Would it require rooting the phone?

I'm not sure this would be helpful, but I love this app called Button Savior, which provides on-screen access to many of the functions you would find only via hard buttons.  You can activate it by a simple swipe, or by pressing a very translucent button that's always on the screen.  Some of the functions do require that you have rooted your phone, but not all.


Backup paid app from Google Play How can I backup an app I bought from Google Play so that I can install it on my phone later?

I tried to copy /mnt/asec/[appId]-1/pkg.apk but it doesn't work.

Can someone help?

You don't need to back up apps bought on Google Play to install later.  So long as the device has your Google account registered on it, you can download and install it from Google Play at any time.


Is there a way to enable monitor mode on my Samsung SM-G350 device? Let me explain the situation : I have a old SM-G350, perfectly working. I just removed all Google/Samsung preinstalled things to make it look "clean". My goal was to install Linux on it, and I've done this by running Debian 8 on it with "Complete Linux Installer" app. So, all is working fine here. By SSH, I manage this Debian with my PC. My phone is rooted.

I ran into a trouble today : I was trying to enable the monitor mode for the wlan0 interface. With airmon-ng I ran the following command :

airmon-ng start wlan0

And I get this error message :

bcmsdh_sdmmc - [phy10]mon0: ERROR while getting interface flags: No such device

So, I don't know what to do. I've tried this :

Messing around with various commands (like "airmon-ng check kill")
Looking for another driver for the Wi-Fi chipset (no significant results, but I think this could help)
Looking for another ROM, like Cyanogen, but I don't know if the monitor mode will be available with it (http://forum.xda-developers.com/android/development/cyanogenmod-11-galaxy-core-plus-sm-g350-t3284322)
Trying BCMON app, but the monitor mode failed (by the way, I saw that custom scripts could be available)

Any help would be great, I'm totally lost here !

Further information

If I run netcfg, I get the following output.

rmnet0 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0xffff8080 00:00:00: 00:00:00
rmnet1 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0xffff8080 00:00:00: 00:00:00
rmnet2 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0xffff8080 00:00:00: 00:00:00
rmnet3 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0xffff8080 00:00:00: 00:00:00
rmnet4 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0xffff8080 00:00:00: 00:00:00
rmnet5 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0xffff8080 00:00:00: 00:00:00
rmnet6 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0xffff8080 00:00:00: 00:00:00
rmnet7 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0xffff8080 00:00:00: 00:00:00
rmnet8 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0xffff8080 00:00:00: 00:00:00
rmnet9 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0xffff8080 00:00:00: 00:00:00
ip6tnl0 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0x00000080 00:00:00: 00:00:00
lo UP 127.0.0.1/8 0x00000049 00:00:00: 00:00:00
sit0 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0x00000080 00:00:00: 00:00:00
p2p0 UP 0.0.0.0/0 0x00001003 02:12:36: ed:7a:b4
wlan0 UP 192.168.1.24/24 0x00001043 00:12:36: ed:7a:b4
tunl0 DOWN 0.0.0.0/0 0x00000080 00:00:00: 00:00:00

This is something I also wanted on my Nexus 5, but after doing some research  I found that for enabling monitor mode on your android device your chipset must have monitor mode. In case the chipset doesn't support it, its not that easy to get this enabled. The supported chipsets as of now are broadcom 4329 and 4330 WiFi chipsets.
Though for Nexus 5 by making some modifications in the kernel, some developers on XDA found a way out. What seems the reason for getting it specifically for Nexus 5 is that this device still has development going on till date.
For your device unfortunately its chipset doesn't come up to be supporting monitor mode.


How to delete an app without deleting app data? I'm on an Android and my device is a Huawei. I got this device a few months ago and I don't want to root my device because I don't trust myself.

Is there a way to delete an app without deleting app data?

If possible, I don't want to use ADB because I don't know any good apps and my computer is in a bad state and I just don't want to use it. Even if it's a hard or complicated way, I might do it. I do have other devices that might help.

Assuming you are talking about apps you've installed yourself (and not about pre-installed apps), you can utilise adb for this. You need to know the app's package name first (the part shown in the Play Store URL in the id= parameter, or at F-Droid following the /package/ in the URL). Then, with your device connected:

adb uninstall -k <app.package.name>

replacing <app.package.name> by the app's package name. The -k parameter is telling uninstall to keep the app's data. So when you next install the app, the data is already there and will be used.


