text:
OnePlus 5 Soft Brick
I have a OnePlus 5 and it won't boot. The phone is stuck on a black screen and blue LED (can't boot) since 20 days ago, and I tried everything I saw on the web to make it boot again.
I tried :

to flash the recovery with the original one
to flash the Oxygen OS and the Hydrogen OS via fastboot (authorized even with a locked bootloader)
to use MSMDownloadTool (a tool I found on the web, used by the support of OnePlus to reinstall bricked phones.

...but nothing helped.
I'm now with my OP5 soft-bricked, but since I used MSMDownloadTool, it locked itself (the tool locked the bootloader) and I can't flash again with fastboot (except the official ROM but still won't boot) nor adb. I tried fastboot oem unlock but I got an error (because I can't go on the developer's options due to the phone not loading): FAILED (remote: Flashing Unlock is not allowed)
If it gets you some info, I did fastboot oem device-info and got this result:
(bootloader) Verity mode: enforcing
(bootloader) Device unlocked: false
(bootloader) Device critical unlocked: false
(bootloader) Charger screen enabled: true
(bootloader) enable_dm_verity: true
(bootloader) have_console: false
(bootloader) selinux_type: SELINUX_TYPE_INVALID
(bootloader) boot_mode: NORMAL_MODE
(bootloader) kmemleak_detect: false
(bootloader) force_training: 0
(bootloader) mount_tempfs: 0
OKAY [  0.001s]
Finished. Total time: 0.002s

Is there any solution to be sure to write again everything on the OP5? (it seems that the MSMDownloadTool and fastboot won't erase everything as the OP5 finishes properly new installation but boot loop every time).
The present state of the OP5: bootloader locked, official recovery working, official ROM installed but won't boot.
I'm on Mac and Windows btw.
I followed numerous tutorials like this one :
Unbrick tool OnePlus 5

It sounds to me like the boot image is the one causing you problems. Since at no point should a phone with default recovery working and official system not boot. Have you heard about the kernel and porting of images. This is exactly what you may need to do. For any reason, when flashing any OS.  Ensure you port any OS's boot image by the original image that was in phone. Since you can flash in the OS, if your flash tool supports a firmware that can be extracted, you can look for a TWRP recovery, replace the one in firmware with the TWRP image and reflash. This will get you an environment...

...to install other OS on. But consequently. If you can get hands on the stock boot image. You can replace any OS's kernel with its stock. For example me I use MTKBoot for Windows to port images.

Thank you @ThallyAce, can you explain to me or show me a tutorial for that?
I'm at the point where I'll try anything to make it work.

This will be a good workaround for the situation above. Since you were able to flash the phone, that means the MSNFlashTool is well configured in your computer. Now what I want you to think about is how you can flash a custom recovery image into the phone so that you can even get the phone alive by a third party OS like Lineage and anything.
After downloading the firmware file and starting flashing, the MSMTool writes the current progress in the progress window writing what it's flashing in the phone. Notably the userdata.img is one of the files you recognize since it is somehow big and doesn't flash quickly.
Consequently many data partitions exist in the phones memory, like the:

system.img
cache.img
boot.img
recovery.img

These are the essentials in any system, remember these are not all but these are the compulsory in any system. I'm sure the flash file is an archive that you can open with rar. It sometimes can be an archive containing an archive so you have to extract it twice incase you don't see these img files. Once opened in rar take note on what type of archive is the firmware file. It can be:

zip
tar
7z
rar
gz
gzip

And many more other types. Hope you remember this. Look for a compatible custom recovery image like twrp and replace it with the recovery.img or alternatively the boot.img if you miss the recovery in the firmware. If there are checksums like the md5, sha256 or any other sums to verify the integrity of files, regenerate and replace them, then repack the firmware with the same compression type as it was and flash the phone using it and you shall have teamwin recovery as your default recovery or boot.
Use the recovery to load third party OS and if you get the OS booting use it to unlock bootloader for futher fastboot actions or you can even use the new OS if you're convenient with it
Note: Ensure the recovery image is specifically made for your device model. If you have any trouble finding the appropriate recovery for your specific phone model, I can make you a download link for it after you give me exact specifications of your phone.
Hope it helps you

So I have been following closely how it's flashing software works. I saw the Flash Tool writing loading the userdata.img on a progress window. Does that mean other partitions don't come in the firmware as imaged files?

No, the others partitions are actually flash with the tool. As I comment (on the upper post) the tool has a file .OPS I don't know if I can change the boot.img on it or not.

If you extracted and got the boot image. You can make a copy of your firmware and replace the boot img with a twrp img instead. Remember when navigating the system using winrar, it can open the ops file and tell you what archive it is. And replacing any file by drag and drop updates the archive in the same compression type. So this will make it easy to replace and repack (updating). And then I'm sure after changing that file the message digest sum is altered and this means you will regenerate any md5 or sha256 sum of the ops file usually a text file to make the flash tool not to ignore file

That's when I'm assuming any flash tool must check verification of the flash files by their checksums so as not to flash a corrupt file

I tried with winrar but it doesn't recognise the format file .OPS
Is there any advanced tool in winrar that I don't know the existence?

I don't know any other advanced tool in it. It was supposed to automatically recognize the file if it was an archive which it now seems it's not

I think it's the proprietary format from OnePlus. I found this: https://github.com/bkerler/oppo_decrypt
maybe it'll help.

Shall have to try that

It didn't work...

I shall alert you if I find an extraction algorithm


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How to install core GMS packages on Huawei 7 Plus?
I have a Chinese phone and I don't know what to do with that. I have Huawei 7 Plus (Android 7, EMUI 5.1.1 B223).
How to install core GMS packages on it?

Doesn't it come with the apps by default or there's a specific app you would like to have on phone

There's no legal way to do this. Google only offers Google Play Services for phones that are approved by the Open Handset Alliance. Manufacturers pay money and the phone model has to pass a conformance test suite to be approved.
Some manufacturers cheap out by not paying the fee or passing the conformance test, and then mislead customers by selling the phone as an "Android phone" even though it doesn't have access to most of Android's software ecosystem.
In March this year, Google added an anti-piracy feature to Google Play Services. Even if you obtain it and illegally install it on an uncertified phone, it will block you when you try to add a Google account.

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


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How determine if Java object is null or not in Tasker?
I want a Tasker task that reads SMS from a particular person and extracts some information out of the latest message.
For example, I get a lot of messages from my bank due to the transactions I make. At the touch of a task, I want to know my latest bank balance. Normally, I would get the latest SMS from my bank and find out the balance from it. I want Tasker to do this.
I am aware that Tasker can read messages when they arrive. But we have to make a profile that does it. This is not my use-case. It's more on-demand.
Here is the task I tried to create to that effect:
Flash Roam (10)
    A1: Java Function [ Return:cr Class Or Object:CONTEXT Function:getContentResolver
{ContentResolver} () Param: Param: Param: Param: Param: Param: Param: ]
    A2: If [ cr !Set ]
    A3: Flash [ Text:Ok Long:Off ]
    A4: End If

I am unable to ascertain if cr is null or not.
What is the correct way to check it? Or is this even possible in Tasker?

There are two ways you can do null checking of Java objects.

The first way, direct from the userguide, is checking of the object Equals null:

If
A Java object can be directly referenced in a condition. Null-value objects are replaced with text representation null.
Examples:
If, arr[0][0] eq 45
If, arr[0].length > 3
If, lightlevel Equals null

The problem with this is that the string "null" will also match the condition. In your case, that's not a concern, but my second method provides a way that can distinguish between the two for other cases.

The second way takes advantage of Tasker's built-in error checking. If you have an object and need to check whether or not it's null:

Use a Java Function action. For "Object or Class", use the object in question, then for "Function" select "toString {String} ()"*. Lastly, make sure "Continue Task After Error" is checked. You don't need a return value here.
Follow the Function with an If action, which tests if the variable %err is set (or isn't set).
If %err is set, the object is null. Otherwise, it's not null.

%err will not be set if the object is the string "null", because "null".toString() is perfectly valid code.
* If your only option in the Function list is "assign {...} ()", then you're working with a primitive type - a number, boolean, or character. Those can't be null, so checking is unnecessary.

