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Remove persistent notification of an app without disabling all of its notifications
The latest Pushbullet update (v17.0.4) for Android  has added a persistent notification to my notification drawer. The app indicates that I can remove the notification by enabling Pushbullet in the notification access settings. However, I can't seem to find these settings in my Samsung Galaxy S4 running Android 4.2.2 with Samsung's ROM.
Are there notification access settings in Android 4.2.2? If so, where did Samsung bury them in the settings?
If there are no such settings in Android 4.2.2, is there a way to remove persistent notifications without affecting Pushbullet's functionality (such as through an Xposed module)?
EDIT:
To clarify, I don't want to disable all notifications for this app, it would defeat the purpose of the app. I want to disable the persistent notification that now shows up. It is supposedly necessary in order to allow certain features, now that the accessibility service has been removed.

Yes, it is rooted. Thank you for testing it. This looks like what I want. I will test it and see if it works without removing the app functionality the persistent notification supposedly preserves. It's possible that removing the notification will cause Android to kill whatever background process it's allowing to persist, but we'll see.

@Sophie Jane :  Your post was looking at disabling persistent notification without affecting functionality.  This possibility has been categorically denied by developer as posted by me. This is a definitive, conclusive answer that cannot be disputed coming from the developer. Hence, my request is to accept the answer so that viewers will accept it with  more credibility.  Else it would simply remain a voted answer.  Of  course,  this is entirely your choice  to accept it or not. Thanks

@beeshyams No single reply here has definitively answered all the questions posed in the body of my question, and so I don't feel a best accepted answer is warranted, as of yet. Firelord's has come closest,  as I installed NotifyClean and successfully removed the persistent notification without affecting most of Pushbullet's functionality (I have not tested SMS syncing yet,  but I suspect it will not work as per your quotes of the developer).

If your device is rooted you can install Xposed and install Notify Clean which allows to disable a specific notification which matches some text filter.
Notifications Off can only turn off notifications for whole app so it cannot help in this case.

Please provide a detailed use-case of NotifyClean for the goal in question. Also, does it address the concern raised by OP: "I will test it and see if it works without removing the app functionality the persistent notification supposedly preserves. It's possible that removing the notification will cause Android to kill whatever background process it's allowing to persist"?

@Fire lord thanks for edit.  Can you please direct me to page which shows how to edit?  All my posts are mobile based  so will not have full keyboard functions of Laptop, but would like to try.  Thanks

In the case of Pushbullet, if you don't want to use SMS sync, you can turn off it from Pushbullet settings and the notification will disappear.

Disabling persistent notification would affect the functionality of app, as confirmed by app's developer in reply to my query.
My query:

If I disable persistent notification does it affect the functionality[?]

Developer's (guzba) reply:

I'm working toward not needing the notification. It can affect functionality right now though if you use SMS sync or Universal copy & paste because without the notification, Android can (and probably will) kill our app making them no longer work. This is less bad with SMS sync since I can make sure it's running for incoming messages, but will be potentially functionality-ending for Android initiated Universal copy & paste.

Source: Pushbullet  at XDA Developers forum.

You ended up posting at wrong place. Anyhow, you can edit any post by using the URL: http://android.stackexchange.com/posts/POST_ID/edit. You can find the POST_ID under the share option. For e.g., it is 128003 for your answer so the URL would be http://android.stackexchange.com/posts/128003/edit. Alternatively, comment [edit] (without backticks) on your post to get the direct link for editing, such as [edit].

Surprisingly,  no one has yet mentioned that notification access settings do not exist in Android 4.2.2 (my first question in the question post body above), having been introduced for 4.4. Evidence: I found notification access settings on my device running 4.4, but not on my 4.2.2 device. Thus, the only solution is to remove the persistent notification, which I have done with NotifyClean as suggested by Firelord.

Since the device is are rooted, you may like to give Notifications Off app, a try.
This additionally offers integration with automation apps  and that may offer more flexibility in customizing app behavior.

Again, why are you suggesting this app? Please justify the recommendation and offer alternatives.

The suggested app disables all notifications for specific apps, and so is not relevant (see my edit in the question above).

@Sophie Jane. Sorry missed that portion of question. If you don't find any app or a way  to access settings and are willing to try automation let me know and will try to figure a way

beeshyams, when suggesting an app or a product here, strive to follow the guidelines mentioned here: How do I recommend software in my answers? I believe you would be able to save yourself from the comments asking explanation for justifications (which indeed are valid) et al.


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How to backup WhatsApp chats (not media) to save my phone memory?
This answer explains how to save your chat on google drive and recently I got that option on WhatsApp. It says the backup will be stored on Drive as well as on my sd card, ok fine.
When I started my Google drive backup even it showed Backing up 110MB but I don't want to backup the whatsapp media (I just want to backup the text messages). Even if I backup entire 110MB to Drive and delete all my media and text messages (to clear up the space consumed by whatsapp), what will happen on next backup? Will it overwrite the last backup and substitute a new backup consisting of nothing?
I got to know that there is some third party apps like Helium which can do this work. But is there something I can do without consuming more of my phone memory?

Well, this isn't 1 question, it is a barrage of questions. Which do you want us to answer? Hint: Make sure it's the most important one. On this site, you have higher chance of getting your question answered if you ask them one at a time.

Say I backup chats (through Drive) consisting of 10k messages, then delete all my whatsapp content (to free up the space) and after a time I need to backup my new 1k messages. After I backup, what will happen? The backup will contain 11k messages or 1k?

WhatsApp automatically makes backups every day at 3 AM and stores them in the WhatsApp folder of your Android phone. This folder is either located in your device's internal memory or external SD card. You can set the automatic backup in WhatsApp or manually use the "Back up chats" option in Whatsapp Settings,
  Whatsapp > Settings > Chats and calls > Backup up chats

This will store a backup file(usually named msgstore.db.crypt8) in your Main storage > Whatsapp > Databases directory which includes only the text messages in an encrypted format.
For individual export of chat messages without including media, as mentioned in the Whatsapp FAQ:

To export a copy of the history of an individual chat or group, use
  the Email chat feature:

Tap and hold on the conversation or group.
Select Email chat.
Choose whether to Attach Media or not.

An email will be composed with your chat history attached as a .txt
  document.
Note:

If you choose to attach media, the most recent media sent will be added as attachments.
When sending with media, you can send up to 10,000 latest messages. Without media, you can send 40,000 messages. These constraints are due
  to maximum email sizes.

You can now keep this backup in your mail or download it to your phone for later use. If you want to restore the messages, read this article, How do I restore my messages? for more information.

How can I restore the conversation which I emailed to myself? (in that .txt format)

@Ritwik I've searched for it and found that there's no official source which say how to do that. As one needs to reinstall Whatsapp and have the backup files in crypt8 format in the Databases directory, I can't check that for now to assist you.

You can try moving your Whatsapp media to a computer, and then backup normally using Whatsapp as it will only take a backup of the available text messages. And once you restore it will restore the text message. Once restored you can move back your Media to the appropriate Whatsapp directories.

Simple rename Whatsapp>Media folder to any other name. After backup rename it back. You may lose the media files, which whatsapp get until back renaming. Therefore look in new Media folder created in Whatsapp folder, and move they into old folder.

source: Stack Exchange

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

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

sort: votes


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Incomplete file list when browsing file system of Nexus 5 in Windows 7 / 10
I connected my Nexus 5 (Android 6.0) to my Windows PC via USB (tried both MTP and PTP mode) and noticed that the file list in Explorer was incomplete. I compared the file list in ES on my Android device to the file list that Windows Explorer shows and discovered that the majority of files and folders was missing in the Windows file list. I tried both Windows 7 and 10 - same effect.
Did anybody else have this issue?

Can you list  the files that were available under ES File Explorer but not in Windows Explorer? Use a paste service to mention them here.

Let's take this example. This is the full file list I obtained via ES Remote Manager:
https://gist.github.com/anonymous/9f2516cbd3f05d372950
Only the first two (sorted by name) are displayed in Windows:
voice-2014-08-08-13-02.mp3 and
voice-2014-08-08-13-16.mp3

I had this issue a while back, and to be honest I never found out why it happened. Sometimes refreshing explorer helped, sometimes not. It was certainly strange.

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


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Automatically enable USB tethering when device is plugged into a PC
I'm running Android Marshmallow on a Nexus 5. I tether it to my laptop via USB. Is there a way to configure things so that the USB tethering happens automatically when I plug things in?  (It takes 5-6 touches to turn on the USB tethering.)

Just a side note - if you find an answer that works, make sure you remember what state tethering is (on/off) when you use it with any other computer ;)

Having tried multiple answers to this question and never getting it to work, I noticed on my Xiami phone running MUI 11 (Android 9) that turning on "Developer Options" now has an option for the default USB setting - one of which is USB tethering. This works flawlessly for me.

Confirmed on a Pixel 2 running Android 10.

Works on an S10 with Android 10 as well.

Does not work on a Galaxy S7 with Android 8. The option is available but has no effect.

unfortunately, this option requires disabling "USB file transfer" which is very useful for developers - it would best to allow both USB tethering and file transfer but it is not possible to check two modes in Pocophone f1 dev tools

@dkocich Developers can still enable USB Debugging and use adb push / adb pull, though. Might be not that convenient, but gets the job done.

Developer options settings has a setting to set default USB configuration. Its name could vary depending upon your ROM, so try looking for any setting having the name "USB configuration" under Developer options. Click on that, and choose the option which has "USB tethering" or  "RNDIS" written.
From than on, whenever you would plug the device with a PC using USB cable and unlock the device, if not unlocked already, USB tethering would automatically be enabled. I tested this on a OnePlus 6 running Android 10 and the settings change persisted across multiple plugging/unplugging and reboots.
Developer options settings are by-default hidden though. To enable the access to them, you would need to follow certain steps. Google's instruction per "Configure on-device developer options" are:

On Android 4.1 and lower, the Developer options screen is available by default. On Android 4.2 and higher, you must enable this screen. To enable developer options, tap the Build Number option 7 times. You can find this option in one of the following locations, depending on your Android version:

Android 9 (API level 28) and higher: Settings > About Phone > Build Number
Android 8.0.0 (API level 26) and Android 8.1.0 (API level 26): Settings > System > About Phone > Build Number
Android 7.1 (API level 25) and lower: Settings > About Phone > Build Number

Note: instructions for your ROM may differ if the aforesaid instructions from Google fail to work to enable Developer options. Your OEM or third-party websites are better alternatives to search for the solution in that case.

Thanks! This is THE way to do it.

