text:
Changing the appearance of messages in the Messaging app on Droid RAZR Maxx?
I was just wondering if there was any (easy) way to change the appearance of the native messaging app on Droid RAZR Maxx - it doesn't need to be fancy, just resetting it to the default Android 2.3 style would be nice. Ideally, I'd like to keep the same app (so, in other words, without using GoSMS, Handcent, etc.).
If there isn't an easy way to do this, is it possible to do with a rooted Droid RAZR Maxx? If so, could anyone point me towards a tutorial? Thanks in advance!

The easiest solution is probably to use a third party messaging app such as Handcent or Go SMS Pro. Changing the default app itself probably needs rooting and some difficult mangling.
Please bear in mind that I have not tested these apps, and cannot say if they work well or not.

-1 because user asked specifically not to use third party apps, and you answer exactly with the examples given by the asker!


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Use Galaxy Note as digitiser tablet for PC
So the Samsung Galaxy Note has a stylus and the screen is supposedly a Wacom digitising tablet with 128 levels of pressure sensitivity. Has anyone tried to make it work as a Wacom tablet for a desktop? I'd even be interested in kludge solutions (eg, you draw a shape, it transfers it over wifi, and an app on your PC stores it in the clipboard, so you can just paste it somewhere).

Unified Remote could satisfy your desire in another way. It can make your Note run as a touch pad and as soon as you have a stylus pen you can open Photoshop on your PC and start painting in it with your stylus.
Unified remote has a free and a full version.

Interesting. I'd like to try it but it requires .NET 4.0, so I'll think about it for a bit. Something that works with OSX would actually be really useful. (I have an XP desktop, and a Mackbook Pro. Also an XP netbook so maybe I'll try it on that...).

Use Galaxy Note as digitizer or graphics tablet for PC (small project of mine) - maybe this could be relevant, but not exactly what you are looking for. But I found this post based on my search query, so maybe it could be interesting to someone else.

Answers that consist solely of links are really not answers. What's at the other end of that link? What happens if it goes dead? Please summarize the content here (and provide a link to the source) so that the answer can stand alone.

Basically this is link to my project that could be relevant to the question, link contains solution (demo video and download), should I better copy paste entire content of that page? :) (But ok fare enough, i made some edits)

Interesting - I can't try it yet as I don't have ICS. How come you need to "emulate" pressure? Is there no way to access that information directly?

You might want to look into the S-Tablet app.

And where might one get this app? How is it used?

Thanks - pity the English is so poor. Also seems to only apply to Photoshop?

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


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How do I fix the permissions on /system/app on my Kindle fire
I attempted to root my Amazon Kindle.  That seemed to go well, but when I tried to add the Google App Market, I apparently made a big booboo, because now I am in "constant reboot, 'kindle fire' screen of death". That is, the fire won't boot, and it just stares at me with "kindle fire".
I've googled around, and found people with my exact problem, but no way to fix it.  And my problem is this:
The permissions on my /system/app folder are as follows?
d--------- root     root              2012-01-28 13:26 app

Yeah, I know, not good.
So, how can I fix it?  I've tried the various methods out there, but basically, because the directory is so hosed on permissions, I can't do anything.  For instance, I can't run
mount -o remount,rw -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock2 /system

because I get
mount: Operation not permitted

and when I try
adb root

I get the cryptic
adbd cannot run as root in production builds

So I am dead in the water.
Can anyone help me fix my permissions on /system/app?

Do you have a custom recovery and/or bootloader installed? If not then you may be stuck unless you can make yourself a "factory cable" (or find one made by someone else).

Agreed with eldarerathis.  The cable may also be called a "jig".

Actually, another important factor is what firmware version you have. If you have 6.2.1 or lower you may be able to use adb to get into fastboot.

Wow -- thanks for the tip about "Factory Cables".  Interesting stuff.

I have 6.2.2 as my firmware.

If you want you could try this method for getting into fastboot. It's only tested against 6.2.1, but I suppose it's possible it could work on 6.2.2 (though I have no idea). Otherwise I think you'll need to use a factory cable or the "shorting trick", which requires physically opening the Kindle Fire (and Linux).

Amazon is graciously sending me a new one, and I'm sure when I return mine they will be using a factory cable to reset it.  But I have 30 days to return it, so I may take the time to try to build a factory cable myself just for the experience.

Let us know how the factory cable goes.

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


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Accessing Calculation History on HTC Calculator App
On my HTC Thunderbolt, it comes with a Calculator app. If you hold down the Clear button, you get toast that says:

Calculation history cleared

I was wondering how to view the calculation history. I know you can clear it, I just don't have a clue how to get to it. menu button does nothing.

Definitely, the most unusual timing to anwser my own question!
When I picked up the phone. I accidentally held down the menu button and the on screen keyboard came up.
The up▲ and down▼ buttons there will do the trick!


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How can I return from power-saving mode in Android 2.3?
I'm using a Samsung Galaxy S II Epic (with Android version 2.3.6 installed), and whenever my phone reaches 10% battery life it prompts me to turn on power-saving mode (and I do).
However, once my phone is fully charged, I'd like to turn off the settings that power-saving mode comprises (lowered screen brightness, shorter display timeout, etc.)
I see no way to do this in Android except by manually going through the settings and resetting them to the non-power-saving-mode levels. Is there a better way?

Total guess here: press and hold the power button. Is there a Power Saving option in the popup menu?

Try a swipe down on the top status bar, don't you see a toolbar with a button to turn it off ?
If you don't see that probably you can customize the buttons on them and add what you wanted to it.
Hope it helps.


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Stolen phone: is changing your GMail password enough?
My Galaxy phone got stolen today. Of course I blocked my SIM card and changed my password for GMail (and went to the police) but is this enough?  Could the person that stole my phone still log in to my market and download stuff?  Not sure what the deal is for that and I'm really freaking out about how much this person could possibly do with my phone.
Also about the payment: I never bought any apps (I only downloaded free ones).  How does this payment work? Is that also blocked if your SIM card is blocked?
And is there a way to delete "My Market" account?

possible duplicate of Is there a way to block access to or wipe my Google data for a lost/stolen phone

You should also look into setting up 2-factor authentication. With this you control what accesses your Google accounts (computers, devices, websites) and can revoke access with a click of a link. http://support.google.com/accounts/bin/static.py?hl=en&page=guide.cs&guide=1056283

You should check out Lookout's Plan B app. It lets you find your phone after it is lost.
I would recommend using Seekdroid or Where's my Droid in the future.

In addition to changing the password, you should go to the market on the web and "deactivate the device."

There has never been any way to do this on the Market's website. You can hide devices from the menus but you cannot remove them from your account unless this has changed very recently.


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Any way to place a link to `/sdcard2` within `/sdcard`?
I have a Sony Tablet S, for which I am not aware of any method of rooting. On this device there is an amount of internal storage (dependant on model 8 - 24 GiB) and an external sdcard slot. The former is mounted as /sdcard and the latter as /sdcard2. My usage of the device would be made a lot easier if I were able to access sdcard2 from within sdcard (when mounted).
I have not found any way to do this without root access (tried ln -s but it turns out the partitions are FAT) - has anyone else got any ideas? It is very annoying as I am unable to access my media on the large external storage card I have bought with many applications - I have found myself buying a music payer that specifically allowed me to type my own search paths for media libraries, but cannot use DNLA to send this media to other devices, instead having to remove the sdcard and put it in my laptop - less than ideal...

Do you know how the internal storage is formatted?  If it's FAT then there's not much you can do.
Otherwise you could do something like this from adb shell or from a terminal on the phone:
cd /sdcard
ln -s /sdcard2 <name>

For example, if <name> was sd2 then you can now access it via /sdcard/sd2/.

AFAIK, internal storage is FAT, otherwise windows would not be able to mount it, so I don't believe linking would be possible. Also, wouldn't creating a sym link require root?

@Ryan Ah, fair point, though I also don't know anything about whether this tablet lets the PC mount the internal storage :P.  As for requiring root: Nope, not if you have user write privileges to the folder where you're creating the link.  For example ln -s /mnt /data/foo works fine for me in an unelevated shell.

Sorry the storage is FAT- was hoping there might be a way such as placing a shortcut from a computer or a command I had not tried.


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Can't transfer files to Galaxy S3 from laptop, Kies not getting Installed on laptop
I have a Samsung Galaxy S3 on Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean. I can't connect it to my Windows XP laptop. When I connect it with a USB cable, it's not getting mounted and thus I'm unable to transfer any files.
On my laptop, Samsung Kies is not installed, hope it may be the problem. But my laptop, Kies is not getting installed, it's showing "no internet connected!!" even if I am connected to WiFi.
I am totally stuck, please can anyone help?

What OS are you running on your laptop? Which Android version is it on your S3? Have you checked the USB connection mode it uses (UMS, PTP, MTP)? I don't think Kies will help (except for slowing down your Laptop, there's not much it can do good as far as I've read).

laptop-Windows xp,Android Galaxy s3-4.1.1(jelly bean),Can you please help me, how to set this USB(UMS, PTP, MTP) connection mode??

I have neither Windows nor an S3. But seeing it uses 4.1+ it most likely will support MTP (and AFAIK Windows-Explorer should be able to handle that). When you connected the USB cable, open the notification area. It should have an entry with the USB icon. Tapping that should allow you to chose the connection mode. I guess your default setting says "charge-only", which is why it doesn't appear to mount on your laptop.

And also i cant find USB utilities in my Android Phone.Its running in Android 4.1.1 jellybean how can i locate usb utils????

What should "USB Utils" be? There might be something like "USB Settings". Checking with my LG-P880, there's one fitting place: Settings->Connections->USB-Connection. Here I can chose the connection mode, and define it to always ask me what to do when a connection is established. Might be at the same/a similar place on your SGS3.

The problem is, in GS3(Jellybean 4.1.1) there no option called "Connections" or "USB Connections". Also there is no option "USb Utilities".I had gone through the complete settings. I cant find a way to set USB connection mode.

I'm pretty sure you need the KIES USB driver in order for Windows XP to recognise your phone. This feature is already built into Windows 7 and above by default and doesn't need any external driver software.
You don't need all the KIES software just the single file USB driver. Google it (the driver) and install it.
Kies3Setup.exe 42 806 KB
That how I got my Samsungs to be recognised by my Windows XP PC.

