text:
Is there any way to run android app under chrome in windows? or use chrome "dev tools" inside an android app?
I use a platform that runs natively under any web browser (Chrome, Firefox, IE, etc.) and they also have an Android and iPhone app.
This platform is running a little bit crazy under Windows Chrome or Firefox due to network restrictions from where I work, but for some unknown reason, it runs fine inside the Android app.
I tried the app under the Bluestacks emulator and it ran fine, but I don´t want to have the emulator running and can't be on the phone all the time.
I wonder if it´s possible to run the Android app inside Chrome (in Windows 10) or if it's possible to run some sort of dev tools inside Android to try to understand what´s wrong with the native website and why it works fine inside the Android platform.
Any light in the right direction would be greatly appreciated!

The network restriction is probably in the form of a PAC file in Proxy Settings enabled for the browser that may block the site or it's js/css assets from whatever CDN the site is using, which might be what caused the link to not work.

Chrome has built-in developer tools for monitor and debug web applications. But that is a topic that belongs more to stackoverflow.com.

Welcome to Android Enthusiasts. We have some questions that may be related/possible dupe: Does ARC Welder still work? (running Android apps on Chrome), Chrome's Development Tools on Android

For running Andorid app under Chrome, the answer is no.
Even on ChromeOS, the Chrome browser and the android system are separated.
For using DevTools, if USB debugging shows nothing from your PC side, then it is impossible.
You may try reverse ennigering your app. For example:

Capture the HTTPS requests and analyse headers
Decompile apk and analyse smali codes.


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Setting policy values in edge://policy (Edge for Mobile)
I'd like to specifically set the policy SavingBrowserHistoryDisabled to "true" - I'm hoping that means the Android Edge browser no longer will save browsing history.
How do you set the value of these policies on Android? I know how to do it through the registry on Windows, but Android?

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


text:
Mount a MicroSD to all namespaces on Android 11
I'm trying to mount a MicroSD. As I understand it, this should be done in the global namespace. Root - Magisk.
I tried:

su --mm -c mount -t sdfat /dev/block/mmcblk0p1 /storage/0123-4567
nsenter -t 1 -m mount -t sdfat /dev/block/mmcblk0p1 /storage/0123-4567

As a result, the root namespace is mounted, but nothing is mounted in other applications. How to mount to all namespaces?

I found how to do it.
In my case, it was necessary to go into the mount namespace of the systems process at number 104.
nsenter -t 104 -m mount -t sdfat /dev/block/mmcblk0p1 /storage/0123-4567

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


text:
Responding to media button when media player is closed
According to what is clearly described here:
https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/media-apps/mediabuttons
when I press the media button (PTT button in my unihertz Titan Pocket) after completely closing my media player (foobar2000 app permits this) the OS automatically resurrects my media player and asks it to play.
This drives me nuts.
If I stop the music and enter a silent room, I always risk to start playback (possibly loudly) by just badly handling my phone. This is unacceptable to my standards of education.
I see some possible counteractions:

ask the app developer to modify the code in order to set a null media button receiver at app exit
reduce the media volume everytime I completely stop my media player
write an app by myself that sets a null media button receiver

Really there is not a system settings option that could affect this awkward-by-design behaviour?

I disabled mediaButton broadcast receiver for a music app I use. Launched the music app, then closed it (swiped away), and apparently it still received media button and resumed playback. This is a bug in my Android 10 I think. Android should not let an app do something when its corresponding component is disabled. // BTW, as a workaround you can setup an automation app to reduce volume level to 0 once the user stops media playback.

Android 11 behaves the same as 10. Not a bug but a "feature".

I resolved the problem by installing AIMP that sets a null media button receiver when the application is properly closed (not only paused or put in background).

AIMP could be not the only one player that implements this feature. I found this but others might exist.


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Apps suddenly unable to access SD card for seemingly no reason
SOLVED (see accepted answer)
So this one is weird.
Everything was working fine untill I rebooted my phone earlier today.
For some reason, since this reboot, apps are unable to access my SD card storage. As far as I know, no update was applied with this reboot. I do not recall tinkering or changing anything related to this recently.
Symptoms

SD card is still visible in the storage tab of the settings (there is no available option to unmount or eject it) or in select cases when choosing a folder from an app, however the content does not show up past the root.
My music player (Oto music) sends an error message "Cannot play this file" while trying to play a song from the SD card
File explorer will not show the SD card directory at all
Resillio Sync has a synced folder on the SD card. It now says "Can't open the destination folder". If I try adding a new synced folder on the SD card and select the root of the SD card, I get the message "Android OS restricts access to this folder"
Google file is stuck in a loop trying to get permissions to access the card
SD card works just fine on another phone.
Other SD cards have the same problem with my phone, not just this one
SD card does not show up when using file transfer with a Windows PC
Rebooting the phone did nothing
Removing the card and putting it back in again did nothing
Formatting the card did nothing
I factory reset the phone. It worked, but the problem came back at the first reboot.

Current state of investigations
I have reset the phone a second time and reboot it every time I install an app, uninstall or disable a system app or change some settings. So far the SD card is still accessible so I know what it's not:

it's not the fault of disabling system apps
it's not related to using a work profile (Insular)
still haven't found an app that causes it

I have no idea what could cause this, all I know is it's related to my phone in particular and it appeared out of nowhere.
I am using Android 13 on ColorOS.
Thanks to anyone who can help.

If you wouldn't have checked multiple SD-cards my guess would have been a defect SD-card, but not this isn't an option. Thus the only other alternative I see is a problem with the SD-card reader. Have you tried to completely power down your phone (not reboot, really put it off). Some times independent controllers go mad and some of them are not reset by a reboot, only by a power off.

@Robert I have powered down the phone entirely but maybe didn't do it for long enough. Anyway, I have also tried to factory reset the phone. It worked, but at the first restart the problem was there again. I am suspecting an issue with the firmware.

SOLVED
Found the thing!
This bug is caused by activating the option Disable permission monitoring in the Developper Options.
This is an option that is specific to a handful of phone manufacturers (Oppo in my case).
Enabling this option is needed for using some tweak apps such as Shizuku. However, if it is enabled on phone boot, SD card will be unaccessible.
FIX
Disabling this option and rebooting the phone fixed it.
If you still need to use this option, you can enable it while the phone is on and disable it before rebooting. It will work fine despite this minor inconvenience.


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Why are FB and Messenger app reactivated after restarting the phone?
I only use FB Lite and the Messenger Lite app on my phone, so FB and the Messenger app are useless to me.
However, they cannot be uninstalled, only deactivated.
But I found out that after restarting both apps are reactivated. Of course, Android isn't Windows, so I don't need to restart it often (basically almost not at all), but it's still annoying.
Also, it didn't do this on the previous phone, but there was One UI, so it's probably related to "stock" Android (specifically version 12)
Please help
Thank you
PS. The problem phone is a T-Phone, but like I said, it's probably purely OS related.

How (command or action) have you disabled those pre-installed apps?

@Robert Settings -> Apps -> See all 132 apps (under Recently opened apps) -> Facebook -> Button DISABLE (between OPEN and FORCE STOP). Of course, before deactivating I stopped the app and cleared cache and data.


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Fumbled my phone and somehow accidentally disabled a feature I depend on: Voice Recorder stays on-screen when screen is locked
I fumbled my phone just now and somehow accidentally disabled a feature I depend on, which has worked fine for years: Voice Recorder stays on-screen when screen is locked.
Now the app is unusable while the screen is locked (i.e.: it behaves just like every other app).
I'm trying to figure out what I checked or unchecked in my haphazard attempt to snatch my phone before it hit the ground.
I've looked thru the settings, but the closest thing I've found is "display over other apps", which doesn't seem to do what I want.
Android 10 running on a Motorola One Action.

Welcome to Android Enthusiasts. Could you [edit] and add some more details, like what is the device model, Android version, and which voice recorder app?

@AndrewT. Thanks, forgot to add that info. It's in there now.


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"Your data may be corrupt": /e/os booting into recovery and crashing on startup after running out of disk space
I am on a Fairphone 3 and run /e/os 1.9.
Background
I recently started to run out of disk space each time one of my apps (Signal messenger) started to create a new backup, as my free space was not large enough to accommodate a new backup file. Yesterday I turned off the phone when I saw that the "little storage left" notification came up and the backup was running, and put a brand new micro SD card in the phone that I had meant to set up since a while.
After powering up the phone again, the notification for low storage was (non-surprisingly) still showing, alongside with one for the new SD card. When I opened the SD card I saw that a lot of empty folders had been creating, mirroring the ones in my internal storage. The phone also started to vibrate repeatedly and showed "No log (file) could be created" in a small popup on the bottom of the screen. I decided to ignore that and try to move some files from the internal storage to the SD card to free up some space. After a short while, the phone crashed and rebooted into recovery.
Problem
When I power up the phone, it boots into recovery, showing this screen:
Recovery
Version 1.9 ()
Active slot: a

Can't load Android system. Your data
may be corrupt. If you continue to get
this message, you may need to perform
a factory data reset and erase all
user data stored on this device.

> Try again
Factory data reset

I can also navigate back into a recovery menu.
When I select try again, the phone starts up as normal. I get then to unlock my SIM. However, as soon as try to unlock the normal lock screen for the first time, the phone will crash.
If I just try to unlock the screen, an empty home screen will show for a moment, before my normal home screen loads (I use lawnchair as a launcher, which is not /e/os default). Then, sometimes a popup comes saying ??? launcher crashes all the time, partially obscured by an other popup saying Power off. The phone will then reboot into the recovery.
If I try to directly go to the settings page by swiping down and clicking the settings shortcut, that page is shown for a second or two before the phone also powers off and reboots into recovery.
If I click on the "Out of storage" notification, the same thing happens.
I would really like to prevent losing my data.
What I have tried so far
It appears like I can't do anything after unlocking my phone, as it will reboot directly.
I have gone through the recovery and fastboot menus, trying to find anything that could be of help. I was able to activate ADB and browse around in the file system using adb shell, but none of my personal files where accessible and there was apparently a lot of space available on that partition. I was also able to mount system from an option in the recovery. Even this partition showed only 73% disk usage. It was also read-only, so I was not able to remove any files. The sdcard folder in both / and /mnt/system/ was empty.
The recovery also gives me the option to install an update, e.g. via adb sideload. I have not tried that, since I don't know how to do so and if it will give me access to my personal data.
What to do now?
If this would be a computer, I would use a live linux system to run fsck and similar tools to identify and repair the corrupted data and to free up some disk space. Is it possible to do something similar with my phone, for example using adb?
Is there any way to access/recover and possibly back up my personal data?

you should enable usb-debugging and run the stop cmd. then the phone won't reboot so you can pull files (and uninstall some apps?) from adb. maybe remove sim or put in airplane mode gives you enough time to enable usb-debugging

Thank you for the tip! I tried for a while now to activate usb-debugging, but without any change. No matter what I try, as soon as I unlock the device (even without sim and in airplane mode) it reboots before I am able to actually press anything.

check from fastboot if DEVICE STATE - unlocked (in that case you can install TWRP)

No, device state is unfortunately locked. I also tried mount data from adb in recovery mode, but got the error that data was not in fstab.