Change DNS but stay on DHCP I have a "Minix Neo X8-H Plus" Android TV box, running Android 4.4 (KitKat).

I want to change the DNS servers on the WiFi connection, but to do that, I only get that choice if I change to a static IP address. Now, on Windows or on iOS you can keep using DHCP, while setting different DNS servers to what the DHCP service provides.

Is this at all possible on Android? Does it mean I will have to root the device?

At the moment (Marshmallow) it's not possible. I usually get it using apps which require root permissions.

Another way could be to use an iptables trick, but it requires root, too.


Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 rmnet0 interface non existent I was wondering, why in my Samsung Galaxy 2 tablet I can't see any rmnet0 interface after executing:

adb shell cat /proc/net/xt_qtaguid/stats

Or:

adb shell netcfg

I know this a wifi only device, so, is this maybe the reason behind this?

The device is already connected to internet via my wifi router, I can navigate, see videos, etc etc

But for some reason I only got the wlan0 internal Ip from it, no rmnet0.

Is that a 3G network interface only?

Thanks in advance!

On WiFi, you only have the IP address of your local network, that's completely normal. rmnet interfaces are for mobile data – which would explain why you don't see them on a WiFi only device.

  rmnet interfaces are usually associated with cellular connections and usb tethering

from: Android NetworkInterface. What are the meanings of names of NetworkInterface?


Show app above the lockscreen (i.e. Google Maps) i have a pattern lockscreen enabled. Now i have an app which plays audio files, but if you want to skip or pause the track, you have to unlock your phone.

So i want that my desired app is above the lockscreen and when i hit return or something else, than it shows me the lockscreen.
You can do this for example in Google Maps.

Is that possible?

Device: N4, Lollipop 5.1, Root, Tasker installed

There might be a better solution out there, but for now this might help.

You can use screen pinning option.

Instructions to pin an app on the screen:

Go to Settings →Security→Screen pinning
Enable screen pinning and also the option "Ask for unlock pattern before unpinning"
Now open the app you want, then switch over to the overview menu
Tap on the pin icon on the app.

You are good to go!

To get out from pinned screen, hold Back and overview button at the same time.

By doing this you get to interact with the app without unlocking the screen, and also as an additional benefit the unpinning gesture helps you from accidentally exiting from the app!


I can't open or close any tabs on my Android tablet in Chrome This is a tablet I've had for years, and suddenly it decided that tabs in Chromes cannot be selected, exited, or added (The only change I can do is the new tab button option on the 3 dots, but I can't switch back from it, or I close out of Chrome and reopen it, then I can do only one of those things, but not more).

I had this issue too on my Galaxy Tab A.
I found a workaround. It's not the fix just a workaround. Please enable rotation of display btw. landscape and portrait. Each time you encounter this issue so you cannot close any Chrome Tabs any longer just rotate your display. That's it!
Regards and stay healthy!
Markus


How to turn off cell broadcast in HTC desire 816? I have been receiving about 50 flash sms a day, with my service provider name, from the number 50.

As I read here, it might be a issue with activating and deactivating cell broadcast on the phone. However, I could not find the path suggested for the deactivation (Setting/Call/Other Call Settings).

The option does not exist on this path. also it became an irritation for me. Whenever I am doing something with my device, that flash message popped up and I get interrupted.

To try deactivating this I have tried all possible steps (By blocking/deleting/stopping notification) but nothing worked out. Any ideas how to get rid of this?

Mobile: HTC Desire 816

Android Version: 4.4.2 with sense 6.0

Thank you

Go to Call Settings and uncheck "Broadcast" (homescreen -> phone -> settings -> broadcast).


How to stop Viber running without uninstalling it? How do I stop Viber running, without uninstalling the app? When I go Menu→More options→Exit it just comes back. I want it to turn it off completely, so it's not waiting to come on in the background.

This is an official rep. of Viber.

Due to the C2DM feature, you are always available on Viber, there is not way to  "log out" and "log in".
Please note that if you "exit" Viber, it will open again only if you get a msg or call.

Let us know if you have any additional questions.

Thanks!
Viber Team


Is a PIN lock screen inherently more or less secure than an app lock program? The two ways I see to secure an Android phone is through a PIN lock screen or through an app lock program (Password is too inconvenient and pattern is insecure for various reasons).  The lock screen has the advantage of keeping someone from the phone altogether, but an app lock program can allow me to use basic functionality while locking the apps that I choose such as Email or Package Installer.