Select the 'Mass Storage Only' option in the USB settings and then connect the cable.
If this doesn't work, you can connect your laptop and your phone to the same wireless network and use AirDroid to transfer files wirelessly from your laptop to your phone and vice versa using a browser on your laptop. Both devices just have to be connected to the same wireless network (with or without internet access).
Hope this helps!

Is it fast enough to transfer file fast???i had heard about this.....but still these kies are not getting istalled to lap???

Depends on what you think is fast enough! I got similar speeds while transferring files through a USB cable and through AirDroid. You don't need kies for using AirDroid. Give a shot. Something is better than nothing!

yup thats correct will surely give a try and will let you about this...soon

@Ambar May I know where I can access the 'Mass Storage Only' option in the USB settings you mentioned? Is it available on Galaxy S4? Thank you!

@Han I am not too familiar with the Galaxy S4 but it seems like people cannot enable the Mass Storage Only option in this particular phone. Hope you find a solution soon! Cheers

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


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How to prevent Google aggressively associating my account to my searches?
I understand they can access my searches when I'm logged in, and of course know the search terms I use, but how can I prevent them to logging searches to my account when:

I'm not logged in
and in private mode
my account has search history turned off already (updated thanks to Izzy's answer)

I'm on Nexus One with CyanogenMod 7, using stock browser with no patches or add-ons.
Steps to reproduce:

open browser
enable private mode
clear all cookies
search for "asdf unique search"
close tab
clear all cookies/history/cache
exit private mode
close browser
open Google search
type "a"

Expected behaviour: Google knows nothing of my search
What happens: it autocompletes "asdf unique search"
Also, all my Google Accounts on this phone have history.google.com turned off.
Is there any way to stop this happening?

What browser are you using?

Stock browser. package "Browser" v. 2.3.7

How about Chrome and using Incognito mode?

@AlEverett i will give it a try, but i can't see how chrome will be much different from the stock browser (in fact, for other things privacy related, it's even worse) Also, i think it still uses the same rendering engine the stock browser uses, doesn't it?

That's why I suggested incognito mode. "Pages you view in this tab won't appear in your browser history or search history, and they won't leave other traces, like cookies, on your mobile device after you close all incognito tabs." (Google support on incognito mode)

@AlEverett i'm already using incognito on the stock browser. they don't appear on my history nor the google webhistory. What i think is happening is that the OS has  url activity registered to google.com searchs and it sends the activity to the search app or something. it's invisible to the end user (me) but it sure does get registered in the search app.

The Android Browser doesn't have incognito mode. You must be using Chrome, then.

@AlEverett i'm not sure it has one with the stock image, but using stock on a nexus device is just silly :) i mentioned on the question i'm using the cyanogenmod7 image. I think the incognito (or maybe the whole browser) is backported from newer stock images.

@AlE. btw, i tried chrome, same happens. Then i uninstalled it because the phone only have some 200Mb of app space.

Use Firefox.
This is how I solved the problem. Using Firefox and another search provider (DuckDuckGo or Yahoo, etc.), I can be sure that incognito mode works as intended.

First, you can delete your search history:

Visit your Web History page at https://www.google.com/history or click the gear icon gear icon on the upper right corner of a search results page, and go to Web History.
Click the gear icon gear icon again on the upper corner of the Web History page, and go to Settings.
Click the delete all link.
Click the Delete all button to confirm.

Next, you can turn off your Web History completely (same source):

Visit your Web History page at https://www.google.com/history or click the gear icon gear icon on the upper right corner of a search results page, and go to Web History.
Click the gear icon gear icon again on the upper corner of the Web History page, and go to Settings.
Click the Turn off button next to "Web History is on." To start keeping track of your web search activity again, click the Turn on button.

So now you have deleted all past sources, and prevented new ones from being created. Hopefully.
Further, Turn off search history personalization gives you details on how to opt-out of "Signed in searches" and "Signed out searches". For the latter:

Visit google.com/history/optout when not signed in to a Google Account. (If you see the Google homepage, try visiting the link again.)
On the resulting page, click Disable customizations based on search activity. (Because this preference is stored in a cookie, it'll affect anyone else who uses the same browser and computer as you).

Further readings

HOWTO turn off Google's search-history logging and erase your stored history
How do I view, edit, and disable Google search History?
Defending your secrets from Google's prying eyes: The simple three-step solution that keeps your browsing history private
Google search: "google disable search history" (all the above is from the first results page, btw ;)

odd, my account already have all that set. so, i'm thinking it's something internal to android browser + search app.

OK, so I should add the hints I obviously ommitted: Clear your browser cache and history :) Same for the search app (Settings->Apps->Manage Apps, scroll to the search app, "clear cache" and optionally "delete data"). But that's not the account (which you asked for), but the device. Should I update my answer with these details?

so i have to clear my cache on both apps everytime i do a google search in incognito mode?

You can also use one of the history cleaners from google play, of course :)


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Email rejected by Yahoo! but Android's Mail app keeps trying to resend
I am using Android's Mail app on my Motorola DROID RAZR M for my Yahoo! account.  Last week, I tried to "reply to all" on an email that was sent to over 100 people and Yahoo! rejected it, claiming it was suspicious activity. That's okay, but the email is kept being resent. Every few minutes I get an error message on my phone saying that the email was not sent.
What I have tried:

I deleted it from the drafts folder in my Yahoo! account, but that didn't help.
I see the message in the "Outbox" but I can't do anything to it there. When I touch it, I get a message saying "Cannot open message. Message is currently being sent and is unable to be opened."
I stopped the app from running but it still won't let me do a/t to the email in the outbox.

How do I get my Razr to stop trying to resend the email?

Your emails might be set up as "auto resend". Go into email options, and select none.

Based on the asker's (now deleted) comment:

I turned off mobile data and WiFi and then I was able to delete the email from the outbox. Looks like this worked.

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


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Installing ADB drivers for Micromax A89 Ninja - Windows 8
Micromax does not provide any drivers for its phone - Micromax A89 Ninja. We are trying to use the phone for development and are unable to install the device driver in Windows 8.
We tried the ADB drivers at  - http://www.droidextra.org/2013/02/06/install-adb-drivers-for-any-android-device.html
and got the error

Windows found driver software for your device but encountered an error when trying to install it. Android ADB Interface - The system cannot find the file specified.

We even tried this link - https://laslow.net/2012/03/14/disable-driver-signature-enforcement-in-windows-8/
But that does not solve the problem. How do we install ADB driver for Micromax A89? Is there any other workaround to use the phone as a development device?

Have you tried this guide? If still fails, try the same on Windows XP (either virtual or real).

Please try official one - works for most devices:
https://developer.android.com/studio/command-line/adb.html

AFAIK, if you meant "Google USB Driver", then it only works for Google devices. For other devices, users need to install respective USB driver for their device (though no source for Micromax).


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Why wont my device run Twrp img for rooting
Okay, happy post Vday.
So, Im trying to root an unlocked Blu J1, running Marsh. 6.0. I recently reset it, due to perf. issues & now trying to root.
My setup is Win7, w/ the latest Usb drivers through Sdk & UniversalAdb. I have Usb debugging active on the phone & the device shows at command level with Adb devices & in Fastboot mode. **Ive unlocked the bootloader on the phone itself, & then xferred the Twrp.img files different times.
The twrp files were the latest 2 off the site Twrp.me as of 02/15. Its a successful transfer on fastboot, which is good. but when I go to restart, it shows as stock recovery studio_j1_6.0/user/release-keys but not the touch responsive Twrp. ..
I eventually want to use Su or Magisk zip to gain root. The phone remains bootloader unlocked which is good. I've tried the Adb command, adb root, and then went through these steps, -still nothing. Im on the hunt for recent clockwork mod, to try tht way, only ones are like '11 or'12.
So, is the stock recovery hard coded. -it doesnt have 2 separate partit-I ran a partit check just in case.
I also went to grab the omnirom androidrecovery 6.0 off Github at github.com/omnirom/android_bootable_recovery/tree/android-6.0, but its .zip. And when I apply updates through Sd card update in stock recovery, I get install aborted across the board on any .zips..
Im on the waiting list for Kingroot to add my device. so thats good.
Either way Android SU shows as not rooted once fully on.
Any feedback greatly appreciated.

Can you try fastboot boot YOUR_TWRP_IMG, then flash your magisk files first and then flash recovery from within recovery?

I have tried booting into an img.I believe it was for 2 of the like 5 imges of different sizes as they were too large for the partition.  I can try the smaller others tho.  Ive read it has to match the device specs spot on tho to load.   Booting is more failsafe than flashing although.  I guess the built in recovery is made to write over a flashed one, unless you erase it first, which is another option.  Have to provide update soon o_O


text:
REMOVE LOCK SCREEN SAMSUNG Android 8.0
Hello my friends I open the system.img by HXD and remove the locksettings.db but with Android 8.0 the phone hang on the Samsung logo Is it a solution to bypass the lock please

Who told you to remove settings.db ?

I don't think this method works on Oreo and higher because android has new security checks mechanisms that's why the phone hang on booting logo

My friend i trying on more than method and deleting system ui but I have a problem ,, the device standing on the Samsung logo and not turning on
I want the method to bypass or deleting lock screen without wiping data on the Oreo version thank you

At this point, your only option is to flash the device and this will reset the device to the  factory settings

Thank you again I do not want to wipe the data but I want to bypass the pattern only and I'll let you know that the solution is available but I'm looking for it

I'll appreciate it. Please share with us once you found a working solution.

