text:
temp root to acquire a .dd image of my android phone
I have a Sensation XE which is not rooted. (hboot 1.29, android 4.0.3)
I found a recovering method in the highest ranked answer in this post: How can I recover a deleted file on Android?.
From the above post, it's necessary to root my phone, but for some reasons, I don't want a permanently root.
Is it possible to follow steps 1~5 in this post
[GUIDE] Juopunutbear S-OFF NO HTCDEV UNLOCK | ROOT (1.2x HBOOTS)--NEW: ONE CLICK ROOT to temporarily root my phone, ...

1.get this temproot-sensation-windows zip file
TEMPROOT ZIP
2.Extract temproot-sensation-windows.zip into a directory on your computer.
3.Plug your HTC SENSATION/XE/4G into your computer via USB. (keep the connection in "charging" mode)
  Recommended: Plug your device’s USB cable into the back of your computer if you’re using a desktop PC.
4.Enable USB Debugging on your HTC sensation. Settings >> Develop Options >>USB debugging (checked)
5.Double click temp_root.bat to run the script and wait until it completes. Don't touch the device during the entire process.

and then follow the steps 1~3 in the highest ranked answer to recovery the deleted files in my phone?

Find out on which block device the file was on. Via mount
Acquire and image of that block device with dd: dd if=/dev/<blockdevice> of=/sdcard/image bs=4096

3.Get a data recovery forensics tool and let it search /sdcard/image for the lost file. You can of course try to run multiple tools on the image. Formemost and Scalpel are a good start.

If you try, you will find out. As long as you don't reboot the device between temp-rooting and image-aquiring, this should work I'd say.

You should be able to access some of the files on the internal hard drive. I think it will be next to impossible to get a full image of the hard drive without root. Android won't want you snooping in some of it's high-security folders like /boot


text:
Navigation app is on filesystem, but cant find it on Android
I have an Android navigation Navon Platinum Explorer with Adroid 4.0.
I reseted it to factory settings, and the navigation software, iGo Primo, disappeared from the list of applications.
However it is still on the filesystem.
How can I "recover" the application, so Android will see it?
I cant just reinstall it because of specific license files.

Which navigation app is causing you problems, Navon or iGo?

iGO Primo software

I backed up the filesystem to my computer and then downloaded and installed the original iGo Primo .apk file.
That did solve the issue.

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


text:
How to restore damaged Internal SD card partition layout? Tried everything
I have Samsung S 3 mini.
I did something really bad to my INTERNAL SD CARD partition layout.
As I remember correctly, I tried to repartition my External SD card via fdisk right on Android via 'adb shell'. And I delete existed (there was only one as I recall) partition on mmcblk0 (which is appears to be not an External, but Internal =)
Now I have:

~ # cat /proc/partitions
major minor  #blocks  name
 179        0    7634944 mmcblk0
 179       64       2048 mmcblk0boot1
 179       32       2048 mmcblk0boot0
 179       96    3866624 mmcblk1
 179       97    3862528 mmcblk1p1

~ # ls -la /dev/block/mmcblk*
brw-------    1 root     root      179,   0 Jan  1 10:30 /dev/block/mmcblk0
brw-------    1 root     root      179,  32 Jan  1 09:28 /dev/block/mmcblk0boot0
brw-------    1 root     root      179,  64 Jan  1 09:28 /dev/block/mmcblk0boot1
-rw-rw-rw-    1 root     root      16777216 Jan  1 10:07 /dev/block/mmcblk0p20
-rw-r--r--    1 root     root             0 Jan  1 10:07 /dev/block/mmcblk0p22
brw-------    1 root     root      179,  96 Jan  1 09:28 /dev/block/mmcblk1
brw-------    1 root     root      179,  97 Jan  1 09:28 /dev/block/mmcblk1p1

~ # df
Filesystem           1K-blocks      Used Available Use% Mounted on
tmpfs                   411756     16452    395304   4% /dev
/dev/block/mmcblk1p1   3858432   1473472   2384960  38% /external_sd

~ # mount
rootfs on / type rootfs (rw)
tmpfs on /dev type tmpfs (rw,nosuid,relatime,mode=755)
devpts on /dev/pts type devpts (rw,relatime,mode=600)
proc on /proc type proc (rw,relatime)
sysfs on /sys type sysfs (rw,relatime)
/dev/block/mmcblk1p1 on /external_sd type vfat (rw,nodev,noatime,nodiratime,fmask=0000,dmask=0000,allow_utime=0022,codepage=cp437,iocharset=iso8859-1,shortname=mixed,errors=remount-ro)

~ # tail ./etc/recovery.fstab
/system     ext4    /dev/block/mmcblk0p22
/cache      ext4    /dev/block/mmcblk0p23
/data       ext4    /dev/block/mmcblk0p25 length=-16384
/efs        ext4    /dev/block/mmcblk0p11
/boot       emmc    /dev/block/mmcblk0p20
/recovery   emmc    /dev/block/mmcblk0p21
/preload    ext4    /dev/block/mmcblk0p24
/modem      ext4    /dev/block/mmcblk0p12
/sdcard     datamedia   /dev/null
/external_sd    vfat    /dev/block/mmcblk1p1

~ # tail ./etc/fstab
/dev/block/mmcblk0p23 /cache ext4 rw
/dev/block/mmcblk0p25 /data ext4 rw
/dev/block/mmcblk0p22 /system ext4 rw
/dev/null /sdcard datamedia rw

~ # parted /dev/block/mmcblk0
GNU Parted 1.8.8.1.179-aef3
Using /dev/block/mmcblk0
Welcome to GNU Parted! Type 'help' to view a list of commands.
(parted) print
print
Warning: /dev/block/mmcblk0 contains GPT signatures, indicating that it has a
GPT table.  However, it does not have a valid fake msdos partition table, as it
should.  Perhaps it was corrupted -- possibly by a program that doesn't
understand GPT partition tables.  Or perhaps you deleted the GPT table, and are
now using an msdos partition table.  Is this a GPT partition table?
Yes/No?

My ClockWorkMod recovery tool can't mount anything (/cache, /system, nothing). This is what kind of stuff I get in CWM:

-- Wiping cache...
Formatting /cache...
Need size of filesystem
E:format_volume: make_extf4fs failed on /dev/block/mmcblk0p23
Cache wipe complete.
W:failed to mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p23 (Block device required)
E:Can't mount /cache/recovery/log
E:Can't open /cache/recovery/log
W:failed to mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p23 (Block device required)
E:Can't mount /cache/recovery/last_log
E:Can't open /cache/recovery/last_log
W:failed to mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p23 (Block device required)
W:Can't unlink /cache/recovery/command
Formatting /data...
warning: get_file_size: Computed filesystem size less than 0
Need size of filesystem
E:format_volume: make_extf4fs failed on /dev/block/mmcblk0p25
Error formatting /data!
W:failed to mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p23 (Block device required)
E:Can't mount /cache/recovery/log
E:Can't open /cache/recovery/log
As you can see, there is no partitions for /system, /cache and other stuff, that should be there. (but /system, and /cache folders are present in dir listing)

I really did everything I could. I tried: restore from backup (I have one, made with recovery tool), install new ROM (With recovery tool), install stock firmware and stock kernel in ODIN mode. I even tried some PIT file: nothing did absolutely nothing to my status.
Frankly I miss some important part in understanding of filesystem, partitions, images, what is ROM, what is stock kernel, how does those 22, 23 25 partitions are created etc ...
What should I do?
UPDATE!
Oh, looks like I have everything in console buffer (full history of distraction actions)
In the beginning I had this:
cat /proc/partitions
major minor  #blocks  name

   7        0       2111 loop0
 179        0    7634944 mmcblk0
 179        1        128 mmcblk0p1
 179        2        384 mmcblk0p2
 179        3       1024 mmcblk0p3
 179        4       1024 mmcblk0p4
 179        5        512 mmcblk0p5
 179        6        512 mmcblk0p6
 179        7        512 mmcblk0p7
 179        8        512 mmcblk0p8
 179        9       1024 mmcblk0p9
 179       10       1024 mmcblk0p10
 179       11      16384 mmcblk0p11
 179       12      16384 mmcblk0p12
 179       13      16384 mmcblk0p13
 179       14      51200 mmcblk0p14
 179       15         64 mmcblk0p15
 179       16      14336 mmcblk0p16
 179       17       2048 mmcblk0p17
 179       18       2048 mmcblk0p18
 179       19      16384 mmcblk0p19
 179       20      16384 mmcblk0p20
 179       21      16384 mmcblk0p21
 179       22    1228800 mmcblk0p22
 179       23     860160 mmcblk0p23
 179       24     327680 mmcblk0p24
 179       25    4945920 mmcblk0p25
 179       64       2048 mmcblk0boot1
 179       32       2048 mmcblk0boot0
 179       96    3872256 mmcblk1
 179       97    3868160 mmcblk1p1
 254        0       2110 dm-0
/ $ df
Filesystem               Size     Used     Free   Blksize
/dev                   402.1M    84K   402M   4096
/mnt/asec              402.1M     0K   402.1M   4096
/mnt/obb               402.1M     0K   402.1M   4096
/dev/shm               402.1M     0K   402.1M   4096
/system                  1.2G   414.5M   766.6M   4096
/modemfs                15.7M     4.3M    11.4M   4096
/cache                 826.8M    84.8M   742M   4096
/efs                    15.7M     4.5M    11.2M   4096
/preload               315M    64.2M   250.8M   4096
/data                    4.6G     4G   699.2M   4096
/mnt/.lfs: Function not implemented
/storage/sdcard0         4.6G     4G   699.2M   4096
/mnt/asec/com.spruds.transport.pro.tallin-1     2M   888K     1.1M   4096
/storage/sdcard1         3.7G   905.7M     2.8G   32768
Even before everything went wrong I tried to use parted command and get an error
~ # parted /dev/block/mmcblk0
GNU Parted 1.8.8.1.179-aef3
Using /dev/block/mmcblk0
Welcome to GNU Parted! Type 'help' to view a list of commands.
(parted) list
list
  check NUMBER                             do a simple check on the file system
  cp [FROM-DEVICE] FROM-NUMBER TO-NUMBER   copy file system to another partition
.....
.....
        copyright information of GNU Parted
(parted) print
print
Error: Unable to satisfy all constraints on the partition.
This is fdisk print before disaster
~ # fdisk /dev/block/mmcblk0