7 times on Build Number, of course, how could I miss this option?!

it needs to be unlocked first for the default option to work. good point.

You can do this using the Interact block in Automate. Then it does not require root. Here is a flow to do just that. I first got the idea from a post by llamalab on androidforums.
Here are two explanatory screenshots from the Automate app:

You might have to modify the UI Element Class or UI Element Text to make it work with your phone.

Works for me without root. However, I still have to manually unlock the device.

Try Tasker.
Enable USB Tethering when USB is plugged in into a PC:

Context: State –> USB Plugged
Action: Net –> USB Tether

Source

Does not seem to work for all devices - USB tether says "sorry, this action is unavailable for this device".

Im use Event Logcat Entry UsbDeviceManagerthen run this command as root service call connectivity 33 i32 1 to enable tethering in android 7.1.2

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


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Silent mode on Z1 Compact Lollipop 5.1?
I have a Sony Z1 Compact. Android 5.0 had a beautiful silent mode. Pushing the power button the screen went on, locked, and when you pressed the volume button you could set it to silent, optionally for several hours.
Recently I've upgraded to Android 5.1, and this option has disappeared. The strange thing is that when I google for this, I find that Android 5.0 had no silent mode, and 5.1 has exactly what I want and how it was for 5.0 on my phone.
How can I use silent mode on my Z1C with Lollipop 5.1?

Tried Volume down > Priority Interuption?

When the phone is locked, and I press volume down (or up), I see the volume bar and I can set the volume. On the right side I see a menu button. When I press that it opens a menu for Ringtone, Mediavolume and Alarm. That's it.

@SPRBRN Ahh, I have Lollipop 5.0, and it has the None, Priority and ALL options.(even if the screen is locked). Have you installed some custom ROM? May be you can install some Notification bar widget to switch on the silent profile.(some apps doing this requires root though). So is your device rooted?

@TechMod, that was the solution! If you want the points, make it an answer!

Just press the volume-rocker while the screen is locked. Then choose the ringing-mode by pressing the bell-icon on the left side of the volume-slider until the phone is silenced.


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Phone into boot-loop after flashing custom kernel; unable to mount /data and /sdcard from CWM
My Elephone P8000 was running Eragon 5.5 fine. Then I wanted to flash visi0nary's kernel (_1014), so I used the method described (fastboot flash ...), and when I rebooted the phone, it just kept into boot-looping.
I can still access CWM recovery, but I can't mount /data or /sdcard, so it's pretty bad.
I tried to flash the stock kernel but it didn't change anything. I think my partitions are messed up.
Here is my device's partition table :

When I try to mount /data with adb I get an invalid argument and when I check /dev/block/platform/mtk-msdc.0/by-name/userdata with e2fsck, it says that the superblock could not be read or does not describe an ext2 filesystem.

I believe you are the same person who posted the issue on XDA forum here.


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note 5 signal refresh
I am using a galaxy note 5 running android lollipop 5.1.1. At times, my phone will show "Emergency Calls Only", alerting me to the loss of signal. I can restart my phone and re-acquire signal successfully. My question is: is there a way to refresh network signal without restarting the phone?
Thanks

See if turning the radio on and off would help.

As Firelord suggested try turning Flight mode ON and turn back OFF

Try enabling Airplane Mode, wait about 15 seconds, then turn off Airplane Mode.

OK - I tried: airplane mode would not turn off when I switched it off. I guess it was still looking for signal, and would come out of airplane mode once it was acquired. it's been a couple of minutes now and it will not get out of airplane mode.


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Same phone number with multiple extensions always get registered in the call log with one single user
I'm using the default factory Dialer, Call Log, Contacts app (all those options are running under the same app) on LG L90 running Lollipop 5.0.2.
I created multiple users with the same phone number but then I added a comma (,) and then for each user used a different extension.
For example:

John Doe 1 555 555-5555, 2000
Mary Jane 1 555 555-5555, 2001
Jane Roe 1 555 555-5555, 2002

The problem is that when I receive a call from the office the call always gets registered with the first user that I created with the number. For example, I made a call to Jane Roe but that call got registered as John Doe or I received a call from Mary Jane but the name on display was John Doe. With that I can not know who calls me from the office.

If I try to re-dial that last number it is always John Doe that shows up and then the dialer dials 1 555 555-5555, 2000 instead of 1 555 555-5555, 2001.
If I delete John Doe then Mary Jane (the second user that was created) is the account that get always registered in the call log.

How can I fix that?

Are these extensions transmitted in CallerIDs?

Alex, as far as I know, no, there is no DID involved. I want to add that the same thing happens, not only receiving calls but also dialing numbers. For example if I dial for Jane Roe, John Doe gets registered as the dialed number. My previous "smartphone" was a blackberry and I was able to dial the same number with different extensions and get the activity properly registered in the call log.

Have you tried a different separator, e.g. another -? Usually, the comma means inserting a small pause when dialling – but I don't know how Android deals with that in phone numbers.


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Problem in downloading apps from Google play
What does the message, "your account wasn't signed in for Google play store" mean?

Hi! Please read How do I ask a good question? Did you thoroughly search/research for an answer before asking your question?  Tell us what have you tried so far and why it didn't meet your needs? This demonstrates that you've taken the time to try to help yourself and it saves us from reiterating obvious answers.

Did you check out [tag:google-play-store] tag wiki? It has information on diagnosing and solving common issues with Google play store.

I can't find any reference to the error message mentioned here. Is that the full & proper error message? If possible, please include the screenshot if the error message is long. Providing proper error message will significantly pinpoint the issue. Else, the nearest that I found is Error: You haven't accessed the Google Play Store app on your device with this email account

The message means that you haven't signed in your google account, due to that you can't access your google play store, play store needs verified email to access the application.

Do one thing, go to settings- > Accounts -> Add Account and add your Google account.
Again go to your Play Store, choose your emailID if play store prompts you with any mailID, you must be able access it now..

Hope that helps


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Is it possible to clone a Phone then flash image on other phones?
Background
I deal with a lot of Galaxy S5s and spend a considerable amount of time duplicating the settings and installing the same applications on each.
Because of the repetitive nature, I'm sure there is a way of imaging a phone that I have set up then then flashing that image on others. This will save me a lot of time in the future.
Question
I have a number of questions regarding this, hopefully some one could push me in the right direction.
1. What is the best way of imaging the device?
2. What is the best way of flashing the image on a device?
3. Are there any implications on using a copied image on multiple phones?
Basically is there a standard way of doing what I require?
NB.1 When I say 'best' I mean, least complicated, fiddly and quickest.
NB.2 I'm not that bothered about changing bootloader and rooting, what ever is quicker and easiest is good for me.
NB.3 I would like to keep the firmware/ROM that originally came on the phone and not use a custom ROM.
Specifics of Phones
Phone : International Galaxy S5
Model Number: SM-G900F
Carrier: Vodaphone
Android version: 4.4.2
Build Number: KOT49H.G900FXXU1AN13

To clarify, my understanding is that you have a S5 fully set up with applications and UI. You want to next copy the same set up on to other S5 devices, which are already rooted and bootloader unlocked. Is my understanding correct,  in  order to suggest a solution

Please also explain how you do it and if you are familiar with Odin

@beeshyams Yes I know Odin and have used it a couple times. On you other note. Yes that is exactly what I wish to do. However I have not unlocked the boot loader or rooted as yet. I am open to suggestions as I know there are are so many ways to do both.

Thanks for clarity. Will politely decline from answering since it will be far too voluminous. However,  I would suggest  Odin for rooting and flashing TWRP(official site lists fir recovery on all devices

Not a problem. Going to create a bounty tomorrow to make it more worth while if you fancy the challenge then.

To make it relevant, please add which version and carrier if applicable.  And the model number. Not sure,  but going by your description cloned phones would remain rooted with custom recovery. There are  so  many variations based on these things

@beeshyams Added specifics and changed the question to only cover the s5. Cheers for the pointer though

...awaiting your response

@beeshyams me too, to be honest.

Super busy at work at moment. Will pick this up again when I get chance. Sorry guys.

This solution answers  the question from a process perspective and details as relevant to your device have been linked (please do double check the version before downloading from links). Clarifications provided by you in our chat have been factored in. In short, it is as specific I can get to be without having the device and running through all the steps. Had two Samsung devices earlier and am quite familiar with most steps mentioned here (only CF auto root is new to me)

50 phones is  a tidy number and it may be possible that these have different version updates  and maybe  different modem versions. Select the latest one, make sure  you are it works per your  needs and let's call it "mother mobile".
From Sammobile site, download the stock ROM (which is on the mother mobile) . This will be your master copy to revert to  stock if required. Store on laptop. Will come in handy when things go wrong and need to revert  to stock.
There would be bloatware you  would want to remove.  Instead of uninstall, first freeze them using Titanium Pro and load your apps. If RAM and performance meet your needs, it is better to leave those apps frozen - never know if you would need them in future. If you decide to uninstall Titanium would do.
For unlocking bootloader if required (googling led me to understand that not required to unlock) please check with your carrier. They are carrier specific restrictions at times.
Download latest version of Odin, along with drivers corresponding to your Windows version and install on your laptop to connect to mobile. How to use is made clear on the website.
Rooting.  Odin is undoubtedly best option for Samsung devices. Period. Odin with CF autoroot works with your device. This step by step tutorial explains how-to. I strongly suggest NOT even consider trying numerous one click apps available on play store, unless you are willing to experiment (Kingroot,Framaroot are among popular methods which may or may not work with your device). I recall reading that the stagefright vulnerability fix does not permit these exploits to be used (don't recall where I read that)

(Rooting and flashing TWRP) OR (flashing TWRP/custom recovery) triggers Knox  rendering warranty void. That is how Samsung works (Does rooting (but no custom roms) trigger knox's void warranty). Flashing a custom ROM would also trigger Knox. There are workarounds mostly involving apps(of the one click variety), that use exploits and may or not work and hence not recommending them. If warranty not being void is important to you, please experiment and decide. Odin method is safe but trips Knox once you flash custom recovery

Custom Recovery.  IMO, TWRP is  the best in terms of it being easiest to use and also reliability. Download TWRP from the official website.  One of many tutorials on net show how to root and flash  TWRP
Download SuperSU latest version from official website
Now, you are all set for unlocking  bootloader, rooting and flashing TWRP on your mother mobile. Once you are done,  double check if  rooted fully using apps like Root Checker. Configure mother mobile in terms of freezing unwanted apps, installing apps you need, setting up the user interface the way you want, launchers etc.  Take  two backups.  First backup would be  a complete back up or image This  is  ONLY to backup your mother mobile. Second back up or  image would be WITHOUT EFS,  and would be used for flashing on rest of devices. As already pointed out in another answer, EFS is device specific and  flashing complete backup like the first back up discussed, on to any other device would almost certainly result in losing IMEI and emphatically not recommended (Tip: while backing up do not enable MD5 check option, it vastly increases imaging time without adding much value)
Now for rooting and flashing TWRP on other devices. Follow the same method as for mother mobile. Flashing TWRP through Odin is safest bet.
Now, coming to imaging on other devices. Copy the second image file (without EFS) on an ext SD or internal storage as you prefer and install image using TWRP. You could even take help from one or two of the bright, dependable end users and get done quickly. Typically a 3 gig image can be flashed in about 6 minutes, so two of you can get the job of populating images done in about 3 hours

Now, you know  your end users better, but you are running the risk of end users if knowledgeable or plain curious to exploit root capabilities. But transferring the image from mother mobile in totality, including settings, app configurations, permissions etc. Quick complete imaging Vs warranty is the decision node.
Other alternative is to only root and set up each device individually and keep warranty intact, but of course end users are root empowered and if they mess around and trigger Knox, you can decide next steps.Educating them would help in keeping warranty intact and makes your job easier if they default. Guess this option is not what you are looking for
All the best.....

