text:
How can I remove the SIM lock from my Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G T-Mobile?
I got an Galaxy S Blaze 4G as a gift from USA. The phone is locked and did not accept any SIM card in my country (just for T-mobile). Instead it ask for a unlock code.
Ts there any software way to unlock the phone (maybe with help of root)?

This is really not about Android at all. This is about the phone part of a Smartphone which runs Android

T-Mobile Support page contains a thread that covers your issue:
SIM Unlock your phone
Last updated on: Jul 3, 2013 2:43 PM

If you purchased an eligible device, the device has been programmed with a SIM Subsidy lock that will prevent the device from operating with other compatible wireless telephone carrier’s services.
If you wish to use the device with the service of another wireless telephone carrier, you must enter a numeric SIM Subsidy unlock code to unlock the device.
Understanding SIM Unlock Requirements
As an active or former T-Mobile customer, you may request a phone unlock. T-Mobile will unlock your phone (as long it is not reported as lost, stolen, or blocked) if:

You have purchased your device from T-Mobile or an authorized T-Mobile dealer and activated it on T-Mobile service;
You have Postpaid service, have not requested an unlock code in the last 90 days;
You paid for your device in full;
Your account is in good standing;
You have a minimum of 40 consecutive days of active Postpaid service since purchase (or for Prepaid service, have used your device within the past 60 days );
You are under a 24-month service contract, you have made monthly payments for at least 18 consecutive months on your plan or have paid a migration fee for the device;  certain exceptions may apply please call Customer Care for details;
You are on a Prepaid plan, you have had more than $50 in total refills on the device;
You are a former customer, your account balance is zero and you did not port out a line associated with the device during the buyer’s remorse period;
You provide proof of purchase if T-Mobile is unable to verify purchase.

Note: Exceptions to some or all requirements may apply in certain circumstances, including for Military Personnel and Business and Government Accounts.

If you qualify for the above list, give them a call and they will help you out!

Success Case:
A user from XDA Developers forum answered to a problem similar to your own, you can read about it here:

I just unlocked mine a few days ago. If you meet the requirements you should be fine, http://support.t-mobile.com/docs/DOC-1588
I bought my phone from ebay from a guy in Florida (I'm in NY), I had it on my account for a few months. So I had no reciept or anything, or history of the phone. When I called they asked for my phone number, account passcode, the phones model name and IMEI. Then I gave them my email, and recieved the code via email in about 24hrs. So it was pretty painless and free.

Alternatives:
There's a XDA Developers Thread with lots of users claiming to have successfully unlocked their devices either by changing their IMEI or by means of truth manipulation:

Answer #4:

Yup. I got mine unlocked through T-Mobile for free. Just tell them that your going to travel during soon or something and they'll give you a pin in about 15 days.

Answer #10:

FWIW I've successfully sim unlocked my T-Mobile Galaxy Blaze at the cost of  ERASING THE IMEI!

The step by step is found here:

Turn off the phone. Insert a SIM from another provider into your phone.
Click "DISMISS" on the Enter Unlock Code screen after the phone starts up.
Wait a minute for the phone to power on and settle down.
Go to the dialer screen. Enter *#197328640#
The screen will change to the hidden menu as soon as you hit the last # key in the dailer
press 1 DEBUG SCREEN
  Press 8 PHONE CONTROL
  Press 5 SIMULATION
  Press 6 NETWORK LOCK
  Press 3 PERSO SHA256 OFF
  Wait exactly 30 seconds
  press the menu key on the phone and select back option. This will take you back to NETWORK LOCK screen.
  Press 4 NW LOCK NV DATA INITIALLIZ
  Wait exactly one minute and reboot the phone.
  Your phone should be unlocked.
  I tried this on T-989 UVLE1 original ROM with root ON.
  I haven't tested it on any other version or ROMs or any other phones.
Disclaimer: I am not responsible for anything you do with your phone.

Read the entire thread here.

I used Ultimate Simlock Code Generator to unlock my phone.

Does not work with Japanese phones.


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Facebook and Office suite preinstalled on new Gingerbread device?
I just bought a Gingerbread phone and I was surprised to find Facebook and Office Suite already installed.
Do these apps come preinstalled on Gingerbread as on my previous android which was a older OS I had to download these apps. I did buy a new phone and I am just suspicious in case it isn't new!?
I apologize if this seems a stupid question.

This depends on

the manufacturer of the device
the provider where you bought your device.

The manufacturer pre-installs some applications. Also the provider may pre-install some applications.
So this does not depend on the Android version but on the manufacturer and/or provider.

Many Android phones come packed with useless software preinstalled by the device’s manufacturer and your cellular carrier, this is called "bloatware".
Software vendors usually pay to pre-install lite versions of their products on the new devices to promote their work.
On the other hand, it may happen that apps already installed are useful and selected based on usage statistics.

There's no bulletproof method to ascertain if the device as been used before, but the physical appearance,  the protective plastic on the Glass and Camera, the packing, etc... all should give you a concrete idea about the device usage.

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


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When tethering, is there a way to turn off the phone's own data usage?
Just a quick question, really.
When I'm tethering (via USB, or wireless, or whatever) my phone's apps (and there are a significant number of my apps which do this) are constantly using the phone's mobile data connection to push notifications.
My phone's mobile connection is poor at the best of times (Samsung Galaxy S3 on o2 in the North East of England), such as now, where it's constantly flicking between G, E, H, H+ and 3G.
As such, I'd like to effectively "disable" my phone for every purpose other than providing an internet connection my laptop via USB or wireless.
Is that possible?

Try Android Firewall from the Play Store. You could create a "White list" that starts off with denying all network activity for all apps, to which you'd then allow just your tethering to go through.
Then, when you want everything to go through again, just disable the firewall...Or better yet create another white list that you can switch to.

Take a look at this article. I think what you're looking for is "Restrict Background Data." Keep the tethering app in the foreground and every other app will be starved of connectivity.

Restrict Background Data: This option prevents all apps and services
  from using data in the background. Apps that depend on background data
  won’t work how you’d expect them to – for example, Gmail won’t
  automatically download new messages in the background if you enable
  this option.

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/why-you-dont-need-third-party-apps-to-manage-background-data-use-in-android-jelly-bean/

Instead of just linking to another source, you should post the answer here. If that page is removed, or unavailable, it becomes a very poor answer.

@RyanConrad, The whole article is useful. If I copied it here, that qualifies as plagiarism or a copyright violation.

true, but you could answer the question and link to it for further reading. I wasn't saying to copy the entire article, I was saying that you should answer the question here, not just point to an external source. I was refering to the help - Links to external resources are encouraged, but please add context around the link so your fellow users will have some idea what it is and why it’s there. Always quote the most relevant part of an important link, in case the target site is unreachable or goes permanently offline.

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


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How to disable cellular when WiFi is present?
I perform all my communication via the internet (Jabber, SIP), so I only need cellular as a backup.
Additionally, coverage at my home is near to nonexistent and as a result, battery drains in a few hours (as opposed to few days when GSM is disabled).
Is there an app for disabling cellular communication entirely (airplane mode) if a WiFi network is present, and enabling it otherwise?
I'm not interested in solutions which disable just the data connection: Android handles that already.
I'm OK with solutions which require rooting, rebuilding Android, etc.

Might help to look into @Izzy's solution involving tasker. A tweak is needed, instead of detecting GSM signal, check if wifi network is present, switch to airplane mode and enable wifi. If moving away from network point, switch off wifi and enable cellular.

@t0mm13b Tasker is awesome. If you turn your comment into an answer I'll gladly accept it.

Might help to look into @Izzy's solution involving tasker.
A tweak is needed:

Instead of detecting a GSM/CDMA signal, check if a Wifi network is present nearby
Switch to/enable airplane mode and enable Wifi and connect appropriately (this part am uncertain about - if its an open public Wifi point, good (its bad but another story about open Wifi's) What if it's a private Wifi network and need to input the key? Tasker might be able to help you with that, unsure!
If moving away from network point, switch off/disable Wifi and disable the Airplane mode.

Having a look here at this wiki titled "Turn on Wifi at home" entry might also help you as well, to quote, in case of link rot:

My route to and from work is populated by open networks from cable
  providers that require log-in via webpages and unsecured home
  networks. Whenever I pass them my phone tries to connect,
  disconnecting me from 3G. Leaving WiFi on all the time means I'm left
  with constant service interruptions. forgetting to turn on WiFi at at
  home runs the risk of eating up my data plan. For this reason I turn
  off WiFi when I'm out and turn it on when I get home. But what if I
  forget?
With this Tasker profile, my phone now uses cell location data to turn
  wifi on/off.
Steps:
Turn GPS on (just for now). You don't need to keep it running all the
  time, but it helps to pinpoint where your location for the context
  step.
First, go home (the place your wifi router lives).
Profile: WiFi At Home Context: Location > Net=On, GPS=Off, Radius
  500m, Get Fix
Task: At Home Action: Net > WiFi > On Task (optional): Alert > Popup >
  Text "WiFi On"
Task: Leaving Home Action: Net > WiFi > Off Task (optional): Alert >
  Popup > Text "WiFi Off"
Get Fix locates where you currently are on a map so you need to
  actually be at home for this step.
You have several setting options depending on how much power
  consumption vs. accuracy. See [html
  http://tasker.dinglisch.net/userguide/en/loctears.html "Location
  Without Tears"]. The least accurate (Net=Off, GPS=Off) needs a really
  large radius. The most accurate (Net=On, GPS=On) will drain your
  battery faster.
I find Net=On, GPS=Off, Radius 500m to work fine. My phone knows when
  I'm home.

Awesome, thanks! Another solution to rogue captive portals would be to check CellID and only turn off baseband if CellID matches one of the known ones. I don't have that problem though.