Any modifications to your system will cause a boot loop... What you are seeing "logo"  ...
You need to flash that stock system.img without the modifications and then you need to log in to the account associated with the device..
If you've forgotten the account details, Use a computer to do the recovery process.. And then use the new details to log in.


text:
Smartphone USB issue
Whenever I connect my Motorola turbo phone to my computer, it is not functioning properly.
In development settings, I have debugging and tethering on

Connect the usb and there will be different option available
Charging
Data transfer
Etc
Select what do you want to do .
If these are not available it means that your usb cable is not working perfectly


text:
How to update my android OS?
Before two months my mobile phone was up to date in Android OS. I have updated my phone Nexus 5 to Android Lollipop.
And After on Month, My mobile phone display was damaged,And i sent it to the LG service committee, because it's on guarantee.
After the mobile service process completed, at once i have made an update process. But it was not installed the latest version of Android(Android 5). Up Till now i do check for update, I display nothing for my query. How to fix this problem?
Do you have any idea about what the service team has done to my phone?


text:
My Samsung Galaxy S3 Is Hard Bricked
SPH-L710 Virgin Mobile
Flashed from MOAR to Stock SGS3 ROM
I flashed a ROM and I wanted to get back into recovery mode to flash a zip file using ROM TOOL BOX and when I did that it never turned on again. There's no lights or any sort of life on the phone. I've tried,

Turning the phone off for 30 seconds or more
Holding the power button while battery is removed for over 1
minute
Charging the phone while battery is inserted and pressed the power
button
Charging the phone without the battery inserted and pressed the
power button
Connecting the phone to my PC with and without the battery. Instead
I get a light (red or orange, I can't differentiate the 2) and my
computer beeps stating it's connected.

I've read a couple of stuff but it seems like I would have to buy certain things for it. I saw a "Jig" that could help it but I don't think it would work on my phone since it's Virgin Mobile and it's meant for Sprint or buy a Class 10 MicroSD Card.
Any ideas on how I can get it fixed without buying anything? Unless I have no choice...
-Side Note-
If anyone understands this, I think since I flashed d2lte or dlte instead of dspr it gave me this headache.

Try holding down the home button, the volume up button and the power button for a few seconds. If that doesn't work, try the volume down button. Vol up will try and boot into recovery, vol down into download mode. Source

I tried that too, still no luck


text:
SMS not working on Moto G, 2nd gen
I bought Moto G, 2nd Gen. Also got my old sim replaced with new micro sim. Sms on the new phone are not working. Neither I am receiving sms nor my sms are getting delivered. Calls, watsapp, internet are working fine. Please let me know if there are any settings in the mobile to enable sms

It could be down to the network/APN settings on the device, contact your network provider and ask them for the SMS APN settings.

Might be a problem with message service center number. Check once.

The problem is due to SMS message center not being stored in the new SIM. Unlike other mobile devices where you can manually set the SMS message center, the latest Android update seemed to keep this setting well hidden.
You can try setting the SMS message center by opening the phone dialer and dial - *#*#4636#*#*. This will open the hidden setting confusingly titled as "Testing".
Under the Phone Information, you can find the setting "SMSC". Try refresh or give the correct SMS center number.
Note:

I tried this and there was a refresh error / update error. The final workaround was to load the new SIM into a Samsung phone and manually set the SMS Center number. This gets stored in the SIM and then you can start using it on your Moto E / Moto G. Crazy stuff.
I use Airtel in India

What happens is the is no setting "SMSC" in the Testing/Phone Information screen?

Faced the same issue. Re-added the number through that testing mode but didn't work. But then did the typical "restart your phone" and SMS works fine!!

You can only receive/read messages on the message app. This is due to the Hangouts update.
You will be able to send SMS using your hangout apps.

This happens for few Mobile networks like Airtel in India (Not sure about other countries) when you replace the older macro sim with new micro/nano sim, the sms facility will be blocked  for 1 week for security purpose (dont know what kind of security)

It doesn't seem so in my nephew's case twice. Moreover , if the sim is blocked, all network operations, including call, SMS, Internet will not work.

Only sms facility will be blocked. Happened to me when I switched to micro sim. Not sure still this security measure exist.


text:
How to Switch from 4G to 3G Galaxy Epic 4G SPH-D710?
I have received Galaxy S2 Epic 4G SPH-D710 unfortunately, 4G connection is not available where I live Just only 3G is available. When I turn on 4G hopefully It maybe switch to 3G automatically I get that "x" below 4G logo in statusbar which means 4G is not available, I couldn't find any option in settings related to 3G.
Do you have any idea on how to set  3G connection on my phone?
Is it about installing something so I can get working 3G connection?
Thank you :)

go to your settings and then go to Network Settings and change your network mode to WCDMA/GSM .

It should be automatic and it should show you on the screen what it is using 3G, 4G or H

Welcome to Android Enthusiasts! This doesn't provide a solution to the problem, as OP clearly states this doesn't work.


text:
how to manage and delete duplicate joined contacts?
How can i disjoin my contacts?
i do not know why but many of my contacts have like 10 similar joined contacts (because of multiple import i think from SIM  to phone and vice versa ) and i have to go to process of manually disjoining them one by one and then go to multiple delete and then select and delete them
I have tried a few top android contacts manager but i cannot get the 2 mentioned requested features?

Possible answer is Link and Unlink options in contacts itself.

It would help to know which Android OS version you are running, and on which device.

just use this app, it will delete your duplicates
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.accaci&hl=en


text:
Is it possible to run multiple instances of Skype?
In windows I'm using multiple accounts of Skype simultaneously using MultiSkype Launcher. Is there any way that I can use multiple Skype accounts or at least two accounts simultaneously without switching between them. I'm using unrooted Xperia L with Android Jellybean. I can't root my phone. Is there any solution?
Thanks in advance.

With ApkEditor you can recompile an app with another package ID, allowing it to be installed in parallel with normal version

I was able to install a second instance of Skype with APK Editor Pro by editing both the provider and the package name, but the second instance would randomly freeze and crash very quickly. I'm not sure why.


text:
How to install OS in Samsung smg531f which is without OS?
I have a samsung SMG531f Grand Prime. I accidentially deleted my OS in Team Win by selecting the System option coming under Wipe option in the main menu. Now when I switch on the phone it will show only the startup screen. I can only go to the TeamWin by pressing Volume up Home and power button. But when I try to go to odin mode by clicking on volume down power and home button it doesn't work. How can I overcome this problem and reinstall os to this phone.
Volume up key doesn't work in this phone.
Prefer a solution which can be configured in Windows environment as I don't have access to an open source OS.

on newer samsung devices system.img is lz4 compressed. yours should be simg2img sparse image

@alecxs Could you elaborate on how can I do it step by step?

this is the origin of simg2img.exe but I recommend more recent version for linux https://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1054836&page=3

download and extract ROM from samloader
cd /media/xubuntu/1234567890ABCDEF
sudo apt update
sudo apt install android-sdk-ext4-utils android-sdk-libsparse-utils android-sdk-platform-tools-common android-tools-adb android-tools-fastboot f2fs-tools git python3.8 python3-pip

git clone https://github.com/nlscc/samloader

cd samloader
pip3 install .
cd ..
sudo cp -av ~/.local/bin/samloader /usr/local/bin

mkdir Android
cd Android

samloader -m SM-G531F -r SLK checkupdate
samloader -m SM-G531F -r SLK download -v G531FDDU1APJ2/G531FODD1APJ2/G531FDDU1APJ2/G531FDDU1APJ2 -O .
samloader -m SM-G531F -r SLK decrypt -v G531FDDU1APJ2/G531FODD1APJ2/G531FDDU1APJ2/G531FDDU1APJ2 -V 4 -i SM-G531F_1_20161116150254_w0xdzpk60j_fac.zip.enc4 -o SM-G531F_1_20161116150254_w0xdzpk60j_fac.zip

unzip SM-G531F*.zip
tar -vxf AP_G531F*.tar*

convert system.img into mountable disk image
mv -v system.img system.sparse.img
file system.sparse.img
simg2img system.sparse.img system.img
file system.img

(optional) check if mountable
mkdir system
sudo mount -vo loop,ro,noexec,noload,noatime -t ext4 system.img system
ls -a system
sudo umount -v system

copy file to MicroSD Card
adb push system.img /external_sd

(optional) compare digest
md5sum system.img
adb shell md5sum /external_sd/system.img

write disk image from terminal dd
adb shell
find /dev/block -name by-name
ls -l /dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/system
dd if=/external_sd/system.img of=/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/system
reboot recovery

disable dm-verity and recovery-from-boot.p (necessary for TWRP)
adb disable-verity
adb shell
mount -w /system
mv -v /system/recovery-from-boot.p /system/recovery-from-boot.bak

How can I do this in Windows?

Can you explain how can I do the whole process in Windows?

EVERYTHING in the above answer, most of the commands are to run in Linux environment when I Googled. Could you please give me a way how on doing these in Windows?

@alexcs
I tried those before too. It shows downloading in MINGW64 but it never shows whether the download succeeded or not. And I have no idea about how can I find the downloaded file. Please understand how a person who has never used Linux feels like executing your commands and translating those to Windows environment.

I am sorry with the resources I have moving to Linux is not an option for me.

@alexcs Even though I have a flash drive, configuring Linux on it and getting to know the commands to get this done on it is a hassle for me at the moment. There can be  a lot of issues as in other app configurations which should be done as I do not have used Linux before.

@alexcs chathura@chathura-VirtualBox:~/Android$ simg2img system.sparse.img system.img
error: file_write: write: No space left on device
Cannot write output file This error message shows up. What can I do?

Note: step 5 is probably most important to avoid losing TWRP (as the file name reveals system will overwrite recovery from boot otherwise). dm-verity can disabled by installing Magisk (rename apk to zip) or by installing no-verity-opt-encrypt.zip

@alexcs I tried with the live usb, I selected the Windows hard disk, Now i get below error.
"open your windows hard drive, right mouse click, "open terminal here""
W: Failed to fetch http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/focal-security/InRelease  Error writing to output file - write (28: No space left on device) [IP: 91.189.91.39 80

@alexcs Last attempt was made in a live iso. Can this be a reason like the OS doesn't have access right to read or write anything to my C drive as it is the only drive that I have in my PC.


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Install custom ROM from Linux on a LG GT540
I'd like to install a custom ROM on my LG GT540.
It looks like that in order to enable fastboot and make the whole process a lot easier, a custom ROM must be installed the first time with a program called KDZ. This program seems to work on windows only.
Is it possible to enable fastboot and/or install a custom ROM using Linux?

You should retitle your question - it seems like all the answers assume you have a fastboot-capable bootloader.