I don't know what your recovery is capable of, stock recovery cannot decrypt data and therefore not mount data

It seems like this is also the case here. Are there any other options to enable usb-debugging, or to issue stop from the phone itself?

submit an issue/feature request where you ask the developers if they can include the "Lacking storage booting" function in recovery menu. or maybe they can help you to inject a script in boot that will enable usb-debugging

another idea is to drain the battery below 15%>5% so the batterysafer will suspend some cpus and the phone becomes slower - maybe that gives you the necessary time to enable usb-debugging before it reboots


text:
open "https://maps.app.goo.gl" links in uber
Whenever someone sends me a shared Google Maps link, I can only open it using the Google Maps app or website; I can't choose another app like Uber. Can I change that?

As far as I know the URLs an app is registered to is hard-coded in it's AndroidManifest.xml and since Android 12 such links have to be "verified", which means Google would have to provide information on maps.app.goo.gl that Ueber app is allowed to open such links: https://developer.android.com/training/app-links/verify-android-applinks

Is there anything I can do as a regular user to modify this?

Users seem to be able to override the "verified link" feature in the App's info settings dialog, but this still means the app has to declare the URL in it's manifest. But there are "helper-apps" that allow more flexibility, see the discussion on https://android.stackexchange.com/q/246819/2241


text:
How do I prevent an app from running a foreground service?
I have an app that wants to run a foreground service (not configurable) but I want the regular Android power restrictions to be applied to it because the foreground service is unnecessary (I always start it manually when needed).
I do not want to force-stop the app.
How can I prevent the app from starting a background service? I tried pm revoke <packagename> android.permission.FOREGROUND_SERVICE but apparently that's not a changeable permission type.

This permission is always granted but is managed via AppOps.
To prevent an app from using it, run appops set <packagename> START_FOREGROUND ignore.


text:
Android (Samsung S22) keeps reporting mobile data usage long after eSIM is deleted
In January 2023 I've used Airalo's eSIM in UAE for about a week. I've deleted the eSIM upon return. Three months later I've noticed that my phone keeps reporting mobile data usage incurred by that eSIM, although the eSIM itself can't be found anywhere else in the settings and, hence, can't be deleted.

It has its own section in the "Mobile Data" screen, with its own date range, consistently reporting mobile data usage month to month! Sometimes it is more than WiFi and my actual SIM combined! Obviously, I'm not getting billed for this data (otherwise I would have noticed it much earlier), but I did notice that my phone started to have connectivity issue since my return from UAE. It disconnects from the mobile network from time to time, and it takes several minutes to re-connect back.
Did anyone experience similar issue? What could be the reason?
UPD: After setting same billing cycle on all connections, it seems mobile data from eSIM matches that of my regular SIM. So, I guess it's a bug in Samsung software?


text:
Operate or clone phone with broken screen
I have an Oppo with a broken screen.  The Phone Link program from Microsoft is working, so I can do a few things (like controlling music play).
I would like to do a few operations like pressing approve buttons, or clone the whole phone.
I have a new phone, and on startup I start the cloning process, but I have to do something on the old phone.

What is the Android version and model? Can you elaborate broken screen? Is the screen totally unfunctional or it it just black and the touch screen is working? You can buy a USB hub and a USB type C to HDMI. Connect a USB mouse and HDMI to a monitor. Since this is a hardware problem there's nothing much you can do.


text:
PRoot: libudev: udev_monitor_new_from_netlink_fd: error getting socket: Permission denied
I'm trying to get Steam running with Box64 on Ubuntu in PRoot. But I get errors.
Ptitseb, the developer of Box64 says it's probably because of
libudev: udev_monitor_new_from_netlink_fd: error getting socket: Permission denied. https://github.com/ptitSeb/box86/issues/699#issuecomment-1492968015
Is there a workaround?


text:
Stuck on "Encryption unsuccessful"
I really screwed up and need help now...
I bought a cheap Xiaomi Mi A3 a few days ago for a little project, where I needed a rooted phone (I didn't want to use my main phone for this).
So I tried root the phone with magisk and this tutorial (https://magiskapp.com/root-xiaomi-mi-a3-using-magisk/). Unlocking bootloader worked perfectely fine, so I proceeded with method 1 (using TWRP). I then got a fastboot error which I think has something to do with me using usb3 and not usb2. Since I dont have any Usb2 connectors, I tried to do it with method 2. Somewhere along the way I did a factory reset. Well I did eventually load into TWRP and was able to load the Zip files into TWRP through a MicroSD card, since MTP and "adb push" didn't worked (I didn't got a error message, the files just wouldn't show up on the phone). I then flashed Magisk v22.0 since the others were all "wrong Zip file format". If I try to boot into system now, I always get the "Encryption unsuccessful" error message. I tried to facotry reset, didn't work.
Edit: I can get into TWRP, but reboot to system will always result in "Encryption unsuccessful".
I also tried to flash with MiFlash, but this doesn't work (maybe because of USB 3?)
Do you have any ideas on how to fix this? Is maybe a USB2 hub the key? Since there are no data on this phone I can also just delete everything and reinstall a completely fresh android and start again from the beginning (but since Factory Reset isn't doing this I don't know how to do this).
Thanks in Advance!

Your phone only has an USB 2.0 port so it doesn't matter how you connect it to the PC, it will always be a USB 2.0 connection.


text:
Android keyboard with different principle?
Android keyboard with different principle?
Hello, I don't know about you but I am still frustrated by typing on a capacitive screen keyboards and I have tried many of them on different phones. Maybe it's because I remember how it was previously on soft resistive screens on phones like Samsung Omnia II where you had to press a bit and it was simply much more precise because it didn't detect just any random part of my huge finger touching the screen, but the point of the pressure instead, which resulted in far less typos.
Of course resistive screens didn't allow multitouch, but the precision was much better IMHO exactly because pressure was a factor. I remember some years ago there was new feature announced allowing the phone to measure touch pressure, but I wonder why wasn't this used exactly for keyboard...or was it?
Another mechanic of typing on today's phone screen is that the position where I LIFT the finger  matters and not position where it first touches and I am actually not sure why is it this way. Are there any keyboards where this would be different and the first touch position would be taken? Or maybe it would be even better to calculate middle point between touch start and touch end to decrease frequency of typos?

Just making sure you are aware of swipe/Swype based keyboards where your finger moves from letter to letter, i.e. Gboard slide

I know about these and yes that's a partial solution to this problem

So it is up the custom keyboard app developer what will be the behavior of the custom keyboard. Since phones were smaller, soft keyboards typically pop-up the letter so it can be seen over the fingertip and by having the app only accept when release allows for mistakes to be corrected (try to hit 'g', see the 'f' key, move until 'g' key, release). Question may fit better at Software Recommendations but searching on the Play Store bring up a few soft kbds with larger sizes. If looking for resistive screen device look for 'rugged Android phone'.

I have "debug touches" in developer options on so I can see that my typos seem to be happening mostly because I touch the right spot, but when releasing my finger it "moves" to a wrong spot. For example very often I tap space, but when releasing finger the last touching spot is on the "n" key, so very often I end up having n characters instead of spaces :-] Seems like there is no such keyboard which would allow this behavior to be changed, yet...


text:
How do you close an autofill popup one time without closing the keyboard?
Goal is to use the keyboard without resorting to typing somewhere else and copy pasting, or disabling autofill.
For example, how to I type 5 when in this scenario.

Welcome to Android Enthusiasts. We have a duplicate question about the same issue, but it's not yet completely solved: Prevent Autofill/Suggestion to overlay the keyboard


text:
Bootloader unlocking not working on Nokia T20
I have been trying to install an Android 13 GSI my Nokia T20 WiFi tablet (Model TA-1392) reached its final update ever. However, in order to flash the GSI onto the tablet, it said that I needed to unlock the bootloader to do so. That hasn't been working either, as it gives me this error:
FAILED (remote: 'Unlock bootloader fail. fb_verify_unlockkey')
Help?
Many thanks,
Saturanium
Update: The only command that I could use that did not register as an unknown command was fastboot oem unlock; which registered something other than FAILED (remote: 'unknown cmd.')

Based on quick research, looks like Nokia doesn't provide an official method to unlock the bootloader anymore, so you have to resort to 3rd-party solutions

Are there any 3rd-party options available for Linux? The only computer that I have administrative power on is my laptop running on KDE Neon, an Ubuntu-based distro. I do have a windows 11 desktop that I can use but do not have admin powers to.


text:
Smartphone locked with no access to Gboard Keyboard
(First excuse my bad English, It's not my mother tongue)
Before my smartphone (Wiko Freddy) was locked, somebody disable GBoard on it, and reboot the phone.
I read a lot of articles and try a lot of tools on my computer (Windows 10 x64) from the net, but actually nothing unlocked this problem.
When connecting the phone with a USB cable to Windows 10 :

the phone is in "charging mode"

On the phone, USB Debugging Mode seems active, but not detected from the tools who requested to activate this option on the phone before continuing.
List of products/tools tested :

DroitKit
FoneDog Toolkit for Android
Free Android Data Recovery
iMyFone D-BAck for Android
iMyFone LockWiper (Android)
Jihosoft Android Phone Recovery
MyPhoneExplorer
ScrCpy
SnapPea
UltData for Android
UnlockGo (Android)
And other products removed from the pc.