Is one option easier to hack/bypass than another?  Let's assume that the App Lock program has a helper app that prevents it from being killed (although how well such an app works is worthy of being discussed in an answer - point being it takes a little more work than simply going to task manager and killing it).

I am primarily concerned about data on the phone.

I know that ultimately I cannot rely on either method to secure the phone indefinitely, but to only secure it long enough for me take various actions such as remote wipe, change Google password, Exchange password, etc...

I'm running Gingerbread 2.3.6.  For what it's worth it is rooted and has ClockWordMod recovery.

You could always Encrypt your device.

Depending on what phone you are using will determine the method or even availablity of this function.

It takes time though and you should do it with about 80-90% battery.

Also, I beleive the fact that your phone is rooted, makes it less secure - assuming the thief/person who picked up your phone (assuming that it was to be lost).

As long as they can access the internal/external storage, they can bypass this.


How to choose snooze time for calendar event notification? Maybe I took this for granted in my Windows Mobile years - but I'm having an issue with my new Galaxy S (Fascinate on Verizon). When a reminder pops up for a calendar event, I only see an option to "Snooze All" or "Dismiss". Can I not pick a snooze time? It appears that the default snooze time is 5 minutes. On Windows Mobile, when a reminder pops up, I can choose to snooze 1, 5, 15, 30, 60, 120 minutes etc. I used this constantly and would really hate to lose it. I'm sure there are third party apps that can do this, but does anyone know if there's a way to do this with the stock calendar? Thanks!

When you create an alarm using the (stock) Clock app, under the "Notification" you can set "Snooze" options: the duration of a snooze and the frequency of the snooze.
I don't think you can choose the snooze duration when you click snooze at the actual alarm time though.


Stopping Local Communication in android hotspot How can I stop two devices from communicating among themselves if they are connected to my Hot Spot.(for eg I want them to not be able to ping eachother)

You want to enable Wireless Isolation mode.

On the Linksys this is called AP Isolation.

From WirelessIsolation.com:

  Wireless Isolation, sometimes called client isolation, is a setting on
  a wireless router. When this setting is enabled it prevents a computer
  that is connected to the network by a wireless connection from
  accessing computers and resources that are connected to the network by
  a wired connection. It will also prevent one wirelessly connected
  device from connecting to another wirelessly connected device. In
  essence Isolating that device on the wireless network.

  This is used as a method of security so that you can provide both
  wired and wireless connection through the same network without opening
  up secured computers and resources to potentially unwanted visitors.
  This can be very helpful in businesses that have a wireless hotspot
  located in their lobby for example.

  Without Wireless Isolation anyone on a wireless internet connection in
  a wifi hotspot would not only have full access to the computers and
  resources in the company’s network, but also to the various wireless
  devices that were using the wifi hotspot at that time.

  Most wireless router makers will support wireless isolation in one
  form or another, if you already have a router and are curious to see
  if it comes with wireless isolation or not you can check your products
  manual, or log into your router and check the security tab.


How to check if GPS is working (Android 2.1, Samsung Galaxy-5)? Possible Duplicate:
  Easiest way for testing the internal GPS

My new Samsung Galaxy i5500 (or Galaxy 5 or whatever other name they confuse us with) (android 2.1) has a build-in GPS. However, I somehow think it is not working correctly or at all. Whenever I use Google Maps (in open air) and select 'My Location' the GPS icon appears in the top bar but keeps blinking (I waited several minutes), and it seems my location is only determined using wifi or mobile network wizardry.

Can I somehow easily check if the build-in GPS is working correctly? Is there some page that shows the longitude/latitude location it has received from the GPS?

(BTW: turning on the GPS in the power bar, or in the settings page, does work, but still leaves me puzzled if the GPS actually works)

Indeed, there is - the aptly named GPS Test app ought to help you.

The more popular GPS Status & Toolbox is also similar and will display your current lat/long co-ordinates and also a compass. Both are currently freeware.


The command 'adb root' works, but 'adb remount' results in "Operation not permitted" message I'm trying to remount /system to copy some files to it. I tried the following with adb:

adb root
adb remount

The first command works fine (because my phone is rooted), but the second tells me that the operation is not permitted. If I open an adb shell and run su I can access the system folder without problems.