I also have that phone and it had fastboot disabled. To quickly answer your question, I haven't found a method to install a fastboot ROM from Ubuntu but it is possible to flash a custom ROM from it.
Assuming there is fastboot ROM installed, you should first boot it into fastboot mode (if you have ADB running, just use adb reboot bootloader):

turn the phone off
hold the camera button and then the power on button
keep pressing the camera button until you see the LG logo

The phone will be in fastboot mode when you see a blank screen (just the back light will be on). After that, you should be able to use Ubuntu to flash a custom ROM. All you have to do is open a terminal in the folder containing the extracted files and type:
sudo -s
fastboot -w #this wipes user data! don't forget to backup :)
fastboot flash boot boot.img
fastboot flash system system.img
fastboot flash recovery recovery.img
fastboot reboot

This process should take about 10 minutes to complete.
Just for the record, I downloaded fastboot binary from here and Swiftdroid 2.0 from here, but I believe you can use any fastboot-ready ROM (in other words, ROMs with boot.img and system.img). If you don't have a fastboot-enabled ROM installed already, you can do it using the KDZ Updater as described here, but you have to use Windows and the fastboot ROM.
Reference thread and post

I think you might be a little confused. Android is based off of Linux and everything that can be done for Android on Windows can be done much easier on Linux. :)
To answer your question. Unlike other phones LG makes, they did not disable fastboot on your phone. It is enabled by default afaik. Fastboot is just a binary that allows the user to send commands remotely to the phone from the desktop. You just need to be in fastboot mode on your phone for the commands to be recognized. On linux, you dont need special programs like KDZ, you just need the Android SDK and a few commands in terminal.
The XDA dev forums are your best friends when it comes to android development and custom ROMs. This page(especially the 1st link on the page concerning Ubuntu) should get you started:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1032744
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=773

1st link is the sticky with what is needed to get you started and the 2nd link is just the links to the other sections in the GT540 forum which is provided for convenience.

I already checked XDA forums and many other places and guides over the internet. Got fastboot already installed on my system (as well as ADB, which is working), but I can't find any way to boot my LG GT540 on fastboot mode. Holding power+camera while booting the device doesn't do anything, and everyone on the web says that in order to enable fastboot mode a special ROM with fastboot enabled must be installed; and it must be installed with KDZ since fastboot isn't there yet.

Huh....I guess they truly did disable fastboot by default. You might be forced to dualboot the machine temporarily with Windows to get this working. Sorry I have worked and developed for Samsung, HTC and Motorola phones and havent encountered such a problem.

Probably LG didn't disable fastboot on newer phones, but on LG GT540 it is disabled! I'm an owner of one such device :)

Is it possible to enable fastboot and/or install a custom ROM using Linux?

Sad to say, but no, you can't yet enable fastboot using Linux easily. You need to find someone with Windows (was best option for me) or deal with virtual machines.
p.s.
Lucky you need it only once, I found someone with Windows just to enable fastboot, now can flash ROM using fastboot tool on Linux.

No. There isn't. Io owned this device for a long time, and you need the KDZ Updater to install a fastboot ROM. Once that is done, you can shun Windows forever.

Sorry this is in Spanish (the link), but I have found a toolkit for flashing KDZ under linux (i.e.: debian, suse, archlinux, ubuntu, etc)
http://www.todomovillg.es/elforodehomero/(p990)-rom-mod-y-hack/optimus-toolkit-6-in-1-linux-by-homero/


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Why do get SMS send to the wrong recipient ( HTC Thunderbolt)?
My SMS texts on numerous occasions have crossed from one thread of text and gone to a completely different person.  That person usually has recently texted me.  I close out the keyboard and make sure it is going to the right person, hit send, then it ends up going to the wrong thread.
Is there a fix for ?

Sounds like you might be experiencing this bug, which has actually come up on this site previously (related question here).

There are many people facing similar problem here, http://community.htc.com/na/htc-forums/android/f/107/t/12961.aspx?PageIndex=3
The solutions they came up with was:

Use handcent SMS app instead of stock SMS app
Keep low number of messages in inbox
Delete read message
Waiting for Gingerbread update which will fix it

If I were you I'd choose number 1.

See also this bug report on the Android tracker.


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Samsung Galaxy 7" (GT-P6210) USB debugging is not detecting in Linux?
I am using ubuntu Linux 10.04 Pc in that my Samsung Galaxy 7" (GT-P6210) homeycomb 3.2 is not detecting for development its showing in eclipse as
DeviceMonitor] Failed to start monitoring ????????????  in console
and in device tab its showing ?????????????.
Except this 7' GT-P6210 Samsung tablet all other Samsung devices are showing fine.
When I switch off the tablet and connected to the USB its showing the number and online as status.
List of devices attached
4641199B0F8488AE    device
why? whats the problem any solution.
NOTE:
I already Added 51-android.rules
Samsung 04E8

and also I enabled the USB debugging mode.
Its working fine in Mac.
I found that only its not detecting in updated ADT r16, except all other ADT version device is detecting very fine.
any idea?

When adb shows devices as ???????????? it's usually a permission problem and the usb device file. Your udev rules doesn't seem right. Make sure that you have udev configured to something like this:
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", SYSFS{idVendor}=="04e8", MODE="0666"

Where 04e8 is Samsung's USB Vendor ID.
Under Linux there is also an adb_usb.ini from the SDK where you have to add the vendor IDs:
~/.android/adb_usb.ini
# ANDROID 3RD PARTY USB VENDOR ID LIST -- DO NOT EDIT.
# USE 'android update adb' TO GENERATE.
# 1 USB VENDOR ID PER LINE.
0x17ef
0x1949

Oh that's funny, add vendor IDs when it says "DO NOT EDIT" :)

You can safely ignore this warning. Just manually add the vendor IDs. More on android update adb can be found here.

Wasn't saying that you are wrong, I just found that amusing :) But thanks for clarifying it

@Flow I just want know why when I switch off the tablet and connected to the USB its showing the number and online as status. adb devices List of devices attached 4641199B0F8488AE device


text:
Enable location services via ADB or shell
I have a rooted phone. Is it possible to enable location services (GPS or network location) via ADB or Terminal Emulator?

On Android 6.0,
To enable:

GPS: adb shell settings put secure location_providers_allowed +gps
Network: adb shell settings put secure location_providers_allowed +network

To disable:

GPS: adb shell settings put secure location_providers_allowed -gps
Network : adb shell settings put secure location_providers_allowed -network

On Android 11.0,
To enable:

GPS: adb shell settings put secure location_mode 3

To disable:

GPS: adb shell settings put secure location_mode 0

Thanks, it works. Is there anyway we can enable/disable gps and network with one  line adb command. I need it for high accuracy locaton. gps+network =high accuracy

Android location service comes with different options:

High accuracy: gps, network

Enable: adb shell settings put secure location_providers_allowed +gps,network
Disable: adb shell settings put secure location_providers_allowed -gps,network

Phone only: gps

Enable: adb shell settings put secure location_providers_allowed +gps
Disable: adb shell settings put secure location_providers_allowed -gps

Battery saving: network

Enable: adb shell settings put secure location_providers_allowed +network
Disable: adb shell settings put secure location_providers_allowed -network

location_providers_allowed no longer works for Android 10 (API level 29).
Instead, you can set the location_mode to LOCATION_MODE_HIGH_ACCURACY with a value of 3:
adb shell settings put secure location_mode 3

NOTE: Probably won't work >v29 as this is already deprecated as the docs on Location Mode mention:

This constant was deprecated in API level 28.
  The preferred methods for checking location mode and listening for changes are via LocationManager#isLocationEnabled() and LocationManager#MODE_CHANGED_ACTION.

Don't know what a programmatic way to do this through the shell will be once this constant disappears.

Enable: adb shell settings put secure location_mode 3
Disable: adb shell settings put secure location_mode 0

See Stack Overflow - How to enable/disable GPS location services on Android 9 via ADB commands (not rooted device).

Functions on Android 11.

@user598527, hi! Thanks for the comment. Currently I don't know.


text:
Browser's webview.db doesn't store Hotmail password, but it can still auto login. Why?
On my rooted Galaxy Nexus 4.1.1, stock browser doesn't store any password for Hotmail, but whenever I open Hotmail, it logins automatically.
I checked data/data/com.android.browser/webview.db, the password table has a row for Hotmail like below:
host = https://login.live.com, username = blank, password = blank
Why does it still auto login Hotmail even though the password is not stored?

Just a guess: cookies?


text:
HTC One Mini data recovery after root
Last night I wiped and rooted my HTC One Mini and lost a few photos. Is there any way to get them back?

Welcome to the Android Enthusiasts, Aaron! That's one of our more frequent questions, so we've set up some "first-aid-info" in the data-recovery tag-wiki you might wish to check (always a good idea to check tag-wikis, as that's not the only one ;) Especially take a look at How can I recover a deleted file on Android? and Data Recovery - How to Restore Deleted / Formatted Files on HD Micro SD Card.

@Izzy Thanks! "File carving [..] Recover accidentally formatted devices" - seems like this is exactly what I'm looking for.

@Izzy Might want to put that in an answer as it sounds like you hit the nail on the head. ;)

As requested: Answer posted :) Glad I was able to point into the right direction (or even "hitting the nail on the head" :) Good luck on restore!

That's one of our more frequent questions, so we've set up some "first-aid-info" in the data-recovery tag-wiki1. Especially take a look at

How can I recover a deleted file on Android?
Data Recovery - How to Restore Deleted / Formatted Files on HD Micro SD Card

Also, the links to details on "File Carving" and specific recovery tools might prove helpful.

1: It's always a good idea to check our tag-wikis, as they often contain such "first aid" or at least useful information/links. You can find them either hovering your mouse over a tag and click the "info" link inside the opening box – or simply click the tag, and select the left-most tab on the new page.


text:
Nexus 5 updated to 5.0.1 using OTA but is now stuck at boot animation for more than 10 minutes
Yesterday I've bought my first Nexus phone.
I've tried updating it to Android 5.0.1 through standard procedure (download -> update from Settings), but now it is booting (boot animation is playing) for 10 minutes already. Any idea what could that be and what should I do to the phone to get back to normal working Android?

