text:
capacitive touch screens not responding
I have several old cellphones that stopped accepting any touch input.... there has been no water damage and have not been dropped since they did work. they just sat for a while.
first I wonder as this is called capacitive does that mean maybe a capacitor is responsible and it may have discharged over time, if this is the case is there a way to recharge it?
second is there any way to repair something like this cheaply.
third is this normal that touch screens simply go bad from not being used?

Old Mobile Phones having such problem but none user consider the fact that capacitive displays can be controlled with very light touches of a finger and generally cannot be used with wet or gloved hand.
also, just Read about Capacitive sensing from this link. You will get idea about Surface and Projected capacitance.
and some mobiles with this technologies stop working or not responding to touch. that was just e-waste though you can open device and learn many things.

it is a bit of a nuicanse to think these phones will be sent to be garbage when the display works and the motherboard works but the single sensor setup for input has gone bad...

But Changing those particular sensor will cost you more. or you can buy new one with exchange of old one.


text:
App doesn't recognize moved OBB file to SD even though 'Obb on SD' Xposed module is installed
I'm trying to move the OBB files of some of my games to my SD card to free some internal storage space.
I looked for solutions and found the Obb on SD Xposed module, which says that "just enable module, reboot and move obb's to SD card (to same folder: Android/obb) - that's that." My device is already rooted and has the Xposed Framework installed. So I just downloaded and enabled the module and rebooted.
I'm looking to move Plants vs Zombies 2's OBB file which is around 600 MB, to the SD card. I've updated the game in Google Play Store and then started it to verify that it is fully updated and doesn't need to download anything.
I then moved the com.ea.game.pvz2_row directory (which contains the OBB file) in /storage/sdcard0/Android/obb/ to /storage/sdcard1/Android/obb/ using Amaze File Manager in root explorer mode. I rebooted the device and then I ran Plants vs Zombies 2 but upon starting, it started downloading resources of around ~600 MB (which is probably the directory I moved).
How do I make Plants vs Zombies 2 recognize the moved OBB file in the SD card?
Details:

Device: Lenovo A3300-HV
Android version: KitKat 4.4.2
The device is rooted. SU management app is SuperSU.
I already did the 'KitKat SD Card' fix and I have other apps that write to the SD card without any issues.
The /storage/sdcard0/ directory despite its name, is actually internal storage. This device has only one physical SD card and it is at /storage/sdcard1/.
Obb on SD details:

'Data On SD' is unchecked
Play Store Hooks is unchecked (I also
tried checking but it doesn't seem to affect the issue)
Detect SD on
Android 5/6 is grayed-out and can't be toggled (says 'No path found')
Internal Path says "Detected: /storage/emulated/0".

source: Stack Exchange

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

sort: votes


text:
how to get android to treat external sd as internal sd?
I have a Galaxy SL I9003 running gingerbread that was having problems such as hang and restart, unable to receive or make calls... I found the problem was a dead internal sd card so i removed it and reflashed the ROM, now the phone works but i have no storage space and it doesn't detect my external memory(even though i can read it from recovery) so how can i get android to detect the external sd? Or even better get it to treat external sd as internal sd?

Afraid on Gingerbread there's no existing solution for that (there was an app called External2Internal for some Galaxy device, though). But besides: How did you remove the internal SD card? Unsoldered some chip? Moreover, if the external card is not even detected by your device, how do you want to use it at all?

Like you said i unsoldered it from the board, as for how to use it, somehow make the system recognize it as an internal sd card.

Hard to do if it's not recognized at all. And you cannot use that "swap tool" as there's nothing to "swap" anymore. Sorry, out of ideas. And soldering tips would have nothing to do with Android, given I had any :)

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/


text:
Configure Tasker as alarm for date and time
Could someone be so kind as to show me how to set Tasker to play a melody selected by myself when 5 June 2016 @ 10 PM is reached. I would like to be able to set the sound file to play, perhaps in a loop. Thanks.

Bit related: Play songs randomly and endlessly

Before you start having us write a new Tasker profile every day (kidding :), let me give you some help to help yourself: My site holds some Tasker Graphs showing you what conditions and tasks are to be found where. So based on that, here's what you'd have to do.
The profile

Condition:

Time › set the time you want this profile to be active
Date › pick your date here

Task: Media › MusicPlay › select your music file

Pretty basic stuff. Below the graphs you can also find a list with Tasker Tutorials – recommended reading :)
Notes

Tasker always connects multiple conditions per AND – so it's always "condition-1 AND condition-2".
When creating a new profile, after having chosen your first condition Tasker will immediately continue asking you for the task(s). So complete those first, save the new profile, then long-tap (tap-and-hold) the first condition. This will open a context menu from which you can chose to e.g. add another condition or add an exit-task
You cannot have multiple conditions of the same type for the same profile. So if you want e.g. the same task executed at two different times, you have to create two profiles; but when creating the second profile, you can simply pick the task created for the first (or any other) profile from a drop-down.

One more thing: if I want the music to stop, how do I then do that? Closing tasker won't do it, and I cannot see when I long press the home screen the actual app being used to play the music, so I cannot close that app to stop playing the music. Thanks.

Also, what is the difference between a condition and a context? Thanks.

About that of a beer and an ale :) Take the two terms as synonym. I've picked up the term "condition" some time in the past (I'm using Tasker for more than 5 years already), but the official term is "context" AFAIK. As for stopping the music: That's why I've linked the graphs. Find the "StopPlaying" (or similar) action in Media section, make it another task. Then e.g. create a shortcut on your desktop (pick "Tasker", then pick the task) so you can trigger that manually – or simply assign it to another context (e.g. for 5 min later).

Thank you for your help, that helps a lot. I also see that tasker lets you create more than one profile, each with one or more contexts/conditions associated with them and with one or more tasks for each of these condition sets. Profiles can be enabled/disabled separately. Makes perfect sense. Thanks.

Exactly. And there's also our fine tasker tag-wiki which I can recommend to look at :)

I am still trying to figure out what to do with the Music Stop task, I couldn't figure out how to create the desktop shortcut. Perhaps you can help me with it?

See the user guide: Tasker: Task / Shortcut Widgets


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How can I delete all contacts synced by Outlook?
I've added an outlook account to my phone running OxygenOS, which has synced its contacts into the contacts app.
How I can remove all of these synced contacts without deleting them one by one?

Try to turn off contact sync under settings->account->outlook.
it will do.

Will do what? Does turning off sync delete contacts already there? Really? Any reference you can give for that? Would surprise me.


text:
Copy app URL from Google Play
In Google Play, how do I copy the URL of an app I'm browsing so that I can paste it into a post or on a word document or notepad using my Android device? In a web browser it's easy to do this, but what about other apps that have corresponding URLs or other URIs?

If you have Google Drive installed on your device then you can use the 'Copy to clipboard' option within the share menu.
If you scroll down past the reviews you should see a 'Share' button:

After clicking this you will be shown the share menu which contains a 'Copy to clipboard' option:

Clicking this will copy the URL for the app to your clipboard, allowing you to paste this into another app.

This requires the Google Drive app to be installed.

@SuperThomasLab thanks, i wasn't aware of that. Added that info to my answer

You can click in "Share" link and then tap unto Copy to clipboard.

the difference is that it just don't explain to the user the dependency on Google drive.

You might not know this, but the "copy to clipboard" is a feature of the Google Drive app.


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How to report potential abuse in Aptoide without becoming a member?
The Aptoide store is an alternative platform where you can get Android apps.
I found an app on the Aptoide store via Google that has a size of 3.3 MB. The same app with the same app version in the F-Droid store has only a size of 1.1 MB. So I assume that this app is infected by malware.
The Aptoide's info about the suspicious app is

Xxxx is Unknown
This classification was assigned because: there is not enough information about the application in Aptoide Anti-Malware platform.

Scanned with Anti-Virus: Zoner Anti-Virus   Sophos Anti-Virus   AptoideGuard Malware Analyzer

No Infections Detected  No Infections Detected

On the Aptoide website belonging to the app, there is a "report abuse" button but this requires a login (which I don't have and don't want to have)
In the stores impressum, I found an email address so I wrote an email to the Aptoide store admin. I got an automated email reply that I should use a web form to contact Aptoide with a link to the web form. So I filled in the web form and submitted it.
This was a week ago and since then nothing happened. The suspicious app is still available in the store and I got no email response.
Is there any other channel to Aptoide where I can report potential abuse without becoming a member?

I would recommend checking for such things but I know that aptoide is filled with malicious apps and fake apps such that your report won't make a difference. Keep an eye out for outdated, malicious apps and use official channels / curated stores (like Google Play, F-Droid etc).

To answer my own question: Non-member complaint was not possible in my case.
After registering as a new member and then using the
"report abuse" link, Aptoide's "copyright infringement-workflow" did the job after one week.

After sending the second form I registered as a new user, loaded the page with the potential malicious app, flagged it as "virus", wrote a comment and pressed the "report abuse" button and send my text.
As a result of "report abuse" activity, I got an automated email

Thanks for your email!
Please submit your support request in this link
The form request is essential for us to help you, the ticket generated by this email will stay on hold with low priority until you send us your request via the form below!

where the link points to https://aptoide.zendesk.com/anonymous_requests/new
After one additional week, I got an email that the app has been removed from the store.
It was a reply to pushing the "report abuse" link that was made to handle copyright problems with the standard email-text for this use case

Aptoide is deeply committed with the respect of the IPR of Android Developers.

Nevertheless, the suspicious app is not available anymore.

First: Different sizes do not necessarily mean the bigger one is infected with malware. Or rather, that might depend on your definition of malware: F-Droid compile .apk files themselves, and while doing that, often exclude proprietary parts – such as ad modules.
Second: Aptoide has security checks running on their .apk files. You should find a shield in the app description: Green = checked and OK, Yellow = checked and something suspicious found, Red = checked and infection found1. You can also find details on the checks, where e.g. signatures are compared with other markets (usually Google Play).
Third: Different repositories at Aptoide have a different trust-level. For example, the repository named "Apps" is manually curated by Aptoide staff, and hence quite trustable.
Forth: You can contact Aptoide via a form on their website. You'll have to reveal an email address for that, so they can contact you back.
Fifth: For more details, please see How safe is it to use Aptoide?. Especially check this answer from Paulo (co-founder of Aptoide) and my own answer.

1You will never find the red shield, though – that's only visible for staff. At the same time a red shield is attached, the app is made unavailable for the public.