Short answer. TWRP. Long answer. Team Win Recovery Project, the custom recovery.
Now bad jokes aside, I really wanted to stress how this is the thing you'd like. Using TWRP you can create an image of the entire phone and using it you can restore it to another (or the same) phone. It is very easy to use. You can install it using fastboot/ODIN. It works on non-rooted devices too.
If you don't want to use fastboot/ODIN then you'll need to root the phone and use an app like Flashify to install TWRP, which you can then use to restore the images.
Another option is Titanium Backup. It is effective but I have never used it for the entire phone back up therefore I can't give personal recommendation but I haven't met anyone who talks negative about it yet. It is a well-praised application. Here are the instructions for backing up with Titanium Backup. Please note that Titanium Backup will also require root.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Far as I know there is something that must be taken care of cautiously about Samsungs when flashing/restoring/backing up ROMs that are EFS files. EFS files are the files that include your IMEI number and they are strictly device-specific. Therefore I can't tell for sure but predict that flashing a back-up with EFS files of another phone can be problematic. I would suggest asking about it on Stack Overflow since they'll know better about it.

I think you should check Titanium Back Up. For me it's "must have" app when you are ROMs-Maniac and it makes life easier.

Do include details: What exactly does Titanium Backup do? How can someone use it to transfer all data to another phone?


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I can't find my .nomedia folder or the folder it is in anymore, but the files still seem to be there
I recently followed the advice posted from How do I keep audiobook separate from Google Music? by @Tzunki in order to keep my audiobooks out of Google Play Music.
I made a .Audiobooks folder and put them all in there and then added a .nomedia folder for good measure. It worked great, but now I'm trying to delete out an old audiobook and add a new one, and I can't find the folder or any of the audiobooks.
I've tried searching for the files and the folder names, etc., but it looks like they are all hidden somehow and I can't find any of them in order to edit them. I went back to my audiobook player to make sure they are still there and played them and they play. I checked the root folder for the files in my audiobook player and it shows /storage/emulated/0/.audiobooks (which is not where I told it to look when I created the .Audiobooks folder) but I looked there and there is some data file instead of the audiobooks, so I'm thinking it is just like a bookmark so it knows where in the audiobook I left off?
I've tried to just type in Computer\Galaxy S6\Phone\.Audiobooks, but it says Windows can't find it. Also, I thought I might try to re-create it, and see if it repopulated with my files but when I try to change the name of my New Folder to .Audiobooks, it won't change, it just reverts back to New Folder.
Any help you can offer would be great.

In many Unix-like operating systems, such as Android, file names starting with a . are hidden by default. If you are using a file explorer app you might need to enable "show hidden files" in its settings. Can you post what app you're using to search for your files and what app you're using to listen to your audio books?

@gertmenkel - I'm  just plugging it into my PC and searching in windows explorer.  The app i'm using to listen is Smart Audiobook Player.  I was thinking the same, but the "show hidden files" option is checked in the folder options.  any ideas?  thanks!

Have you tried renaming the .Audiobooks folder using a file explorer app on the phone? Try renaming it and then check if yoir PC can see the files again. It could be that something is protecting the folder making your PC unable to see it.

@gertmenkel Oh, sorry, forgot to mention that I can't find the .Audiobooks folder on the phone either. Using the "My Files" app - the default samsung tool thing - it doesnt show up and it can't find it if i search for it or any of the audiobook files either.

Many thanks to @gertmenkel. I found the hidden files using ES Explorer and deleted out the "." so that the file wasn't hidden anymore. The audiobooks are still not in my Google Play Music because of the .nomedia file I have in there. So the "." in the audiobooks file name was overkill.


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Nexus 4 - Bootloop after screen replacement
I've replaced a screen on a Nexus 4, and now I can't turn it on, it goes into bootloop. I can enter recovery mode, and even tried to wipe cache partition but it didn't help. One more detail, I'm trying to turn it on without backcover, because I'm going to replace digitazer, don't sure can it affect in such way my phone or not. Before I replaced the screen, everything worked fine.
My big problem is that I haven't done backup before performing this maintenance and therefore I don't want to do the hard reset. Can I in some way to make a backup of my phone right now or cause it to work?
Thank you in advance.

Ok, I've found what was a problem thanks to that thread : Nexus 4 Stuck at boot screen after replacing the LCD/Digitizer, I've forgotten to attach the headphone connector, after I've done it, it begun to work.

If you have answered your own question to your satisfaction, you should mark it as the correct answer for future readers.


text:
Manually Updating Galaxy S3 Firmware
I own a Samsung Galaxy S3 (SCH-I535), Stock ROM, rooted, running android 4.4.2
For a while now, since updating to 4.4.2 through OTA, I have had horrible battery life. Android System constantly uses 20%+ of the battery life, and can get to upwards of 40% for no apparent reason. I made an attempt to factory reset, but I messed up the backup process, and lost a lot of data. I decided to root the phone and explore other options for saving the battery. The factory reset hasn't worked, and although using some root-worthy apps like Greenify and others, nothing has helped significantly.
I asked a question on Android Enthusiasts a while back about this battery issue, and a user replied saying he experienced the same issue, but he fixed his by doing a manual install (through a PC connected to the phone with USB). Apparently the OTA update can get messed up somehow. I want to try this but I'm running into some issues.
When installing the Samsung Desktop Update Utility (or whatever it's called), it installs, but will not run. As soon as I run it, WerFault.exe also runs, and then they both close a few moments later. So this option is out.
Now, I moved on to Kies. I installed this program since it was said I could update this way. But, I see a lot of people saying that Kies is unreliable. The alternative is a program called ODIN.
TL;DR--

What could my issue with the Samsun Update Utility be?
Is Kies a reliable way to do this process? Or will it brick my phone as I so often see?
Is ODIN a reputable and competent alternative?

Any help is appreciated, and I can provide whatever extra information is needed!

Is Kies a reliable way to do this process? Or will it brick my phone as I so often see?

I only install Kies for the USB drivers.

Is ODIN a reputable and competent alternative?

I need Kies for ODIN to detect my Samsung Device. So yes, ODIN is a reliable alternative.
As from what I read, you already messed up your files, so there are few files left to backup. Backup those files.
Method 1:
You can do a manual flash. Guide
My steps:
(Disclaimer: Do at your own risk.)

Download a Stock ROM (.tar or .md5 file) for your Samsung S3 and ODIN 3.07 (I frequently use).
Install Kies. Make sure that you have installed Kies. Then terminate all processes that have linked to Kies.
heck your Task Manager > Processes > Look for processes with the Kies name in it (e.g. KiesTrayAgent.exe).
Make sure your device is charged, around 80%-90%. Power off the device.
Boot into ODIN mode (press and hold Volume Down + Home + Power keys together). a new screen will show up. Then press Volume Up key.
On your PC open ODIN, then plug-in your device. There will be change in ODIN, like this

Follow the options on the picture. Do no change anything. Then click PDA and locate your Stock ROM file.
Hit Start. Let the devices do the work. Do not power-off and/or interrupt the PC and Device as  this may cause the device to get brick.

Now I'm assuming this stock rom will completely wipe the phone to install itself? There isn't another way to reinstall the 4.4.2 firmware?

Yes it will. There are other ways like flashing custom recovery(eg. TWRP or CWM) then flashing a .zip file. But If you are looking for STOCK ROM.. Looking around the internet. There are rare STOCK zip files. Best shot is a Custom ROM but I think you wouldn't go further than STOCK OS/ROM. So I would recommend using ODIN.


text:
Is it possible to remember a network but manually initiate connection every time?
I occasionally use my phone to connect to the work network for quick diagnostic purposes. I do not like being connected to it for regular use, as I don't like my phone activity to be traceable by my employer.
Is it possible to remember a WiFi network, but only connect when manually triggered?

I would say, the simplest solution is to turn off your wifi when you don't use it as it saves battery and you wont be connected to the wifi, thus simplest solution. Same question has been asked before: http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/35332/disable-a-specific-wifi-network-from-automatically-connecting-to-in-android?answertab=votes#tab-top

This is not possible, but as Matt said, the best thing to do is just to turn off your Wi-Fi. There are apps that you can download that will be able to automatically turn off Wi-Fi at your workplace. However, I personally keep my Wi-Fi off at all times, regardless of whether or not I am home. Wi-Fi, despite what most battery saving apps will tell you, consumes more power than cellular when you are not using it heavily. For streaming and updating apps, I connect to Wi-Fi, but that is about it.

I don't like my phone activity to be traceable by my employer.

Perhaps, you should consider VPN.
Anyhow, there are measures you can take here, all of them would require the help of automation apps, such as Tasker (paid; 7 day free trial) or MacroDroid (free/paid).
(Note that AutomateIt (free/Pro) may also be able to achieve the following examples.)
For example:

If your quick diagnosis always runs or requires an active screen (i.e. no screen off) then you can make Tasker or MacroDroid wait for X minutes and then disconnect or disable the Wi-Fi.

If your quick diagnosis always requires or ends up after X minutes, use Tasker or MacroDroid to configure your Wi-Fi to disconnect or get disabled.