The number of cylinders for this disk is set to 954368.
There is nothing wrong with that, but this is larger than 1024,
and could in certain setups cause problems with:
1) software that runs at boot time (e.g., old versions of LILO)
2) booting and partitioning software from other OSs
   (e.g., DOS FDISK, OS/2 FDISK)

Command (m for help): p

Disk /dev/block/mmcblk0: 7818 MB, 7818182656 bytes
1 heads, 16 sectors/track, 954368 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16 * 512 = 8192 bytes

              Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks  Id System
/dev/block/mmcblk0p1               1      954368     7634943+ ee EFI GPT
Partition 1 does not end on cylinder boundary
And then I deleted it
~ # fdisk /dev/block/mmcblk0

The number of cylinders for this disk is set to 954368.
There is nothing wrong with that, but this is larger than 1024,
and could in certain setups cause problems with:
1) software that runs at boot time (e.g., old versions of LILO)
2) booting and partitioning software from other OSs
   (e.g., DOS FDISK, OS/2 FDISK)

Command (m for help): p

Disk /dev/block/mmcblk0: 7818 MB, 7818182656 bytes
1 heads, 16 sectors/track, 954368 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16 * 512 = 8192 bytes

              Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks  Id System
/dev/block/mmcblk0p1               1      954368     7634943+ ee EFI GPT
Partition 1 does not end on cylinder boundary

Command (m for help): d
Selected partition 1

Command (m for help): w
The partition table has been altered.
Calling ioctl() to re-read partition table
fdisk: WARNING: rereading partition table failed, kernel still uses old table: Device or resource busy
UPDATE 2
I can see difference from initial state. Now I have 4 heads instead of 1 and so 238592 cylinders instead of 954368. How do I change number of heads?

Have not used fdisk on android and would not touch it with a bargepole either! The internal NAND partitions are set by the factory, either fdisk is mis-reporting number of heads/cylinders on a internal partition...its a NAND chip after all...

I found it!
The answer was in PIT file, because as it says here:

you will only need to use this if a firmware update needs to change your partition layout (very very unlikely) or if you mess up you partition table (you don’t want to do this)

Which is definitely my case.
So, I tried that GT-I8190N and GT-I8190 should be used with different PIT files (I tried to use for GT-I8190 one). So I found long list of PIT files here.

How did you apply the PIT file to your device? Same here, tried with odin and getting re-partition failed error constantly. I also tried to repartition with and without a firmware, CDS file and PIT file alone. Nothing changed.

RECOVERING AN ANDROID DEVICE WITH BOOTLOOP OR STUCKED IN LOGO
Compilation by: Julian Lopez
2017-05(May)-08
I had similar problems, but the internal memory in my phone GT-i9003 is defective. I've used all pits without success. Maybe this procedure helps you, some of them are complex but safe:
Requirements:

An android device stucked in the logo (but with fully OS started), to
work with ADB and CWM-Recovery, better if had the android developer
options active and usb conection in comunication mode (also known as kies, MTP,  debug, etc) not in usb-data mode
Data Cable USB  Pc with highspeed USB port available
Updated Device Drivers
ADB and fastboot platform tools(windows) for manual backup and restore...
ADBD info sources: thanks for sharing the knowledge to Rotohammer [ADB Roto backup - manual backup] and Amalautpavathas [ADB android tips]
Another operative and identical device (very convenient)
A Good+original 16GB and above Class10 (forget about class4) MicroSDCard (I've had some problems with generic 32GB and bigger), prepared with a standard-fat32 partition which is limited to a maximum of 4gb for each files, but it works to backup. It's very important, to create in the root of the microSDcard a empty text file called DO-NOT-INSTALL-THIS.zip just for reference and identificacion from inside Recovery). The usb ota usually is not recognized and we require permanent USB conection with PC.

Extract :
If the device is in bootloop or stucked in logo but active by ADB, after the logical and basic options  follow this procedure to clone and restore manually (via command dd) the defective partition:
Warnings

Discard of all responsabilities about the use and abuse of this information
Please read the tutorials about ADB and android
Don't wipe with the MicroSDcard in, you can lost all data in without notice, every reboot/odin change/CMW mount and storage action, can change the mount point of the sdcard
When working on ADB; exit of the shell and use remount frequently.
When you can't access files get root access (CMW - root/unroot option).
Keep a list of files and mount points before proceeding, after every copy keep an eye on available capacity with df -k command in Kbytes and df command in blocks, with ls -al command you have a record of permisions in format xrwxrwxrw (an initial cap or - for type, x execute, r read, w write, in 3 tiers -user-group-others. Use  chmod to change command) and owners of files . This tip avoid 50% of the errors using file copy, or changing files in the device.
Take full information about the device (imei, macs, software versions, fw, updates, special app, register full versions and date of installation, specially backup software)

 Actions
1.-With no external memory (MicroSDcard out, because some kernels and tools exchange the external memory with internal without advice) save a layout of the partitions. Important info is; start block, end block, filesystem type, block device name, order and mount point(path). Yes using ADB fdisk but without change anything.
2.- To take a manual backup of every partition (and specially, individual backup of the folder /efs, where is the imei and mac addresses for wifi, BT, etc) in the defective device with ADB and "dd" command (be careful with the available space after every backup), Repeat the same procedure in a good identical-device. transfer this backup to your PC and to a microSDcard (yes both)... Don't insert into the device. It requires:

Folder in windows explorer with \ADB and FastBoot-platform-tools-latest-windows\platform-tools, (no installation required)
The device must be conected to the PC via usb cable and detected with the right drivers )
We must to write (yeah i heard you, with the keyboard) in a CLI (Command Line Interface) known in Microsoft as CMD (Command line); go to Windows Explorer, open the black box by selecting CMD option with a simultanoeus combination of keyboard left [SHIFT] key and mouse's right click on a empty space inside the folder. In order to get the option CMD in the menu, avoid selecting or marking anything inside de windows explorer.  Use this manual till Roto restore Section, Rotohammer ADB Roto backup - manual backup

3.- To create with (ADB) fdisk the missing partition(s) matching all the original characteristics (start block, end block, block numbers-size, fs type).
4.- With the device turned off (battery out), insert MicroSDcard
5.- Start your device in Recovery mode (CWM), go to Install ZIP from SDCARD if you can see the text file with extention .ZIP prepared in last point of requirementes (DO-NOT-INSTALL-THIS.zip), you can restart the device. In any other way go to -- mount and storage -- dismount everything and mount the prepared MicroSDcard, repeat with internal Sdcard, emmc, usb  till you can see the zip file. Restart the device in normal mode (maybe only logo is visible).
6.- Connect the device to the pc, via usb and activate CMD from ADB to copy the partition-backup to one internal device's filesystem out of the MicroSDCard. turn the device off, extract battery, extract the microSDcard, and turn the device on. Proceed with one of this alternatives to Restore
6a.- The easier way, warranty proof use the original brand's emergency software restore, KIES's and ODIN for samsung, MTP for chineses brand, etc.
6b.- The easy way, if you only have a bootloop, start device with another tested good MicroSDcard, failures on external memory happens and app crash if they were moved to bad microSDcard. If this Doesn't work, start with no MicroSDcard in recovery mode, Wipe data/factory reset and wipe cache. Still on failure?, move on with the guide..
6c.- Because this method works with an image of partition on any android, any devices and brand, this make it independent of configurations (special filesystem types and assignations, mount point, vold.fstab, fota.rc, init.goldfish.rc, init.d's files, corruption of internal memory, failures in apps like link2SD and viruses). Start making an image of defective partition (via ADB + command dd) and all of them for congruency, make another from the image of a good device, and if the affected partition es /system or /, take a copy of the original /efs folder (this could be important later in case of the imei and MAC don't match with the hardware, consult your brand for imei location). Solution By: Rotohammer (same link), etc... Save it into the PC, in the MicroSDcard and the cloud.
6d.- Is your device still in warranty by the provider or by the CreditCard?
 (an available warranty, not the type Pluto during an eclipse's warranty), don't hesitate, go for it... The backup will keep safe your data and you can send it to RMA after a deep wipe and clean...
6e.-For Easy solution [Flashable Filesystem Check and Repair Tool | HTC Desire - XDA][3] ... With ADB you can install and run APK, or run /sbin/fsck,   /sbin/fsck, /sbin/fsck.ext4. Note: some root filesystems keep older type (raiser, ext2, etc)
6f.- Restore from CWM backup or your favorite app
6g.- Use your original emergency restore software, Kies, mtp, etc.
7.- Restart, first time waiting for the autocheck of the filesystem and second time to verify the operation.
8.- In case of boot errors, boot in download mode, use the right versions of firmware update program (like Samsung's ODIN and MTP) to apply the right PIT (partition information table) with repartition checked. If the failure persists, apply the full original STOCK ROM to verify.
9.- In case of IMEI errors, proceed with solutions:  ( forum.samdroid.ne t /attachments/f28/2082d1281453181-complete-imei-restore-how-bml10.img.zip)
10.- for internal memory errors check this  [2]: http://amalautpavathas.blogspot.com/2013/08/
Disclaimer
This is an individual and personal compilation so, i sincerely hope this extract help someone, sometime, somewhere, but... Myself nor anybody will take responsibility for any actions you take using these instructions or applications. ROM flashing can void your warranty and should be the last option. Please proceed with caution and at your own accord and risk.
Flashing will completely erase your device's memory. Make a backup of everything you need, for this objective i present more than 3 backup options, please use it all of them.
If you want to flash a cooked ROM you need a patched SPL. How to do that is described in forum.xda-developers main page
You also can flash the ROM directly from the microSD-card! The guide is found here forum.xda-developers
SPECIAL THANKS TO THE KNOWLEDGE´S PEOPLE
This is my very first post, so i have not permitted to include more people and sources, please excuse me, my invisibles partners not included at this list:
(forum.xda-developers
(amalautpavathas)
(samdroid)

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


text:
Cannot turn on Wifi. MAC address unavailable
I have an Android 4.0.4 tablet, Navon Platinum Explorer.
When I try to turn on wifi, the toggle button goes "off" after a few seconds automatically.
It doesnt even show the list of available networks.
In Wifi-Advanced, there is MAC Address - Unavailable.
The Wifi worked before doing a factory reset.
I also tried turning the table off and on, but it did not help.
What can I do to make the wifi work again?
I do not want to root the tablet.

At least related: Stuck on “Turning Wi-Fi on…”

I have no idea why,
but rebooting second time and trying to turn off/on the wifi icon on the homescreen several times did finally work.

I too had the same issue after I flashed a new kernel to my HTC Vivid. My Wi-Fi always showed "Turning on" but never did, and my MAC address showed "Unavailable".
Turns out the problem was as simple as a faulty file in the Android system.