I have done (4) but got no reaction after a week. (1) the sourcecode at github does not contain proprietary parts (no adds, no google-services). Somthing has been added that is not in the github-s sources.

Yeah, 4 has its issues. Sometimes they react very fast, other times one can wait forever. I've reported an issue with their site software half a year ago. No answer yet, issue remains. Pinged Paulo, and they applied a manual fix a day later. Issue was back the day after that ;) So for your case to have effect, afraid you'd need to create an account there and flag the app.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


text:
"Restarting adb... Installation aborted." without any further details after abd sideload
I'm trying to setup a bulk of tablets with a custom ROM (as a kind of kiosk mode tablets for my company). In short all I'm doing is deleting all kind of stuff from the tablet and then I'm installing just my self-made kiosk app as a launcher app. I've already accomplished that by doing it manually on a rooted tablet. However I need to that for a bulk of tablets so I want to create an update.zip which automates that and apply it to all tablets by adb sideload update.zip.
When I try to load a minimalistic update.zip which I created to just learn and play around with the update.zip archive format I always get the following error:

The minimalistic update.zip which just creates a tiny text file in \system\ to proof that the update really has been applied can be downloaded here: update.zip
What's wrong with my ZIP? All similar questions on this topic seem to be related to signing issues, but:

i've signed my ZIP
and all the other issues get errors like invalid signature but I don't get any error message at all!

OTA update packages must be signed with one of the keys expected by the system or the installation process will reject them.
You cannot just apply a zip to a stock ROM using the stock recovery, even if it is signed. It must be signed with the key used when building the ROM/recovery, which is only available to the device maker. If you want to apply an update you need to have a custom recovery at the very least which should allow you to bypass the signature verification.

Release keys
The Android tree includes test-keys under
build/target/product/security. Building an Android OS image using make
will sign all .apk files using the test-keys. Since the test-keys are
publicly known, anybody can sign their own .apk files with the same
keys, which may allow them to replace or hijack system apps built into
your OS image. For this reason it is critical to sign any publicly
released or deployed Android OS image with a special set of
release-keys that only you have access to.
Signatures and sideloading
Before installing a package, recovery will verify that it is signed with one of the private keys matching the public keys stored in the recovery partition, just as it would for a package delivered over-the-air.

Well, creating a custom update zip wouldn't make things easier then, when I still need to apply a custom ROM first.


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My notifications Bar
Don't mind the wallpaper, that's for me because I'm proving in these area and it will help break my procrastination.
The real issue is my notification bar.

Can anyone help me? I tried Googling it, but I don't know how to describe my problem.


text:
Leaving the dictation mode with a voice command
Is there any way to leave the dictation mode with a voice command, without having to tap anywhere in Android 4 or above?

I use the built in speech recognition program.

One can leave the dictation mode with a voice command on Android 12 with a Google Pixel 6.  The command is stop.

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


text:
Enable lock screen widgets, 4.4.2 Kitkat on Samsung Mega 6.3 LTE
When I try to enable lock screen widgets in my Samsung Mega 6.3 LTE with Kitkat 4.4.2 from Settings > Security it has no "Enable widgets" which was the solution in How do you add widgets to the lockscreen in KitKat? and How do I add a widget to my lock screen?.
How do I enable lock screen widgets in my Samsung Mega 6.3 SGH-M819N?

Well,  it DOES allow Lock Screen Widgets,  I found,  if the lock screen security is set to Swipe... instead of Password or other rigorous security options. Still experimenting with security options.

Samsung's TouchWiz UI does not allow you to add lockscreen widgets in Kitkat as far as i know. My Galaxy Note 10.1 has the option named "lockscreen widgets" under settings, but its not anything like the stock Android Kitkat concept.
You have to install a custom ROM if you want that functionality.


text:
My wifi autoconnects even though i have turned off everything possible in the settings
I have a Samsung S6 running Android 6.0.1. There is a guest WiFi at work I signed into one time, and now can't get rid of:

I have tried to "forget" it.
I have turned off smart network switch.
I have turned off all wifi advanced options including "Passpoint" and "network notification" and have tried to turn WiFi off completely

I have done everything possible and it still autoconnects, even if I turn WiFi off within seconds it still tries to connect and drains my battery. When I get home it doesn't auto connect to my house WiFi but sometimes when I'm not even at work it will still try and connect to this guest wifi.
Is this a defect or am I missing something? Is there anything else I can try to get rid of it?

Does "everything" include having turned off WiFi altogether? I'd really wonder if it tries to connect with WiFi off. Apart from that, to know what options might be available it would help to know your device and Android version. Please [edit] your question and add that. And while on it, please explicitly list each WiFi option you've triggered ("all wifi advanced options" is a bit vague, as is "everything possible"). Thanks, and good luck!

Thanks a lot, Stephanie – much clearer now. I've pimped the formatting a little to make it easier to read. What makes the issue really strange is the fact it even tries to connect while WiFi is turned off completely. That shouldn't happen at all. Especially not if that WiFi isn't even in reach. After you chose to "forget it", it should never try to auto-connect until you reconnected it manually. So it definitely is a defect, though it's not clear what kind of. Can you name your device and the Android version it's running? Also, did you install anything while on that WiFi?

Thank you for all your help. It is an Android 6.0.1 Galaxy s6, of that is what you meant. And no I did not install anything. It was an hour free kind of guest wifi.

Wish I was helping with some more success… In Settings › WiFi › Advanced, have you ticked off the network check when WiFi is disabled? Not that should play a role here, but who knows.

I dont see that as an option in advanced settings. I will try and find that setting and see. Thank you

The option might be named slightly different on different devices. Watch out for items like "Scanning always available", "Always allow scanning", and the likes (screenshot-guide).

Do you have any app that auto connects wifi, like tasker or Samsung's new application called 'Good Lock'? Because Good Lock creates routines and by default if it gets in some predefined location than it starts wifi and some other services.
(sorry, I don't know if this can be termed as answer or not. But my reputation is low so I cannot comment and I just thought Good lock can be creating confusion)

Not that I am aware of, not the ines you mentioned, but thanks for the tip. I will check if any of my apps can do this.


text:
Square button doesn't respond
Today the square button on the Samsung Galaxy S6, the one used to close all apps running in the background, stopped responding. It was working perfectly fine one minute but stopped the nextime and now isn't working. I have tried restarting my phone but no luck. Is there anyway to fix this?


text:
How to uninstall preinstalled apps and games in my Galaxy Note GT tablet?
My Samsung galaxy note GT - n5110 has something wrong and im not sure what. Few months now I can't use it because it keeps restarted and games and apps are just downloading without my permission. I have factory reset it and any other reset there is and now the games that had installed are pre installed so when I factory reset my tab all the games are there and you can't delete them? Does anyone know how to fix it?!!

Sounds like you've caught a persistend malware which managed to integrate itself into the system, so a factory-reset doesn't clean it up. In that case, the only way out is flashing a clean ROM.

1) Google Play: find 'malwarebytes' app (log looks like a bat).
2) See if it changes anything. (Probably not malware after all).
3) Back to Google Play: search 'app remover'.
4) Spend some time finding the right one for you: Some need Root, some don't.
5) Use the app to remove unwanted system apps but BE CAREFUL not to remove critical ones!!


text:
Get the list of downloaded YouTube offline video's title from another device
Is there a way wherein I can see what YouTube videos I have saved offline on my phone on another device with the same Google account?
Is there a way to see a list of my saved YouTube videos?

Is there a way wherein I can see what YouTube videos I have saved
  offline on my phone on another device with the same Google account?

AFAIK the answer is No, and below is brief theory explaining why so.
When YouTube Download those videos for offline viewing, it basically store those videos on THAT device's internal storage. The location for those videos is something similar to below path.

Internal
  storage/Android/data/com.google.android.youtube/files/Offline/(system
  generated folder name)/streams

There might be a minor change to this location or path on other Android devices, but all those downloaded files are saved as .exo files, in an Internal Storage of a device!
Those "offline" videos can only be played using official YouTube App, and those videos simply can not be played using any other Video/Media player application.
YouTube (means Google) controls the access to the offline file.
The permission is controlled on their server to access those downloaded files and Since they are part of specific device, you cannot access/view those using Google Account, from another device.

Is there a way to see a list of my saved YouTube videos?

Yes, you can see the list of all offline saved videos on same device by 2 ways

As mentioned earlier, using the path from Internal store.
Through YouTube App itself. Open YouTube App, click on the right most icon(which looks like person/contact). Here you can see "Available Offline" section with Saved videos, click it to see all offline saved videos on your device

Is there a way that a list of offline videos can be exported?

@siliconpi i am not aware of such feature. to the best of my understanding, offline videos are there to be viewed only via YouTube app and there is no easy way to access them by any other method.

very great question and here is some answers from my side and you can use the screenshot option with long screenshot to capture all that list in a picture format.
with this information collected in screenshots you can use or download videos on your other mobile as you asking for the help.


text:
Internal memory (sdcard0) not writable - Android 4.3 - Xperia T (LT30p)
After a bootloop that I experienced after messing around with Android, I flashed a stock ROM to my LT30p using FlashTool.
Everything went smoothly, except for the fact that I can't create files in the internal memory (/storage/sdcard0) with any file explorer. This includes trying to download files from browsers, they fail instantly. So I figured it's a read-only situation going on.
I also flashed another stock ROM, clearing all data, but the problem persisted.
The funny part is that the mount command gives me this:
rootfs / rootfs rw,relatime 0 0
tmpfs /dev tmpfs rw,seclabel,nosuid,relatime,mode=755 0 0
devpts /dev/pts devpts rw,seclabel,relatime,mode=600 0 0
none /dev/cpuctl cgroup rw,relatime,cpu 0 0
proc /proc proc rw,relatime 0 0
sysfs /sys sysfs rw,seclabel,relatime 0 0
selinuxfs /sys/fs/selinux selinuxfs rw,relatime 0 0
debugfs /sys/kernel/debug debugfs rw,relatime 0 0
none /acct cgroup rw,relatime,cpuacct 0 0
tmpfs /mnt/secure tmpfs rw,seclabel,relatime,mode=700 0 0
tmpfs /mnt/asec tmpfs rw,seclabel,relatime,mode=755,gid=1000 0 0
tmpfs /mnt/obb tmpfs rw,seclabel,relatime,mode=755,gid=1000 0 0
/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/System /system ext4 ro,seclabel,relatime,
discard,data=ordered 0 0
/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/Userdata /data ext4 rw,seclabel,nosuid,no
dev,noatime,discard,noauto_da_alloc,data=ordered 0 0
/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/Cache /cache ext4 rw,seclabel,nosuid,node
v,noatime,discard,data=ordered 0 0
/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/SDCard /mnt/int_storage ext4 rw,seclabel,
nosuid,nodev,relatime,discard,noauto_da_alloc,data=ordered 0 0
/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/apps_log /mnt/idd ext4 rw,seclabel,nosuid
,nodev,noexec,noatime,discard,nobarrier,data=ordered 0 0
/dev/fuse /storage/sdcard0 fuse rw,nosuid,nodev,noexec,relatime,user_id=2800,gro
up_id=2800,default_permissions,allow_other,allow_utime_grp 0 0

so, from this
/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/SDCard /mnt/int_storage ext4 rw,seclabel,
    nosuid,nodev,relatime,discard,noauto_da_alloc,data=ordered 0 0

I conclude that I should be able to create files/folders as normal (since it says rw).
What am I missing? I googled this in many ways but to no avail.
Thank you for any help in advance!
PS. Phone is rooted, of course.