Because Android is all about apps, your quick diagnosis probably involves the usage of an app. In that case, use Tasker or MacroDroid to enable the Wi-Fi if only the diagnostic app gets active on the screen and disconnect/disable the Wi-Fi either after X minutes and/or once the app closes.

If the device is rooted, you can use AFWall+ in combination with Tasker to switch to a firewall profile which would effectively bar all the app (excluding the diagnostic apps) from using internet when  connected to a particular Wi-Fi. Optionally, create a persistent notification. In this fashion, you would always know that you're connected to workplace Wi-Fi.

Any scenario that suits you would probably fit under the scope of Tasker or MacroDroid.

Relevant triggers and actions
Tasker
Triggers:

Applications → App
State → Net → Wifi Connected
State → Display → Display State

Actions:

Net → WiFi → On/Off
Net → WiFi Net → Disconnect
Task → Wait
Plugin → AFWall+
Alert → Notify
Alert → Notify Cancel

MacroDroid
Triggers:

Wifi State Change → Connect to Network
Screen On/Off → Screen Off
Application Launched/Closed

Actions:

Wifi Configure
Display Notification (not persistent)
Wait Before Next Action


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Is it possible to reinstall an android that has a pass lock?
I bought a new Sony Xperia Z C6603 phone last week and first thing I did was set a complex pass code. Unfortunately I forgot it shortly after and now I have no access to the phone. Is there a way to reinstall the entire operating system so I can start new and have no pass code?

That won't be necessary.
Open up the Android device manager on a PC or Mac and log in to your google account. If you mark the device as lost, you can set a temporary password. Use the temp password to get past your lock screen, then promptly go to the settings and change your password back.
Also, after 5 failed attempts of entering the password your device should let you override it with your Google password.

And if that doesn't work there is always the ability to reset the phone (Last resort)

@Matt07211 let's hope it doesn't come to that.


text:
Does Google offer a support number for the Android OS as a whole? If not, why?
My grandfather's contacts are missing on his Galaxy, and a quick Google search on the error "Sync is currently experiencing problems. It will be back shortly." shows numerous results, solutions, etc etc, none of which seem to be applicable in this situation.
Now, obviously I could ask here, but that guarantees no quick solution, and the contacts are needed soon to make important calls. I looked into Google Support, and that page doesn't offer an option for support with the Android OS in general. Instead, it sends you to support at Samsung.com, since this is a Galaxy, and that page is a dead end in regards to my problem.
We dont have time to wait for an answer from a support forum or ticket. I'd like to just get on the phone and call Google for a general Android OS issue. Is this possible? Where can I find the number? I've looked everywhere.

If your contact is synced to Google, then I think you should be able to see the contact on Google Contacts from your browser. Indeed, Google doesn't have help support for Android in general.

@AndrewT. Well on that note, I'll sure never buy an Android. Apple is ready to help me with these problems. https://getsupport.apple.com

The phone manufacturers anyway have their own support site where you can contact for help regarding your mobile issues. For instance Motorola, https://motorola-global-portal.custhelp.com and for Sony http://support.sonymobile.com/ etc. For Samsung, you could try http://www.samsung.com/support/

@Lucky But Samsung isn't in charge of resolving Android OS issues, they dont control the software or Google Contact Sync in this case. If you visit that support page you'll find no such support offered in regards to Android problems in general. So Google has created an OS for which it offers no fast support for - an industry standard that even Apple follows, offerring fast over-the-phone support for any problems with iOS. This is not a user friendly decision by Google, very dissapointed, my grandfather cant make calls and I have to wait for a support ticket response.

@JonathanTodd Here's a related post on Google Product Forums https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/gmail/uHRNJLZwp7k and also try this app Contacts Sync Fix to recover your lost contacts.

No, Google does not provide a general service support number. Google provides the base Android operating system with components like a contacts manager. Both the phone manufacturer and the service provider may customize the OS, use their own applications, or replace stock applications like the contacts manager. Google is not able to support these customizations.
In the US, I would expect the best tech support service to be from your carrier at local stores. They are the ones with dedicated personnel who can physically touch your phone and show you how to do things.

Oh I see. This seems unusual, but knowing that, the lack of support would make sense. By the way, good luck getting support from Samsung, I just called and it sounded like a sweatshop with 50 people sitting shoulder to shoulder talking with accents. There was so much chatter in the background that I couldnt hear the rep at all and finally had to just hang up.


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Reconnect to WLAN automatically
Android sometimes has this strange habit of not automatically reconnecting, when it looses connection to the router.
I have an Android tablet running 24/7 using a bot to do stuff on the Internet.
But sometimes, the connection breaks, and i have to manually click on the wlan symbol in the dropdown thingy the force android to reconnect the the router. This is annoying, because I have to check multple times a day, whether the bot is still working and reconnect if not.
This happens approximatly once/twice a week. I'm using a Samsung Galaxy Tab SM-T230, Android 4.4.2
Does anyone know how to fix the problem/why android does that?

You may be able to fix the problem using Tasker (paid; 7 day free trial) or MacroDroid (free/paid) or AutomateIt Pro and I don't have a reliable way to test my answer so I can't fix some flaws.
MacroDroid
The macro would be:

Trigger: Wifi State Change → Disconnect from Network → select your network
Action: Wifi Configure:

Connect to Network → select your network

or

Disable Wifi
Enable Wifi

Constraint:

Wifi State → Not Connected to Network → select your network

and

Wifi State → Wifi Enabled

Tasker
Profile would be:

Trigger: State → Net → Wifi Connected → check Invert
Task: Action(s):

Net → Wifi Net:

Action: Reconnect
check Force

or

Net → WiFi → Off
Net → WiFi → On

Additional trigger: Net → Wifi Near → select SSID of your network

AutomateIt Pro
The free version requires me to connect to internet (which I'm unwilling to) to unlock a feature, so perhaps, free version can also do the job here.
The rule would be:

Trigger: [Composite AND Trigger]:

Wifi Network Connection State Trigger:

Monitored Network: select your network
Connection State: Disconnected

Wifi Network Available Trigger:

Network Name: mention the SSID of your network
check In Range

Action: [Composite Action]:

Set Wifi State Action → Wi-Fi Disabled
Set Wifi State Action → Wi-Fi Enabled

That should work.


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My photos disappeared from my Samsung S5 SD card. Trying to recover photos or find hidden files
My photos disappeared from my Samsung S5 SD card.
I know SD cards get corrupted, but there were a couple of weird things that happened in conjunction with the disappearance. I saw a message on my screen briefly saying something about my photos not being gone. About a week later I saw them again just once when I went to look at other photos on the Google + app. I saw a suggestion to try to do a disk check on a computer to recover corrupted files. Disk check says the info cannot be directly accessed.I also have read that some files can be hidden. I need some help with this. Any ideas?

You can go to My Files, settings, check 'Show Hidden Files'. Now you can see hidden folders beginning with . (e.g. .hidden) in your device explorer. Check you sd card for such folders beginning with . that may contain your files. If not then you can connect your SD card via card reader to your PC and run the Windows app "Recuva" (search Recuva by Piriform) to search for deleted files.
Hope this helps :)


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USB device exceeds power limits
OK, the android studio really drive me crazy.
At first, AVD cannot launch and I have post my issue here to https://stackoverflow.com/questions/33417842/avd-not-running and failed to create new virtual device https://stackoverflow.com/questions/33419733/throwable-failed-to-create-the-sd-card
After install Android SDK Tool from sdk manager and HAXM installer, it finally can lunch but https://stackoverflow.com/questions/33527421/emulator-cannot-start-up.
After I increase the emulator memory, my emulator works fine but I cannot use real device to run my project.

Error: Power Surge On Hub Port: A USB device has exceeded the power
  limits of its hub port

I'm not sure whether the error exists is due to the emulator setting because it can run before  the emulator memory get increased. Anyone can help? It totally frustrating.

The error message seems to be a general error message on Windows, thus this doesn't seem to be Android related issue (more like your PC issue). Consider asking this on [su] instead.

Before that, it seems there is already a case like this on Super User. Please read it first, and if it doesn't help, then consider asking a new question with detailed info.


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How to get battery status in terminal?
I have a phone with dropbear installed. I usually access my phone over WiFi & run commands in putty.
I want to get battery status & percentage in terminal.  Is there any command or program  to obtain battery info ?

See if there is/are any system service(s) having the string "battery". For example, dumpsys battery (needs root) does the job in Android 4.2.1. Or, see if /sys/class/power_supply/battery/BatteryAverageCurrent/uevent give you anything. See my answer here for more: How can profile (log the charging and discharging current for some time period) my battery?

Query the system service battery (possibly requires root access)
dumpsys battery

Output would be like

Current Battery Service state:
  AC powered: false
  USB powered: true
  Wireless powered: false
  status: 2
  health: 2
  present: true
  level: 70
  scale: 100
  voltage:3950
  temperature: 260
  technology: Li-ion

level: 70 is the battery percentage here.

Not sure about Android 2.3 but  this is relevant for at least Android 4.2.1 and above:
(Prefix adb shell next to every command to run the command using adb.)

This would give you a list of all the historical broadcasts as well as the sticky ones:

dumpsys activity broadcasts

In the output search:

Sticky action android.intent.action.BATTERY_CHANGED:

The lines next to it, until you encounter a new sticky broadcast, are useful to us. In my devices, they are listed as:

Intent: act=android.intent.action.BATTERY_CHANGED flg=0x60000010
Bundle[{icon-small=17302819, present=true, scale=100, level=100, technology=Li-ion, status=4, voltage=4140, invalid_charger=0, plugged=0, health=2, temperature=200}]

Assuming that your Android has grep utility, you can shorten the search by using:

dumpsys activity broadcasts | grep -A2 "Sticky action android.intent.action.BATTERY_CHANGED:"

(Source: Monitoring the Battery Level and Charging State)
Alternative: it is possible to query the battery info from /sys  or I should say the Linux kernel.
/sys/class/power_supply/battery/ has some files with useful information. The file named capacity is equivalent to current battery percentage. You can get an accumulated info from uevent file as well.
For more and related info, read my answer here.

+1 to that: I can fully confirm the first approach (via dumpsys), which is exactly what I successfully use with Adebar, tested on multiple devices. So your command will probably be something like dumpsys battery | grep "level:" | awk '{ print $2 }'. However, I've never tested that with Android versions <4.

Neither did I test on <4, but posted it because OP confirmed it. :) Waiting for somebody to verify the second approach here.