Try finding and replacing the file named bcmdhb.ko located in /system/lib/modules. (You'll need root access and a root file explorer)
Download the appropriate file for your phone, boot your phone into recovery/fastboot and plug it into your computer.
Now using CMD and adb enter the command:
adb push /users/<USER_NAME>/Desktop/bcmdhd.ko /system/lib/modules

(replace <USERNAME> with your username in computer)
To save time, I moved all my ADB files to the same folder as my bcmdhb.ko and any other phone related file boot.img's, and more.
Hold Shift and right click a random spot inside the folder and select the option "Open Command Window Here". That starts your CMD operation right from the location you need, rather than ever having to cd to that location.
Note that doing the shortcut I mentioned does not mean you only type adb push bcmdhd.ko. You still need to tell CMD what location to push the file too. So you still have to type adb push bcmdhd.ko /system/lib/modules.

You wrote "Quoted" at the end. I assume you forgot to mention the source from where you learned these steps. Please mention it now.

The app Blade Wifi Fix fixes this issue on a lot of phones.


text:
power button defect: how do I turn my device on
Recently my power button stopped working, meaning that it does not accept any input. With Cyanogenmod, it was easy to add easily accessible buttons in the notification area to turn the screen off.
However I fear the time when the phone is turned off some time in the future (maybe through 0% battery level). How do I turn the device on?
I hesitate opening the device (which I've done before) because of this very same situation. I'm not sure if the button is repairable, so I'd very much like to have a backup plan to turn it back on (since for opening the device, the battery must be removed).

I don't have a real answer for you, but some related readings which might prove helpful: How can I boot my Nexus S with a broken power button? / Power button stopped on my Nexus S / The power button on my Galaxy Nexus stopped working

If it's a hardware defect, I would suggest sending it to a service center for repair. You could plug it to a portable power bank so it lasts longer. But before you do that, you might want to back up your data to your PC or somewhere else first.

Is there another stackexchange platform more suitable?

Btw I actually think it's on topic related to Android. There might be some software solution mapping the home button to power up the device. Should be fairly simple, especially with CyanogenMod.

@stefan You're right. I removed my comment. So, what you're looking for is how to remap your power button.

Power button cannot be mapped as that is physical and the kernel has the input driver mapped to the pin used to activate the power itself... just saying :) A more appropriate answer is if its under warranty get it fixed by the service center :)

"plug into charger or computer while u press power button + vol down + home when the os screen"
Should be without power button pressing because power button does not work.
But when this is followed it DID WORK! Thanks!
(exiting firmware menu boots the phone)
Worked with Galaxy Note 3.

Should work on almost any samsung device

Really this should be the accepted answer

User1504... Was on the right track kinda. If you can remove your battery this solution worked for my s3 with a broken power button.

Remove battery or turn off device some how (can use adb I believe. If you need some help with that lmk) if completely dead let it charge for a bit (5% ish maybe more) then unplug it and continue
Insert battery if you removed it
Plug the phone into a charger
Immediately after plugging in phone hold down the Volume down button and home button.

It should ask you if you want to continue to download mode by pressing the Volume up button or to restart device by pressing the Volume down button.
You want to press the Volume down button to restart the device.
Hope this helps. The broken power button on my s3 happened to fix it self some how but before it did I removed it since it kept rebooting. Anyways this should work wish you the best.

This worked on my phone. Take off the back to have quick access to the battery. Plug in the phone to charge it. When the green battery icon is showing the phone is charging, QUICKLY unplug the phone, remove the battery, then reinstall the battery. You must do it as fast as possible.
An odd thing, but it works.

plug into charger or computer while u press power button + vol down + home when the os screen comes up is will ask you if you want to continue press vol or exit press vol down you press vol down to exit phone will boot up

But the problem is that power button doesn't work.

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


text:
regularly refresh Chrome tab
I have a Transformer Prime TF201 which I sit next to my main pc to display a webpage that shows stats about the systems I work on.
However this page is a bit rubbish for updating and will time out and log off and generally just not work all that well (its a home made iframe that just shows data from other sites).
On a windows system elsewhere I used a line of VBS to, effectively, hit F5 every 30 seconds and this basically resolved all the issues.
Can anyone think of a way to do this on Android?

Adding extensions will solve this type of requirements.
But Chrome for android does not support any extensions yet.
Look at the Chrome for Android FAQ
Or else you can use Dolphin Browser to achieve this.   It supports extensions.
If you are willing to use Dolphin Browser instead of Chrome, use this Auto Reload Extension.
You can set time intervals in it.

No problem at all using Dolphin, just never had a reason until now. Thanks


text:
Is it possible to use the Maps app to save a location and give it a name so that all the saved locations appear as a layer?
This seems like a option that should exist in the Maps location app but I cannot seem to find it.
Backstory: My previous phone was a Windows Phone. On this phone the default location app HERE Maps showed maps. Long pressing an area on the map area gives an address which if tapped would allow to name the place and mark it as favorite. All the favorites would show up on the map above the base layer.
Now: The Maps app with the android phone has a similar option. Long pressing the map area will give the address of an area. Tapping the address allows you to mark it as a favorite. And all the favorites show up on the map. However it is missing the option to name a place to show up on the map. Is there anyway this can be done with the Maps app?

It's possible to create a personal layer in Google Maps and have it show up in the Maps app. You can create a pin, and label it. However, you will only see pins on the app. But once you click on the pin, you will see your custom text.
Google Maps site. Log-in to Google Maps in Desktop mode (a PC maybe?). At the top left beside the Get directions button, click the My Places button. Then, click the red Create Map button. Give your map a title, add some pins (and custom text) on it, then click the Done button.
Google Maps app. If the app is open, close it and open it again. Once open, click the Layers button at the bottom right. Click My Maps and your list of custom maps will show up, together with the pins you put up.
See if that's a suitable workaround.
Update: The My Maps option of Google Maps has been discontinued. As of 12th December 2013, a new app, the Google Maps Engine android app has features similar to My Maps option that allows you to create maps from the Google Maps Engine site. This app lets you see it the created maps and layers.

Works for me. If this is the only way now, it means that every time I go to a place, I've to record it as a favorite and come back to a desktop and place the app on my map to give it a name.


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Making a NANDROID backup of a device with broken touchscreen
This is the first of a series of questions about "the broken tablet saga". Basically I have an Acer A500 with broken touchscreen to get ready for warranty. I won't ask all of my questions in a single topic.
I want to make a full backup of my tablet without using the touchscreen. The tablet is rooted.
How do I - without using the touchscreen - make a NANDROID backup of it to be restored on the replacement device Acer will hopefully send to me? (Or just to restore the repaired tablet)
I currently don't have the device in my hands. I suppose it is equipped with the classic ClockworkMod recovery. As a backup plan, I would like to know what can I do to install ClockworkMod without touchscreen support.
I'll have the device in my hands in a few hours. I would like to be prepared for that (including downloading any additional software or firmware from an unlimited data connection)
[Update] I must install CWM without using Acer Recovery Installer. I can't find a link to a binary and instructions on how to flash a recovery (there are plenties of tutorials for download mode on Samsungs)

What recovery are you using? Presumably the touch recovery variants or the plain old Clockwork Mod Recovery?

@t0mm13b question updated. I suppose the plain old Clockwork or the stock

The "classic CWM" does not even support the touch screen. It is operated solely via hardware keys -- usually the volume up/down keys to navigate, and the power button to confirm actions. On devices featuring a trackball (as the "classic htc-wildfire for example), this can be used as well to scroll the menus and confirm actions.
Note that there's also a touch-enabled CWM available -- but that's not the "classical one".
However, if your device comes from the manufacturer, it is not equipped with clockworkmod, but with a stock recovery. Stock recovery does not support nandroid backups. So you would first need to flash the recovery in order to use that. Depending on the device, there may be different installation instructions (and different requirements), so make sure to check that first. CWM would then replace the existing "3e" recovery located on the /recovery partition, but should leave the other parts (e.g. your /data and /system) intact.

Need a more concrete answer - the stock recovery is very different to CWM (Clockwork Mod) in that stock recovery cannot do what CWM can do!
As for asking what can I do to install ClockworkMod without touchscreen support you will have to re-flash the device with a custom boot/recovery/system, inevitably you will lose everything when that's carried out.
I could suggest, let the device boot up, and try get a rom-dumper tool installed into /data/local/tmp by way of shell script or similar tool that will save the data that would be compatible with Clockwork Mod (Disclaimer: you are on your own here), you are rooted anyway at least! :)

I cannot remember that installing CWM lost me a single thing. Why should it flash /system? CWM is a recovery, and thus goes to /recovery. It might touch /boot, but it certainly will not overwrite /system.

CWM comes with custom ROM and custom boot, they are usually tied in together. As for flashing CWM, boot loader needs to be unlocked :)

Since when does CWM come with a Custom ROM? I have CWM on multiple devices. My ROMs where never touched, just the "3e" recovery got replaced (could it be you confuse "CWM" (ClockworkMod) with "CM" (CyanogenMod) here?). The part concerning the bootloader, however, most likely is correct -- if it is locked, that is. Not all devices ship with a locked bootloader :)

Not confusing with CM! :) To flash a custom recovery requires unlocked boot, in order to "get in" at it to do it, generally :) And in order to "get in" requires a unlocked boot loader...

Unlocked bootloader yes, full ack as I wrote. But you will not have to re-flash the device with a custom boot/recovery/system (at least /system is wrong here). But instead of a lengthy discussion here, we better settle that in chat, if you don't mind, and then just add the results back here?

I actually need to find out how to flash CWM since it's not installed at this time and installing it on a rooted device requires an app, which ultimately requires touchscreen


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2G disconnects Frequently
I have Intel XOLO (X900), I use a Airtel data connection(India). The network in my mobile 2G
disconnects whenever I go home(at home there is poor network coverage). After I come out of my house, still the 2G is not enabled,even after enabling the mobile data multiple times.
Every time I had to switch off the mobile and then start to get the 2G connection.
Any idea on what's wrong?

Are you the only one experiencing this? How about other people who are on the same network in your area? Are they also getting poor signal?

It is not your Device problem, It is Airtel's Problem. Airtel.in website was on off because of server down.
And the problem you are facing is very common, As i am also suffering from that and here some more. I would suggest you to disable your data connection whenever your network circle is changing. Like while you are travelling.
But the solution of this problem is nowhere and can be solved by airtel only.
FYI : I have a vodafone sim too and it is working perfectly.