Some of the tested tools inform that they can unlock only Samsung phone.
Some are only trial version.
In device manager (Windows) :
=> Android Device

Android Composite ADB Interface

=> Other devices : (3 times Android without installed drivers)

Android
Android
Android

I try to update drivers but Windows says that the last drivers are still installed.
=> Wiko-Freddy USB drivers
=> Google USB Drivers
I try to use ADB commands.
But the device is unauthorized.
D:_adb-tools>adb devices
* daemon not running; starting now at tcp:5037
* daemon started successfully
List of devices attached
37dc5a88        unauthorized      <=====
I don't see any confirmation dialog box on the phone to allow remote connexion (from windows).
I'm sure that this problem can be resolved without reset the phone in the original configuration. I would like to preserve all datas on the phone.
I would like to know How to use ADB commands to :

Force the unauthorized status to authorized
Reactivate GBoard
and change the charging mode to MTP mode

By advance, many thanks for your help.
Regards,
Hi Alexcs (and eveybody)
Thank you very much for your reply.
As I'm a novice, and try to understand, can you give me more details  on this solution please.

With this solution, is there any risk for the data's ?
When I search the stock ROM for the Wiko Freddy on the net, there are a lot of sites who propose this file, with different size.
Do you have any recommendation for choosing the right one ?
How to put the phone in EDL mode ?

I just know the recovery mode when pressing Power on and volume down on the phone on boot.
Options are :
Reboot system now
Reboot to bootloader
Apply update from ADB       (**)
Apply update from SD card
Wipe data factory
reset wipe cache partition
Mount /system
View recovery logs
Power off
(**) When testing this option, this message appear on the mobile :
Supported API: 3
Now send the package you want to apply to the device with "adb sideload "
On windows :
List of devices attached
37dc5a88 sideload
As it's seem possible to send package and write in this case to the phone,
Is there any way to :

copy the configuration file where the Gboard keyboard should be define to the pc
modify this file (with any tool)
and copy (replace) it back to the phone in the good place
and reboot the mobile to retrieve the keyboard?

By advance, thank you very much for your help and answers about all solutions who will preserve all data's on the phone.
Regards,

Hi, Is there any way to transform an APK file to ZIP file with correct footer to upload it on android mobile?

You haven't mentioned android version, but I guess it's AVBv1 signed. Therefore it's possible to flash modified boot partition.

download the stock ROM

extract the boot.img file with AIK

modify default.prop
ro.adb.secure=0
persist.service.adb.enable=1

repack the file

flash file into boot partition in EDL mode

once adb is working use scrcpy to do the necessary.


text:
Economy printing in Canon PIXMA GM2070 series from my Android
How to print in economy mode from my Android phone in my Canon PIXMA GM2070 model (ink tank printer - MONOCHROME)?
I can print in economy mode from my PC but I couldn't do that in my Android as the official Canon PRINT Inkjet/SELPHY app doesn't have an economy printing feature and it prints using high-standard and I want to save my ink.

It's an unusual situation but their own documentation for the app seems to confirm the absence of quality adjustments. So, in conclusion, what you want to do can't be done.


text:
Make a docked phone on a stand showing inbox
How do I make my Android phone on the stand show my inbox (Gmail, mobile website, or even the Outlook app if need be)?
While I'm working, I like having my entire computer dedicated to that, probably a number of apps, a number of tabs, etc.
I have an Android phone (Pixel 7P) that I have on a (Pixel) stand next to my computer screen. It shows the time, weather, and family photos, but want I would really like to see is if my boss sends me an email.
Is there a way to keep the Gmail app visible? Or a widget or something that shows incoming emails.

Perhaps worth noting about the possibility of the docked state, so I'm not sure whether answers about kiosk mode/app pinning or widget on the home screen might be applicable on this case.


text:
Can I customize the signal strength threshold for disconnecting WiFi?
Android's default threshold is too high, resulting in the system sometimes not cutting off WiFi even though the signal is already too weak to access the Internet. So I would like to set the threshold manually.

So you want to let your device switch earlier to a different Wifi or should it switch to cellular data? For the latter I think Android has an option and for switching Wifi there are new Wifi extensions which handle seamless roaming among Wifi hotspots that belong to the same WiFi. Unfortunately these extensions have to be supported in hardware by phone and access points.

Welcome to Android Enthusiasts. We have a possible duplicate of a similar issue: How to set signal strength threshold for switching WiFi on and off?. Please take a look and let us know the result. Thanks.

As mentioned by Robert, this function is usually performed by Wifi Access Points that support "Active Handover" function.  That's what I have at home, but it doesn't work elsewhere.
I have been using Wifi Switcher App

Automatically switch to a better WiFi network when current signal is weak
Ensure you stay connected to the most powerful Wi-Fi network available. The best WiFi roaming app available.
By default, Android devices will not switch to a different Wi-Fi network as long as the current network connection is available, although the signal level is very weak and makes the network unusable.

There are many others that might work, But I haven't tried them.

Smart Wifi Switch which is free
SmartWiFiSelector which is paid

I am not associated with any of them.


text:
Using multi profiles in Android browsers?
I want to have multi profiles in Android browsers. I mean, tabs that can open the same site with different credentials like many browsers on Windows.
How to achieve this?

Firefox for Android has support for opening private tabs which might help you?

@davidgo in this case the different tabs will be open the same site with the same credentials. For example, the same twitter account in two tabs.

I think we may be talking past each other. From a server POV a private browsing tab should be totally disassociated from other tabs - ie you can use the same or different credentials in it and the server will see the browsing sessions as unrelated. Also, your comment seems to contradict ypur post with respect of diffetent vs same credentials. You may eant to clear that up.

I haven't found one, but my solution is...

I have many browsers installed and I use Firefox, Chrome, Brave, and DuckDuckGo for different purposes. There are many more choices to select from.
I have Brave installed as the default browser and use it for general purposes.

Another option is to install Parallel Space, this will let you run a clone of another app.  If you really want to use the two copies of the same browser, then you can run one under PS.

I have no affiliations with any of the browsers or Parallel Space.


text:
Prevent Bypassing Android Verified Boot in custom ROM
Installing custom rom needs unlocked bootloader. so I unlocked bootloader.
I built a custom android 12 rom with AVB enabled for system and boot partitions and flashed it.
if I Installing apk through recovery to system partition(copy to /system/app), apk will not installed. so AVB is working normally.
But if I flash Magisk in recovery, Magisk will root device.
Also if I flash a disabled vbmeta partition in fastboot and then inject some apk in the system partition, the apk will be installed in the system partition normally.
So the question is
Is there any way to provide integrity of system without using User-settable root of trust in custom roms with unlocked bootloader?

By unlocking bootloader you disable the central system integrity feature of Android, what do you expect? A locked bootloader + root of trust + vbmeta is the way Android is designed to provide system integrity.

thanks @Robert so what is this section in AVB Doc? why this doc says it supports unlocked state?

If I understand the linked documentation correctly in unlocked state verification is performed but the outcome is simply saved in a flag and the boot process will continue no matter if the verification fails or succeededs.

I know Magisk had issues with FEC on some Moto devices. ext4-dedup could be useful too


text:
Google Sheets on Android: frozen column can't be resized?
I wished to freeze the first 2 columns in Google Sheets on Android:

However, after freezing, these frozen columns will get a fixed width, and I can't change it (although I have a scrollbar).

I wish to expand the frozen columns so that I can see all of them. Is it somehow possible to overcome this?


text:
Is there a way to contact the developer of an app on the Amazon Appstore?
For Android apps on Google Play, usually (always?) there is a developer email address you can use to contact the developer of the app. But for apps published on the Amazon Appstore, I can't see any way to contact the developer of the app; is there a way?

When I look at apps on https://www.amazon.com/appstore there is a Developer-Info section which contains an e-mail of the app developer/company.

@Robert - thanks. It seems this section only appears on the web version and not when viewing the page either in a mobile browser or through the appstore app itself.


text:
Dual band hotspot (DBS)
Phone has snapdragon 765g processor, which natively support dual band hotspot (2.4g and 5ghz), plus Android 12 has support for DBS, but the settings screen doesn't show any option to enable DBS.
How do I enable DBS?

What phone do you use? Android in general may have DBS hotspot support but manufacturer often don't use original AOSP version instead use a modified version and forget to include certain features of new Android versions.

I use one plus device, is there any adb means to activate it, even if it's rooted how do I activate it?

@Chemist your phone support dual band in client mode. But not in a server (wifi ap mode) your best bet is to buy a device that ships with android 12 or 13 and has a wifi driver that support dual band in wifi ap mode

Didn’t know that, Thanks


text:
Does going directly from QPR Beta-> major Android Beta (without going to stable in between) would force a wipe in between or not?
Others have asked elsewhere, so I'm looking for answers for them.
Does anyone recollect from a year ago what the experience was if you're either on or opted into the Google Pixel Android 12 QPR program, and you opted into the Android 13 Beta 1, did you get an OTA directly from QPR Beta to 13 Beta 1?
For now, I've been advising users to opt out of the QPR2 Beta, but don't take the OTA until the Stable QPR2 one comes for their device and then once on that, opt into the Android 14 Beta 1 when it's available, just to be safe.
I'm aware the Android 13 QPR2 has gone Stable for all appropriate Pixel phones, except for all the Pixel 6 series, which I've heard will arrive on March 20, but that's third-hand information.
I don't know if a QPR Beta -> major Android Beta (without going to stable in between) would force a wipe in between or not.  We all know it hopefully "shouldn't", but I'm looking for someone who knows for sure.
Thanks!


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VM acceleration is not working on another VM for Android Emulator
We want to run our instrumented tests on Gitlab. We've created a Linux runner(amd64,Ubuntu 22.04) to execute connectedAndroidTest gradle task. However we've come across some obstacles.
I have two questions :

According this article, I read that we can not use VM acceleration for android emulator in another VM ? Is it true ?
Is there anyone able to run the instrumented tests on another VM using VM acceleration? VM acceleration is important because it improves execution speed. Otherwise it will take a long time to start the emulator.

While trying this for android-31(x86_64) emulator, I'm getting error below even if KVM is enabled on VM.
KVM: entry failed, hardware error 0x8
FATAL   | Emulator: exiting becase of the internal error 'kvm_arch_handle_exit:
hardware error happened in KVM, aborting now

Also I checked these:
$./emulator -accel-check
accel:
0
KVM (version 12) is installed and usable.
accel

$kvm-ok
INFO: /dev/kvm exists
KVM acceleration can be used

I thought if the official site says like this, maybe it's true. Otherwise we have to build a physical Linux machine for hardware acceleration or we have to increase our resources on VM and continue without VM acceleration. (cpu,memory etc.) :)
Regards,
Tugce.