Looks like I can confirm this for cat /sys/class/power_supply/battery/capacity at least on Android 4.1. As sysfs is a Linux feature already available for quite a while, this should work on other/previous Android versions as well. Other "files" in the context of the question: health (e.g. "Good"), status ("Full"), temp (centi-degrees Celsius? here: "300"). Just figuring the current power source might prove a bit tricky :)

still works! cat /sys/class/power_supply/battery/status cool thanks

Script to show battery status on terminal (root required)
Using only the alternative method @Firelord mentioned.
#!/system/bin/sh # might need to change to your sh bin

print_battery_status()
{
    ctype=`cat /sys/class/power_supply/battery/charge_type`
    capacity=`cat /sys/class/power_supply/battery/capacity`
    charging=`cat /sys/class/power_supply/battery/charging_enabled`
    health=`cat /sys/class/power_supply/battery/health`
    status=`cat /sys/class/power_supply/battery/status`
    printf "# %s # %s # %s # %s # %s #\r" "Capacity: ${capacity}" "Charging: ${charging}" "Type: ${ctype}" "Health: ${health}" "Status: ${status}"
}

while [ true ]
do
    print_battery_status
    sleep 1 # 1 second of wait
done

You might need to adapt the script a bit. Some file names used above are device specific. For example, charging_enable should be replaced by charge_now and some devices, and so on.
It runs and shows status like bellow. To stop it use CRTL+C.
./batery_status.sh
# Capacity: 63 # Charging: 1 # Type: Fast # Health: Good # Status: Charging #

I use this since I do remote ssh on my device. It works even with zygote stopped.


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Is my .img file corrupted?
I downloaded the firmware (.img) of my Android device (Boyue T62D) just to have a backup of it. I'm in the Indian countryside with an extremely limited internet connection, so this is a huge file for me. The reasons I'm unsure are:

I can't extract the file (just to look at the contents) in any way on my computer (OS X 10.10.1). Is this to be expected with an Android image? I tried to unpack it using a variety of methods (like converting it to iso first). (none too fancy though).
I was out of the house when the file was downloading, and when I came back it looked like the file was done, but the Internet connection was broken. But the file seems to have the same size as it is supposed to have. So what got me wondering was the fact that I can't unpack it. If you guys could just tell me that this is standard, and that .img files are very hard/impossible to extract on OS X, that would be great.

Where did you download the image from? Normally you get a file hash (MD5/SHA1) to verify exactly that.

I downloaded it from here: [link] http://d-h.st/6cl [/link] How can I check whether I got a file hash? Also, is it normal that I'm unable to extract or convert the .img file using conventional apps?

4a575ab0e660a64630734645a1ef4231 that's the MD5 hash for the file. So open a terminal on Mac OSX, and run md5  and compare the two values. What do you mean by "conventional apps"? What do you mean by converting the img file? Basically, what do you want to do?

What I meant is that I tried to unpack the image, because if that worked, I figured it would mean that the file was ok. But I think the method you provided is a much better way of checking. I'll try it when I get home, I'm on my phone at the moment.

Alright, I got the same MD5 hash. So this means my file is all good? Thanks. If you post this as an answer instead of a comment I can accept it. Also, how did you find the MD5 value? Did you download the file yourself and run the md5 in Terminal? Would I have been able to do this check without help from a third party with a normal internet connection?

You normally can find it on official download sites and mirrors

@Dan B I have a somewhat obscure device from a minor, Chinese manufacturer, and a web search lands me nothing. Anyway, my problem is solved now so I am only talking out of curiosity right now.

Fair enough, what is the manufacturer/model?

Boyue T62D running Android 4.2.2.

Usually when downloading files (very likely for software) you have a checksum provided by the supplier. The checksum is nothing else but the hash value of the file you're going to download. Quite often this is MD5, but due to the collision potential in MD5 it starts to drift towards SHA (SHA1 mostly, somtimes SHA2).
After your download has finished, you compute the hash on the file yourself and compare the value with the one presented by the download page (or other source). If the two values match, this means that your download equals the file supplied on the website.
I started my VM for accessing such sites and had a look if there is a MD5 hash present. Right next to the download link, it was and that's the value I have copied to my comment. Therefore, if you follow the procedure I have written down above and look for such a hash value (check for MD5 or MD5SUM, SHA1 or SHA1SUM) you don't need any third-party assistance.

Cool, it's there on the download site. Just curious, do you use Virtual Machine every time you visit an unknown URL?

Yes, it's there. No, not everytime. But with URLs that appear to be shortened, of those with bad ratings from sources like Google Safe Browsing etc.

Alright. Thanks again. Is it not possible to upvote comments on this SE?

Should be, just like answers

My reputation is probably too low to upvote comments.

where do i fine that recovery.img file? Link please


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Android kernel decompiling?
I want to decompile kernel to add features like OC. I extracted ram disk, dts (device tree source) and compiled kernel from boot.img. I also have other files like recovery, system, data, etc. How to decompile this kernel or add features other way?

Why do you need to decompile the kernel? The source is already available.

Here i manage this kernel dissembling .
http://4pda.ru/forum/index.php?showtopic=582284&view=findpost&p=82274775

Decompression games, objdump and a lot of fun cross referencing strings to identify pieces of code by what they printk()

I am bit confused, why do you want to decomplie something that is open source? You only need to grab the kernel sources, make your edits and compile it for your device.
Here some links to get you started:

Setup the build environment
Building Kernels
Kernel Source Repository

This answer is a bit naive.  While all vendors of a Linux kernel (Android or otherwise) gain the right to distribute copies only by agreeing to provide complete corresponding source, that sadly doesn't always mean that they will.  With a few leading brand exceptions, generic sources won't typically work on the physical device in front of you, and even to the degree that they might it is sometimes necessary to take apart the existing binary kernel to figure out how to adapt and configure generic sources to work on the hardware.


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Can't mount ISO in Android
I tried to mount an ISO on Android using busybox mount. It always gives me "No such device".
strace -- busybox mount -t iso9660 /sdcard/some_iso.iso /sdcard/a:
execve("/system/xbin/busybox", ["busybox", "mount", "-t", "iso9660", "/sdcard/Fedora/Fedora-Live-KDE-x"..., "/sdcard/a"], [/* 26 vars */]) = 0
brk(0)                                  = 0x9bae000
brk(0x9bae480)                          = 0x9bae480
set_thread_area({entry_number:-1 -> 12, base_addr:0x9bae010, limit:1048575, seg_32bit:1, contents:0, read_exec_only:0, limit_in_pages:1, seg_not_present:0, useable:1}) = 0
ioctl(0, SNDCTL_TMR_TIMEBASE or TCGETS, {B38400 opost isig icanon echo ...}) = 0
ioctl(1, SNDCTL_TMR_TIMEBASE or TCGETS, 0xffa9657c) = -1 ENOSYS (Function not implemented)
getuid32()                              = 0
brk(0x9baf480)                          = 0x9baf480
brk(0x9bb0000)                          = 0x9bb0000
getuid32()                              = 0
geteuid32()                             = 0
stat64("/sdcard/Fedora/Fedora-Live-KDE-x86_64-23-10.iso", {st_mode=S_IFREG|0660, st_size=1291845632, ...}) = 0
open("/sdcard/Fedora/Fedora-Live-KDE-x86_64-23-10.iso", O_RDWR|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
stat64("/dev/loop0", {st_mode=S_IFBLK|0600, st_rdev=makedev(7, 0), ...}) = 0
open("/dev/loop0", O_RDWR|O_LARGEFILE)  = 5
ioctl(5, 0x4c05, 0xffa962b8)            = -1 ENXIO (No such device or address)
ioctl(5, 0x4c00, 0x4)                   = 0
ioctl(5, 0x4c04, 0xffa962b8)            = 0
close(5)                                = 0
close(4)                                = 0
mount("/dev/loop0", "/sdcard/a", "iso9660", MS_SILENT, NULL) = -1 ENODEV (No such device)
brk(0x9bb1000)                          = 0x9bb1000
vfork()                                 = 2704
waitpid(2704, NULL, 0)                  = 2704
--- {si_signo=SIGCHLD, si_code=CLD_EXITED, si_pid=2704, si_status=111, si_utime=0, si_stime=0} (Child exited) ---
open("/dev/loop0", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
ioctl(4, 0x4c01, 0)                     = 0
close(4)                                = 0
write(2, "mount: mounting /dev/loop0 on /s"..., 63mount: mounting /dev/loop0 on /sdcard/a failed: No such device
) = 63
exit_group(-1)                          = ?

Also using losetup /dev/loop0 /sdcard/some_iso.iso doesn't give out errors, strace:
execve("/system/xbin/losetup", ["losetup", "/dev/loop0", "/sdcard/Fedora/Fedora-Live-KDE-x"...], [/* 26 vars */]) = 0
brk(0)                                  = 0x941d000
brk(0x941d480)                          = 0x941d480
set_thread_area({entry_number:-1 -> 12, base_addr:0x941d010, limit:1048575, seg_32bit:1, contents:0, read_exec_only:0, limit_in_pages:1, seg_not_present:0, useable:1}) = 0
ioctl(0, SNDCTL_TMR_TIMEBASE or TCGETS, {B38400 opost isig icanon echo ...}) = 0
ioctl(1, SNDCTL_TMR_TIMEBASE or TCGETS, 0xffe5547c) = -1 ENOSYS (Function not implemented)
getuid32()                              = 0
open("/sdcard/Fedora/Fedora-Live-KDE-x86_64-23-10.iso", O_RDWR|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
stat64("/dev/loop0", {st_mode=S_IFBLK|0600, st_rdev=makedev(7, 0), ...}) = 0
open("/dev/loop0", O_RDWR|O_LARGEFILE)  = 5
ioctl(5, 0x4c05, 0xffe55318)            = -1 ENXIO (No such device or address)
ioctl(5, 0x4c00, 0x4)                   = 0
ioctl(5, 0x4c04, 0xffe55318)            = 0
close(5)                                = 0
close(4)                                = 0
exit_group(0)                           = ?

