How to ping a local network host by hostname?

SHORT ANSWER:

You would be able to ping a local host by name only if your Wi-Fi router (or some other local host) is running a DHCP/DNS server which does know the name of the host you are trying to ping. This is a screenshot from my router:

Also make sure your Android device is sending DNS queries to local server and not on internet. Android loves Google so much, so you will often find queries going to 8.8.8.8 (may be when router is advertising the IPv6 DNS server) as it's in your case. 192.168.1.1 must be the first (and preferably only) DNS. Configure static IP in Wi-Fi settings or if you have root you can use Android kernel's built-in firewall netfilter to force a nameserver. Since DNS uses UDP port 53, do a Destination Network Address Translation (DNAT):

~# iptables -t nat -I OUTPUT -p udp --dport 53 -j DNAT --to 192.168.1.1:53

Non-root solution which works for both Wi-Fi and Mobile data is to use a VPN app like Virtual Hosts which intercepts DNS traffic and makes queries to configured upstream DNS server.
On Android Pie+, you need to set Private DNS off because by default DNS over TLS (DoT) sends encrypted DNS queries on port 853 which can't be interpreted by ordinary DNS servers.

For more details see How to configure DNS properly?

DETAILS:

WHAT IS DNS
Network hosts (anything connected to network including computers, phones, printers, routers etc.) identify each other with addresses (IPv4 most common these days). Hostname - which maps to an IP address - is relatively easy to remember for humans. When a host wants to access other host by name, hostname needs to be resolved first to the corresponding IP address. This name resolution was easy in early days particularly before internet when the networks were smaller. /etc/hosts file on each host used to contain the IP vs. hostname mapping of all hosts on a network, still valid today. When network grew in size, having thousands and then millions of hosts, it was no more possible to maintain hosts file of an ever-growing network, so Domain Name System was introduced.

In simple words DNS consists of servers - one or more hosts on a local or public network - which maintain a huge hosts database. So one can configure the DNS resolver on his/her host to contact a specific DNS server (which in turn may contact other servers recursively) when it needs to resolve a name. IP address of DNS server (nameserver) is usually provided by DHCP server or can be set manually. There are a number of popular public DNS like 1.1.1.1 (CloudFlare) and 8.8.8.8 (Google) etc. One can configure DNS resolver to use desired DNS e.g. from GUI settings or using /etc/resolv.conf file on Linux but Android doesn't offer a very straightforward way to achieve this. See How does Android OS do DNS name resolution? for details.

LOCAL DNS SERVER
So now if you want to ping a local host by name, you either need to add an entry to /etc/hosts file on your phone or there should be some DNS server on your local network. Actually there would be already one. Most of the routers offer the services of DHCP/DNS servers in addition to acting as gateways. Even when you create a hotspot on your phone (an it works as a simple router), it runs dnsmasq (up to Pie) as its DHCP/DNS server. But in order to resolve local hosts the DNS server should be a resolver, not just forwarder.

DYNAMIC DNS WITH DHCP
Next thing is how a local DNS server would know the hostnames of all hosts on network. This belongs to collaboration between DHCP client and server. DHCP communication occurs using different option codes. Code 12 is the one which lets client send its hostname to server (or may also request for a hostname) when asking for an IP address. Windows and Linux hosts are usually configured out of the box to send their hostnames to DHCP server (1) . Since Android 8 DHCPDISCOVER and DHCPREQUEST packets don't include hostname, so Android hosts can't be accessed by hostnames this way. See How do I change the name of my Android device?

DHCP server then forwards the assigned IP along with received/assigned hostname to DNS server so that to update its database (2, 3). A quote from a router's advanced configuration:

  Register DHCP leases in the DNS Resolver allows you to register DHCP static mappings. This, in turn, enables the resolving of host names that have been assigned IP addresses by the DHCP server.

Same is for dnsmasq:

  Machines which are configured by DHCP have their names automatically included in the DNS

An alternate solution could be to configure your DHCP server to assign static IP addresses and set hostname for each IP. See this answer for a little more details on this.

DNS ALTERNATIVES
DNS queries are unicast i.e. a host requests a DNS server for name resolution by calling the later explicitly by its IP address. However it's also possible to call hosts by name on a local network without using hosts file or a DNS server. This is done using multicast DNS (a zero-configuration protocol) in which each host on network acts as client as well as server. When a host sends mDNS query to all hosts on network at multicast address 224.0.0.251 where <hostname>.local is, the host with name hostname itself responds with its IP address, so the communication starts (4).
Android does have mDNS built-in but it works only if an app makes use of NSD APIs. For instance adbd force starts mdns service (5) so as to easily access an Android device (e.g. Raspberry Pi) from PC. See this answer for details.

There are also other name resolution solutions like NIS and LDAP/AD usually used on large private networks or NetBIOS used by Windows's file sharing. But Android's Bionic libc doesn't provide a phenomenon like NSS to prioritize NIS, LDAP or mDNS over DNS. Android's resolver only looks for hosts file before going for DNS (6). So you have to go for one of the two.


Importing photos finds all image files, not just camera pictures

Probable answer by guessing what you are doing: If all those unwanted pictures are also displayed in the galery, and you use some "media-importing-software" (as opposed to just copying files in explorer yourself):

This importing software is probably contacting your Android device's media server for "media of the type image", so it gets all images returned the media service knows about. No big help up to this, but: You can tell the media service to exclude directories from its library by placing an empty file named .nomedia there (the leading dot is essential in the file name!). As soon as the media scanner finds that file, the entire directory it resides in (including all subdirectories) is skipped. If there are any pictures, videos or sound files, they won't show up in the galery (but you still can access them via a file browser if you want), and the media service will not even know they exist. So the next time it is asked for "all media of type image", those files won't be mentioned.


Exchange ActiveSync device agent strings for Android OS version

According to the version numbers you've posted, they are the Android version numbers with zero padding. Therefore these can be directly mapped to "friendly" names, which can be found for example on Wikipedia under Android version history.

100.202   => 2.2   => Froyo
100.20303 => 2.3.3 => Gingerbread
100.20304 => 2.3.4 => Gingerbread
100.20305 => 2.3.5 => Gingerbread
100.20306 => 2.3.6 => Gingerbread
100.40003 => 4.0.3 => Ice Cream Sandwich
100.40004 => 4.0.4 => Ice Cream Sandwich

So the remaining should be:

100.105   => 1.5   => Cupcake
100.106   => 1.6   => Donut
100.2     => 2.0   => Eclair
100.20001 => 2.0.1 => Eclair
100.201   => 2.1   => Eclair
100.20201 => 2.2.1 => Froyo
100.20202 => 2.2.2 => Froyo
100.20203 => 2.2.3 => Froyo
100.203   => 2.3   => Gingerbread
100.20301 => 2.3.1 => Gingerbread
100.20302 => 2.3.2 => Gingerbread
100.20307 => 2.3.7 => Gingerbread
100.3     => 3.0   => Honeycomb
100.301   => 3.1   => Honeycomb
100.302   => 3.2   => Honeycomb
100.4     => 4.0   => Ice Cream Sandwich
100.40001 => 4.0.1 => Ice Cream Sandwich
100.40002 => 4.0.2 => Ice Cream Sandwich
100.401   => 4.1   => Jelly Bean
100.402   => 4.2   => Jelly Bean
100.403   => 4.3   => Jelly Bean
100.404   => 4.4   => Kit Kat


What is the largest HTC Desire card size?

The desire supports sdhc which is upto 32gb so it should work fine. I have a 16gb in my droid and there's no difference noticable from a smaller card (other than it having more capacity).

If you were to find a bigger card (I'm not sure they have any in micro) you'd need a phone that supports SDXC.


Did you backup your stock ROM prior doing the upgrade?  I had this happen to me where I backed up the current ROM to, what I thought was, the external SD card, but it was infact the built-in SD card.  The naming of endpoint exposed in CLockworkMod Recovery (CWM) led me to believe I was using the SD card.  I backups were not visible in the file explorer, needed to drop back into CWM to delete the bad backup and re-backup on the actual external SD card.


It should be possible to configure your router to permanently connect to the internet, or connect automatically on demand. I would recommend using these settings - after all, that's why broadband is called "always on". The router should also cache your password details.

If your router is the USB kind, then it's a bit more tricky, as these routers are actually not really routers at all, but ADSL/cable modems. They are just designed to connect a single computer to the internet. However, I suspect that is not the case as you talk about connecting with your browser.

Also, the fact that your wifi isn't connecting properly rings alarm bells. You need to make sure you've got the security set up properly, that you're using the correct passkey, and make sure that you don't need to press a button on the router when you want to allow other devices to connect.

Really a lot of this stuff is dependant on the make and model of router, and I think this I really more a question for your router manufacturer.


where is the location of google drive folder in android phone

It's in hidden partition “/data"which you cannot access without root permissions.
Here's that path
/data/data/com.google.android.apps.docs/files.


How to NANDroid a phone without ClockWorkMod?

First, some disambiguation is in order.

Amon_Ra is a developer who created one of the recovery consoles (named after himself.)  Just like ClockworkMod (which was created by a different developer named Koushik Dutta, a.k.a. Koush) Amon_Ra's Recovery performs various low-level tasks on Android devices.

Odin is a Windows application that can be used to flash firmware onto various Samsung Android handsets and tablets.

Heimdal is a cross-platform application (available for Windows, Linux and OS X) that uses the same protocol as Odin to interface with Samsung devices in "download" mode.