I finally fixed it. In case someone has the same problem in the future, here's what I did:

After googling here and there about how to completely wipe an Android phone, I read that to do that you must encrypt your data first and then do a factory reset.

So, I still don't know what caused it, I only know that now it's fixed.


text:
Clearing out most recent emoji / emoticons?
Whenever I use an emoji / emoticon from the Google keyboard on Android, it gets added to the recent / most-used list of emoji.
This is generally useful, but there are times when I use an emoji just one time, and I prefer not to have it stored in the "most used" list.
Is there any way to remove just one or a few emojis from the most used list? Or even clear out the entire list and start from scratch?

I'm unsure that you can do that from inside the regular settings, aside from wiping all of the keyboard data, which is quite annoying. Speaking of a CyanogenMod keyboard, I was successful in clearing out the recently used emojis by editing the com.android.inputmethod.latin_preferences.xml, stored into the /data/data/com.android.inputmethod.latin/shared_prefs/ directory. This requires root privileges, though.

Thanks! I found out how to reset using wiping out all keyboard data. Posted the answer. Will wait to see if there is a better answer.

Go to Settings app > Apps > Google Keyboard
Click "Storage"
Click "Clear Data"

This will remove / reset all your most recently used emojis so you can start from scratch.

This didn't work for me on Pixel 4.

It worked but it also reset all my keyboard settings. Is there a way to do this without resetting my settings?

This didn't work on my MI POCO X3 Pro mobile

And if you’d like certain ones there asap then text a friend or business (knowing it’ll be a landline) a couple times with all the emoji you’d like. Tap them a few times if necessary. It usually works in 2 texts for me. Text the grocery store. No one cares and it won’t go through anyway. I prefer this method over resets bc I don’t know what else I’m clearing that I may want


text:
Unable to control Nexus 5X with TeamViewer Quick Support/Host
I would like to control my phone via PC. I tried TW Quick Support and Host, but I was only able to point (with blue pointer) not click and trigger an action.
I have a TW account that I used in Host application.
Does the device need to be rooted?

I have found a app called Vysor that has done the job.

You the real MVP

Although some Android devices are capable of true remote control, i.e. where you can control your phone from your computer, Nexus 5X isn't one of them. From your computer you can only view the Nexus 5X screen, as you self noted, but unfortunately you can't use TeamViewer to control the Nexus 5X device.

would be nice if you can add source, it would enhance value of answer

AirDroid can also be used to remote control a device (the functionality is called AirMirror, which is a little confusing).
For rooted devices, this works out of the box (just install AirDroid on the device, authorize root and control it from your browser). For non-rooted devices, a desktop USB connection is required, and a desktop app or Chrome extension (more details).


text:
Do most Android device use GPT as their partitioning scheme?
There is much talk of Android partitions that can be found with Google. Sometimes I can find references to GPT in documentation for mobile processors or on XDA Developers (where I have learned that certain devices do use GPT as their scheme). Aside from that, there is not much discussion about what Android devices use for storing partition information. There are exceptions: I know some devices use the MTD subsystem's command line-based method, like some of HTC's earlier devices, and I know that Qualcomm devices seem to use a GUID Partition Table.
If a device's partitions are represented by device nodes starting with mtd or mtdblock, then Linux receives the partition information from the boot arguments. If the partitions are represented by device nodes beginning with mmcblk, then the partition scheme is ambiguous. It could be using a GUID Partition Table, but the problem is that the table would have to start at the first sector which is also where all first-stage bootloaders reside in my experience.
Just as partition information on devices whose partitions' nodes begin with mtd can be found in /proc/mtd, on devices where the device nodes begin with mmcblk, the same information can (usually) be found at /proc/emmc. Why eMMC, a type of storage device, is treated like an alternative to MTD, which is an interface for accessing flash storage, I don't know. But this page on GitHub seems to imply that the partition information for devices with /proc/emmc is not gathered a table like GPT.
That same page seems to also be saying that kernels booted by U-Boot expose partitions in a different manner than MTD or GPT. Here is the passage:

Since MTK devices use the uboot mechanism, partitions including boot and recovery, are not revealed as separate partitions, but rather accessed sequencially by size and start parameters.

That sentence is rendered meaningless to me by the bit about sequential access. Perhaps someone can explain it better.
So how common is the GPT on Android devices? I've not seen any reference to partitioning on the Android developer website. If bootloaders are actually stored after the partition table, then does that mean the chips are GPT-aware?

As far as I know, most Android devices use GPT. You can check it easily by fdisk -l /dev/block/mmcblk0. BTW, this thread can be helpful: El Grande Partition Table Reference

@GokulNC I've seen that thread. It's one of the ones that I was talking about. Devices that use the MTD subsystem, which would seem to be a decent number of early Android smartphones, though, do not use a partition table. In those cases, there might be an MBR stored at the first sector/block of internal memory if the boot ROM of the SoC is designed with that in mind (the first-stage bootloader in OMAP-based devices starts 512 bytes in, for instance).

do partition tables have to be on the first sector? maybe a SoC can boot from the last sector too, like reverse sector reading?

Also regarding MTD vs eMMC: the MTD is for raw NAND type storage, so uses different drivers than managed NAND like eMMC.

If I'm not wrong, GPT is pretty common. It's pretty advanced format than MBR. On my KitKat, they have 36 partitions. GPT has features like a backup partition table and naming/flag, and supports larger disks than MBR. (Android 6.0 introduces the ability to adopt external storage media which uses GPT as default partition format.)
A device may or may be aware of GPT.  Typically with MBR, the first 512 bytes are used for the partition table. When we use GPT, it doesn't store any data on 1st sector. Instead, it gets marked as a protective MBR, so that if the device looking for MBR complaints, there is no partition.
If you are interested in the in-depth document:

GUID Partition Table | wikipedia.org
GPT fdisk Tutorial | Rod Smith's Blog


text:
When i factory reset my phone, does it restore my phone data and my mobile data?
My phone is running out of space, and even when I delete someone my things, it is still low space

You will find some first-aid and useful links in our insufficient-memory tag-wiki.

No, it will clear out the whole phone memory including contacts and other data but not the SD Card data. Before doing the factory reset, first save your data from phone memory and then go with the Format Factory procedure of your phone.
Here are some best tips to make space and increase memory:
1.) Move all downloaded apps to SD storage.
2.) Remove all unwanted apps and data.
3.) Clear out the cache from the phone. For this just go to settings>>apps and select app and you will get the clear cache option. (You have to do it for all applications installed in phone memory.)

Using the term SD card doesn't make it clear whether you're talking about external or internal or both of SD cards. Please be specific with that.


text:
Sync computer folder -> phone's external SD card, with USB cable
Background: Until a few days ago, I was happy with my Android 2.3 phone, and its Media Storage via USB cable : syncing my computer's D:/MusicLibrary/ folder with my phone's 128GB external SD Card was possible in one line with xxcopy.

With my non-rooted Android 4.2.2, I don't have Media Storage anymore, but only MTP. As mentionned in many other questions, this doesn't give a drive letter anymore by default. The only solutions I see to sync my computer's music library folder with my phone's SD card are very complex now, in comparison to the good-old-Android-2.3-way :

use FTP server (argh!) or Samba techniques
root my phone to allow Media Storage via a specific plugin
complex solutions with adb pull, but this won't track which files have been changed, so I would need to write different script to track changes, etc. (re-argh!)

Is there a simple solution to sync: computer folder <-> Android 4 phone's SD card folder, via MTP, with Windows 7?

Remark: Funnily, the tag about MTP says The Media Transfer Protocol (MTP) is a protocol which purpose is to facilitate the transfer of media files and associated metadata to/from devices.. In such a case, it seems that it doesn't facilitate but makes things worse instead.

MTP isn't really compatible with most software, so I suggest an intermediary layer like http://www.mtpdrive.com/ so that everything that can interact with a normal drive-letter device will work. (Essentially this would allow you to reuse your old xcopy solution.)

I'm currently testing it since half an hour, but it's buggy as hell compared to good old Media Storage which was 100% safe and robust.

If Matthew's comment doesn't help, the only way you can get back Media Storage back is rooting your device.

Or you can write a batch script to do it (using ADB). You can use adb's pull command for copying a file, before that, you may need to somehow check the time differences between files in computer and device (which `xcopy' does easily).

@GokulNC It's strange how somethink that worked easily with Android 2.3 (even my mother would have been able to set up a backup with any Windows backup soft and the phone using a drive letter with Mass Storage) now becomes a power-user task, using scripts, USB debugging, adb pull, etc. :)

I do not know why solutions with WebDAV or FTP you find complex? Have you tried MTP-Alternative? It is extremely easy to setup and Windows has native support for WebDAV. You would get a drive letter too. As for copying speed, I do not know why but the file transfer seems to take longer when in Windows than in my Slackware or Mint Linux systems. Give it a try.

Alternatively, you can setup a script which would log the current time and then list out all the files changed or created since the last time you took the backup. Busybox's find command with -mmin and -mtime argument would help out the most IMO (I use it to make incremental backup). Afterwards, use adb pull to reflect those changes in the existing copy of your backup.