Found but not personally done the following, based on: Google's Cuttlefish or https://github.com/google/android-emulator-container-scripts it seems that both of them requires that the cloud host provider has nested virtualization / KVM access.

Hello, thank you for your response. We found a solution by changing Hypervisor. We created a virtual machine on VMware and opened "expose hardware assisted virtualization to the guest os" option. Detailed info: https://docs.vmware.com/en/VMware-vSphere/7.0/com.vmware.vsphere.vm_admin.doc/GUID-2A98801C-68E8-47AF-99ED-00C63E4857F6.html


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Block all SMS sent by email addresses
I'm using the stock Google Messages app on Android.  I have started to get spam SMS sent from email addresses with some regularity.
It's all from senders that look like as

apps.servmmbership-accntspprt-ntflxregard.dkoeqbjhop9489-838ziyy@jossgandos1.com
authrpf.custs-mailspprtaccnt-vnmo902-00732nvw@parismanagehostingz01.name

and the message is usually something like "Your [Legitimate Business Name] account has been locked; click this [obvious malicious link] to resolve."
Google's SMS spam filter isn't catching most of these, and because it's trivial for a sender to make a "new" email address, blocking individual addresses has no effect.  The key here is that I get no legitimate SMS messages from email addresses.  All of my legitimate SMS messages come from phone numbers.
Is there a way to disable receipt of SMS messages sent by email addresses?  I want to only receive messages sent by phone numbers.  Barring that, is there a way to not get notifications for ones from email addresses?  I'd prefer to do this without having to switch messaging apps if possible.

I'm not sure if it is SMS in the strict sense (requiring cell signal to send and receive). Are there any other hints about the sender, like can the sender be clicked to show more info (e.g. Google), or if it's a "business" and there's a banner "Sending as [your name]" with the text input saying "Type message" instead of "RCS message" or Text message"?

disable the chat function

@alecxs care to elaborate?  How does that help?

the chat function is resonsible to make it act like a messenger using internet. if you disable it, only true SMS can be received


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Touch screen doesn't work inside TWRP on Xiaomi Redmi 9C
I have a Xiaomi Redmi 9C on which I try to install a new ROM. My problem is that when I launch fastboot reboot, it tries to reboot, I see Redmi displayed, but it keeps rebooting.
So once I switch to bootloader, I run fastboot reboot recovery,
I get to TWRP (3.5.2), but my touch screen doesn't work, I can't do anything. When the screen turns off, I can't even swipe to unlock it.
I also used Orangefox to see if it works better, no, I have the same problem. The recovery launches well but I can't do anything. The touch screen doesn't react.
What is the possible cause and how to fix it?

either use adb commands or connect mouse

We are the same, I also have a Redmi 9c, I just waited 123 hours before unlocking the bootloader. What I can tell you is that you did wrong. You used TWRP on Redmi 9c even though it is not yet supported by TWRP.
The only supported models on Redmi are 1 to 7 while Redmi 9c is not yet. So that's the reason why your screen doesn't work. I have sent a message to TWRP members to support our Redmi 9c devices.
The solution is to format it, there are many software available so that you can use it again.


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All new purchases from Play Store are failing from my Google Account
How do you fix the problem when you try to make a paid purchase it says "Couldn't complete your transaction. Your Play balance can only be used in Canada. See the fit card terms of service.". I am in Canada.
I've tried purchasing multiple apps from the Play Store on multiple devices. So this error must be associated with my Google Account. My balance is about $50. I use a VPN and have tried with it off but no difference. I have purchased apps in the past and it worked.

Your Play balance can only be used in Canada should be enough as a clue. Are you in Canada or not? Why do you mention VPN?

@ChanganAuto wouldn't be much of a question if I wasn't.

Each google account you use is locked to a country.  This is in the Payments section.  You are able to change this once a year only.
For many situations, a VPN is not enough, you need an account in that country.
The solution is to create another google account and change its country to match your target.  Before using it in this country, you need to switch your active account in PlayStore.  This works in a few more situations, but still has limitations.
Changing Account in Playstore

Open PlayStore
Press on your photo
On the right hand side of your name and account is a drop-down arrow
Use it to change your account.

Changing Country on your Account

On a browser go to play.google.com/store/games
Click on your photo/icon
Click on Payments and Subscriptions

If you dont have a method allocated then

Click on Add a payment method
Enter credit card details (you wont be charged)
Enter Billing address in the new country.

If you already have a method allocated

Click on Edit payment methods
Choose a card and click on Edit
Edit your billing address (to the new country).

All of this appears to be correct. My credit cards are here as well as the Google Play Balance. Is there something in particular I should be looking for?

Setting your DNS servers to default may do the trick.
Had the same problem driving me up the wall. Solution for my Android device was:
Settings -> Connections -> More Connection settings -> Private DNS
Mine was set to "Automatic (recommended)"
I changed it to "Off" and was able to make payments in Google again...
Not sure why the DNS server would have an effect on the detected device location, but I recommend also checking DNS settings in the Router and other network settings (e.g. VPN etc.) to see if that fixes your problem.


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LINE Messenger backup/restore under microG?
NOTE: I see the following similar discussion here:
How to restore Line messages from Titanium Backup?
Although that discussion offers a suggestion that might partially apply to what I want to ask here, it does not confirm the validity of that suggestion. Therefore, it does not actually answer my following question:
I'm thinking of switching to microG, but a stumbling block is LINE Messenger. I know that it can run under microG, but I also know that it can't normally back up and restore LINE Messenger chat history without access to Google Drive.
I have an idea of how I might be able to bypass this restriction, but I'm wondering if it actually would be feasible. Here's my idea ...
(1) Under my current non-microG Android OS, take a backup of /data/data/jp.naver.line.android
(2) Install microG, and then install LINE Messenger.
(3) Restore the previously backed up jp.naver.line.android to /data/data under the microG OS.
(4) Take periodic backups of /data/data/jp.naver.line.android as I use LINE under microG.
(5) If i ever want to restore my LINE history under microG, repeat step 3 with the latest jp.naver.line.android backup.
A variation might be to only back up and restore one or more appropriate sqlite databases that are resident within /data/data/jp.naver.line.android, instead of that entire directory tree.
I'm willing to experiment with this approach, but before I do, I'm wondering whether anyone has tried anything like this with LINE Messenger under microG.
Thank you in advance for any thoughts and suggestions.
UPDATE: Thanks to @Andrew-T for the pointer to the other discussion that I missed, which indeed confirms that backup and restore for the database under /data/data/jp.naver.line.android can actually be done.
I'm just wondering if anyone has actually gotten something like this to work specifically under microG. I'd like to switch to microG, but it would give me more confidence to take that step if anyone has already been able to do this in order to get full LINE functionality under that OS, including backup and restore.
FURTHER UPDATE: That other discussion is more than 7 years old, and sadly, it turns out that the information is outdated. The /data/data/jp.naver.line.android/databases directory that is referred to in that article doesn't contain the database that is mentioned. Furthermore, I checked each and every other database in that directory, and none of them contain any chat history.
I also checked all of the other files and directories under /data/data/jp.naver.line.android, and none of them contain any chat history, either.
This is consistent with LINE's decision a while ago to stop allowing local-storage backup and to make Google Drive the only location to where chat history can be backed up and restored from. In conjunction with that decision, LINE seems to have gotten rid of all local chat history data from its device-resident databases.
So, it looks like I'm out of luck regarding non-Google-based backup and restore for LINE.
However, I'll keep this question open for a while longer, in case it turns out that someone knows of another way I can manage Android-based LINE backups and restores without Google being in the picture.
PS: Hmm ... I wonder if it would be possible to create a fake "Google Drive" service which looks just like Google Drive to LINE, but which actually just manages a data store of my own.
I'm going to look into this and report back if I have any luck with this idea.

Possible duplicate: Transfer LINE account from a phone to another without losing friends and chat history. Note that without root, /data/data/jp.naver.line.android cannot be accessed.

I missed that one discussion, thank you! But I can't find anything which says whether or not this would work with microG. It seems like it should work, but it would give me more confidence about switching to microG if anyone has actually been successful with this procedure under microG.

It turns out that the information in that other thread seems to be outdated. It's more than 7 years old. None of the data stored under /data/data/jp.naver.line.android/data bases contains any chat history.  See the "Further Update" section of my question for more details.

I figured out how to do it! See my Answer.

I figured out a workaround!!
I have an old Mac laptop. There is a Mac desktop version of LINE Messenger, and that version does allow chat history backups and restores.
So, I can run LINE under microG and just do the chat backups and restores on the Mac.
Also, I can run an Automator script on the Mac periodically when it's idle in order to start LINE, and then to issue the appropriate mouse clicks to go to the Settings and initiate the chat backup. This will allow me to keep the LINE chats backed up on a regular basis.
Also, I'm guessing that chat backups and restores will probably also be available on the Windows desktop version of LINE, in case anyone has a Windows box and wants to try the same thing.
This is probably the closest I can come to what I was originally asking for here, and it's an acceptable Answer to my question.
Now, I no longer have any obstacles to starting my official move to microG.
PS: If I want to get fancy, I could write a script on the Mac to initiate the Automater script that I described above, and I then could create a Tasker shortcut on my microG device to ssh to the Mac and invoke that script. This way, I could actually initiate the LINE chat history backup from my microG device.
And I could handle LINE chat history restores in these same ways.
PPS: And it turns out that the Mac LINE implementation optionally allows a proxy to be used between LINE and the backup/restore host.  If I want to get really, really fancy some day, I might be able to write my own custom proxy server which emulates a connection to Google Drive, but which actually just saves the chat history in my own, personal data store.
That is a longer term project for some possibly never-arriving time in my future when I actually might find myself with a lot of spare time.


text:
Google Fit not tracking/importing activities accurately
I've recently noticed that the Google Fit app has been extremely off when recording OR importing activity, but especially importing. I tracked several walks recently where my watch (Fossil Q Explorist) would report almost exactly with another app on my phone (Strava) in terms of distance, time, and steps (see screenshots).
However, when this activity is imported into Google Fit (in this case, presumably from the watch, but it's occurred just with Strava imports as well), the distance and step counts are much lower, roughly 60% or less in some cases. Does anyone know what the cause is or how to fix this?
I wouldn't be so miffed, but