NANDroid is a script which runs in Android Recovery mode and dumps the image of the devices' partitions onto the external media such as SD Card.  It requires root and some other libraries to function properly.  For restoring, the recoveries use a different script which utilizes the fastboot binary to flash the image files created by NANDroid back onto their appropriate partitions.

With the above said, neither Odin or Heimdal can be used to take backups of devices; they are purely for flashing firmware onto them.  ClockworkMod or Amon_Ra Recoveries do include the NANDroid script.  However, due to the differences in partition layout, they need to be modified specifically for a given device they are ported to.  If you are knowledgeable enough, you can try to adopt the NANDroid script for use with Samsung Galaxy i551, and run it manually via ADB shell while the phone is in Recovery mode.  Again, you will need root privileges and other libraries compiled specifically for this device.


Long-press on the notification and you should get a little "app info" box.  Hit that, then hit "force stop".  If the app info box doesn't appear, go into Settings -> Application Manager -> All, find the Phone app, and force stop it.  That should send the notification packing.

If it comes back, the problem is T-Mobile sending out erroneous "You have voicemail" announcements and you'll have to talk to them about it.


Root Huawei Honor 9 Lite without screen access

In short - No, there isn't

Assuming you have previously unlocked bootloader (with unlock code from Huawei, which they don't provide anymore), there is still the encryption problem.

But your bootloader is locked, that means there is no hack into data partition.

In case you get TWRP booting from fastboot (which you don't), you could root /system and enable USB-debugging from TWRP, then remote control the device with scrcpy


Shortcut/Widget to set a reminder in Google Now

I don't think it's possible to add a shortcut to the "add reminder" card at the moment. I've had a look through the Activities as well and none of them appear to do what you want.

There is a "Set reminder" option in the menu within Google Now which may help? Click the three dots at the bottom right (you might need to scroll down) and you should see the "Set reminder" option.


Transfer files from recovery on a Nexus 10

Use ADB on a computer while your device is in recovery. To copy a file from the computer via usb, use this:

adb push /path/to/local/ROM.zip /sdcard/

This will copy the local file to the device in the specified location.  Directories can be created on the device via the shell:

adb shell

and using the usual shell commands to navigate around and create directories. This beginners guide may also help you.

You might also consider getting a USB OTG adapter. This way you'd be able to put the files you need on a USB drive, plug it into your N10, and flash the files you need. I do it this way on my N7 with TWRP all the time so that I can erase everything on it without worrying.


How can I save a file rather than open it?

I take it that you want to download some media (e.g. .mp3, .wav, .jpg) from a link, which for certain sites will try to open via browser.

Try long-pressing on the link for the menu, then select 'Save Link'. It will then save the content to /sdcard/download as  Bryan Denny♦ commented.


Where can I report vulnerabilities to Google?

Settings → Developer options → Bug report.  If that doesn't exist, try holding both volume buttons plus Power (USB Debugging might need to be enabled).


Android - how to keep launcher setting after reboot

Not really an answer – but problem does not occur after factory reset.


Check if the folders you store your photos in have a file called .nomedia in it. It is used to flag folders for media players (gallery, music, etc.) not to scan


Download Titanium Backup, it can backup and restore all your apps, whatsapp included. If you want you can also install a custom recovery like twrp to backup the entire device memory and firmware


Well I just did the OTA update so I'm not sure if it was there before, but now when viewing a group I can see the Edit Group button when displaying a group in the contacts.


Notifications Randomly Rearranging Themselve

I am assuming you are on Oreo since you mention notifications shifting in order

From Android 8.0 Oreo, thoroughly reviewed

Notifications are ordered on the concept of attention based sorting, as pictorially shown

To quote relevant sections

  The panel and notification ordering logic has been refined into a tiered top-to-bottom system. First, there's "Major Ongoing" notifications for things like currently playing music, phone calls, timers, Google Maps navigation, and other running, foreground services. Below that are "People-to-People" notifications, which are incoming text messages and missed calls from various apps. After that are "General" notifications for e-mails, reminders, calendar appointments, and all other apps.

  P2P notifications also get to be bigger in Oreo

  The new bottom section, which Google has given the perfectly fitting name of "By the Way," houses single-line, minimized-by-default notifications that don't create a status bar icon....The idea is that this section can house notifications that you don't need to deal with right now but might be useful information for you to have...

This explains why you noticed this shifting more when your GPS was on (presumably navigating and this takes high priority


Upload data from internal memory to Dropbox

I was able to resolve my problem. I found out that since I am restricted in accessing the app's personal storage I couldn't create the folder called "files" (from /data/data/appname/files), however, by directly writing the data to /data/data/appname/, I was able to access and upload the data.

Hope this helps someone.


Toast: MMS cannot be sent/received when mobile data is disabled -- shows up at every boot in Moto G XT1033 running Lollipop 5.0.2

This is normal.

What it's saying is "if you want to send/receive MMS, turn mobile/cellular data on".

I don't know how to disable this toast.


Can YouTube videos be downloaded with subtitles for offline viewing using the app?

With youtube-dl you can download all available subtitles from video. More details you can find here.


Why "adb remount" retruns "remount failed" on Android emulator?

Run Android Emulator with --writable-system commandline option in order to temporarily disable dm-verity. Then you can run adb remount.


How to take backup of all installed APKs from Phone to PC?

This is one of the things that are far easier with a rooted phone: you could just type in:

adb pull /data/app C:\Users\User\Desktop\Apps

and your apks would magically appear on your desktop. In your case this isn't possible because accessing the data partition is only allowed for root users. (And this is a good thing. Imagine what would happen if any app could read your email or text messages.)

There are several apps in the android market play store that can back up your apps.
My favorite is App Backup & Restore. It's a pretty simple app that even has an option to automatically back up all new apps.
Than you can just copy  the apps to your computer using your preferred method. I use Foldersync Lite to upload it to my DropBox.


Where does Inbox (by Gmail) store downloaded attachments?

You can check the following location to view the attachments:

(root)/data/data/com.google.android.apps.inbox/files/downloads

In this location you'll see a random code something like cd8ca9801230132321232sd312312ad312

Navigate to that folder and you would see few other folders named

attachments
avatars
smart_hero_mail_image
smart_mail_image

To view the attachments, navigate to "attachments" folder. Here you'll find lot of folders with random name. Sort the folders based on date, so you could file the most recent ones on top/bottom. The attachments will be stored on random folders, based on when (date) you opened the files via Inbox application.

Hope this helps.


How will a stolen android phone be localised if it was stolen with an disables wifi and localisation?

No, if location is off you will not locate it, now it's too late to do anything. You can go to police with IMEI you have it on phone box, but they don't bother with stolen phones.
And also I think the phone will not be earsed or crypted until it connect to internet, because there isn't way to trigger if phone doesn't connect to internet, this is logic but I'm not sure abot it.


How can I disable Chrome's incognito mode without rooting Android?

Disclaimer

This answer is pointless.  Once you've read the end of my answer, you will see why.

My answer

I personally have tried Qustodio's "Block Incognito Browsing" feature.  (I was using a phone running Android 4.1.2 and a recent version of Google Chrome.)

It didn't work at all.

Incognito browsing still worked perfectly, and was not blocked or even hindered whatsoever.  Even after an hour or more, Qustodio had no idea that I was using Chrome's incognito mode.

In a help center article, Qustodio LLC does admit:

  Please note that our incognito blocking feature is still experimental.

If you want to prevent incognito browsing, I see a few options:

You could lock down the device completely (though this is almost impossible to do correctly) and then to make sure that the only browser which the user can access is a browser which is incapable of incognito browsing.
Or you could use Norton Family's incognito detection.  If Norton Family alerts you that incognito has been used, perhaps you could confiscate the device from its user for a day or two.  (Norton Family claims to be able to email you after someone uses incognito mode on the device.  But I've never tested it, and I don't know whether or not it would work reliably.  You should test the feature on a few separate occasions before relying upon it.)
You could try Qustodio.  Even though their (experimental) incognito-blocking feature didn't work for me, maybe it will work for you.
If you are willing to root your phone, this may provide you with a new, additional option for disabling incognito mode.  Remember that you can unroot your phone afterwards.

Why this answer is pointless

Yet all this is pointless.  The user can use the browser's "Clear History" tool, or Android's application manager, to clear the browsing history — anytime he wants to.

Why would anyone want to disable incognito mode?


Does a phone's battery charge when in download mode?

It will charge, but you may not have "charge full" indication , so monitor charging so that you don't end up charging once it is full ( batteries do not charge once full but internal temperature goes up, which is  not good for battery life). Charging for 90 minutes should comfortably see you through flashing activities

To understand more about about charging,see BU 409-Charging Li Ion and other linked sources referred


Short Answer:

The maximum size for MMS is rather carrier-dependent, and usually is set to 300kB. For your second question, you might want to check Manually edit your max MMS size limit.

More details:

As for changing the limit, there are several consideration to be taken. Sure one can alter any limits, but usually there's a good reason for their presence. As Zuul pointed out (see comment below), you may then be able to successfully send a message of, say, 1MB size -- but that doesn't necessarily mean the recipient is able to receive (let alone read) it. Consider the 300kB limit as "smallest common denominator" between your phones capability, your carriers capability/configuration and the receivers capability.

So if you are pretty sure what you are doing (say, you know your phone can handle 500k at least, the recipients phone can do so as well, and both your carriers support it), increasing the limit might enable you to exchange MMS up to 500k with that recipient -- while failing to do so with others.