@Firelord do you mean I should have  a FTP server running all the time on my Windows 7 ? Something else I've been unable to solve (I'm pulling my hair out ;) !) : how to configure my computer's D:/MusicLibrary/ as WebDAV ? If we can chat just 3 minutes, maybe you can help me because I'm struggling with this since 2 weeks ;)

MyPhoneExplorer Windows program can sync a folder between phone and PC through USB
First time

Install MyPhoneExplorer program on Windows PC

On Android phone

Ensure that 'USB debugging' is enabled on phone (Settings - Applications - Development or Settings - Developer options). In Android 4.2.2 and newer, you have to unlock the USB Debugging option first (Settings - About phone - Build number -> tap 7 times on it)
Ensure that the Debug-Interface-Drivers for your phone are installed (ADB drivers)

Open the program on PC without connecting phone

File> Settings > unselect "start multi-sync" and unselect "connect on start up"
File> Settings > Multi-Sync > unselect sync phone book, Sync organiser, Sync notes, refresh call logs, refresh message folders (to avoid these sync as we focussed on PC-to-phone file sync)

Open the program after connecting the phone > MyPhoneExplorer > files > click on customise (down black solid tringle) a side of Sync files
(at the same time, give access to the phone when the pop-up appears to memory, etc.)

Title: e.g. Mtc
Direction : PC to Phone
Source folder: browse to PC folder e.g F:\Mtc
Target folder: browse to a folder on the internal memory of the phone,  e.g. External memory \BackupLT\Mtc (phone to be on data or file transfer mode not just on charging mode), select include subfolders
Mode: reflect folder

Regular Sync

Open the program after connecting the phone > MyPhoneExplorer > files > click on Sync (or customise and tap on your earlier given title).

Note:

If just folder name is to be changed for streamlining, etc., change the folder name manually at PC and Phone of the same folder. Otherwise, it will copy name change folder to phone and delete old folder from the phone (as Direction: PC-to-Phone, Mode: reflect folder is selected condition)
If 2nd device is to be synced for its own (configured similar to above already), the Windows program is to be closed and 2nd device to be connected and program is to be started, 2nd device configuration will be loaded


text:
How to start a app and have it start a WebDAV server automatically in Windows?
I need to have some questions answered please. I want to start an app called WebDAV and have it start the server automatically. Do I find out the com.example.MyApp in the Settings/Apps section so I can reference it correctly? I also need to know what the adb command that I need to use and the correct syntax to use. I think it should be something along the lines of "adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW" but once the app is started how to make it start the WebDAV server. Any help would be appreciated! Thanks.

There is no universal way. It all depends upon how the app is designed. For example, the app Servers Ultimate Pro (I use it) offers the option to start a server automatically  during app startup. While I'm unable to recall the name, I remember coming across an app which allowed toggling the status of a server through intent.
Your concerned app may or may not be designed to start the server once a particular Activity is launched. Simplest way is to understand the functioning of the app and reach the conclusion. Seeking assistance from app's developer vis-à-vis concerned feature may also help.
As for starting an app, use the package name with am.
adb shell am start <pkg>  # <pkg> refers to package name of the app to be launched. Its Main activity would be launched

If you want the app to launch into a particular Activity, do
adb shell am start -n <comp>  # <comp> refers to app's activity (a component) to be launched into. E.g. com.example.app/com.example.app.NewServerActivity


text:
"Fingerprint hardware not available" after TWRP restore
A couple months ago I had to get a replacement for my Nexus 6P, so I did a full TWRP backup, copied it onto the new phone, and did a restore (note that I had to rename the backup folder so that TWRP would recognize it). Since then various things haven't quite been working correctly, but one of the most annoying things is the fingerprint reader.
Whenever I turn on the screen, a red message appears at the bottom of the lock screen that says "Fingerprint hardware not available". In addition, when I go to Settings > Lock screen > Fingerprint, the fingerprints I had set up are listed (and I can rename them), but when I try to delete one, nothing happens. Additionally, when I tap "Add fingerprint", it goes to the screen to set up a new fingerprint but then a message immediately pops up that says "Fingerprint enrollment didn't work. Try again or use a different finger." Also, when I open the fingerprint screen (even while it's still prompting me for my PIN), I get this:
05-28 21:33:20.343  3787  3787 V fingerprintd: authenticate(sid=0, gid=0)
05-28 21:33:20.352  3787  6214 E fpc_tac : fpc_tac_send_get_uint32_cmd failed with retval: -3
05-28 21:33:20.352  3787  6214 E fpc_fingerprint_hal: do_identify failed -5
05-28 21:33:20.352  3787  6214 D fingerprintd: onError(1)

repeated endlessly in adb logcat.
Deleting a fingerprint results (AFAICT) in this:
05-28 21:37:15.506 22939 22939 V FingerprintSettings: Removing fpId=983097043
05-28 21:37:15.506  4852  6197 D AudioService: Stream muted, skip playback
05-28 21:37:15.508  3787  3787 V fingerprintd: remove(fid=983097043, gid=0)
05-28 21:37:15.513  3787  3787 E fpc_tac : fpc_tac_send_get_uint32_cmd failed with retval: -3
05-28 21:37:15.515  3787  3787 E fpc_fingerprint_hal: fpc_remove failed -5
05-28 21:37:15.515  4852  4852 W FingerprintService: startRemove with id = 983097043 failed, result=-1
05-28 21:37:15.526  3787  3787 V fingerprintd: authenticate(sid=0, gid=0)
05-28 21:37:15.527  3787  3787 V fingerprintd: stopAuthentication()
05-28 21:37:15.529  3787  6214 E fpc_tac : fpc_tac_send_get_uint32_cmd failed with retval: -3
05-28 21:37:15.529  3787  6214 E fpc_fingerprint_hal: do_identify failed -5
05-28 21:37:15.529  3787  6214 D fingerprintd: onError(1)

and from there it repeats endlessly again.
There's nothing else in adb logcat when I tap "Add fingerprint" besides a log entry about the Activity being started.
Any ideas? I've searched the web extensively and even poked around in the source, all with no luck.
I'm on CyanogenMod 13.0-20160522-NIGHTLY-angler, but this is definitely unrelated to the fact that it's a nightly.

I have exactly the same issue after TWRP restoring a full backup of cm-13.0-20160913-NIGHTLY-angler on a new device. I updated it to 13.0-20161106-NIGHTLY yesterday. The update was successful, but the fingerprint errors still persist. Were you able to find a solution? I was trying to find the location where Android stores the fingerprint data and asked the question here: http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/161780/where-does-android-store-fingerprint-data

See this answer: if you remove the right files, you'll be able to interact with the fingerprint scanner again.


text:
how to convert android APK file to JAR file and run it on pc with java runtime?
Here is the deal, I have a Apk file, just can run on android phone. Now I take the Apk I want,  decompile it or do something can change Apk file to Jar file. Jar file will be a java execution, can run on pc with java software. Are people understand? So, how to do it? Is it possible?

I doubt it is possible at all. You can convert an APK or the DEX inside to a JAR for decompiling purpose (read this). But is it not possible to run APKs in your PC by directly converting it to JAR (there are huge dependency issues which differ in PC and android).
If your target is to just run your android apps in PC, you can use any android compatibility layer like Bluestacks.

but i said : JAR executation.  not for use. just hacking test for fun. exstract jar from apk know that. but jar file can't run.

Yes. Exactly. I have also tried to do the same. But I haven't found anything so far.

is it work, Atanu Roy? How can I do it?


text:
Cannot record 1080p video with most apps
I have rooted ZTE v987 and according to specification it has ability to record 1080p@30fps video. The problem is - I can't do this with most apps. I changed my ROM multiple times and every time I have the same problem.
I usually use app called Open Camera and I can record full HD video, but this wanted to use other app (for timelapses) and it also detects only low resolution (640x480).
How can I force all apps on the phome to use maximum resolution? Maybe is there some fault of config? Or maybe hardware fault? But as I said, some apps detect 1080p as available resolution.

Open Camera app uses Camera API2 which allows apps to fully utilize the camera hardware and opens up even more features (if your hardware supports) to apps. Unless the app in question (the one you use to make time-lapse) has been  implemented using CameraAPI2 you may not get the full features you state you get from Open Camera.
Alternatively some apps may have implemented API2 but may require some payment to unlock the "pro" features which can include full HD video recording or RAW image capture.


text:
Why isn't Android using kernel v4+?
While i understand that the patches needed to "support" Android operations aren't in the mainline kernel distribution, I don't understand why it isn't being ported to newer kernels.
Newer kernels come with a load of improvements in a lot of architecture-independent areas, as well as in a lot of architecture-dependent areas.
FWIK, I see almost all Android distros, starting with Google's, are sticking with kernel v3.4.
Yes, v3.4.112 is an LTS kernel, but so are v3.10, v3.12, v3.14, v3.18, v4.1 and v4.4! (source: kernel.org).
So, what is holding Android back to v3.4?

Simple. It's because Android doesn't require features added since Linux Kernel v3.10, atleast until now (till Marshmallow).. Android just uses Linux Kernel with its own modifications and additions; it has no restrictions to update itself synchronously to the latest Linux Kernel.. It just uses what it needs.

Google's Android specific features were not included in the mainline Linux development. So they took the then LTS branch and added their own code.
Android does not use or include the native GNU C Lib, it uses Bionic.
OEM specific changes could not or were not included in the mainstream branch.

Almost all the "Android specific features" are now in mainline, the rest are not that had to forward port. 2. What does the c library have to do with the kernel? 3. Is mostly correct, as SoC vendors not OEM/ODMs are writing out of tree drivers against ancient kernel versions.

Not sure about it, will have to dig a little deeper.2 Google used GPLv2 licensed Linux header files, claiming that it cleaned the header files frok copyrightable work, reducing them to non copyrightable files. Linus did not like it.

Source for point 2.

As of mid-2017 this should finally have landed (example)
You can read more about which version is where here


text:
Will a factory data reset make my camera working again?
I was having low memory on my Sony Xperia phone and while emptying space, I removed some files related to the phone camera. Since then it is showing the following error on starting the camera -

Error - Camera not available.

I would not like to delete all my personal data unnecessarily, otherwise.

What are those "some files related to the phone camera" you've removed? Is the device rooted? Did you remove system files (with root powers)? In the latter case, a factory reset won't bring them back – you would have either to replace the files you've removed or, if you don't have them anymore, reflash your ROM. Btw: removing system files doesn't help with the insufficient-memory issue, as that only affects /data.

