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Can't unlock bootloader Moto G5 XT1672
I'm trying to unlock the bootloader on my Moto G5, the adb commands works, but I can't find my device in the command prompt when it is in fastboot mode.
I was following the instructions on this tutorial, but when running the adb device command to get my serial number, the PC can't find the device. I checked the USB cable and the connection between the device and the computer and everything is ok.
To enter the fastboot mode I was using the adb reboot bootloadercommand on Windows.
Android 8.1.0
Security patch: October 1, 2018

You don't have the right drivers for fastboot mode, look in your Window's Device Manager when the phone is connected in Fastboot mode, you should see either an Unknown Device or something similar, change the driver to the generic ones that come with ADB. Or use Linux, which doesn't require any drivers when communicating with an Android device.

I am a bit confused on what was where. I do not want to assume anything so could you please clarify one thing. Where are you throwing the command adb devices?? Are you in the Command prompt when you are in Fastboot/Bootloader mode?? Because it will not work. Adb protocol is used within a booted System and Recovery and not within the Bootloader. To communicate with the Bootloader/fastboot mode you need to use the Fastboot protocol. Try throwing this command: fastboot devices see if that yields any results.

As acejavelin said, I was missing the fastboot driver, for some reason it wasn't finding my phone. Installing the right driver solved the problem.


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Is it possible to make Android remember the SIM PIN and automatically unlock the SIM upon reboot?

This way the phone could be unlocked and used with the visual pattern. (Or some other mechanism, e.g. fingerprint, face scan, etc.)
The SIM card PIN wouldn't have to be repeatedly input after every restart.
In case the SIM is removed and put in another phone, it would require PIN to access.
The PIN would likely be encrypted while stored on the phone so it cannot be easily (or perhaps in any way) recovered without getting through Android's built in unlocking mechanism.
Maybe the SIM would only be unlocked after the first time the Android phone itself is unlocked after reboot. And that's okay, maybe even desirable.
I don't mean the option to disable the SIM PIN completely, as that makes it very easy to put the card in another phone to have unfettered access.

i haven't heard of anything like that, i suppose it's possible but it'd require system level access to change the application responsible for handling PIN entries... It'd be a nice new security feature, maybe suggest it to Google or Copyright the idea and call it Wizek SIM Security or something :)

If the phone would save the PIN it could be extracted using a specially crafted SIM card that simply receives the PIN and saves it internally. This ist not as simple as just using a SIM with disabled PIN, however if one Android manufacturer would implements the save SIM feature I am sure that there would be such PIN stealing SIM cards available to buy fastly.

@Robert, Yes, that's why I wrote my 5th point: "Maybe the SIM would only be unlocked after the first time the Android phone itself is unlocked after reboot. And that's okay, maybe even desirable." This way, the SIM is only unlocked if the phone is used by someone who already knows how to unlock the phone itself, and the PIN cannot be stolen via a man-in-the-middle attack.

@Robert In fact, there could be a continuum between security and convenience for people to choose from: (1) no pin, no phone lock, (2) no pin, yes phone lock, (3) auto unlock pin on startup (allows MITM sim attack, might not matter for most people, as this would likely be a step up for them from no-pin anyway), (4) auto unlock pin on first phone unlock (safe against MITM, doesn't allow receiving calls before first unlock, which doesn't sound much of an issue for me), (5) require pin, require phone unlock too.

Currently only 1, 2 and 5 are possible. I think 3 and 4 would be a sweet spot for security and convenience. Most people would likely happily step up from 2 to 3 to get more safety without losing much any convenience. And some might step down from 5 to 4 as they don't lose much any security while gaining quite a bit of convenience.

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


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Accidentally flashed TWRP on both A/B partitions on Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite
I decided to try to root my Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite. I accidentally flashed twrp-3.2.3-0-daisy.img on both A and B partitions. Because of that, now I can only access the TWRP menu.
I think I should download the official ROM and get its boot file, but I'm not sure and I don't want to mess it up more. I've downloaded the ROM and found this boot.img file.
.
If that's it, is it enough to flash it? And in which partition? A or B?

I own an MiA1 which also has A/B partitions. My suggestion is based on experience with this and not your device. 1. In any mess up, it's best to always flash the stock image 2. I don't know if your image is stock or not but check XDA to see if there are tools to flash. 3. You will need to flash on both partitions whether you are using a tool or command line. For why see this 4. You will also need to flash system not just boot because you say you flashed TWRP not booted into it

this XDA thread can help you. You can search for more and study well before you act

Find a ROM made specifically for your device on XDA Forum. Then use TOOL ALL IN ONE to unlock your bootloader & flash a new boot.img recovery & ROM.
Warning: unlocking the bootloader will wipe all your files. Also, make sure to flash Gapps. You can search "Open Gapps" and your OS to find the ones you need.

I'm not sure about both A and B partitions. Android has several partitions (10+) for different things: system, boot, recovery, frp, nvram, etc.
TWRP is designed to overwrite only your recovery.img.
You need your boot image for kernel information, booting, etc. So, never overwrite your boot partition, unless you are absolutely sure it's designed exactly for your variant of the device.
You should be able to use TWRP to reinstall your boot.img if that was partition A or B.
However, if you've overwritten your system, you'll need a firmware update or backup to restore the stock images.
In TWRP, try to look through your partitions and their sizes in storage. For example, if your system partition only has 345kb of data (or none) on it, it's been wiped clean and needs to be reinstalled.

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


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Can't launch Android Auto, keeps asking to enable drawing over other apps
Within the past couple of weeks or so, I've started having an issue with Android Auto not launching when I connect to my car's Bluetooth.  Whenever I try launching Auto, it shows a dialog instructing me to enable drawing over other apps.  I hit the continue button, it takes me the setting, and it's already enabled.  Returning to Auto, it's still asking for this permission.  If I hit the "No Thanks" button, the app just exits, meaning I can't even use it in a diminished capacity.
I've tried a number of things already, from disabling the setting and re-enabling it, to uninstalling and reinstalling Android Auto.  None of it has worked.  I don't remember getting a system update in this period of time, but it's entirely possible (even likely) that Android Auto received an update that somehow broke it.
What do I need to do in order to get Android Auto working again?

Try reboot device. For me, this is the first thing to try with stubborn problems. May/not help-no harm trying

Do you run a separate launcher? Like Nova launcher. What are your settings set for "smart settings"? I have experienced conflicts if the sytem settings and smart settings are not set the same. Pandora and other apps can be set to launch with blue tooth... What if any are those settings at? Do you use a separate app for sound? Like precise volume. All of these when not synchronized or permissions are set for one but not all will cause failure. Thoroughly check permissions. Personally I utilize a separate auto app other than stock. Keep in mind I connect to my car with and old am/fm plug in blue

Check all the other permissions that Android Auto might need.  For me, the notification access permission was disabled for some reason, but Android Auto never took me to that setting until after I rebooted.  There are instances where apps need some permissions toggled off then on again in order to work properly after an update.  For instances, after updating LightFlow, the app gets me to toggle notification access off and on.


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Location triggered alarm
Suppose you want to activate an alarm triggered once a certain location is reached. There exist something capable of this already on Samsung S9 for example

I'm not sure on your definition of Location... However i believe what your lookin for is called geo fencing...
It's the idea of creating a fence, using GPS.
The most common uses are for Pet care, and House Arrest.
Are you looking for a Geo Fencing application ?


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Unlock with fingerprint instead of PIN after Device reboot or Device Locked by admin
Android has a security feature that requires the user to input PIN/Pattern/Password if the device was locked by an app using the Device Administrator permission or when the device is restarted.
Recently though, I've started using custom ROMs like LineageOS and Resurrection Remix. I happened to notice something interesting in Resurrection Remix: that it allows you to use fingerprint even after an admin device lock or device restart. Take a look at the screen capture below.

You'll find this setting typically under Settings > Customizations > Interfaces > Fingerprint settings.
Now, with that option enabled, it allows me to unlock device with fingerprint auth. regardless of the method with which the device was locked before.
I've since switched to LineageOS for reasons but I kind of want this feature and am looking for help. I've also looked a bit into the Resurrection Remix Sources but was unable to find anything helpful.
Perhaps, maybe, is there a build.prop hack/tweak/option I could use to get said feature in LineageOS too?
Any pointers in the right direction are greatly appreciated, Thanks!
Note: In before someone points out, I understand this option, if enabled, can seriously downplay device security but I kind of want to learn about why it works how it works. I do not necessarily plan to enable this but learning is always interesting. I also happen to understand code a bit, please feel free to use code instances (I was thinking about Android Keystore auth code) to make things more clearer should need be.