To me, this was never a question. If I need send some message, I use email. It's cheaper than MMS, and works between phones and PCs and Macs and... Exception: the recipient has an "older phone model" without email capabilities. But then chances are good it cannot handle MMS either -- so I have to stick to 160 chars with SMS telling him to lookup his mail :)


What exactly gets deleted when removing Google account

I've recently removed the Google account on phones with Android 4.4.2 and 4.1.1.

As far as I can judge nothing got deleted.


Try going to the notifications page in settings and check if everything is set to on.


'Storage space is running low' while I have plenty of space remaining

This is really a common question from android users.

The answer is that Android has two type of space: app space and file space. When you install an app, it will use the App space (that is usually around a couple of gbs). When you do a factory reset, you will remove all installed apps (from app space) but file space will not be touched.

A common solution to this problem, is going to Settings -> Apps and try to move as much app as possible to the external sd storage.

Good luck


Galaxy S Duos 2 - No OS installed currently

You could try installing a factory firmware through ODIN. You can find instructions here.

For the latest firmware, you can look on SamMobile.


You can download Es File Explorer App, click here to download it from Google Play Store. It makes easy to manage your files in Internal/External Storage, using this you can easily move your photos from Internal to External storage.

I hope this will help you.


In android development there are different logging levels. For example, there is Log.v for verbose, Log.e for level error, Log.w for level warn. All these are visible in logcat during development.

Then there is Log.wtf which is like Log.e except it has level Assert which may actually terminate the program depending on the system. Ideally, this should never happen in your app.

Sidenote: wtf stands for "what a terrible failure".

Android docs on this: http://developer.android.com/reference/android/util/Log.html


As you can access the NAS fine via its IP address, the NAS is reachable from your Android device – but the issue is, your Android device cannot resolve its name. That is because Android, by default, always uses Google's name servers, no matter what the DHCP server tells it. You will have to override those settings:

Open Settings (e.g. from your app drawer) and go to WiFi
Scroll the list of WiFi APs and long-press the entry of your own WiFi network
Chose to edit the entry
Tick the check-mark for "Advanced settings"

At this place, you will probably see it has "DHCP" selected. To edit the settings we need to change, you'll have to switch that to a "fixed address".

Switch from "DHCP" to "fixed"
Check the IP address and make sure it matches your network1
Make sure the "default gateway" matches the IP address of your router
Change the value of "DNS1" (usually 4.4.4.4) to your name server (usually the same as your router), but leave "DNS2" (usually 8.8.8.8) untouched.
Save the settings

Now try again: you should be able to access your NAS via its name, the same way you can do from your PC. As we left "DNS2" untouched, names your router cannot resolve will still be resolved via this. Once you have verified it works, you can try switching back to DHCP and check if it still keeps the changed name server, and thus leave the task of managing available IP addresses completely to your router (avoiding address collisions in the future). If switching back to DHCP brings your original issue back, you'll have to stick to "fixed IP".

1: you can find the original IP address in Settings › About phone in the status section


Will Samsung Pay still work on the Gear S3 if you root your Galaxy phone?

According to the official web page... LTE watches work after an initial pairing with your smartphone & Samsung Pay works after initial set up with your phone and then you only get 5 payments with the watch without a phone before it needs to reconnect and re pair with your phone.

source: http://www.samsung.com/us/explore/gear-s3/?cid=ppc-

1* 4G LTE standalone connectivity only available on Samsung Gear S3 frontier version, a companion for compatible Android smartphones, sold separately. Standalone connectivity requires initial pairing of Gear S3 frontier with compatible phone and separate qualifying wireless plan. Standalone functionality limited if paired phone is not powered on or connected to a wireless network. Network coverage not available everywhere. Consult carrier for details.

2* Make up to five payments on your Gear S3 without a Galaxy smartphone nearby after initial setup. Reload payment capability by connecting to a Galaxy smartphone via Bluetooth. Only compatible with select cards, carriers and Samsung devices; see the Samsung Pay Support page http://www.samsung.com/us/support/owners/app/samsung-pay#compatibility for compatibility information.


I haven't figured out what the problem was, but I did find a workaround for my particular use case: Install Alarm Clock Launcher (donate version).

That way, I can change the alarm clock settings without having to unlock my device twice.


No Google Play Store on Huawei devices, nor within Huawei HiApp store

Huawei devices (and other smartphone brands) whose default ROM originates from China, have a certain geo-restriction that prevents accessing most Google apps and services and most (if not all) don't ship with Google Playstore pre-installed.

Instead the OEM based store called HiApp, is the default app store, with which you can download more apps. Fortunately the process of installing Google Play store is not a big hassle at all if you reside outside China (otherwise you might need to install a VPN beforehand).

Using the HiApp store app, you can simply search and install Google Play store in a few taps as shown in the screenshot:

You coud also you the web version of app store here: http://appstore.huawei.com

alternatively you get still get the .apk file on apkmirror and side-load it normally.

PS I have a Huawei tablet with China ROM, that did not have Google playstore preinstalled and I simply used the above process, and it works well  alongside microG.


https://www.whatsapp.com/faq/en/iphone/20964587

Send an existing video

Tap Choose Existing Video to share a video from your Camera Roll or Photo Albums. You will have the option to preview and add a caption to your video before sending it. Existing videos are limited to 16 Megabytes, or about 90 seconds of video on most phones. If you choose an existing video that is larger than 16 Megabytes, you will have the option to trim the length of the video before sending it. Videos may be automatically compressed to ensure quick delivery.


How to change the default hotspot DHCP IP address range on Android?

NOTE: Root is required.

Default DHCP IP address range is hard-coded (1), you can't change it without rebuilding ROM with modified source code. Or use a little hack.

When you switch on tethering, what happens (at least):

hostapd -  the daemon which manages access points - is started.
Network interfaces are set up, IP address is added to Wi-Fi interface (hard-coded before Android Pie (2, 3), randomized afterwards (4)), and routing table is added (5) for local network.
dnsmasq - the DHCP/DNS server (up to Pie) - is started with hard-coded commandline arguments (6) (which can be set through /etc/dnsmasq.conf (7) otherwise).

So we can replace /system/bin/dnsmasq with a custom shell script, taking control of the process in between. Rename the original binary to something else:

~# mv /system/bin/dnsmasq /system/bin/dnsmasq.bin

Create script /system/bin/dnsmasq:

#!/system/bin/sh

OLD_SUBNET='192.168.43'
NEW_SUBNET='192.168.1'
WIFI_INTERFACE='wlan0'
LOCAL_TABLE=$(awk '$2=="local_network" {print $1}' /data/misc/net/rt_tables)

export PATH=/system/bin

# delete old route, add new
ip route del ${OLD_SUBNET}.0/24 dev ${WIFI_INTERFACE} table $LOCAL_TABLE
ip route add ${NEW_SUBNET}.0/24 dev ${WIFI_INTERFACE} table $LOCAL_TABLE

# set new IP address on Wi-Fi interface
ip address add ${NEW_SUBNET}.1/24 dev $WIFI_INTERFACE

# inject new subnet in hard-coded arguments received from netd
set -- $(printf '%s' "$*" | sed 's/'"${OLD_SUBNET}"'/'"${NEW_SUBNET}"'/g')
unset OLD_SUBNET NEW_SUBNET WIFI_INTERFACE LOCAL_TABLE

# execute original binary with new arguments
exec dnsmasq.bin $*

Confirm the name of your Wi-Fi interface (wlan0 usually). Check with ip link or ls /sys/class/net/ or iw:

WIFI_INTERFACE=$(iw dev | grep -E 'ssid |Interface ' | grep -B1 ssid | awk '$1=="Interface" {print $2}')

Also confirm your local_network (8, 9) routing table (97) is being used for hotspot. Android's routing is a mess, getting more complex with every new release. So I'm not sure if this has been persistent or not. Also before making any changes, check your routing policies and tables to figure out what you should put in your script:

~# RULES="$(ip rule | grep -vE 'unreachable|local')"
~# echo "$RULES"
~# for t in $(echo "$RULES" | awk '{print $NF}' | uniq); do ip r s table $t; done

SELinux rules also need to be defined if (all or some) not already defined and if status is enforcing. Use Magisk's suploicy or some other similar tool like sepolicy-inject:

# execute binaries from /system/bin
allow netd system_file dir { read open getattr search }
allow netd system_file file { read gettattr open execute execute_no_trans }

# execute /system/bin/sh
allow netd shell_exec file { read getattr open execute execute_no_trans }

# execute /system/bin/toolbox and its applets
allow netd toolbox_exec file { read gettattr open execute execute_no_trans }

# configure RPDB rules / routing tables
allow netd netd capability { sys_admin }

* Rules are not persistent across reboots, use some init.d script or replace /sepolicy in ramdisk

Set permissions on files:

~# chown 0.0 /system/bin/dnsmasq*; chmod 0755 /system/bin/dnsmasq*
~# chcon u:object_r:system_file:s0 /system/bin/dnsmasq
~# chcon u:object_r:dnsmasq_exec:s0 /system/bin/dnsmasq.bin

Enjoy!

Another options is to modify the value of config_tether_dhcp_range (10) in Android framework as explained in this answer, but I haven't tested this.

Or you can setup complete tethering from commandline, running your own processes. This answer includes the instructions, though the question is different.

RELATED:

How can I permanently assign a static IP address to Wi-Fi or USB tether clients?
How can I permanently change my hotspot tethering IP address?


"Boot loader mode" is also known as "fast boot mode" hence you need to use fastboot utility to access the device.  This utility is part of Android SDK, and can be found in the same location as adb - <SDK install location>\platform-tools\


I disagree with Liam's answer.

Its possible with root, you can just use the "root explorer" app on play store and navigate to /storage/extSdCard/ and on the top, click the "Mount R/O" button to mount the drive as read only.