1) You should (of course) back up your personal data first!
2) Yes. A factory reset/clean should do the trick. That is: if the camera worked during your last system clean.

What is a system clean? I think I never did any system clean so far.

By "system clean" I mean if you rooted your phone and started cleaning out unwanted files and programs.
If you haven't done anything system-wise since you bought your phone and if the camera worked fine then: A factory reset should do the trick.


text:
How to import ICS into S-Planner (Galaxy S7)
How can I import an ICS file into S-Planner on my Galaxy S7 ?
An ICS file is an exported calendar from another application.
Btw: I know how to use Google calendar and then sync S-Planner with it but I definitely don't want to merge Google calendar with S-Planner calendar. The calendar I want to import into S-Planner is an independent calendar.
If S-Planner cannot import an ICS file, an alternative would be to have a Google calendar imported (not sync'ed) into S-Planner.
Thanks.

I presume the ics is an attachment to a mail or somewhere in your storage. Just tap to open it like any other file, and choose S Planner to open. It will give an option to import the event.


text:
"Insufficient storage - The device does not have enough space to download…" error only when downloading a language pack in Swiftkey
I'm always getting this error message when trying to download another language pack in SwiftKey:

Insufficient storage - The device does not have enough space to
  download [language]. Consider deleting apps or content that you no
  longer need and try again. [Screenshot 1]

However, I have 3.33 GB of available space in internal storage [Screenshot 2] and 3.68 GB in the SD card [Screenshot 3]. This error never occurs in any other app, even those installed after SwiftKey. And it only happens when installing another language pack within SwiftKey. It does not happen when reinstalling SwiftKey or when changing the theme in SwiftKey. I've already tried:

Uninstalling even more apps
Moving apps to SD card (for those apps that allow moving to SD card)
Clearing the cache and data of SwiftKey and retrying the language pack download
Uninstalling and reinstalling SwiftKey (also tried clearing cache and data before uninstalling)
Running the SD Maid app's AppControl and CorpseFinder cleaning modes after uninstalling
Searching for files with 'SwiftKey' in their names in SD Maid to ensure that no SwiftKey files are left behind after uninstalling SwiftKey. Also tried searching with the Amaze file manager app (root mode). No files are found in both searching methods.
Used the Delete old messages app to delete many of my old messages

Solutions suggested by answers in other related posts:

Languages wont download [SwiftKey forums]

Tapped on 'Update languages'' in the language download menu and after that tried downloading the language pack again
Attempted deleting the 'languagePacks.json' file at
/sdcard/Android/data/com.touchtype.swiftkey/files/. However, there is no 'languagePacks.json' file under the 'files' directory.

Why am I constantly running out of space on my Galaxy S2?

Dialling *#9900# to attempt to delete dumpstate/logcat but I'm getting a "Connection problem or invalid MMI code" error message
Deleting contents of /data/logs but there is no 'logs' folder under 'data'. There is a 'log' (no 's') folder, though, and I've deleted all of it contents.

Install/Update Apps gives “Insufficient Storage Available” error, although I already cleared the cache and other data

Deleting contents of /data/app-lib/APP-PATH [that has this error]/lib while SwiftKey is installed, however the 'lib' folder does not exist.
Deleting /data/app-lib/APP-PATH [that has this error]
Deleting /data/app-lib/APP-PATH after uninstalling, however this path does not exist for SwiftKey after it has been uninstalled (it seems that an uninstall clears it properly)

Titanium Backup “insufficient free storage space” error

Unticked 'Mount namespace separation' setting in SuperSU

How to empty (clear) the logcat buffer in Android

Tried the adb logcat -c command

I've restarted the phone after doing the above-mentioned attempts, but they haven't fixed the issue. The error message still appears when I attempt to download another language.
Is there anything else I could try to resolve the issue?
Details:
Device: Huawei Honor 3C H30-U10
Android version: 4.2.2 Jelly Bean
The device is rooted. Superuser management app: SuperSU.

The only relevant storage for this error is the internal storage. False alerts have been reported before; please take a look into our insufficient-memory tag-wiki for first aid and useful links, then let us know if those were able to solve your issue. Good luck!

@Izzy Alright. Will take a look at those posts.

@Pete Know of an alternative that supports word prediction for more than one language without having to manually toggle between the languages? I prefer SwiftKey as it can do that, also SwiftKey can sync my account data (word predictions, themes) on all Android devices.  I've tried many of the other popular keyboard apps before but they all need the user to manually toggle to switch word prediction to another language.

@galacticninja: No I don't know of any. Sorry.

Turns out this was a bug with SwiftKey and was fixed in version 6.3.6:

Fixed: ‘Insufficient storage’ error message will not appear when downloading languages

Before that version, I did a workaround by restoring a backup of SwiftKey's data using Titanium Backup (requires root) from another device with SwiftKey and the language pack already downloaded and installed. This will however, keep the settings and logged-in user data of the source device, so you'll to log-out the existing user and edit the settings after you have restored the SwiftKey data.


text:
Home Screen and Recent Apps buttons don't work
I am using Moto G3 TE. I was happy with the 5th version but because the frequent alert for 6th version was killing me, I gave up and updated to Marshmallow. It's been like 8 days and now my mobile is showing issues which I listed below:

Home Screen and Recent Apps buttons are not working. Though they show effect on touch but nothing happening.
I am unable to see Quick Settings through swiping from up to down
Pattern lock is not visible, when I press the lock button on side. My phone can be easily access by anyone now.
Moto's special feature of showing notifications on screen when I touch the phone, isn't working.

I am assuming the problem might be because of the upgrade to Marshmallow.
Other possible problems could be (considering today's activities):

Trying to upload around 2GB of data to Google drive. (When I tried this, unknowingly whole drives' data was downloaded to my phone until there was no space and then  the "DU battery saver" app crashed, this is the first issue I observed)
Giving some security permissions to "CM Security" app.
Inserted micro USB pen drive and moved some files from internal storage to pendrive through inbuilt explorer.

What I tried (in sequence):

Uninstalled "DU battery saver" app.
Uninstalled "CM security" app.
Installed "Clean master" app.
Reinstalled "CM security" app.
I restarted my phone several times but no use.
I take off the screen glass from the screen, still no use. (unfortunately, the screen glass broken)
Tried to reset factory settings but it seems the "reset" button is disabled.
It seems I even can't able to do "Hard reset" which I tried by holding the lock and volume up button. The phone just gets restart. It is not that I want to do this but I just thought to give it a try.

PS: My phone is six months old.
Please help.

Facing exact same issue  with Motorola X-Play

@NileshMendhe Run it in safe mode. Press the power button till you see "Power off" on screen. Then press and hold the "power off" button visible on screen. You will be prompted to restart your mobile in safe mode. Run it in safe mode. According to experts, it happens because of stupid third party applications. When you run on safe mode, run each third party app and check which was causing the problem and uninstall that app.

It only showed me "Zen UI Launcher " other than standard apps in color code.  Uninstalled it !
Still not working .

@NileshMendhe Here is the direct link which explains the same. Actually, I had asked the same question on motorola forums. Here is the link. The service guy asked me for IMEI number but due to my own suspicion, I didn't provide it. You will understand how I fixed the issue if you read that post (Don't try that!!).

Please see this new article 2017/02/10 10 most useless apps and games for Android. Most prominent, but specifically named in the list: Clean Master (along with quote-Booster apps, Anti-Virus apps, and Task Killers-unquote)

I was facing a similar error with the Nexus 5. Safe mode and wiping the cache partition were not working for me. People also complaining about not be able to use the adb commands because the phone does not connect.
One option I read about was doing a factory reset. This is probably not the preferred option so I found another one. This worked for me although it seems a little unconventional.

Download/install/open Nova Launcher
Long press on screen
Click on widgets
Create a nova activity
Scroll till you find setup wizard
Look for setup wizard test activity
Click on the icon you just created
Run through setup

I also read that it is caused by almost full storage. Unlike in the description I did not get a message telling that the storage is full and the phone is going into a mode optimized for low available storage. After, the phone rebooted (I also can't confirm that the phone rebooted).
Source: http://forums.androidcentral.com/android-6-0-marshmallow/600742-nexus-5-marshmallow-home-button-not-working-many-more-problems-3.html#post5344015
Nova Launcher: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.teslacoilsw.launcher

The Setup Wizard kept on hanging on a 'Just a sec' screen with intermittent crash messages.
Setup wizard will crash if you disconnect the device from internet (wifi/data). If it is not crashing, remove sim cards and reboot the device. Setup wizard will start again. skip wifi settings. setup wizard will crash. try again and again (crashed 2 times for me). Setup wizard will be completed successfully.
http://disq.us/p/1czhzx1

I had run out of storage and this error came up, same as the question described. Phone was in the same state even after clearing the storage and many reboots.  I followed answer steps and phone is back to normal. Thank you.

This worked great for me. Incase it helps future readers I had to set Nova Launcher as default launcher in Settings -> Home, then reboot the phone. Step 4 for me was called just "Activities", not "Nova activities"; there was a "Nova Action" which I tried first but was Nova specific. After choosing the language in the wizard my phone rebooted. The setup wizard asked me to add a Google account, whether to restore from another device, etc. I just skipped those steps and it correctly used the account that was originally configured on the phone, so I didn't lose any data or configuration.

Perhaps a simpler solution is using Action Launcher to launch the activity. I had no luck with either of them (got a permission denied toast) but the device was rooted, so I downloaded terminal emulator and did: su and then am start -n com.google.android.setupwizard/.SetupWizardTestActivity, and obviously I granted SU permissions to Terminal. Hope it helps someone. What a stupid bug.

AFAIK, there are 3 solutions for this issue (try it in below order): (2 & 3 need adb drivers or terminal app)

Switch to guest and come back

Settings->Users->Guest (or)
Swipe down the notification bar and click on profile icon on the left
  top

Start the initial setup and complete it or skip it

adb shell am start -n
  com.google.android.setupwizard/.SetupWizardActivity
--or if above doesn't work: --
adb shell am start -n
  com.google.android.setupwizard/.SetupWizardTestActivity

Give below command to mark that setup is done

adb shell
$ settings --user 0 put secure user_setup_complete 1

Running "su" (you need root) and then "settings --user 0 put secure user_setup_complete 1" did the trick for me (mostly. I still can't open recents, but at least home button and most other stuff works). Thanks a lot.