This is kinda bordering on being off topic. Anyway, to tweaks to achieve your goal. I do not want to say definitively No because someone more familiar with the tweaking the system knows. Getting this setting to favorite rom heads to off topic per development. I believe the flow is from one branch cherry pick/resolve conflicts/merge to another branch. Code sources: https://github.com/ResurrectionRemix/Resurrection_packages_apps_Settings/commit/e5a04e73474010497939e6198db78b78ed512519
https://github.com/ResurrectionRemix/android_frameworks_base/commit/1ec5bc4ceb939ae06878ff2063ccf4aebcf4053f

Agreed with "bordering on being off topic" part but I couldn't think of any place better. Maybe you can point me to places where more help can be expected. Anyway, the commit link that you've given was helpful and sort of solves the problem. I'm going to study that code and see if I come up with something. Thanks @BoLawson


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Why do write attempts to /system/priv-app cause /system to switch to read-only?
I'm trying to write files to the /system/priv-app directory. I boot into recovery (TWRP) and run adb shell.
~ # mount /system
~ # mount
rootfs on / type rootfs (rw,seclabel)
...
/dev/block/mmcblkXXXX on /system type ext4 (rw,seclabel,relatime,data=ordered)

I can then run:
~ # mkdir /system/tmp
~ # touch /system/tmp/test

This works fine: I have no problem modifying /system. (I can also delete things from /system/priv-app.) But if I then try to write to /system/priv-app I get the following:
~ # mkdir /system/priv-app/test
mkdir: can't create directory '/system/priv-app/test': Read-only file system
~ # mount
rootfs on / type rootfs (rw,seclabel)
...
/dev/block/mmcblkXXXX on /system type ext4 (ro,seclabel,relatime,data=ordered)

Now /system is suddenly mounted read-only! Permissions and ownership are identical in /system and /system/priv-app and I'm running as root.
~ # ls -al /
...
drwxr-xr-x   18 root     root          4096 Nov 25 07:32 system
~ # ls -al /system
...
drwxr-xr-x   59 root     root          4096 Aug  5  1972 priv-app

While in TWRP, SELinux is set to permissive:
~ # getenforce
Permissive

I'm running Lineage OS 14.1 (Android Nougat) on a Moto G 2015 (aka Moto G3). It's rooted with the official Lineage su addon. I also tried Magisk and get the same result.
I've run out of ideas, and I can't figure out the right search terms, because I've tried a ton of things and have not turned anything up.
How can I enable writing to /system/priv-app?

Thanks, @IrfanLatif! That worked for me, though I still don't understand how /system gets remounted read-only on the fly. My best guess at this point is some selinux policy that's triggered by writing to priv-app, but I'm at the edge of my knowledge there.

Protecting Android from malicious codes has always been a priority of Google, OEMs and SOC vendors. Even the /system write protection has been implemented on kernel level by some OEMs. And by default, Android mounts /system read-only in order to avoid any intentional or accidental changes for AVB/dm-verity to work properly. Only OTA updates can modify system partition.
However if dm-verity is disabled while rooting the device or when flashing custom kernel/ROM, we can mount /system read/write for modifications. But some programs have a built-in code to check if /system is mounted rw, and if so, revert the status to ro. Solid Explorer states:

If the mount point is mounted in r/o mode it will be temporarily remounted to r/w. After the operation completes (with a success or not), the app mounts the partition back to r/o state.

TWRP has also an option mount_sys_ro_chk and by default it mounts /system read-only.
So the solution is to change the mount point from /system to something else as that won't be checked usually.
Another factor that may force ro mounting of a partition is Linux kernel's mount option errors=remount-ro. This mount option is usually default on a newly created filesystem:
~# tune2fs -l /dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/system | grep Error
Errors behavior:          Remount read-only

So filesystem will be mounted as read-only if an error occurs e.g. Max Mount Count is reached and e2fsck isn't run. However this is rarely the case on Android. You can view kernel log for any such errors:
~# dmesg | grep mount

Changing the default behavior is not recommended and can be really harmful:
~# mkdir /system-temp
~# mount -o rw,errors=continue /dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/system /system-temp

+1 I didn't know some system programs had code to do a check on mount status and change it, if differed from standard.


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How to fix phone booting only into fastboot mode after flashing a custom ROM?
I have a Wileyfox Swift and I have tried to install lineageos 15.1 by following the tutorial that can be found on the lineageos website. I have successfully installed adb, twrp and used it to install the zip file that contains the lineageos files.
After installing the zip file, the phone only boots on what I think is the fastboot screen (shown below) which gives me the following options:

Start : this will boot on the fastboot menu
Restart bootloader : this will boot on the fastboot menu
Recovery mode : this will start twrp
Power off : this will power off the phone

Before installing the zip file, I have always checked the md5 file to make sure that there had not been a problem in the downloading process.
I have tried to install crdroid but with the same result. I have also tried to install numerous version of lineagos but it does not work either. I have read online that this issue could be resolved by pressing for a long time on the volume down/power button but it didn’t work.
I have run out of idea and am wondering if anyone has any idea on how to resolve this issue?

Can you still boot into TWRP? Have you tried flashing your stock ROM from fastboot or from TWRP?

What version of TWRP? Did you flash GAPPS and if so which one? The Bootloader version is on your device? Your devices bootloader screen it might state the version. Things to try: from the bootloader try these commands: fastboot reboot and then fastboot continue After that then the the best course of action is to flash the latest updated factory firmware image and start your custom Rom adventure again. Make sure that you flash the latest versions of things. Looking up your devices bootloader screen types. I found this gem. https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=66158015&postcount=2

Yes I can still use twrp and the version is 3.2.3. I flashed with GAPPS 8.1 pico. I tried the commands but fastboot can't see any devices. I have added a screenshot of the boot screen just in case it helps. Do you know how I can get the latest updated factory firmware image for the WileyFox Swift ? I did find old cyanogen mod rom (https://cyanogenupdatetracker.com/downloads/) but I am not sure whether the link is genuine or not.

They cite the official Wileyfox facebook: https://m.facebook.com/officialwileyfox/photos/a.1484448178533169.1073741828.1481273535517300/1794536560857661/ which also has a couple recovery zip downloads if you feel OEM is safer. I also found: https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=70510585&postcount=19 which has a fastboot signed .zip. Try flashing the OEM zip first from the facebook page. Flashing the zip from wileyfox facebook page is a simpler process. If that does not work then try the fastboot signed zip from the xda link. If you need help I can explain the process with an answer.

Bo Lawson thank you very much indeed. I downloaded the rom from the official Wileyfox facebook, flashed the phone with it and re-did the install as per lineageos' website and I am now running the lineage os on my phone. Thanks again for your help.

Old thread, but helped me fix my Wileyfox Swift as well.
I had the same issue - followed the TWRP route, erased and loaded the new image.
On restart, the bootloader refused to load the system, just went round and round. Speculation on my part, but this might have been because some of us had to "patch" the 'fox bootloader to get the Android 7 update to load in the first place.
The links on the facebook page posted by Bo Lawson (thank you) are still active at the time of this post. I selected the "last" cyanogen release (see the Swift links, used ZNH2KAS7EB).
TWRP was already on, so I booted to recovery, used adp to push the file SW27-WF-CRACKLING-CM-13.1.5-ZNH2KAS7EB-RECOVERY.zip to /sdcard, then used TWRP to install it.
This also replaced the "new" bootloader. The old Cyanogen image booted without issues, so just turned on USB debugging, then rebooted to bootloader.
Fastboot flash'd recovery with TWRP(3.2.3.0) again. Rebooted to recovery, then installed the replacement image (not Lineage, but e.Foundation's beta).
Works!
...and there was much rejoicing.


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How to make an app behave the same way with screen off, as with screen on?
Maybe the question should be - "how to keep the CPU awake with screen off", but I'm not sure yet, here's why:
I'm trying to use my android device as a DLNA player, that streams music to a DLNA renderer. The problem is that the playback keeps stopping with the screen off, using apps like n7player and doubleTwist music player. Logically, these apps should keep the CPU awake when the music is playing, but if they don't, I have tried the following to keep the CPU awake:

Disabling battery optimizations on these apps;
an Automate script without the "keep screen on" option;
This command - echo mylockname >/sys/power/wake_lock;

But these solutions didn't solve my problem, the playback keeps stopping after awhile, when the screen turns off. If the screen is kept on, by using the caffeine function for example, there are no issues, but I would like to keep the screen off to save some battery and maybe prolong the life of the device.
So if the solutions I have mentioned really keep the CPU awake, maybe there is something else that these players need to keep the playback going.
Update:
Screen backlight off app - this seems like the most promising approach and maybe works on some devices as expected, but not on mine (Samsung SM-T585 tablet). It should turn off the screen backlight and it does so by setting the brightness level to 0. Maybe some devices completely turn off the backlight in this case, but my tablet keeps emmiting very low light. So if anyone knows a way to completely turn off the backlight - please let me know.

So, the only way I have found yet, to stream music to a DLNA device with screen off, using these apps, is to disable Doze mode by using this command in terminal:
dumpsys deviceidle disable

followed by dumpsys deviceidle enable when I no longer need streaming.
Now just need to find the way to automate this with tasker.

+1 for self answering :).

Thanks, but less aggressive and more automated solutions are still highly welcome :)

Automation can be achieved IMO. You can ask a separate question linking this as background but "less aggressive", I am not sure

In Tasker, you would need root access. The task would be Code, Run Shell, Command: your command, tick Use Root. Assign the task to a profile and enjoy.

The task - yes. But I'm not sure what profile to create, that would be the trigger for enabling Doze again. I was testing with Autotools plugin, which has a variable that shows if music is playing at the moment (%atmusicplaying). Funny thing is that it is set to "true", only when the music is playing on the device. But if music is output through dlna, the variable stays false, even though the player is playing music and in its notification the "play" button changes to "pause" and so on.


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Android phone plugged into charge 24/7
I currently have an LG E440 (non-stock ROM) plugged on charge 24/7 (connected to mains outlet, not PC) as it runs several Tasker-based routines which need to be seperate from my day-to-day phone.
Aside from the shortened battery life-span and increased electricity bill, are there any inherent dangers to this? E.g. battery exploding, risk of fire etc.
As far as I'm aware, as long as the battery doesn't overheat it should be fine, but I'm sure someone out there can point something out!
Thanks

That should be fine IMO. By doing it via a battery bank you can eliminate risk of freak power surges due to lightning etc. Other than that you have no problems


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How to use two different numbers in the same phone via WhatsApp?
My phone just went broken last night, and I have another but I don't want to change the SIM card, so I'm wondering if it's possible to run 2 numbers on the same phone.
I have heard there is a chance of creating a new user and installing WhatsApp again under that new user, will this work? I don't want to lose a couple of work groups that are important.