This is a widely used application run by a company with plenty of resources
I can't find bunches of other people with this problem
Google Fit is my only tracking option to earn $$ from my health insurance, so taking 15k steps to earn 10k is pretty annoying
Google Fit has even retconned itself and changed activities again afterward (screenshot included)
I feel like I've tried everything, including:

uninstall/reinstall the app
sign out/back in
wipe data
enable all permissions for Google Fit
track with other apps to ensure accuracy
import from another Google Fit device (watch)

Pixel 6 Pro, Android 13, Fossil Q Explorist (most recent update)

Strava
Google Fit (almost immediately after finishing activity)
Google Fit, viewing the same activity the next day

Fossil Q Explorist 1
Fossil Q Explorist 2
Fossil Q Explorist 3

I did find a solution, but it relates specifically to this situation in the fact that it requires you to be using a smartwatch or other tracking device or that you track all activity through another app to track your fitness data.
The idea here is you don't want Google Fit to do any automatic tracking, as it seems that's where the inconsistencies are introduced. To do this, you open the Google Fit app, open the "Profile" tab (with the icon of a person at the bottom right), tap the "Settings" gear, then disable "Track your activities."
After this, you can use other apps (Strava, Fitbit) that feed data into Google Fit and Fit will assume their data is correct since it can't overlay its own incorrect data on top.
More useful: you can still use the Google Fit app on a wearable (smartwatch, Wear OS), as this activity will show correctly within the Fit app on your phone now and match what you tracked it to be on your wearable.
In my specific situation, I ended up moving completely to the Samsung Health tracking app on a Galaxy Wear 4 Classic, then using Health Sync (3rd party) to sync the activity to Google Fit. I tried using Google's Health Connect Beta, but Samsung Health doesn't sync steps yet with this service.


text:
Changed EXIF dates and file attributes are not recognized on Android
I had several jpeg images stored on a MicroSDXC card that had incorrect dates, year 2000, which were taken in 2010.
I inserted this SD card into slot and used EXIFtool to correct dates, which were correct afterwards - date information was stored in DateTime, DateTimeOriginal, DateTimeDigitized. I also changed File created, File modified date from the EXIF tag by using BulkFileChanger, so it shows the correct year in file system.
I used TeraCopy to copy modified files onto SD card and used Transfer: Data, Timestamps, Attributes, Streams + Transfer options were set to "Verify files after transfer".

I inserted this SD card back into Samsung Android phone and opened Google Photos app, the photos were still being showed wrongly at the end of timeline, in the year 2000. I cleaned cache of the app (Google photos and Gallery Go) and it didn't help.
I also saw that images on which I changed EXIF dates had prefix in their file names, something like ~~adt00000416~~DSC03040.JPG, and are stored in storage/01D0-A640/DCIM/folder/~~adt00000416~~DSC03040.JPG.
I moved those files again from Windows to SD card but with TeraCopy Streams and Attributes disabled, but it didn't solve the issue on Android. File dates were showing correctly on the SD card (checked via irfanview exif info and file explorer) though and incorrect dates are nowhere to be seen.

Is it possible somehow Android has cached metadata of those files and perhaps even stores them hidden somewhere (hence that extra prefix in filename), and refuses to show metadata of newly modified files?

If everything shows the correct and updated dates and Android doesn't, then this is an Android issue and thus off-topic.

I wonder if Android is showing photo order based on file modification date and not the EXIF data?

@Giacomo1968 I am not sure, the files that I transferred onto SD card didn't had any wrong dates anywhere. But android apps most likely sort by one of those 3 EXIF date tags in Google Photos and Gallery Go.

This seems to be an Android issue as implied here: “Digital cameras add EXIF data to a photo, including date/time taken (from the camera), exposure and other details. However, most apps sort photos by their file date, NOT the EXIF date. This is the date when the file was copied to its current folder, which could be days or years later, very unlikely to be the true date when the photo was taken.”

@Giacomo1968 I had set File attributes (file date) from EXIF tag by using BulkFileChanger. The file attributes in Windows File explorer on SD card are exactly as corrected Date Taken in EXIF tag. I said in my OP post that there aren't wrong dates seen anywhere in the files that are located on the SD card.

@Rudolph Then this question definitely should be migrated top the Android specific SE site for further debugging since this is a truly oddball case. While others have voted to migrate it to the Android SE site, you can accelerate the process by flagging a moderator and asking them to migrate it.

gallery stores date in its own database, maybe it doesn't recognize the modified files. clear app data and check again

@alecxs already did.. I uninstalled app completely and installed again too (both GG and GP). But it started generating again thumbnails and timeline that was going back to year 2000... even though there are no files on that SD card that have year 2000 anywhere (I sorted them on windows file explorer and voidtools everything, and oldest ones were in 2008..

get the file name of any 2000 file. check stat from adb shell

can you check 'adb shell stat /storage/01D0-A640/DCIM/folder/~~adt00000416~~DSC03040.JPG' from usb-debugging please?


text:
What are the factors affecting the ability to enable/disable VoLTE?
In response to this zero-day vulnerabilities for certain Exynos chipsets, I tried to turn off VoLTE on Samsung Galaxy S9 running Android 10 (build number QP1A.190711.020.G960USQU9FVB2) but couldn't find the setting under Connections -> Mobile Networks.  This phone runs on the USA AT&T network.  (Thanks for the tip that G960U doesn't use Exynos; even in G960F which does use it, the model is not affected.)
But I did find the setting to turn it off in another Samsung Galaxy phone, an A20 running Android 11 that runs on the BoostMobile network (which I believe uses the AT&T network as an MVNO).  Again, although this phone does use Exynos 7884 it may not be vulnerable, going by the list of chipsets provided by Samsung.
My question: What are the factors affecting the ability to enable/disable VoLTE?  Is it based on the OS version, the chipset, the provider, or the location (dynamically, based on the presence of LTE there)?  It seems that for some MVNOs it cannot be turned off?
Another way to pose the question is in terms of technology.  In areas where 4G is the only network (since both AT&T and Verizon would have turned off their 2G and 3G networks by now), do ALL voice calls over 4G network are necessarily voice over IP?  If not, does turning off VoLTE means simply that you cannot use data while making calls?

Perhaps related on Android Central: "My carrier (Jio) primarily uses VoLTE for calls, so there's no option to turn it off, but you should be able to see a toggle to enable or disable the feature. You'll also see different options on the Mobile networks menu depending on your S9 or S9+ model (I'm using the Exynos-based SM-G965F)." That said, Galaxy S9 doesn't seem to be affected by the vulnerability?

Also on Indonesian Samsung Support: "OK, I know the problem. When I put the "Telkomsel" SIM card, the menu was shown. That means the setting depends on the SIM card and its provider. Seems the "Indosat" network is the problem"

Does AT&T still provide an 2G and/or 3G network? If there is no 2G and 3G network then VoLTE is the only way to perform voice calls.

According to gmsarena the G960U doesn't use Exynos chipset, instead it uses an Qualcomm SDM845 Snapdragon 845. So you should not be affected.

@Robert Thanks.  I have updated the question to more general and more interesting.  Yes, it appears AT&T shut off its 2G in 2017 and started shutting lff its 3G in 2022.  Do you mean that in areas where there is no 2G and 3G networks, VoLTE is the only way to perform voice calls; that there is no "voice-only" mode?

Starting with 4G there is no voice mode anymore, only VoIP modes like VoLTE. That simplifies the overall network layout and also the network provider prefer nowadays the all-over-IP approach.

@Robert So per vulnerability mitigation, turning off VoLTE and Voice over Wifi will effectively eliminate the ability to make phone calls in areas where there is only 4G but no 2G and 3G?  I'm confused.


text:
how to find which process is continuously uploading data
My phone seems to be suddenly uploading GBs of data at speed of 8+Mbps.
I cannot identify which direction app is doing this. But systems network indicator seems to show that is uploading data. Just not which app.
I even tried force stopping my frequently used apps while this happens to see if data upload stops. But i haven't been able to identify which app is the culprit.
Sometime the speed of upload reaches 20mbps and makes my phone stutter. What i can do find out enough app/process is transferring so much data.
I also tried installing https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.drnoob.datamonitor
It also shows high speed of data transfer being happening. But it cannot identify which app is doing it. App specific usage stays low.
I have access to adb tools, root, as well as termux if that matters.
I tried using nethogs in termux but it didn't detect the process causing high speed data transfer.

Use nethogs with root: How to view network traffic requested by a specific app?

@IrfanLatif I tried NetHogs with root. But its not able to capture the high speed datatransfer causing process.

Use iptables or tcpdump or both as explained in the linked answer.


text:
Can't install CA certificate
We're trying to set up a new VPN infrastructure and have hit a roadblock with Android. For some reason we are unable to install the corporate CA that's issued the VPN server certs.
My LineageOS 18.1 (Android 11) test device says "Failed to install certificate" if I try installing with Certificate Installer from the file store. It says nothing at all if I try to install from within the Settings app.
System logs give me this parse error, which makes no sense. This is the same PEM-encoded X.509 certificate used with no problems in almost 100 Linux servers as well as Windows, macOS, and iOS VPN clients:
03-17 09:33:07.388  3319  3338 I MediaProvider: Using lower FS for /storage/emulated/0/Download/r1_root_ca.crt
03-17 09:33:07.400  1046  1764 I ActivityTaskManager: START u0 {cmp=com.android.certinstaller/.CertInstaller (has extras)} from uid 10113
03-17 09:33:07.403   577   577 I android.hardware.power-service-qti: Power setMode: 5 to: 1
03-17 09:33:07.414  1046  1764 W ActivityTaskManager: Tried to set launchTime (0) < mLastActivityLaunchTime (1416012)
03-17 09:33:07.437  8437  8437 D CredentialHelper: # extras: 1
03-17 09:33:07.437  8437  8437 D CredentialHelper:    CERT: 2706
03-17 09:33:07.438  8437  8437 W CredentialHelper: parseCert(): java.security.cert.CertificateException: com.android.org.conscrypt.OpenSSLX509CertificateFactory$ParsingException: com.android.org.conscrypt.OpenSSLX509CertificateFactory$ParsingException: java.lang.RuntimeException: error:0c0000be:ASN.1 encoding routines:OPENSSL_internal:WRONG_TAG
03-17 09:33:07.440  8437  8437 D CertInstaller: Attempting credentials installation, has ca cert? false, has user cert? false

Are there any special requirements that Android has for CA certificates that I'm not aware of? Are there particular certificate elements that cause problems?