Surely if you know the linux codes, you should be able to make it into a widget for it :p (one line or so)

(I think there's an app that makes widgets from busybox codes) - that could be your answer


Extract files from Android system image?

There are tools to extract that; however, not all files named system.img have the same format, so there's no guarantee that it could be done. Nevertheless, check out the tool I've been personally using: LINK. This is meant to extract system.new.dat files introduced in Android 5.x, but also includes system.img capability.


Why does "Google Services" take up increasing RAM and spawn new services over time?

The additional processes are created on demand (e.g. if you open the calendar). The increasing memory consumption comes from the fact the Java is not able to release (heap) memory back to the system. That's why google has implemented the ActivityManager, which from time to time kills the whole process only to restart it later with a lower memory footprint. That is exactly what the task killer app try to do, which is kind of redundant.

The ActivityManger does it's job pretty good on my Galaxy S with only 329 MB RAM available to the system. I never needed no task killer. But, this is only a workaround for resource constrained devices like smartphones. Current high-end android devices have up to 1GB of memory or more, so that the ActivityManger will become more and more out of work.


how to transfer contacts from a micro sim to a mini sim if the screen is broken and not getting comands?

First, be sure that the contacts from your old phone were actually stored on your SIM card. That's not the default for most Android phones, which store contacts in the device storage, or online in your Google account.

Get a SIM card adapter.
Take the card out of your old phone.
Put the card in the adapter.
Put the card+adapter into your new phone.
Transfer the contacts from the card onto the phone's memory. You can do this by editing the contacts one by one in the Contacts app, or you can find an app to import contacts from the SIM card in one operation.

Now the contacts are on your new phone, and you can replace the usual SIM card in that phone. If your new phone is SIM-locked to a different carrier, you can ask a friend and borrow their phone.

Alternativaly, you can buy a USB SIM card reader. That way, when you have the SIM card in the adapter, you can plug that into your PC and use the software that comes with the reader to save the contacts onto your PC. You can then import them into your new phone, or into your Google account.


What does APK stand for? What is the internal format?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APK_(file_format)

APK files are a variant of the JAR file format, which are built on the ZIP file format, with a .apk file extension.


Magic wand at the bottom of Google Now should do it (that is if you turned them off). If you just flicked the tile away they will be back so don't worry. If not just go into the magic wand menu and set the way you "get around" to another mode of transportation, then change it back to driving.


What is causing music playback to stop/pause unexpectedly?

Are you actually in the music app when it happens or is it when it is running in the background and you are doing something else?

If it's the latter, it is most likely because your phone is running out of memory and is killing the music player's service.

Go to Settings --> Applications --> Running Services and see if there are any running services that you can remove that would free up some memory.

To confirm if it is a memory problem, run a logger app right after the app gets killed and see if there are out of memory messages being logged or garbage collection going on.


Saying "Call Joe Bloggs" doesn't work on Huawei Y330

First, check the settings under Google Now. Open "Phone Search" and check if "Contacts" is ticked. If it is not, then tick it and it should work. If it is, head to Settings and Application Manager. Get to Google App and uninstall updates. Get back to the Play Store and reinstall all updates. It should work. If all else fails and he hasn't much data on the phone, back up and format it. Good luck and thank you for the bounty.


unlocking a cracked phone through the computer?

Once the adb files are on your pc, all you have to do is run the command to list adb devices. If no results show up, your device does not have usb debugging enabled. If you get a result, an 8 digit number.. that means you have it enabled and the phone is connected. There is a way to enable usb debugging via command line but then, that is even nore technical. Save yourself the headache and unlock your phone with a usb mouse.


Can I change the time interval between flashes of the notification led on the HTC incredible?

My answer here for a similar question points to the Missed Reminder app which appears to have an adjustable LED interval setting. Hope it helps.


How do I copy a link from Google search results to clipboard on Android Chrome?

You will need to look for a script or add on that takes care of it.

MakeUseOf has a link for a script to use with desktop firefox and chrome, its possible the script has an Android Chrome variant, or the script is fine for android and that its the engine that you need, to be specific to Android's Chrome browser.

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/copy-crapfree-urls-googles-search-results/

eg: look for scriptish or greasemonkey on android, also note since the script provided at MakeUseOf is outside the store, you will most likely have to do the manual-add they mention.

Good luck!


How do I reformat a fixed-state/pseudo-readonly SD card?

The solution was to send a support request to SanDisk, who told me to break the chip in half and then send it back to them since it is still under warranty.

http://kb.sandisk.com/app/ask/p/557,785,786,2158


According to this thread, this feature (Turn On MIUI Optimization)

  enables a plethora of MIUI based settings & optimizations as per the
  guidelines set by the MIUI developers.

It helps to load the app and the app data in parallel reducing load times and ensuring slicker user experience.

However, this setting can sometimes cause a variety of issues on non-MIUI based apps such as Google Apps & Apps from Google Playstore.Users have recommeneded disabling the feature if you rely on Google Playstore for apps & services or use Global Stable or Global Beta MIUI ROMs.

Here is a summary of observable changes when this feature is turned on or off:

With the MIUI Optimization Enabled, some users reported the following issues

  Cannot set third-party launcher like Nova, Apex or Google Now launcher.
  Wallpaper cannot be set using in-built options via custom launchers.
  Occasional lags, stutters or freezes while scrolling web-pages & long lists.
  Custom apps set as default restore to default MIUI apps on reboot. (Only on MIUI China ROMs)
  Cannot set accessibility services on reboot.
  Background apps cannot sync data.
  Music players stop playing after sometime.
  UI Animations are not synced properly.

After turning off MIUI optimization

  Above issues may get solved.
  Settings → Data Usage → Graph changes to AOSP style.
  Settings → Battery & Performance → Battery Use → Graph changes to AOSP style.
  Settings → Installed Apps → All → Documents → It will not be disabled after every reboot.
  Settings → Additional Settings → Buttons → Settings may get reset.
  No OTA update notifications. Enable it to receive the OTA updates.


Delta updates work with every file that have a valid delta file for it to update. The binary delta2exe applies that delta file on your old file and updates it to the newer one.

All you need is that delta file which you can get (and is applied directly) with the app CyanDelta  which works for all official releases of CyanogenMod and OmniROM.

If you have the old and the new file you can easily create your own delta file by following the tutorials on how to create delta files: eg. for xDelta


I can't restore my contacts from my Google account

Log in to your Google account, use the Play Store or Gmail app. Go to Settings > Accounts and Synch and then go to 'Contacts' and hit 'Synch now'. Your contacts will be under your GOOGLE account.  The button may be called something different or just be a 'synch' icon (2 curved arrorws in a circle) but should do the trick. If you have any issues let me know and I'll see what can be done!


Can an app with root permission access another app data?

Yes -  if you grant it root privileges, it can Theoretically access any other apps data ( granting / denying is by "Superuser or Su" which is used to manage applications which are allowed to gain root access). That is a con of rooting. But if the data is encrypted it shouldn't be able to unless it is a rogue app which is capable of doing so

Aside, if you want to bypass bank app restrictions, you can try measures suggested here Get around an app that won't work on rooted device. Also see other Root Hider apps thanks to Izzy for pointing that out

Detection of root is done on the app as explained here Root detection by server or app ( do read the comment of acejavelin in case you are planning to hide root)

Also see How do I protect my phone from malicious apps once it is rooted?


Change keyboard laylout for Android on VMWare

My host system has a german keyboard layout. When I changed the android keyboard layout to english the keyboard input of my guest system became german. I hope this helps someone.
Best regards


Can i run GTA Vice City on Android-x86 PC?

Depends. It may have some graphical issues considering drivers and probably a few other compatibility problems. The most major spike is the drivers here. If they work and are compatible with game, your game will run. Else it wont (I suspect graphical glitches). Honestly, its almost impossible to judge like that with just that much information provided so that leaves you with only ability to try it and see if it works.

But that aside, how do you plan on playing it? Even if you have/had touch screen I can barely imagine how its possible to play it.

Bottomline-> You can test it. Although I do have doubts in mind that you will be able to play it (not only due to hardware and drivers, but also due to control mechanics).


Is it possible to install "iproute2" on Android?

You can't install a whole package on Android as you do on Linux distributions. Android does have ip command built-in from a modified iproute2 package. Many ROMs come pre-bundled with ss binary too. If not, you can build static binary for your device's architecture from source, or try this one.


How can I find preinstalled apps via adb?

adb shell pm list packages com.whatsapp
adb shell cmd package list packages com.whatsapp   # works on Android Nougat and above

Any of those commands would show whether WhatsApp is installed or not.

To know where the APK is installed, run:

adb shell pm path com.whatsapp

To get all the paths where both user installed APK and inbuilt APK is, run:

adb shell dumpsys package com.whatsapp

Look under the category 'Packages:' and 'Hidden system packages:'. The line with ResourcePath shows the path of the APK.

If your intention is merely to ascertain the existence of that app, then using adb is an overkill. An app can easily achieve the required objective. See my answer here for that.


My Samsung Galaxy S front-facing camera doesn't work in camera app, Gtalk or Skype -- How can I use it?

The built-in Camera app on the Galaxy S can use the front facing camera. It's called "Self Shot Mode" and I've used it on mine once or twice, easiest way to grab a quick picture of you and a friend when there's no one else around to take the shot.

Open the camera app, press the square symbol at the top-left (the mode button), press Self-Shot, smile at the funny person on the screen!