Starting the initial setup via am start -n com.google.android.setupwizard/.SetupWizardTestActivity in adb shell indeed worked for me (Note that it is SetupWizardTestActivity, not as given in the answer).

The wizard can be quit with the command am force-stop com.google.android.setupwizard but that might result in the problem being restored.

Caution: Backup/sync everything before starting the setup wizard, because it might reset various things (e.g. the calendar storage (if syncing stopped before) or wifi passwords).

.adb shell am start -n com.google.android.setupwizard/.SetupWizardTestActivity solves for instead of adb shell am start -n com.google.android.setupwizard/.SetupWizardActivity

Sure will add it to answer..

apps like du saver / clean master /cm security is totally useless on Android phones
they do nth much removes Android's garbage collection causing phone to again and again collect garbage....firstly uninstall all task killers and battery saving apps .
try cleaning cache partition
and perform a factor reset if problem presets
for factory resetting you need to follow this
power button + volume(-)
now select recovery mode
wait until no command appears
then
first press power button then just click volume (+)
you're good to go now

As Harshal Borade said, clean the cache partition. I had this issue with a new LG Phoenix 2. I wiped the cache and I was able to see recent apps. Google how to wipe the cache for your OS flavor.

I had exactly same problem on my Moto X Play. I was running out of space and I used to get alert all the time. 2 days back my phone restarted just like that and after that notif. drawer, home and recent apps buttons stopped working.
I could not even factory reset phone via Settings, that button was disabled. So, I searched through and got this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0eaBzUUKqw) and got to know how you hard reset Moto X Play. I got into recovery mode and wiped data/factory reset. All back to normal now!
Hope it helps :D

After selecting a factory reset on Android 6.0.1, and unsuccessfully trying a lot of stuff for hours, I finally ended up with a solution that works for me.
In short:

Enable Debug mode on your phone. For me this was Settings/About and tap 7 (?) times on the Build number.
On your PC, install the Android Studio, to get the ADB program. After install you might find it in "C:\Users\your_username\AppData\Local\Android\sdk\platform-tools".
Open command prompt in that folder.
Run this command: adb shell wm overscan 0,0,0,15

The result is that you get a small area (15 pixels) on the bottom of your screen that is not in use, but your Home button(s) will again work. You can experiment with the value 15, maybe you need 25 or only 10. To reset to original settings, use the value 0.
Hope this helps someone.


text:
How do i recover data from internal memory on a dead Xperia Z1?
I have a Xperia Z1 and when i try turning it on nothig happens. When i plug it in i get a flashing red LED. I have important photos on the internal memory inside it so i wonder if i can in some way recover the data from it.
EDIT: The phone is rooted.

Have you already checked with our data-recovery tag-wiki? Also see: Is it possible to recover data from internal memory? / Recovering deleted photos on internal memory

No, this is not really possible for an end-user.  If the phone won't turn at all then the only way to recover data is to access the storage chip directly, using something like a JTAG setup.  Of course, it's possible that repairs might be possible (or moving the chip to another device), but it's impossible to say without more detail.

My phone doesn't turn on at all, and when I connect it to a pc it gets connected for about 4-5 sec and then disconnected in 1 sec and then connected again. So I can't use the pc to do something with it. What is a JTAG setup and how would I move the chip to another device?

@MartinBygdén Those are not beginner solutions; they are effectively unavailable to you.  You should approach a repair or forensics company that specializes in this if you really can't do without the data.

What do I need to do it?


text:
HTC sensation XL android 2.3.5 infinite download process of any app
Friend of mine gave me HTC sensation XL with android 2.3.5 and asked one question: why I can't install any app from market?
I understand that device and adroid version are old enough for mid of 2016. But I can not find out what is exact problem. I've tried to clear cache/data/etc of market app and etc hundred times but no luck. Market doesn't say that your device is incompatible or doesn't support anymore, just stucking on download process. Otherwise some "base" apps were updated normally. Also I've tried to download some data directly from browser and it was ok.
So, all I want a small message that I own old piece of... hardware.

Please do the following steps

First check you have sufficient storage, under settings>>storage
  remove your google account and add it again

please let me know the progress

I've tried it several times.

Could please mention the error message or exact response / behavior when you are trying to download also mention the play store version

It stucks on download progress with "starting download..." label and nothing happens. But UI still can response, I mean I can quit from market and continue to use cell phone.

Are you connecting with Wifi/Mobile network?

Connecting with Wifi


text:
Make Emergency Alerts stay
Occasionally, I receive emergency alerts on my Android phone, through the stock/default mechanism.  It makes a loud, alarming/attention-grabbing sound and vibrates strongly.  The alert is displayed on the screen (which was locked) and there's a big OK button, which is the only button, and when I push it quickly to silence the alarm/vibration, the message disappears.  This may be before I've had a chance to actually read what it says in as much detail as would be appropriate.  Is there any way to get those messages to stick around and be dismissed manually, so that they can be read after the alarm is silenced?

In Apps->Emergency Alerts, you can see a list of the previously received alerts and when they were received.


text:
Lg G4 email verification bypass cant do anything
I recently got an LG G4 phone from a friend and I was really excited until I got to the screen where it said enter the account previously any get. I was so frustrated and thought they set me up but they had also gotten it from a friend.
I did everything the YouTube told me to do except the unknown sources option is grey and it won't let me select it at all (so basically I'm stuck at step 4 of this advice given in a related question here).
My parents don't necessarily know I have it. I don't have any money or time to send it into the Lg company and I want to get it working so I can stay in touch with my friends when I go on my trip.
What should I do ? I can't install files because it's blocked and can't add an account because every time I do it goes right back to enter the previously synced email. Would putting a SIM card in help ?? How do I completely wipe the system. My trip is in about a week help please.

Ok it's not the same because unlike everyone else I can't download the file without it saying that my phone has denied the installation of ubkoen sources to be downloaded and when I go to the settings to click on it it's grey and I can't select it or add an account it's like it's super locked. I looked up everything it recommended but it still doesn't work.

OK, so I've edited your question to make that stand out. Good luck then; unfortunately, I don't have another solution for you.

Would putting a new SIM card in it work ?

No, that wouldn't change the "FRP" (Factory Reset Protection). I've just left a note for Matthew (who gave the answers on the other question) with a pointer to yours, so he might take a look here and hopefully has a hint for you.

It would helpful if you added the exact steps you took, so we know what options are left.

Ok let's try this,

Download this files:

LG_FRP_TOOL_by_AndroidHero
LG G4 Drivers

Install LG G4 USB drivers
Disable your Anti-Virus (as it will detect the tool as a virus)
Put your LG G4 into Download mode by following this steps:

Power Off the phone
While Holding Vol+ connect USB cable

Now run the tool exe according to the OS you're using (X86 or X64)

Just follow the on-screen instructions to bypass the FRP lock
Done

It says I cannot open the file

@Ayanna At what point do you see that?

When I clicked on the link then I went to downloads and I said cannot open file.

as i mentioned, you have to disable your anti-virus first!


text:
How to switch Google Japanese keyboard to romaji input instead of hiragana?
I just got a new phone so I had to reinstall my Japanese IME and it has a kana layout kinda like a flip phone too. I heard that the Google IME will let you use romaji input like a regular keyboard, but how do I switch it?

Google Japanese Input currently supports 3 layouts:

12 keys: Mobile phone layout
QWERTY: PC keyboard layout
Godan keyboard: Romaji-dedicated layout

You can change it from Settings - Language & input - Google Japanese Input - Keyboard layout.

I hear you. It is super simple to switch from Hiragana to Romaji.

Go into Settings
Go into Language and input
Go into Google Japanese Input
Go into Keyboard Layout.
Use these settings to switch the keyboard.

May I assume that you know how to read the 5x10 kana array?
If so, leave the 22-key layout as is (for Japanese anyway) and learn how to use "flick input." The keys are bigger, and there's less motion than using all those CV and CCV combinations.
Taking the 2 key, for example:

Tap the key for か
Flick left for き
Flick up for く
Flick right for け
Flick down for こ

Converting the hiragana into kanji whatever is as before.
When switching to English, there are two buttons for returning to your QWERTY layout: the globe and ABC.
https://files.tofugu.com/articles/japanese/2016-04-18-how-to-install-japanese-keyboard/android-typing-ku.jpg


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How to resize the /data F2FS partition
Context:
I wiped all the partitions from my Moto G device with the TWRP recovery and installed Cyanogen 13 on it. Then I had issues when enabling Encryption: the phone just restarts but does not encrypt. This is a known issue and is described here.
I wanted to follow a procedure described in this answer (based on this), which reportedly works. The explanation is:

When encrypting the phone, partition /dev/block/mmcblk0pXX -
  originally containing an ext4 filesystem which is mounted as /data and
  /sdcard - now contains an encryption container. This will be decrypted
  early in the boot process and returns a logical partition
  /dev/block/dm-0 which then holds the ext4 filesystem for /data and
  /sdcard. (...)
To fix that, the filesystem in /dev/block/mmcblk0pXX needs to be at
  least 16KiB smaller than the partition itself, which can easily be
  done by resize2fs.

In short, the proposed solution is to resize the /data partition, removing some sectors from it...

Important is the number of blocks (...) From this number, we subtract 8, which leaves not 16KiB but a safe 32 KiB of space for the encryption header (you don't mind 16KiB on a 12GB volume, seriously)

The actual number of blocks to be removed from the /data partition depends on the sector size for the partition. In the example above it's 4KB, so 8x4 =32.

The problem
These instructions only apply to the ext2/3/4 file systems; the necessary commands (e2fsck, tune2fs, resize2fs) won't work with the F2FS partition used by Cyanogen v13.
I found fsck.f2fs in the /sbin directory, which I used instead of e2fsck and tune2fs. Below are the steps from the root ADB Shell, booted to TWRP:
~ # mount | grep data

/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/modem on /firmware type ext4 (rw,seclabel,relatime,data=ordered)
/dev/block/mmcblk0p36 on /data type f2fs (rw,seclabel,relatime,background_gc=on,user_xattr,inline_xattr,acl,inline_data,active_logs=6)
/dev/block/mmcblk0p36 on /sdcard type f2fs (rw,seclabel,relatime,background_gc=on,user_xattr,inline_xattr,acl,inline_data,active_logs=6)
/dev/block/mmcblk0p33 on /cache type ext4 (rw,seclabel,relatime,data=ordered)

~ # umount /dev/block/mmcblk0p36

~ # fsck.f2fs -f /dev/block/mmcblk0p36

Info: Force to fix corruption
Info: sector size = 512
Info: total sectors = 11583232 (in 512 bytes)

(...)