There are multiple possibilities:

Some stock/custom ROMs (e.g. MIUI) let you create a new user with a non-zero ID by utilizing the Multiple Users / Work Profile feature of Android. You can switch between accounts and almost all installed user apps can be duplicated with unique settings/data for each user.
You can use some dual account app; a kind of OS-level virtualization or containerization. There are numerous on Play Store like Parallel Space. But personally, I don't recommend this option as these apps are a burden on resources and may slow down the device or reduce battery timing. Most of those require too many permissions, seem focused on ads, user stats, analytics, and tracking for monetizing. Shelter is an open-source (FOSS) app if you go for this option.
Another option is to use a modded WhatsApp with a different package name e.g. GBWhatsApp. That will work in parallel with the official WhatsApp release. Be aware of illegality and malware when going for non-official apps.

Step 1: Install WhatsApp from Google Play Store and then register your primary number.
Step 2: If you already have a WhatsApp account running on your phone, skip step 1 and go to your phone’s setting.
Step 3: Navigate to Dual App/Clone app/App Twin and tap on it.
Step 4: You will now see a list of apps that can be cloned, tap on the WhatsApp option and then select install
Step 5: Set up the second WhatsApp account and open the secondary app.
Step 6: Now tap on Agree and Continue while also allowing WhatsApp to access your files as well as contacts.
Step 7: Now, you will be asked to register your contact number. Just remember to add your secondary number and then, you will be able to run dual WhatsApp accounts on one smartphone.


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Why does fingerprint sensor not work when phone is charging?
I often face this issue. The fingeprint sensor does not work and sometimes the touch also misbehaves when phone is charging.
Why does this happen  and how to fix this?
I experienced this  issue with Mi Note 4, as well as Redmi 4A.

Regarding "touch also misbehaves when charging", I believe it also applies on many devices (including my Nexus 5) on certain condition. I still cannot pinpoint the issue because there are so many factors: charger, USB cable, voltage, amperage, wattage, etc.

As requested by OP posting answer, in response to my comment (now deleted) based on my experience

Having a clean power supply, using original charger + USB cable, setting up finger prints again are the common things that work...

I am not  sure as to why touch sensor  works only with original charger but posting as it may help, as it helped OP

Don't know the exact answer but from my experience It seems that touch sensors are finely tuned and calibrated against voltage reference. Using power supply other than provided chargers might be affecting these calibrations and cause fluctuations that results in malfunctioning of touch screen - that is - we click on something and something else is clicked or sometimes touch doesn't work, etc.

+1. You have a point. It's called Ghost touch. See https://android.stackexchange.com/a/156880/131553

Something I have noticed with my fingerprint sensor is that if phone is face down and hasn't been used for a short while, phone will not read finger print until phone is actually picked up. Not sure if because of proximity or orientation sensor, but appears to be that way to keep from accidental unlocks. Is your phone face down when attempting to unlock? Also, what do you mean by "touch misbehaves"? If you mean the entire touchscreen and then combined with fingerprint sensor this could be pointing to your device being defective.


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How can I turn off any kind of fanciness/animations on Samsung A7, with Android 8.0.0?
I am a more or less a nostalgic type of user and what I really would like is to turn of any kind fanciness as much as possible on an/any kind of mobile phone what I have so far.
But the problem is: How can I do this?
With fanciness or fancy stuff I really mean something like moving something smoothly (or continues), or an open/close animation, or moving some unnecessary stuff on screen etc. etc.
Like in this video e.g. at the beginning. I would really like to change the slide instant when I swipe left/right.
Or e.g. here the first gif on the page. It can (for my flavor) slide horizontally/vertically but to open the split e.g. instant (without wait to long).
Here are two more examples what I mean:
In Windows XP minimizing/maximizing of a window was instant, see here e.g. and on Mac OS the min/max-ing of a window looks like here.
If you ask yourself 'why' then I can only say that I really mean this seriously. No, seriously, I really would like to have things happen more or less instant and not when the animation is done or what ever.
Update #1
If this can be applied only to my phone (Samsung A7, with Android 8.0.0) it would be fine too.
Update #2
I have already unlocked the developer options in the settings and also disabled the animations (see here). But is it possible to disable these kind of animations in other apps too?

@beeshyams I have added my phone too, also see the tags. Also my assumption was that this can be applied to any Android phone, but one phone would be enough (for me at least).

Fixed the title :-) but still suggest to narrow the scope

Usually there's a setting for disabling animation on Developer Options (because many UI automated testing frameworks recommend to disable animation to prevent false positive issues). You might need to find how to turn on developer options on your device though...

@AndrewT. Thank you for this suggestion. The animation in developer options are already deactivated. But is it also possible to turn any kind of animations in other applications itself too?


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Removing multiple files using ADB
This is what I tried:
$ adb -e exec-out run-as com.awesomeproject rm *.jpg
rm: *.jpg: No such file or directory

After that I tried using find
$ adb -e exec-out run-as com.awesomeproject ls
app_textures files10.jpg files15.jpg files20.jpg files25.jpg files30.jpg
app_webview  files11.jpg files16.jpg files21.jpg files26.jpg files31.jpg
cache        files12.jpg files17.jpg files22.jpg files27.jpg lib
code_cache   files13.jpg files18.jpg files23.jpg files28.jpg lib-main
files        files14.jpg files19.jpg files24.jpg files29.jpg shared_prefs

$ adb -e exec-out run-as com.awesomeproject find . -type f -name '*.jpg' -delete

But apparently the files are still there.
I'm not sure if this is because globstar is disabled but of course I can't activate it:
$ adb -e exec-out run-as com.awesomeproject shopt -s globstar
run-as: exec failed for shopt: Permission denied

So how do I get rid of multiple files at once using adb?

I believe the first command is misinterpreting the last operation within the command. Try giving it more explicit instructions: adb -e exec-out "run-as com.awesomeproject rm *.jpg". Other things to try include single quotes, combining, usage of escapes. Invoking an adb shell separating and throwing the commands one by one should work without issue.

Here is one thing you can try:
$adb shell "cd path/to/the/folder && rm -rf *.ext"

this answer is not sufficient due lack of permissions /data/data/com.awesomeproject


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Finding out what App causes unwanted new tabs in firefox on Android
Recently some app started opening new firefox tabs with the adress 'livemobilesearch.com'. I uninstalled the most recentently installed apps, but the problem still persists. I assume the pages get opened when I unlock my phone from standby, because sometimes after I unlock the phone the screen flashes for a second and if I open the firefox after that, a new tab with said webpage is open. I already deleted the 'cache' and 'data' of the firefox app but nothing changed. Also I tried an anti virus and malware software called "Malwarebytes Security: Virus Cleaner, Anti-Malware", but it didn't find anything. I have two ideas / questions to find out what causes this problem:

Does the firefox app have a logfile that tracks from where pages are openend?
Is there a way to see a list of receivers that are 'subscribed' to the SCREEN_ON Event?

If anyone has another idea to how to fix my problem I'd be glad to hear it.
Thanks in advance.
EDIT:
I've read and followed the instructions of the related articles from the comments. dumpsys activity activities shows the following:
* TaskRecord{3bf05cb #1075 A=com.android.chrome U=0 StackId=1 sz=1}
  userId=0 effectiveUid=u0a103 mCallingUid=u0a103 mUserSetupComplete=true mCallingPackage=com.android.chrome
  affinity=com.android.chrome
  intent={act=android.intent.action.VIEW dat=https://livemobilesearch.com/?utm_campaign=dist&utm_source=foobar flg=0x14002000 pkg=com.android.chrome cmp=com.android.chrome/org.chromium.chrome.browser.ChromeTabbedActivity}
  realActivity=com.android.chrome/org.chromium.chrome.browser.ChromeTabbedActivity

....

* Hist #0: ActivityRecord{bbeee47 u0 com.android.chrome/org.chromium.chrome.browser.ChromeTabbedActivity t1075}
      packageName=com.android.chrome processName=com.android.chrome
      launchedFromUid=10103 launchedFromPackage=com.android.chrome userId=0
      app=ProcessRecord{408bf79 18941:com.android.chrome/u0a103}
      Intent { act=android.intent.action.VIEW dat=https://livemobilesearch.com/?utm_campaign=dist&utm_source=foobar flg=0x14002000 pkg=com.android.chrome cmp=com.android.chrome/org.chromium.chrome.browser.ChromeTabbedActivity (has extras) }
      frontOfTask=true task=TaskRecord{3bf05cb #1075 A=com.android.chrome U=0 StackId=1 sz=1}
      taskAffinity=com.android.chrome
      realActivity=com.android.chrome/org.chromium.chrome.browser.ChromeTabbedActivity

The way I understand the output is, that the tabs were opened from chrome. I've disabled chrome for now, as I can't uninstall it.
EDIT 2:
The problem still persits. Even though I followed the steps in the similar thread in the comments, the unwanted page still gets opened. I can't uninstall Chrome since it is a system app (I have a sony xperia x compact on Android 8.0.0).
After I disabled Chrome the unwanted page is still opened. It now states in the dumpsys: "launchedFromPackage=org.mozilla.firefox". It would appear, that the solution form the comments is in my case not working.
Any advice would be much apreciated.