Figured it out; we have always left the full OpenSSL output in the certificate file, secure in the knowledge that clients would only parse the contents between -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE----- and -----END CERTIFICATE-----.
Apparently Android is the exception to this rule. We removed all the human-readable data, and the certificate was processed successfully.


text:
How to create filesystem in TWRP? Getting error: Unable to recreate /data/media folder. E: Cannot decrypt adopted storage because /data will not mount
I tried to flash custom ROM on my Xiaomi Poco M2 Pro (gram) without putting too much thought and then something happened and now it's saying these on every recovery.
Failed to mount '/data' (Invalid argument)
Unable to recreate /data/media folder.
E: Cannot decrypt adopted storage because /data will not mount
Updating partition details...
...done
Unable to mount storage
Full SELinux support is present.
Unable to mount /data/media/TWRP/.twrps
Unable to mount /data/media/TWRP/.twrps

Original screenshot of the TWRP output
Tried to flash stock firmware using Mi Flash Tool but it just gives me errors: "Writing /userdata, partition not found" and on TWRP

Failed to mount '/data' (Invalid argument)
Unable to recreate /data/media folder.
E: Cannot decrypt adopted storage because /data will not mount

I've tried almost everything to fix this phone but failed.
I've tried this solution too but didn't work
Hope someone would give me a solution to this problem.

execute flash_all_except_storage.bat from fastboot (make sure the directory path does not contain whitespaces)


text:
Get location on screen of pop-up box
In an automated test I'm trying to perform against a Nexus 5X, this pop-up prompt (in this case, Magisk asking about granting superuser permission) will show up periodically throughout the test.  To make it go away, I have to click a button on the pop-up.  I've tried to get it to stop prompting me but it to no avail.  The easiest solution seems to be to start a side thread in my test that checks the screen every second or so to see if the pop-up is present.
I thought that running
uiautomator dump

while the pop-up was on screen would give me the pixel location of the button to press.  However, I scanned the resultant XML file and didn't see the text of the pop-up anywhere.
Also, running uiautomator displayed
ERROR: null root node returned by UiTestAutomationBridge.

Is there another tool I can use the get the pop-up's location?

So long as you are running your automated tests, why not tell Magisk to be out of your way? In Magisk settings there is an option called "Automatic Response". Set it to Deny or Grant and the popup won't appear ever. Have you tried this approach?

The only options I see in "Settings" are Themes, Language, Update Channel, DNS over HTTP, and Download path.

I have Magisk v25.2. There are four sections in the Settings: Customization, App, Magisk, and Superuser. In Superuser section the option "Automatic Response" is listed.

I also have 25.2 and only have two sections: Customization and App.

Have you tried swiping up in Magisk settings? Magisk's source code does show that setting. See https://github.com/topjohnwu/Magisk/blob/master/app/src/main/res/values/strings.xml#L161 So either you are not using the genuine Magisk app from GitHub or you have not swiped up on the Settings  to find the aforesaid option.

Swiping up doesn't help.  I'll try re-downloading the app and rooting again.

I re-download and re-installed Magisk 25.2.  Same settings.  However, at the bottom of the main page of Magisk (not in settings), I see icons named "Home", "Superuser", "Logs", and "Modules".  However, "Superuser" and "Modules" are grayed out.


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what time of day do IPv6 privacy addresses usually rotate on Android devices?
Android long ago implemented support for the privacy extensions of IPv6 networking.  It was in 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich).  The RFC for the privacy extensions doesn't specify (or even recommend) a TTL for temporary addresses, but typically they have a lifetime of 24 hours.
My question is how is the expiry time chosen? Is it at multiples of 24 hours after the last boot? Or it is tied to the local timezone (and happens overnight)? Or is it at random, with some jitter from a 24-hour schedule? Or something else?

Another possible time may be 24 hours from the time the network had been connected and the address in question had been issued (no knowledge, just speculation).


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Where can I view the current usage of my Pixel 6's Tensor Processing Unit, image signal processor and Tensor security core?
I read on https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/pixel-6s-tensor-chip-inside-the-brains-of-googles-newest-flagship/ (mirror):

In the case of Google's design, the eight-core CPU is integrated with a 20-core Arm Mali-G78 MP20 GPU, a Tensor Processing Unit machine learning engine, an advanced image signal processor for photography, a Tensor security core, a "context hub" for ultra-low power capabilities, and 8MB system cache. Tensor also includes a 4MB CPU L3 cache and is built on the 5-nanometer manufacturing node.

I wonder where I can view the current usage of my Pixel 6's Tensor Processing Unit, image signal processor and Tensor security core?.

You simply can't. You can not even monitor CPU usage without root or adb. And the only reason you can monitor CPU usage in the first place is because it is exposed by the Linux kernel in the proc. the Tensor Processing Unit is not exposed by the Linux kernel, so you can not monitor it even with root


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How to disable invasive heads-up notification
Phone: Moto e5 Play
Android version: 8.0.0
Build Number: ODP27.91-167-9-19
Kernel Version: 3.18.71.perf-g3501b0bbb34d (May 30, 2020)
Configuration version: F16.MOT.moto e5 play.0
About a year ago my phone auto-updated and, suddenly, whenever a phone call was in process, a well meaning but frustratingly invasive heads-up notification appears. I'm sure some programmer thought they were doing me a favor. What it does is get in the way of ending my phone calls. What used to be a one-tap process is now a swipe + one tap process. Worse, if the phone call requires tapping numbers (e.g., a call center process), the heads-up notification must be dismissed before any dialer actions can be taken. Insofar as I can tell, the heads-up notification has no practical value as it does nothing that the dialer does not already do.
Note: This only occurs on incoming calls. The notification doesn't happen with outgoing calls.
Is there any way to disable this notification? It only appears during active phone calls. If the other party hangs up first, it disappears along with the dialer interface.
Here's a screenshot. The heads-up notification is the white block at the top with the "Ignore" and "Answer" buttons.
Click to enlarge


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Disabling unecessary low-speed charging audio alert
Phone: Moto e5 Play
Android version: 8.0.0
Build Number: ODP27.91-167-9-19
Kernel Version: 3.18.71.perf-g3501b0bbb34d (May 30, 2020)
Configuration version: F16.MOT.moto e5 play.0
My phone has always had one incredibly annoying feature. When it detects a low-charge speed mode, it emits a chime. The low-charge-speed mode, the warning claims, can be due to not using the USB cable provided with the phone. I've never used anything but the OEM cable that came with the phone. The alert is not predictable. I'll go months not hearing it... then spend the next five nights being awakened in the middle of the night by the chime, which fires over and over and over, often dozens of times.
From the perspective of how I use the phone, the warning is entirely useless. I plug the phone in each night to recharge. That it takes a couple of hours rather than 40 minutes means nothing to me.
I've searched my settings, but can't find a way to disable this warning. It wouldn't be a big deal if it didn't have an audio chime — as if the world will come to an end if I don't do something to return rapid charging right now!
Is there a way to disable this warning?
I apologize that I don't have a screenshot of this warning. I can't make it happen and it's unpredictable.


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No more sound on my Asus Zenfone 5
My Asus Zenfone 5 is beginning to have some malfunctions :
No more sound, which means :

I can't make calls (the phone freezes to black and I can only start it up again by holding the power button)
I can't receive calls (callers go directly to voicemail)
I can't open the camera to take pictures or videos
Alarms don't ring, they just vibrate
I can't listen to music
I can't watch videos (videos taken with my phone, on youtube, on any social media app...) : video just won't start.

I got this bug report from NewPipe, a youtube client :
Exception

User Action: play stream
Request: Player error[type=ERROR_CODE_AUDIO_TRACK_INIT_FAILED] occurred while playing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RH2v_m5dBdg
Content Country: GB
Content Language: en-
App Language: fr_FR
Service: YouTube
Version: 0.25.0
OS: Linux Android 9 - 28

Crash log
com.google.android.exoplayer2.ExoPlaybackException: MediaCodecAudioRenderer error, index=1, format=Format(null, null, null, audio/raw, null, -1, null, [-1, -1, -1.0], [2, 44100]), format_supported=YES
 at com.google.android.exoplayer2.ExoPlayerImplInternal.handleMessage(ExoPlayerImplInternal.java:566)
 at android.os.Handler.dispatchMessage(Handler.java:102)
 at android.os.Looper.loop(Looper.java:198)
 at android.os.HandlerThread.run(HandlerThread.java:65)
Caused by: com.google.android.exoplayer2.audio.AudioSink$InitializationException: AudioTrack init failed 0 Config(44100, 12, 44100)
 at com.google.android.exoplayer2.audio.DefaultAudioSink$Configuration.buildAudioTrack(DefaultAudioSink.java:2110)
 at com.google.android.exoplayer2.audio.DefaultAudioSink.buildAudioTrack(DefaultAudioSink.java:1070)
 at com.google.android.exoplayer2.audio.DefaultAudioSink.buildAudioTrackWithRetry(DefaultAudioSink.java:1049)
 at com.google.android.exoplayer2.audio.DefaultAudioSink.initializeAudioTrack(DefaultAudioSink.java:846)
 at com.google.android.exoplayer2.audio.DefaultAudioSink.handleBuffer(DefaultAudioSink.java:929)
 at com.google.android.exoplayer2.audio.MediaCodecAudioRenderer.processOutputBuffer(MediaCodecAudioRenderer.java:703)
 at com.google.android.exoplayer2.mediacodec.MediaCodecRenderer.drainOutputBuffer(MediaCodecRenderer.java:1894)
 at com.google.android.exoplayer2.mediacodec.MediaCodecRenderer.render(MediaCodecRenderer.java:792)
 at com.google.android.exoplayer2.ExoPlayerImplInternal.doSomeWork(ExoPlayerImplInternal.java:989)
 at com.google.android.exoplayer2.ExoPlayerImplInternal.handleMessage(ExoPlayerImplInternal.java:490)
 ... 3 more
 Suppressed: com.google.android.exoplayer2.audio.AudioSink$InitializationException: AudioTrack init failed 0 Config(44100, 12, 44100)
  ... 13 more

I don't know if it's related, but I've also noticed that in the play store, when I check the the compatibility of any app with my device, it is identified as Asus UNKNOWN_PRJ_ID, instead of X00QD.
I don't know how to proceed from there, is my phone fixable ?
The last time it happened, I was able to fix the issue by shutting down and restarting the phone a dozen times, but this time it's not working.