Most of us are experiencing the same issue,
Sometimes in home there is no packet data, only city areas we are having great connectivity,
This is because of Heavy network traffic, Load on serves which they are not able to transfer to another Base Station,
If you observe carefully at peak hours your network will be down as between 6 to 10...
It's not device fault it's most probably Service provider/Mobile company's fault and Indian govt.. due to poor devices/setup less satellites for telecommunication & more number of peoples in one network


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How can I change the data usage cycle day for Wi-Fi?
Changing the starting day for Mobile data was already non-obvious as shown in this answer.
Now, how can I change the day of month for Wi-Fi usage as well? Currently, I have the following cycles cycles:

Jun 6 - Jul 4
May 9 - Jun 6
Apr 11 - May 9
Mar 14 - Apr 11

I would like to change these to:

Jul 1 - Jul 4
Jun 1 - Jun 30
Etc.

How can I do that? I am running Android 4.2.2, Cyanogenmod 10.1 from git. This is a longstanding issue that I experienced with ICS too.

This is not possible now because these limits can only be changed if the connection has a data quota set (such as for Mobile). Wi-Fi connections do not have such a policy set. For technical details, see the src/com/android/settings/DataUsageSummary.java file.

Was looking for how to set the mobile data cycle start date so thanks for that. Might be worth adding that as a separate question and supplying your own answer. I'd+1 that.

@pelms done, it also appears that 4.3 is still affected...

On the Android data usage screen WIFI cycle is 4 weeks versus Mobile which is calendar months (I am looking at a Samsung S4  AOS 5.0.1). Is that the same behavior on Cyanogenmod?
I think OP would be trying to compare calendar months Mobile vs WIFI usage,. Telcos typically bill by calendar months.

@ScottR Yes, CM also shows Wi-Fi usage per four months, this was also still the case with CM 13.0.

Drop down selections are 3 cycles for Mobile and four cycles for WIFI. @Lekensteyn did you mean a cycle for WIFI is 4 weeks?

@ScottR yes, four weeks, not four months :p

I wouldn't use a stock app to do this. I have tried using the stock app to do data managing and it's really not that great. My Data Manager - Data Usage is a great app that will do fine for your situation. It is free of course, so nothing to lose.
Here is their YouTube video if you want to just check it out.

Have you tried a profile management app like SwiP, Tasker or Condi? These should give you more control over your Wifi schedule.

Not sure if this is the answer that the OP wants... these are automation apps, which might be useful if OP asked how to manage WiFi data usage; but he didn't.

Change your phone's date to the the start of the next month and restart your phone
It should show
1 - 31 march
1 - 30 april
1 - 31 may
Etc


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How to hard-reset samsung galaxy ace
I am trying to reset the phone, and when I reach the Android menu, I have a yellow alert at the bottom: can't access to /system/csr/PTR/system
Any ideas what should I do?
Thanks :)

turns out it's not really bothering the process, so I'm fine, thanks.

To hard reset samsung galaxy ace,

Turn off your phone
Press and hold volume up, home, power button at the same time.
The Recovery appears, use volume up/down to navigate, power to select
Navigate to wipe data/factory reset and select
Navigate to Yes - delete all user data and select

And now resetting... (Make a backup of your phone first)
Navigate to reboot system now and select to get out of recovery.

Here is a guide for resetting the Samsung Galaxy Ace:

http://forum.gsmhosting.com/vbb/f777/guide-samsung-galaxy-ace-hard-reset-1247841/

If you are a fan of YouTube, here is a video that has the same info:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhyKJInJOPM

It is basically the same way you reset all of the Android devices:

Settings --> Privacy --> Factory Reset --> Reset --> Yes, Erase everything

You might want to try to see if you can update your OS before you do a factory reset, just to make sure an update wouldn't fix the problem.


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mobile network problem after jellybean upgrade
I upgraded my sony tipo dual to jellybean using cyangenmod 10 using this tutorial. I was able to do most of the things without any problems.
But after upgrade I am unable to connect to mobile network. Even unable to save APNs in the phone. I tried restore factory settings. I tired to set my network APN to default but am entirely unable to save my APNs (any APNs). I tried re-installing the whole process again. But nothing has helped yet.

Although the Sony Xperia Tipo is listed by FreeXperia as a supported device, the Tipo Dual isn't. It's not clear from the site, so it may simply be that (the unofficial port of) Cyanogenmod can't access the SIM cards in that device.

Added the fact that there seems to be no straight Dual-SIM API on Android, and each manufacturer uses his own variant of working around that, this seems to be the crucial point indeed.


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Where does Google MyTracks store recorded files?
I am not 100% sure of this but I seem to remember that in previous versions of MyTracks the recorded files were stored at /mnt/sdcard/MyTracks. But this does not seem to be the case any more. By previous I mean version prior to at least version 2.0.4 which is what I currently have.
I have recorded several tracks but can't find the files at /mnt/sdcard/MyTracks. In fact there is no such folder name on that location. So where does it store recorded files now? I need the GPX files.
I tried searching for "mytrack" and also "mytracks" (case insensitive) in File Expert app at /mnt/sdcard but it found no folders. It did find some files.
com.google.android.maps.mytracks
/mnt/sdcard/android/data/com.google.android.maps.mytracks

cache_vts_com.google.android.maps.mytracks.0
/mnt/sdcard/android/data/com.google.android.maps.mytracks/cache/

And additional 4 files in the same location. But I can't see any GPX files in here. Attempting to search at root causes File Expert process to crash.

@AlEverett Thanks! I was going to create a new tag by the name "google-mytracks" but my reputation score was not enough. So I had to use the generic "google" tag. Thanks for the edit! I have made a wiki for this new tag.

I'm still not sure where actual MyTracks data is stored. I think it's stored somewhere in the internal memory, not in the external memory. But I have found a way to export the GPX data.

Start MyTracks.
Press Menu button.
Tap "Save all to external storage".
Tap "Save as GPX".

Saved x tracks to /mnt/sdcard/MyTracks/gpx.

At least some of the data for Google MyTracks is stored at /data/data/com.google.android.maps.mytracks. But to view /data/data you need to enable the root explorer in the phone and you need root access.
To enable root explorer in File Expert:

Start File Expert.
Press Menu button.
Tap More.
Tap Settings.
Tap File Explorer Settings.
Check Root Explorer option.

For this to work you need root access on the phone, i.e. the phone needs to be rooted. Also, sometimes you will need to mount the file system as writable, and you can do this too within the app settings.
(I tried the same thing with ES File Explorer but I was unable to even view the root folder / with it, it was only able to view /sdcard. So therefore I recommend using File Explorer instead.)

Here's a Google Support article on the subject: https://support.google.com/gmm/answer/2391540?hl=en&ref_topic=2391064

Be sure to check Google Drive because the app can store/sync to the "My Tracks" folder.

I think track data is stored in mytracks.db rather than in any type of GPS file. This database is located at the below path. (root required to pull it out)

/data/data/com.google.android.maps.mytracks/databases/mytracks.db (and
  its -journal file)

You can view it by a SQLite tool such like SQLite Expert, and find detailed data of each track.
Recently, the touch panel of my mobile device was broken during recording. That's why I'm here...
In conclusion I have copied the database simply to the other device, and then all tracks were recovered including the unfinished track.
Steps:

Install MyTracks on the new device.
Pull mytracks.db and mytracks.db-journal from the old device.
Put mytracks.db and mytracks.db-journal into the new device,
overwrite the original files.
Launch MyTracks on the new device. All tracks are recovered.

Finally, if you'd like to get GPX files, export them manually as your own answer mentioned. It might be the only way I know.

I think root requirement can be circumvented if you take adb backup of that app and extract it to retrieve the relevant .db file.

On my Galaxy S4 running My Tacks 2.0.10 the pictures taken with the app end up in this directory in the camera's memory (not the SD Card):
MyTracks\pictures

There are subdirectories created for each track that I've taken pictures on. They are named MyTracks123, MyTracks134, etc.
The full path of the main directory appears to be:
/storage/emulated/0/MyTracks/pictures

These pictures are automatically synced to my other devices where I have My Tracks installed. This means I'll have to stop taking pictures on a track from within My Tracks. I also don't like that I can't tell My Tracks to put the pictures on the SD Card. Oh well, easy enough to just take the pictures outside of My Tracks.
I also do not see the pictures being synced up to the My Tracks directory on my Google Drive. Just the .kmz files seem to be synced there.


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How to change language in Skype
I installed Skype on my Samsung Galaxy Tab, and need change default English language.
How to change Skype Tablet interface language from English to other (French, for example)?

Skype for Android uses your tablet's default language. From their support site:

Skype for Android is currently available in [32 different] languages (based on your phone’s or tablet’s language setting).

What language is your tablet set to? To check (or to change it) go to Settings > Language & input. It does not look possible to change the language used by Skype without changing it for the whole tablet.

there is actually a way to do so, make sure that the source file your downloaded sourcefile is in the language you requested, ie downloading Skype_3.1.0.6458 in your case

This is about an Android app, not downloading the Skype app for Windows.

Does not exist yet the only way is to decompile the application
Then change each line written in .apk/res/
The folders i found in resources of skype app
anim   drawable       drawable-hdpi-v11  drawable-land       drawable-land-ldpi
drawable-ldpi     drawable-mdpi      drawable-mdpi-v9  drawable-port       drawable-
port-ldpi  drawable-xhdpi      drawable-xhdpi-v9  layout-land  menu      raw
color  drawable-hdpi  drawable-hdpi-v9   drawable-land-hdpi  drawable-land-mdpi  drawable-
ldpi-v9  drawable-mdpi-v11  drawable-nodpi    drawable-port-hdpi  drawable-port-mdpi
drawable-xhdpi-v11  layout             layout-port  menu-v11  xml
or try sending them an email at: skypeuploader@googlemail.com


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How to enable Wifi on an AVD
How can I enable WiFi on an AVD? I am emulating the Android version 2.3.3 API 10 and when I click WiFi in the phone settings menu it just says 'error'.

This is a duplicate of the StackOverflow question Enabling Wifi on Android Emulator, but is also on topic here for Android Virtual Device users.

Some useful answers here :
How to connect android emulator to the internet - Stack Overflow Disabling the LAN card worked for me.