Hi. Can you do this? Connect the phone to PC, start saving output of logcat command into a file through adb logcat -v long,descriptive > logcat_output.txt, unlock the screen and wait for the browser with that URL to be launched, and when done launching, press ctrl + c to exit saving the logcat's output. After that, share the logcat file with us using "github paste" or pastebin website. // Logcat is a very important tool to troubleshooting issues with Android.

I've put the logcat here: https://pastebin.com/VZHXFeNW
You can search for "livemobilesearch" to find the place where the page gets opened.

Can you  give me the output of adb shell dumpsys package > dump_pkgs.txt or alternatively, adb shell 'dumpsys package | grep -B1 -e 10331   -e 10021'? Also, tag me with @Firelord to notify me of your comment. Thanks

@Firelord here is the "dumpsys package": https://gist.github.com/KArlkackt/5bc56b4b627bcd1772ec73d7c4d42420

Can you disable or uninstall the Farming Simulator app in your device and see whether the browser is still launched with that URL automatically upon unlocking the device? It is identified by some anti-malware programs as
potentially malicious. See https://www.hybrid-analysis.com/sample/f11ee8a9522d73c8af296a3eca21a7487db48923ae8bdccabef919651bc4c592?environmentId=200 for more

@Firelord After uninstalling the farming simulator, the problem went away. Thank you so much! I thought, because I paid for the app, the developer would not place malware in their product, but as it turns out I was wrong. Lesson learned. If you post an anwser I will mark it as the solution.

I'm glad we were able to work this out. However, I cannot post an answer here because the question is still a duplicate to that question. I've, however, added my findings from this answer into my other answer, so that it benefits people who would be spammed, like you, in future.  If you intend to vote, which is voluntary, you may upvote it there. Thanks!


text:
Does Android provide auto-switching of network mode when mobile data is toggled?
Whenever I want to turn on the mobile data, I have to go to "Preferred network type" menu and Switch to 3G/4G/Prefer LTE manually which requires many steps.
So does Android OS provide auto switching to 3G/4G/Prefer LTE mode when network turns on and auto switching to 2G mode when I turn off the mobile data?
Note: I'm using MI note 4 mobile with Android 7.0.
If there is no such option, how can I send this as a suggestion to Google or Android developers?

Nevermind, I just learned about Dual SIM Dual Standby. You should mention that in your post. Switching between Sim1 & Sim2 as preferred and secondary is not the same as switching off mobile data. there are some exceptions to the rule. Some smartphones, for example, can also connect the secondary SIM card to the internet in DSDS smartphones without using Hot Swap, but the card only supports the old 2G networks, as it does not have physical access to the 3G/4G modem and antenna reserved for the main card Possible Clandestine wow. That's a protocol thing. Can you provide the primary slot APN?

So does Android OS provide auto switching to 3G/4G/Prefer LTE mode when network turns on and auto switching to 2G mode when I turn off the mobile data?

No, it doesn't

If there is no such option, how can I send this as a suggestion to Google or Android developers?

Yes. You can, as mentioned here

You can help improve Android by reporting issues and feature requests in the Android Issue Tracker.

IMO, this would fall in the Networking section.
I wouldn't cross my fingers hoping something will come out of the bug report but it's your call.
If you root your device and install Xposed framework, you can install Gravity Box and select Smart Radio option (Note: As of today, Xposed framework has not been ported to Pie; Gravity Box module & Xposed framework vary as per Android version). Also, Gravity Box works best on AOSP ROMs so it's better to check out in your device forums if it works well or not.
Using this feature you can switch to 2G when you are not using the data network and switch to selected network automatically when using data. I use it and snapshots below show the choices of network when
 connected / not connected to data (power saving and normal mode). In addition you can fine tune switching and create a Quick Settings tile for it.

(Tap to enlarge)


text:
Samsung Galaxy S5 Stuck in boot loop & will not enter recovery mode
I have a Samsung Galaxy S5 Model SM-G900V stuck in a boot loop.  Unknown Android version, but the phone is stock with no mods. I've tried the following:
Replaced the battery with a known working battery
Soft Reset
Tried every key combination possible
Entered Download mode and re-flashed with a stock ROM
Phone will not enter recovery mode shows blue text on top right and then also reboots into a boot loop before entering recovery mode.  After it reboots it still shows the blue text on the top right but never gets past that.
I am able to enter maintenance boot and tried safe mode and clicked on factory reset which then brings me to the screen for recovery booting and then enters a boot loop again.
The fireware I have tried is:
G900VVRU2DQL1_G900VVZW2DQL1_G900VVRU2DQL1_HOME.tar.md5
&
G900VVRU2DPG2_G900VVZW2DPG2_G900VVRU2DPG2_HOME.tar.md5
I also tried to use ODIN and replace the PIT with the following:  KLTE_USA_VZW.pit
All Flashing was sucessfull

power + volume up (in several combinations of holding / pressing
power + volume down
power + volume up + volume down
power + home
power + home + volume up
power + home + volume down
home + volume up
home + volume down

Have you tried connecting it via a PC!? Such as a Linux with ADB and fastboot installed!? Sometimes you might require using a PC to reload the bootloader and rom via a sideload.

Yes, I've tried re-loading the ROM from a PC several times with 5 different ROMS.  No good.

I've taken it to Verizon and the tech their told me that since it won't enter recovery mode chances are that is it a hardware failure.


text:
Importing contacts from Windows Phone 10
Trying to set up my new Galaxy S9+ today and I'm moving from a Lumia 950XL running Windows 10 Mobile - and for the life of me I can't get it to import my contacts.
The obvious solution would appear to be the Smart Switch app, however: I installed it on both devices, set the S9 to "receive" and connected the 950 to the Wifi network SS created, unfortunately it just sits on "Connecting.." on the 950-side (despite the S9 side claiming it's connected).
Other things I've tried:

Adding my One Drive account - Nope, no option to sync the contacts.
"Linking" the S9 to my Win10 laptop via Link My Phone - Nope, it shows as linked, shows up in my Microsoft Account when I log in there but no apparent way to sync anything.
Adding Microsoft account to Outlook - Nope, can't add it as it doesn't have mail associated with it.

What am I missing here?

After a few more failures where I tried exporting contacts as VCF and importing into my Google account (imported 9 out of 209 - no message to indicate why the remaining 200 didn't import) and trying to import the VCF direct onto the phone (failed completely with a message indicating the format was invalid) I eventually tried the Smart Switch app again, this time it prompted me to update it when I opened it so I did and this time it worked. It took a couple of hours but it seems to have worked ok.


text:
How to fix "Unable to connect to Samsung Pay temporarily"?
I'm trying to setup Samsung Pay on a new Galaxy A8 2018 but I get this error message every time, even after re-installing Samsung Pay and resetting the phone as well as clearing Samsung Pays data.

Connection Error
Unable to connect to Samsung Pay temporarily. Try again later.

I've looked through the Samsung Account data and entered all I could.
The phone has "Magyar" as default region when I start it, could that be it?
I don't have any SIM card in it but when I try putting one in I still get the same error message.

Samsung Pay requires a SIM card to work, and it requires it on the first boot.
My solution was to put the SIM card in and then reset* the phone.
When it started with a SIM card in it, I saw "Samsung pay Sweden" pinned to the home screen (Swedish SIM card). It then worked flawlessly.

Why isn't this bug fixed yet one could ask, but there you have it.

Why didn't I have a SIM card in when I first booted it? I had to order a new micro SIM from my operator which took a week to get delivered.

* Reset it to factory defaults, wipe it clean. I guess you have everything in the cloud anyway.


text:
On a multi-user Android device, when Google Backup runs, whose data will get backed up?
If it's enabled, Google Backup does two things.
A)  It runs "key/value backups", maybe once every few hours, and it stores the data in the Android Backup Service.
B)  It runs "Android Auto Backups", usually once per night, and it stores the data in your Google Drive.
(Source.)
On a multi-user Android device, when Google Backup runs, whose data will get backed up?
(I could do some testing and find out the answer myself, but it might take me days.  My device is running Android 6.0.0 "Marshmallow", and I'm not sure I've yet figured out how to properly force a full immediate backup using bmgr on such an old OS.)
Edit
adb shell then dumpsys backup will mention "Backup currently running" if a backup is running.  It can also tell you much more information.
adb shell then logcat | grep -i backup will watch for backup-related activity and show you the log entries as they happen.
To read more about multi-user backup
If you'd like to see other threads about multi-user backup, please go here and here.

The first search result raised in Google forums indicate that only primary user is backed up. Other questions on this search page including this site seem to support

Even adb doesn't backup multiple users


text:
Phone can not reset and cannot boot to recovery mode
Actually I don't know what I did or did not do. I'm running a stock jellybean ROM. It is rooted. I've tried to soft reset the device but when I hit the "delete everything" in factory reset, the phone reboots normally and my apps are still there looking at me with their data.
Secondly, when I try to perform a hard reset, phone won't boot into recovery mode not even when I use adb or terminal Emulator, or hardware buttons or other advanced reboot apps. But the device can enter fast boot mode.
Any idea what is wrong??


text:
What do "Installed", "Running", and "All" apps mean in Android Settings?
I have an Android device running on Android 4.4.4. In the Settings, I have no idea what "Installed", "Running", and "All" apps are.
What do those mean?