You can give a try to an app developed by a XDA Developers Forum user gyagapen that essentialy the app intelligently manages switching between both your WiFi and 3G data connections as you move about:
CleverConnectivity

CleverConnectivity is an application that helps you to manage your data and wifi connection in order to save battery.
How does CleverConnectivity work?
This application will automatically turn on and off connectivity (data/wifi/sync) while screen is OFF.
For example if the user chooses below configuration:
Time On: 2min
Time On Next Check: 1min
Time Off: 10m
Usage check Interval: 3s
Once the screen is OFF, CleverConnectivity will keep connectivity alive for 2min. Then it will check if data is used during a period of 3s.
If data is used, connectivity will be kept for 1 minute (Time On Next Check).
If data is NOT used, connectivity will be desactivated for 10min. After this, the connectivity will be re-activated and Time On will kick in.
Once screen is ON, connectivity will be automatically re-enabled.

Links:

Google Play Store - 1,00€ No Ads
Google Play Store - Free Version (with ads)

You can give a try to an app available from Google Play Store that automatically controls your WiFi status:
Smart WiFi Toggler

Description
Smart WiFi Toggler is an application designed to control your phone's WiFi using location based rules. Its aim is to conserve battery and minimize data charges by turning WiFi off when not connected to a network, and turning it on when a known hotspot is present. It constantly learns where your hotspots are located to make its decisions.
It's a very useful application if you frequently forget to turn WiFi off when leaving a hotspot, or if you want to automatically switch from mobile data to WiFi to conserve battery whenever you're back into a hotspot.
Here are some of cool features Smart WiFi Toggler has to offer:

Automatically learns your WiFi hotspot locations.
Turns WiFi off when disconnected from WiFi network.
Automatically turns WiFi on when near a known hotspot.
Uses your network location. No GPS battery drain.
Provides the ability to control "auto-connect" behavior for each hotspot.
Ability to lock WiFi to a disabled state.
Warning notification and auto-locking WiFi when a hotspot is down.
History, logging, and a troubleshooting screen in case you face any problems.

I specifically said that WiFi is my main channel of communication, and that I need to turn off the entire baseband (airplane mode) and not data connection. Sorry, but none of this is relevant.

Has anyone already measured how much battery is saved by this app? Currently I have WLAN always turned on and switching is done automatically (only for known networks, I'm not using open WLANs).

just go to airplane mode, and enable wifi afterwards

I don't think the OP is looking to micromanage it.

Is this even possible? In my Android 4.4, the wifi icon has no effect when airplane mode is enabled.


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Can't debug with LG Nexus 4
I am at my wit's end here trying to debug using a new LG Nexus 4 developer phone. Debugging is enabled on the phone, and the USB driver from the Android SDK is installed. When I try to run in Eclipse I get a message that says 'No compatible targets were found'.
I have previously used a Samsung Nexus S developer phone, and a Nexus 10 tablet with the USB driver from the Android SDK and it was not a problem. I have also debugged using my Samsung Galaxy S4 using the drivers from Samsung.
I plug in the Nexus 4, and go to Device Manager. In Device Manager, the device is listed as Android Phone > Android Composite ADB Interface. I right-click and select 'Update Driver Software...', then 'Browse my computer for driver software'. I then point it to the '\sdk\extras\google\usb_driver' folder of my Eclipse/Android SDK install, but I am notified that 'The best driver software for your device is already installed'.
I have tried uninstalling the driver, but as soon as I plug the phone back in, my computer automatically installs the driver, and when I go back in to Device Manager to 'Update Driver Software...', I am again told that 'The best driver software for your device is already installed'. And yet still, even after rebooting both my PC and the phone, when I try to run in Eclipse I am still notified that 'No compatible targets were found'.
Any ideas? This device is completely useless to me unless I can get it to debug from Eclipse. A co-worker was able to get it to work just fine on his PC, and we have the exact same PC specs. Please help!

Perhaps anecdotal, but I was debugging my Nexus 4 fine until I installed the Samsung drivers for the GS3 and Note 10.1. Removing those drivers (with Driver Sweeper) fixed my situation.

@mawcsco I just uninstalled drivers for all my devices, rebooted my PC and the Nexus 4, tried it again and still doesn't recognize the device. I'll try Driver Sweeper, but am not familiar with it, or how to target the Google USB driver that comes with the Android SDK for uninstalling. Will give it a shot though.

@mawcsco I tried following the instructions for Driver Sweeper, but I couldn't figure it out. I uninstalled all the drivers normally, then rebooted in Safe Mode and ran Driver Sweeper, but didn't see any Android or USB drivers listed, I only see drivers for things like display and sound and mouse.

Sounds like you already got them with the regular uninstall. Incidentally, for me it was the Samsung drivers that caused problems. Like I said, this is an anecdotal case (which is why I didn't provide an answer).

Couple of suggestinos that might work:

First, try to update your Android SDK with the Android SDK Manager. Sometimes, due to a old version, newer phones are not recognized.
I'm assuming you are using Windows. Wich version? x86 or x64? When you go to Device Manager and see Android Phone > Android Composite ADB Interface, does it have a yellow admiration mark? If yes, the the drivers are not installed correctly.
This might be a bit trivial, but have you tryed to reboot your PC and your phone?
Also, what minSDK version do you have in your application set, and what version does your Nexus 4 have?

Already tried updating everything that had updates available (including the Google USB driver).
Windows 7, 64-bit. There is no yellow mark in Device Manager.
Have tried rebooting both (was in my OP).
minSdkVersion="9" targetSdkVersion="17". How do I see what version the Nexus 4 has?

It is better to post a comment on the question soliciting additional information instead of having an answer filled with questions! (just saying) ;)

@tjc59 In your phone, go to settings, Phone information (the last entry), and you should see there Adroid Version. My Nexus 4 is in 4.2.2 right now.

Mine is 4.2.2 also. According to the Android developers website, targetSdkVersion="17" should be compatible with Android 4.2.2.

@tjc59 connect your phone to the PC, and from a consolo try to run adb devices. Post the output here, please

@AitorTheRed it just says 'List of devices attached', but doesn't actually list anything. Meanwhile, if I plug in my Samsung Galaxy S4 and run the command, it shows up in the list.

use a usb 2.0 port. sometimes usb 3.0 screws up with adb

As far as I can tell, all my PC's USB ports are 3.0, so not sure how this is going to be possible...

then you have to use windows' default usb 3.0 drivers for it to work (as compared to maybe a proprietary one??)

Sorry, but I don't know what you are talking about. As I said in my OP, a co-worker has the exact same PC (model/specs) as I do, and he had no issues getting the Nexus 4 to work with Eclipse.

Normally USB 3.0 comes with drivers. There's the default which Windows installs over auto-update, then there's the one that came with your laptop/mobo. Mine worked after using the default Windows driver.

I searched for "Windows 7 USB 3.0 driver" and got no results from Microsoft, so I'm still not sure where this default Windows USB driver is. And all my Windows Updates are installed, so not sure what else I can do here regarding your suggestions.

It could be that MTP interferes with ADB/USB-Debugging:
In my case, MTP (Media Transfer Protocol) was enabled. So I disabled it in storage settings (see: Settings→Connections→USB Connection Mode). Everything works smooth now.

@Izzy, this could be an answer. After all, defining how the phone connects to the computer (using MPT or PTP) may affect whether USB debugging would work or not.


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Emulating a windows environment
Is there an emulator available for Android that mimics a windows environment? WINE for Android does not look like it will be out for a while, and those that I've found don't look like they support past Windows 98 (our software requires XP S3 and up) due to different processor structures. It doesn't have to be a free option; as long as it's not too expensive, we don't mind paying. If we cannot do this we can use LogMeIn, but that is not preferable.

Fast forward to 2022, looks like Wine for Android is still active.


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Kiosk App - Auto-Update
update on an android device (Samsung Galaxy S2). A I am waiting for the app to download and install. Is there a way I can force this to take place without user interaction.
I was thinking about the following :

Killing the app (from another app)
Reopening the app after 1 hour (from another app)

Is this going to work? Can I garantee that the update will have taken place?
Thanks in advance!
P.S
I have 700 devices so this has to be automated. I have waited overnight for the app to install while the app was running and it didnt happen. I am open to any suggestions.

Is the app on the play store?
If yes, it should push out an update without user intervention provided the setting to 'Auto-update apps' is set, depending on preference of either Wifi or using Mobile data. See below:

In order to do this without user interaction (silent install) and without the play store, one of the following items should be addressed:

Device must be rooted
App must be signed with the OS system signature
Device is managed by a MDM preinstalled in the OS (And therefore signed by the OS vendor)

Without one of the above, Android will prompt the user to approve the update. And there will be a Cancel button that you can't control. Keep in mind also that if the uses cancels the upgrade you will fall back to the device launcher.


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Trebuchet: Disable/Hide Dock
Is there a way to disable the dock entirely on Trebuchet on CyanogenMod?  I find that I always go to my main home screen before touching the app drawer out of habit, so I'd like to have that extra space for the regular screens.  Is this possible?

Off-topic, when you say "out of habit", is it because you used a different launcher before that had this behavior? If yes, what launcher was it?

@geffchang No, I just have an apparently irrevocable reflex to go to my main home screen before launching something from the dock :-/

There does not seem to be a way to do that in Trebuchet on CyanogenMod (when not on CyanogenMod you can do it in the Trebuchet Settings).
As an alternative you could use nova launcher, it is free and the dock is removeable (even on CyanogenMod).
There may be many more launcher providing this feature, but nova is tho only one I used on CyanogenMod.

Nova launcher isn't in f-droid :/


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External Microphone in Headphone Jack?
There are some external stereo microphones for IOS that plug into the headphone jack rather than the dock connector. For instance, the IK Multimedia iRig MIC Cast.
They claim that they work on Android as well.
Well, they may work, but do they provide better sound quality than the internal phone microphone, turning it into a decent digital recorder for music, for example? (with the right software, of course).
My question isn't really whether those microphones are better quality than the internal microphones, as I assume they are. But does the headphone jack on Android phones (mine is the Galaxy S4) really provide the input capability for better quality sound, including in stereo?
Of course that jack can transfer sound in both directions, headset and microphone, as it is a phone. For output, the phone provides quality stereo music output to headphones, as modern phones are also music players. However, the microphones on phone stereo headsets are generally low quality monaural microphones only suitable for phone calls, usually not better than the internal microphone, might be worse.
So the question is--is the input function of that jack capable of providing quality stereo input, if one has a quality stereo microphone attached? (No matter how good quality the microphone is, if that jack really cannot transmit that quality sound, but reduces it to a very low resolution and frequency-reduced monaural sound, no point at all in attaching such a microphone.
Anyone know about the input capabilities of the headphone jacks on Android phones. (If it varies from phone to phone, then how about mine, the Galaxy S4?)