Update November 2010: As an update, the official Samsung Froyo release has changed the way this works, there is a new icon in the top-left of the camera screen, that looks like a camera with rotating arrows around it, pressing this button swaps between the front and rear cameras. Picture of the new button to swap between cameras

See this table for a list of which Galaxy S models have the front facing camera (and other differences between the models in the range).


In order to solve it, I've uninstalled the app and installed it back again. That solved the problem


Can I recover app data after the phone has been Factory Reset?

NO. Unless you perform a backup before, you lose all app data during a Factory Reset.

Factory reset
A factory reset or master reset is a full restore of an electronic device to its factory settings. Such electronic devices include handheld computers such as PDAs and mobile phones. It entails deleting all information stored in the device. This is essentially the same as reformatting a hard drive. A factory reset may become necessary from time to time on a device which is no longer working. It should be used with caution, as it destroys all data stored in the unit. Many problems with a hand held electronic device such as freezing can be resolved by performing a factory reset or hard reset.

Wikipedia Article


There is no way to do it via the play store, but there are other ways to do it.

You can use something like AppMonster or Titanium Backup (if rooted) to display the list of apps ordered by last update date. This will show you the order in which all apps were last updated, as well as the date of the update. To me this a lot more useful than the recently updated list in the play store.

It's not a perfect solution, but it gets the job done :)


Is there a way to fine tune locale settings?

In principle, no need to download any extra application to your cell phone to solve this problem. Try going to the region or language configuration and change from English from the United States to English from Europe, at least it worked for me like this.


Is it safe to update my Samsung Galaxy Neo to KitKat?

These so called updates are meant to fix bugs, errors etc and improve performance of the devices. So if you update the phone you will experience better performance. There is nothing to worry. Also updates includes a lot of security fixes which keeps you away from online attacks.


How to join WhatsApp group from "chat?code=" link

The marketing link clicked in the original email "secretly" went through a http://chat.whatsapp.com/(randomlookingthing) link first, before landing on the whatsapp://... link.  That link is only understood by phones that have WhatsApp installed.  As noted, the Firefox on the computer doesn't understand the whatsapp:// protocol, and the browser on the phone doesn't either.  What is needed is the chat.whatsapp.com/... link.

The easy solution is to forward the original email to the phone.  That link, with the original marketing link, should bounce through the chat.whatsapp.com link, then, since WhatsApp is installed on the phone, it will understand how to add you to the group.

Alternatively, you can open Firefox's Developer > Network, then run the marketing link.  This will expose the chat.whatsapp.com link that's aligned with the group.  If that link is used in the phone's browser, since WhatsApp is installed on the phone, it will understand how to add you to the group.


What is the difference between my Android 7 x86 Live CD, and actual installation? (Stuck on Boot Logo after installing)

try installing the newest Ubuntu fresh. then install android x86 over the ext4 partition. select yes on grub and uefi and read write. do not format anything! ANDROID X86 formatter is broken.


My phone name is HTC desire 820g plus. whenever i receive a bluetooth file my phone says "magic.why?

It may be a "feature" that HTC builtin you might try looking around in the Bluetooth settings to see if there is any sort of thing about notification etc.


A virus on my phone which is not removing

Android devices are not susceptible to viruses as Windows machines are. To understand more see this Is an antivirus really needed for Android?. So, installing anti virus is not helping any, unless it scans for malware also
From the screenshot those icons showing factory reset with Android icons appear to be system packages. Though I have no idea why there should be multiple copies.

There is no need to be concerned on this account IMO


What could break an app download from the Play Store?

If you use a bundle format then your app is decomposed into several chunks for different languages and screen resolutions. Maybe one of these chunks cannot be downloaded or it is broken.


How to search Games with "Google Play Game Services integration" in play store?

A search of the Play Store for the phrase "Game Services" finds about 20 games at the moment.


Does Android have a built-in FTP client?

No, for better or worse, Android does not have an integrated FTP client.
As you've discovered, many third-party apps are available to fill this gap.  Some of them are dedicated FTP clients, while others are integrated into file manager apps.


Opening compressed file attachments from GMail using Total Commander

The Total Commander app can only work with saved ZIP files. This is defined in it's AndroidManifest.xml:

<intent-filter>
    <action android:name="android.intent.action.VIEW"/>
    <data android:mimeType="application/zip" android:scheme="file"/>
    <category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT"/>
</intent-filter>

As you can see there is only an entry for the file scheme, but no for the content scheme.

On Android users can not modify which app can handle what file format. Hence without a change by the author of Total Commands you can't do change this behavior on an unrooted device.


I suggest you to go to http://www.sammobile.com/firmwares/ and search for your device (i9300). There you can see all available firmware versions and download them. Please note that you need to register for an account to be able to see the download links (I don't know why).
If you don't like to register you may ask me to send you a specific link.


There are no PS2 emulators for Android yet, but there's a rumor on PCSX2 possibly being ported to Android sometime in the future. As of now, most devices don't have the desired computing power for PS2 emulation, but in the future they most likely will.


What does "Add to Queue" mean in "Play Music"?

Adding to queue means there should be something playing first before the queue is created. Try playing one song then add another music to the queue. Don't pick another song, just wait for the current song to finish. The next song will be the song you placed in the queue.


Is there any program to root my device without connecting it to PC?

Framaroot, if you are running 4.2.2 or lower. I don't know about anything for 4.3 and up which works reliably on most devices.


I did a reset from "backup and reset" menu in settings. And this got the Digital Clock back.


If you're on Globe, then I assume you're in the Philippines. (Same here)

Check this out: http://www.droidevelopers.com/f236/11721-%5Bdownload%5D-%5Bfirmware%5D-lg-optimus-gt540-original-roms.html. It has a ROM for Philippines, and instructions on how to install it.


How can I keep a folder backed up online with continuous syncing?

You can use DropSync. It can sync any specified folder and you can setup a schedule. Recent update of free version of the app removed limitation for the schedule.


Alarm as full charged battery notification

I developed an app called Battery Alarm (free, no ads).

The app notifies the user when the battery level reaches a certain threshold.

By setting the "Max Alarm" to 100%, the app will notify the user if the battery is fully charged.


Private setting in standard calendar from ICS

I have an SIII on ICS and when I add an event to the calendar I have a "Privacy" option which allows me to choose default, private, or public, however I sync my Calendar with Google Calendar and not with Exchange.


Change title of phone when connected to Windows PC

I think this name is a Windows setting. I think I was seeing an old title, from when the phone had accounts belonging to the other employee.

There was another device under Devices & Printers called Galaxy S4.

I right-clicked on the device with the old employee's name, clicked uninstall.

When I disconnect and reconnect my phone I no longer see a device with the old employee's name, but I do see "Galaxy S4".


Apparently the only way to get dialer is to reinstall the european firmware: http://www.thegalaxytabforum.com/index.php?/topic/151-gt-phone-dialer/

BTW, you are on the wrong site. SO is for specific programmers questions.


You'll need to use fastboot, which is provided in the CF-Auto-Root zip file, and also available standalone and packaged with lots of other software. It's part of the Android SDK Tools / Platform Tools, which can be installed on Windows, OSX, or Linux.

Note: If you've installed a custom ROM or kernel on top of rooting, you'll want to flash the necessary stock versions from the Nexus 5 stock image with fastboot or possibly through TWRP/ClockWorkMod Recovery.

In order to re-lock the bootloader:

Reboot your phone to Bootloader Mode
Connect the USB Cable to your computer.
Open a Command Prompt (Terminal on Linux or OSX)
Navigate to the platform-tools directory inside the unzipped CF-Auto-Root directory.
Use the following command, depending on your OS.

Linux: ./fastboot-linux oem lock
OSX: ./fastboot-mac oem lock
Windows: fastboot-windows.exe oem lock


Can I install more apps if I get more internal memory/storage?

The answer is...It depends.

As a rough equivalent between Android and Windows PCs:

RAM = RAM
Internal Storage = C: drive
External Storage = D: drive etc...

Allocation of RAM works differently in Android, vs. say Windows or Unix. The usual notion of more is better doesn't necessarily correlate here.

As I understand it, it's diminishing returns once you go beyond what's required. Android basically tries to keep the apps/files you use most cached in RAM. Swapping in and out as it finds necessary. Once you're beyond what's needed, then it seems like Android just starts caching random and useless things. That's why if you use a Task Manager on your phone there always seems to be "stuff" running that you might feel inclined to just kill and free ram...But there's a lot of debate that says you should leave it alone and let the Android OS handle it.

As for Internal Storage, I personally go for the biggest I can get in my budget. The Android OS files go there, all your settings, music, photos, and apps by default are installed here. Nowadays though internal storage offerings from manufacturers are larger and larger and options to put files on external storage are getting better and better.

Considering today's offerings and requirements, I'd personally suggest when buying a new phone to get:

At least 1GB, 2GB preferred (As new apps with more bells and whistles come out, their RAM footprint also increases. 2GB is still probably way more than most average people need, but it's quickly becoming the standard on newer phones anyway.)
Internal Storage at least 16gb (Again, as new apps come out with more bells and whistles and cameras with higher megapixels and recording High Definition movies, they all keep demanding more space. The more you have now, the less you'll have to deal with later if you have to start cleaning up or moving things off to external)
Get whatever the cheapest option offered with the phone (if it's offered) (Buying the external storage from a 3rd party is much less expensive and likely faster and more reliable).


Samsung phone charges poorly, periodically

The phone probably had malware introduced through a SIM-card.

The phone also stopped recognizing the SIM-card. No calls or data possible. It asked me to make a factory reset to "accept new network configuration". Charged poorly when not turned off.