The menu in Settings › Apps usually has multiple tabs (or items in a drop-down), signifying a (sub) group of the apps available on your device:

Installed: user-installed apps. Most of them are those you installed yourself, but some might be "vendor-provided" apps that got installed on initialization (first use or after a factory-reset). These are the apps you also can uninstall.
All: All apps, whether pre-installed or user-installed. This is the only group where (pre-installed) system apps are shown as well; these you normally cannot uninstall, but only disable (and sometimes not even that).
Running: These are the apps currently running – either because you started them explicitly, or because they got started by some intent (in most cases, this is BOOT_COMPLETED, i.e. apps starting automatically after boot – but it also could be something else they're reacting on, such as network state changed, or some other app calling them as it often is the case with Maps)
Disabled: On some devices, you might see this as explicit section listing the (system) apps you've disabled. On other devices, this section might be missing; disabled apps then carry the string "disabled" next to their names in the "All" section.


text:
What does the PIPE icon mean in status bar?(with picture)
I just noticed this today, and I have not installed any apps which I think related to this Pipe icon. It just flash and disappear repeatedly but if I pull the status bar there is no visible notification that I can check.
I checked running apps, I cant seem to find any related apps, I only have messenger, tasker, spotify and other system apps. It seems I could not also find any details through google. I already tried rebooting.
Is there anyway to find out this app? perhaps through adb? I have root.

OOC, what phone is this? That's an unusual-looking notification bar.

What is OOC? This is Zenfone 5 2018.


text:
Why are portrait photos sometimes sideways?
When I take a portrait photo, it shows up correctly on the phone.  But when I transfer it to certain software, it shows up flipped sideways.  Why is this?  Is it the fault of the phone or the software that's reading the image?  Is there a way to fix a batch of these images so that all software shows them correctly?
The phone is an LG G3, but it's happened to me on multiple phones, and many people have reported this problem, e.g.:
https://androidforums.com/threads/vertical-photos-rotating-to-horizontal-orientation.588960/
The same thing happens if I use a different camera app, OpenCamera, instead of the stock Android app.

Depends on – and we need some more info to decide: 1) does this only happen with some software (but not with other)? 2) does the same software show it correctly for photos taken with some other phone?

2 examples of software for which it happens are uploading an image to www.kijiji.ca, and opening an image in gImageReader.
I don't have another phone to test unfortunately, but I know it was at least happening with the Kijiji website on my previous phone, also Android.

Which means it only happens with that specific software – but the same photo opened with a different software is shown correctly? Then it's most likely an issue with the software, which for some reason ignores (or cannot read) the photos' Exif data (which is where the image orientation is stored).

That doesn't necessarily follow - maybe phones save photos in some kind of non-standard way, which a lot of software doesn't handle.  We have to know the details to decide.

I found the answer to my own question.   It seems cameras take the picture and then store an flag, the Exif orientation, rather than just storing the rotated data, because the latter would be too time-consuming or it would be too expensive to give the camera custom hardware. (https://www.impulseadventure.com/photo/exif-orientation.html)
But not all software supports these image rotation flags, so it's best to process images when importing them to convert them to an image with no rotation flag.  Some tools for doing this are here:
http://how-to.wikia.com/wiki/How_to_auto-rotate_digital_photos_to_their_proper_orientation
The exifautotran script seems to work for me, e.g.:
exifautotran *.jpg


text:
Best way to install Android app on 500 tablets?
We have 500 tablets that need to go out with our Android app pre-installed. From our experience so far, the only way to install the apps is by creating a new Google account, logging into the play store, and installing the app. The problem with this method is that it's very time consuming, it's creating junk accounts that I'm sure Google doesn't want, and each new account requires a phone number to verify and you can only create a limited number of accounts on a single phone number.
The obvious alternative is to side load the app with the APK file manually, but the downside to this is that we want to be able to update the app later. My understanding is that if we side load the app we can't update the app automatically.
We are already using Ionic Pro which has live deploy which handles most small updates but it can't live deploy any updates that involve updates to the cordova/native plugins.
Since both of these methods have drawbacks, I'm hoping there's another way. I'm curious how educational institutions are able to preload apps on classroom tablets that update without an account logged into the Play Store.
To be clear, and to avoid duplication of other similar questions, what I'm really looking for is to use the Google Play Store for updates, not bypass it, but without having a unique Google account per tablet.

Not saying you should keep doing what you're doing, but trust me: Google doesn't care at all about these "junk accounts". They will likely never even notice them...

@only_pro the other issue is that they require phone numbers to verify and you can only create a limited number of accounts on a single phone number.

I do not think you need a unique account. I have several devices that all use the same account. That aside...
Sideloaded apps should be able to update from Google Play. I just tested this myself. I installed an older version of Discord on my phone, opened a fresh run of Google Play, and checked for updates. It showed me that there was an update and was able to do it.
Since 2015, Google Play is able to detect the keystore signature of the apps. As long as the one installed and the one on the market are signed the same, then it should update.
You should be able to test it yourself, assuming you have older version of your app that you can fiddle with.

Thanks! Does the updates done to sideloaded apps work even if you never log into Google Play?

@Citizen Unfortunately to get the updates on any app not developed by Google, you have to sign in to an account. However, you should be able to use just one dummy account across all devices.


text:
Will I lose my phone number and phone plan with factory reset?
Will I lose my phone number or phone plan if I reset my Android to factory settings? I know I will lose my pictures, contacts, and stuff but those I can get back.

No. Factory reset erases data stored on /data partition of your phone. It includes your preferences (what you set in Settings app), user apps and their settings/data, system apps' settings/data (including contacts and messages) and personal data stored on /sdcard including pictures, videos and some apps' data (like WhatsApp stores media and messages backup on /sdcard).
But phone number is just an id (MSISDN) mapped to International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) which is assigned by Mobile Network Operator (MNO) to your Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC; SIM/USIM) on GSM/UMTS/LTE networks or (CSIM/RUIM on) CDMA network, or to phone (identified by its ESN; Electronic Serial Number, compared to IMEI on GSM) on pre-3G CDMA network. This isn't something stored on your phone, it's your account's detail which is stored on your service provider's system.
eSIM is the UICC embedded inside phone (not considering iUICC or virtual/dummy SIM or pure software SIM) which is programmable so that you don't need to swap SIM cards. eSIM stores one or more profiles which hold essentially the same information as a physical SIM card - including ICCID, IMSI (MCC/MNC tuple + MSIN) etc. - which is linked to possibly multiple changeable MSISDNs (phone numbers we dial). And just like hardware SIM, eSIM is Secure Element, completely isolated from Android OS, even the processor. So it's not affected with any filesystem changes. If factory reset erases profiles intentionally, those can be re-programmed. All that's needed is the unique QR code which, if lost, can be obtained from MNO or even their apps can generate. So your phone number isn't affected.
Similarly your call/message/data plans are associated to your identity (phone number). You will be able to avail those services as long as you have a valid subscription and your SIM card is inserted in a compatible phone, identifiable and authentic-able by the MNO.

Note: This answer was written for a device that does not have or not use the eSIM functionality. When using an eSIM the factory reset can/may erase the phone number as well.

@Robert factory reset won't erase phone number, but just the eSIM profile. Which you can add/delete as many times as you want. All that's needed is the unique code from MNO. If the code is lost, it can be obtained from MNO or even their apps can generate.

The quick answer is "No, it doesn't effect your plan or phone number".
Note: Factory reset  is just a clean up process which includes permissions to clean and reset everything within device to it's factory made stage. Of course you have additional options to clean your SD card and sim contacts too, if you want.


text:
What damage can someone do with a logged play store account?
Let's say I have 500 tablets that I'm using for educational purposes at a highschool. In order to preload the app and receive automatic updates later, we have a single dummy Google Account that's logged into Google Play Store. The question is, once we give these tablets out to our students, some of whom we should assume are tech savvy and up to do no good, what damage can they do with the fact that all devices share the same account?
Now, if the damage they can do only applies to their device, we're ok with that. For instance, of course they can log out and in with a different account, which is ok. And of course they could use and abuse the tablet as they could any other tablet. That's ok too.
What we don't want to happen is for one user to be able to impact another user because of that shared account. Since they're all logged into the same account, can they access the email of that account? Could they force other tablets of the same account to download other apps? Could they force other apps to log out? What's the worst that could happen?

you can protect play store with app lock or some similar apps for safety...

I think as long as the 'dummy' account's password remains secret you're fine. I would worry about the 'dummy' account being hit by spam. If you want more controls I'll assume you've looked into Android Enterprise Mobile Management software


text:
how to succesfully boot into bootloader/fastboot mode on alcatel 5049z smartphone
I am having issues( i am a "novice" when it comes to unlocking a30 android bootloader with a PC...) with booting into bootloader/fastboot mode on my stock rom--android 7--Alcatel a30(non rooted 5049z?)smartphone;i have tried the power button/volume button sequence method...no luck there,and have tried the adb method using:adb reboot bootloader/fastboot..again no luck!!!
I would like to know if any forum members know how i may unlock my a30 bootloader without(if possible?)rebooting to the aforementioned bootloader modes or is this phones bootloader unlockable without removing FRP(Factory Reset Protection)????
Thanks in advance for any helpful replies!

Not all devices have a user-accessible fastboot mode, and considering that yours is a MediaTek-powered device, it gets even less likely. Not to mention that many modern phones require flipping a switch in Developer Options to enable unlocking.

@AndyYan and even if fastboot mode is accessible, one may need an unlock code from the OEM to unlock bootloader. And there's is a possibility that vendors provide no mechanism to unlock bootloader like most of the phones sold by network carriers are not unlockable. Sometimes hacks/exploits work for unlocking/rooting but most of the times you are out of luck with such phones.