There's a GitHub issue tracker related to this exception. According to them, it has something to do with low memory. Is this device running on stock ROM or custom ROM?

I am running on stock ROM, and have 4 GB of memory. Also it happened without  bluetooth activated.

Update : I think it's just that my phone is dying : it has also lost 4g capabilities (unless its very close to a tower) depite showing it has signal, SMS rarely works, accelerometer is gone... I was able to get it working again after a factory reset and countless restarts, but only for a few weeks, and the symptoms just started showing again


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Minimal working vibration time on all Android devices
I'm developing a game, I do offer an optional setting with periodic vibrations for a specific game mode. To make this work well, I need a very short vibration.
On my device, 20ms vibration duration works very well but on other devices, it appears to don't vibrate at all, while 50ms works but is too long for my preference. My guess is that some devices have a specific minimum time.
So my question:
What is the lowest vibration duration which will work on every device?

There is no standard for the lowest vibration duration because it's not in the Android specification. Moreover, there is no requirement for every Android device to have any vibrators at all.
According to the Android 13 Compatibility Definition, one of the important thing about vibration is:

3.8.3.1. Presentation of Notifications
If device implementations allow third-party apps to notify users of notable events, they:

[C-1-1] MUST support notifications that use hardware features, as described in the SDK documentation, and to the extent possible with the device implementation hardware. For instance, if a device implementation includes a vibrator, it MUST correctly implement the vibration APIs. If a device implementation lacks hardware, the corresponding APIs MUST be implemented as no-ops. This behavior is further detailed in section 7.

(Italic emphasis added)
Other than that, each device is free to determine how the vibrations/haptics are implemented since the specification doesn't set the minimum duration.
Related on Stack Overflow: What is the shortest duration Vibrator.vibrate() can be called with where the device will still vibrate?

This answer may be disappointing, perhaps as disappointing as the linked Stack Overflow Q&A. However, this is the truth. Other than that, users are free to test their Android device and find the biggest value for the minimum vibration duration...

Ok thanks for your answer, saved me many hours of useless googling for a value. Do you might have your own idea of vibration duration which could cover around 90-95% of devices ?


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Work profile - Turn off auto rotate / access settings
I am using a work profile (set up via Insular) in order to clone some apps. I have an issue I can't seem to find any info about on the internet and I'm hoping someone can help me here. I am using ColorOS on Android 13 if that has any importance.
I have auto-rotate off on my phone. That means I can use an app while laying on the side and keep portrait mode. If I switch to an app from work profile however, auto-rotate is on and the app will flip. The quick tiles still show it's off so I can't change it from there.
Issue: How can I access the settings app for work profile? I cannot clone the settings app. Apparently it's already cloned? But then how do I access it so I can turn auto-rotate off from there? I can see it in the app list but not open it. There is no shortcut anywhere too.
I would be fine with just a way to disable auto-rotate for work profile though.


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How to open some app links in a non default browser
This is what I want to achieve (on Android):
I want all links that are not otherwise linked to an app to open in my default browser (Samsung Internet)
This is the default behaviour and how it currently works.
I then want specific types of link to open in Firefox browser. For example, I would like to register youtube.com app links to open in Firefox, not My default browser.
Is there some way to achieve this?
Is there an app I can install that will allow me to set it to open arbitrary app links, and then forward those to another application (in this case, Firefox)
I have found two apps, "better open with" and "open link with" which sort of achieve this by registering themselves as a browser, and if you then set them as the default browser, they then forward all links onwards to the browser of your choice using some form of rules.
What I would like to do is basically the same thing but without having to register another app as the default browser. Instead I want to get only specific app links to open in my non-default browser.

Possible dupe of Can I set the default browser differently for different websites?. While it's a very old question, I'm afraid the answer hasn't changed since it's not possible to do this without an additional 3rd-party app because the Android system itself doesn't provide such customization.

From what I've found, you have to disable Chrome in order to not have YouTube open the tab in the YouTube app.
From other people on Android exchange, they've said they could do this on all other apps, except for YouTube.

While the technicality of this answer is correct, I'm afraid this doesn't really answer the question asked here.


text:
Any shared R/W folder for any app and adb?
I have a simple question about android but I just can't find any answer:
Is there any folder in a recent Android (10+) that is accessible in R/W to any application and also to adb shell, without root?
I've tried /mnt/sdcard/ but files there belong to "root" when I list them via adb shell, and I cannot change their permission.
I just would like to be able to push a file via abd so that the application I'm developing can read and write this file.

Try /data/local and /data/local/tmp. They should be writable although some Android versions limit listing the files in these directories. But if you know the file-name reading and writing should work at least in one of them.

Thank you: /data/local/tmp works!


text:
FastHub for GitHub
I've used the FastHub for GitHub Android app in the past, but can no longer find it on the Google Play store. Has it been replaced by the GitHub app for Android?
What are the differences, or any changes, between the two apps (if any)?
Why has the old app been delisted?
Thanks.

FastHub Android app was an OpenSource app hostet on Github. The whole repository had been archived (thus discontinued in Spetember 2021). The project does not contain any description why it was discontinued. So we can only assume that the author lost interest on it or something else happened.
But as FastHub is open source it was not lost. Looking at the "Network Graph" (see "Insights" -> "Network graph") of the project you can see that multiple forks exist, e.g. FastHub-REFastHub-RE(vival) by LightDestory, OctoHub by HardcodedCat and OctoHub by vaginessa.
It seem like OctoHub by HardcodedCat is the main project, unfortunately it has no binary releases, thus the only way to get the app seems to check-up the source code and compile it your self (requires Android SDK).


text:
How to move most of my app in poco to sd card?
I bought SD card. However, the SD card is completely useless. I cannot move any apps to that.
Sure I can store some files there but that means it doesn't get filled automatically.
My main memory is filled with so many things which is why I bought that SD card.
I've heard that if I format the SD card in a certain way then I can move apps but I don't know how.
My smartphone is poco 3c

https://android.stackexchange.com/tags/adoptable-storage/info

And in any case it would be preferable to move your personal files (photos, music and video) to the new storage. Do that and you'll notice a huge difference. Poco C3 comes with 64GB internal storage which is PLENTY for the OS and hundreds of apps if not used to store user's garbage.

OP's previous question for additional context, I guess: What should I do after I install 128 GB of storage on my android?

Not all apps. Just the big one. Basically using the SD card for something useful.

It looks like there is no easy way to add storage in POCO with MicroSD card. I can add extra files but I can't arrange that some applications are moved there. It's a very problematic design


text:
Copying a folder from Google Drive to Google Drive
How do I copy a folder in Google Drive for Android or Google Drive via Google Chrome for Android?
I tried long pressing the folder but I cannot select the folders. I can only open them and view their contents.

It is not (yet) possible to copy and paste a folder on Google Drive.
The Google Drive Help - Organize your files in Google Drive for "Computer" mentions the following regarding copying:

Make a copy of a file
Important:

[...]
You can’t copy folders, only files.
[...]

Thus, it has to be done manually:

Create a new folder and input a name
Navigate to the folder to be copied
Select one or more files to copy
Select "Send a copy"
Choose the "Drive" app
For "Location", navigate to the new folder and select it
Tap "Save"

Thank you for your answer. I've updated my post. Can you please help me determine what the problem might be? Thanks.

@JoselinJocklingson that looks like a different issue. I don't see the WiFi icon on the status bar, only mobile data. If you want to allow uploading files on mobile data, there's a setting inside the Google Drive app that states "Transfer files only over Wi-Fi".


text:
Apps crashing after updating my Samsung S23 Ultra
Apps crashing after updating my Samsung S23 Ultra, basically, all games (Among US, Sim City etc.) and one OMGGamer gaming guide app is getting crashed. Till now almost every time when I open apps they are getting crashed.

Welcome to the Q&A site Android Enthusiasts Stack Exchange. Troubleshooting crashing apps is notoriously difficult without any more info. Consider getting the logs when the apps crash then [edit] and paste the exception to help determine the cause and possible fixes. Thanks.

Looks like someone else on Samsung Community forum is facing a similar issue.

Please edit the question to limit it to a specific problem with enough detail to identify an adequate answer.


text:
Wireless ADB is connecting forever after wifi turned off and on
I connected my Watch (Galaxy Watch5) to wireless debug to Android Studio (latest), with "Pair using pairing code".
Everything worked perfectly, but the watch turned off its wifi, and obviously the debug procedure exited.
After I turned back on the Wifi on the watch, Android Studio keeps connecting for a few minutes then fails:

What can I do to prevent this? I don't want to reboot my computer every single time when the watch decides it's too warm for it to keep the wifi on.
(With Tizen watches I had never had any issues like this. Great improvement.)


text:
Enabling USB debugging with broken screen (is it possible to connect external screen via usb 2.0 OTG?)
The phone is Asus Zenfone 3 ZE553KL. The screen is black and touch is not working. The phone is locked with a pattern. Power, volume buttons and navigation bar at the bottom work. Is there any way to connect the device to a computer without replacing the screen?
I've read it is possible to connect the phone to external monitor and a mouse, but is there any adapter for usb-c 2.0 otg allowing to display the screen on external monitor?
Besides to use OTG it seems it has to be accepted on the touchscreen beforehand: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_88baLPHdxo.
The phone wasn't rooted and no custom modifications were done to it.

Pattern is bad really bad, because the only way to solve it is by using a mouse connected via USB, but drawing the pattern blindly is next to impossible.

I see, then it seems the only real solution is to buy a new screen and to enable usb debugging just in case to be prepared for future. I see that many modern phones still use usb 2.0 port. Ugh, the current state of smartphone industry is disappointing then

My recommendation for the future: 1. don't use pattern, use pin instead. 2. Enable debugger menu and enable adb 3. On newer devices don't forget to enable the option "Disable adb authorization timeout". 4. On the PC make a backup of the file ~/.android/adbkey and ~/.android/adbkey.pub That is the best preparation for the next broken screen.


text:
Work profile - redirect hyperlinks to normal profile apps
I am using a work profile (set up via Insular) in order to clone some apps. I have an issue I can't seem to find any info about on the internet and I'm hoping someone can help me here. I am using ColorOS on Android 13 if that has any importance.
I have a cloned app that may have links in it. Because I have no browser on my work profile, it will just refuse to open the links, saying that I don't have any app that can do it. I don't want to pollute my phone with a second instance of my browser that I don't need.
Issue: How can I tell my work profile apps to open links with an app outside of work profile? Weirdly enough it sometimes work??? Like some links from the work app will open just fine in Firefox from normal profile. But most won't especially YouTube links won't ever open the YT app, or browser for that matter.


text:
Remove Samsung Daily screen
The Samsung Daily screen was automatically added to my home screens. It appears when I scroll one step extra to the left. That happens sometimes and I do not wish this information to come up.
From what I read as a solution to this problem, you change a setting when you are on the screen. However, all I get is this error message about a network problem. My network is working fine. When I dismiss this error message, the Samsung Daily screen disappears.
How do I remove Samsung Daily?