So, my /data partition is mmcblk0p36, and is 11 583 232 sectors in size. Each sector is 512 bytes, thus I must shrink the partition to a final size of 11 583 168 sectors in order to leave 32KB unallocated.
But how can it be done? Everything seem to indicate that shrinking an F2FS partition is not possible, but I'm not sure. If it is not, and assuming I did a full backup of the /data partition, what are the steps to delete and re-create it with a smaller size?

Recreating the partition with a smaller size wouldn't solve your issue, if I read the quotes correctly: To fix that, the filesystem in /dev/block/mmcblk0pXX needs to be at least 16KiB smaller than the partition itself (emphasis mine). I've no experience with F2FS, but is there a mkf2fs or mkfs.f2fs command available? You could then run that with the appropriate parameters to re-create the file system with the corresponding size (which of course would destroy all data on the current file system on that partition, so make a backup first).

@Izzy It worked! Thanks mate. I credited you on Unix & Linux SE.

Glad to read! And thanks for posting it as answer with details (upvoted ;)

As of today (May 30, 2016), the F2FS file system doesn't support shrinking. If it does by the time someone reads this, just let me know in the comments.
The solution is then to delete and re-create the entire filesystem for /data. From this related answer on Unix & Linux Stack Exchange:
mkfs.f2fs /dev/block/mmcblk0p36 11583168

This will do the trick. After rebooting and restoring the backup, and finally, rebooting to Android, the encryption process worked.
Important: Be sure to check Use rm -rf instead of formatting from the TWRP settings prior to restoring the backup.

resize.f2fs 1.12.0 supports shrinking as well as expanding.

@IrfanLatif I can't find any evidence that shrinking should be supported - where did you read that?

You can find f2fs-tools (including resize.f2fs) compiled statically for ARM here.


text:
Is it possible to root the Verizon Samsung Galaxy S5 (SM-G900V) on Android 5.0 Lollipop?
I had root on 4.2 previously, but the update lost it, and with it my ability to use Sixaxis, AdFree, some features of NFC Tools and Tasker and Xposed modules.
I have searched, but it does not appear on this list:
How do I root my Android device?
I also saw a similar question here, but this is the AT&T version, not Verizon:
How to root the SM-G900F Android 5.0 without tripping KNOX?
Towelroot doesn't work (just tried) and the SM-G900V isn't listed here: https://autoroot.chainfire.eu/
Anyone have any experience with this?

Are you aware of Samsung's security features known as Knox ? .. Knox often causes undesirable effects on rooted Samsung devices that may make you reconsider having root access.

I may have heard of it in passing, but not sure to be honest.  That said I'm no longer on an S5 myself anyway, though I always hope people get an easy root solution for any phone.  I really don't get all the pushback from manufacturers.

Hi there is a way out but it requires a bit of home work.
Towel root can only root Android KitKat so you've to downgrade to Android 4.4 and gain root access using Towel root.
Later you can upgrade to Android Lollipop 5.0 without loosing the root access.
If you like the idea here is the reference link to the guides given on the Xda developer forum.
Check post #2 http://forum.xda-developers.com/verizon-galaxy-s5/help/verizon-galaxy-s5-lollipop-5-0-root-t3075261
Detail explanation of procedure of what I have said above: http://forum.xda-developers.com/verizon-galaxy-s5/general/how-to-update-to-g900voc4-5-0-keeproot-t3068546
I hope you find my answer helpful. Do let me know what you think.

I understand that you cannot root your phone the normal way, because Verizon won't let you unlock your bootloader. I believe Kingroot should work. It was able to successfully root my Samsung Galaxy S3 running 4.4.4. If that doesn't work I would try Kingoroot. Hope this helps. We all hate Verizon for keeping our bootloaders locked.

kingo root. Download the windows version run it and then tether your phone in debug mode.


text:
My Acer Z160 has a weird problem with flashing and reset
my friend's phone had an error on his phone(Acer z160 not rooted), all the applications crash at start-up. It came to my mind that I had to do a factory reset via stock recovery. After the reset, I restarted the phone and the error was still there. I decided to flash the stock ROM
(Acer_AV052_Z160_1.015.00_EMEA_GEN1) using the "SP_Flash_Tool_exe_Windows_v5.1516.00" and the flash was successful. Rebooted the phone again, and the error was still there. In fact, the phone's password/pattern is still there, the wallpaper hasn't changed and apps are still there. What happened? What should i do? Could you please help me. Any help would be appreciated
Here's the error on a video----->https://youtu.be/kJGMsVhHmWI
Here's the photo of the flashing---->https://i.imgsafe.org/abfd650013.jpg

That means your device's eMMC is (Write Protected), Which means that it won't accept any changes you do, This is a common problem in MTK based devices, Actually you have to replace the eMMC chip by a new one, But you can also try this,

Run SPFT and Load "Scatter" File,
Go to "Format" tab,
Don't mess with any options there,
Click "Start" then Plug your phone,
Wait until the Format process finish,
Now just try to flash the phone again with SPFT,

NOTE: After this process your phone won't have IMEI anymore, But that's not a problem since there is a lot of ways to restore it, Just check this Video.
If the above guide didn't help fixing your phone, then as i said before, eMMC needs to be replaced.

Thank you very much for the reply Mr. Mohamed! I really appreciated it :)
I forgot to mention Mr. Mohamed, my friend told me that this error/crashing  happened after he downloaded a music from a website. Supposedly a website with a malware, since he isn't a techy guy. Now, may I ask Sir, is it possible that a malware did this to his phone or is it just a weird coincidence...


text:
How to make Android listen to message like a server?
I need to know if Android can listen to a data sensor via wifi? Can android listen to a port and be like a server?
Arduino Device Sensor -> WIFI connection (protocol?) -> Android Device

Can Android device listen to certain port with HTTP messages?

Reading between the lines: Are you looking for some Arduino helper app?

@Izzy I am not sure about which Arduino Helper you are referring to.

I can't tell you which one might match as 1) I'm not familiar with Arduino (I have none) and 2) your question doesn't tell what you want to achieve. Listening to a given port is done by a server process, so you need to install the corresponding server app. Hard to say which one that would be without knowing what you want to do :) So I just gave you a link to Arduino apps in the hope you could pick the one matching your goal. As your question is currently phrased, the answer would be: "yes, with the appropriate app" :)

As of currently written, your question seems too broad/unclear. As for your specific question: yes, Android supports socket programming, but you need specific app to listen to them. Android OS by default doesn't provide such app, so sending HTTP messages to the device won't achieve any.

@AndrewT. okay. I was just concern if the port has security restrictions and if the Android operation system would allow the continuous opening of the app. By the way, does android allow a no-GUI applicaiton to receive the socket or I would need to open the application opening the listening port for it to work?

AFAIK, you can use persistent service (no-GUI) as server that always listens to client's request. I personally have done something like that using sockets for sensor monitoring from Android. However, that's outside of the scope of this site, which is more for end-users, not developer.


text:
MIssing internal storage
it says that internal storage is 8 GB and Ram is 2 GB.But while I can see only usable 3.65 GB internal storage.Where is the remaining memory goes?I am totally confused.Is Ram uses the 2Gb from this total 8 GB internal storage?I uninstall many apps from my phone.But it haven't give any good result.still usable memory get unchanged.Please help me.

You didn't name the device, but that's the usual way manufacturers fool their customers without lying: the storage chip has 8GB, but guess where the OS is installed? Looks like on your device, ~4GB are reserved for this (/system). Then there are other partitions on the very same storage chip, e.g. for /recovery and /cache. What's left in the end is /data – storage space available for apps etc. Those are your 3.65GB.
RAM doesn't play a role in this context, it usually goes to a different chip.
For additional details, please take a look at my answer on Android Folder Hierarchy.

Using a Terminal App, you can see the storage details using comman-line tools:

df (short for "disk free") shows you all mounted partitions together with their sizes (and some more details) in an easy-to-read style
details about all partitions are held in /proc/partitions, which you could display using e.g. cat /proc/partitions. While being more complete, this is harder to read.

Both commands will display your storage and show where the missing ~4GB have gone to. While df is not that complete, you will hardly notice the "missing parts", as those are usually very small partitions (like /boot and /recovery).


text:
How we can get Pre-Register / Unregister button on Play Store?
As we know Google launching new app called Allo and Pre-Registration of this app started on playstore.
Here I got surprised to see Pre-Register button instead Install.
I want to make my own Pre-Register/Unregister button on playstore for my app too.
I just saw recently same thing for Allo App by Google
Pre-Register:

Unregister:

Is there any way to do this? How we can achieve this thing?
Your help would be appreciated.
Thank you.

Are you asking us how to do this for your own app (as a developer)?

@Firelord Yeah.

@PratikButani you can find answer from here.


text:
Manually set date & time to the future
I'm trying to manually set date & time on my HTC/Galaxy Note 3 device. I am correctly able to set the date upto 30th July, but when I set date to 30th August 2016, the clock reverts back to current date & time.
Is there a maximum limit to set future date & time?

check if you've ticked auto time and date update

I have disabled auto time and date update. Then I manually changed the date to 30 Aug 2016 , but then it automatically reverted to current time . I tried the same with 30th July 2016 and that worked successfully

Most likely your device's warranty ends on August 1st #D Honestly: What are you trying to achieve? Why do you need to set a future date?

Need to do e a future dated app testing , hence setting the clock for testing the application

I could succesfully set 30th Aug 2016 on LG G2 now.

Have you checked if there's 3rd-party app that may monitor and correct the date & time? Also, try with no internet connection. By default, I don't think there's a limitation to choose date, because Android doesn't know today's date without external assistance (e.g. time server sync).

This is due to an issue in Google Play Services, and it doesn't seem like Google is interested in fixing this bug.
Star this bug and make your voice heard : https://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=36650


text:
Is it possible to run android without a screen on plain phone mainboard?
I use Android phone as "brain" of my DIY robot in connection with Arduino Mega board. It is generally low-cost solution, because cheapest Android phone costs about $30 and Arduino Mega clone costs $7. So it is cheaper than most of single-board computers and have more i/o pins than all of them and have all needed possibilities: wifi, camera, GSM, GPS, gyroscope etc.
But I want to decrease price of the solution and decrease it's weight. So I could buy only mainboard of a smartphone without excess LCD screen, box and battery. And run it.
But I don't know, whether it is possible to run mainboard without a screen. Is it possible to run it and also reinstall Android via USB if I need it?
I know that most of single board computers allow to install Android. But I mean indeed a mainboard of ordinary phone.