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


text:
External keyboard for Galaxy tablet 2 7.0
I'm trying to use an external keyboard with my Galaxy tablet 2 7.0.
My tablet isn't detecting the keyboard, but it works when I plug it into my computer. This keyboard uses a normal USB male to connect, but my tablet uses samsung 30-pin to male. So, I bought a female-to-female adapter. I'm assuming this is the equivalent of a USB OTG adapter but still no joy.
How do I get this keyboard to work?

A female-to-female USB adaptor can't fill the role of a USB-on-the-go cable. A device that uses USB-OTG has the USB hardware and the drivers needed to act as a USB host or a USB peripheral. The wiring of the USB-OTG cable tells the device which role to act in. (The host side has two pins wired together, but the peripheral side doesn't.)
Most USB peripherals don't have the required hardware or software to act as a USB host. The Samsung Galaxy Tablet 2 7.0 does, but it needs a correctly wired adaptor so that it knows it's supposed to be acting as a host.
Samsung makes and sells a 30-pin to USB host adaptor, so you might be able to find one at your local electronics shop.

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


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How to enable USB OTG in Walton Primo F4?
I have a Walton Primo F4, running Android 4.2.2. How can I enable USB OTG in my device?

Head into settings, about device, then tap the build number 7 times. From there, head back and you will see a menu called developer options. Tap it,  and tap enable USB debugging. Accept the warning,  and you are done.

What does USB debugging have anything to do with USB OTG?

@Firelord Honestly?  No idea.  A small glitch to my device involves me randomly needing USB debugging for OTG,  so.....

@Firelord Besides, it seems to have worked...

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


text:
Do I have to buy or need a 3D-enabled phone to use Google Cardboard?
Google cardboard comes with 3D glasses. Does that mean that we will be able to watch 3D videos using a smartphone like the Moto-G (1st edition) which is not 3D enabled?

Doubt it,  unless they have been keeping secrets....

I own OnePlus One, and OnePlus created its own cardboard to be used with OnePlus One which isn't a 3D-enabled phone. That's it!

I'm able to use the YouTube VR 3D app to view 3D YouTube videos on my Samsung Galaxy 4S.  I can also view Cardboard specific content with the Cardboard app on this same phone; as I understand it, Cardboard is designed to work with ordinary smart phones.

Google Cardboard is a Virtual Reality product which uses two images, one in each of your eye. Cardboard uses magnifying lenses in order to create a fake 3D image, your phone only splits as a display to both eyes. You need high resolution for VR, because the horizontal display is cut in half for each eye. I wouldn't use a Moto 1 at 720p, go for a Moto G3 with 1440p if you want decent results. Any Samsung models past the 4th generation (S4, Note 3) work good too.

To be fully Google Cardboard compliant, your phone needs to have gyroscope. If the gyroscope is not present, Google Play will report the phone as not compatible. If it is for watching side-by-side format 3d videos, we have a tiny ad-free utility app called iPlay SBS Player which does not need gyroscope.

No, not required. Instead you need applications made for Google Cardboard. It is a simple and an innovative idea from google. I have not tried it but had read and understood it in detail.
You can find many applications from the below link. Also this works by splitting the screen of your normal phone, and presenting different views to each eye for creating 3D view.
Apps
Google cardboard


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Would Android 4.3 mount exFAT formatted external SD card automatically without requiring additional software?
Would Android 4.3 mount exFAT formatted external SD card automatically without additional software?

Do you not have the device or the SD card in reach? If you have, then why not experiment on your own? You would surely get the answer.

I think in the past this was manufacturer-specific, because exFAT is patent encumbered. I'm not sure if Google has (or has the ability to get) a generic license agreement that would apply to the OS at large, or if it's been somehow reverse engineered.

Your question is about Android 4.3 supporting exFAT formatted SD cards, and not about listing supported filesystems by 4.3 which would be broad thing to answer. That's why I edited the title to reflect the body only.

exFAT support is kernel based.
open terminal and run
cat /proc/filesystems

if in the subsequent listing you see
.       exfat

your kernel supports exfat file system unless the build is skunky.
if the in the listing you see
nodev     exfat

then you don't have exfat support.
In one instance i've seen, even though the kernel may have exfat support, the rom may not, or it's "broken" in some way. As to the formatting of the card, i believe it needs to be formatted exfat and unaligned.
Else, it should mount like any other external card with one exception, the entry in your fstab for the external card. If the entry for <type>
is vfat, then you may have a problem. The entry should be auto or, if you know how to unpack and edit, then repack and flash your boot.img, you can specify exfat.


text:
Download progress notification and Google Play Store showing different progress percentage
As the title says, I've noticed that the download progress in the notification bar and the progress in the Play Store shows different progresses. Screenshot:

My question is why does this happen? Is this a bug?
Also, when the download progress in the notification bar reaches 100%, the progress in the Play Store jumps to 100% and the app I'm updating gets updated.

While it probably wouldn't be an issue in using Play Store or the device, I  find it pretty annoying.

@Firelord and OP(Cool guy) : occasionally,  possibly due to the lag of displaying a progress bar (a little test I done proved this)  the play store one can be slower than the notification bar. That being said,  it always catches up at 100%, for obvious reasons.

I guess the progress bar would be the same on both but since your swipe down the notification the progress bar in the actuall app is not correctly reflected. See what happens if you click the notification while the app is downloading and check if the both the percentage values are same?

@Lucky No change even after clicking the notification. Seems like the accepted answer is correct (See this)

I'm quite sure that this is based on the fact that updates aren't loaded fully but in parts. The notification bar then shows the progress only for what is really being downloaded, the Play Store itself shows the progress for the entire app.

Discussion about this on quora

You could try wiping the data of the play store. It happened to me on my Galaxy S2, which ran CM. Wiping the data of the app did the trick for my phone, could work for your device.


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Use of the -i argument in fastboot command-line?
I was planning to flash a custom recovery in my Yu Yuphoria. So I searched for it on Google, and found a download link along with a written tutorial. I'm acquainted with the fastboot commands, so I avoided reading it, but somehow came across something different. Instead of commands like:
fastboot oem unlock
fastboot reboot

I came across commands like:
fastboot -i 0x2A96 reboot

What's the use of the -i 0x2A96? Is it specific for different devices? Why is it necessary to add this to the command?

-i <vendor id> is used to specify a custom USB vendor id
according to the fastboot --help page
usage: fastboot [ <option> ] <command>

commands:
  update <filename>                        reflash device from update.zip
  flashall                                 flash boot, system, vendor and if found,
                                           recovery
  flash <partition> [ <filename> ]         write a file to a flash partition
  erase <partition>                        erase a flash partition
  format[:[<fs type>][:[<size>]] <partition> format a flash partition.
                                           Can override the fs type and/or
                                           size the bootloader reports.
  getvar <variable>                        display a bootloader variable
  boot <kernel> [ <ramdisk> [ <second> ] ] download and boot kernel
  flash:raw boot <kernel> [ <ramdisk> [ <second> ] ] create bootimage and
                                           flash it
  devices                                  list all connected devices
  continue                                 continue with autoboot
  reboot                                   reboot device normally
  reboot-bootloader                        reboot device into bootloader
  help                                     show this help message

options:
  -w                                       erase userdata and cache (and format
                                           if supported by partition type)
  -u                                       do not first erase partition before
                                           formatting
  -s <specific device>                     specify device serial number
                                           or path to device port
  -l                                       with "devices", lists device paths
  -p <product>                             specify product name
  -c <cmdline>                             override kernel commandline
  -i <vendor id>                           specify a custom USB vendor id
  -b <base_addr>                           specify a custom kernel base address.
                                           default: 0x10000000
  -n <page size>                           specify the nand page size.
                                           default: 2048
  -S <size>[K|M|G]                         automatically sparse files greater
                                           than size.  0 to disable

As for usage, I've never had to use it, but this suggests that it's for getting fastboot to work with unrecognized devices:

As you've already know, you can force fastboot to work with a device, even if the vendor ID is unknown by fastboot binary, by -i parameter: -i <vendor id> specify a custom USB vendor id

I used fastboot commands without the -i option and had no issue :D

@Shayan typically you can run fastboot without args.  This is for the case where the device is not automatically recognized

I just had the case that indeed I HAD to specify my Android device ID.
My intention was to unlock the bootloader of my Android device.
But Ubuntu just did not find the device when in "Download mode" - as displayed on the device screen.
When using like:
fastboot devices