What could be the problem?

Some phones just don't allow remounting via adb remount.

Mount as RW:

adb shell su -c "mount -o rw,remount,rw /system"

Mount as RO:

adb shell su -c "mount -o ro,remount,ro /system"

Also you could use the Adbd Insecure app, but it's not free.


Core Prime G360T(5.1.1) soft brick TWRP issue My main objective is to root the phone; as expected from an android newb. I bricked by phone, though this is a bit complicated than the usual.

Here's what I did.
1. Apply Kingroot One-click root (from pc)
2. Installed SuperSU = [failed to update]
-- checked (anyway) root from Root Checker = FAIL

Tried http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-core/development/kernel-root-root-sm-g360t1-5-1-1-t3203522
-- checked  root from Root Checker = FAIL
Tried installing TWRP (Odin method)
(here's where things get messy)

a. Download mode (Vol up + home + pwr) goes straight to TWRP recovery
BUT
b. TWRP touchscreen controls do not work.

any solutions guys? I'd appreciate all the help! (And I'm also kinda desperate)

Touch is not working in the official TWRP release for Galaxy Core Prime. Current solution is to install modified TWRP for G360T1, the MetroPCS variant. Find it here. You should still be able to get into download mode again and Odin flash new TWRP.


What is the folder called /storage/emulated/0/.photoShare/thumb/lcd I have a folder named lcd or Icd (can't tell if it's a lowercase L or an uppercase letter i) which is inside the Hidden Folder called photoShare.
It contains over 300Mbs of images, all of which seem to be duplicates of images elsewhere in my Android Phone (Honor 9 lite).
There is a .thumbs folder beside it. It's 30 odd Mbs and is full of images too.
Oddly, despite many Google searches using every combo of words possible, I can find no mention anywhere of a folder called lcd/Icd, not one mention anywhere.
Question being,

Is it safe to delete the images inside /.photoShare/lcd/Icd?

.photoShare is a folder used by Huawei devices for it's Cloud service.

If Huawei's Cloud is enabled on your device, your gallery may have been synced to your Huawei's "personal" cloud storage.

You can turn off the cloud backup option for your photos, but maybe you need this service in case of emergency, where you accidentally deleted your pictures, at least you'll be able to restore what was synced before in the cloud service.

It's safe to delete the folder, but doing it from settings will be better to avoid any data loss if you're syncing your folder with the cloud service.


Micro SD card not usable on phone I installed a Micro SD card on my Samsung Galaxy 3 phone. I had a few dozen songs on the card and everything was working fine. Then I shut down my phone, removed the SD card, hooked it up to my PC and loaded the card up with a few hundred MP3 files. When I reinstalled the SD card on my Android, things went wacky. I can see the SD card icon but when I go to Settings > Storage, the only option I see is the "Mount SD card" choice. When I click it, I get "SD card safe to remove".

Bottom line is that the card seems unusable on my phone but works fine on my PC. Ideas?

I've had this problem numerous times and this is how I fix it.....

Take the SDcard and insert in card reader on PC. Use a partitioning program such as GParted, which is open source. Have it scan and fix errors on the card. Using just the PC to scan and fix errors wont work right for your problem. Put it back in your Samsung and enjoy.


How can I minimize UI lag? How can I minimize UI lag by ensuring that global UI elements (e.g. keyboard and notification drawer) don't compete for resources with every running application?

The UI lag is down to a number of things such:

Too many widgets (delete them, home launcher has to redraw screen upon closing the app drawer)
Home launcher - some redraw better than others (switch to different launcher)

Animation turned up to the highest value (i.e. turn it off), in ICS+, it is as simple as found in Settings > Developer Options:
Window Animation Scale
Transition Animation Scale
Animator duration Scale (JellyBean)
Force GPU Rendering (If that's ticked, it may not have any effect!) depending on:

the kernel version
GPU driver in context of kernel space
and the GPU driver itself, for example, Adreno*)

CPU (Important!!) Are we talking about old ARMv6 chipset or the newer ones that has either dual-core or quad-core?
What Android version?

Older Android versions below Honeycomb, did suffer from some "janky" effects in terms of graphics redraw, more often than not, the chip-set was older and likewise for the kernel as well, which did not have the native Adreno graphics driver.