On some phones it can take very long, even to half an hour, so  try to wait a little more.
If that does not help you should try to do a factory reset and wipe /cache & /dalvik partition (from Recovery, if you have access to it). Usually this procedure would solve the issue: stuck on boot animation/reboot loops.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't factory reset already be wiping /cache and /dalvik-cache?

I'm not totally sure. It usually depends on recovery, on mine device and recovery I know that I always had to manually format /dalvik, but not remember for /cache.


text:
Google Play not able to sign-in into Clash of Clans app
I'm playing Clash of Clans on my Android device, and I have already downloaded Google Play and signed in as well.  But when I am trying to log-in into Clash of Clans the loading ring just rotate for a while, but I am not able to sign in and save the game.
What should I do now?

Does this happen with all the games or only Clash of clans?

Have you installed Google Play Games? It should be signed in,  to allow you to log in Clash of Clans to Google Play Games.

You need the Google play games app now to log in to games.

Well if Google considered this step sometime ago requiring its app to log-in into Games, then there must be news out there to confirm this. Please quote or cite the reference.

Allstar heroes needs google play games to login, castle clash aswell, magic rush heroes too and a hell load of more games, browse the games sometimes.


text:
How can I increase the transmission power of Wi-Fi in Redmi 1S running Kitkat?
I am using a Redmi 1S mobile running MIUI 6 on KitKat. The mobile is rooted.
Is there any way to increase the Wi-Fi transmission power of my mobile?
Things I've tried:

I have tried using iwconfig in terminal emulator.
I have tried WiFi tx power app from play store.
Both of these didn't work for me.

Usually the tx power is already at the maximum value. Even iwconfig won't be able to increase it, it would have already increased it, if it wasn't at the maximum value.

@GiantTree I tried decreasing the power but that too didn't work.


text:
Would my phone have to be reactivated after factory reset?
I want to know if I  will have to reactivate my phone since it is already currently on through boost mobile. It is a LG tribute for which I paid a full $35 for a prepaid plan on June 27,2015. It is now July 3, 2015.

In your question, reactive might have two meanings:

Reactivation/registration is a process which is one time, at the time you purchased a device inserted your carrier SIM to make handset useable. It sends a message to the Device Company that this device is now active and registered.( This process is one time, your carrier may charge this message as per your plan.)
If you mean by setting up your device as new handset. So answer for this is

'Yes', you have to setup/register/reactivate all the things/accounts by yourself. Factory Reset will make your device completely clean(internally) as it was at the time when took out of the box.

No. The IMEI will be registered by Boost with the towers so it should reset back onto the network without any work on your part.
Source: I did it with Sprint all the time


text:
Mobile data and Wi-Fi turning on automatically in Samsung Galaxy S3
My phone turned on Mobile data and Wi-Fi automatically. Battery also drains very fast. I checked "Mobile network usage", and turned it off for some  apps, but suddenly, I started to receive messages  "Unfortunately,  Google apps have been stopped".
I don't know what happen. What should I do resolve the issue?

As per this Thread problem was solved by below steps:

Go to Menu
Settings
More Settings
Mobile Networks
Connection Optimizer and uncheck Sprint Connection Optimizer

I had the same problem. Data and Wi-Fi automatically turned on at same time, even though I turned it off it turned on again. Then I tried "forgetting" all the Wi-Fi access points which had been scanned and saved by my phone before and then it stopped.

Could you reorganize your answer a bit to fit the OP's exact requirements? I'll help you out a bit.


text:
Samsung Galaxy S4 - no adb devices
I wanted to install a custom ROM on my old Galaxy S4 I9500. I installed CWM recovery at first with Odin, and it worked really well.
Thereafter, I tried side-loading or pushing the custom ROM using ADB, but it could not find the device.
I tried to install Samsung drivers and reinstalling them but it didn't work.
Any solution to detect the device?

Please provide some more information. What operating system are you using? Where did you get the adb/fastboot binaries? What version of CWM did you install, and what is the exact error adb gave you?

Im using Windows 8, I installed adb a while ago so I dont really remember but it was working just before I installed the CWM recovery, the version of CWM is 6.0.3.2.. the error is: device not found.

Okay. Try disabling and enabling developer mode on the phone, and make sure that the adb checkbox is on. When you connect the phone, does it display a notification saying that USB debugging is enabled?
Also, when was the last time you rebooted your windows 8 machine?

did that already nothing happened, and I also rebooted my windows but still.

Try this on a linux machine, or boot a LiveUSB on your win8 box. It's unclear if this is the phone or comp issue, so we need to bisect the possibilities.
Oh, also try a different usb cable and different port on the comp.

The notification is not saying that USB debugging is enabled.. eventhough it is enabled

Hm... Try wiping cache and dalvik, and try with different cables and ports.


text:
Is multi encryption a good way to wipe all traces of personal data before selling the phone?
I am going to sell my phone.
It's a Samsung Galaxy S4 i9505 from Germany running Android 5.0.1 "Lollipop". What I have done so far is to encrypt, reset, run camera until memory was full to override empty memory with random data and then reset again. But I think I have forgot to disable "fast encryption" which encrypts only the used memory (I have manually deleted some files before ). I am not sure if I have disabled it or not.
Is it a good idea to perform the encryption again (with "full encryption"), or is multiple encryption a bad idea in case of security?

Well I think another encryption on encryped data is not a security risk, because then an attacker could encrypt some encrypet data again and this makes no sense that then he could get the data easier. But it also does not make it more secure. I think I will encrypt the phone again without "fast encryption" enabled and then sell it. Then the original data is encrypted, overridden by random data, and then again encrypted. And the possibility that my phone will be hacked by an attacker is very low. PS: The external SD card will not be sold. It is in my new phone.


text:
Replacement SD card not mounted properly in device
I have an Android 8.1 device (encrypted, not rooted) that is configured to use an SD card as internal storage. That SDcard broke down and needed to be replaced.
After inserting a fresh replacement card, the device recognized it and asked how it should be formatted. I chose "internal", and the format went though without issues. The card shows up under "Storage" with the correct capacity, just as the old one did.
However, using this card is not possible. All apps that try to access it (like camera, browser downloads, file managers) show "SD card not available" errors.
When I connect to the device through adb shell to check how the file systems are mounted, I can see a difference. This is what shows up when the old card is inserted:
bbb100:/ $ mount
[...]
/dev/block/dm-3 on /mnt/expand/beb7cb3c-0c09-43cf-83b8-ce1eac90a92b type ext4 (rw,dirsync,seclabel,nosuid,nodev,noatime)
/mnt/expand/beb7cb3c-0c09-43cf-83b8-ce1eac90a92b/media on /mnt/runtime/default/emulated type sdcardfs (rw,nosuid,nodev,noexec,noatime,fsuid=1023,fsgid=1023,gid=1015,multiuser,mask=6,derive_gid)
/mnt/expand/beb7cb3c-0c09-43cf-83b8-ce1eac90a92b/media on /storage/emulated type sdcardfs (rw,nosuid,nodev,noexec,noatime,fsuid=1023,fsgid=1023,gid=1015,multiuser,mask=6,derive_gid)
/mnt/expand/beb7cb3c-0c09-43cf-83b8-ce1eac90a92b/media on /mnt/runtime/read/emulated type sdcardfs (rw,nosuid,nodev,noexec,noatime,fsuid=1023,fsgid=1023,gid=9997,multiuser,mask=23,derive_gid)
/mnt/expand/beb7cb3c-0c09-43cf-83b8-ce1eac90a92b/media on /mnt/runtime/write/emulated type sdcardfs (rw,nosuid,nodev,noexec,noatime,fsuid=1023,fsgid=1023,gid=9997,multiuser,mask=7,derive_gid)
bbb100:/ $

and this appears when the new card is inserted:
bbb100:/ $ mount
[...]
/dev/block/dm-3 on /mnt/expand/49d563a3-0905-4173-a1b3-8c29e3917d2c type ext4 (rw,dirsync,seclabel,nosuid,nodev,noatime,data=ordered)
bbb100:/ $

So it seems the new card is not initialized correctly and/or several directories do not get mounted for whatever reason.
Things I tried to no avail:

re-formatting the card
eject, mount
reboot the device
ran sm partition disk:179,64 private in adb shell just to see if there are any errors on the console (via) - there is no error
tried with different SD card (also brand new) - same behavior
copied device- and partition UUIDs (PTUUID, PARTUUID) from old SD card to new card using gdisk, hoping that Android would recognize the new card as "known" and mount it. It doesn't.

What's going on here and what else can I do to make the card work?

Did you try Forgetting the old card before formatting the new one?

@IrfanLatif No, I did not, for fear that would then be unable to access anything on that card anymore, since it's encrypted. I saved most of the data, but I might have forgotten something.

@IrfanLatif I could try to change the UUID of the new SD card to match the old card, would that convince Android to mount it properly? (It probably would, but it's unclear to me why bending over backwards so much is necessary - why won't the OS treat a new card properly on its own?)

Sorry I personally never used Adoptable Storage except for experimenting. So can't be very helpful.

@IrfanLatif For what it's worth, you were right. Thanks for the pointer.

Okay, I figured it out (hat tip to @IrfanLatif). What's going on is this:
Android focuses on one single "primary" SD card that can be used to permanently enhance internal storage, e.g. by moving apps to it.
When it is removed, the system remembers that apps and settings are still stored there, and waits that it shows up again. Other SD cards can be formatted for internal use, but they won't actually be usable until all ties with the known SD card are broken.
This means the card must be explicitly forgotten. The option to Forget a card is available from the Storage menu when that card is not currently inserted.

Be sure to backup everything you need before doing that.
Eject the card via the menu and remove it from the slot.
Tap the card's name in the storage menu and then "Forget".
Confirm the warning that all data on that card will be lost forever, since the card is encrypted and Android is about to delete the encryption keys.

Only after that, Android will accept a different SD card as its primary storage and make it available to the rest of the system.