Had no output, just prompt.
As soon as I used just
fastboot -i 0x2e04 devices

it listed the device.
For all my predecessor Androids on the same Ubuntu host optin "-i" wasn't necessary.
2e04 resp. 0x2e04 is the ID for Nokia. In my case Nokia 6.1 or 6 (2018).
Could be found with "lsusb" or "dmesg" like:
saeufer@eckkneipe:~$ lsusb
Bus 002 Device 002: ID 17ef:7214 Lenovo
Bus 002 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0003 Linux Foundation 3.0 root hub
Bus 001 Device 014: ID 2e04:c026

Also mind "fastboot" might need sudo/root permission on default Ubuntu settings.
EDIT/Update
Reason was I had an older Ubuntu (32Bit) and package-manager did not update ADB tools (including also fastboot) to more resent version. I later used a newer Ubuntu (virtual machine) and ADB tolls were a bit more current - no need to use "-i" option any longer. So if you struggle consider update ADB. Newer 64Bit versions can also be downloaded at Google (I just miss the link). 32Bit ADB tools are deprecated by Google.

fastboot only needs root if you set up the USB devices to be only accessible by the root user. If your devices.list gives your user permission to access the devices, you can use fastboot as yourself.

Dan I updated to - fastboot might need root... (which is true in my default setting)


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How to send binary SMS?
Is there any standard way to send a custom binary SMS supported by Android OS (4.2.2) or through free but third-party support? I mean - could I somewhere enter, for example:
0x23 0xAB 0x12 0x56 0xFF

and send it as a binary SMS, not a text SMS? I am developing an app which receives binary messages and I would like to test it.
I could write my own app, of course, but I would prefer using some existing and reliable way.

Hi dear Vojta, Did you had any success with SMS Server? I can send text messages successfully, but for binary messages I receive nothing! Does they need any special header or footer in binary mode? For example I couldn't send 30303030 in binary mode instead of 0000 in text mode. Any suggestion? And moreover, which port shall I use?

@Abraham Hi, yes, SMS Server worked perfectly as far as I remember, even for binary messages. You have to write a special app for receiving them, because the standard Android SMS client receives text messages only. The port is up to you; it must be the same port your Android app listens to.

Thank you dear Vojta. Android SMS client receives text messages only. So, the configuration messages (I think they called CP Messages) that can carry GPRS settings, MMS setting and so on, are some type of text messages? (Because I didn't installed any special application on my handset to listen a specific port, but it's capable of receiving these kind of messages).

Anyway, do you have any idea, how I can generate these CP Messages? Am I need to OTA keys for them or they are just like ordinary messages but with a specific format only?

@Abraham Sorry, I have no experience with CP messages. By "Android client" I meant the default Android SMS app, which cannot process binary messages (at least as far as I know).

I don't know if this works, but there's an app called SMS Server with the following description:

Send binary sms messages on specifics ports. Indicated to test J2ME
  sms applications that receive messages on specifics ports. This
  application does not send free SMS.

Intriguing question.
I'm not sure cell carriers support binary SMS. Have you considered encoding your data as base64 string and sending it?
There will be length limits on the message. I heard that you can include UTF text in the metadata of a png image sent via MMS, several megabytes worth.
Another idea I had is to encode data within the MMS image, each pixel = 256^3 bits or 16,777,216 combinations, a.k.a. 3 bytes per pixel.


text:
How to find a paid version of an app?
I want to buy Clash of Clans pro version and install it on my device. I found that this game has pro/premium version available. I went to Play Store to install it. I searched this game's pro version with queries  "clash of clans pro" and "clash of clans premium", but I only found the free version.
So, how to find out the paid version of an app whose free version is available? Example: ES File Explorer has both free and paid versions available. Any easy way to find paid version?

Regarding CoC, where did you find that there's a pro/premium version? Possibly it's a scam/hack, and is off-topic on here.

@AndrewT. : Uh, did I just hastily answered an off-topic question? I didn't think of it as off-topic.

@Firelord I'm clarifying about finding off-site resource if it's really about the pro/premium version, which seems like a hacked version of the game.

I've added the tag [tag:google-play-store]. This may appear to be changing the original intent. Feel free to remove it if it does change the intent.

I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because you can't find an app that doesn't exist, and I don't think that apps that do have paid versions are typically hard to find -- and there's no single answer for that anyways.

Not every developer creates and puts a premium version of an app separately into a market. A developer can have a single app but have mechanism to make the user unlock certain parts of the app by paying for it. This is called in-app billing.
Google in the document In-app Billing noted:

In-app Billing is a Google Play service that lets you sell digital content from inside your applications. You can use the service to sell a wide range of content, including downloadable content such as media files or photos, virtual content such as game levels or potions, premium services and features, and more. You can use In-app Billing to sell products as

Standard in-app products (one-time billing), or
Subscriptions (recurring, automated billing)

(Emphasis mine)
The app Clash Of Clans supports in-app billing.
(Click image to enlarge)

If a developer (any individual or a company) did put a premium version of an app, then the easiest way to find it is to open the developer's page and go through all of their apps currently published in that market. It makes sense that both the apps would have the same developer behind it or at least the same public name (pen name) of them.
In your particular case, the app Clash Of Clans is published by Supercell and their page doesn't show any premium version of that app.
It is easy to search the developer's page by using Play Store from a web browser. Simply click the developer's name and there you go. Same cannot be said for Play Store app.
Edit:
In Play Store app, use this query:
pub:PUBLISHER_NAME

PUBLISHER_NAME is case sensitive here and should be replaced by name of the publisher of app, so ELECTRONIC ARTS would work but not Electronic Arts or any combination of uppercase and lowercase letters in that name.
Example:
(Click image to enlarge)

Source for edit: Linking to a Product List

sorry,but i dont find coc pro on supercell devloper page.any other way?

It seems that you didn't understand my answer. Let me give you a brief: Clash Of Clans doesn't have a premium version. It supports in-app billing.

but when i visit clash of clans page i seeing this massage "offerse in app purchase".

Is there something you don't understand in my answer? I don't think my answer is illegible. The point is: you cannot purchase the game if it supports in-app billing but only the items it offers. To purchase them, see https://support.google.com/googleplay/answer/1061913

@andieo you must understand different paid apps have different business models. Some apps give you in-game options to pay for things like upgrades.

So,i think clash of clans pro version not available on the market.but i purchase gems in app.it is called "in app billing".i am right?

@andieo : Yes, you're correct.


text:
kitkat 4.4.4 connecting usb devices to samsung tab e
I need to connect a USB printer and a Vivitar camera to a Galaxy Tab e. I currently have a USB OTG cable, and a USB-A --> Mini-B cable

For the printer, you'll need a USB-A --> B cable, along with:
Print Hand, Printer Share, or a similar app from the Play Store.
Make sure your printer is compatible with the app you choose before dropping the $.


text:
WiFi direct on 5Ghz band?
Can an Android device with a 5Ghz-capable Wi-Fi chip, such as the Nexus 5, use Wi-Fi direct on the 5Ghz band?
If so, how? Couldn't find anything of substance on the net.

Only did a quick research, but seems Wi-Fi direct is not supported on 5GHz. While probably unrelated, from Sony Bravia Smart TV manual: "Wi-Fi Direct compatible devices: 2.4GHz connection (5GHz not supported)." Otherwise, it might be possible by forcing the configuration of Wi-Fi direct to use 5GHz on Linux, but I can't promise anything on Android.

Post 45 May help you

@beeshyams That seems to relate only to certain channels.