What happened in ICS upwards, was, Android took advantage of the native Adreno graphics drivers built into the kernel which was dynamically linked with the user-space Adreno driver that comes as standard and was found in kernels 3.x+ upwards, and also in general, in newer handsets since ICS was launched.


Galaxy s 3 overheating seemingly out of nowhere Phone is fairly new to me, I got it November or so. It's always worked just fine. Today I had it plugged in, walked into the other room for a few minutes and came back. Phone showed an error something like "Charging paused. system is too hot." So my Boyfriend told me to restart it and put in my extra battery (because I have two batteries for it). Did that, powered back up, was working on where in settings I could find the battery temperature and (less than 5 minutes)it told me something to the effect of "System overheating. all apps have been closed, phone can only be used for contacts". So I powered off, pulled out the battery, and now I'm nervous to try and turn it on again.
Any suggestions?

EDIT: I'm not rooted

I had an S4 for a while and now have a Galaxy Note 4. My family has the S5 and S6, I believe, and all of them have gotten very hot while charging at one point or another, but not with an error.

Check to see if your charger reads 5V - 2A, which is what should be on the S3. You could try charging while the phone is off - just watch its temperature.


My HTC Desire has suddenly become full and is displaying the "Disk Space Low!" Message Possible Duplicate:
  HTC Desire low on internal storage, I'm clueless — Any help?

I have always had a problem with my Desire's phone storage capacity so recently I did a factory re-set and started again.  Everything was fine for a few weeks, I had loads of space and could download and install to my hearts content.  Then all of a sudden I have the dreaded "Disk Space Low!" message again.  Thsi is despite having only 39.116meg of apps installed on the phone. All possiable apps are on the sd card and there is nothing in the cache.  Also all contacts, dates etc are stored on google.

Can someone please explain what is taking up all this space i.e all 139 MB?  I cant even download the latest software update!

Try viewing your disk usage with DiskUsage, it helps visualize the problem.


Where do i get an HTC-Hero ROM I have an HTC Hero Android Version:2.3.3, i want to figure out if i can downgraded it to a previous version that the Hero can actually handle.

I don't know if my android is rooted, and not sure how to find out
I don't know if my phone is upgradable/downgradeable or not  and
and I  have no idea Where I can get a nice clean ROM for my phone

It's probably rooted.  If not, then it was in order to install 2.3, and it can be rooted again.  If you have the SuperUser app, that should be a clear indication that it's rooted.

You should definitely be able to downgrade.

The best source for ROMs is generally the Android Development subforum for a particular device on XDA.  In this case, this subforum.


How do I get rid of the draft message that shows up when I try to respond to an SMS? When I read a text and go to respond, for some reason there is 1/2 of a text that I sent a long time ago still in the reply text box and I have to erase it every time.  How can I fix this?

Since you mentioned text-messages my guess is that maybe you have a draft that the messaging app wants you to finish, although with my HTC Evo it doesn't do what yours is doing.  Try opening the message app and on the screen where you can see "All Messages" open the menu and you might see an option to select "Drafts" (looks like a old 3.5" floppy).  If you have any drafts delete them and see if this fixes your issue.


Soft Brick? I closed the magnetic case cover of my Nexus 7 while my newly flashed Rom was optimizing apps and....Brick I bought a Nexus 7 2012 grouper.
 I used wug's nexus 7 rootkit tool for windows on WinXp.
The drivers took a bit of tinkering but eventually I got the Raw drivers configured.
Everything was going along just fine, unlocked, rooted, flashed recovery happy day!
Downloaded and flashed Paranoid Android it booted up.

Paranoid was optimizing my apps (it had a couple hundread to do) so i figured I was past the critical part so I closed the case and put it down to do other things...

Aparently this was a bad idea. It boot looped when I turned ir back on. Tried to optimize apps again for a secons then went back to the boot animation. I turned it off and back on and it never went to app optimization again just boot animation. Now it just fails to boot and I cant get past the bootloader.

Recovery mode wont load but bootloader will.

I tried to flash recovery but adb says it cannot find the device.
I had this problem before until I got the right drivers installed and updated and the kicker that made it all work was my pc's signature popping up on my nexus and I said ok to give access. Because im stuck in bootloader mode it doesnt give me the option to allow the pc access, this seems like a problem.

I tried to use wugs tools for softbricked devices, flash stock with wugs but I get

Writeing bootloader FAILED
Invalid State

And the .bat hangs and cannot be closed without a reboot.