What is the problem you are facing? Are you stuck with FRP and don't know the Google account credentials and hoping that flashing ROM using fastboot or flashing a custom recovery would help you out? Booting into fastboot mode is an intermediate step, not the end goal.

You have several questions,
To answer the last one,  yes... and no
On device's that use MTK CPU's, you don't need to unlock the bootloader as the bootloader on MTK's is not Fastboot .   .MTK is famous for being UNBRICKABLE !!! Meaning you don't need to unlock the Fastboot at all...
The reason your having trouble is because it isn't necessary to unlock the bootloader ...
I'm not sure why Andy### thinks that being a MediaTek would make it harder, because that's just not the case... it usually means easier...
Let me explain why the Fastboot is useless..
On MediTek Device's, you dont flash new images via Fastboot because there is size limitations to each image, if you tried to flash a massive 3 GB system, it wouldn't allow you to, because of maximum flash size in Fastboot....   Instead MediaTek uses a Pre-Boot that is prior to the bootloader, it doesn't even have a GUI... This is called the Preloader on MTK Devices, and you do all your flashing using the Preloader... Usually you use a tool called SP Flash Tool for doing flashes....
Unlocking your bootloader isn't necessary, and disabling FRP is not going to make any changes to your bootloader unlocking... You flash a recovery image via the Preloader in SP Flash Tool, and then wipe the partition called FRP, and factory reset... it isn't like other Android ( HTC for example ) Htc devices need to be unlocked in order to install custom recoveries etc... this is not even a problem with MTK Device's because the Preloader gives you factory level flashing abilities.


text:
ADB Shell Input text unicode value gives permission error
I am running below command on Ubuntu with connected devices
adb shell input text "तणणररथ"

but it gives me permission denied error and start dumping state of the device
sh: resetreason: can't execute: Permission denied
========================================================
== dumpstate: 2018-11-28 03:20:03
========================================================

.......

Can you please help me on this?

From this StackOverflow post: adb shell input unicode character adb shell input isn't designed for unicode characters.
The most promising answer points to a github repo: ADBKeyBoard however there is a note that it may not work on Android O / Android P.


text:
How to downgrade Google search app in recovery?
For some reason, I would like to downgrade the Google search app (com.google.android.quicksearchbox) to a older version, and upgrade later, on a MI 8 running Android Oreo.
But when /system is mounted in recovery, I couldn't find the Google app in /system/app, although other system apps are there.
I don't want to root the device, so how to?

Find the directory Velvet under /system/priv-app/.

some applications are in deferent locations, system/app holds certain applications while system/priv-app holds other's... sometimes your phone provider also puts apps in system/vendor/operator/APP_FOLDERS_BY_NAME   and custom/app/
These locations change depending on device, but mostly stick to the same root directory's..

system/app
system/priv-app
system/vendor/
custom/

Just have a look around at the different sub folders, and i think it's inconveniently named something completely different, like Velvet.apk


text:
How to merge text conversations from multiple numbers into a single one?
I have a handful of people who have more than two numbers they contact me from, and I find it annoying to have so many different conversations for one person. I'm looking for a way (preferably, an app) that would let me just have one 'conversation' and just change the number.
I had a phone that did this automatically. I'm 99% sure it was a dual-sim phone, so I'm pretty sure it's possible to do.

To answer your question

Open Contacts
Find Contact A's Name.
Click Edit and add an addition number to contact A, number Two.
Click Mobile, Home or Work phone.
Save the contact with multiple Numbers.

It's all pretty straight forward for an experienced human being... :)

Reloading messages should attach the two conversations as one, if not, future conversations will be marked as the same contact.

This seems to no longer work on current Android versions (i.e. Android 9 / Pie).


text:
How to back up notes from Samsung Notes app?
I use Samsung Notes (in Samsung Galaxy Tab S3) daily for taking notes and audio from college lectures. But how can I get all of my files and store them on my external HDD?
I mean, there's no file inside the tablet's storage, nor inside my SD card. Moreover, I wouldn't like to synchronize any of my notes and audio with Samsung Cloud or something.
How can I retrieve my Samsung Notes files and audio?

I've never been a user of Samsung so I'm not sure how the stock Notes app works and in what format it saves files. This question indicates that notes can be backed up to PC from a Samsung phone using Kies as .ssm files and subsequently be opened using some media player (like VLC / Real Player) or S Note app.
This question addresses different methods to backup .memo or .smm or .spd files created by Samsung Memo app (if it's the same what you mentioned as Notes app). Memos can be shared/exported one by one in readable text files or otherwise transfer the memo files to PC.
Now, app data is always saved in one of these 2 locations: /data/data/package-name or /sdcard/Android/data/package-name. Package name of Samsung Memo app is com.samsung.android.app.memo as mentioned here but you can check yours from App info. Accessing the former needs root access. Also an app with permission.WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE can save files anywhere on /sdcard. Samsung Memo app version 1.0.4517634 app saves it's files to /sdcard/BeamMemo. For other versions, it can be different; /sdcard/.ActionMemo or /sdcard/SNote Data. You can search for these files using some File Explorer app or find command through commandline.
Once the backup is done, you can either:

Restore these files back to phone later on. In this case you should backup the whole folders and not only the memo files. But still it's not guaranteed that the app will recover whole data if it is reinstalled unless a backup file(s) is created by the app for restore purpose. If you are restoring to /data/data/, app UID and SELinux context also need to be restored.
Open these files on PC. .memo files are basically zip files which can be extracted to get media files and text contents as answered here.

Or you can use a free app like ColorNote (for text-only notes) or other one which is easy to backup and restore.


text:
Why can I enable a hotspot on Android 5 but not Android 9 with same sim card?
I have two phones, an old Nexus 5 running Android 6 and my new-ish Pixel 2 running Android 9. I have only one sim card (Cricket). I can enable a hotspot on my Nexus but not my Pixel 2, which says "To enable, go to att.com/mywireless or dial 611".  Obviously, I didn't expect to lose hotspot services when I upgraded.
From these observations, I infer that Android 9 (but not 6) enables carriers to implement policies regarding mobile hotspots. Is that correct?  Is there a difference in behavior between Pixel 2 phones bought though a carrier and those bought directly from Google?
And, if Android does facilitate device limitations, does anyone have backstory about why Google enables policies that are counter to anti-net neutrality?
Excellent relevant background: How can phone companies detect tethering (incl. Wifi hotspot)

From these observations, I infer that Android 9 (but not 6) enables
  carriers to implement policies regarding mobile hotspots. Is that
  correct?

Yes

Is there a difference in behavior between Pixel 2 phones bought though
  a carrier and those bought directly from Google ( Device Manufacturer )?

Yes

If Android does facilitate device limitations, does anyone have
  backstory about why Google enables policies that are counter to
  anti-net neutrality?

Yes

Many Carriers wanted control over tethering so Android just did what was wanted in that aspect, some carriers wanted to charge extra for tethering and even offer tethering specific deals that allowed you to get all your devices online for the cost of a single connection, some carriers offered unlimited data connections with mobile internet, thinking that it would only be used for everyday things like YouTube and Facebook, not expecting people to run WiFi hotspots off of a single device and effectively give internet access to anyone in range for free... Theirs many reasons to restrict network sharing, for example... let's say you purchased a few WiFi boosters ( repeater's ) and boosted that small business up the roads Free WiFi to half the city, half the city would have free internet ( it's a far fetched idea, however still concerning for internet providers )
Yes the difference is exactly as you stated.
One device is directly from the manufacturer and most likely a world-wide edition, meaning more language support and network band support in some case's.
However carrier released editions usually come prepackaged with all the providers software, these are usually limited to certain bands and require unlocking by the carrier to allow the other network bands... This includes any extra features they'd like to implement, like stopping WiFi hotspot and tethering.
The story isn't much,
Carriers got scared by the simplicity of sharing Internet access to people that haven't payed for Internet... While Android made a normal business decision to allow carrier's more control over their releases of the device.

It's all pretty straight forward and easily circumvented with additional software.

Thanks for the terrific answer. I'm still confused by this question: Is the code that disables hotspots part of Android 9 itself or is it part of a vendor modification. If the latter, then a Pixel 2 from Google should support unauthorized hotspots, right?

It shouldn't be part of Android, only a vendor modification to make it part of the system.


text:
How to restore SMS from sms.vmsg backup?
I made a backup of my contacts and SMS on an Android 6 phone with what I think is a stock Backup & Restore app. I ended up with two files: contact.vcf and sms.vmsg.
However, my new phone (Android 7) doesn't have any preloaded Backup & Restore app. I managed to import contact.vcf via the address book, however the messaging app doesn't seem to have any option to import backed up SMS.
What can I do with this sms.vmsg file to resotre my SMS?

It might help if you tell us which phone you used to make that backup. Somebody might be able to track that ROM or the APK and make it available to you, as a solution you know. :-)

@Firelord I assumed this vmsg format was somewhat standard, so there would be a known procedure / app to import such files on Android. In my particular case I still have the old phone (luckily), so I just went ahead and installed SMS Backup & Restore and made a backup in XML. Perhaps I'll delete my question.

I was able to open my backup with this VMG Converter app. The app requires to buy an unlock code if you want to restore more than 200 messages from the backup, so I didn't use it in the end, but it could have been an option if no other backup was available.