Thanks, @Tomalak. After searching a very long time, this answer finally gave me a way to replace an android sdcard formatted as internal with a larger one.


text:
Can I keep my WhatsApp videos on the cloud?
My Android smartphone only has 4 GB and the WhatsApp folder already has 500 MB in the WhatsApp Video sub-folder.
I know I can make a one-time back up my WhatsApp data on the cloud but I need a permanent solution like keeping all the videos older than 3 days on the cloud, in order to permanently save my storage space.
Does WhatsApp have such a feature? It should not be very difficult for them to do that because WhatsApp can keep a single copy for each video shared by millions of different users (and the people share mostly popular videos, not personal videos), therefore the space consumed per user should be quite low.

WhatsApp doesn't have the feature to save videos to a cloud. As soon as you download a video sent to you, WhatsApp deletes it.
You can have all your WhatsApp messages and media backup to Google drive, but that's not easily accessible unless you restore all messages from Google drive (usually done when switching phones or data loss.)
My suggestion is to get an app that will backup your phots/videos. Like Google phots.
Or you can move all videos to your SD card and then delete them from WhatsApp.

I do agree that WhatsApp should allow cloud storage like Telegram (similar app to WhatsApp) does


text:
ART internal storage problm
Using my moto e in Art mode and my internal memory is totally consumed will I get my internal memory if I switch again to dalvik?

Yes you will get your memory back.
During the reboot process, Android will have to optimize all apps, so this will take some time. About 15 min. to 60 min. for this to complete, that all depends on how many apps you have. Make sure you device is fully charged.

You also can manually edit the file with runtime values, which is located: /data/property/persist.sys.dalvik.vm.lib
libart.so and libdvm.so are the values.
Command:

adb shell 'echo libdvm.so >/data/property/persist.sys.dalvik.vm.lib'

Or

adb shell setprop persist.sys.dalvik.vm.lib libdvm.so


text:
Motorola Xoom bricked?
A while ago I had my Motorola Xoom (1) charging on the dock.
It got stuck at the Motorola logo screen, the first screen that appears when the tablet is turned on.
Recovery puts me at the screen showing the android lying down on its back with an exclamation mark above.
Is this solvable? Can I get the device to function again?
Note: Before this happening the tablet used to occasionally reset on its own. I think it was also heating up when not in use.


text:
SMS/MMS database location?
I'm trying to pull SMS messages from an old Nandroid backup, but need to find the database before I can. I found an article listing its location in Kitkat, but can't find anything for Nougat/Oreo. (Or even Marshmallow for that matter.)
Anyone happen to know where the files for SMS/MMS messages are actually stored?

While for Android 6 and 7 the DB with SMS data is located under

/data/data/com.android.providers.telephony

on my LineageOS 15 (Oreo) the file has been moved under

/data/data/com.android.messaging

and renamed to bugle_db
Oo

/data/data/com.android.providers.telephony/databases/mmssms.db

Thank you!  (Although on my Oreo phone it's actually mmssms.db)  I just couldn't track it down, for some reason even FIND wasn't finding any DB containing 'sms' in the filename.

If you have Mokee rom this is the location:-
data/data/com.android.messaging/databases/bugle_db
Copy it using some root file browser(ES explorer/Amaze file manager) and rename it to bugle_db.db

I am sorry, this doens't really answer the question. You didn't specify which Version of Android the Mokee rom is based on. He specifially asked for the location of the sms database on recent Android version. Since the question it has been asked about 9 months ago I doubt it's even still revelant.

Mokee rom has many version(Marshmallow to Oreo), I am personally using Nougat and path of the database given above, it may help somebody


text:
How to reduce the quality of streaming on Galaxy S4
I recently upgraded from Galaxy S1 (Android 2.3.5) to S4 (SGH-I337M with Android 4.4.2)
The thing is before I couldn't have the Chrome browser because was not compatible and my YouTube app played videos just in HQ.
But now my S4 plays streaming in HD (720p). I set the option to see videos in HD (YouTube) only on WI-FI but even though I did this, my data plan is being devoured.
When I see streaming from pages in Chrome, they are also spending my data plan.
I know this thanks to the data usage application in android (Apps > Settings > Data usage) and match exactly with my internet provider consumption plan.
How can I do to reduce the streaming quality in general on my S4 in order to reduce the consumption of my data plan.
I tried to ask the same thing in google but mostly all the pages advice to do the opposite, I mean... how to increase the video quality on android.
It doesn't bother me to see videos in HQ like before.
Thanks.


text:
Missing mp3 files on SD card
I am trying to add mp3 files to my Toshiba Thrive trough an SD card. What I am doing is loading the SD card in my laptop and adding the files directly. I loaded around 6 GB to the (32GB) card. When accessing the SD card files trough the tablet it only shows half of the files. I've done this process a couple of times, also I reformatted the SD card but tablet only reads some of the files and some other folders that I created for other documents don't even appear when I load the card on the tablet. Any insights on this?

Are you sure the file formats are all .mp3s?

if you use the tablet mount function to mount the sdcard to computer, and copy some files, sometimes it has problem, it need more times, and suggestion refresh in the folder when finish copy, when you fresh you can check the copy successful or not.
if you use the sdcard reader to mount to the computer, when finish copy, need safe remove usb to ensure the copy finish.


text:
Where exactly does Android get its contact suggestions from?
I have a phone right here (Evo 3D), it has no service (except my wifi) and I've only added an obligatory gmail account which has one contact.
No Facebook, no Google+, no Twitter, etc.
Yet I got a "matched contact suggestion" notification. What is that? Where did it come from?
My main phone (TMO G2) with all of the services never gets these things and I'm not familiar with that at all.
Insight appreciated.

As long as your WIFI has internet connectivity, Android will be able to communicate with Google's servers.
There is one thing that people get wrong when it comes down to contact suggestions, be it Facebook or Google: They imply that they are the only ones that have saved the contact somewhere. But it's also the other way round. Which means that, the contact that was suggested to you has most likely your gmail e-mail address saved in his address book.


text:
How to turn Android tablet into network photo frame?
I have a qnap NAS which shares media via samba shares and upnp (dlna/twonkey). I'd like to run a photo gallery app which displays shared photos so I don't have to copy them to my tablet. No luck finding a DNA client that has a decent photo gallery yet... also couldn't find an app that lets me mount a smb share like smbfs for Linux.. any other ideas? Launching needs to be very simple.

Have you considered uploading pictures to your Picasa account and using the dock screen to show them as slideshows?

+1 Have wondered the same, would be a good way to recycle my tablet when my tablet when it gets past its useful life, as well as a way to get it doing something more useful than pretending to be a clock while its docked and charging. I've got a DLNA enabled Windows server, so any SMB/DLNA solutions would presumably be the same.

possible duplicate of Making an Andriod tablet boot into a slideshow - App advice

Have you tried Social Frame?
It is a digital photo frame app.
It automatically syncs photos from Facebook, Twitter, and 500px.
Love this app

Try out Digital Photo Frame Slide Show.
It has exactly the features you need as it can access a UPnP server or a SMB network drive.
(I am the developer of Digital Photo Frame Slide Show.)

*ahem* Please see our [FAQ#promotion] on the requirements for recommending products with which you have a vested interest.

You're right I should have mentioned I develop that app. It does however exactly fit his requirements.

I'm not disputing that. There's nothing wrong with offering up an app you've developed as a solution (especially if it's an exact fit) so long as you disclose this fact and it's not the only reason you're participating on the site.

It may sound like overkill, but it may suit all your needs:
XBMC Media Center (downloads for Android are here)
It has many features that you might not need (like a weather forecast, playing videos and music) but the best parts are its big list of network capabilities (media on Windows shares, DLNA (UPnP), FTP, etc.) and its huge list of available plugins. It's also remotely controllable in many ways, there are even apps for Android, etc.
Plus it's open source and free.

Have you searched DLNA in Play Store? You can find many apps.
My favorite is Skifta .

Samba Shares and Cloud Image Services (Picasa, Flickr, Facebook, Dropbox and Instagram) Photo Frame Live Wallpaper

PhotoCloud Frame Slideshow should match your requirements since it shows photos on your tablet in a digital frame fashion, downloading them on-the-fly. It supports DLNA/UPNP, but also Samba and a lot of other photo sources.
(Disclaimer: I am the developer of this app)

ES File Explorer should let you access SMB shares.


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How to install Cyanogenmod on Huawei IDEOS U8150?
I am installing a custom rom for the very first time and I simply don't want to brick my phone (Huawei U8150).

I downloaded and installed Rom Manager
I downloaded Cyanogen 7 (update-cm-7.2.0-RC0-U8150-KANG-signed-dec5.zip) for my U8150 and stored it on SD card.
I started Rom Manager > Flash ClockMod Recovery > shows a list of supported phones. It does not have U8150 in the list. I wonder how others have made it work!
From ROM Manager I chosen the Rom file manually with "Install ROM from SD Card" option, it restarts and gives only for options a. reboot, b. apply update.zip c & d. wipe

What to do next? The rom file is in .zip, while I downloaded another .img file (clockworkmod_5.0.2.7_u8150.img). What does it exactly do?
I think i must first create backup of current rom and then install cyanogen.

Install ClockworkMod Recovery using any of the given methods here:

Install Terminal Emulator from the market.
Install Root Explorer from the market.
Download the recovery of your choice and copy the recovery.img to your sd card. (if its not named recovery.img rename it)
With Root Explorer, navigate to where the recovery is and copy it to /system/bin/ (remember to select mount as R/W first in order for it to copy.)
Open Terminal Emulator and enter the command "su" (without the quotes)
After that enter the command "flash_image recovery /system/bin/recovery.img" (again without the quotes)
That's it, the recovery has been flashed. Reboot in recovery to confirm.
Once you've confirmed the recovery flashed properly remember to delete the recovery.img from /system/bin/ (using root explorer, and mount as R/W)

Then follow the instructions of using ClockworkMod given here

Why the downvote? The first link has step-by-step instructions on how to correctly flash the recovery.

@Chahk: Your edit is not correct, because that link has three different methods, the second one worked for me.

Any one of the 3 methods should work.  Feel free to edit again with the method that worked for you though.


text:
Some questions about Thinkpad Tablet
I need to purchase a tablet for on the move access to web, video, book reading etc. I am a Thinkpad fan so I would like to go for Lenovo Thinkpad. However I have some questions regarding it, which seems to be related more with Android itself than the hardware.