I also tried from linux where I have the android dev setup. Before I started this process it allowed me to access the nexus file system pretty reliably. Now linux does not notice that anything is plugged in and adb says Device Not Found.

So this is where I am at. Please and thank you for your help.

Since you do have working fastboot access, you have a few options from there:

You can...

Get a custom recovery like TWRP. Then run fastboot flash recovery /path/to/twrp.img.

With TWRP, you can to try to reinstall ROMS, do factory resets, and make backups of your current system (Which may be a good idea, even if it's bricked).

Do a factory reset with fastboot format data and fastboot format cache.
Try to install stock Android (keeping data) from the Factory Images by running included flash-base.sh, included in the image download.
If all else fails, you can unbrick it by running the flash-all.sh - which will essentially reset it to a like-new state, with the stock OS and no data.

If you wind up doing a factory reset after all, you can use Titanium Backup to extract the apps and settings from the TWRP backups.


How to override default Android's default screen lock security policy? I want my Android device screen to open without requiring password. So I chose "none" option in Security settings. But, when I needed to add a VPN connection, it required me to provide a password, PIN, or a pattern for the screen. Thus, the option to add "none" unlock is disabled once a VPN connection is set (figure below).

I want to know if there is a way I can override this security policy i.e. retain VPN connection but forego screen unlock password. The Android version is 4.2 and the tablet is rooted if it helps.

A couple of ways (None of these tried by me)

This XDA thread HOW TO GUIDE VPN Without Security suggests a way of editing lock screen database settings using SQL editor . OP has specifically tested on Kitkat
You could try Xposed module Lockscreen Disabler. Module description says

  To setup a VPN you are forced by the system to setup some kind of security.

  This module is for all the users who don't want to be forced to use a protection, although using the services described above

If you are not familiar with Xposed, Xposed: The mighty Android tool box by @Izzy, would be very useful

VpnROOT-PPTP-Manager claims to do that, amongst other capabilities. App description says

  This application was designed to allow connection of a VPN server without having to use PIN or Pattern Lock-Screen in Android.

Edit: The first method did not work for me on 4.2.2 (tried after posting this answer).


Insufficient Storage on changing default install location After downloading an APK file from Play Store. It always prompts "Insufficient Storage" dialog.

I changed the default install location into external memory(SD card) using adb command

adb shell pm set-install-location 2

There is a room for both Internal (400mb free) and External memory(8GB free).

I am running on an Android Kitkat 4.4;
I am not rooted anyway. I don't want to void my warranty

By default I think apps are only installable to phone storage. The developer has to specifically allow the app to be installed to external storage (SD card or emulated SD card storage).
The ADB shell command you have used is only designed for use during development (see http://developer.android.com/tools/help/adb.html). It may be that despite issuing this command the system is still trying to install to internal memory.


What is the permission ACCESS_WEATHERCLOCK_PROVIDER? Some launcher apps uses android.permission.ACCESS_WEATHERCLOCK_PROVIDER permission.

What is this permission for?

Andrew's guess was correct: According to Android Census, this permission is declared by Huawei's own weather app (or rather the data provider behind it). The site further shows it has been found on Huawei devices only (at least by them), covered by different protection levels (ranging from "normal" to "signature|system"), thus it cannot be even clearly said whether its declaration by some user app would have any effect at all.

For clarification: com.huawei.android.weather is a Content Provider, protecting access to its data via the android.permission.ACCESS_WEATHERCLOCK_PROVIDER. If an app requests that permission, it must be granted to it on install – which is done based on at least two conditions to be met: 1) Android knows of that permission (i.e. the app providing it is already installed), and 2) the protection level permits it. For "user-installed apps" that limits it to "normal" and "dangerous" protection levels. Now note the second census link: for some devices, this permission uses level "normal" (so it's available to user-apps), while on others it is "system|signature" (and thus not available to user-apps).


G1 Create Image of Current State Is it possible to create an image of my phone (G1, cupcake) so that I may revert back to it at a later date?

I'm not scared of using the Android SDK, I only needs the steps to create the file.

You can use nandroid to do this.

If you update your recovery image to Cyanogen's 1.4 recovery then it has nandroid built in.

These are tools from the community and are not officially tested or supported so make sure you fully understand what you're doing before using them.