+1. Thanks for self answering . Might come in handy for someone else :)


text:
Automate Charging cycles for always connected devices to wall outlet
Is there any way to automate charging cycles (like charge only from 40% to 80%) if the device always connected to power outlet? I'm searching for a way to read charging level and send commands to external devices to turn off/on power outlet.

I recall there were some.

Apart from what @ibug suggested, there are more in answers there and I use Battery Charging limit that can be configured exactly as you ask

If you have Magisk installed, this module Magic Charging Switch (MCS) can automate charging with certain conditions.
I didn't try it but according to the XDA post it's a decent option.

Thanks a lot, it's a bit complicated by setting values, but it works.

@Sathish If you find this answer helpful, would you click the grey tick beside it?


text:
How to setup a finger specific app launch?
On my ZTE Axon 7 I had four fingers configured to start specific apps when the corresponding finger was pressed. That was very practical to be able to start an app like Evernote directly. On that device that could be specified in the setting and that setting seems to be missing on Pixel 3.
Is there a way to do something similar on the Pixel 3 (with Android Pie)? (It's even okay if I have to write code.)

Are you using Android 8 or 9? For Android 8, there is an Xposed module which might suffice as an alternative to your requirement. See https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/apps-games/app-fingerprint-action-pro-quick-t3724493

Also Gravity Box Xposed module can be used


text:
How to disable PIN lock in android device without touching it
My android phone (Sony Xperia Z2) has a PIN lock, and now the screen is broken, everything is working fine except touch, I can't do anything because I can't unlock the phone because I can't press the buttons to unlock it. So is there a way I can unlock the phone with? Even if the touch isn't working I can use the phone with Google Assistant.
PS: My phone doesn't have root.

Hi! Have you gone through the resources under the tag [tag:broken-screen]? Let us know what worked or didn't work for you.

yah, but I didn't find anything helpful.

So when you say broken screen, but then "everything is working except touch", does the display work?
Below I've written a solution that'll work with a broken display and touch, if your display does work, then just use an OTG adapter and a mouse, if not follow the steps below.

Get an OTG adapter with a mouse
Make a screenshot (probably power + vol down)
Connect your phone to your PC and view what's in view what's in /sdcard/DCIM/Screenshots/
Continue doing that to go into Settings > Developer Options and enable USB Debugging (it's painful, but the only way)
After you've done that you can use scrcpy to mirror your screen to your PC via adb and interact with it. (The first time you use your PC with adb you'll get a prompt to authenticate on the phone you'll have to click allow there, just keep that in mind)

Thank you very much! I didn't have OTG adapter, but fortunately Debugging mode was enabled (because use my phone in Android Studio).


text:
Read every file stored on device or SD card?
Flash storage devices (NAND cells) are nutorious for slowly losing charge over time.
Many USB sticks have automatic data retention when idle, but I doubt that MicroSD has automatic data retention.
How do I read every single file saved on the mSD card?

Recursive listing (ls -R) or 'find' will read metadata of every file less or more, though not complete files.

One possible way is installing an Android terminal emulator such as Termux or jackpal.androidterm (which I have).

cd /storage/extSdCard/
cp -R -v . /dev/null

-v adds verbosity and shows which file is being read momentarily. “extSdCard” might be ####-#### (hexadecimal characters such as 0612-2FA5).
/dev/null is a black hole in Unix/Linux based operating systems. Everything put in there is gone. But what the command does is copying all the files into nothing, hence the source files stay the same, just getting read.

Alternatives:
grep -R "Any Text" #if working directory is already selected using the “cd” command.

Or grep -R "Any Text" /storage/[path to MicroSD card]
This will quickly search every file recrusively for text, causing all data to get read.
You can also redirect the output of the command to >>/dev/null or >>/dev/zero.

Another alternative is using a hashsum generating command (md5sum needs the lowest processing ressources for the same amount of data), but that's less efficient because it needs to generate a hashsum. This process requires additional system ressources.

Open
   /sdcard/
/sdcard/ will link you to the correct directory of the sdCard, this is for compatibility i believe.
To really make sure you have every sectors data,

Switch Off your Device.
Remove the SD Card from your device.
Place the SD Card in an adapter ( microSD to SupportedSlot )
Place the adapter into your computer.
Clone the Disk to a  .img  file

Don't choose compression with cloning, or else unused sectors ( marked as replaceable ) will be ignored and not cloned into the image file or partition.        bad for data recovery purposes

One can also run badblocks -vv /dev/mmcblk0. But that's with the PC. How to do it with Android directly?


text:
Is there a way to manually install Google Play store on a factory reset Xperia Play?
I factory reset my Sony Xperia Play because unfortunately it had become unusable. I factory reset it again and cleared the data after leaving the Market app to update itself didn't work. The Xperia Play is connected to wifi and I'm using an app password set via my Google account but the Market app crashes and a network error message pop-ups. Has anyone managed to get the Google Play store back after a factory reset?
Edit: Android version 2.3.4

Which Android version are you using?

Is Opengapps an option?

Assuming you are using a stock (non-rooted) Sony Xperia Play (Android 2.3 Gingerbread), this Reddit thread on How to use Android 2.3 Gingerbread in 2017 after a factory reset is informative.
The summary is don't factory reset. And if you do, the latest versions of the Google Services will overflow the limited storage capacity of the older device. GMS (Google Mobile Services) appears to be the culprit.
From the author:

In the days of GMS-everywhere the trick helps only so much: you do get some free internal space back, but lose the ability to use the phone beyond such complex activities as sending SMS or switching its screen on & off.
...
GMS contains > 300 services inside. On [author's phone] it oft aborts & fills /data/system/dropbox & /data/tombstones dirs w/ lengthy stack traces. The battery goes down the toilet, the phone frequently hangs (sometimes even reboots itself) & in general feels rather sluggish.
...
The only remedy seems to be to uninstall GMS. The device will indeed return to its normal state; Google Play will still work perfectly well, GMail & Google Maps will continue to work too, although Youtube won't, but at this point you don't care about Youtube any more.
...
So this is what I've ended up w/: there is no GMS or Google Play on the device & SystemUpdateService is disabled. The ancient phone feels slick & fast again! I don't use any fancy messengers thus I can't tell if any of them require GMS. My most used apps are:

Gesture Search
Contacts
LDOCE
Opera Mini
GMail
Google Maps
Calendar

Author goes on to mention that new apps needs to be side-loaded or installed through other third-party store type apps.

See here, you will find all APKs versions of Google Play store.
Go to your phone Settings and see what's your android version.
Download the APK that can work on your phone and install it manually.

Note:

Remember that since APKMirror is an alternate app source, you must have the setting enabled: "Install Unknown Apps" (or similar), which you will find under security.  – @wbogacz

Remember that since APKMirror is an alternate app source, you must have the setting enabled: "Install Unknown Apps" (or similar), which you will find under security.


text:
Port MessagEase Macro to new device
I have a new phone and a lot of MessagEase on my old phone. Unfortunately, they haven't been transferred with the default process to migrate to a new device.
Is there another way to port them over apart from copy pasting every single one?

You might wish to take a look at our adb tag-wiki. If the app doesn't block backups, you could simply adb backup it from the old device, and restore it to the new using adb restore. Piece of cake if you've got ADB running – but if you did not yet, the tricky part is setting it up (if you're on Windows that is; it's not that difficult on Linux).

Note: I wanted to post this as a comment, but have yet to reach the requisite reputation requirement; I'd appreciate if someone can move this for me, or if not just ignore me, thank you!
I double checked and MessagEase does indeed have the backup flag enabled in its manifest, so as @Izzy pointed out ADB backup should be a viable method to export them all (personally, I am still having issues with the ADB restore function, just be aware it may not throw any error messages from syntaxical issues by default, and do some further reading on how to troubleshoot).  If you do wind up having to do it manually, note that holding down the hand icon key with a keyboard's hex data on-screen supposedly brings you to the keyboard exchange step and imports it (according to the app's FAQ, I have not tried the feature myself); that might help cut down the labor/time a bit.
Additional Thoughts
I initially thought maybe one might be able to find where all the hex values for keyboards are being stored in some directory in root, but apparently it's a bit more complicated for IME/input devices than I'd assumed.  Someone else more knowledgeable might be able to advise on locating such a directory (or potentially in a .db?).


text:
How to set default resolution in YouTube app?
Such that every time I open a YouTube video, it opens on that resolution. It is annoying when it changes automatically according to the network, and for every video, I have to change the resolution.
How to set default resolution in YouTube app?

YouTube app doesn't have this feature. However, YouTube Vanced comes with this feature. Go into its Settings - > Vanced Settings - > Video settings, and configure the resolution for both Wi-Fi and Mobile data separately.

According to the official YouTube product document, the video player do remember the settings done by user,
Below is the Note mentioned on the official page

Note: Choosing lower video quality (such as 240p and 360p) will make
  videos start more quickly. The video player will remember this setting
  for future videos you watch.

So essentially, you need to follow the below steps...
To adjust video quality while watching on your mobile device:

In this page, it is only mentioned as Mobile device and it does not say the YouTube App.
However, I myself did tried the above steps, and I found that YouTube Player remembered my previously set video quality setting.

Except, what is not noted on the FAQ page is that "fully" closing the YouTube app by "home button then swiping it away", closing web browser and clearing cache, or restarting the device will revert YouTube back to its default behavior of:

The speed of your Internet connection
Video player/screen size: Higher quality videos generally play better on larger screens.
Quality of the original uploaded video: If the video was recorded in standard definition, it won’t be available in high definition.