You might or might not be able to depending on your device. I tested this on OnePlus 5 with Android 8.1 and 5GHz P2P GO works (channel = 48, i.e. freq = 5.240GHz). Only a few 5GHz channels however actually works though.
Basically you need to use a hidden (light greylist at the time of this post) API Landroid/net/wifi/p2p/WifiP2pManager;->setWifiP2pChannels(Landroid/net/wifi/p2p/WifiP2pManager$Channel;IILandroid/net/wifi/p2p/WifiP2pManager$ActionListener;)V. See here for example usage. You can also try out my app to test whether your phone supports it if you have root.
You might also need to remove an entry named p2p_no_go_freq in your p2p_supplicant_overlay.conf if there is one. It's located in /system/etc/wifi or /vendor/etc/wifi depending on your Android system version.


text:
Moto G external storage failing to show on Mac and other USB issues
Since upgrading my Moto G 2nd gen to OS 6.0 I am having issues with USB and file transfers when connected to 3 different Macs with different OSes which all worked OK before. Sorry this is a bit long...
When I plug it in, Android File Transfer (AFT) starts up automatically but I get an error window saying 'Can't access device storage'... I find the phone is in USB charging mode only. If I change it to MTP, AFT does then show the internal storage files, but will not show the contents of the SD card.
I have also tried PTP mode (which would be more useful) but iPhoto does not show any of the (new) photos,  which it used to before the upgrade.
Additionally sometimes the Mac appears to lock up - no keyboard or mouse control - I suspect the USB circuitry is getting locked up - even unplugging USB does not clear this. The only 'fix' is to hold down the power button to reboot.
I can see the SD card contents on the phone and can copy files on/off with OTG but this is a bit of a pain.
I've not read of anyone reporting exactly these issues.

Is SCP working? Also, is your device unlocked when connected to the usb port of your computer?

SCP? sorry not sure about that? Device does not get locked when connected or disconnected from the comp (thanks)

SCP is "secure copy" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secure_copy)

I do not believe SCP is invoked as the device is able to write to the SD card - where should I check?

No, SCP is an external app. I was asking if you are able to transfer files from your device to your computer using this method.

Seems I have SCP installed, just working out how to use it....

I showed this to a pal of mine who uses the same setup and he had the same issue. He discovered the symbolic link to the SD card was incorrect and of course not editable for non-rooted devices. He found a fix:-

Eject the SD card from Setup>Storage
Shut the phone down
Remove the SD card
Restart the phone
When running, put the SD card back in.

This seems to rebuild the symbolic link and now I can see its contents again via Android file transfer - hope this might help others.


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Not Enough Space?
I have had my phone for about 4 months now, and have been facing this problem recently. When I download an app, it says I don't have any space, when I check my storage, I have about 472 MB left out of 3 GB on my phone. It won't let me download a 40 MB app, why? I have tried deleting all the cache and also tried restarting my phone, but nothing works. I don't want to keep getting rid of apps for new ones, I can't seem to fix this problem. So, please tell me how to fix this.

I've just added the insufficient-storage tag to your question. Please check its tag-wiki for first aid. Especially take the different storage areas into consideration for the "why": there are 2 types of "internal storage", the "internal SD card" and the device internal memory (aka "phone storage", /data). It's the latter one causing this error message.

This is the typical bad behavior of android. I get the warning, if I have 600mb of 16gb left. You can try to move some big apps on your SD card, uninstall other apps. Or clean the cache in the settings > storage> clean cache.

First install Diskinfo app from Google Play, to see how much free space do you have on your data (userdata) partition.
Then:

first use Total Commander to detect which of your directories on the internal sdcard are occupying the most. Move them to the external sdcard. Total Commander can "Calculate occupied space" for each directory. Let me know if you need details how to do it.
uninstall some apps
you can clean the cache of some apps (I would first clean cache of browser apps and Facebook).
move some apps to sdcard.
use Link2SD app to move some apps to the external sdcard (if you create extsd partition on your sdcard, you can also move libraries & data to the sdcard, too).

If you need, I can further help you with one of these solutions to go through.

At times only a small part of a program is downloadable from the play store. After downloading the 40MB , the app will probably require to download another 400MB+. Best solution would be to download 'Cleaner Master' from the playstore. It tells you exactly how much you have remaining in your phone and provides excellent advice on where to clear some space. Hope this helps :D

Just for anyone who needs this, most Samsung devices have this secure folder stuff which takes about half of the phone's memory, you can disable it by searching "secure folder" in settings and the option to disable it should show somewhere in the screen.
And try moving some apps to SD card and don't forget to move it back to SD card again after it has been updated.
One thing i usually do before i found the secure folder stuff was this - I'd clear the data of an app that takes up a lot of space like snapchat (settings --> apps --> snapchat --> Clear data). It will log you out and free up some space. Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook takes up more space than any social app i've ever used.
Another trick is with whatsapp. Whatsapp wil automatically backup your chat to your phone by default in internal storage or phone storage  --> Whatsapp --> DataBases. This happens every 2AM. Try Clearing it everyday

This typically happens to Samsung devices. It is because the phone has a secured folder and some hidden folders that eat memory. These folders store user specific data and take backup of the settings and so they demand some space to stay empty all the time.
But the best part is you have an SD slot, you can always move some of the photos and applications to it and keep the memory free in mobile device.


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Cannot get to fastboot/bootloader menu on xiaomi mi5
I have forgotten pattern/passcode for my brand new Xiaomi Mi5. So, I need to do a factory reset to recover the access.
However, when I try to boot to the fastboot/bootloader menu (using power and volume keys, as instructed on other posts), it gets stuck at the screen showing the fastboot logo and a little white animal fixing the little android robot (which appears to be the fastboot logo). No menus are displayed for reset etc. It just doesn't go past this screen.
I've also tried installing the android SDK to try and run commands from PC command line, but -
a) I cannot find the commands
b) The device is not being recognised by the PC. But I'd rather just factory reset manually if possible, cause the SDK way looks complicated.

Fastboot != recovery.

Thanks for your comment, where exactly do I enter this 'command', if that's what it is?

!= means that it is different than

so fastboot is not recovery

You should be able to enter recovery mode using the key combo VOL_UP+POWER. The thing is, due to security concerns, the official recovery might not allow you to wipe from it. If that's indeed the case, you WILL have to flash an official ROM via fastboot.

Can't you just use your google account to recover the locked phone?
Anyway, if not, keep the device on, the type in cmd adb devices
If the device is not displayed you should, in effect, flash a ROM, in order to use it again, if the phone asks for permissions give them to it and do adb reboot recovery
Then you can proceed to wipe the data

Comments are not for extended discussion; this conversation has been moved to chat.


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Android App Cache Security
I have found that when an app is in use and correct information is provided to it from a user, the information doesn't allow a successful login. However, by clearing app cache, the login is successful without restart.
Hence, it looks like it's possible for the data to get into cache, and hence affect the working of application.
My initial thought is that this could be a possible attack vector.
I have searched on google and this site, but could not find much information on Security of App Caches on the Android OS.
I have found the following thus far:
https://www.owasp.org/index.php/OWASP_Mobile_Security_Project_-_Android
Questions:

How does the App Cache of Apps work on android?
What security features (if any) are present on Android, that would mitigate data from getting into the app cache from either local or remote sources? How do the security features work?

Which app did show this behavior? Also, since the cache is prone to being overwritten at any moment, I (as an attacker) would scarcely benefit from it, as I would need to dump the cache in the very moment you input some data. Better to fetch you a modified APK, or hijack your session to sniff your credentials in plaintext, instead.

@deathmasksalesman the app was PartyPoker. Version: 4.4.0.

@deathmasksalesman how could one dump the cache of an apk remotely?

The "cache" of an app is just a directory inside that app's data directory in /data/data, so there are no special security implications compared with the app's general data. The cache directory has the same permissions as the data directory enclosing it: no other apps can access it, and the user can't access it directly (via adb or a PC), unless the phone is rooted (or the app itself exposes access).
From an OS point of view, the only difference between an app's "data" and its "cache" is that there's an extra button to clear the cache, with the expectation that no user data will be lost that way. They're both treated the same way by the OS, and it's entirely up to the app what data to store in each.

Ok. Are there any wireless attacks that could mess with the cache of an android app / directory?

Only if the attack can somehow privilege-escalate to get root; then it can do whatever it likes. There are no end of malicious programs that trick the user into letting them root the phone.


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How to remove the icon, caused by a voicemail, from Status bar?
I have a Sprint Nexus 6 running Android 5.1.1.
The icon that I see in my Status bar when I receive a voicemail does not swipe away. It remains in my Status bar even after I listen to the message and delete it.
The only solution that I have found for this is to reboot the phone. Is there another way around this?

What happens when you force-stop the app which is causing that icon in status bar or go to Settings -> Apps -> All apps -> your app -> uncheck "Show notifications" -> check "Show Notifications"?