I removed the SIM, made backups and factory reset (which needs wifi to find my Samsung account password to allow for reset).

I do not wish to point out any country in particular. This has happened before in other countries. The new SIM that only worked for two days, I had bought in a big shopping center that also gave away SIMs for free with other buys. Largest network in the country I believe.

I had also connected to a hotel wifi with advertisments etc.

I went to the only direct outlet for the network and asked. They told me the SIM had given me the problems. Hotel networks have ads but are safe.

Malware was running, draining power and also interfered with connection.

The network shop was super pro. They sold me a new SIM and "pocket wifi" and set up everything perfectly. All works fine now.

My conclusion:
Only buy SIM directly from the network shops (or if you trust their envelope seals). (A lot of hassle for me that often travel and roaming  becomes too expensive. But no other choice.)

Data I backed up but apps seem to have problems downloading through the Google/Samsung system. Hopefully it will improve when wifi is not crowded in the night. But I can restore apps manually. The app data seem to be there if I just download the app manually. The nice Adobe Lightrooom that I reinstalled suddenly has pay-options for what used to be free :(  ;)

What the malware programmer wishes to achieve is not clear.


I am running Paranoid Android 3.97 but Root Checker is showing me that my Nexus 4 is not rooted

You need to Flash the Kernel first and THEN root the device. In 4.3 google have implmended a securty feature which causes some rooting problems.


Once you have made sure that Gboard is your default keyboard for your device, please check if you're able to navigate to the app's preferences by going to your device's Settings > language & input > Gboard > Preferences. Here you can choose your keyboard preferences for Gboard.

If the app still crashes, I'd suggest you report this to the product developers directly by sending a feedback. To submit feedback, go to your device's Settings > Language and input > Virtual Keyboard > Select Gboard > Tap on the menu icon on the top right corner > Send Feedback.


QR codes have limitations on the amount of data that can be stored within them. If you are hitting these limitations then you may need to find workarounds such as making the QR code text a hyperlink to the long text you wish to display.

For more information on the limitations of QR codes, see the "Storage" section of the Wikipedia article and its citations.

This citation in particular will be very useful to you. Look at version 40 of the standard in that table, as it has the highest capacity and will give you the absolute length limits.


Multiple consecutive individual ADB backup/restore without prompt

You can try using adb shell input tap <x> <y> where x and y are the coordinates of where you would like to tap on the screen (can show coords in Developer Options).  I was able to use this code to restore an individual backup:

#$1 is backup file

adb restore ${1} &
sleep 2
adb shell input touchscreen tap <x> <y>
wait

I found it useful to sleep for a couple seconds after the restore command, but it may not be necessary.


How to sync hotmail contacts in both directions?

You didn't write explicitly that "sync contacts" is turned on, but I assume it is. If it is, well then you don't really have an alternative other than contacting Microsoft support, send them a mail and ask - if you don't get an answer by anyone else that is. I would be surprised if this function isn't implemented.


I do not know of any application that does what you request. Maybe "After Unlock" has a feature like that.

What I would do is make an Android application that is fired after unlocking the phone. The application would request a new password and if it is entered correctly do the factory reset and format the SD if needed.

Check this project for an example of how this could be done: myLock


Mounting and Unmounting of Memory Card just by touch?

NOTE: I am on Samsung Galaxy S2, Android 4.0.3

Elixir for Android has an "sd mount toggle" feature. It could unmount a removable card (/mnt/sdcard/external_sd), but not (/mnt/sdcard). I could not get it to mount by clicking the toggle again, but a restart [toggle also available] will mount the removable card. This is probably a bug with Elixir; and I will try to contact the developer.


First of all, make sure that you got the proper "recovery.img" for your device. Invalid header is not a good message.

Then,if you are able to communicate with an Android phone via adb, you can boot it into recovery mode by command "adb reboot recovery".

What I suggest for your situation is(I assume you don't need fastboot oem unlock):

Make sure your PC can see your device by the command: "adb
devices".
Boot into fastboot mode by the command: "adb reboot bootloader".
Flash recovery image to recovery partition: "fastboot flash recovery
recovery.img".
Exit fastboot mode: "fastboot reboot". (Some bootloaders may support fastboot boot recovery.img, I am writing for generic.)
After exiting fastboot mode, wait for Android to boot, then check if
your PC communicates with your device: "adb devices".
Reboot into recovery mode: "adb reboot recovery".
Now, the bootloader is expected to load CWM.

In case you need "fastboot oem unlock"(you will see a warning like "partition flashing is not allowed" at 3rd step above, because of verified boot feature.); under Settings->Development Settings, turn on OEM unlock. Then, run below commands:

adb reboot bootloader
fastboot oem unlock


Bluetooth Consistently Turning Itself Off

So if you go into BATTERY> : MENU> BATTERY OPTIMIZATION> and change "NOT OPTIMIZED" to "ALL APPS", you can then select each app or service you want "NOT OPTIMIZED". Try Bluetooth Midi and Bluetooth Sharing to set Not Optimized.


Recover contacts from Galaxy S2 when saved to an email

Only if your email was sync'ed before you deleted the account from your phone. Check from a PC in the email account you used has the message in "Sent" folder (or inbox if you sent to yourself).


How do I get a version of Android with linux kernel >= 3.18 on a Nexus 5?

Android devices generally don't receive major kernel upgrades, and Nexus devices certainly never did. Even when OS upgrades take place they only get minor-version kernel patches. The table in the other question is intended to represent what a new device would ship with given the first version of Android it supported, but even that is not a hard-and-fast rule.

For your specific example, Google has no code for either the N5 or N6 with a 3.18 kernel. Both remained on their original major versions (3.4.y and 3.10.y, respectively) for their entire lifetimes. You can check the "hammerhead" and "shamu" related tags in the kernel/msm repo to verify this. If you need a newer kernel on one of those devices you're likely going to have to port it yourself, unless you can find another 3rd party that already undertook this work.


You want a Faraday cage. There are do-it-yourself instructions for making one out of aluminum foil. You can also approximate one by trying prebuilt metal boxes like microwave ovens, metal filing cabinets, or refrigerators. Just put your device inside to see whether it blocks the GPS signal.


Purchase a mouse which supports multitouch gestures (using which you zoom in or out). e.g. PadKite

If you don't want to purchase anything, just go to Dolphin's Settings, tap Lab and turn ON pinch-Zoom Button. Then, you'll find +/- clickable buttons to zoom in or out.


How can I create a keyboard shortcut for a phrase?

This is actually a duplicate of the question to which I provided this answer.  I would delete my question here, but that other question didn't show up when I entered mine, so I figured someone else's time might not be wasted if they saw this answer and didn't need to ask their own.


Play store apps downloading forever after factory reset

Solution to the problem 2 : Just install an valid apk for your current  android versions, in my case, 4.0.3
Solution to the problem 1 : Download and install (using the browser) a new playstore apk for your android version from another trusted store/site, like 'apkmirror'.


I have all Phone apps. But I do not have the Phone Icon Anywhere

For All those who had the same problem, when an Icon goes missing on your tray or anywhere else, I found a solution.
1)- Download "ES File Manager" From Google Play and Install it.
2)- Go to Apps and select System Apps
3)- Either Find or search for the App you need
4)- Long Press on it and it will become selected
5)- From the Option button Select "Add to Desktop"

The App short cut appears again on the desktop. Now you simply drag it to wherever you want.


How to automatically remove placeholders for ads when blocking them in Chrome?

Browser based ad blocker extensions, such as uBlock Origin, work by preventing third party (cross site) requests from being made at first place. They explicitly have a list of which third parties loads ads, so they prevent the request, which in turn means no placeholder (the space occupied to show them on a page) for them in the rendered page output because those third party scripts were blocked from execution.

Non-browser based ad block solutions, such as Adaway and DNS66, focus on hosts based blocking, in which a request to an advertisement is redirected to localhost (user's own system), which in turn does not load anything. Since they don't prevent third party scripts from being executed, the scripts get to be loaded, with the placeholder the advertisement getting reserved in the rendered output of the page, but with no real ad being shown because of content request redirection to localhost.

So, if you want to save that real estate in the screen, you'd have to find a browser which has support for a popular browser based ad blocking extension.

Chrome does not support extensions as of now, so it is out of the equation. I don't know of Chromium based browsers with support for extensions, except Yandex browser which supports some Chrome extensions, and Brave browser who's native ad blocker at some sites achieve what you want. But, Firefox for Android is explicitly supported by the mighty uBlock Origin.

Here's how  a sample page from Vox website looks like, first with host based solution, than with uBlock Origin extension based solution, in Firefox.


How do I reliably access my music library in Google Play music from my car's bluetooth system

I ended up using Tasker to set the phone up such that the moment the phone is connected to the car's bluetooth, Google Play is launched and a song is played. Then, you'll be able to control the phone's music in Google Play through the car's head unit.


How can I stop facebook's notification about continuous contact uploads?

Go to the downward pointing arrow on desktop and then go to settings and then go to notifications you should be able to turn it off or tweak it there. Hope it helps you.


Droid Explorer Setup problem : cannot start service exception

Disclaimer: I am the developer of Droid Explorer.

This message is typically not about the SDK. This usually happens when you try to update your version of Droid Explorer. It happens because Droid Explorer first removes the Service and then creates the new service. Sometimes, Windows does not completely let go of the original service and the installer is unable to start the new service.

Usually a reboot will allow the new service to start successfully. If you got that far, you don't even need to reinstall after reboot, just a reboot will suffice.


Update April 23, 2018: I just found it possible to unlock the bootloader for certain HMD Nokia phones, according to this post on XDA forum.