You should just be able to connect your computer to wifi and then the emulator will use your computer's wifi connection. The AVD is just an emulation of an android device. The AVD uses your computer's hardware to simulate the hardware of a real device the best that it can.
The AVD will also be 'connected to 3G/4G' if you are connected through Ethernet.
Edit:
When I tried this myself on my own editor, it appears that you can't enable wifi on the emulator, it will always be set to '3G' or '4G'. If you want to enable Wifi for development purposes, you should just use a real device. There is no way to enable wifi on the android emulator. This question has been asked on StackOverflow:

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/7876302/enabling-wifi-on-android-emulator

when you put some thought to it, you can't really have wi-fi on an AVD, for wi-fi to actually work you need some hardware that accepts and transforms open air radio-waves to digital data. not something you can emulate.
either just settle for plain data transfer or use a physical device.


text:
Required to Reboot my Android Device Every Week?
When I got my first Android phone (the rugged HTC Inspire), I was told that I should restart the device every week. The rational, which made sense at the time, was that it's a small computer and every computer needs a soft reset, right? Over time, my phone needed it from continual app crashes but it took forever to do so. Overall, it did help to restart
I've recently upgraded to the HTC One and, from what I can tell, I don't need to restart this thing every week. It's run for a couple weeks on end without problems (one app-hangup what wasn't fixed with a restart) and although my usage isn't intensive, it's getting heavier.
Is it a good idea to restart my Android device after a certain period of time or does it not do anything at all. I'm not so much worried about harming the device but just keeping all of my info current without needing to open up half-dozen apps every time.
EDIT: Sorry if this comes as a duplicate question. I tried looking around for other answers but my particular question related to normal/periodic rebooting not related to a slow-down of the OS or other apps. Most questions regarding rebooting of an Android device revolved around either a slow OS or apps hanging and not necessarily answering my question.


text:
Edit out a part of an audio file
How can I cut out a particular portion of the song and play the rest of the song?
for example my song is of 4 minutes and 11 seconds and I want to remove the section from 2:04 to 3:30 and play from 0:00 to2:03 and then continue from 3:31 and end at 4:11
I hope you got my problem can anyone help me with this?

How is this an Android-related question? Wouldn't you do that on a computer, using tools like Audacity, for more comfortability?

You can use an app like WavePad Audio Editing App. It is said to have the ability to work with multiple audio files. If you do not mind adverts, there is a free version for this software as well.

@John Yes, you are mistaken :) The app supports .mp3 files

+1 seems like a better quality app then the MP3 Cutter.

If it is an MP3 file, then you can use MP3 Cutter.
It's free on the Play Store. If you need one for a different file format, let me know and I will find you a solution that supports that audio format.


text:
Can downgrading OS make Xperia Neo V, boot after a boot loop
My Neo V MT11i was upgraded to ICS a few days ago. Today when I turned on bluetooth, it started to reboot repeatedly.
I tried to hard reset using sets of button as posted in some blogs but still I can't access it.
Is there any solution? Does downgrading to Gingerbread solve the problem?

Here is a forum post, the OP has a similar problem to the one you have:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2151177

He said that he just flashed his device with the stock firmware and it fixed the problem, so it's worth a try.

Here is the flash tool:

http://androxyde.github.com

4.1.B.0.587 Firmware ftf file:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=33295129

You can try to use Sony's own Update Service. It's very easy to use, and you can chose the Android version you wish to install if I'm remembering it right.


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Unable to access files in Samsung Galaxy Android 4.0
I am connecting a Samsung Galaxy Note II(Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich) to Ubuntu 12.04 laptop through USB. I am able to see the directories like Music, files, Bluetooth, ShareViaWiFi etc. I also see a message at the top right corner which says "These files are on a digital audio player" but when I open these directories I am unable to see any file. I want to copy a media file located in ShareViaWiFi folder to my Ubuntu laptop. But I am unable to see the file when I open the folder in Ubuntu. I can see the file in the Samsung Galaxy, so I know it is there for sure.

Are you a pretty linux-savvy ubuntu user? If you are, you can mount the phone's internal hard drive to your system and then access it through terminal.

I tried the command 'df -h' but the samsung storage does not show up in the output. I would like to try out your suggestion if you could tell me which commands to execute.

You most likely use MTP. If I'm correct, you might want to add the 'mtp' tag to your question, and then follow it for related questions. There are several options provided already. As you either use USB, you might also want to take a look into Is there a minimal installation of ADB?, and especially watch for QtADB there (graphical ADB frontend which includes a.o. a file manager).

To start make sure your device is unplugged. Then run:
df -h

that will show you the list of currently mounted devices. Now plug in your device and run the same command again. You should see that there is a new device mounted. Now all you have to do is cd into that mount point to access the files. Here is my example output:
john-macbookpro:~ John$ df -h
Filesystem                          Size   Used  Avail Capacity  iused     ifree %iused  Mounted on
/dev/disk0s2                       297Gi   68Gi  229Gi    23% 17872734  60060168   23%   /

#plugged in device

john-macbookpro:~ John$ df -h
Filesystem                          Size   Used  Avail Capacity  iused     ifree %iused  Mounted on
/dev/disk0s2                       297Gi   68Gi  229Gi    23% 17872734  60060168   23%   /
/dev/disk3s1                       983Mi   13Mi  970Mi     2%      512         0  100%   /Volumes/BACKUP ONLY
john-macbookpro:~ John$ cd /Volumes/BACKUP\ ONLY/
john-macbookpro:BACKUP ONLY John$ ls
hello.txt
john-macbookpro:BACKUP ONLY John$ cp hello.txt /Users/John/Documents/
john-macbookpro:BACKUP ONLY John$ cat /Users/John/Documents/hello.txt
Hello!

If for some reason your device is not getting mounted, you should try to download ADB:

http://www.xda-developers.com/android/installing-adb-on-ubuntu-the-easy-way/

run ADB and it should try to manage your Android device.
adb start


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unlinking android mobile from google play store
I have 2 android mobiles and now I'm not using one of them.Is it possible to unlink the mobile which I'm not using from the Google play store?

I would preform a factory reset. This will erase the Google account from the phone and it will erase all of your user data. This way if it gets lost/stolen or you want to give it away it is good to go!
To do a factory reset it is basically the same for all devices:

Settings Menu --> Privacy --> Factory Reset --> Confirm...

Half good to go: unless you safe-erase it, content might still be restored. Besides, the question was not to reset the phone -- which even after that would still be listed in "My Devices" on Google Play, so that would not solve the issue.

It is not possible to completely unlink devices listed under on the Google Play website. However, if you'd prefer to hide or remove a device from view, you can do so:

Visit play.google.com/settings
Untick the checkbox next to the device(s) you wish to hide

Source


text:
Problem viewing SD card contents while connected to PC
I have a problem while connecting my Samsung Galaxy Y Duos to my computer using a USB cable. My mobile displays "NO memory card. YOU cannot view Your photos, music etc"
I do actually have the memory card in the mobile. What can I do about this?

Did you try another SD card on your phone and did you try reading your current card from somewhere else? (Maybe a card-reader connected to a PC or another device compatible with SD cards?)

Actually I dont have an External sd card..my phone memory is 3GB .i cant access the photos stored in that memory space –

While the phone is connected as a USB mass storage device, it's giving the PC sole access to the SD card. The phone can't access the card at the same time because of how the USB mass storage protocol works. That's why newer Android phones use MTP instead: a different protocol that lets the phone and the PC access the SD card at the same time.
To keep the SD card available on the phone while it's connected to a PC, change the USB connection settings so that the phone is not acting as a USB mass storage device. I don't know exactly how the settings work on that phone, but if you click on the Connected to PC (or similar) notification it should take you to the appropriate settings page. There you can switch to MTP if your phone supports it, or to Charge only if it doesn't.

It's often found in Settings in the "network" section as USB Connection Mode. But be aware that not all devices/Android versions support MTP; in any case you can switch to "Charge Only" to avoid your SDCard being unmounted from the device.

Actually I dont have an External sd card..my phone memory is 3GB .i cant access the photos stored in that memory space


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How to permanently delete stored images in /data
I have a rooted HTC Desire HD with a Custom Rom. Now, I want to permanently delete the stored images on my internal memory (/data). Everytime I run the app Disk Digger, my old crappy photos seems to show up. I tried flashing again and again and doing a a factory reset again and again but the images seems to be always there. All i want is to remove that images from my internal memory so i can safely sell my phone. Can anyone help me? BTW, the exact location where the disk digger digs is /dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.2/by-num/p26.
Can someone help me here?

It is not the best suggestion: fill your memory full, then empty it. Repeat that procedure as much as you can. This will overwrite new data onto your old data which will decrease chance for someone else could recover your data.

This is the wrong site for this (I've flagged for migrating it), but it's very likely if the phone is linked with Google that they are redownloading the pictures because they see they've been deleted

I have only Internal memory. I removed my SD. You mean I will fill my internal storage with files until it becomes full then i will do factory reset? Is that what you mean?

Krev, are you a linux user or windows?

iam windows @angs

I don't use android, but google says that Disk Digger is a recovery tool as well.Even if you remove a file from a storage unit, it is not really deleted and still stored on the storage.If you overwrite a new data on that specific memory location, the data will be harder to be recovered. As I know the "secure delete programs" overwrites onto old data many times that makes too difficult to recover, however there is never guarantee. If you can access that memory through your computer, try such programs to remove it http://www.howtogeek.com/72130/learn-how-to-securely-delete-files-in-windows/

The similar happened on my Galaxy Note 4. I deleted a bunch of image files via rm command in Terminal. The files were no longer visible in Terminal. But somehow the image browser can still see them as intact files.
I tried 'ls and grep' all over the phone directories and could not find them anywhere. (I could be missing some privileged folders though). I figured they must still be lingering in some system cache of sort so I tried restarting the phone. After reboot, image browser consolidated its catalog again and the images supposedly removed were gone.

WHAT MAKES RECOVERY OF DELETED DATA DIFFICULT / IMPOSSIBLE?

Perhaps the reason why your old photos survive flashes is because there may be a secondary internal flash memory that is separate from both the memory used for the OS (root) and the removable microSD slot. (I know my phone is like this.) Not sure why they would still be there after a factory reset though. Have you tried removing them using a file manager app like ES File Explorer, ASTRO, etc?
Another suggestion would be to verify that the photos aren't owned by root. If they are you could try removing them using the Android Terminal EmulatorAndroid Terminal Emulator app with root privileges, or try connecting your phone to your computer and delete them using the Android Debug Bridge.

I tried it deleting but it always fails. I tried with Terminal Emu, ES File Explorer, File Manager but It can't be deleted.

That's weird. Are there any warnings or errors when you do so? When you used Terminal Emu did you run rm as root ie using su? Do you have the Superuser app installed?