@Firelord I can't I don't have a voicemail app I just use Google Dialer v2.1 and I can't do the can't change those settings via the path you posted.

@Firelord I see the notification comes from "Phone" so I go into "Settings -> Apps -> All" and there are 3 "Phone" apps and one "Phone/Messaging Storage". I force-closed the middle one and the app went away, but now I'm confused as to why there are 3 apps in here of the same name. Do you know anything about that? Also thank you for helping me.

See why are there multiple versions of "Phone" installed under all apps on my android lollipop 5.1.1 phone? Order of reading: Read the comments on the question followed by the answers.

@KazRodgers, where you able to find a soultion? This VoiceMail drives me crazy too:)

Yeah do long press on the icon, go into settings and remove notifications once you close the menu and swipe up the notification should be gone. This works on nougat. I can't speak for 5.1.1 though. Try out firelords solution below for that. It worked back then

This is an app independent answer.
For cases where an icon seems to be stuck in the Status bar, choose any of the following approach:
Force-stop the app

Find the app causing that icon.
Usually, it is easy to know just by looking at the icon and matching it with app icons under Settings -> Apps -> All apps. For some exceptional cases, you can use apps like Notification Saver or Notification History or setup adb in PC and use the command:
adb shell dumpsys notification

Single out your notification and look for the package name of the app behind that icon. Read View app's full package name? to get the label for the app from the package name.
Assumption: The app causing the issue is "AppX".
Go to Settings -> Apps -> All apps -> AppX -> Force-stop.

That should remove the icon from the Status bar.
Uncheck Notifications

Find the app causing that icon.
Go to Settings -> Apps -> All apps -> AppX -> uncheck Show notifications -> check Show notifications.

Works well for user installed third-party apps.
There may be apps where  the option Force stop or/and Show notifications would be greyed out. For such apps, only the mighty root can help. Any app having root privileges should be able kill such apps, such as OS Monitor. For example, in Terminal Emulator you can kill an app using its package name and am:
su
am force-stop PACKAGE_NAME_OF_APP

Related readings:

"Show notifications" is greyed out for some apps. What's causing it and how do I change it?
I've rooted my phone.  Now what?  What do I gain from rooting?

Open 'Jio4GVoice' app > Open Settings(3 dots on the top of the Jio4GVoice app) > Select 'Settings' > Select 'Notofications' > Untick 'Show app status in the notification bar'.

authors: แตลี่ อนงค์ วันเที่ยง


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Space deleted but not reclaimed for re-use
I'm using Nexus 5. In the following image, you can see that I have  total space of 12.55GB.  Apps in the dark green bar on the left taking up more than 1/3 of that with 4.93GB.  The light gray "Available" which is nearly the same size is listed as 498MB -- that's much less.
If this were actually 498MB, that would be a tiny sliver, not nearly 1/3 of the storage space.
I've deleted a ton of pictures and apps from my device, basically bare-bones and otherwise not usable even to run the next OTA update. But no matter what I delete the space is never reclaimed on the device:
(Click image to enlarge)

Why is this happening and how can I fix it?
My current theories:

I had an earlier rooted Android but lost the root in the first OTA.  I was able to use SuperSU and whatnot then, so I know I was actually rooted.
On that update, I chose something listed as "Preserve root mode (experimental)" which did not work.  Since that root loss, when I go into my recovery which I believe was Clockworkmod at the time, I don't seem to have a recovery either -- it says "no command".

So maybe the space I cannot recover is controlled by the root user and I can't delete it as a normal user?
Is it possible to restore my ability to use my disk space without wiping my data?

The update from 4 to 5 disabled my access to clockwork mod, but did not remove Clockwork or prevent it from doing whatever automatic recovery process I had set.  So, that was building in the background until I deleted it.


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Opening WhatsApp Web on phones doesn't show QR code and redirects to the homepage instead
When I open https://web.whatsapp.com on Android phones, there's no QR code to be scanned nor it shows any messages, but instead, it automatically redirects to https://www.whatsapp.com.

How to make WhatsApp Web shows the QR code on Android phones?

https://web.whatsapp.com/ website is only for laptop or desktop users so that they can use WhatsApp on their laptop or desktop. If you visit this website from your smartphone, it will redirect you to their official website of WhatsApp.

To use WhatsApp Web on Android (which is very handy and widely used):
close all Chrome tabs, open a new incognito window, check the Desktop site version from the menu if not checked, open https://web.whatsapp.com/, et voila: the QR code.
The important thing is to open a new tab when you exit from incognito, Chrome deletes all of the cookies! And at the base, there is a problem with cookies.

I use Firefox Browser with User Agent Switcher extension when opening https://web.whatsapp.com/. Furthermore, I select "Request Desktop site" and it works.


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Switch Chrome interface between smartphone mode and tablet mode
I want to change the interface of Chrome on my Mediapad T2 7.0 Pro (PLE-701L). Now it looks like the smartphone version (picture at right side):

But I want to change the interface to tablet mode (picture at left).
As I know there is a special command for switching the interface.
Config:

Tablet: Mediapad T2 7.0 Pro (PLE-701L)
Resolution: 1200x1920
OS: Lolipop (5.1.1)
UI: EMUI 3.1
Chrome: 66.0.3359.158
Root: doesn't exist.

You will need to change the DPI of your phone to accomplish it. But, the change will affect the whole system not just Chrome and may not be retained after a restart due to your device not been rooted.
adb shell wm density 600 (When I tested, 600 was the value that enabled the change of interface in Chrome).
For those who have newer version of Android, the DPI can be changed by going to Settings -> System -> Developer Option -> Smallest width.
Chrome's interface will change from phone to tablet.

didnt work for me. Even on 700, still Phone-mode in Chrome :(

I can confirm that for Android 7 on my TAB S2, that changing: Settings -> Developer Options -> Minimum Width, to anything below 600 activates "phone" mode. Anything equal to or above 600 activates "tablet" mode. Setting sticks between reboots.

I started with minimum width 600, it did activate tablet mode for Google Chrome on my Google pixel 7. It made the font smaller than I liked So I started messing with the minimum width... As info, the default setting was 411... The closest I was able to get and still have tablet mode in Google Chrome is 476. Thank you guys so much!


text:
Recover access to Samsung Galaxy Tab A after forgetting the pattern lock
I have Samsung Galaxy Tab A and I put a pattern lock on it, but sometime later, I forgot the pattern.
I've looked it up and the only options to recover are to have the tablet off, but I can't turn the tablet off without the passcode.
How to recover access to it?

Push the down volume button and power button at the same time. It reset my tablet and I just reentered the pattern and it worked. I hope this helps.

There's a simple way out.
Assuming your tablet is connected to the Internet and you have Google account signed in, just enter pattern several times till the screen shows Forgot pattern. Click it then enter your Google account credentials to gain access to your tablet.

Drain the battery down if you can't shut it down. Then, volume up and power for a few seconds (until it shows its doing something) from there, you can wipe the device

Hold down the power button. Wait for the power off and restart to appear on the screen. You should see a restart in safe mode. Restart and if everything is ok do a regular restart
I didn't forget my pattern but it wouldn't work. Just blanked the screen if I put in the correct pattern. And said incorrect pattern if I tried an incorrect pattern. I also noticed it was not counting down the incorrect attempts.
I did the above combo just by trying combos. It worked.
Good Luck

Can't shut it off without entering the pin...


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Google Maps' location history is not accurate. Can High Accuracy option cause it?
My Samsung Galaxy S8's location services is set to "High Accuracy". When I look at the "History" in Google Maps, it doesn't show some stops I made from point A to B, but it claims that the car is moving. However, I also have a GPS tracking device which is always accurate.
Can enabling "High Accuracy" which mixes GPS and Wi-Fi hotspots indeed cause inaccuracy?

The Google Maps history is normal... at least since Android 7.0, the deep sleep function can cause this on occasion (my guess, but I have seen this too on a various devices, all 7.0 or newer). But what do you mean by Google Location is not "accurate"? Is it off by 10m, 100m, 100km?