Yes no need for screen

Technically, it's possible to run Android without screen, just like when a device is running with broken screen. Though, you might have interacting with it, unless you already have alternative methods to control with (touch)screen.

If you can prepare the phone before removing the screen with Tasker (or similar tool) and plugins like Autoinput and test it well, I think you can obtain the results you are looking for.
Run and install android from USB it is going to be (if possible) a very tricky mess.
Nonetheless, if you are able to put the phone in download mode you could be able to work on this topic too.


text:
Can I flash a custom ROM and a separate custom kernel after?
I currently use a Galaxy S3 Neo and have recently flashed the latest Resurrection Remix ROM (android 5.1.1 based on cm 12.1). After doing this, I have experienced multiple random reboots which I found to be caused by kernel panics. For this reason, I did some research and some people suggested flashing a new kernel as a solution. Would it be safe to flash a kernel which is not associated with the resurrection remix ROM to a device using this ROM?

Yes, flashing a kernel is mostly safe. The worst thing that could happen would be a boot loop aka soft brick, which can be fixed by flashing another, proper kernel.
Remember that the kernel in your case has to be CM (CyanogenMod) compatible because Resurrection Remix is built on CM. There are many different kernels, so look for the one that matches your needs (performance, stability, battery life).
XDA developers helps with titles (look for [KERNEL] in the title) and the XDA DB gives you a quick and easy way to find kernels and ROMs you want.


text:
Internal Storage calculation wrong

The calculation does not really add up. Previosly more storage was occupied by Spotify although the downloaded music is saved to the external SD card. How can I get Android to recognize the correct free space?
Motorola G 2015

How disk space is used on Android device?

Sometimes the phone just needs a quick restart. Try that and if it doesn't work then let me know.

I ended up using a custom ROM as even a factory reset didn't solve the problem. Still the Spotify issue exists. I assume there are some hidden files I didn't discover yet.

@idkfa Hmm. Did you try a FULL wipe of the internal storage too? It's a little extreme but it's all I can think of.


text:
Suspicious popup and 'Yellow Booster' installation
A pop-up appeared on my phone stating:

Warning
You only have to install a Great App to get your phone fully functioned.

The only option I am given is "Confirm."I accidentally hit the confirm button and another popup appeared stating that the install was blocked. It appears that the initial pop up is powered by the "Yellow Booster" app. I tried restarting my phone but it reappeared again.
How do I avoid this, as it seems very suspicious to me.

Give us a relevant screenshot. This popup, when does it appear? when using a browser?

I was using my broswer the first time, the second I was trying to scan for malware, which can be seen in the screenshot.

As you have guessed, don't let them install the app for now (i.e. don't enable 'allow unknown source').

On a (un)related note, what is the app on the background that says 'Full Scan'? Does the popup always appear when you access it?

I installed the 360 Security app  right after I got the pop up to check for any viruses. The pop up reappears shortly after it is blocked. How can I prevent it from trying to install altogether?

When that popup/dialog (the one with warning) appears again, can you execute the commands adb shell dumpsys window windows and adb shell dumpsys activity activities and store the output somewhere safe? Use a text paste service, such as pastebin.com to share the output from those commands. You're going to need [tag:adb] installed and [tag:usb-debugging] activated.

@user168160 OP, you need to perform a big cleanup in order to bust unnecessary apps (such as the 360 thingy). Remember that Android cannot be infected by viruses (and yes, Mr. Izzy, this time I mean viruses for real), but only from malware, which comes in the form of apps. My recommendation is to start uninstalling even remotely suspicious software.

Don't use such antivirus apps or task killers like clean master....it's totally useless on Android and drains more battery I think that yellow booster is an adware app which can cause annoyance.

My answer may help: Apps trying to install in background

@Firelord Was just about to refer them to that answer, very intuitive and helpful answer.

@MichaelNancarrow Thank you. Did you somehow come across this Yellow Booster scam as well? If yes, please share your findings in an answer.

For me uninstalling Assistant for Android by AA Mobile fixed this issue.


text:
Open Androidx86 system.img to edit init.sh
I have been trying to open the system.img on my Androidx86 installation to add rmmod i2c-hid and modprobe i2c-hid to it because the touch on my Tablet doesn't seem to work in Android x86. I have already tried to open it with EXT4 Unpacker, but it says Unknown file format when I try to open the system.img.
I am on Windows 7 32 bit right now.
Any suggestions, guys?

While this is on topic here you may find a better response on [android.se].

You can raise a moderator flag and they will move this one for you.

in my experience, use this trick

just install the android os, and boot
open  root folder/etc/init.sh and copy init.sh
copy to another location and open using text editor
add rmmod i2c-hid and the modprobe i2c inside the function init_misc , make sure you just place the code and dont edit another code inside it, save in location you wanted
press alt+f1 and  type cat /etc/init.sh > /(location you placed the edited init.sh)

sory for my english
hope it help you


text:
Sony Xperia Z5 not showing Heads up Notifications on Marshmallow
I've recently bought a Sony Xperia Z5, and can't get the Heads up Notifications to work on any app at all.
I have gone into the app settings and selected "Sounds & Notifications / App Notifications / (app name) / Allow peeking", but there are no heads up notifications from any of the installed apps. Is there another hidden setting somewhere that I need to enable in order to get this working? I really don't want to download another app if this should be working as standard.
Thanks in advance for any assistance.

It... doesn't really work like that. By default, only developer of the apps can use either heads-up or normal notification, and user cannot change that behaviour... unless you're okay with 3rd-party apps (see this question)

Hi Andrew - thanks. I've seen screenshots of this in action on a Z5, though. GMail does it, but not on my phone. Are you saying that Outlook, etc. also don't do it?

AFAIK, Yahoo! Mail, Outlook, Inbox by Google don't do it. Messaging (Google's SMS app) does it, but I couldn't remember others. Not sure about Gmail though, since I'm not using it.

I'm really disappointed with this - I hate having to "download an app" to get a basic feature working, as 9 times out of 10 they either look rubbish or are filled with ads. Anyway, thanks for the help.

Any app installed that is using notification access?

How do I get to this - is it in the "Settings / Apps / " area somewhere?

do you have any antivirus or cleaner apps installed on your device? I had very same problem with notifications after upgrading to marshmallow. It appears "360 security" blocked all the notifications automatically (except Facebook and Gmail) after upgrading android. So long story short check your cleaner and antivirus application settings for notifications. It helped me, I have all my notifications back, woohoo! :-D


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Android AccountManager security
I've asked this question before, but got no suitable replies, so here I go again. How does the Android AccountManager which is used to store your Google, Facebook, Twitter, etc... usernames and passwords implement security. For instance, off my phone is rooted, can't a third party app read the account passwords of wherever it stood them. I figure that the account manager must store these passwords somewhere on the device our logging in would not work, especially if the device was offline. Thank you for your explanations.

We cannot look into the sources, but it doesn't necessarily store passwords. A token obtained from the server might be sufficient (and is what's normally used – hence when unautorizing a device, you don't need to change your password as it simply invalidates the token assigned).

Interesting, I think I understand now. Perhaps you can make that an answer. But why are the sources not available? I thought Android was open source. Thanks.

Izzy, des the system you describe use OpenID? Thanks.

So, if I'm offline, account manager will be useless to offline apps?

See my answer below (time for comment-cleanup). I don't think it's using OpenID, but I cannot tell for sure.

We cannot look into the sources of the Google AccountManager: while Android itself is open source, the Google apps are not. But we can make an educated guess:
It's not necessary to store passwords on the device in this case. You once enter your password, it gets confirmed server-side, and you receive an "authentication token" in return. That token is saved on the device, and used by it until it gets invalid (either by expiring or by being revoked) – in which case you will be asked again for your password, and the game starts over. This is why you can simply "revoke access" from devices without having to change your account password.
The token is always specific to the device (same reason – otherwise you couldn't revoke access from one device without affecting any other). I can't say whether the token would be useless to some "root app" aquiring it without your permission (non-root apps would have to ask you for your confirmation when first accessing it), or what they could do with such a token while offline (again, closed-source parts) – maybe someone else is able to shed a light on that.

Thank you for your answer. I am really hoping that someone else will be willing to provide some more detail this time around. Interesting to know that the Google apps are not open sourced.


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How to Connect Kindle Fire to ADB while in "Kindle Fire System Recovery"
I have a Kindle Fire HD (tate) that I bricked by modding /system/app/Framework-Res.apk and I am trying to unbrick it. How can I connect it to ADB? It won't show up in Ubuntu or Windows. It is in a bootloop with a red triangle and it prompts to system restore (doesn't work). It doesn't have TWRP because I used iRoot. It looks similar to this image.

Is this possible? If so, then how?

You need a driver built by amazon to connect it to ADB. This should help you: https://developer.amazon.com/public/community/post/Tx3RZFBU0KJTSWS/Setting-up-the-ADB-Driver-for-Kindle-Fire-Devices


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Stop Google Search Opening in Chrome
Until recently when I used the default Google search bar and tapped a search result it would open in Firefox. However there must have been an update to either the search bar or Firefox as the results are now opening in a stripped down Chrome window.
This is happening on both my devices (Moto G - 6.0 and Nexus 7 - 6.0.1). Firefox is set to open multiple tabs and other apps (mail and Feedly) continue to open in Firefox.
How can I force the search app to open the results in Firefox rather than Chrome?

Perhaps disable Google chrome?

Google Search uses Chrome Custom Tabs since April 27, 2016. From 9to5Google,

After its most recent update, the Google app now opens search results as Chrome Custom Tabs. [...]
[...]. By default, links from search results now open as a Custom Tab that features a blue action bar with options to Share, Copy link, Find in page, and Open in Chrome.

To change its behavior,
open Google app's setting by e.g. tapping Google app from app launcher to navigate to Google Now screen, tap hamburger icon (3 horizontal bars) on top-left to open navigation drawer, then,

Users can go to Settings > Accounts & privacy to toggle off the new ‘Open web pages in app' option if they prefer opening all links the old way.

Related: Prevent apps opening links in Chrome Custom Tabs (i.e. open in default browser directly)