With Android's mount linked to /system/bin/toolbox:
execve("/system/bin/mount", ["mount", "-t", "iso9660", "-o", "loop", "/sdcard/Download/Fedora-Live-Wor"..., "/sdcard/a"], [/* 26 vars */]) = 0
mprotect(0xf7798000, 188416, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE|PROT_EXEC) = 0
mprotect(0xf7798000, 188416, PROT_READ|PROT_EXEC) = 0
mprotect(0xf77c6000, 4096, PROT_READ)   = 0
getrlimit(RLIMIT_STACK, {rlim_cur=8192*1024, rlim_max=RLIM64_INFINITY}) = 0
gettid()                                = 8755
set_thread_area({entry_number:-1 -> 12, base_addr:0xf77c8280, limit:4096, seg_32bit:1, contents:0, read_exec_only:0, limit_in_pages:1, seg_not_present:0, useable:1}) = 0
mmap2(NULL, 8192, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_ANONYMOUS, 0, 0) = 0xf7795000
madvise(0xf7795000, 8192, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
sigaltstack({ss_sp=0xf7795000, ss_flags=0, ss_size=8192}, NULL) = 0
sigaction(SIGABRT, {0xf779b420, [], SA_RESTART|SA_SIGINFO|SA_ONSTACK}, NULL, 0xf7739348) = 0
sigaction(SIGBUS, {0xf779b420, [], SA_RESTART|SA_SIGINFO|SA_ONSTACK}, NULL, 0xf7739348) = 0
sigaction(SIGFPE, {0xf779b420, [], SA_RESTART|SA_SIGINFO|SA_ONSTACK}, NULL, 0xf7739348) = 0
sigaction(SIGILL, {0xf779b420, [], SA_RESTART|SA_SIGINFO|SA_ONSTACK}, NULL, 0xf7739348) = 0
sigaction(SIGPIPE, {0xf779b420, [], SA_RESTART|SA_SIGINFO|SA_ONSTACK}, NULL, 0xf7739348) = 0
sigaction(SIGSEGV, {0xf779b420, [], SA_RESTART|SA_SIGINFO|SA_ONSTACK}, NULL, 0xf7739348) = 0
sigaction(SIGSTKFLT, {0xf779b420, [], SA_RESTART|SA_SIGINFO|SA_ONSTACK}, NULL, 0xf7739348) = 0
sigaction(SIGTRAP, {0xf779b420, [], SA_RESTART|SA_SIGINFO|SA_ONSTACK}, NULL, 0xf7739348) = 0
mmap2(NULL, 3980, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_ANONYMOUS, 0, 0) = 0xf7794000
madvise(0xf7794000, 3980, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
open("/vendor/lib/libcutils.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
open("/system/lib/libcutils.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
read(4, "\177ELF\1\1\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\3\0\3\0\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0004\0\0\0"..., 52) = 52
mmap2(NULL, 4096, PROT_READ, MAP_PRIVATE, 4, 0) = 0xf7793000
madvise(0xf7793000, 4096, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(NULL, 98304, PROT_NONE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_ANONYMOUS, -1, 0) = 0xf777b000
madvise(0xf777b000, 98304, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf777b000, 86264, PROT_READ|PROT_EXEC, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0) = 0xf777b000
madvise(0xf777b000, 86264, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf7791000, 4192, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0x15) = 0xf7791000
madvise(0xf7791000, 4192, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
close(4)                                = 0
munmap(0xf7793000, 4096)                = 0
open("/vendor/lib/liblog.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
open("/system/lib/liblog.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
read(4, "\177ELF\1\1\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\3\0\3\0\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0004\0\0\0"..., 52) = 52
mmap2(NULL, 4096, PROT_READ, MAP_PRIVATE, 4, 0) = 0xf7793000
madvise(0xf7793000, 4096, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(NULL, 32768, PROT_NONE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_ANONYMOUS, -1, 0) = 0xf7773000
madvise(0xf7773000, 32768, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf7773000, 22216, PROT_READ|PROT_EXEC, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0) = 0xf7773000
madvise(0xf7773000, 22216, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf7779000, 4120, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0x5) = 0xf7779000
madvise(0xf7779000, 4120, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
close(4)                                = 0
munmap(0xf7793000, 4096)                = 0
open("/vendor/lib/libc.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
open("/system/lib/libc.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
read(4, "\177ELF\1\1\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\3\0\3\0\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0004\0\0\0"..., 52) = 52
mmap2(NULL, 4096, PROT_READ, MAP_PRIVATE, 4, 0) = 0xf7793000
madvise(0xf7793000, 4096, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(NULL, 868352, PROT_NONE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_ANONYMOUS, -1, 0) = 0xf769f000
madvise(0xf769f000, 868352, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf769f000, 788240, PROT_READ|PROT_EXEC, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0) = 0xf769f000
madvise(0xf769f000, 788240, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf7760000, 13056, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0xc0) = 0xf7760000
madvise(0xf7760000, 13056, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf7764000, 61440, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED|MAP_ANONYMOUS, -1, 0) = 0xf7764000
madvise(0xf7764000, 61440, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
close(4)                                = 0
munmap(0xf7793000, 4096)                = 0
mprotect(0xf769f000, 790528, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE|PROT_EXEC) = 0
mprotect(0xf769f000, 790528, PROT_READ|PROT_EXEC) = 0
mprotect(0xf7760000, 4096, PROT_READ)   = 0
open("/vendor/lib/libstdc++.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
open("/system/lib/libstdc++.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
read(4, "\177ELF\1\1\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\3\0\3\0\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0004\0\0\0"..., 52) = 52
mmap2(NULL, 4096, PROT_READ, MAP_PRIVATE, 4, 0) = 0xf7793000
madvise(0xf7793000, 4096, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(NULL, 16384, PROT_NONE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_ANONYMOUS, -1, 0) = 0xf769b000
madvise(0xf769b000, 16384, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf769b000, 4332, PROT_READ|PROT_EXEC, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0) = 0xf769b000
madvise(0xf769b000, 4332, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf769d000, 4100, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0x1) = 0xf769d000
madvise(0xf769d000, 4100, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
close(4)                                = 0
munmap(0xf7793000, 4096)                = 0
mprotect(0xf769d000, 4096, PROT_READ)   = 0
open("/vendor/lib/libm.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
open("/system/lib/libm.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
read(4, "\177ELF\1\1\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\3\0\3\0\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0004\0\0\0"..., 52) = 52
mmap2(NULL, 4096, PROT_READ, MAP_PRIVATE, 4, 0) = 0xf7793000
madvise(0xf7793000, 4096, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(NULL, 204800, PROT_NONE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_ANONYMOUS, -1, 0) = 0xf7669000
madvise(0xf7669000, 204800, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf7669000, 195144, PROT_READ|PROT_EXEC, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0) = 0xf7669000
madvise(0xf7669000, 195144, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf7699000, 4156, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0x2f) = 0xf7699000
madvise(0xf7699000, 4156, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
close(4)                                = 0
munmap(0xf7793000, 4096)                = 0
mprotect(0xf7699000, 4096, PROT_READ)   = 0
mprotect(0xf7779000, 4096, PROT_READ)   = 0
mprotect(0xf777b000, 90112, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE|PROT_EXEC) = 0
mprotect(0xf777b000, 90112, PROT_READ|PROT_EXEC) = 0
mprotect(0xf7791000, 4096, PROT_READ)   = 0
open("/vendor/lib/libusbhost.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
open("/system/lib/libusbhost.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
read(4, "\177ELF\1\1\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\3\0\3\0\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0004\0\0\0"..., 52) = 52
mmap2(NULL, 4096, PROT_READ, MAP_PRIVATE, 4, 0) = 0xf7793000
madvise(0xf7793000, 4096, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(NULL, 24576, PROT_NONE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_ANONYMOUS, -1, 0) = 0xf7663000
madvise(0xf7663000, 24576, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf7663000, 12664, PROT_READ|PROT_EXEC, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0) = 0xf7663000
madvise(0xf7663000, 12664, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf7667000, 4100, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0x3) = 0xf7667000
madvise(0xf7667000, 4100, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
close(4)                                = 0
munmap(0xf7793000, 4096)                = 0
mprotect(0xf7667000, 4096, PROT_READ)   = 0
open("/vendor/lib/libselinux.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
open("/system/lib/libselinux.so", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
read(4, "\177ELF\1\1\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\3\0\3\0\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0004\0\0\0"..., 52) = 52
mmap2(NULL, 4096, PROT_READ, MAP_PRIVATE, 4, 0) = 0xf7793000
madvise(0xf7793000, 4096, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(NULL, 98304, PROT_NONE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_ANONYMOUS, -1, 0) = 0xf764b000
madvise(0xf764b000, 98304, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf764b000, 86844, PROT_READ|PROT_EXEC, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0) = 0xf764b000
madvise(0xf764b000, 86844, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mmap2(0xf7661000, 4144, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED, 4, 0x15) = 0xf7661000
madvise(0xf7661000, 4144, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
close(4)                                = 0
munmap(0xf7793000, 4096)                = 0
mprotect(0xf7661000, 4096, PROT_READ)   = 0
mprotect(0xf77fe000, 4096, PROT_READ)   = 0
open("/dev/__properties__", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
fcntl64(4, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC)         = 0
fstat64(4, {st_mode=S_IFREG|0444, st_size=131072, ...}) = 0
mmap2(NULL, 131072, PROT_READ, MAP_SHARED, 4, 0) = 0xf762b000
close(4)                                = 0
futex(0xf7764dec, FUTEX_WAKE_PRIVATE, 2147483647) = 0
mprotect(0xf7794000, 3980, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE) = 0
mprotect(0xf7794000, 3980, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE) = 0
mprotect(0xf7794000, 3980, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE) = 0
mprotect(0xf7794000, 3980, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE) = 0
mprotect(0xf7794000, 3980, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE) = 0
clock_gettime(CLOCK_MONOTONIC, {4072, 477037831}) = 0
mprotect(0xf7794000, 3980, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE) = 0
statfs64("/sys/fs/selinux", 84, {f_type=0xf97cff8c, f_bsize=4096, f_blocks=0, f_bfree=0, f_bavail=0, f_files=0, f_ffree=0, f_fsid={0, 0}, f_namelen=255}) = 0
gettimeofday({1446683072, 836523}, NULL) = 0
brk(0)                                  = 0xf7d84000
brk(0xf7d84000)                         = 0xf7d84000
brk(0xf7d85000)                         = 0xf7d85000
mprotect(0xf7794000, 3980, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE) = 0
mprotect(0xf7794000, 3980, PROT_READ)   = 0
mmap2(NULL, 4096, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_ANONYMOUS, -1, 0) = 0xf7793000
madvise(0xf7793000, 4096, 0xc /* MADV_??? */) = 0
mprotect(0xf7793000, 4096, PROT_READ)   = 0
open("/sdcard/Download/Fedora-Live-Workstation-x86_64-23-10.iso", O_RDWR|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
open("/dev/block/loop0", O_RDWR|O_LARGEFILE) = 5
ioctl(5, 0x4c00, 0x4)                   = 0
close(4)                                = 0
close(5)                                = 0
open("/dev/block/loop0", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE) = 4
ioctl(4, BLKROSET, 0)                   = 0
close(4)                                = 0
mount("/dev/block/loop0", "/sdcard/a", "iso9660", MS_SILENT, NULL) = -1 ENODEV (No such device)
write(2, "mount", 5mount)                    = 5
write(2, ": ", 2: )                       = 2
write(2, "No such device", 14No such device)          = 14
write(2, "\n", 1
)                       = 1
mprotect(0xf7793000, 4096, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE) = 0
mprotect(0xf7793000, 4096, PROT_READ)   = 0
close(0)                                = 0
close(1)                                = 0
close(2)                                = 0
futex(0xf7764de8, FUTEX_WAKE_PRIVATE, 2147483647) = 0
munmap(0xf7793000, 4096)                = 0
exit_group(255)                         = ?