Missing out places like that is nothing to do with location accuracy and everything to do with battery life. Every time the phone has to start up a process, get a location fix, and record that position in some database or send it to the cloud, it's running your battery down a teensy bit. This might be OK for an app like Strava where users run it deliberately, and are willing to spend some battery life on getting accurate results, but it's not OK for something that's always running in the background.
For this reason, your location history doesn't actually update very often, so it's very common for arrival or departure times to be inaccurate, or even for it to miss a short visit entirely.
Changing location mode won't affect this. One solution if it's really important to have a good GPS log is to use an app specifically for this purpose. It will run down your battery if you run it for a long period. Another option is to use a dedicated handheld GPS. As a purpose-specific device, it's optimized for just this task, and doesn't have to wake up your whole phone just to record a position.


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How to remove unwanted ads notifications from Chrome?
So I visited a torrent site (not sure if it's the cause 100% though) on my Samsung Galaxy S8 last night & since then have been getting the notifications ads from Chrome.

I downloaded & ran Malwarebytes, firewall & antivirus after the popup situation but all 3 apps say my phone is fine with nothing showing in the scan results.
How do I remove the notification ads in the Samsung Galaxy S8? Also, my Chrome browser freezes a lot now too.

clear the cache of Chrome browser, if it doesn't help both cache and data of Chrome and restart Chrome

@beeshyams How do I restart Chrome?

By swiping away from recents or restart phone

If that doesn't help see the malware tag added to question

@beeshyams Did what you said but the ads still show up once every hour at least. Why isn't MalwareBytes working to remove them?

It appears that you enabled notifications for the website tx8t.invictioner.club.
To turn these off, open Chrome > Site settings > Notifications. Tap tx8t.invictioner.club, tap the bell icon, and choose Block (if similar sites under the filter *.invictioner.club have notification access, block them too).
SOURCE: Turn off notification from websites in Chrome on Android - CNET


text:
Spell check for more than 1 languages in Android
I try to make the spell check work for more than one language on my Pixel 2 (Android 8.1) with Gboard. My question is not about auto-correction or word prediction.
The spell check is activated and the two languages (UK and German) are activated in Language preferences and Gboard preferences. Changing the language while typing via the space bar does not solve the problem.
So far, it is only working in Google Docs:

I read the answers on Stack Overflow - Adding a second dictionary to the spell-check in Android 4.3?, but they did not solve the problem.
I guess a solution for SwiftKey is even more difficult?

The fact that it's only working in google docs makes me think that this has nothing to do with the keyboard at all. Instead, I assume it has to do with the apps, which use the system language for their spellchecking.

This is a known bug in Gboard:
https://issuetracker.google.com/issues/72386511
I tested flesky and SwiftKey and they do at least a spell check for one language.
Even if I only chose one system language and only one dedicated spell check language Gboard underlines nothing. In general this is the same for every App. Only Google Docs seems to have its own spell check.


text:
"Restrict Background data" with Jelly Bean on tf300t ASUS tablet
On my tf300t ASUS tablet (with wifi only) I tried to set "Restrict Background Data" following
Settings->Data Usage->three boxes in the upper right corner,
but there is no such option. I read on some forums that this option is only available with limited mobile data, but the option to set a limit is not available under Settings->Data Usage->three boxes in the upper right corner.
There is, however, an option under
Settings ->Developer Options -> Background process limit,
but I'm not sure about it. On my Gingerbread phone, background processes were disabled, and whenever I wanted to download an app, I had to enable it. With the Backround Process limit, however, downloading is possible (therefore, I'm not sure if this is the equivalent to Gingerbread's setting). Furthermore, I noticed that, after setting Background Process limit, every once in a while I get a message that some Asus process has been terminated. My question is: how would one disable background processes (no connections to wifi while screen off, ...) in order to save the battery?

Maybe that option is not available in wifi only tablets. Usually you restrict data because you have limited data on your mobile plan, where wifi you (usually) don't have that limit.

You can check the background process limit box. Its the best way to limit your background processes and in a way save your battery. You can also use power saving mode if you have one....

On my HTC Wildfire (Buzz) running Android 4.0.4 I find the corresponding option in Settings→Data Usage, when I hit the "Menu" button. This brings up A sub-menu with 4 checkboxes: Data-Roaming, Background Data, Show WiFi, Linear Scale. Tapping the "Background data" option I am informed:

background data only can be limited if you defined an overall limit for mobile data

(well, I have not defined any limit there yet). So that should be where background data can be restricted.


text:
Samsung Note 1 - cut or copy in any app causes it to hang and crash
I hope someone can help rather than the normal suggestion of rebuild.
I have Samsung Note 1 with Android 4.0.4. This is the most up to date version available (UK - O2 network)
Cut or copy hangs the application. This is the same across all apps.
Any suggestions as its almost impossible to use without it as I use it as my main business tool.

I assume you've turned the thing off and back on. Have you tried a Force Stop on "Android system" or "Android keyboard"? Maybe "System UI"?

Have you tried a factory reset yet?

There is a clipboard-related Samsung firmware bug which is known at least since July 2012 and happens on multiple Samsung devices with Android 4.0.x (ICS). It is reported to be fixed in Jelly Bean updates, but they may not be available for all devices which have this problem. Other solutions discussed in the bug comments, such as removing everything from the /data/clipboard directory, require a rooted phone.
The bug is also not present in custom ROMs which are not based on Samsung TouchWiz (such as CyanogenMod).

The Samsung Note stores everything from the clipboard. I would imagine that months of old clipboard items may cause a problem eventually. You might try to double-tap a text field, select Clipboard and delete old clipboard entries from there.

Good idea. I would think it would scroll out (delete old cut and pastes). However worth a check. How do I "long press and select clipboard. Does not seem to be available on Icecream. Any manual way of checking out the clip board. Please?

@MindBody I made an error: in a text field you double tap (not long tap as my post says) to bring up the option for clipboard. Samsung phones specifically extend the clipboard functionality to include a history where you can select older items. I don't think this is available in non-Samsung phones out of the box.


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How to recover Samsung Galaxy Fit using software that works on Ubuntu?
I tried to install the new Jelly Bean on my Samsung Galaxy Fit, but it got stuck during installation with an error on /tmp/slideloadpackage.zip. Now, my original Android OS lost.
How can I recover my phone using software that works on Ubuntu (12.4)?
I am able to access "download mode". I need to transfer the update file (BENI_v1.0.ops) to the device.

You can do so using the right software and the correct steps. Sorry if this answer doesn't help you -- but it's as precise and detailed as your question. If you need more details, so do we: What exactly happened, where did you get stuck, can you still boot into recovery or at least download mode... Please include at least those basics.

Yes, I able to access downloading mode and boot mode.
I am looking for right ubuntu based software so I can transfer files(like BENI_v1.0.ops) to devices.
I have copied new android jally bean os in sdcard.
but when i am going to install it, it error: /tmp/slideloadpackage.zip

I am getting error: /tmp/slideloadpackage.zip may be due to root access permission, but how to resolve it. !!

Though that's at least some additional information (hint: you can edit your question to include more details -- I will do so now with those details you've just provided), it's still not enough. Where did you get that update from? Is it really compatible with your device? What instructions have you been following? Keep in mind that things obvious to you (as you did those steps) are most likely hidden to us, as we didn't sit next to you.


text:
Stop Android from displaying "Install blocked" prompt
I am continually getting prompts for installing apps, such as Clean Master and or 9 apps on my Android phone. I turned off the option  "Install apps from unknown sources" in  security settings but then a message would popup saying "Install blocked" every time, as shown in the screenshot below.
So, how to stop these annoying prompts?
(Click image to enlarge)

Looks like you've caught some malware that tries to install all kind of stuff (follow the link for details). A factory-reset will certainly clear that, but that would mean losing all your data along the way. You might wish to check our most frequented malware questions for alternatives.

create download_1 folder where download folder exists . actually malware / ad it tries to create folder download_1 ..if exists it stops ..worked for me ..also scan using malware bytes ..or disable (Force Stop and then disable )PackageInstaller in system apps