Thinkpad tablet has USB port, so can we use external USB modem (e.g. MTS MBlaze, Tata Photon in India) with it to connect to internet. On some forums it is said that Android does not have drivers of USB modem, so we can use USB modems with any Android tablet in the market even if they contain full USB port. What is the current state of Android on this?
A bit on hardware side, Thinkpad contains SIM slot and it is only yesterday when Lenovo has added Gobi chip for 3G capability. So, what was the use of that SIM card slot before that chip?

AFAIK Android has no support for UMTS/LTE/mobile-connectivity USB-Sticks.
The SIM slot was always used for mobile connectivity. The Gobi chip supports more technology for mobile connectivity, allowing the Thinkpad to establish mobile connectivity in various countries. With a normal chip you are restricted to your region.

Very said. :( Is there any plan in near future versions of Android for this support.
If there is mobile connectivity without Gobi chip, what is the use of introducing Gobi chip now with 130$ more than normal version.

@vikas I have updated my answer

I am still unable to understand the difference because if with normal chip we were able to access internet via mobile networks, even only in our region, it would have been great for many users. They can at least use the tablet to access internet on move in their region.


text:
Mobile Network goes off often in my Galaxy s2
I am using Galaxy s2 since 5 months. I have started facing Network problems recently. The mobile network goes off often and it resumes most times by itself.. but sometimes I need to restart my phone to bring it back in the network. I see the Unavailable (circle with a slash) symbol in place of the mobile signal symbol.. Also I see "SIM Refreshing data" often, not sure if it relates to the network going off..
Similar issues anyone and what did you do to fix this..

I also have a SGS2, and have had the same problem 2-3 times only. I turn on flight mode, and back. This solves the problem for me since it doesnt happen so ofthen.
if you still have the problem after this, I would re install Android to the newest version. Either do it yourself, or go to a phone shop and pay 10$ or so for them to reinstall your phone.
If this solves your problem, it was a cheap fix. If it didn't work, you can go back to the phone shop where you bought the phone and make them fix it in guarantee.
If you want to try to download and install an awesome rom for your phone, you should read this: http://www.cyanogenmod.com/devices

I also have a Samsung Galaxy S2, and experienced the same issue before.
It's possible that the ROM or the radio (firmware) has problems. If so, you should try to update them.
I am now using a custom ROM (CyanogenMod, latest nightly), and have not encountered this issue so far.

I called up the Hutch service in Bangalore, and they ran me through a different set of directions for getting it running after having the same issue.
I was made to traverse to 'Hutch' in the apps section, then 'Hutch roam', then 'Hutch' again. Restart the device now and voila - it had worked :-)
Try this too just in case.


text:
Samsung apps cannot be run. Please try again later
I'm using Kies to connect my 'Samsung Galaxy Ace' in my PC. All the options like Music,Photos,Videos and Podcasts working fine. But when I click on Samsung Apps under Store option, its showing an error "Samsung apps cannot be run. Please try again later". Could you help me to resolve this problem...?

Do you have a Samsung Apps icon on your phone? Have you tried using that one?

It's been a little while since I've used Kies, but it is used for all of Samsung's phones, not just the Android ones. The Samsung Apps icon in Kies only used to list Bada compatible apps, not Android ones, you needed to use the Samsung Apps icon on your phone to get the Android ones.
Edit: Just realised that this question has come up before, for the Galaxy S: Why do Samsung Apps not support the Galaxy S? though that question is from a year ago, so things may have changed since then

Try to re-install the Kies on your PC.And try it once again because i had the same problem and i got it back by this way.


text:
Updating my Nexus S from 2.3.6 to 4.0.3
I have an unlocked GSM Nexus S I bought from a friend. I'm currently running version 2.3.6 (which was pre-loaded on the phone). I really like the way Ice Cream Sandwich looks, so I would like to upgrade to 4.0.3.
I've looked around for tutorials and it seems I'm going to have to root my device and install a ROM. However, I can't seem to find an ICS (4.0.3) download from any reputable sources. They all seem to be hosted independently by users. Is there a place I can download the update from Google/Android directly?

The GSM version should have gotten an official OTA update: http://www.androidguys.com/2011/12/16/google-announces-ice-cream-sandwich-update-for-gsm-nexus-s-devices/ (unless unlocked devices didn't get it, I guess)

In general ROM-searchers are reffered to this question, but I think this is sufficiently complex enough to stand alone.  I've added the condensed version of my answer from here to the canonical post though.

@eldarerathis: The OTA update was delayed/paused due to problems discovered

Post your baseband, (In System Info) and we can point you to the right update file

Google hosts their flagship device OTAs online, fortunately, under the codename crespo for the Nexus S.  Some searching along those line resulted in this Android Police post (affiliate links removed):

Well, that didn't take long. Here are the instructions to [get] your Nexus S rocking ICS right now. Do not try this on the CDMA Nexus S!

Download the OTA Package

Rename it to update.zip
Copy it to the root of the internal storage
Power off the device, hold Volume Up and Power to reboot into the bootloader
Select "recovery," then hit the power button
Once the warning triangle appears, hold the power button and hit volume up
Select "apply update from /sdcard" and choose the update.zip
Once the process is finished, simply choose "reboot system now"

Once it reboots, BAM! You've got ICS. Congratulations!

The link there is http://android.clients.google.com/packages/ota/google_crespo/VQ8PQk_V.zip.  Koush notes that this is for the T-Mobile version, the i9020T.  From dottech.org:

There are unofficial reports that the update works for i9023 (the Super LCD version of Nexus S); and can work for i9020A (the AT&T/Telus/Koodo Nexus S) by flashing compatible radio files. If you are a brazen fellow you can attempt to update your i9023/i9020A with the T-Mobile ICS package but be warned: You might get a brick.

I am moderately confident that if you were to accidentally download the wrong package, your device would refuse to install it.  So, given that, and the URL being hosted at Google, I'd try it.  In any case, I followed the instructions at http://www.theverge.com/2011/12/16/2641496/manually-install-android-4-0-3-gsm-nexus-s last month, and it's worked fine.


text:
What size of SD card can an HTC Desire accomodate?
I have replaced my 2gb sd card with a 16gb one so i can store more music. Now I can't get the phone to play any music at all it says to make more space before opening app'. Any ideas?

It should be able to take up to 32 GB SDHC cards like almost all other devices.  Did you format the card?  Settings -> SD card and phone storage -> Unmount SD card and then Format SD card or similar, make sure to backup anything on it first if needed.

I can confirm that 16GB and 32 GB cards work without problems on stock Desire

As per the phone specification

microSD, up to 32GB, 4GB included,

"The HTC Desire 510 comes with 4 GB of internal storage, but has an expansion card slot that supports microSD memory cards with up to 128 GB of additional storage." Direct quote from HTC website

It's INFURIATING that HTC fails to mention this in the pdf manual.  I've been looking and all that's mentioned about it is how to put the card in.
I found one review that claims up to 164 GB but I wouldn't swear to that. One other review says the spec is 128 GB and that he tested a 64 GB card that worked flawlessly.
I'm sure I saw something in out other paperwork that came wit the phone that said 32 GB but not sure about that.
I was looking because my wife wants added storage for hers. I'm going with 32 GB. My own failed a few months ago and I'll probably never own another HTC product because of that. The SIM card popped out for no reason and the mechanism was junk, others have mentioned that and it seems a really stupid way to make it, (SD card is retained the same way) one guy said both failed on his within a few days or each other... again, dumb design and I'll never own another HTC because of that.
But most phones seem to specify up to 32 GB. IMO all phones should be able to use what ever size card you can get no matter how large and you might find out a larger one will work. Perhaps they're concerned about seek time or something but who knows. But it's storage, not operating memory.
Thing is when I got a 32 GB card for my phone I'm using now you could get a 2-pack having 2 16 GB cards for 10-15 bucks but a single 32 GB card was 20 bucks. So a larger card might not be worth it.  Gigs is a lot of storage for a phone. You might need that much if you're running a bunch of apps that need storage but if it's just pics and such you probably want to back those up on PC or cloud storage anyway.


text:
Installing CyanogenMod on Newsmy NP-711 tablet
I have a Newsmy NP-711 Android 2.1 tablet (terrible device, cannot recommend it to anyone), and I would like to install CyanogenMod on it.
On their page, they only have downloads for specific phone and tablet models. Is there no "minimum-build" that might work for non-listed devices? And how would I go about installing it?

Each build has drivers and other configuration elements specific to the device it targets, so I think the best you can really do would be to find a supported device that has similar hardware and pray (or port it yourself). That's my understanding, anyway.

Any ideas what might be similar enough?

I haven't a clue, really. I don't know anything about that device and I don't see a detailed spec sheet readily available.

Nope.  Mobile device drivers tend to be highly specific and there's no sort of defaults that will work across devices.


text:
Real time device share on Apple TV via AirPlay
I see that there are apps that will broadcast certain things to an Apple TV via AirPlay, but is there a way to send a view of the screen in real time via this method?  I have seen iPhone 4S doing this, but the only apps I've seen for Android advertise that they broadcast media files as if they're being sent as opposed to streamed.

I don't know of any apps that can do that, but (supposedly) any Android 4.2 device can do that with a wireless display adapter connected to an HDMI-enabled TV. I also found this project by E.S.R.Labs, which they successfully get a Nexus S to mirror it's screen (albeit onto a Raspberry Pi). Mirroring functionality is also sometimes limited due to hardware requirements.
I also recently found that a developer was able to get Miracast working on Nexus 7 and 4 variants. Check it out on XDA with videos. Something cool to note with this project is that the mirroring capabilities are all software based; no need for additional hardware. Hopefully that will also lead to further development for mirroring on devices that don't already have the hardware inside of them.


text:
How to exclude a program from being presented as program to update
I have an Archos 101 tablet which has Google maps installed.
I cannot uninstall Google maps but since I don't need it on my tablet I don't update it.
However, it is constantly being presented in the list of apps with 'new update available.
Can I somehow exclude this app ?
I have not rooted my device and are running Android 2.2

Related question, rooted solution: http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/14421/how-to-hide-updates-from-market

@onik: I don't want to root my device simply bacause my knowledge of it is not large enough to make sure I don't do anything wrong.