I found this video on YouTube: Galaxy Samsung S4 External Mic for mobile phone.  and here is the mic quoted on eBay. I plan to test it soon. It seems the vendor has positive feedback.
It is noise-reducing microphone for the 3.5mm jack. I tried to check if the cited video has stereo sound. I believe it does, but I am not sure it did not come from some YouTube stereo enhancement, so I cannot claim it for the microphone. I plan to use it for lectures, so it should serve for the purpose well enough.

A standard, traditional headphone jack has 3 sections, for left, right (outputs), and ground.  The ones with the microphone added a 4th section, for monoaural input from the mic.  There's no way to get stereo input through a single connection.
As far as the quality goes, I don't really know, but I doubt that it is particularly high quality, as it was designed only for non-stereo voice.

stereo is produced with mixing equipment or software you will be hard pressed to find a tru 2 channel mic because of feedback issues i have friends that make beats and record on a laptop mono input and they sound amazing your phone is no different other than the codecs that convert the analog to digital

Please set use commas and dots, your text is hard to understand.


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Cannot perform OTA update on encrpyted Nexus 4
I encrypted my phone because of an Exchange policy with my employer. However, to apply the OTA update, I must decrypt. But the encryption option is greyed out at Settings. I tried removing my Mail account, so the Exchange policy could just re-nable the decrypt option, but it doesn't.

Have you tried restarting your phone after you removed the Mail account?
Make sure to also UNCHECK Settings > Security > Device administrators > Email.

Yes, did not work :S


text:
No internet access to Google apps on Android 4.3
So I installed 4.3 on my new Nexus 4 and I found out that I couldn't use the play store, gmail app and other Google apps. I tried clearing the cache but it was of no use. All other apps are working perfect and my internet connection seems okay too. Please help. Thanks!

OP, it was just recently announced and rolled out within the last 48 hours, it might be found on XDA? Question: How did you tried clearing the cache? Was that in custom recovery such as ClockworkMod Recovery/TWRP or was it stock recovery? Or another question for clarification - you installed 4.3 - implying you loaded it yes, and it was not OTA upgrade?

I seem to have a similar network connectivity issue. Did you find a working solution?

No, I think there is a misconfiguration in the hosts file, which can only be corrected by rooting. I tried rooting it but I failed. I think I'll wait for the new version of Nexus Root toolkit before giving up and reverting to 4.2.2

Fixed. I rooted my phone, installed Hosts Editor and deleted an entry which was of Google. All my Google apps work!

I had the same issue with the .zip version of the OTA I found on XDA. What worked for me was removing the google account from settings and re adding it.

Upgrade to 4.3 one more time from official 4.3 .zip. I had the same and that helped me.


text:
Can the trebuchet launcher be installed on the stock ROM?
Phone: Samsung Galaxy S4
Android: 4.2.2
Can the trebuchet launcher be installed on the stock ROM?
I can't find the app on Google Play. Where could I get this?

Is there any specific reason why you prefer Trebuchet to launchers that aren't created for CM? There are a bunch of them.

@bigbadonk420 Just for testing purposes. I already have Nova Premium installed.

Trebuchet is a modified version of ICS(upgraded to JB) AOSP launcher with CyanogenMod tweaks, might work/might not as it could be relying on CM specific settings. Try it out and let us know! :)

Yes it can (with varying degrees of success)! I'm running it on my Prestigio 3350DUO (Android 4.2.2). But there is a problem with crashing on certain preferences (NumberPicker), so I cannot change number of screens or default screen, as well as number of docker icons/pages. Besides that, it works great - it's fast and stable and looks cool!


text:
Tablet will not sleep
My Xperia tablet Z is set to sleep after 30 seconds of inactivity. However starting yesterday it no longer goes to sleep at all and the battery just goes flat. Is there any way to fix this?

Check this question: http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/34969/how-to-deal-with-orphaned-wakelocks Maybe you have apps keeping your tablet awake


text:
Install 4.3 (OTA) on rooted Nexus 4 (CWM + stock rom, kernel)
I'm running Android 4.2.2 on my Nexus 4. It is rooted, and I have ClockworkMod recovery installed, but rom and kernel are stock. I received the OTA update to 4.3, and would like to install it, but it failed. (With a message that CWM couldn't verify a signature. I remember that the previous OTA worked, and I think I had to re-root, but that was easy.)
How can I get the stock 4.3 update on my phone, while keeping root and CWM, and especially keeping all my data? Step-by-step instructions would be great.
Also, I'm curious, what is the technical reason that the update doesn't install?

Update: I found some instructions here, however they didn't work for me. I get the following error from CWM while applying update.zip:
Installing: /sdcard/0/update.zip
Finding update package...
Opening update package...
Installing update...

Warning no file_contextsVerifying current system...

assert failed: apply_patch_check("/system/bin/app_process", "76c3a9a7a6d400a9ff3e4db391327daa33aa0663", "2a221441bf06f2618aa6c35ae0cade13bd4f6e1b")
E:Error in /sdcard/0/update.zip
(Status 7)
Installation aborted.

Update 2:
I forgot that I tried out Xposed some time ago. Apparently this modified /system/bin/app_process. I removed it by starting Xposed Installer, and then selecting "Uninstall (restore app_process)" and (probably not neccessary), "Clean up (complete removal of the framework)". I did one complete reboot, and then rebooted into recovery mode to continue the update. But now it hangs because "build.prop" is modified (don't remember changing that). I wonder if there is a way to just flash the new OS files (not patches), overwriting any modifications, but keeping all settings and user files...

It sounds like the "/system/bin/app_process" has been modified and so it doesn't match the signature required. There are 2 ways to fix this, either get a copy of the stock file from another phone/rom or flash the factory image for 4.3
Edit: After reading "update 2" it sounds like you want the factory image option detailed below.
AndroidPolice has a step by step guide here. I've duplicated the steps in case that page dies:

Download the full occam factory image, which includes the full system, bootloader, recovery, kernel (boot.img), and radio. It's a clean slate for these components - they'll flash cleanly over anything you have now.
Instead of using the bundled script called flash-all, you will unpack the tgz (tar/gz) archive, and then the zip contained within as well. This will put all the components into one folder:
Follow the excellent guide over here and make sure to omit step D10, which overwrites userdata. Here are the commands you will be executing, for reference:

adb reboot bootloader
fastboot flash bootloader bootloader*.img
fastboot reboot-bootloader
fastboot flash radio radio-mako-m9615a-cefwmazm-2.0.1700.84.img
fastboot reboot-bootloader
fastboot flash system system.img
fastboot flash boot boot.img
fastboot format cache
fastboot reboot

Note: Instead of unpacking the image*.zip and flashing system and boot
manually, you can actually do fastboot update image*.zip - this won't
delete data (you would pass a -w flag if you wanted that to happen),
but it will re-flash recovery back to stock if you were running a
custom one. You can then flash it back, or just use the commands above
instead. Either way, the result will be the same.

You will then need to re-root (there is no way to go from 4.2.2 to 4.3 keeping root at the moment) by following the steps in this thread (I won't link to the file itself as it is being updated as/when issues are found.).

I don't see any boot.img file for the 4.3 update for the Nexus 4 that I downloaded. I have the bootloader.img, image.zip, and radio.img. Where's the boot.img?

You need to unzip the image.zip as well. the boot.img and system.img are in there.

Gave up on trying to flash these manually after first boot was getting stuck. I extracted the factory image to my ADB directory and ran "flash-all.bat" and it booted right up first time after that. The flash-all.bat does a bit more than the above procedure.

I ran into the same problem.  I ended up downloading the stock 4.2.2, flashing that (also un-rooting my phone), then installing the OTA update.

Do you know where one can download the stock OS (Assuming there is a legal download)? Also, does flashing preserve your data?

@jdm Oficial stock roms from Google: https://developers.google.com/android/nexus/images#occamjwr66v

I don't think your data will be preserved. And yes grab the images from the official Google page.  It looks like 4.3 is there now.  Also, here is a link to a guide to flashing 4.3: http://bit.ly/16aTnvY     That guide states that you won't lose data.

OTA is able to preserve your user data. I don't believe that flashing the factory image is able to preserve all your user data.


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Android 4.3: How to get the dial pad autocomplete
One of the most exciting features announced for the release of Android Jelly Bean 4.3 was the ability to get autocomplete when dialing a phone number in a similar fashion to text keyboard autocomplete from previous versions. I just updated my Android to version 4.3 but I don't see any difference with dial pad from previous versions.
Does that feature actually exist? Do I have to follow some steps to activate it?

Actually this feature does exist, but it is disabled by default, so to enable it in a vanilla Android Jelly Bean 4.3 you must follow the steps below:

Open your Phone app, tap the dialer tab (first one at the left).
Tap the action overflow icon (at bottom right corner) and tap Settings
Scroll down to section Other call settings. You'll see the option Dial pad autocomplete is unchecked by default.

Check the Dial pad autocomplete checkbox
Go back to the dialer, now you'll see there is a slightly different layout than previously: the top area is now split in two different areas, shown in the picture as double arrows. The area with red arrow will show the phone number you are currently dialing as normally happens, but now the area with green arrow will show the autocomplete suggestions (contact name and their phone number) showing up to 3 contacts at the same time.
Start dialing a phone number and it will autocomplete both by contact name and by phone number as you touch each key. In the example it shows 3 suggestions: two by numbers 3-5-3 and one by letters corresponding to keys 3-5-3 (E-L-E)

If you don't feel comfortable with dial pad autocomplete, you can turn off this feature whenever you want by going again to Settings menu of the Phone app.