You're better off with Izzy's advise and find and weed out the app trying to install that Clean Master app. Anyhow, there you go with an another solution.
When you attempt to sideload an apk using UI or any app that attempts to install an apk and isn't granted the permission android.permission.INSTALL_PACKAGES, Package Installer app comes into action and its activity PackageInstallerActivity is launched. The setting for unknown sources (install_non_market_apps) under Settings Storage's database is checked and based on that, you're either shown that prompt (dialog) or the permissions and the install button.
Even if you manage to find a hack that disables that prompt from being shown, Package Installer would still be launched and the UI would look awkward since only app's label and white space would be visible to you, which would do naught but create confusion.
For rooted Android
The solution I ended up with is to get rid of the activity PackageInstallerActivity. You can use Elixir 2 to disable that activity.
Launch it → Application → tap  → System applications → Package Installer → find and disable the said activity
You can also use adb in this case
adb shell su -c pm disable com.android.packageinstaller/.PackageInstallerActivity # Disables the activity
adb shell su -c pm enable com.android.packageinstaller/.PackageInstallerActivity # Use it to enable the activity

Now whenever you or an app attempt to sideload an apk which requires launching the Package Installer app, you may either get a toast like in the following image or an app registered to open/explore an apk would be launched or be suggested by system.
(Click image to enlarge)

If the toast becomes noisy, hide it using EnhancedToast1 or UnToaster2. Since they are Xposed modules, you would need Xposed Framework appropriate3 for your Android version.
Note that disabling that activity wouldn't affect the ability of Play Store to install an app, neither would it affect adb install because the underlying package manager is intact.
You can use automation here too. Example, whenever your preferred file manager is active on screen, enable that activity so that you can continue to sideload an apk, should you decide to, and keep it disabled for any other on-screen active app.
For non-rooted Android
You (KitKat or Lollipop users) can hide/block the whole Package Installer app. You definitely need adb for that.
adb shell pm block com.android.packageinstaller # for KitKat
adb shell pm hide com.android.packageinstaller  # for Lollipop

The biggest inconvenience here is that you won't be able to uninstall an app using Settings app because it uses Package Installer's activity named UninstallerActivity and UninstallAppProgress. Attempt to removal of an app using Settings app would cause the latter to crash.
Every time you intend to remove an app using Settings app or sideload an apk using UI, you must unhide/unblock Package Installer app.
To unblock/unhide, do
adb shell pm unblock com.android.packageinstaller # for KitKat
adb shell pm unhide com.android.packageinstaller  # for Lollipop

Note that hiding/blocking that app wouldn't affect the ability of Play Store to install an app, neither would it affect adb install because the underlying package manager is intact.

1: XDA: EnhancedToast
2: XDA: UnToaster
3. Xposed Framework: Android 4.x, Android 5.x and 6.x


text:
Error: "Operation not permitted", when attempting to remove su binary placed by KingoRoot
I rooted my P8-Lite ALE-L21 (Android 5.0.1) with supersu.zip through TWRP recovery. After that I installed KingoRoot and KingoRoot replaced  su binary with some other su binary which is obsolete for my Android version and not working. So I modified supersu.zip and placed su binary into another directory in /data/local. Now my working su binary is in /data/local and it works fine with adb, but does not work with SuperSU and other applications which use root privilege.
To solve that issue, I tried to remove these old su binaries:/system/bin/su and /system/xbin/su, with the following commands unsuccessfully:
$ adb shell
shell@hwALE-H:/ $ /data/local/su
root@hwALE-H:/ # mount -o remount,rw /system
root@hwALE-H:/ # rm /system/xbin/su
rm: /system/xbin/su: Operation not permitted
1|root@hwALE-H:/ # rm -rf /system/xbin/su
rm: /system/xbin/su: Operation not permitted

What is this error: Operation not permitted?
How can I remove those su files?

Given this link about mount's output, it is at least confirmed that system partition is mounted in read-write mode, so we can exclude that from the list of possibilities that may be restricting rm from deletion. Plus, the error would be different too.
Since you're running the command with superuser privilege, different file owner or group owner of that su file shouldn't the cause here. It most likely would have something to do with file attributes.
To check file attributes we need lsattr tool. Android doesn't come with that tool, so you're left with no choice but to install busybox or toybox. Since your standard root is botched, you cannot install busybox binary using an app. It would fail. In that case, download the binary of busybox or toybox appropriate for your device, rename the binary to busybox or toybox, push it into /data/local/tmp/ and set executable permission on that file. Permission can be set using chmod. Do:
adb shell /data/local/su -c chmod 755 /data/local/tmp/<FILE>  # replace <FILE> with toybox or busybox

Test the binary using
adb shell /data/local/tmp/<FILE>   # replace <FILE> with toybox or busybox

If it works then execute
adb shell /data/local/tmp/<FILE> lsattr /system/xbin/su

Per the output in chat, the file attributes are
-----a-A----- /system/xbin/su

According to manual of chattr,

When a file with the 'A' attribute set is accessed, its atime record is not modified. This avoids a certain amount of disk I/O for laptop systems.
A file with the 'a' attribute set can only be open in append mode for writing. Only the superuser or a process possessing the CAP_LINUX_IMMUTABLE capability can set or clear this attribute.

atime → last access time.
A file with 'a' attribute cannot be rename, delete, or overwritten, but can only be append. So that's the reason rm was throwing the error operation not permitted. (I'm surprised KingoRoot didn't place i attribute.)
Anyhow, we must remove that attribute first. Do:
adb shell /data/local/su -c /data/local/tmp/<FILE> chattr -a /system/xbin/su

It may not give any output unless an error occurs. Now, check the file attributes again using lsattr:
adb shell /data/local/tmp/<FILE> lsattr /system/xbin/su

It should now be
-------A----- /system/xbin/su

That attribute has been removed and you're free to rename, delete and overwrite that file. To remove the file, simply do
adb shell /data/local/su -c rm -f /system/xbin/su

Follow the process for any other file, if it cannot be deleted by rm at once. If lsattr reports i as well, then remove it using -i in chattr.

Works like charm, Really thanks for helping me

Sure, no problem.

hi, I need to contact you, this is urgent @firelord

@OMiD I apologize as I cannot offer my immediate assistance to you. Please feel free to post a new question or bring the issue in [chat].


text:
What does CWM back up?
I made a backup using ClockworkMod Recovery v6.0.4.7d of my Samsung I9305 (it runs a rooted stock Android 4.4.4). I selected "Backup and restore" and then "Backup to /storage/sdcard1". The resulting image was of about 7GB.
Does this backup contain:

The firmware?
My modifications to the firmware such as root, Xposed Framework, installed Xposed modules, etc.?
My installed apps?
App data?
Other data I had stored on the internal SD card?

And finally, is compression utilized?

According to: https://wiki.cyanogenmod.org/w/ClockWorkMod_Instructions#Making_a_backup

ClockworkMod's backup/restore feature will generally only back up the
  /system, /data, /cache, /sd-ext, and /dalvik-cache areas. Other
  partitions such as /emmc, /sdcard, and /media won't be backed up.
In
  fact, the backed up system will typically be saved to the /sdcard/
  partition in the /clockworkmod/backup/ directory, which, depending on
  your device, may or may not be actually located on a physical
  removable SD card.

According to your question:

The firmware?

Definitely Yes.

My modifications to the firmware such as root, Xposed Framwork, installed Xposed modules, etc?

Definitely Yes.

My installed apps?

Definitely Yes.

App data?

Definitely Yes.

Other data I had stored on the internal SD card?

Definitely NO, /sdcard is not backed up, because of there would be a CWM backup. Read: http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s3/help/how-to-backup-internal-sdcard-t1999853
Hope it help

To add to other answer, your back up has ALL the information in your back up image as the phone has when you took back up

/system refers to your ROM
/data refers to your data created by apps both that came with phone and user installed apps (/data/data)
/data/cache (the cache) refers to app data stored for quick access
/data/dalvik-cache (the Dalvik cache) refers to storage where optimisation information of your apps is stored
/sd-ext refers to external SD card (all CWMs do not by default save this)

Other partitions mentioned are not backed up. Compression happens if you enable it (IMO, not worth the extra time it takes, given you can always store it in external SD (by choosing it) or pull it to your PC)

Thanks a bunch. Would upvote your answer but my reputation is too low.

There's also the /sdcard or the /flash partitions, which point to the internal memory of the device. My tablet and phone (Android 4.4.2) have an /sdcard mounted, which is the internal memory. My Old Android 2.1 tablet uses /flash instead. Also, for USB-OTG devices, /usb points to the USB external storage.


text:
Notify me only once or twice a day
Is there a way to bundle all my android notifications and let notifications arrive at a specific time of the day? For example, let's say I only want to check notifications at 10am and 6pm, everyday. All notifications after 10am until 6pm are put on halt, and at 6pm, I get a single prompt to view all the notifications from various apps.
My phone runs on Android 6, with MIUI 9 on top of it and I know for sure that this is not supported. Is there any android version or device in which such a feature is supported?