@Edelcom Out of curiosity: Why don't you want the Maps update?

@Flow: It is a tablet without SIM car which I only use at home. I don't need to look up addresses or the likes on my tablet (I use my phone or the PC to do that). It is a rather large program ( which U unfortunately cannot uninstall ). I don't want to make it even larger with updates I don't use. Memory in my Archos is not that large to waste it.

The only way I see around this is to uninstall Google Maps and the only way to remove built in apps is to be rooted and either use a 3rd part app or use ADB and uninstall the app yourself. There's no way of "excluding" an app from updates unless you simply uninstall it.

I don't want to root my devices until I know enough of the system to make sure I don't screw things up.

If you meanwhile changed your mind concerning rooting your device (you had a full year to get to know enough of the system to make sure [you] don't screw things up. ;), next to un-installation there're some more options available using e.g. Titanium Backup:

freeze (i.e. disable) Maps. This way it becomes "unavailable" on the device (and thus would no longer be updated, if you have a recent version of the Google Playstore on the device) -- but could be "unfrozen/re-enabled" any time.
detach it from "market" (yeah, old term). This would leave the app available and useable, while telling Google Play it's not installed. Not installed → no updates.


text:
How to create a symlink after I rooted my Samsung galaxy w GT-i8150?
How do I create a symlink from my /sdcard/NaviSEA to point to /sdcard/external_sd/SD/NaviSEA?
Even after rooting my device I still get "Operation not permitted" error and I did allow with su in my script :
$ su
# ln -s /sdcard/external_sd/SD/NaviSEA /sdcard/NaviSEA

Why doesn't my script work?

Your external SD card is presumably (in pretty much every case) formatted as a FAT32 filesystem. FAT32 does not support symbolic links. Linking from a ext2/3/4 filesystem to a FAT32 filesystem would work, IIRC, but linking from FAT32 isn't possible.

It seems like /sdcard is FUSE fs "link" for /data/media.
Try this:
ln -s /data/media/external_sd/SD/NaviSEA /data/media/NaviSEA

(I don't know what "external_sd" means on your device, but if this an external SD card you still can get errors.)


text:
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.


text:
Streaming audio files from SMB (or AFP, or NFS) share to DLNA receiver without resampling
Is it possible to scan specific folders for music files and import them to some android media player app, which could then stream the music to a DLNA device?
Another challenge is that the music files are on a NAS device, so they would be accessed through an SMB share (or AFP, or NFS share, if that changes anything).
I found a way to mount it to android's filesystem (using command busybox mount iocharset=utf8 -t cifs -o username=guest,rw,noperm,iocharset=utf8 //192.168.0.106/xxx /data/media/0/xxx), so apps see it as a local folder (you must have root for that I think, also the kernel should support cifs filesystem, and apparently the android device should not be in battery saving state and iocharset=utf8 is important if you have file or folder names with special characters), but the problem is that many apps rely on android's media scanner service to find music, which probably has trouble scanning the whole mounted folder and the apps do not see all the music files.

Hi mnd, it seems like your question already contains a potential answer. It is generally not forbidden to create an answer for your own question, especially as nobody has provided one since you posted your question.

I can move the "update" section to an answer, if that's the way things should be. But as I stated, all of my mentioned solutions have their drawbacks. And I think mounting a network folder to internal memory folder structure messes with the way android system works (probably media scanner process doesn't comprehend the new big folder, or something related to free space calculation, or something that I have no idea about..). Anyway the mounting method still needs testing, so I can't recommend it for people who want to achieve something similar as me, accessing their media on a network.

Moving the update section to an answer is IMHO a good idea, even if it is not perfect.

If anyone else is seeking for a similar solution, I think doubleTwist player uses a combination of android's media scanner and it's own directory scanner to import music. So the method with mounting the SMB share kind of works here. But it doesn't import duplicate files (support told me they are thinking of doing something about that, also a workaround may be possible by editing any of the major metadata tags like Track Title, Artist, Album Artist, or Album Name - will have to try that, but that involves editing of the files which not everyone might like), so if you have same songs (maybe slightly different versions) on several folders, you can't import them all without altering the files, yet.
Another option is n7player with Toastercast plugin. It works kind of good, but it takes a long time to scan the music folders (about 4 hours for ~14000 songs). And I'm not sure yet if you have to rescan the whole library when you add new music, but I fear you do.. Also, for me this setup would stop playing after one song if the screen is off. I don't know if it's related to android's battery saving or the mounted folder.
And one more promising app would be Emby Server for Android, it can access the SMB share on its own, so I guess it would be a cleaner solution. It is still in beta stage, so for now it doesn't find my DLNA renderer, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed for that to be solved.
Update: I think, adding the .nomedia file to the mounted directory helps the android's media scanner not to cause random crashes. But this approach only works if you use a media app, that scans directories on its own, to add files to the library. And it would be a good idea to store the media files at least one folder level lower, than the .nomedia file, because android's media scanner will not scan the subdirectories of the folder which contains the .nomedia file, but other media apps may not scan this folder's contents, but might scan the subfolders.


text:
How to mount an SMB share as a removable media?
Is it possible to mount an SMB share to a folder that Android thinks is a removable media (external SD card or USB storage)?
Currently. I am using the following command to mount the share to Android's filesystem (I should mention that it doesn't work if the android device is in battery saving mode - took me a while to figure this out):
busybox mount iocharset=utf8 -t cifs -o username=guest,rw,noperm,iocharset=utf8 //192.168.0.11/xxx /data/media/0/xxx

But, I don't think it's the best way, because I had some media scanner crashes, random reboots and notifications about low internal memory, which I think are related to the mount I performed.

Hi, I think the crashes and reboots happened because of additional media scanner apps, that I have installed one after the other. Because restoring a backup and not using these apps helped (I hope). But I edited the question again to bring back the information :)

Thanks for adding it back. It helps us to know what you've tried, so that we can help you out with the same or find issues and provide an alternative, wherever needed. :-)


text:
How to change default dialer app in Asus Zenfone 5?
How can I change the default dialer app in Asus zenfone 5. I tried Settings → Apps → All, then selecting the phone app. There was a Clear defaults button which was greyed out.
Do I have to get root access to change it?
The purpose of it is to automate a conference call using uiautomator and adb shell. For this reason we are supposed to have a same UI for all devices so that we can automate it easily.
But right now, even when I call with Truedialer I get this default screen that I used earlier. The resourceid is com.asus.asusincallui:id/holdButton.
(Click image to enlarge)

You need at least another dialer app to change it to. Your question didn't mention that part: do you have another dialer installed, and if so which?

I have installed True dialer.

OK, that's a start. Now what happens if you e.g. click a phone number in a text message (or perform some other action that should invoke the dialer – appart from starting it directly via its icon)? That should now ask you which of the two to use, and whether only once or always – the latter making it the "default dialer".

Yes I know the process. The problem is much broader. Can I email you ??

No, sorry. But you can [edit] your question and closer describe your issue. There are others around here who might "chime in" with ideas I wouldn't think of, so it's much better to solve the issue here (if it's possible to solve, that is).

It is called incallui.  what is android incallui?


text:
ADB authorization prompt missing in Sony Xperia Z3 Compact (D5803)
I just bought a Sony Xperia Z3 Compact (D5803) and I'm trying to root it. I'm following this link for instructions, but I got stuck at the "Rooting with exploit" step as I can't authorize the connection.
I've already tried:

Restarting the ADB server
Rebooting the device
Rebooting my PC
Changing from MTP to MSC and back
Disabling and then enabling USB debugging
Disabling and then enabling 'Developer options'
Using various ADB drivers
Using different ADB binaries
Deleting my .Android folder
Deleting ADB copies in other tools' folders
Plugging the device in another port
Any combination of the above that I can think of

I can't find any other possible solution to this issue on Google. I'm hoping you guys will be able to enlighten me and finally be able to solve this.
PS: Something tells me that my PC is the problem here, as I was never able to do this with my old SGS3 either, but I ran out of ideas about what could be causing it anyway.

It might sound stupid, but you might consider seeing if your device is recognized by adb in other computer. If yes, you might proceed with reinstalling the os(windows/linux) on your PC. I once had problem with Xperia P, I had to reinstall windows.

This helped me, before step 13 "Enable USB debugging on the phone (Settings => About phone => Click 7 times on Android Build to unlock developer options)" make sure you have enabled MTP over USB on the phone. Sometimes it helps to revoke the approved debug devices as well.


text:
Custom Google Contacts list view in Xiaomi Mi4i
I am an Indian residing in the UK, and the phone is bought in India.
Phone Model: Xiaomi Mi4i
Android Version: 5
MIUI Version: 6

Problem
I am an avid user of Google and I have my contact lists grouped this way in Google:

My Contacts
UK Friends
India Friends
Stack Overflow
Directors
Phone Contacts

As everyone know, the contacts can co-exist i.e., if Praveen is found in UK Friends, it can also be found in Phone Contacts. What I have done is, the group Phone Contacts has all the contacts that are supposed to be displayed in the phone, and currently I am using my Lava Iris 504Q phone, that shows my contacts in Custom View, where it displays only the contacts from Google (Account) » Phone Contacts (Group).
Currently using my Lava Mobile, what I can do is:
 (Click image to enlarge)

Step 1: Open the Contacts App. Tap the menu and tap on Contacts to Display.

Select Customize from the next menu, that displays all the Accounts that are configured in the phone.

The Define Custom View screen appears and again it shows all the Accounts that are configured in the phone.

This view provides me a checkbox view, where I choose to display whichever contact group from any account that is configured on this phone.

Is the problem understandable? Can this be sorted out?
But this process is not there in my new phone. Currently I have:

See the order of images as Step 1 → Step 2 → Step 3:
 (Click image to enlarge)

References
The best reference for this issue I could find is on the MIUI Forums. The other reference for the custom contact view is here.

Hi Praveen! I edited your question and shortened the length of it because it was  long to follow because of images. In case you find the edit unjust, feel free to rollback. :)

@Firelord No problem. It looks better now!

Any updates? :)