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Show desktop of Android box on PC ala TeamViewer
How do I look at the dekstop of an Android box (that's connected to a HDMI display) on a PC?
AirDroid comes very close, but it does not let the user manipulate the desktop. All other apps that I came across accessed Windows desktop from an Android device. I want it the other way around; something like TeamViewer.

What is an Android box? Is that a cellphone?

No. It is a box that is connected to a hdmi display. Similar to a computer cabinet that is connected to a monitor.

What's wrong with TeamViewer? Isn't it free for personal use, and does what you want?

How can I view my phone's screen on a computer in real time? sounds like it describes what you're trying to accomplish (which is itself linked to a few other questions).

@eldarerathis Would that work for a phone? I think he's talking about an Android box? Possibly an Android TV box?

Thats right. I am talking of android tv box. And teamviewer doesn't let me access the android screen from a pc.

I have come across droid VNC server to accomplish what I want. This would be perfect except that it requires root.


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sending a message from Gmail from a chosen account
I have 3 Gmail accounts but whenever I reply my message is sent from my original account even if I change the from address and hit send immediately.
I have a HTC Sensation

Are you using the GMail app? I have a Samsung Galaxy S4, with 2 GMail accounts on it, but I can't change the FROM field using the GMail app. This is not my main mail app though; I use Kaiten, which allows me to change the FROM field.

I used to have this same problem.


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How to recover Galaxy S4 from unrequested ADB recovery mode state?
Last night, my wife turned the sound down on her factory default Verizon Galaxy S4 by Samsung, then later plugged it in at home and it showed a dark screen with the battery charging indicator.
This morning, after waking up, my wife disconnected her phone, now charged, in the following Android Debug Bridge recovery mode state:
# MANUAL MODE #
-- Applying Multi-CSC...
Applied the CSC-code : VZW
Successfully applied multi-CSC.

Now send the package you want to apply
to the device with "adb sideload <filename>"...

In the screen center there is an icon of an Android cartoon green figure on his back being operated upon with a red triangle over his belly with exclamation point inside the red triangle, below the icon is labeled with No command.

Should we take the battery out and reboot?  I've tried holding the power button down and trying the up and down volume keys, but the device seems unresponsive.
The phone is still in warranty, are we better off just going to the Verizon store or will they just want to mail it off somewhere else to repair?

I called up Verizon support and they had me simultaneously hold the three keys:

Volume Up
Power
Home

Please understand that this is the key combination for a Hard Reset on the Samsung Galaxy S4 and it will wipe your data from your device.
But after 30 seconds, still no response, so they had me remove the battery for ten seconds and reboot.  After reboot, the phone seemed back to normal.


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Phone slowdown after Jelly bean update
I have Sony Xperia P phone which is updated to Jelly bean when they rolled out the update. It came with Gingerbread and I updated it to ICS, as soon as I got it. It was running great.
But it's started to give me problems since I updated it to Jelly-bean. Even the recent minor release didn't fix the slow down issue.
To give the example of slow down, I am getting Slow FPS and sometimes frozen screen for half a second whenever I play a game. Slow FPS is universal for all the apps. When I had ICS I could play games like Subway surfer without any problem, and now I can't play it due to low FPS. Sometimes the System UI gets killed, whenever I start any normal game (such as Samurai v/s Zombie defence).
I don't know if it's a universal problem or just my bad luck, but one of my friend who bought the phone with me, is facing the same issue too. Any idea how can I make my phone run fast again?

JB was supposed to be faster than ICS :-(

There are some bugs reported in the Xperia P Jelly Bean update 6.2.A.0.400. Even if it is suggested to perform a factory reset, the problem has not seemed to have fully solved.
So your problem will not most probably be fixed until Sony releases a new version with bug fixes (and it might take some time)
Note: Since you are mainly concerned with your gaming apps, you might need to check the incompatibilities from the Google Play Store.

They have already released one update - 6.2.A.1.100, which also didn't solve the issues. I used to play those games and run those apps fluidly in ICS. It's not just about playing the games, I bought this phone to test the apps I develop, and now it's useless for this.

Thanks anyways, atleast now I know, I am not alone here, so can expect an update from sony.

@Creator Hang on to Sony (like me). They're slow sometimes. Still they are full of surprises! :)


text:
How to root phone without losing WhatsApp account?
I'm planning to root my Sony Xperia P, but there's a complication. Due to issues with my telco, I currently don't have a plan - my phone is practically just a Wi-Fi device right now, and in addition I lost my phone number. I'm afraid that when I root my phone and reinstall WhatsApp, WhatsApp will not be able to verify my device, leaving me no other option than to create a new account. This is not an ideal situation because I will lose the access to my chat groups and I won't be able to use WhatsApp until I sign a new contract with a telco.
Is there a way to prevent this scenario from happening?
My phone:
Sony Xperia P (LT22i)
Android version 4.1.2
Build number 6.2.A.1.100

If you do get a new number, WhatsApp will let you switch your account over to the new number and all chat and groups will be ported over too.  Then you could root your phone after

If you are planning on using the same phone again, you can simply uninstall whatsapp and reinstall it after you add the new number. Whatsapp FAQ says that you will be given an option to restore all the data at the reinstall process. They specifically ask to install the app from their website rather than downloading from Google Play. (I couldn't find any reason for this).
If you can use the previous number, you will not lose your account or the data. Simply login to the app again.
On a side note, it is highly advisable to backup your chat history to your SD card as explained in this answer before you attempt anything (rooting, uninstall, etc.)

I think he doesn't want to get new number.

This is just speculation, but they might prefer you to install it from their website if that APK has content/behaviour that's not allowed on apps for Google Play, such as invasive collection of private data or notification ads.

1.) Copy WhatsApp folder from your internal memory of your device to your computer and uninstall WhatsApp.
2.) Root your device with kingo root. Restart your phone copy that WhatsApp folder to internal memory and install WhatsApp from playstore.
3.) Verify with the phone number which is lost, your WhatsApp account will start on that phone number only (lost one)!!
Don't forget to copy WhatsApp folder to your PC (backup) or you will not be able to access to that phone number

Rooting will not remove your whatsapp data so dont worry until you're flashing new ROM.

The thing with whatsapp is, you need to have a SIM CARD inserted at all times onto your device for it to continue to work.
In your case, if you're just going to root the phone and not install any new ROM, the following should help :
* Keep a SIM card installed on ur phone at all times
* Root your phone.
* When you turn your phone back on, you still have whatsapp working normally like it did before. (Make sure you have a sim card installed, ANY SIM card will do, not just the one that's associated with your account)

Hope this helps.


text:
GS3 Screen Turns Off before timeout
I have an unrooted Galaxy S3, with official Samsung Android 4.1.2 ROM.
Yesterday the device just started to turn of the screen without locking the phone and before screen timeout, and it just won't stop !!!
I tried to change the screen timeout duration, didn't work, I stopped the Galaxy S3 feature smart stay and set it back on again and again and it's not working, I googled this problem and I can't find anything related..
I only have one option to do, and I wish I'm wrong, which is to do a factory data reset
I'm afraid that there might be a problem in the power button, again I hope I'm wrong.
Please any help is very much appreciated ..

Have you installed any automation tools such as Tasker, AutomateIt or Llama? I know that certain automation tools make setting or resetting the Display Timeout an easy example of an automation capability.

I did install a game "Real Racing 3", when I noticed the problem I removed the game.
I doubt that the game has caused the problem, because it's trusted and free in play store.


text:
Why does Android use fuse for internal SD card mount?
The android ICS or later version(JB) use /data/media directory for internal SD card, and use fuse for mounting the emulator internal sd card device (/dev/fuse).
As we know if we use fuse, the files access have to communicate with userspace with low effect, why android do not use a stackable passthru filesystem such as wrapfs(wrapfs.filesystems.org) to mount the /data/media direct to internal sd card path(/storage/scard0)?
Especially, we have the MTP option access internal sdcard and external sdcard for PC(windows)

That sounds like something you'd have to ask the Android devs. "Why" questions are pretty much non-answerable except by the people who made the decision, unless they've posted it publicly, and you can search the web as well as we can.

Actually, I am confused about the design of internal sdcard with FUSE.In the samsung Galaxy S4, it was replaced by a filesystem named sdcardfs(wrapfs).

MTP is using the FUSE filesystem to access the sdcard while the OS is using the sdcard as well. The FUSE filesystem also manages permissions for the files stored in the /data/media folder.


text:
Will an upgrade to Android 4.3 update Google Maps automatically (to the new unloved version)?
My nexus 4 is notifying me about the availability of the new installation image for Android 4.3. I would like to install it, but I'm afraid this would automatically update Google Maps to the newest version. The comments about the removed features in Maps are so bad, that I want to stay with the old version for a while.
So, what happens to Google Maps when I upgrade to Android 4.3?

No, it will not update Google Maps. You will have to update that manually or through Google Play. However, after you download and install the OTA update, you may receive a Google Map update notification. Just make sure you don't set your Google Play apps to auto-update, so you can close / ignore those notifications.
Source: Comments on CNet.

I followed the link, but found nothing about Google Maps there.

@tangens Read the comments. It's there. :)

I upgraded to 4.3 and everything else stayed unchanged.

Yesterday I upgraded to 4.4 and Google Maps was updated automatically :-( It's really awful now. I wish I had not upgraded to 4.4!

Yes it will. I updated and now I have the new Maps. Knox security prevents you from installing any apks, and you can't kill Knox, so if you don't want the new Maps don't install the OTA.

Samsung likely decided (for whatever reason) to package the new Maps update in their OTA, so this is probably not relevant to the specific situation the OP was interested in (i.e. the Nexus 4). The Nexus 4 also doesn't have Knox.


text:
SMS messages disappear right after being received
I have LG Optimus one with android 2.3. I get text messages (SMS) and notification appears in the notification bar. But I can't find them (messages) in the "messages" app. They simply disappear!

Do you have a third-party SMS app like GO SMS Pro, or just the stock Messaging app?

@geffchang nope. Just stock Messaging app.

Are you using the stock launcher (like Launcher8), or a 3rd-party launcher?