Not sure if my kernel supports loop device (don't know how to tell).

I've never used busybox mount, but does mount -t iso9660 -o loop /sdcard/some_iso.iso /sdcard/a work?

@terdon the default mount shipped with android is linked to /system/bin/toolbox and have poor loop support.

My main point was trying with the -o loop option. I doubt it will make much of a difference but it's worth a try. That said, this question really seems like a better fit for [android.se]. It sounds like an Android-specific issue and you're more likely to find answers there. I suggest you flag for mod attention and ask them to migrate it for you.

busybox mount says that -o loop is ignored as it automatically detects for loop device.

Your kernel must be built with CONFIG_ISO9660_FS. If your kernel is built with CONFIG_IKCONFIG_PROC, you can easily check by cat /proc/config.gz | gunzip | grep ISO9660

A difference in your three attempts is /dev/loop0 and /dev/block/loop0.
Besides manually testing/looking for either exports, mounts, or kernel configs, there is an app called "loop device tester" - but at least for one of my 3 devices, it is unreliable.


text:
Where is my Outlook attachment downloaded?
I use the Outlook app on my Android phone and I received an attachment in one of my emails. I downloaded it and it automatically opened with another app so I can read it.
Now I want to retrieve it and make a copy, on my phone. Which folder in my phone should I search to find that attached file? I searched the Download and Attachments folders, without success.

Long press on the attachment, a window will appear with the option Save to. Select Device. The file will be downloaded in the Download folder.


text:
What is the point of archive in the Hangouts messaging app?
Is the archive in Hangouts storing the messages somewhere or is it just hiding them from the inbox?

It just hides them from the inbox, which means they aren't copied somewhere else. For more informations check out Google support page here.


text:
Is Kies a good way to backup phone data for use on another phone?
I currently own a Galaxy S3, and later this month I will be upgrading to an S6. I have rooted my S3, and as such have disabled a lot of the sync and backup services, including Backup Assistant.
If I backup my data in Kies to my PC (Pictures, Messages, contacts, etc), will these be transferable to the new S6? Or are they tied to this S3 model in some way?


text:
What is the difference between archiving and backing up, a WhatsApp chat?
Both are some kind of storing mechanisms. Both occupy memory space. But what is the difference between archival of a whatsapp chat and backing up a whatsapp chat?

An archived chat is simply hidden from the Chats tab, which means it requires the same storage space as if it weren't archived. It is meant to be a way to keep your messages organized and don't fill your chats' list. On the other hand chats backup takes all your chats and copies them to a separate file, either on your phone's storage or on the cloud, so that you can restore them in case you loose WhatsApp data or change phone.
For more informations go to WhatsApp FAQ.


text:
photo recovery for Samsung A5 without using a computer
how do I recover my photo album  that I deleted  if I don't have a computer? I have a Samsung A5

Welcome to the Android Enthusiasts! I've just added the data-recovery tag to your question. You might wish starting with its tag-wiki, which mentions available methods and approaches. Then please come back here and either answer your own question (when solved) – or let us know what you've tried and where you're stuck. Important details are also whether the device is rooted, and where that album was stored.

I think without PC it can't be done  ! I don't know might be there is a solution with someone. I probably can suggest you to download "Dumpster Android Data Recovery app" from play store, there is a slight chance that you got your files, if it is in recycle bin of play store, you really can recover it. Check this link : http://www.qdtricks.org/how-to-recover-deleted-files-on-android/

I've had the same problem a while back, and I'm glad to say I know how to fix it :)
I have an A5 too, and I used this app to fix the problem: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.defianttech.diskdigger
Diskdigger is specifically made for this purpose, and has helped me a lot in the past.
Hope you find this helpful :)


text:
How to block those annoying "Your device is infected" ads in Chrome without root
We all know and hate them: those annoying ads that pop up along the lines of "Your phone is infected! Click to fix!" How can I block them in Chrome?
I know that adblock exists for root, but I do not have (or plan to) root.  And unfortunately a lot of sites host these adds, so it's not as easy as blocking or avoiding a specific site.
Phone: Alcatel Onetouch Idol S, Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean.
EDIT
Device has root now.

No rooting significantly reduces available options. Be welcome to check my list of Ad-Blockers yourself (skip those with a "puzzle symbol" as they require root and Xposed).

Why is this question being downvoted? This looks like a legitimate question to me.

Now that device IS rooted, install Xposed and adaway module

@beeshyams Have. Try adding some fluff and putting it as answer, I prefer to give credit to others.

@DanB Many people do not like Xposed, and ad blocking can easily be achieved with root and without Xposed Framework. Adaway is one example that is included with many custom ROMs that eliminates a fair amount of ads and malware pop-ups. https://adaway.org/ The real answer is to stay away from sites that have these pop-ups, no legitimate site would have such ads.

Now that you are rooted, you have a host of options and can be free from Google's policy of removing Ad blocking apps from play store
Install Xposed for your Android version and then Adaway to block all ads. remember to keep updating hostfiles periodically

AdAway is a utility for root users used to help manage hostfile entries. AdAway doesn't directly block ads; it limits unwanted ads by blocking servers that distribute those ads to websites

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


text:
HTC One M9 Portable Wi-fi Hotspot
I have an HTC One M9, I can tether a laptop via USB cable, and an iPad via Bluetooth, but the Portable Wifi Hotspot will not allow connection from either. I have renamed the SSID and set a new access key, but still no joy. Any suggestions?
Chris

You should check the advanced settings for compatibility with the Security protocol between the devices. By default it should be Wpa2(aes). Change it and try parring again.
Advanced settings is in the top right corner in hotspot settings menu.
Regards.
P@pz


text:
Removing a contact from "Direct Share" panel
I just migrated to Android 6.0 and the 'Share to' panel has a new grey area on top of the various apps in which it puts contacts that, I assume, you pin there. This would be a good feature, except a contact ended up there and I can find no way to remove it. Is there one?
Specifically, the contact seems to have been put there by the Messenger app but there is no way to alter its pinning from the app, either.

Based on my experience, the contact is added because of sharing history with them, not because of specifically pinning them (similar to "App suggestions" on "Home screen", though it can be disabled in that case), but I agree there's no hint if it can be removed easily.

The rather interesting (...) aspect is that the specific contact was, originarily, a phone number to which I had sent exactly one SMS. I added it to a new contact in the hope of gaining a 'remove/delete' button/method... no such luck. OTOH, several contacts with which I have shared things a lot more do not appear.

I created a feature request on AOSP Issue Tracker: #194126. Consider starring it to follow the progress.

Update after a few days of using the phone: now the area has been taken over by whatsapp - which is well and good, except a) it only has WA contacts b) it shows some to which I haven't shared stuff in at least 12 months. So it seems like one app can take over the entire panel and at that point it simply shows some subset of its contacts on there? OTOH, messenger only ever put the one contact there.

Following up, it's been a (very) long while. The original defect sort of corrected itself insofar as with use, other contacts have taken the area over. The choice of which contacts get presented remains rather random and only loosely to frequency or recency of use.

Just to to app settings and clear cache just did it

For Messenger, or for something else?

@AndrewT.: Your link says No issue with id: 37070362 :'-(

@NicolasRaoul it seems it got merged to... a non-existent report. Probably the newer relevant report is #68931602

It turns out that - for rooted people - there is a way to completely turn off Direct Share!
For the short version skip to the bottom of this answer.
In my search for a way to stop this stupid feature from bugging me I had a look at how the feature is actually implemented in apps by developers. It turns out that they register a service with an intent receiver (read: event listener) and when I realized that, I started looking for a way to block certain intents from broadcasting through the system. Well, Android actually has that built in. It's called the Intent Firewall. I quickly figured out how to create a rule for it to block apps from receiving the "Hey are there any apps that want to bug the user by putting a couple of Direct Share buttons under their thumb as they're about to tap something?"-event.
You just create a simple xml file like and drop this into it:
<rules>
  <service block="true" log="true">
    <intent-filter>
      <action name="android.service.chooser.ChooserTargetService" />
    </intent-filter>
  </service>
</rules>

Now you have to put it on the phone and copy it into the Intent Firewall directory. On most devices that would be
/data/system/ifw/

I simply used Root Explorer to copy the file there (no chmod required), tried to share something that caused Direct Share targets to pop up and BOOM! Nothing!
I recommend to do some background reading (see links above), especially about how the Intent Firewall works and how you can find the folder.
Happy not-sharing!

I created a file called disable-direct-share.xml containing the exact XML content above, then copied it to the existing folder /data/system/ifw/ using Root Explorer, and... the annoying "Share via" individual contacts still appear, a few seconds after the apps. Rooted LineageOS, Android 7.1.2. Any idea? Thanks!

Hmm no I think that should work. This is the file I literally download and move to the folder: https://stor4ge.rejh.nl/_stored/var/android/system-images/motox-2014-xt1092/others/ifw-rule-directshare.xml

Thank you!! Based on your answer I created a repository with three ways to install this file: computerless on phone only, with adb, and finally with a flashable recovery zip file. See https://github.com/stefansundin/android-disable-direct-share

Great! I lost root with a recent security update so probably will be using this method again, soon

Some blatant self-promotion: I've built (actually, updated) an app that replaces the Android Share dialog. I guess Andmade Share and AppChooser are fine alternatives, too, but I've tried to have it look and feel like the native share dialog. Try it here: https://sharedr.rejh.nl

You can also apply this fix without root via TWRP. 1. copy the xml file somewhere. 2. reboot into recovery (TWRP). 3. Press Advanced > File Manager. 4. Find your file on /sdcard/, copy it. 5. open directory /data/system/ifw, paste 6. reboot back into system.

I would advise against this method in Android 10 (Q) - it worked fine through 9 (Pie) but in 10 it crashes the app you're trying to share from.