Your screenshot shows a very poor connection, the opposite of a network working fine.

True, but I can have any signal strength, still getting this message.

If this is what I think it is, then try tap-and-holding an empty screen on the home screen, select Settings, then there may be an option called "Add media page to Home screen" or similar that says "Samsung Daily". (Otherwise, refer to this animated guide)

I did tap and hold, was able to scroll the screen to samsung daily and found a toggle! So you almost nailed it! Grateful @AndrewT.


text:
USB debugging from fastboot
my son's Moto G7 Power froze, rebooted, and won't get past the blue android screen. I'm preparing to do a reset but want to back up beforehand. RSA won't connect as we haven't previously enabled USB debugging on the phone. Any ideas how I can do this, since I can't get to the menu to enable?
Thanks in advance.
Hamptonoid

Fastboot doesn't have the ability to perform backups, you need ADB access for that, and even then it's not that great.

Does this answer your question? can fastboot be used to backup device?

fastboot is disabled so one can't boot/flash TWRP. there is no way to backup data. phone cannot boot, one can't pass the lock screen, therefore data cannot decrypted.

Thanks for the help. In the end I forced the factory reset through RSA and fortunately Google had backed up the profile, so once I'd connected to the correct account it restored it all. I didn't even realise that this was a thing (I'd assumed I'd just get photos restored).
Cheers


text:
How to recover files from a healthy microSD card in Android?
I accidentally deleted important documents (about 100 PDFs) that weren't backed up yet from a 64 GB microSD card, which is used as the primary storage in my unrooted Android 9.0 smartphone. The microSD card is not encrypted and quite new, but for some reason, I've never been able to access the card from any PC when plugged into a card reader - only through the smartphone or when the phone is connected to the PC via USB and only using the MTP protocol. Under Windows, I always get the error message that the card needs to be formatted first.
After the accidental deletion, the microSD card was immediately removed from the phone, so I'm fairly certain that the files are still "healthy". I hope Android and SD cards work the same way as other OSs and common file systems in that normal deletion does not physically remove the data from the storage device, but only from the file table (please correct me if I'm wrong).
QUESTION: How can I restore my deleted files? Also, is there a way to get RAW access from a PC?
Any idea why I can access the card only via the MTP protocol from Windows?
For hard drives/storage devices accessible from a Windows or Linux PC, I've been using several recovery programs with mixed success in the past, e.g. Piriform's Recuva, CGSecurity's PhotoRec, and recently also RecuperaBit. I do have the Android SDK platform tools installed and have used ADB before to uninstall apps etc. if that helps. But I have zero experience with this data recovery problem on Android - and I'm also confused why e.g. Windows won't read the card's contents when connected via a card reader.

Small correction: My poor choice of words seems to have caused some confusion. By

used as the "primary storage"

I didn't mean to say that Android is running the system partitions (boot, system, data etc.) on the SD card instead of the internal memory. Rather, all apps are set to store their data on the SD card if possible in order to prevent irretrievable data loss in case of a phone brick. This is due to very bad past experiences with Android's security architecture, which is basically a trap waiting to lock users out of their own data.
Furthermore, I can confirm that SD card encryption is an optional setting in my Samsung's Android 9.0 and has not been turned on. Hence, the SD card ought to be unencrypted!
Sorry for not being clearer.

Here is a screenshot of DMDE showing relevant partition information:

Also posted on Super User: https://superuser.com/q/1774626/356789

Most likely issue your PC doesn't see the SD card is your SD card reader doesn't support SDXC... 64GB and larger cards require a reader capable of SDXC, where anything smaller capacity only requires SD (up to 2GB) or SDHC (SD version 2.0, up to 32GB) to work. Many older readers or ones built into older equipment only support SDHC, and even though SDXC (SD version 3.01) became a standard in 2009, it wasn't common in readers for many years, even into the mid to late 2010's many budget readers didn't support SDXC.
Getting a new card reader that supports SDXC would likely resolve this issue, something line Kingston FCR-HS4 or similar device would likely do the trick.


text:
How to troubleshoot Audible App on Android Auto?
Sorry not sure this question is valid on this forum - please let me know, if you like me to remove it.
I am new to Android Auto, and I'm trying to get the Audible Application to work with my car.
The content (book) is already downloaded to the phone.  Once I start to play the content after about a minute or so the audio is cut off, but I can see the progress bar (seconds) tick away.  I try to stop the program from playing, but it won't respond, and continue to tick away.
If it helps

the phone was connected using Bluetooth
Android Auto version 9.0.630834 (on my phone)
Phone Android Version 10
Audible Version 3.47.0
Audible Battery Setting: Allow Background Activity, Optimize Battery Usage is On
Audible Permissions - No Permissions Denied

This morning I disabled Android Auto on my phone, and connected the car stereo to my phone using Bluetooth.
Same thing happened, I started Audible, then after a few minutes (2-3 minutes), the audio cuts off but the seconds tick away.

Some audio systems disconnect if the volume is very low. May be this automatic also the problem in your case. Does it work if you play music instead an audio book?

Thank you @Robert - it does play music for extended periods.  So the strange thing is that I can see the seconds tick by on AA, but there is no sound (the volume is not low).  Also did another experiment this morning I'll update the description in case it is helpful.

The good people over at android-central provided a few hints.
It seems that it is running in a stable fashion.  Although I find my config changes to be counterintuitive:

I do not understand this but ever since I

disabled Allow background activity
disabled Optimize battery usage

For Audible it seems to be solid.

You can follow the entire thread.


text:
Prevent Chrome from reverting back deleted quick links
With the last update, I have some troubles with quick links icons on Chrome for Android. Every time I open a new tab or close and open Chrome, my quick links change with some of my earlier searches. I need to delete that new quick links every time and after deleting them, my old links are back.
Screenshot 1 is when some links are added automatically

Screenshot 2 is when deleting that search

Is it possible to fix that?


text:
How to automatically power off device after a period of inactivity?
I want my phone to power off after being idle for some time (say, 15 minutes). This is a common feature in computers, but I couldn't find it on my Android settings, nor an app to help me out.
I don't want a scheduled shutdown, but a shutdown after inactivity.
Is that possible?

Android is designed for a smartphone which means it should by default stay awake all the time, thus they don't have power saving modes like suspend to RAM. Some manufacturers add time based power on/off functions.

you need an automation app like MacroDroid or Tasker.

Set a trigger that is related to inactivity, like screen off or no movement detected by the sensors
Add timeout before executing the power off command
The power off command

If your phone is rooted, it is a very easy thing to do. If your phone is not rooted you can use Shizuku.

Following theggputest55's response,
Using MacroDroid:

Set trigger: screen off
Set an action: wait before next action, set to 20 minutes
Set an action: if clause, if screen off, i.e. Is the screen still off after 20 minutes?
Set an action: reboot/power off (power off)

That answer has alreay been given.

I couldn't find Set trigger:screen off.
I couldn't find wait before next action.
I don't know how to use if clause, if screen off, i.e...
I couldn't find action reboot/power off (power off).
Please describe it completely. I'm not professional.
Thanks anyway. .


text:
Setting a Different, custom notification sound in Gmail Calendar for individual events
I am a teacher with a schedule that has me all over the school constantly. Is there a way to set or create a different notification sound for each different, individual event in my day on my Gmail calendar? I have a Galazy S20 FE 5G if that matters. Thank you for any help at all!


text:
How do you delete media messages from viber chat?
If media files are deleted from within chat, they are still in the gallery. If they are deleted from the gallery, they are still in the chat as thumbnails, but says "file not found" if clicking on them. Basically one has to delete them in both places - in chat and in gallery. So, how do you delete both instances at once?


text:
Using Bluetooth, does talking with one device means disconnection of another device?
I am getting very mixed results with multiple devices connected by bluetooth to my Samsung Note 20.  The devices being

Samsung Watch
Honda - Android Play
Hearing Aids (any brand)

If a call comes in, sometimes the Hearing Aids answers it, and other times the Car answers it.
I found this post How Many Devices Can Hook Up To One Bluetooth?

Can You Connect Many Bluetooth Devices at the Same Time?
It is possible to connect many Bluetooth devices at the same time. However, only one device can be active at a time. Bluetooth connections happen in three distinct ways.

Is this true?
If only one device is active, are others disconnected at that moment?
Is there an authoritative reference for this?

EDIT:
When I picked my 4th pair of hearing aids to test, the Audiologist grabbed my phone and unpaired everything saying, that Android only works with 3 Bluetooth devices.  Of course, I had to pair them back on.  I have two headphones and a PC that also use Bluetooth.  So do my bed and mattress.   I am assuming that this action by the Audiologist is rooted in misinformation on posts such as the one above.

AFAIK that depends on the device and if the device uses Bluetooth or Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) .

Related old closed question: How can I set Bluetooth connection priority for various devices?

@MorrisonChang- what a mickey mouse way, after all the years of existence of android.


text:
Chrome tabs flicker and appear blank
I'm using chrome 106 on Lenovo tb3-710i android 6.0.1 LineageOS custom rom. Chrome tabs at the top flicker constantly and appear in a white blank block shape. How can I solve this problem?

Could be a bug of chrome or of the ROM (graphics driver). Try different versions of Chrome and check if they show the same behavior.

@Robert Thank you. I actually remember that this didn't happen till chrome updated to version 106. I installed chrome 94 for android 5 (I had it before installing LineageOS) and it returned back to normal! Thanks.

I solved the problem by installing an older version of chrome (version 94) that's made for android 5. It was my android version before switching to LineageOS.
I also went to chrome app in google play and unchecked "enable auto update" from the three dots at the top so that it doesn't update by itself.