This may be a Gingerbread bug. Lots of people have been reporting disappearing SMS. Have you ever tried updating your firmware via Software Update?

@geffchang solved. I had to set up date. Thank you.

What do you mean by set up date? Set the date and time of the phone? If so, please post that as an Answer, and mark it as Answer when you are able to.

Check if you have set up date right! I have just observed that the date was set to 01.01.1980 and changed it to the current date and everything started working right.


text:
Is there any way to know the RAM of an Android phone?
I bought a Spice Stellar Jazz Mi-353. It tells me that it has 116MB of RAM, but it is supposed to be 256MB. Is there a way to check how much RAM my device physically has before deciding to get it replaced?

You can use an app that tells you what hardware your device has.
There are a lot of apps like this and here you have some examples: Antutu, Android Hardware Info, Quadrant.


text:
How to Remove Autostart for Certain Apps?
is there any way you can install an app (for instance WhatsApp) on Android 4.2.1 ICS but at the same time remove its autorun properties sothat it becomes a standalone app and ONLY uses memory, processing power and even more dear battery, only during the time that I start the application. After closing it I want it to remain unstarted!
Note: this is different than autokilling it with taskkiller and alike. I want the app to not start in the first place).
I find myself installing and de-installing certain apps to overcome this dilemma and I hope there is a better solution otherwise whats the point of Android freedom feeling, right?

possible duplicate of How can I stop applications and services from running? Please also see the auto-start tag-wiki for more information.

You can try this application which allow what you ask for: Autorun Manager, though I think you need to have your phone rooted for this.
Regarding the part when you say that want the application to remain closed, that might be tricky, because that depends on the apps implementation. IF the developer is checking constantly if the service is up or down, and try to start when it is down, I advice you not to mess with it, because by trying to stop the service, then you will ended consuming more battery (you try to stop, and the application starts again, and then you stop it again, and you end in a cicle draining your battery). Starting with Gingerbread, is best to let Android manage the state of your application, as it improved greatly the memory and application management.


text:
File transfer error between Samsung Galaxy S3 and Ubuntu 12.04 over Bluetooth
I got my Samsumg Galaxy S3 paired and connected over Bluetooth to my laptop running Ubuntu 12.04
Both the mobile and the laptop states that the bluetooth connection is up and running
I can query the mobile from the laptop with hcitool, for instance:

$ sudo hcitool con
Connections:
    > ACL [the_phone_mac_addr] handle 11 state 1 lm MASTER AUTH ENCRYPT

I can transfer files from the laptop to the phone using the ubuntu bluetooth menu, but if I try to transfer a file from the mobile to the laptop I alway got a "connection failed" error
My idea is that the problem might be with the bluetooth profiles the laptop exposes; from the mobile I can see the paired device details, and the list of profiles are:

Call Audio
Media Audio

Is there a way to add or enable profiles to the laptop?
Can anyone confirm my hypothesis?
Any other suggestion?

Your hypothesis is correct. It's like transferring files over FTP: the receiving computer needs to run a server that understands the right protocol. To receive files you probably want a server that understands the object exchange protocol (OBEX) or object push protocol (OPP).
Our sister site Ask Ubuntu has an answer about receiving files, which may help you out. If you need any further help setting up your Ubuntu laptop, they'll be able to help if you ask a question there.

The proposed link gave me the solution. Thanks :)

looks like u had the problem too  (i had it when i used ubuntu for my first time).
Please change your personal file sharing settings to get rid of this problem.
press the windows key on your keyboard and type "personal file sharing " in the search box appeared(on ubuntu 12.04)
then click on the folder with the exact name appeared in the search results ....
u may be taken to a window with some settings .................
 tic mark the box corresponding "share public files via bluetooth"
(that worked for me with my galaxy star with android jellybean os)
although no guaranteeee
just give it a shot!


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Android x86 Virtual box with Internet and connection to adb?
I have Android x86 4.2 Installed on my Virtual Box.
My main purpose is debug with eclipse and get internet on Android
Some how i am able to get internet and also able to connect from adb (of ADT) but not both at a time
i have tried several combination to get both but no luck
How i get Internet
I get internet when i use NAT in one of these 4 adapters

How i get connected with adb
I get connected with adb when connected to newly created Host Only adapter

note: the default host only adapter was not working

I have two questions:
First is how i will get both The Internet and connection to adb
Second is Can i get my bluetooth and Wifi device available to My Virtual box Android
Note: My Internet connection type is either 3G HSUPA using Modem or WiFi no LAN
Note: when both of them are connected then either of them works not both I have googled, Stacked, Virtual box site too but no luck
Initially i was unable to connect to adb but I figured out the way i can!
Please any one know the issue.

0000000000000000000

I'm using the very same setup with NAT mode. To connect via ADB:

in VirtualBox Manager, right-click on your VM and select "show log"
press Ctrl-F to initialize a search, type "DHCP". You will find several lines stating something like NAT: DHCP offered IP address 10.0.2.15 – that's your IP, write it down ;)
select the "gear icon" in the same context menu to "change settings"
go to the "network" tab, and click the "port forwarding" button
add two rules to forward ports 5555 (adb) and 5554 (console) from the guest to your host machine. To make an easy rule for potential multiple Android-VMs, you can simply add a digit to the end – e.g. 5555→55551 and 5554→55541 for this machine (add a "2" for your second, if any).
now on your host machine, execute the command adb connect localhost:55551

Done. Execute any ADB commands as usual. You can use adb disconnect localhost:55551 if it gets in the way (e.g. if you're using some other device, and don't want to always specify which one to use with each ADB command).

In case someone finds this thread: Use bridge mode, you will get an IP adress from your LAN.
To do so:

in VirtualBox Manager, select your VM and click the "gear icon" (change settings)
select the networking tab
in the first drop-down box, select "bridge mode"

So how do you set up this bridge mode?

@DanHulme OP knows where to find it (same place he'd switched between NAT and Host Only). I've added it, though :)

Did you check with netcfg within Android that both are really up? If, e.g., eth1 is down, enable it with netcfg eth1 dhcp up.


text:
Android < 2.3.7 shortcuts
In android 2.3.7 and older when I long click on the screen the menu shows a list of shortcuts. Is there an option to add my own shortcut to this list?

This is unfortunately not possible. Only apps and the Android system can install shortcuts and widgets on your home screen.


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Samsung Galaxy S GT-i9000 - MicroSD Card not recognized
My Samsung Galaxy S GT-i9000 rebooted unexpectedly and when it came back up all my app symbols showed a grayed out android image with SD written in the bottom right corner.
All my music was gone too. I went to check under "SD Card and Phone Storage" and under "Storage Settings" it said "Mount SD Card". I clicked on "Mount SD Card" and it turned into "Mounting.. Mount in progress" but nothing happens (15min).
I tried powering off the phone and removing the battery and SD card, putting everything back and powering up again, but no success.
I also tried a Factory Reset, the SD Card is not recognized.
I inserted the SD card into my friends Samsung Galaxy S2 and it appeared on his phone and he could copy pictures and music to it, but on my i9000 the card does not appear.
What do you suggest i do?

Have you tried hitting Mount SD card in settings?

@jeffreylin_ His question states he did (second paragraph).


text:
Heyzap interstitial ads in every app
I noticed when I start an app, often an Heyzap interstitial ad appears (I had the Heyzap app but removed it 2 days ago).
Today I ran my own app that I've compiled from the Android SDK that definitely does not have any Heyzap code, but still, the banner appeared.
I think the problem arrived after installing "Lost Temple Jump" game from Google Play. It was asking for permission to push notifications. I said No.
My device is not rooted, is it possible that these games root my device and started to insert Heyzap banner to every other app ?

Screenshots:

Running processes list:
USER     PID   PPID  VSIZE  RSS     WCHAN    PC         NAME

root      1     0     556    424   ffffffff 00000000 S /init

root      2     0     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kthreadd

root      3     2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S ksoftirqd/0

root      6     2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S migration/0

root      16    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S khelper

root      17    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S suspend_sys_syn

root      18    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S suspend

root      20    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/203-msmdata

root      21    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S sync_supers

root      22    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S bdi-default

root      23    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kblockd

root      24    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S msm_slim_ctrl_r

root      25    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S khubd

root      26    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/84-msm_iomm

root      27    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/84-msm_iomm

root      28    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/96-msm_iomm

root      29    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/96-msm_iomm

root      30    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/94-msm_iomm

root      31    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/94-msm_iomm

root      32    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/92-msm_iomm

root      33    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/92-msm_iomm

root      34    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/100-msm_iom

root      35    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/100-msm_iom

root      36    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/86-msm_iomm

root      37    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/86-msm_iomm

root      38    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/90-msm_iomm

root      39    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/90-msm_iomm

root      40    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/88-msm_iomm

root      41    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/102-msm_iom

root      42    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/102-msm_iom

root      43    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/98-msm_iomm

root      44    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/98-msm_iomm

root      45    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/243-msm_iom

root      46    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/243-msm_iom

root      47    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/269-msm_iom

root      48    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/269-msm_iom

root      49    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S l2cap

root      50    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S a2mp

root      51    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S cfg80211

root      52    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/644-earjack

root      53    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S modem_notifier

root      54    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S smd_channel_clo

root      55    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S smsm_cb_wq

root      57    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S qmi

root      58    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S nmea

root      59    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S msm_ipc_router

root      60    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S apr_driver

root      61    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/337-mdm sta

root      62    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/334-mdm pbl

root      64    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kswapd0

root      65    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S fsnotify_mark

root      66    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S cifsiod

root      67    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S crypto

root      81    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S mdp_dma_wq

root      82    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S mdp_vsync_wq

root      83    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S mdp_pipe_ctrl_w

root      84    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S mdp_cursor_ctrl

root      85    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S hdmi_hdcp

root      86    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/111-hdmi_ms

root      87    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S dtv_work

root      88    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S vidc_worker_que

root      89    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S vidc_timer_wq

root      90    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S smux_notify_wq

root      91    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S smux_tx_wq

root      92    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S smux_rx_wq