Yes. Oh yes, i forgot the su command. Sorry. maybe i'll try. I'll update you.


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Galaxy Y - White Screen Problem
I am using Samsung Galaxy Y. Yesterday my phone screen went white. I tried restarting, and the same problem occurred. I can receive phone calls and SMS but display fully disappeared - only white screen shows up. Can any one (if one has already faced this problem) tell me how to fix it?
I went to a service center but, he charges too much to fix this problem. So I decided to try manually to fix this problem but still didn't find any solution, not from internet either. I already tried rebooting, hard-reset (removing the battery for a while), and even factory-reset; but none of those solved the issue.

OK, I've edited that into your question. Unfortunately I have no further ideas; if not even a factory-reset solves it, it very likely is a hardware issue -- so the service center might be your last hope. If that's too expensive, you might consider buying a new device instead :(

The possible reasons for white display are:

LCD is completely dead : In this case LCD or display replacement has to be done.
LCD connector is effected by carbon or dirt particle: If the LCD connector is surrounded by the carbon then it has to be removed.

There are simple steps which can overcome this problem and can help you in getting your Tab ready for the use.
1-     Switch off the tab and open the back cover
2-     Now  unlock the battery and remove it , it’s not a necessary step. Though it is for the convenience
3-     Get to LCD connector as it is locked, firstly unlock it
4-     After unlocking of LCD  connector , with the help of metal tool rub it to remove the carbon and other dirt particles
5-     Then  fix the connector at earlier position and lock it
6-      Place the battery at its position and connect their terminals
7-     Switch on the tab, now it ready to be used
Source
Check out this video for detail instruction.

I had the same problem with my Galaxy Y, but mine was in warranty time. I took to an authorized support and they have changed the main board of the smartphone.


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Android 4.1.2 Full Device Encryption
I have a FDE enabled on my Android. However on JellyBean when device restarts I never get a boot password prompt,just regular unlock screen. I remember on 4.0 ICS, after reboot Android would ask me for decryption key so it can mount the /data filesystem. My device is Moto Droid 4. I verified from command line that /data mounted with encryption, however I cant figure out where it gets the key from,if I never have to enter it on boot.

So what exactly is your problem?

i am trying to understand,how does android encryption is able to function: without asking me for a password on boot? Hypothetically, in the interests of usability they can store the decryption key on device or in some hardware memory or something,however that would result in security issues.

Are you sure that you have enabled FDE? I've read this link which states that FDE may not work directly as expected (must try in 4.2.2 multiple times), and that you need a PIN or Password defined in advance. I mean, if you can access your data without entering a security credential then your device is probably not encrypted right? Watch out FDE may not encrypt all the things you think it should: Does Android's Full Filesystem Encryption also Encrypt the SDcard?


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How can I access the files in "/data/data" and copy them into memory card without root?
Are there any way to access the files in /data/data and copy them into memory card? I do not have root access.

Without root access you have 2 options. Both options (may) allow you to access the files for a particular app, e.g. the folder /data/data/com.app.packagename.

If the application is debuggable you can use the run-as command in adb shell (more info about what adb is and how to install it can be found here)
adb shell
run-as com.your.packagename`
cp /data/data/com.app.packagename/

If the application is not debuggable, you can use Android's backup function.
adb backup -noapk com.app.packagename

You will now be prompted to 'unlock your device and confirm the backup operation'. It's best NOT to provide a password, otherwise it becomes more difficult to read the data. Just click on 'backup my data'. The resulting 'backup.ab' file on your computer contains all the app's data in android backup format. Basically it's a compressed tar file. This page explains how you can use OpenSSL's zlib command to uncompress it.
You can use the  adb restore backup.db command to restore the backup.

Does this also apply to applications with android:allowbackup="false"?

@Drejon No, I don't think it will work in that case (but I haven't tested it, so I am not 100% sure).

I am sure there are some cases of application that don't allow backup. When creating backup of all apps, they simply backup nothing. AFAIK, some app might provide a restricted subset of files or maybe even something custom, so don't consider it as always 1:1 of the directory in /data/data. BTW, BlackBerry forces me to use some password, but it is possible to decrypt it (if you have the password). I think I have used https://sourceforge.net/projects/adbextractor/ for that.

I managed to get it with
adb backup -noapk com.app.packagename
You will get backup.ab then you will need to convert to tar (to open it with 7zip)
You can convert it with https://sourceforge.net/projects/adbextractor/ - there is jar inside thi called  abe.jar.
Then You can run command
java -jar abe.jar unpack backup.ab backup.tar

If adb backup produces a tiny (41-47 byte) file, then it may be that the APK is marked as allowBackup=0. Run aapt dump xmltree whatever.apk AndroidManifest.xml | grep allowBackup.

According to the Android Documentation, you can't disable device-to-device migration of your app's files, so even with allowBackup="false", you can back up to a secondary device of your choice (i.e. a rooted one) and get the files from there.


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Owner's photo in the pull down menu
In 4.2.2, how can I put a picture in the pull down menu like this?

Open the People application (it's the name of the contacts app in Jelly Bean) and edit the entry for "Me". Set your picture there.

When I select a picture, it just ignores it. Any clue what type/size it has to be  to work?

Click on the man picture on the drop down. Click on the man picture on the next two screens that come up. You should have two options "Take new photo" and "Select new photo from Gallery", add the photo here.

This procedure won't always work: because of a change in JB 4.2, some 4.2 ROMs have a bug where, when you click on the default contact icon in the quick tray, it displays a toast Contact not found instead of letting you edit the contact. If that happens, you have to go through People as Tim describes.

@DanHulme Ah, I only tried it on stock. Which (popular) ROMs do this?

The stock Nexus 7 ROM for 4.2.2 (build JDQ39) does it, for instance.

@DanHulme I have that and this method works fine on it. Have you heard this from other sources or just tried it on your device?

@Peanut I've seen it on several devices.


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How to do a full factory reset and clean the phone completely?
I've been flashing my LG Optimus L7 numerous times with various Custom ROMs and now I'd like to return to the official firmware.
I've factory reset my phone, flashed the v20D official firmware with KDZ tool and then I did another factory reset. However, I've read that the factory reset only wipes /data and /cache folders (user-accessible data), while /system and /boot remains the same. The questions:

I've flashed the official firmware using the KDZ tool with the EMERGENCY phone mode. After flashing, some of the old settings remained which were gone after a factory reset. As I understand, flashing the phone with a firmware doesn't wipe /system or /boot, right? Therefore some of the files from the previous custom ROM remain.
What should I do now to fully clean my phone from all custom ROMs? I've already flashed the original firmware and did several factory resets, but I know the reset doesn't touch /system and /boot, for example. How do I completely clean my phone? Is it even possible?

As the firmware resides in /system, flashing a firmware obviously overwrites that partition. /boot is usually involved here as well. Whether the two get "wiped" is a different question; but as otherwise things could get "mixed", which might cause unwanted side-effects, I'd say they are (I'm not 100% sure with this). So in these two partitions, nothing of the previously installed firmware should remain.
That's different for the other partitions of your device. So usually, /data is not touched by the flashing process, but of course it will be touched once the new system boots up (it e.g. needs to initialize the dalvik cache for the newly installed system apps, which is located in /data/dalvik-cache). For the /cache partition (holding the application cache) it's similar: It usually is not touched by the flashing process, but used normally afterwards. Hence it's a good idea to wipe these two (Cache and Dalvik Cache) when installing a different ROM. It might not always be required, but it doesn't hurt.
A factory-reset in principle is a combination of the two: it wipes the /cache and /data Partitions. So other than the manual wipe of the caches from a custom recovery, it also removes all user data (including the user-installed apps).
Note: Don't confuse a "wipe" with a "safe erase": with the right tools, data still might be recoverable following a wipe.
With this on your mind, your second question becomes obsolete: if you just want a clean system for yourself, this wish is already granted. If, on the other hand, you did these steps to sell your device, there's always the point of what could be restored. For a "safe erase", you might want to take a look at special tools like Nuke My Phone / Nuke My Tablet, which overwrite everything with "garbage data", and finalize this process with a factory-reset.

Great answer. Very thorough, clear and provides all the basic understanding I needed. I am coming from a Symbian modding scene where things work a bit differently and was at first confused with the way Android flashing works, but this answer pretty much wrapped it up. And no, I'm not selling my phone; it's an OCD thing to be honest, lol.

Glad I was able to help! I also was not assuming you were about to sell your device -- that part was just for completeness, and to make clear the difference between "wipe" and "safe erase", as the latter is often referred to as "wipe" as well, which could lead to confusion. // He, another Symbianer :) Actually, I was a long-time S60 user before switching to Android :)

Yeah, thanks for that part also. I always knew that the data is not actually "wiped", it's just that I never had to sell my phone and perform a data wipe on it (just on the PC). Heh, me too, I used to mod my Nokia for some time and also Siemens and Motorola back in 2006 - 2009.


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Decrypt Samsung S3 Phone
I have recently encrypted my S3 to allow me to get work emails, but I have now decided against this as it has caused the phone to run like a dog. When I attempt to decrypt the device it says I need to set a password of 6 characters with at least one number, however when I go to the lock screen settings menu password is not an option. I have deleted the email account and I am not sure what to try next. Can someone point me in the right direction please?

Have you disabled any device admin the email was asking for?

Here is a last ditch solution if you get nothing better:
If you know how to use John The Ripper then all you have to do is pull all of the files off of your hard drive, and use JTR to crack the password (depending on the length of the key, this could take days or even weeks). Then you can make an image file of your hard drive and flash your device using a flashing tool.
Besides that, I'm sure there is no way to disable the encryption without the key. Really your only option at that point is to get any files off of it that it will allow you to, and then do a factory reset.

As far as I know, reverting the android encryption is impossible, you will have to backup your information and perform a factory reset.

It is possible to decrypt an android.  I am doing it right now.  I had to turn off the maas360 device admin using the app itself: you can't do it from the device admin screen.  Once I did that, I had the decrypt option.  The decrypt worked fine for the phone, and I am doing the sd card now.  I still only have the password option for the lock screen, but hoping this sd card decrypt gives opens the other options.  I have a Verizon G S4 running 4.4.1.


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KidLogger data and configuration file location
After downloading and installing from kidlogger.net, the app runs well on my Samsung Galaxy Nexus.
I want to locate the storage location of the data as well as the settings files, so that I can use Dropsync to sync that folder to Dropbox.
Where might I find these files?

What are you actually trying to achieve? You can't access the app's data and settings files without rooting the phone.