A very similar question: https://android.stackexchange.com/questions/137606/how-to-disable-notifications-per-app-and-time-frame


text:
link2sd. Most Apps were gone after restarting
I just rooted my phone and successfully link all movable apps to my external sd's 2nd partition (ext4) using link2sd.
I did a restart and everything's fine, same on the second restart...
but the third time most apps disappear, only system apps are there...
When I try to use messaging app to text someone, it'll crash. It will say: "Unfortunately, Messaging has stopped".
What should I do except from restoring my backup or doing factory data reset?


text:
How to stop music apps from changing lockscreen
I am not new to Android, but this is the first thing that has actually stumped me. I noticed my default music app (Xperia Z1ˢ BTW) and Spotify both change my lock screen to the album of whatever I'm listening to. Is there any way to turn this feature off easily? I know my way around android, but I don't know the coding language. This isn't really a problem, but a few album art covers are not exactly school appropriate.
update
I have checked the default music app settings, and there is no option to change for this issue either. I'm using Android 5.0.2, and the offensive album art is through Spotify. I also have checked my settings for this, there are no "music" options.

Did you check your lockscreen settings?

As an aside, there should be a setting in the concerned app for disabling this feature. You could also delete any offensive album art (they are those JPG files stored with your music), in which case a blank screen with music controls will be shown on the lock screen. BTW, what is your Android version?

I have posted an update in the question.

You can achieve this by blocking all notifications from the app. This will prevent Spotify from showing any notifications, including the album art on the lockscreen. The app will still work and play without issue.
Keep in mind this also prevents Spotify from showing the play controls on the lockscreen as well, so if you want to play/pause/next-track/previous-track, you will have to open your phone. I would suggest adding the Spotify widget to your home screen so you have quick access if you need to pause playback quickly.
Thankfully, you can still control the volume with the hardware volume buttons, even if the screen is off/locked, so if you quickly need to stop music you could at least turn the volume down quickly.
Below is quick tutorial. I'm running an older version of Android but you should still have the option to Block All notifications regardless. Your options will just look a little different from mine. Hopefully this works and is sufficient for your needs!

Confirmed to work on Android 8.1.0

There are 2 Xposed modules for this, I'm also a Spotify user and I hate when whatever OG rapper's explicit album art shows up on my lockscreen.
.
http://repo.xposed.info/module/com.chaimchaikin.lockscreenalbumartremover

Removes full screen Album Art (i.e. when playing music) from the lock screen for Android 5.x

.
http://repo.xposed.info/module/com.audio.privacy

Removes album art and title/artist information from lock screen audio
  controls (and any other RemoteController) On 5.0 and 5.1 only the
  album art hiding is effective as the controls are player specific. If
  you want to hide these too, set a password and configure your phone to
  hide notifications for your player.

.
I use the second one because I'm on Kitkat. Haven't had any issues.
You'll need a rooted phone to install Xposed framework, but it's definitely worth it. (GravityBox/XBlast Tools are the most common add-ons, which let you customize SystemUI -- status bar colors, clock, screen off animation, etc.)

This option isn't implemented in the spotify app yet. This has been posted on the Spotify community forum as a "New Idea" -  Option to disable album art on lock screen and is still in the same status.
The only way I could think you can turn the album art on lockscreen off is by completely turning off the notification for Spotify app(Settings -> Sound & notifications -> App notification -> Spotify -> Block). But this would hide all the notifications.

More up-to-date version of the Spotify "idea": https://community.spotify.com/t5/Live-Ideas/Android-Music-Disable-Album-Art-on-Lock-Screen-Option/idi-p/1411721

That is marked duplicate actually in the Spotify site already. Please check properly before posting any useful information. Thanks.

The "idea" you linked is inactive. I'm well aware that the one I linked is a duplicate but it's the one that's active.

Even if it is marked inactive it will still be considered by spotify. Inactive doesn't mean it's closed or rejected. The number of persons to vote that feature should be atleast 50/year to make that idea active again. So again as I said that a duplicate of the inactive idea.

There is a general way of blocking apps from changing your lock screen. Go to Settings -> Device -> Display -> Screen wakes to: and change it from "Lock Screen Notifications" to "Unlock".
Keep in mind that this will block ALL apps from changing your lock screen, not just music apps ...but it seems like only music apps use this feature anyway.
*This is for Android 6.0 but it is probably the same for Android 5.0. The exact path to this setting my be different depending on your OS.

if rooted + edxposed, you can use GravityBox:
lockscreen tweaks -> disable media art
tested on OnePlus 6T OOS 10.3.2 (Android Q)

Hello Snuupy. Does GravityBox [L] has this setting? OP has mentioned to be using Android 5.

I don't know but if you're on Lollipop in 2020 you might want to get a new phone :)

authors: Илья Лазаренков


text:
Strange fstab file
I have extracted and unpacked the recovery file of my android device.
The /ect/fstab file contains line that is strange for me.
I have uploaded the file at pastebin
The line that mounts the /mnt/external_sd, it's correct? the "mnt_flags and options" column is correct? The value "/dev/block/mmcblk0" is a valid value?
# Android fstab file.
#<src>                                       <mnt_point>         <type>        <mnt_flags and options>       <fs_mgr_flags>
/dev/block/mmcblk0p1                         /mnt/external_sd     vfat       /dev/block/mmcblk0        defaults

EDIT:
I have replaced the value "/dev/block/mmcblk0" to "defaults" and have fixed my problems with the recovery (I'm porting CWM for my device)
What means the value "/dev/block/mmcblk0"? What are the impications to change this value? I can't find documentation about the proper format of fstab for CWM.

looks plausible at first glance, but to know if it's right we'd need to know what phone you have

It's and android TV device. MXQ-4K.
I'm trying to port the CWM recovery. Boots but I can't mount a lot of partitions like /mnt/external_sd  and /mnt/internal_sd


text:
Why do apps paste from my clipboard as soon I open them (without manually pasting anything)?
I have a Google Pixel 5a running the latest version of Android 12 (I updated a couple of days after I bought it, so I didn't use Android 11 much if at all). I noticed that a lot of apps trigger the "app pasted from your clipboard" as soon as I open them. These are legitimate apps like Here Maps or Firefox Focus, installed directly from the Play Store.
Importantly, I am not doing anything to trigger this manually. No long press and hitting paste, nothing. I'm worried about this for security reasons, obviously, but I've checked my permissions and they all have minimal permissions. Here Maps, for example, only has location access and nothing else.
Why is this happening? Is there any way to debug this or see what's being pasted or why? Or to disable apps from checking the clipboard without my explicit permission?

The text Android displays is just a notice to you that the app accesses the clipboard and reads it's content. Before Android 12 there was simply no such notice so some apps checked clipboard regularly without knowledge of the user. For the question why I am not sure of the community is able to answer that.

@Robert Right, I know it's just the app checking the clipboard. I guess I'm simply worried that certain apps, which have no reason to be checking the clipboard at all, are actually checking it. Are they trying to steal passwords? Even legitimate apps like Firefox? Is there no way to disable that?

As Robert said, community cannot answer why an app behaves or does not behave in a certain way. You should ask the developer of the app.

I cannot answer the question as to why apps are doing this, it does seem like a major security issue to me. It looks like there might be better features in Android 13 for this. I have an app that I need to use but this bothered me that it pasted contents from my clipboard on open every time. For Android 12 (and I assume below that, but only tested on 12) there is an option if you run a few commands. First you will need to setup adb on your computer (there are many tutorials depending on your computer os), then on the phone enable developer options, and enable adb access. Then you can type adb shell and this will allow terminal access on the phone. You can then type the below to see all the apps that have clipboard access.
cmd appops query-op --user 0 READ_CLIPBOARD allow
From there you can type the below, replacing  with the full name from the list.
cmd appops set <packagename> READ_CLIPBOARD ignore
This will block the app from reading the clipboard and I no longer see the message at the bottom of the screen when I open the app. Hope this helps!