root      93    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S smux_loopback_w

root      94    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S diag_wq

root      95    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S hsic_diag_wq

root      96    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S hsic_2_diag_wq

root      97    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S smux_diag_wq

root      98    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S diag_cntl_wq

root      99    2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S diag_dci_wq

root      100   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kgsl-3d0

root      101   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S anx7808_work

root      102   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/645-anx7808

root      104   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/330-wcd9xxx

root      109   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S usbnet

root      112   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S mdm_bridge

root      113   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S ks_bridge:1

root      114   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S ks_bridge:2

root      115   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S ks_bridge:3

root      116   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S ks_bridge:4

root      117   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S k_rmnet_mux_wor

root      118   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S f_mtp

root      119   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S file-storage

root      120   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S uether

root      121   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S touch_wq

root      123   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S iewq

root      124   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kinteractiveup

root      125   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S binder

root      126   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S mmcqd/0

root      130   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S krfcommd

root      131   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S rq_stats

root      132   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S deferwq

root      135   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S vibrator

root      136   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S fsa8008

root      137   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/369-fsa8008

root      138   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/371-fsa8008

root      139   1     476    312   ffffffff 00000000 S /sbin/ueventd

root      141   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S jbd2/mmcblk0p21

root      142   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S ext4-dio-unwrit

root      147   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S jbd2/mmcblk0p22

root      148   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S ext4-dio-unwrit

root      152   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S jbd2/mmcblk0p23

root      153   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S ext4-dio-unwrit

root      154   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S jbd2/mmcblk0p20

root      155   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S ext4-dio-unwrit

system    165   1     884    340   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/servicemanager

root      166   1     4008   664   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/vold

system    167   1     1084   456   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/qcks

root      168   1     10868  1696  ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/netd

root      169   1     976    576   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/debuggerd

radio     170   1     14416  2848  ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/rild

system    171   1     96384  8688  ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/surfaceflinger

root      172   1     827808 39576 ffffffff 00000000 S zygote

drm       173   1     13308  3476  ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/drmserver

media     174   1     48868  8648  ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/mediaserver

install   175   1     896    492   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/installd

keystore  177   1     3248   1052  ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/keystore

nobody    178   1     2144   548   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/rmt_storage

radio     179   1     6320   640   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/bridgemgrd

radio     180   1     7388   440   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/qmuxd

radio     181   1     7580   700   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/netmgrd

root      182   1     20848  828   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/thermald

root      183   1     6200   472   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/mpdecision

root      189   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S hsicctl0

root      190   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S hsicctl1

root      191   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S hsicctl2

root      192   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S hsicctl3

nobody    193   1     10444  668   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/sensors.qcom

media_rw  194   1     2708   988   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/sdcard

camera    195   1     4976   2472  ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/mm-qcamera-daemon

system    197   1     2132   324   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/qseecomd

shell     198   1     4544   280   ffffffff 00000000 S /sbin/adbd

system    244   197   4232   432   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/qseecomd

system    553   172   1016800 92148 ffffffff 00000000 S system_server

system    575   167   1064   476   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/efsks

root      577   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S ehci_wq

root      578   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S irq/337-hsic_pe

system    586   575   2892   2108  ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/ks

root      873   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S WD_Thread

root      874   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S MC_Thread

root      875   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S TX_Thread

root      876   2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S RX_Thread

wifi      912   1     3196   1824  ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/wpa_supplicant

u0_a57    966   172   906368 78664 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.systemui

u0_a49    1063  172   867320 33476 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.phasebeam

u0_a34    1078  172   888692 58356 ffffffff 00000000 S com.google.android.inputmethod.latin

u0_a23    1094  172   1008768 48316 ffffffff 00000000 S com.google.process.location

radio     1111  172   890824 48388 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.phone

nfc       1134  172   858504 27604 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.nfc

u0_a35    1148  172   941812 83760 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.launcher

nfc       1191  172   838592 22292 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.nfc:handover

u0_a23    1206  172   894992 38360 ffffffff 00000000 S com.google.process.gapps

u0_a23    2408  172   853692 30292 ffffffff 00000000 S com.google.android.gsf.login

root      2882  2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S msm_sat0

u0_a52    3224  172   871816 43784 ffffffff 00000000 S com.google.android.apps.plus

root      4232  2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S flush-179:0

u0_a15    10631 172   841044 27908 ffffffff 00000000 S android.process.media

u0_a0     11406 172   873656 33396 ffffffff 00000000 S android.process.acore

root      11868 2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S msm_sat1

u0_a41    12007 172   907300 44000 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.mms

u0_a85    12022 172   883760 46120 ffffffff 00000000 S com.facebook.katana

u0_a10    14365 172   1143480 119444 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.chrome

u0_i3     14790 172   978188 107236 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.chrome:sandboxed_process3

u0_a20    15454 172   882408 50200 ffffffff 00000000 S com.google.android.gallery3d

u0_i6     15558 172   959980 92904 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.chrome:sandboxed_process1

u0_i8     15882 172   975888 110908 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.chrome:sandboxed_process0

u0_a60    16597 172   909308 48052 ffffffff 00000000 S com.google.android.googlequicksearchbox

u0_a86    19209 172   892496 66084 ffffffff 00000000 S com.vkontakte.android

u0_a77    21519 172   874672 49400 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.dialer

root      23312 2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kworker/0:1

root      23483 2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kworker/0:4

dhcp      23515 1     916    456   ffffffff 00000000 S /system/bin/dhcpcd

root      24028 2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kworker/0:0

root      24246 2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kworker/u:5

root      24257 2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kworker/u:16

root      24260 2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kworker/u:19

root      24268 2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kworker/u:27

root      24276 2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kworker/u:37

root      25927 2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kworker/0:3

u0_a114   27884 172   877056 47332 ffffffff 00000000 S com.facebook.orca

u0_a84    28165 172   923156 83408 ffffffff 00000000 S com.skype.raider

u0_a50    29850 172   924516 78784 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.vending

u0_a98    30061 172   859416 30808 ffffffff 00000000 S com.whatsapp

root      30273 2     0      0     ffffffff 00000000 S kworker/0:2

u0_a13    30482 172   835224 22172 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.defcontainer

u0_a27    30513 172   835468 22516 ffffffff 00000000 S com.google.android.partnersetup

u0_a43    30533 172   835268 21956 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.musicfx

u0_a23    30553 172   951380 33212 ffffffff 00000000 S com.google.android.gms

u0_a105   30580 172   839056 26348 ffffffff 00000000 S com.potyomkin.talkingkote

u0_a144   30599 172   871284 38764 ffffffff 00000000 S net.mobilecraft.football

u0_a145   30622 172   840464 25272 ffffffff 00000000 S net.mobilecraft.realbasketball

system    30816 172   842864 25720 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.settings

u0_a40    30887 172   838084 24220 ffffffff 00000000 S com.google.android.apps.uploader

u0_a67    30904 172   866464 30244 ffffffff 00000000 S com.google.android.youtube

u0_a7     31082 172   836036 24164 ffffffff 00000000 S com.android.providers.calendar

u0_a6     31096 172   844188 24432 ffffffff 00000000 S com.google.android.calendar

u0_a140   31168 172   837860 23104 ffffffff 00000000 S com.gismeteo.client

shell     31203 198   1132   468   00000000 b6e88040 R ps

u0_a96    31346 172   904276 102608 ffffffff 00000000 S com.topface.topface

What device? What android version? Have not heard of a such app actually rooting your phone in this way, in fact I'd be sceptical if it did! Push notifications like this, Airpush is another, are a nuisance and should not be used nor installed! In future, always read the permissions required before attempting to install a app.

Google Nexus 4. Android 4.2.2. Ads have Heyzap logo in right bottom corner I think. Wondering what technique they used to insert ads in my own app.

That's interesting, you are using Google Ads right? And  this Heyzap thingy over-rode it and placed an ad-push in that spot? Only way to get rid of it is to perform factory reset...

The app I developed was single activity and label. No ads. Just default app that eclipse created for me. I got these ad on Android desktop and in Play Market. Actually right now it usually popups in Google Play.

I am one of the co-founders of Heyzap. I wanted to clarify a few things and see if I could help.
Firstly this is not intentional in any way. Heyzap is an in game Ad network and those Ads should only be showing up in the game developer we directly work with.
The problem is caused by a faulty integration either by the developers or due to an old SDK, this is pretty unusual and we haven't seen many reports of this. The game must be running in the background and calling our Ads to show.
A quick fix is to identify the game that is running and causing this and uninstall it. From looking at the process list the only two potentials I see are: net.mobilecraft.football and net.mobilecraft.realbasketball.
If its easier for you, can you share your Android ID with me and I can ensure that you don't see any Ads from us.
"Lost Temple Jump" has never published our Ads as far as I know, so is unlikely to be responsible.
As action points from us:

We are going to look in to putting more protection in our SDK to prevent this.
We are going to talk to the developer about updating their SDK and not showing Ads when not in the foreground. This initially seems like it shouldn't be possible in Android but something for us to investigate. I am sure this is accidental on their part too.

Mobilecraft games have special permissions to startup at boot. So they are candidates for doing that. Even if I reboot then they always reside in memory. Strategy how ads are shown changing. First it was when some app starts once per 2 days. Then it was showing more often but inside of Google Play. So it seems it monitors what app is to. Finally they showed other non Heyzap ads. I hope my personal information like passwords and emails are save. If you block ads for my Android ID it will make detecting that even more complex.

I just checked the Google Play Store. They don't appear to have on boot startup permission. Did they used to have that?

Yes. Definitely. My phone is not rooted. I listed processes after reboot.

I have notification in tray now. Some times I have 2 same pushes now https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.mobilecraft.birthdaygift  It is mobilecraft game. It is clear who is doing that!

Is it possible that these games root my phone and started to insert
  Heyzap banner to every other app?