I am trying to use Dropsync to sync the log files

An app whose package name is com.example.app has its data files in /data/data/com.example.app. This applies to pre–Jelly Bean systems, and to the first user on Jelly Bean systems. For other users on Jelly Bean systems, user 1 has the data files for com.example.app in /data/user/1/com.example.app, and so on.
However, none of this information helps you to use an external app to sync an app's files. Reading another app's data files can only be done on a rooted phone, which is probably not something you want to do on your child's phone. Even then, you need an app that's designed to work with root access, such as DataSync or AppSync. And even then, it's possible that the Kidlogger app keeps its data in encrypted form, to force you to use their sync service, or as a precaution against tampering with the logs. After all, if the sync app can get access to the logs, there's nothing to stop the user of the phone doing the same thing.
The only reliable and secure solution would be to ask the developers of Kidlogger to add a feature that syncs the app data to Dropbox or an online service of your choice: one the user of the phone can't access.

The developers are providing a paid service to view the log file indeed. So I guess that asking them just brings narrow hopes.

Given how many trivial errors are in their website, I'm not sure I'd trust them to keep my child's location, photos, and other sensitive information secure.

I didn't know they have so many trivial errors. Where would I see that @DanHulme?


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Does Android support new fonts?
Does the Android operating system support installing new fonts?
I am that person who adores calligraphy and improving handwriting, and I am proud to say that my handwriting is now more beautiful than my teachers in almost every language I know! Anyway, can anyone answer that question (about Android fonts), because this will judge if I will buy a ruuning-Android tablet pc or not!

possible duplicate of How can I install custom fonts on Android?

Yes, you can install new fonts, but it requires root on most devices.
To install a font, you just simply need to copy the font file (.ttf format only) into /system/fonts.  There are also numerous apps available on the Play store to do this automatically for you, such as the plainly named Font Installer.  Other apps also include functionality to find new fonts.
With the right app, it is also possible to install fonts without root on the Samsung Galaxy S3, S4, Note, and Note 2.


text:
How can I root unknown device
I have a Turkish device named General Mobile e-Tab 7 B and I want to root it , How can I do that ?
I tried SuperOneClickRoot and it didn't work for me

For an unknown device the answer is unknown, sorry. I've just added tue 'rooting' tag to your question. Please follow up to its tag-wiki for general information. There you'll also find a link to our rooting index, listing a.o. also known methods working for different devices. From your tag I assume the device uses ICS, so you should give the "root many android" kit a try.

use "unlock root"software

it works for almost every mobile phone
even I had same problem
it roots and also unroots if you want

Can you provide a link to that software?


text:
How to install System updates in HTC ONE SU
My handset HTC One Su (t528w) showing notification of system update to 4.1.1 from present 4.0.4 . When ever I click on install updates. it reeboted and log into bootloader menu . How can I install the updates ?
I searched on google but didnt get any help . This mobile I bought from China . So didnt find any useful help .

Where do you get the update notification?
I have the same phone and I don't know where to look for the notification.

@romanr9999 Settings>>About>>Software Updates >>Check now
if your network has someupdates for your mobile then after check you will get notification for upgrade.


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Boot.img and Recovery.img is 0 bytes (size)
I have a low end android device running on Gingerbread 2.3.5. I am about using it to do some test and customizing my ROM.
I did a Nandroid backup to be on a safe side in case things go wrong. After the backup I noticed my boot image file and recovery image file are both having 0 byte size. I used Online Nandroid Backup.
What could have gone wrong, and how to fix it?

Maybe your SDCard was full, or at least didn't provide enough space to store the images? I never used Online Nandroid Backup, so I don't know: could it be it requires a custom ROM with Nandroid support?


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Why is my Xperia U slow?
I have a Sony Xperia U running Android 4.0.4 ICS. The problem is that it runs really slowly. It is particularly bad while multi-tasking. While listening to music, if I get a phone call, it hangs. Vibrator starts but the ringtone doesn't. The "Incoming Call" screen doesn't come up, etc.
Has anyone used this phone with Gingerbread? If so, how was their experience?
I followed the steps in here, but my Battery Monitor says 43% Screen and 23% Android OS, which isn't really helpful! Are there any particular apps that are responsible for this?
Why is ICS slow on this device? I mean, 1.0 GHz dual core and 512 MB of RAM is not less!
edit: The first thing I did after buying it was to upgrade it to ICS via Sony PC Companion. The phone has been like this ever since. I phoned Xperia Support and also did a Firmware Repair (again via PC Companion) and a Factory Reset, but it's no use.

You neither specified if it was slow from the beginning, nor did you say if you maybe overloaded it with too many apps automatically running in background (you might want to edit your question and update these details). Another source you might wish to consult: My device is getting slow, apps start misbehaving/crashing. What can I do?

Thanks @Izzy, but my phone isn't rooted, and I regularly Wipe App Cache!

This sounds familiar, in short, ICS on the Xperia line of devices, do eventually crawl down to slowness (have Xperia Mini 2011 model), in the end I had to unlock it, and flash a newer ROM on to it, its common enough on those 2011 devices that had gingerbread and upgraded to ICS...


text:
Galaxy Note keeps duplicating my contacts
My Galaxy Note 2 keeps duplicating my contacts; how can I stop this?
I ended up with over 35,000 contacts and it keeps growing as my phone keeps duplicating them a few hundred times. I have no contacts on my SIM card.

Is this your Google contacts or your phone contacts? And also are you using the stock contact app?

My phone contacts. Google contacts are fine. What is this app?

If I were you, I would transfer all of my contacts to Google contacts and then delete all of the phone contacts. I think that this might solve the problem.

Yes have them all in Google. In Google contacts there are not duplicates. I have deleted all the contacts but when I synch again I start have a growing number of contacts again.


text:
Samsung Note 10.1 USB Ethernet
I'm trying to get USB Ethernet support on my tablet, which for some reason is apparently disabled even though 4.1.2 directly supports it. (My Note II can use it...)  I've come to the conclusion that I'm going to need to essentially write everything on my own.  I'd prefer to write an app that can be used by other 10.1 users, but right now I'm just trying to get it working at all on my own device.  (I'm using a BobJ Ethernet->USB Adapter) Here are my current setbacks:

USB Host seems to shut down randomly.  This is the most irritating part, because it means I have to restart the device to use USB at all, mass storage included.  What should I use to diagnose this?  I've tried three different USB-specific apps from Play, but none of them give me much information besides the obvious. (That the host is not working.)
Even when the host controller is running and can detect the adapter, 'netcfg eth0 dhcp/up' doesn't work, claiming no device detected.  Does this mean the adapter driver is missing completely?

How to make Ethernet work on Android over OTG?

Each vendor is able to customize Android to suite their whimsy.
I'm using a $250USD Toshiba Thrive (OS 4.0.3), a Curtis KLU MID704 (OS 4.1.1, and one of the Rockchip clones) a Polaroid branded PMID704 and a ZTE phone. Of all these, the Polaroid and Curtis have Ethernet support in the settings. I'm using a Radio Shack Belkin USB-to-Ethernet adapter, which is supported off-the-shelf by Android. (Only the Toshiba Thrive has a full size type-A USB jack. The others need adapters, NOT available at radioshack.) The Polaroid is "broken" in that the Ethernet doesn't work. You click on it in settings and it clicks but does nothing. The crappy $75USD Curtis works, it shows me my IP and MAC address in settings and I can set static IP parameters including IP Address, Gateway, NetMask, and 2 DNS servers.
However, the Android frameworks (in the Java(tm)-like language) are broken. The connection managers only support WiFi and Mobile Data. You can inquire about the Eth0 device but can't open a connection or do anything with it.
So basically, your mileage may vary from mfr to mfr, and tabbly to tabbly.
Good luck!
-dave


text:
How to install apps from one user to another
I have a Nexus 10 set up with multiple users. My owner account has a lot of apps that I got from my Humble Library (so not from Google Play). I want to install these apps on one of the other user accounts, but right now I'm on a metered internet connection so I don't want to re-download these apps. Is there a way for me to transfer these non-Google Play apps from the owner user to another user without re-downloading them? Thanks!

Usually, with the MultiUser feature, apps are not downloaded again (but rather linked; let's skip technical details here). In your case the trouble is: your apps are not connected to Google Play, so I'm not sure how that would be handled.
However, here's a way you definitely could do so. But it would require you to install one app from Google Play to handle it:

Login with your "owner account"
Get yourself AppMonster Free Backup Restore via Google Play
Start the AppMonster, go into its settings, and check/configure the path it stores the backups to. For your goal, it should preferably be in a location accessible for the other users as well.
Now "back up" the apps you want to "transfer". You might wish to include AppMonster here as well.
Login with one of the "target users"
Use any file manager to navigate to the AppMonster backup directory
Now you can simply "start" the .apk files, and the installer should pop up.

As the backup directory structure might be a little confusing, you may wish to first install AppMonster that way, and use this app itself to install the other apps (after having configured the backup directory again).
Be aware this only handles the apps themselves, not their data.

Another variant, including the app data, could be utilizing adb backup and adb restore. To do this without a computer, you could use Helium - App Sync and Backup. Other than above variant, this creates backup archives (*.ab) of your apps, which then could be restored using the very same app. I've never tried that amongst multiple accounts, so I cannot guarantee it works. Helium is available for Android 4.0 and above; but as you already use the MultiUser feature, this should be no show stopper :)
Note, however, that you would need to install Helium also for the accounts you wish to restore to. And again: While I'm pretty sure the AppMonster variant will work, I cannot guarantee that Helium works in this context. But it might be worth a try if you want to include the data with your transfer.

Very slick Izzy, will this also transfer the user data from the app as well?

No, that could only be done by either a root-app or via adb backup. Which brings me to another option, will update my answer.

I filed a bug report to Google about this, start it to receive updates: https://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=82543


text:
Remote control my android
I have an ICS tablet with HDMI output. I want to use it as a media center connected to my TV, but it would be ideal if I could control it without having to go back and forth from the couch. I have a laptop and an android phone. I'm looking for suggestions on how to control the tablet remotely.
My ideal usage is being able to play videos, pause, select new media, watch online videos (youtube, vimeo, etc) and listen to music (hype machine, soundcloud, bandcamp, etc), as well as use music and video apps.

I know I can use a really long HDMI cable, but that's 1) expensive, and 2) not cableless enough

Would it be a solution to use some UPnP server on your tablet, like e.g. BubbleUPnP? If your TV supports that, you then could use the TV's RC to control it.