Do it at your own risk.

So far HMD Nokia is not root-able, that's because HMD doesn't want to let the bootloader of Nokia 8 be unlockable. Without an unlocked bootloader, it's impossible to root a device (let alone system vulnerabilities - that's an ancient thing).

Don't attempt with any "This Root" or "That Root" tools or tutorials found online. They won't work for a rather new Android version (8.0). On the contrary they may harm the system in unknown ways.

Here is a post on XDA Forum concerning about rooting Nokia 8. The result is the same: not possible so far.

I'll update this answer if things change.


Operating System isn't working in Onda V812

Have you tried holding down the power button and the volume up button at the same time until you see the dead android and red triangle, if you then tap the volume up button once you should see a list of options including factory reset(complete data removal) which will reset the device to the basic state it was in when you bought it


Did you try flashing the ROM again? It's possible that bootloop problems occur if you've not flashed the ROM properly or if you flashed the wrong one.
Check of the ROM is really compatible with your phone. If it is then check if there's something wrong with the ROM file. Maybe it might not have been downloaded completely or is corrupt.
Also try flashing the superSU again.


Asus Transformer Infinity Pad (TF700KL) how to cold boot (enter Recovery Mode)

Once you get to the USB logo,  press the volume up and down together once and it should bring you into recovery.


HTC U Ultra: Turn off automatic software updates completely

To stop apps from updating over mobile data, go to your play store, open the menu on top right, -> settings -> auto update apps -> WiFi only


After a recent update of the Google Search app (version 3.5 and above), it became possible to enable "Ok Google" from any screen on Android 4.3 and above. Follow these steps:

Open Google Search on your phone
Go to Settings by either pressing the hardware Menu button if your device has it, or scrolling to the bottom of all cards and tapping three dots, and select "Settings."
Navigate to Voice -> "Ok Google" Detection, and enable the From Any screen option.
This will first train the device with your voice, and we are done

Note that this does not work on all Android devices. Some Motorola handsets like the Moto X have their own voice recognition software that supersedes Google's, and you will see a message This option is not supported on this device.

Also, currently only the English language is supported for this feature, although Google will probably enable it for more locales in the future.


I think you need to wrap $var in quotes.

if [ -d "$var" ]; then echo "exists"; fi


I have sold my phone on eBay. What should I do before I send it off?

As said already, factory reset for a start.

If you care about the privacy about what is on the SD card you should use a secure erase utility. Even after formatting the card you can still recover the data...

If you google for secure erase you'll find a bunch of freeware tools to do the job.


Is it necessary to have an unlocked bootloader to root a device?

No, it's not necessary to unlock bootloader for rooting. But flashing custom ROM or recovery is not possible without unlocking the bootloader because locked bootloader verify the ROM or recovery being flashed for company's official signature and custom ROM doesn't contain the official signature. So you cannot install a ROM or recovery of your choice on your device.
And also on some devices, you have to install a custom recovery for installing SU binary which is needed to get root access. In that case, you can't even get root access without unlocking the bootloader.

As per XDAForums,

  In case of nougat, You have to flash some custom recovery for your
  device and flash SuperSU using it.

And you have to flash custom recovery TWRP which will only be done by unlocking the bootloader as you can root without unlocking the bootloader (only in the case of direct root if available) but you can't flash recovery without unlocking the bootloader.

So the only option you have now is to unlock the bootloader. If you really want to root, make a full backup of the phone through software like MobileGo and proceed. Why hesitating?

You can read more here or here.


"Charging paused. Battery temperature too high" while connected to car charger

Your charger is fine. Only your phone is running hot due to heavy usage.

Your phone has a few components that dissipate heat if heavily used:

The processor when used heavily by an app (yours has 2 cores)
The graphics chip when your app uses OpenGL (also for screen composition)
The display when lit (depending on the brightness)
The battery itself (when charged or discharged heavily)
The modem also needs rather much power for 3G/4G/LTE data transfers

If this all above leads to a high battery temperature a safety mechanism kicks in for security reasons (LiIon battery technology needs this supervision, you may have heard of burning or exploding consumer tech)

Reasons: It's mostly a mix of all things above. Maybe it's also a bad programmed app (requires too much computation, keeps CPU awake, etc.).

What you can do:

lower screen brightness
underclock your CPU via SetCPU
Is Force GPU rendering in the developer settings enabled? If so, disable.
Try another app or file a bug report for waze (maybe)
Does the app work also when the screen is off (I'm not sure what it does, maybe it has speech output that doesn't require you to look at the screen)
maybe it's due to your model (I heard the i9100G generates more heat)
Switch to 2G only in the mobile networks settings:
Settings->Wireless&networks->more->Mobile networks->Use only 2G networks (saves battery)


Installing "xyz firmware" vs Rooting on "xyz firmware".

As it says:

"root on XYZ" means XYZ is a pre-condition for this rooting instructions (so yes, it must already be on the device)
"install XYZ" means, well, to install XYZ (whether it already was on the device or not).


Is there any way to recover data from 2nd SD partition?

To access second partition on SD card if it's not deleted, you may adopt multiple approaches listed below. For deleted partitons or deleted files, you may use tools like testdisk and extundelete which doesn't seem to be the case here.

LINUX / WINDOWS

As mentioned by @iBug, you can remove SD card from phone and insert in a PC with Linux OS like Ubuntu. You will be able to access both partitions there. File browsers like Nautilus and Dolphin by default show all formatted partitions in left panel on newly inserted media.
In order to directly mount a partition from Android device to Linux PC, you can expose it as a USB Mass Storage device. By default UMS is disabled on newer devices but can be enabled by a little hacking.

Windows by default only mounts first accessible partition on SD cards and other removable media. However, if you want to access second partition on Windows, it is possible. You need to make SD card a local hard disk drive using a hacked driver like Cfadisk usb driver. Follow this link for detailed guide.

ACCESS 2nd PARTITION FROM ANDROID

Some custom builds of TWRP auto-mount SD card second partition under something like /sd-ext etc. If not so, you can mount it yourself in Android recovery or ROM, as you seem to have already rooted device.

Reboot in TWRP recovery and use built-in terminal app there. Or if you want to do it from ROM, install terminal emulator app like Terminal Emulator if you don't have one already. Third option is to use adb, in ROM  or in recovery.
Find how kernel names block devices on your phone:

~# ls /dev/block/

You will find a number of devices there. On a typical Qualcomm device, mmcblk0 will be representing internal memory i.e. eMMC and mmcblk1 will be representing external SD card. Though there will be many other internal partitions and loop devices, we are concerned with three entries of external SD card:

mmcblk1    mmcblk1p1    mmcblk1p2

Here mmcblk1p2 is the second partition on SD card.
For confirmation:

~# fdisk /dev/block/mmcblk1p2

This will show details about SD card second partition including size.
Mount partition:

~# mkdir /sd_ext
~# mount -o ro /dev/block/mmcblk1p2 /sd_ext

First command will create a directory sd_ext under your root which you may access from any file explorer or command-line. ro option in second command will mount the partition read-only so that you may not harm any data accidentally. You may eliminate this.
If not successful, you may need to specify filesystem yourself what you used at the time of partitioning:

~# mount -t ext4 -o ro /dev/block/mmcblk1p2 /sd_ext

To know which filesystem a partition has:

~# blkid /dev/block/mmcblk1p2

There are many other tools that can be used for the purpose like parted, fsck and tune2fs etc. but these might not be necessarily available.
Mounted partition will be un-mounted automatically on reboot. You can do this manually:

~# umount /sd_ext

NOTE:

Be cautious not to touch second partition on internal memory which may belong to bootloader. Or you may brick your phone.
All commands used above need root access and binaries are included in TWRP. You may install busybox in ROM if any command not found.

RELATED:

How disk space is partitioned in an Android phone?
Why can't I see Android storage as a partition on PC?
How to mount Internal Storage as USB Mass Storage for recovering data?
How to fix USB Mass Storage not recognized by PC?
How to recover a deleted file from /data partition?
How to take full image backup of eMMC?


Change sim preference to call particular person in Dual sim

Found the answer by myself at last,

when you call that person there will be a change sim option in the top right hand screen, by choosing that we can change the sim preference and also the next time we call that person phone will ask for which sim to call.


In Android (Galaxy S), is there a way to automatically sync photos from camera to picasa?

I don't think you can sync automatically on the Galaxy S at present but I understand it is supported in Froyo which is apparently coming to the Galaxy S soon. In the meantime there is an app or two that does this.
PicPush has a free 30 day trial, then costs $4.99. QRCode for the Android Market below

(source: 350nice.com)
Docs Pics apparently does a load of things including syncing files to Picasa. It is free.

I've not used either app yet. I'll update if I get a chance to try them.


This guy works great for me on a Samsung 8.4" pro tab:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=jp.co.valsior.resizer

Has a long list of pre-set sizes and a select-your-own-size option, which like photoshop allows you to choose whether you want to maintain the aspect ratio or not.  You can choose file type and quality as well when saving.


application cannot be installed in the default install location?

I don't think this really has anything to do with any settings.

I encountered this yesterday. All I did was restart my phone and the app installed fine afterwards.


How can I test the NFC capability of my Android?

The only solution for you is to use another NFC enabled device. Turn on Android Beam and try to beam something to the other device and vice versa. You can find how to use android beam here.

You cannot use apps to check it as they are only capable of checking whether NFC is turned on or not. Also the service menu tests is of no use without a tag.

And by the way, NFC tags are not that expensive. Try eBay and nfctagstore.com


Is it possible to order 2 Ubers at the same time?