No, rooting requires user intervention, there is no known method of stealthily rooting without the user's knowledge/permission.
The moral of the story is:

boycott all forms of air-push like notifications and post a 1 star review for that app that caused havoc - Temple Run app - IIRC there was bogus versions on the playstore, I remember reading it on reddit's android subreddit about this.
Read the permissions listing on what the app requires, if in doubt, check the reviews, and google around a bit possibly, using Reddit's Android subreddit and ask in there or AndroidApps subreddit for other's opinions, someone will be bound to give you a pointer or two...

To put yourself out of misery, do a factory reset and wipe the cache/data in order to "regain control". You will lose your data in the process.

"rooting requires user intervention": that's usually true, but there are security vulnerabilities on some devices, such as the exynos4 camera bug (exploitable on Samsung Galaxy S3, for example).

Is Google Nexus 4. Android 4.2.2 running on Exynos? Also, "I think the problem arrived after installing "Lost Temple Jump" game from Google Play"... As for that vulnerability you mentioned - this is more specific to the software running on exynos chipset for all 6 of samsung devices which is madness in that it was not plugged or fixed officially (Was patched into CM 10.1 by codeworx)! There's a similar one for the Qualcomm MSM devices - Framebuffer overflow exploit which got patched in shortly around the time of Masterkey exploit.

No, I mention the exynos4 vuln simply as an example. I don't know of one for the Nexus 4, but that doesn't mean one doesn't exist. I'm only making a caveat to your claim that rooting requires user intervention.

Yes. Factory Reset is something I must do. Is there anyway to learn what happened? Such banner inside Google POlay is not normal. To open dialog activity in app you must list it in AndroidManifest.xml. So had that virus modified manifest of all apps including google play. Should I change password of my google account?

Perhaps the app you uninstalled wasn't the one responsible for the ads. When an ad appears, immediately go to the Settings app and look in the list of running apps to see if one of those is suspicious. Try force-closing it and see if the ads go away temporarily.
Alternatively, as you have the development tools installed, it might be useful to examine the device's log from when the annoying dialog appears: if there's any relevant log output, you'll be able to see what app it is coming from.

I did adb ps It lists all processes. Process list is under screenshot.

And did that help you solve the problem? If not, please try the steps I suggested instead.

I am not sure how it will help me identify the app. Ad appears once per per or per two days.

Because the banner's not inside another app. It's inside the responsible app, just displaying on top of another app, like a dialog. So when the dialog is displayed, the responsible app is running and will show up in that list. It'll be much easier to identify from that list than from the ps output.

Interesting! I should try to open dialog like that from my app. I think it is impossible.


text:
How do I make OpenVPN Connect honour the keepalive setting?
I've got an OpenVPN server and a Android OpenVPN client (OpenVPN Connect). In the server config I've configured it to use a less often than standard keepalive ping. By default, it's a ping every 10 seconds, but I want to save battery by increasing this to 600. In the server.conf I've put a line keepalive 600 1800 to do this.
I'm expecting the server to push these settings to the client and that the client honours these settings. However, on the client I see disconnects already after 40 seconds after connecting due to inactivity!
Here's what I see in detail:

The OpenVPN pushes the ping 600 and ping-restart 1800 (as a result of the keepalive statement) perfectly fine to the client.

Disconnect reason is as quick as 40 seconds after connection on idling, reason: Session invalidated: KEEPALIVE_TIMEOUT. That does not make sense to me.

Server version: 2.1.3 x86_64-pc-linux-gnu (Debian version 2.1.3-2+squeeze1)
Client version: 1.1.12 build 45 (OpenVPN Connect from Google Play)
Android version: 4.2.2 (Paranoid Android 3.69)

How can I have an increased interval for keepalive pings and have the client not disconnect?
FYI - I've also posted this on OpenVPN support forums: topic.

As your session seems to timeout after 40s, have you tried to start with a smaller timeout, say, 30s? That would still be more than the default 10s and thus save some juice, while being below the 40s timeout window and thus should keep your session alive.

It's a bug with OpenVPN Connect, apparently:

You are absolutely right -- server-pushed keepalive parameters (ping, ping-restart) are being ignored in 1.1.12 and earlier.
Will be fixed in next release.
Thanks,
James

By using OpenVPN for Android (alternative), I can connect properly.


text:
Disable notification sounds but keep SMS Sounds
Device: Galaxy Ace Duos 6802
I want to to turn off all the notification sounds, but keep the SMS sounds when I get SMS, WhatsApp messages, Skype messages, etc. It is very frustrating having to hear my SMS ringtone everytime my phone is updating an app, or when the battery is fully charged. However, I don't want to miss out on any Whatsapp messages I get.

A partial solution is to create a silent notification sound and use it as default, and then set custom notification sounds in each of the apps you use, assuming that the apps allow you to choose your notification sound. Most stock SMS apps and WhatsApp allow this, but the latest version of Skype does not.


text:
App compatibility with a tablet
I might buy Nexus 7. But how are the apps configured with this larger screen? It's in between a regular tablet 10" and a phone 4" so how, for example, will apps like

notational acceleration
MyLifeOrganized

and others work with this enlarged screen?

See also: How do I know if an android apps for phone can be install on an android tablet? | How can I get a phone app on a tablet? | Do Android phone apps run on Android tablets?

Also: What do apps designed for small screens look like on tablets?

It's up to the app. Android provides mechanisms for app authors to specify different UI layouts for the different screen sizes (roughly speaking: phones, 7in tablets, 10in tablets). This means that the app might rearrange its buttons or use larger sizes to fill a 7in screen, or it might do something more radical like switch to a two-pane layout (such as Gmail). IIRC, most apps with a two-pane layout use it only in landscape mode on 7in screens, whereas they use it in either orientation on 10in screens and always use a one-pane layout on phones.
Unlike on PC, it's usual for Android apps to be laid out using a resolution-independent unit (which Android calls display-independent pixels, or dp) instead of specifying sizes in pixels, so that regardless of display resolution, buttons are always large enough to click on. There are a few exceptions (app authors can still choose to work in pixels) but those are in the minority: mostly games, since that's how PC game authors are used to working.
Even if the app isn't specially designed to work with tablets, it'll still work. It just might look silly, with lots of empty space or oversized buttons, if the author didn't consider or test that form factor. Google Play encourages developers to include screenshots on 7in and 10in tablets, so that's the first thing to look for. If you browse using the Google Play app on your device, it'll show you the screenshots for that device's size first (i.e. it'll show the 7in screenshots if you're using a 7in tablet). Many developers also explicitly mention tablet support in the app description, such as the first app you linked to (Notational Acceleration).


text:
Apps won't install or update after I cleared files and data
My phone is a mess right now. I cleared some files and data. Now, my Play Store stopped functioning. All my apps won't give notifications anymore. What should I do to fix this huge problem? I just uninstalled all the apps, and they won't let me install or update them again.

Have you tried doing a factory reset? In my Samsung Galaxy S4, it's in: System settings > Acceounts > Backup and reset > Factory data reset. See if you can find something similar to your phone.
WARNING: You will lose all your data when you do a factory reset. But since you uninstalled all your apps, it shouldn't be any problem / issue.


text:
Stop announcement of who is calling me
How do I stop my phone from announcing the name of who is calling me on my Droid Razr Maxx? I've gone into my settings and can't find out why this is doing this.

See if my answer works. If not, let me know. If it does, you know what to do. :)

You probably have Driving Mode enabled. In my Samsung Galaxy S4, it's in Settings > My device > Driving mode > Incoming call. See if you can find something similar on your phone.


text:
"system" reboots my device after I allow it to in SuperUser?
Today, a random SuperUser request from "system", with UID 1000, appear. I figured that it was nothing, so I accepted it. A couple of seconds later, my phone rebooted, or at least that's what I think it did. I saw the T-Mobile screen flash by really quickly; the Samsung screen did not appear. So, what happened and should I be concerned?

Did you install anything new before that?

Hmm... I installed a game from the play store half an hour ago, and a non-market game 1.5 hours ago.

If you've installed any task killer application that has super user permission granted, this might be killing all the tasks(including system critical processes) which might result in a restart.
An eg. for this would be ZDBox.
Try checking if that's causing the problem.

But wouldn't the system reboot automatically and not ask for SU permission?

If you've already granted access to the app in the past, that  is retained. You can change permissions from the SU app.

You can try to format user data via boot menu.
The boot Menu open via press the volume - and power button simultaneously.


text:
How do I access the root folder of the phone's internal storage using the PC?
How can I access my internal phone storage on PC? I mean the root storage, the path. So that I could put back the lost app on the system storage.

You might want to take a closer look into adb, which gives you a command shell directly on the device. Using adb, you could do the following:
# copy your file to the device
adb push my.apk /data/local/my.apk
# open a shell on the device, and become root
adb shell
su
# now check where and how your /system partition is mounted, and make it writeable
mount | grep system
> /dev/block/stl12 /system ext4 ro,relatime,barrier=1,data=ordered 0 0
mount -o rw,remount /dev/block/stl12 /system
# copy your .apk file to the system apps
cp /data/local/my.apk /system/app
# remount /system back to read-only
mount -o ro,remount /dev/block/stl12 /system

In above example, you need of course to replace my.apk with the correct name. Same applies to the mount data: The line starting with > is just an example, which might (and most likely will) not match your device. So carefully check the output of mount | grep system to use the correct values here.
If you don't have ADB installed yet, please follow the information given in the adb tag-wiki, which also points to installation instructions and more.


text:
Update Galaxy Nexus from 4.2.2 to 4.3 while keeping files and root
I have a rooted GNex with stock kernel and stock ROM. Device is only rooted, CWM installed and unlocked bootloader.
I received the OTA update yesterday but haven't tried to apply it since I have a custom recovery installed. You should also know that I removed a file called recovery-from-boot.p to avoid the stock recovery from getting reflashed following the indications in this thread http://www.droidforums.net/forum/galaxy-nexus-development/189062-using-rom-manager-only-way-boot-into-clockwork-mod-recovery.html
I'd like to apply the OTA without losing my data and possibly not root. Losing root is not such a big problem but if you know a way of installing the 4.3 update from CWM without losing data then I'd be so thankful!