@Izzy, I think it's not my case, I have a LG LM3400 (no UPnP / DLNA), but you can post your comment as an answer, it will surely benefit others!

Sorry to read that it won't work for you. But as you suggested, I made it an answer so at least others might profit from it.

Many recent TV devices ship with DLNA support. If yours does, you could turn your tablet into an UPnP server using an app like e.g. BubbleUPnP. Once that app is up and running, it serves the tablet's contents to your TV. Your TV detects accesses this service, and you can control it using the TV's remote control:

BubbleUPnP is a full featured UPnP/DLNA Control Point, UPnP Media Renderer and UPnP Media Server. Play easily your music, videos and images on your phone and devices on your network (DLNA TVs, XBMC, WMP, ...), from your external UPnP Media Servers. Play your phone/tablet media to those devices.
  Browse and play your local phone/tablet and cloud media from other devices [...]

So basically, this works both directions -- and you can even use this app to browse contents of your other UPnP sources on the tablet itself.

Sounds awesome (too bad I can't test it). Does it works only for acessing media (such as video files, mp3 audio, etc at the file system level) or it enables controlling apps as well?

It's a media server (and client). I've linked the concerning Wikipedia articles for further details; "DLNA" is the article you should start with. It all comes done to the "common denominator" both, client and server, share. For the descibed app that's pictures, music, and videos AFAIK (also see above quote from the apps playstore description). I'm not aware about more being handled -- but of course the client handles media playback & control.

If nothing else, you could install a VNC server on the tablet and then access it with a VNC client running on another device over wifi. It's a bit overkill, but it will certainly allow you to control it remotely.

I'm considering this option, but looking for alternatives.

Me too.


text:
Is it possible to install Chromium on Android?
I really like the Chromium browser, it's quite speedy, but I can't find any functioning downloads for Android.
All the sites I've tried so far have the following error while trying to install the APK file:

Parse Error
There is a problem parsing the package.

I've tried Download Chromium (which was invaluable in getting Chromium working on my Desktop) and Github's paul99/clank, but neither source seems to work.
Does anyone know where I can download Chromium? (not Google Chrome!)
I'm running a non-rooted Android 2.3.4 on Droid X.

Chrome only supports Android 4.0+, so I would not be surprised if that is also the case for the Chromium builds you are trying to install (unless they are heavily altered). It may be failing to parse the package because it declares things in the manifest that Android 2.3.4 does not implement, so this could very well be impossible barring significant code modifications.

You could possibly get Chromium if you install a custom mod that has it built in.

I think you can only get it in a newer version of android

As mentioned on Eldarerathis' comment, no matter what, you are going to need a newer version of Android, which probably means (CyanogenMod will only get you to 2.3.7) that you'll need a newer phone.
The good news is that from 4.0+ it only gets easier to easily run Chromium safely on Android. For Android 4.4, there's a free and open-source app getChromium that installs/updates the Chromium browser on Android.
FULL DISCLOSURE: A lack of trust in http*://chromium.woolyss.com, and other, equally sketchy non-Google vendors giving away "Chromium APK", together with a passion for malware-free Chromium APK was actually what motivated me to put together getChromium as an open-source means of getting builds directly from Google's repository over here: https://commondatastorage.googleapis.com/chromium-browser-continuous/Android.

Yes, it's possible, but you need devices running on Android 4.1 JellyBean or above (as of testing). Otherwise, you'll get "Parse error" message when installing it.

Note: I'm using the APK from here. I checked the content of the manifest using aapt and on line #31649:
E: uses-sdk (line=12)
  A: android:minSdkVersion(0x0101020c)=(type 0x10)0x10
  A: android:targetSdkVersion(0x01010270)=(type 0x10)0x16

Note the value of android:minSdkVersion, it's 0x10, which is 16 in decimal, and it corresponds to Android 4.1 JellyBean.

You could try building it yourself, following the instructions on the official site: https://www.chromium.org/developers/how-tos/android-build-instructions
Again, though, you will need a higher version of Android.

Chromium for Android can be found here (multiple and platform specific versions available too).

authors: يوسف عبدالله طاهر شراعي


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Unauthorized Network
I recently configured my Samsung Galaxy Ace to provide internet access for my laptop. When friends visit and find the network, they get onto it and stream movies even though it is password protected. How can I identify the devices on the network  and disable other unauthorized devices from connecting to my network?

Change and don't tell them the password.. or tell them to leave, since they seem like bad friends as they're not listening to you.

If you're using the Wifi tethering you can MAC filter it by only allowing certain devices to connect. Also make sure you have the password set and maybe even change it if you need to.


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Swipe option missing on JellyBean keyboard
I have Micromax A116 running on 4.2 JellyBean, rooted and using NatureWiz HD rom. However, I don't have swipe feature on my keyboard.
Am I missing some settings that I have to turn on?

What manufacturer made your phone or tablet? Some manufacturers add their own keyboard in place of Google's keyboard.

it is micromax A116 rooted, naturewiz hd rom.


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What do CPU Total, CPU Foreground, and Keep awake mean?
I've been keeping an eye on my battery usage on my Android device (HTC One), mostly to see if I can drain it during a full work-day, and I came across the app usage details under the Power settings.
I get a percentage of battery used by the app, the CPU total, the CPU foreground, and keep awake. I'm not sure what they mean, although I can take a guess, but I'm wondering more on how they work.
For instance, I've used the Chrome browser extensively throughout the day (device was on for ~14 hrs, holding around 30% battery life left) and noticed that the battery usage for the app was at 54%. Under use details (see pic below) CPU total was 29m 31s; CPU foreground was 14m 43s; and Keep awake was 30s.

Screenshot (click image for larger variant)
How can these numbers be relatively low when I know I've used Chrome for more than a half-hour and had it as the primary app running for much longer than 15m, which is assuming that my ideas on CPU total and foreground use are what I believe they are.
In essence, what do those three numbers mean in terms of app/battery usage and what does it tell me?

The first thing to remember is that when an app runs, it doesn't actually do computation for the whole time it's running: most of the time it's idle, waiting for data to arrive over the network, or while you're looking at it on the screen. Only very badly-written apps and games keep the CPU active the whole time they're running: this runs the battery down very quickly, and makes your phone rather warm.
So even if Chrome has been on the screen for 30 minutes, it shouldn't have used 30 minutes of CPU time. If it's completely static in that time and you're not interacting with it, it might not have used any CPU time at all! But at the other extreme, even if it was continually scrolling a page, it wouldn't use 30 minutes of CPU time: the screen updates every 1/60th of a second, and each time it just has to run for long enough to work out what the next frame should be.
CPU foreground
Bearing this in mind, CPU foreground is how much time the app has been running on the CPU while an activity from the app was in the foreground. (It might also include when a service from the app was in the foreground: that is, displaying an "ongoing" notification.) It's not a very useful figure on its own.
CPU total
I'm sure you already know that apps can run services and broadcast receivers in the background, as well as activities in the foreground. (For more on this, see What's the difference between a service and a broadcast receiver? ) CPU total includes all of this CPU use. If it's a lot more than CPU foreground, you might suspect that the app is doing a lot of work in the background and therefore might be a battery hog. How much is "a lot" depends on the app. An app that keeps running to check some remote service will use more CPU in the background than a sudoku game.
Keep awake
When the screen of your phone is off, it starts to think about having a quick nap. It enters a low-power mode called sleep where the CPU is almost completely powered down until needed. Because this can interrupt apps' background activities, an app can use a wake lock to stop the device going to sleep until it's finished. (There's also another kind of wake lock, which stops the screen turning off automatically. A video player might use that kind of wake lock.) An app can also use an alarm to wake the device up to perform some background tasks.
Keep awake measures the length of time that this app has used wake locks or alarms to keep the device awake when it would otherwise have been asleep. In a way, this is potentially the biggest drain on battery. Sleeping uses much less power than staying awake, so if an app keeps a wake lock for a long time, it's keeping your device in a high-power mode all that time, even if the app isn't doing any useful work.
If you see an app whose Keep awake time is more than a few seconds, you should report a bug to the app developer, and you might consider uninstalling it. 30 seconds over the course of a whole day is reasonable for an app that does work in the background, but most apps will show less than a second here.

Following is the explanation to the numbers you have in question.

CPU total = Total time of CPU Usage of your app (CPU total = CPU foreground + CPU background)
In your case, Chrome browser used the CPU for a total time of 29 minutes and 31 seconds.
CPU foreground = CPU usage while the app is in the foreground (visible on screen and focused) In your case, Chrome browser used the CPU for a total time of 14 minutes and 43 seconds when it was visible and focused in the screen
Keep awake = The time your app kept the device from sleeping (prevented the phone from turning the screen off)

Additionally, some devices hae the following item as well.

CPU background = CPU usage while the app is running in the background (it has a background process, or widget, etc)

So, as you can see, the actual time the app used your CPU is lesser than the time you used the app.


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'Spy Activity Spotted' in Android notification
I bought a new Galaxy S3 and downloaded Frontline Commando: D-Day from Play Store. I have not inserted the SIM card yet. I use my phone via wifi, for now.
Yesterday, I got a notification that 'Spy Activity Spotted! Terminate....' for the game. Now, I am not sure as to why that happened. I decided to read the message further and clicked on the notification. Instead, it launched the game.
So I have two questions:
1. Is it a false positive? (considering I wasn't connected to WiFi or cellular network)
2. How do I read previous notifications once they have disappeared from notification panel?

Judging by the details you have provided, there is nothing to be afraid of regarding the notification. The spy activity you mentioned is never an actual warning from the OS but a mere notification generated by the game to involve you in playing it. (Most probably you will be told that some enemy is spotted spying on you in an on-game mission, after the notification  is selected and the game is opened.) So after all, that notification is NOT a actual positive spyware warning. Nothing to worry.
You can't read previously cleared notifications of the notification bar. But you might be able to see the previous notification of your game if the game has a such a function in-built. Check for Notifications or Mission Updates in in-game menus. This, of course, is bit of a long shot. If there is no such option, those notifications also cannot be viewed.


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Archiving photos sent to Gmail
My only access to computer is my Samsung epic cell phone. My storage is getting full because I take a lot of photos. If I send them to Gmail & archive them. Will this free up some storage space in my phone even though I keep my Gmail app on my phone ?

Short: Yes. You can send your photos as email attachments and delete them from your phone. It will free up your phone memory. But there are other options which are better than this.
You can use cloud storage facilities to back-up your data and access them anytime and anywhere you want. More details about widely used cloud services can be found in this answer.