Setting a persistent default video quality is no longer possible.
However, this setting has been added for Android to the custom YouTube Vanced app if you're brave enough to sideload apps in Android.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/apps-games/app-youtube-vanced-edition-t3758757


text:
Reinstall a new OS on zigo nebula 6.9 tablet
I have no idea about hardware, installing and configuring Android OS. I have Zigo nebula 6.9 tablet, which has MediaTek 1.3 GHz Dual Core - Cortex-A7 processor and 512MB ram. The tablet's OS is corrupted. I want to know:
Can I install stock android on this? If yes which version? How?
If not can I install any other android version after jellybean? If yes, How?
If both of above is impossible can I reinstall the same OS it has now?

NEBULA6.9_V46_MT6577_V1.26 FIRMWARE :
NEBULA6.9_V46_MT6582 FIRMWARE :
FIRMWARE FLASH TOOL WITH SUPPORT
The above links should be everything you need,
from what i can gather, your device comes in two different CPU Models, a MT6582 and an MT6577.
You'll need to identify your exact model before attempting to "DOWNLOAD" the system partition only.
DOWNLOAD ?
SP Flash Tool has a few different options when you flash a new firmware, The first being DOWNLOAD, the next is FIRMWARE UPGRADE ...
 You should never use FIRMWARE UPGRADE, EVER ... It is specifically for changing the entire android partition scheme, meaning that you will loose alot of partitions that aren't included in online firmware's such as the NVRAM, among other partitions, that hold your IMEI number and modem information, these partitions can not be restored after FIRMWARE UPGRADE and will need to be rebuilt by another software, however most imei, nvram repair tools no longer work on many newer MTK device's.
HOW TO USE THE FILES ?
• Download & Extract the correct firmware
• Download / Extract / INSTALL SP Flash Tool v 5.16+ ( link is 5.17 )
• Open SP Flash Tool
  - select load scatter
  - find and select the MT65xx_Android_scatter.txt file from the extracted firmware
  - unselect all partitions except system to be flashed
  - select DOWNLOAD as the method of flashing
       NEVER SELECT FIRMWARE UPGRADE !!!
• Turn Off your device and remove the battery
• Put the battery back in, and DONT turn it on.
• Place a USB cable into the computer, and then select START or FLASH "I can't remember the exact text"
• NOW Quickly insert the other end of the USB into your switched off device
• You should see the it loading and changing colors
• After it's finished, a big green OK sign will pop up if it was successful
NO GREEN OK SIGN    ?
Usually this is caused by a mismatched firmware, however their are a few different errors that may occur..
Incorrect Scatter File
Chipset Mismatch
Partition Scheme Changed in Firmware
Sometimes you'll get the wrong error response for the wrong reason, I'll explain.
First we need to look at the scatter file with a non destructive text editor like notepad++ , Wordpad and Notepad will change line endings to a different format and destroy a good scatter file, so don't use them.. and if you do, don't replace or add any line endings, like pressing Enter.. at all.
Ok so let's say i change my scatter file to say it's for an MT6578, now SP Flash Tool will say Chipset Mismatch, instead of incorrect scatter file...
If i correct the chipset in the scatter file to correspond with my device, it'll bypass that problem with chipset mismatch, but i can only do this if I'm sure that the firmware is designed for my device...
Usually with a working device, you can cross reference the scatters partition scheme by looking at your devices partition scheme...
on your device or adb,  you'd use the command
adb shell cat proc/partinfo

or
cat /proc/partinfo

and then crosscheck the partitions are correct.
In your case, their are methods of checking SP Flash Tool log files to find the partition scheme mismatch information, that'll include your devices scheme, and the scatter files scheme ( as to compare them )
Their is many ways to fix any flash errors, but using FIRMWARE UPGRADE is not one of them !
If you must try, use notepad++ and edit the scatter file, it's the only way for a successful flash...
Even if the system partition is from a different firmware with the same Android Version and Kernel Version and bit version x32 or x64, it can be used... This is because it purely contains system software that is designed for the corresponding hardware.
All other thing's like graphics drivers, modem drivers etc, are stored in separated partitions from the system partition.
Anyway, good luck on your endeavor. I have had lots of valuable lessons breaking my MTK's and needing to do exact clones to get it back ( not recommended )   ... and i hope some info here will help save you a few bucks, while also stop you from making the many mistakes that i have.
P.S
Every new Flash attempt, requires removing the USB cord from your device and then plugging it back in for a new connection to the preloader.
HANDY TIP :
I wish someone had of told me this years ago, but i know that it's kept pretty quite for good reasons, but here's how to put SP Flash Tool into Advanced Mode
1 - Open SP Flash Tool
2 - Hold CTRL + ALT + V and release
You should see it change to Advanced Mode in the title,  this allows full read write access to every single partition on your device, so be careful !
You can now READ your device and WRITE back to it at any partition sector, this allows you to ignore the devices partition scheme, as with FIRMWARE UPGRADE, but without the Automatic removal of all sectors.. meaning you can still flash a file to an exact location represented as hex start position and length of image to flash ( you essentially become the scatter file ).

The link in your answer to nebula6.9 MT6582 flash file requires a password. Will you please be kind enough provide the password ASAP?

I don't have it... Links we're found on Google as a reference, i imagine the pages give the password.  Try doing a FileName search and look for a website providing a password.


text:
Why did my phone reboot after copying an so file to the system/lib folder?
I ran the following command and the phone automatically rebooted after copying. Why? Was it because the so file was in use?
$ adb shell 'mount -o rw,remount /system && cp /sdcard/libfoo.so /system/lib'

My phone is rooted and enters as root when issued the adb shell command. My Android version is 5.1.
I also tried the following commands and the phone still restarted.
$ adb remount
remount succeeded
$ adb shell 'cp /sdcard/libfoo.so /system/lib'

What's your Android version and model ? ... sometimes it can be caused by a protection measure that protects the system partition from modifications, it's now why new root programs use "systemless root".   You still have the ability to modify some aspects of the system, but changing files in specific directories can cause problems, this is because systemless root is still in the development stage and has many issue's still.

If you don't want the phone to reboot, push the so file directly to the system/lib folder. Don't make the sdcard folder an intermediary. So you do:
$ adb remount
$ adb push libfoo.so /system/lib


text:
Alcatel One Touch pop C3: How to install TWRP?
The problem I'm having is mainly because all the websites that I've searched are next to impossible to follow. Either links are dead, or something horribly went wrong while translating, so I'm asking here.
I got an Alcatel One Touch pop C3. Not the "one touch 3" version, the 'C' is significant. Up until recently, it was impossible to load a different ROM on it, but it seems Lineage OS has released a version for the One Touch pop C3, so I wanted to give it a try.
with adb I was able to check that the bootloader is unlocked, with fastboot I tried to upload the TWRP image (TWRP-3.1.0.0-PopC3.img), but it won't work.
I can boot into fastboot with:
adb reboot bootloader the device boots into a blank screen with => FASTBOOT mode...
I can list the device in question with fastboot devices
When I then do fastboot flashing unlock nothing happens, it just sits there.
Same thing happens when I do fastboot oem unlock.
When I tried to do fastboot flash recovery TWRP-3.1.0-0.PopC3.img, I get the following error: FAILED (remote: 'partition 'recovery' not support flash') (sic).
I was lead to believe, that the only way to successfully upload the file onto the phone, is via "SP Flash Tool" I have version v5.1824.00 installed which I believe is the latest one.
And that's where I'm pretty much stuck. I've installed the MT65xx USB VCOM drivers in a Windows VM, and that's pretty much it at this point.
I've also tried the Linux version of SP Flash Tool, but whenever I select the scatter loading file, and choose the TRWP image as recovery image, it just sits there and doesn't seem to do anything.
Do I need to boot into the fastboot bootloader, or something?
I can access the phone with adb and fastboot just fine, but I have no idea what that SP Flash Tool is doing, or if it is doing anything at all.

More detailed explanation of the process you tried and any messages from the failed process would improve your chances of getting an answer. As far as and and fastboot is. Concerned. How did you find out that your bootloader is unlocked with adb? Specifically what and command did you use? Where you in the bootloader when attempting to use fastboot? What fastboot command did you use to try to flash the recovery .img? What was the error message after the failed flash attempt?

@BoLawson alright, I amended my question. Pretty much all websites I found, claimed that MediaTek devices are generally unlocked, but I need to use that SP Flash Tool utility. Most of what I used just doesn't report anything. No error messages, etc.

Umm, I hate to break it to you but your bootloader is not unlocked. What adb command did you use that stated your bootloader was unlocked? I am interested to learn a new command.

@BoLawson Well, what I found online, led me to believe that since there are no error messages, it is unlocked. In fact most sources stated that most MediaTek cellphones aren't locked right from the get go. By now I managed to load roms with SP Flash Tool, but it ain't working. After a factory reset, it only ever goes back to the recovery menu and cannot boot into regular Android.

Here are some other resources to learn about android along with android enthusiast.
https://developer.android.com/studio/command-line/adb
https://android.googlesource.com/platform/system/core/+/master/fastboot/
https://www.xda-developers.com

Well, it seems as if I can't really access the phone right now anyway. It won't boot into anything except the recovery boot loader. I guess I've bricked it.

Hi! Mediatek phones don't support flashing through fastboot, as far as my experience tell me. Now, for SP Flash Tool, did you try Step 10 exactly when it needed to be tried?

@Firelord yep, did exactly as stated there, and even got the "green ring" as they call it. Still, only boots into recovery shows "Erasing" for a split second and then shows me the recovery boot menu. Not sure what to do from here on out.