Go to settings. Click on Advanced Features. Scroll to "Direct Share". Turn it off and all contacts are gone from share via.
Image shows a before and after visualization of disabling Direct share.

Uh, I do not have Advanced Features in the settings menu? We're talking about the phone settings, right?

It worked for the Galaxy S7. So maybe this method is specific to Samsung phones? And yes, I found the "Advanced Features" in the phone settings menu, after "Display".

This was the exact answer that required barely any digging and not having to root the phone or anything drastic.

Could you please include a screenshot? Thanks a lot! :-)

Just searching for this option on an LG's Android gave me the result and it worked, I got rid of this annoying functionality.

This is not an android setting, it depends on your ROM manufacturer to implemented

You can disable the 'share via' menu by removing Messenger's permission to access your contacts. This isn't practical if you use Messenger as your primary SMS app, but if you use another app, it's fine.

This is not really a solution, is it?

This works if they only come from Messenger and user uses other SMS app as the default SMS app. The contacts can come from other apps too (in my case e.g. from 3rd party email app and Whatsapp), but disabling the contacts permission causes them to malfunction.

Currently. as of 6.0 there is no way of disabling direct share all together. Some apps may add an option to disable direct share for their apps though.

I'm actually fine with the feature - if it worked as intended, i.e. (I assume) put the 'most frequently shared to' contacts there. I'd welcome it. But there needs to be a way to edit the list. I should say - there needs to be an easy way to edit the list.

Currently the issue with it is that apps can add any contact and if multiple IM adds same person for example, they you are left with multiple methods of contacting same person. Taking up space above all. a tab at top to switch between people and apps is a better option in my opinion.

I discovered that if you block the contact in WhatsApp, it stops showing it in the share menu and in the new "frequent chats" section when you share or forward stuff.
However, when you unblock it, it's possible for it to show again in those two places.

For non-rooted and non Galaxy devices this is the only viable solution (if you don't mind blocking the contact of course).

I discovered that in the case of WhatsApp showing the offending contact on your direct share menu (i.e. your side chick when your girlfriend is looking), you can push that contact down and out of the list by sending attachments to other, more safer, contacts.
Since WhatsApp displays the last four people with whom you have shared something, share a photo with four other people, or as many contacts as needed to push the offending contact out of the top four.

The problem is, it's erratic. It might work, it might not. It might bring up people I actually interact with, it might not - it brought up a couple contacts I have not had interaction with in three years..

To successfully remove Outlook contacts from Share via menu, I did the following:-

Settings, Applications, Application Manager, Outlook, Permissions - uncheck all
Outlook, Gear icon, click account in question, uncheck Sync contacts, click RESET Account

This removed outlook email contacts from the Share Via menu. Outlook works as normal but is ring fenced from the rest of my phone.

This isn't really an answer to this question, but it's exactly what I was trying to do. So thanks for the answer!

This was what I was looking for too, and it worked but unfortunately it seems it was only a temporary solution. The Outlook contacts have returned.


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Dropping wi-fi calls from one access point to another
I have a long house, and must use two wireless access points to get full coverage. I also have terrible cell coverage so I often use wi-fi calling on my android phone to accommodate. However, when I walk from one side of the house to the other, the call often get muddled or even drops as I pass from what I believe is one zone of coverage into the other. Both of these access point are set for access point behavior only and go back to a home router and then out through our U-verse gigabyte connection. Signal strength throughout the house seems very strong. For home access points or on phones, is there some setting I need to throw to ensure the hand-off between access points happens seamlessly? I know there are some solutions out there that handle this, but I don't have the $$ to buy an enterprise class setup ... any direction is much appreciated.


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Moto E XT1022 Downgrade to Kitkat Issue
I've Moto E with Lollipop 5.1 updated. This Version of OS gives me troubles like Disables Networks, Doesnot go in Wifi Settings etc., since a week ago. Before that, its working good only. Warranty for this mobile also expired. So that, i have tried to install my Older 4.4.4 kitkat Version to my Moto E using this Tutorial.
Downgrade from Lollipop to KitKat for Moto E
I've done all those steps mentioned in the downgrade process. I've used the some resource files mentioned in that youtube page. But problem arised in the final process of Downgrade.
After formatting process, it gives me error that "Invalid Signed Image" & "Preflash Validation Failed". I Could not find out any solution for this issue. Now my phone has no OS. SO Can anyone suggest me to Boot OS to my Phone?
Any suggestions will be greatly helpful to me..

If you really want to downgrade your moto e to Kitkat. Then there are two option, one is install stock kitkat rom by this method and another one is flash a custom recovery like CWM or TWRP in your phone and then flash a zip distribution of a ROM that you like. But i'll recommend to follow second option because if you go for first option, then as you already mentioned that your current OS is Lollipop which updates the bootloader accordingly and if you go for kitkat then the bootloader may cause problem not always but there are chances and I have bricked my phone this way.Assuming you have moto e first gen. follow this link to install TWRP custom recovery.You can find your phone's flashable firmware from here. Do it with caution, hope you get your phone alive again.


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Marshmallow only displaying https sites
The network connection on my Nexus 6 with Android Marshmallow (rooted) is messed up, and right now the only pattern I can see is that only pages with HTTPS are displaying. I can supply a bug report.

A Log would be helpful here, and any more info would also be useful. E.g. Does this happen with the default browser or does it happen with other browsers (Chrome, Firefox, UC mini etc.). Any extra info will help us narrow down the problem and help you solve it.

@Matt0711 This happens with everything, even app's like Imgur or SoundCloud. I also tried Firefox (since I thought the HTTPS everywhere plugin would help)

Can you supply a [tag:logcat]

Did this happen recently or since you bought it? Or was there a moment when you didn't have this problem? If it was, can you remember what did you do to the device at that moment? Does this happen on WiFi and mobile data?

I have no idea if it happens with data, since my plan doesn't include data. The problem started a little while after upgrading to Marshmallow. Right now I'm trying to upload a logcat, but it'll take me a while

Don't know why, but changing the SIM card seems to have fixed it.


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Google Play Store - "An unexpected error has occurred. Please try again later"
Since Yesterday I have been getting this message from the google play store when ever I try to save something to my wishlist. This has occurred both on the app and the web version of the play store. This is a problem I would like to resolve as fast as I can.
My questions are:

Is there a workaround for the google play store app (Important)
Has this happened to anyone else or is just on my google account (Off topic as it is Android Independent, feel free to remove this part of the question)

The Cause of the Problem
The cause was that googles play store wishlist has a limit placed on it. The Limit is 100
(The info was gotten from Google Support)

The Fix (Very Simple)
On The Phone:

Open the Play Store app.
Go to the menu, My Wishlist, and tap the three-dot menu on the item.
Tap "Remove from wishlist" on the menu that shows up.

Or

Open the Play Store app.
Go to the menu then My Wishlist (Differs from here on compared to the top)
Click on the wanted item (that is the item you want to remove.
On the App page Click the wishlist button, this will remove the item from your wishlist

On The Computer:

Go to Google Play Wishlist
Click on an item you wanted removed
Once the page loads click the button that says "Added to Wishlist" (When you hover over this it says "Remove"). Once clicked the item is removed from the wishlist.

Well this happened to me when I used to install apps from playstore using a slow internet connection. For this I used to get the error notification in the notification bar. I used to long press the notification, goto app info, and 'Clear data' there. This used to work for me as playstore again syncs once opened. U can try if it works but recommend you not to clear data on other 3rd party apps as you may lose you data.

This is not just on the play store app, it also happens on the web version (launched on a computer). It still downloads perfectly fine, it just won't  add stuff to my wishlist. Also I have already tried this.


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How to remove an app that is a persistent device administrator
I received a Samsung GS5 as part of a program from Samsung in exchange for their recording device statistics through an app I installed. The program is over, and I have been notified that the app can be removed, but whenever I try to uninstall it I'm told that the app is a device administrator and therefore can not be removed.
I tried to remove the administrator status from the app (it's called Samsung Insights) but the option is greyed out. Does anyone have another method of removing admin status or uninstalling apps that have admin status?

Go into your phone's Settings and open Security. From there, tap Device administrators, and you should be able to turn it off from there.

The OP clearly stated that he already attempted this and it is blocked from this menu.

@EthanZ, the way I understood the question, the option is greyed out  inside the app menu while the poster here is talking about Settings -> Security -> Device Administrators.

Eh. Now that I look at it again, its hard to tell where he tried it. But in case it is grayed out, wouldn't ADB do the trick?

@Firelord i was correct. The option to disable decice admin is grayed out in the device admin section of settings according to an answer that should have been a comment

From Task manager go to downloads and click to uninstall. That should again lead you to device manager option of manage device admin apps and it  may  be possible now to see the option not greyed out
Another option if rooted, is to delete folder named after the app in /data /data. Next, search for apk file in device /system, delete it and reboot
If this doesn't work you could try uninstall through Titanium

This will not work. The restrictions are locked into knox and kernel, and uninstall will just remove the app, not remove the rest of the restrictions, if any.

That app is using the Samsung Knox api, which cannot be disabled by you. You need to reach whoever installed it and ask him to enable you permission to deactivate device admin. Another option would be wipe, if that is not locked too. You can check that by going into Setting - Backup and reset. If its grayed out, there is nothing you can do.
AS EXTRA, i can say the samsung api can lock device admin removal, factory reset from system and recovery and also flash through download mode and also safe mode.
I am using the same api in some of my apps and i know what that means. I cannot show now the link to it as Chrome is freezing on mobile. Will do when i get to my pc.
LE:
public boolean setAdminRemovable (boolean removable)
Usage
An administrator can set their removable status. If set to true, the user can remove the administrator through the Settings application. If set to false, the user cannot remove the administrator through the Settings application.
https://seap.samsung.com/api-references/android-standard/reference/android/app/enterprise/EnterpriseDeviceManager.html#setAdminRemovable(boolean)

IF you can not deactivate a device administrator boot into safe mode.
And try it I am pretty sure it will work and then you can uninstall it.

I had the same issue on a 7s edge with the latest Nougat update. Fixed the issue by resetting all settings. After that everything worked fine. No need for factory reset.

Samsung Insights app is required to participate in the Samsung Insights program (latest equipment at a 50% discount, etc).
You normally run it for 6-months to a year.
At that point, you have a Contact Support link you can press.
If you've run the app long enough to qualify for deactivation, it'll provide you with an e-mail link.  Click on it, go to your mail program, and send the message out.
They should send you back a code you can input to deactivate.