You shouldn't lose any data by flashing the OTA file. You can flash the ota file (see AndroidPolice for info and where to download it from) and as long as you've not changed any system files it should apply ok. Simply select the "apply update from sdcard" option and select the update file. You will lose root but you can simply flash SuperSu (the only superuser app that works on 4.3 at the moment) which will "re-root" your device. If you get a prompt about disabling recovery flash, select "No" as the new SuperSu uses this part of getting root access.

thanks a lot, just a few questions, should I select install from zip in CWM and then find the OTA that was downloaded to my phone or should I manually download the 4.3 update from Google and put it on the root of my sd? Also, when it's done applying the update should I then install the SuperSU.zip in CWM or first reboot the phone? Or is it better to flash SuperSU from my pc? Sorry for all the questions but I'm not that good at this, almost bricked my old Sony Xperia Ray once :S

I'd suggest downloading it from Google as then you know exactly where it is.  You can flash SuperSU straight away, no need to reboot. If you get a prompt about disabling recovery flash, select "No" as the new SuperSu uses this part of getting root access.

Btw, the only system file I've changed is the "recovery-from-boot.p" file which I deleted, but that shouldn't matter, right?

Thank you so much for your help, one last question, over at XDA I was told "Just remember to tell CWM to NOT fix the stock recovery flashing. Like I said, superSU will do that for you." I asked for clarifications yesterday but nobody has answered, do you know what he meant?

I think that should be ok. I just edited my previous post as i provided the wrong link. AndroidPolice has a guide which contains links for a couple of variants of the Galaxy Nexus (i've linked to the international variant without Google Wallet)

The stock rom includes a install-recovery.sh file which flashes the stock recovery. The new SuperSU uses this file to provide superuser access, so CWM will offer to disable this. You need to choose "No" so that it doesn't delete this file. If you forget you can simply flash SuperSU again and it'll put it back in.

Just wanted to tell you that the whole process went fine, but I did a nandroid backup first just to be safe ;) The phone seemed a bit confused at first, as the OTA Update Available icon remained in the notifications bar for a few minutes. Thanks again for your help :)


text:
Change pattern lock to Thin Pattern Lock like in ICS
Device: Micromax A57
Android: 2.3
How can I change the size of the unlock pattern grid like this:

That is ROM dependent, do not think you can change the grid size as its built in. Solution would be to look for a alternative lock screen, am sure there is plenty on the Play Store.

Try "Go Locker"
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jiubang.goscreenlock
Gives you a wide variety of lock screens to choose from.


text:
Meaning of purple blinking on Sony Ericsson Play (R800)?
The phone went off and I cannot turn it on. I tried pulling battery out, but it did not help. Cannot also connect it to SEUS since it does not detect a mobile connected.
Now, when I connect a mobile on USB charger and press the power button, the screen quickly blinks for less than 1s and then then purple light keeps blinking (flashing).
The purple light is coming from the LED on the power button. When I connect the charger the screen first turn to green, I think. And when I try to turn the mobile on, the screen turns to purple blinking light.
what is the meaning of the purple light? I cannot find the meaning on the Internet.

Where is the purple light coming from? The screen, or the notification led/light?

@geffchang Just edited the question explaining the location of the light.


text:
How to display balloon counter over application launcher icon?
Is there a way display a "balloon counter" notification on top of an application launcher icon (like iOS)?

Well, that would really only apply to apps that have a "message count" (or similar) to even display. Have you looked at the iPhone-esque launchers already in the Play Store?

Also, we really prefer questions that ask about a problem to be solved rather than an app to be found.

sounds like problem to me, you can still flag it

I tweaked the language to make it a question about a problem to be solved.

Go Launcher EX looks like you can turn that on, at least for some apps.
Related is the Next Notification plugin for Next Launcher 3D.


text:
Closely monitoring charging (with bike charger)
I bought a bike charger for my Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini Pro sk17i . When I cycle, the phone says that it is being charged, but apparently it is not because the battery percentage doesn't increase.
It is hard to find out anything with the built in battery utility. Is there any way to monitor charging more closely, such as reading the charging current or some other useful indicators?

Battery Monitor Widget or similar might report the current (it depends on whether the battery controller reports it or not), though I'm not finding any reports on whether it works on your device or not.  Still, can't hurt to try it.
Alternatively, a USB multimeter, like this one, would give you definite readings.


text:
Can't access internet through wirtual hotspot
I have rooted  phone with Android 4.0 and laptop with Windows 8.
I have made wirtual hotspot with:
netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow name=** key=**
netsh wlan start hostednetwork

Than I shared my default connection to newly created, phone have found this network, but couldn't connect to it (claimed 'avoided poor internet connection').
After googling around I figured out that I should set static IP, and phone finally connected to network, but without working internet. I have absolutely no idea what to do next.
Here is output of ipconfig /all: (PC internet connection - Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection 2; hotspot connection - Wireless LAN adapter Local Area Connection* 12)
http://paste.ubuntu.com/5925983/
Android device configuration:
IP - 169.254.179.101
Gateway - 169.254.179.10
Network prefix length - 16
DNS 1 - 169.254.179.10
DNS 2 - 8.8.4.4

UPD: Wifi analyser on Android side shows
Server IP: 0.0.0.0

This question appears to be off-topic because it is more about Windows than Android.

@roxan Actually, I am pretty sure that the problem lies in wrong configuration of static IP on Android side, so I suppose, it is not.

I'd say that this is okay here. Did you look through the other [tag:wifi-hotspot] questions we have here?

Just for clarification: Is the created hotspot by any chance an ad-hoc network -- or is it truly "infrastructure" mode? Because if it's ad-hoc, it's not supported out-of-the-box by Android.

Are you sure the Windows box is set up to act as a router? That's not the usual configuration, so if you haven't done anything to enable that on your laptop, you won't be able to access its internet connection from other devices via W-Fi.

@Kriattiffer IMHO, if you didn't know how to put static IP in Android then it would have been Android question.   To figure out the correct static IP you need to do it in your Windows computer. To fix anything like incorrect routing settings or Wi-Fi properties you've to do it in Windows. You shared Internet doesn't work on Android phone and won't work in any other device until you fix it in Windows computer.

@AlEverett have read'em all (both here and on SuperUser), there are some relevant things, but nothing to solve this problem.

@Izzy I suppose that I if created AP, it couldn't be ad-hoc, could it?

@Dan Honestly, I don't understand. What shoud be enabled on laptop in this case?

@Kriattiffer there are a lot of solutions for Windows creating ad-hoc "hotspots". I do not say you did, I just wanted to definitly rule that out. Otherwise we work on symptoms never reaching anywhere if it turns out it was ad-hoc.


text:
How to disable backlight buttons in MTK 6577 phone?
I want to get in control of the backlight for my phone buttons (It is a Runbo X5, MTK6577 based).
According to some tutorials I found, I should edit the content of this file:

/sys/class/leds/button-backlight

that is actually a link to this one:

/sys/devices/platform/leds-mt65xx/leds/button-backlight/brightness

I "cat"ted the content of the file when the backlight was off and on, and I read values of 0 and 255 respectively.
So far, so good: that file must be involved somehow then.
Now, all the documentation I found (for instance this one) states that I should manually change that file content according to my will (for instance, 0 if you I the lights to be off), then making the file non-writeable; so that the system can't override the settings.
I did, and it did not worked. Now the file content is not overridden; it stays fixed to 0. However, the button keep getting lit as if nothing changed!
I have the feeling that "/sys/devices/platform/leds-mt65xx/leds/button-backlight/brightness" is just where the information about the backlight status is written but not where it is set, at least here on my unit (that is, a Runbo X5 phone).
Any help would be greatly appreciated, I really want to turn those darn lights off at night.
Thank you!

Update: I logcat-ted the phone while turning the LEDS on.
Here's what I read:
oldButtonBright=false newButtonBright=true when the leds turned ON,
and
oldButtonBright=true newButtonBright=false
after some while BUT the light stayed ON for some more time!


text:
Can the LG 768 be encypted?
I have an LG 768 device. It is running Android 4.04 with Kernel version 3.0.21 and build number IMM76L. I can find no way to encrypt the device. None of the menus lead to an option to encrypt.
Has anyone figured out a way to encrypt this device?

Out of the box, No.
LG 768 User Manual
LG devices don't have the Full Device Encryption capability with the stock ROM, but you can always install an app to deal with that:
SSE - Universal Encryption

Secret Space Encryptor (S.S.E.)

Password Manager, Message (Text) Encryption and File Encryption integrated in the all-in-one solution.
Store and manage all your passwords in one secure place protected with one Master Password.
Keep your messages, notes and other texts safe from unintended readers.
Securely encrypt your private and confidential files or whole folders.  Wiping (secure delete) feature is included.
Everything is encrypted using strong encryption algorithm: AES(Rijndael) 256bit, RC6 256bit, Serpent 256bit, Blowfish 256bit/448bit, Twofish 256bit and GOST 256bit ciphers are available.
Other Utils: Password Generator, Clipboard Cleaner, Algorithm Benchmark, ...
Minimal Permissions. No ads.
Cross-Platform (Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, ...) GUI Version and Command Line Version of the File Encryptor is available on the application home page (download section).
This software is Open Source project – we have nothing to hide, so you can have securely hidden everything you need.
  (as Open Source, this software is published under TSU - §740.13(e) encryption export license exception)


text:
How to erase all data on android tablet?
My cousin locked my tablet trying to figure out the passcode and locked me out! Im trying to erase all data. please help.

If you want to re-gain access to your tablet, please see the locked-out tag-wiki. If you really just want to reset the device to factory settings, you might need to boot into recovery-mode and perform a factory-reset. Usually that's done by powering up the device while holding the vol+ or vol- keys; the combination often is device specific.

There are a couple of things you could do.

Boot into recovery mode, and perform a factory reset that way. Google something like "recovery mode " and the volume buttons act as the arrow keys and the power/home button as the back/select button.
Log into your Google account on your computer (if you aren't already logged in) ensuring that it is the same account as the one on your tablet. And go to https://www.google.com/android/devicemanager
From there, if your device is supported, you should be able to wipe your device, or even better, change the device's password so that you can easily unlock it again.