It does not seem possible to order 2 Ubers at the same time: requesting an Uber changes the application interface, making it impossible to request a second Uber.


How do I turn off speech search in Jelly Bean?

I do not know of a way to disable Google Now intercepting media button presess unless you have a rooted phone, as you did not specify that you did, I am going to assume you don't.

The easiest way to do this would be to disable the Google Voice search app.

Go to your Apps settings menu (System Settings --> Apps).

Slide to the left until you get to the 'All' list, scroll down until you find the app named 'Google Voice Search', click it and click the disable button - now reboot your device.

Edit:

As you have a rooted phone, you could install the Auto starts app from Google play, and use it to disable the 'Media Button Pressed' entry under Google Voice Search.

This is a paid app.

Google Voice Search will not act as if it is not installed onto your device.


It sounds like the directory that emulator resides in isn't in your PATH. The path isn't updated by the installation of the SDK.


Can i customize "select an action for text" menu?

Short answer
You yourself cannot. But you can ask the developer to implement that.
TL;DR
Explanation in easy terms: an app itself must "register for this service", which must be done in code.
The "Share picker" is not handled by apps directly – it's rather the system taking care for that. So it must be made known to the system if an app has something to contribute (or can accept from) here, and if so, for what actions/content types. For example, an URL (link) basically is "normal text" (consisting of characters), so it could be copy/pasted to other "text processing apps" (notepads, word processors, etc.); but it could also be passed to browsers or other link-sharing apps in a specific way. A video makes no sense to be copied into a text-based app, so when "sharing" it you wouldn't like a notepad-type app to be in the share menu (which otherwise would be really cluttered pretty soon).
So an app must "tell" the system what type of "sharing content" it can accept, and it must provide a "standardized interface" for this which the system (or rather its "share" component) then can address.
Additional hints
As your question was for a dictionary-type app: Several other apps support those directly. So e.g. ColorDict (my personal favorite currently) is an online/offline dictionary app directly supported by e.g. Moon+ Reader (my favorite app for reading eBooks – ePub, Mobi, PDF, and more supported). Looking up a term even makes ColorDict blending in seemlessly. So apart from the "standard sharing option" of the system, there are also other ways to achieve things. But again, it's up to the developer to implement this.


According to Verizon, if you cannot perform a factory reset from the Settings app, you can perform one by following these steps:

  Power the device off.

  Press and hold the Power key.
  Select Power off.
  Select OK.   Note: If the screen doesn't respond to input, press and hold the Power button for 10-15 seconds.

  Press and hold the Volume up key then press and hold the Power key.   Note: USB cable must be disconnected.
  When the Samsung logo appears, release the Volume up key and Power key.
  From the Android system recovery screen, press the Volume keys to select wipe data / factory reset then press the Power key.
  Press the Volume keys to select Yes -- delete all user data then press the Power key.
  Press the Volume keys to select reboot system now then press the Power key.
  Perform Initial Activation and Setup.

You can read more at the Verizon website (Tab 2 Troubleshooting: Hard Reset).


How To Remove "Insert Metropcs Sim Card. Emergency Calls Only" Msg On An Lg?

I think your phone is SIMLocked, meaning it works only with SIMCards from a certain service provider, MetroPCS in this specific case. Your phone doesn't detect any MetroPCS SIMCards inserted. Therefore, it limits your calls to emergency only. That notification doesn't originate from any app. It originates from the OS itself. Only way to make it go away is, assuming you wouldn't root your device, installing a proper SIMCard.


How can I use the name "A Google user" in my reviews at Google Play Store?

Edit: As of August 2016, it is no longer required to have a Google Plus Profile to leave a comment in Google Play Store.

However, it would still require great sacrifices to comment anonymously in Google Play Store as you have to remove your Google+ Profile and as long as you create one again, all your "previously anonymous" comments will immediately be linked back to your new G+ profile.

Previously,

  Due to Google's requirement since November 2012, a Google+ profile is required to leave comments under contents from Google Play Store, as is discussed here. All those comments from anonymous users without a Google+ Profile are left before Nov, 2012.


Forgot the Pattern lock pattern in lollipop. How di i reset it?

The first and easiest way is resetting that Tushar's answer is about. I'm afraid there is no physical offline way to bypass the lock.

Although, there are apps that have access to the lock screen and can actually bypass it.

For example Samsung's Knox and Google device manager (Read a howto here), but they have prerequisites. You need to sync your device with them. If you have, be happy. If you have not, I can think of other ways.


Lock screen but keep Google Maps turn-by-turn navigation and GPS active

Power saving mode will disable the gps when the screen is locked. Disable power saving mode in settings.


How can I test if my GPS has a hardware problem?

Try installing and messing with: GPS info and GPS test


What is a "partial application install" via adb?

It is my assumption that the -p: partial application install is for installing packages that are an update to an existing package but are not standalone in itself, sort of how Play Store updates an app using delta or smart updates.

-p requires a base package to exist and its name passed next to it, else it will throw the error

Error: java.lang.IllegalArgumentException: Missing inherit package name

If the APK you're passing is not an incremental update to an existing package (PACKAGE), you would end up with

Failed to finalize session
Failure [INSTALL_FAILED_INVALID_APK: Missing existing base package for PACKAGE]

I do not have any incremental update so I can't verify my own claim, neither I have any other solid evidence for the whole claim other than these two:

A comment in Issue:1134353002 thread

  Splits are not normal .apks, and they can only be installed via "adb install-multiple"

And, this code snippet mentioned under the source code of PackageInstallerSession.java

else {
  // Partial installs must be consistent with existing install
  final ApplicationInfo app = mPm.getApplicationInfo(mPackageName, 0, userId);
  if (app == null) {
      throw new PackageManagerException(INSTALL_FAILED_INVALID_APK, "Missing existing base package for " + mPackageName);
  }


The system ROM should remain on the device after a "soft" factory reset.

A normal factory reset only clears the user data, applications, and settings from the device. A factory reset does not remove the ROM or other data on the system partition.

Under most conditions the system ROM will usually only be removed when formatting the system partition in recovery mode or installing a new ROM.


How can I change the temperature unit in Lollipop's lock screen?

First, in order to enable/disable the widget altogether, go to

Settings > My Device > Lock Screen > Lock Screen Widgets > Clock or Personal Message

and select Clock. This activates the following menu:

Settings > My Device > Lock Screen > Additional Information

That enables you to select whether to display a weather and/or pedometer widget on the lock screen. On the weather widget description I read:

The data will be taken from the weather widget and shown while the device is connected to the network

So, obviously, the units etc come from the original weather widget that comes with lollipop. What I did to correct the units is:

Add the weather widget to a spot on the home screen. Enable your GPS, let it find our where you are and fetch weather data. Tap on that widget, and the first item on its settings is the units.

However: although the temperature on the lock screen weather widget appears in C, it says it's F (eg instead of 10C it reads 10F). Probably one of those loose ends that will be taken care of in the next updates.

Hope this helps. It took me ages to find out how it's done.


How to display my calendar on the lock screen?

Lockscreen Calendar is a fairly lightweight app to display your next few upcoming events on your lockscreen.

Unfortunately, it does not currently support recurring events.


Are Android updates signed with Google's private key or other signing techniques?

Are updates digitally signed before being shipped?

Yes, updates are cryptographically signed by the publisher. This is to ensure the integrity of the update, both from unintentional corruption during the transmission, and willful manipulation from an attacker.

  Who signs the updates? Is it Google?

That depends on who publishes updates for your phone. If you own a Nexus or Pixel phone, then the update is likely published and signed by Google.

Other manufacturers, such as Samsung for instance, modify Android before shipping it. This may include their own system applications, their own launchers, etc.. In such cases, the manufacturer is the publisher of the update and thus responsible for signing it.

  But isn't Google the one who develops Android?

It's not Google alone, it's the OHA - Google just happens to be their most prominent member. Furthermore, Android is Open Source, meaning that contributions come from many different companies and individuals, not just Google.


Can I use 'adb tcpip' on Gingerbread devices if I root them?

Yes, you can, but not through the same steps as on Android 4.0+ devices.

Once your phone is rooted, run the following commands to change ADB to TCP mode and restart the adb daemon (note that you can pick the port number, I am sticking with the default of 5555):

$ su
# setprop service.adb.tcp.port 5555
# stop adbd
# start adbd

You can run the first three commands over adb shell, but will need to start adbd again from a terminal on the phone itself (I had strange problems when doing otherwise). You can now disconnect the USB cable if you want to, and you can connect to the phone over TCP/IP:

mycomputer$ adb connect 10.26.5.215
connected to 10.26.5.228:5555

(if you are using a non-default port you will need to specify it: adb connect 10.26.5.215:5556)

I have tested this on a Samsung Galaxy Ace (GT-S5830i) and a Galaxy S (GT-I9000), and installing APKs and running instrumentation tests are working.


There is no way to get Gingerbread to prompt the host to verify RSA key as that is found in newer versions of Android (Jellybean 4.1 and upwards).

The only true method of hardening ADB in the sense of prevention of communicating over the USB is to modify the kernel for that appropriate device and disable the USB functionality within it in such a way that when plugging in the USB cable, the kernel does not register it and ignores it as if nothing has happened.

Knock-on side effect - if your device starts boot-looping or mis-behaving, and you want to fix it, it will be trickier to get at it since USB functionality is disabled.

Since OP mentioned its HTC Desire Z, the kernel source should be available on CyanogenMod's repository.

TL;DR: Recompile your own kernel and remove the USB functionality.

Caveat Emptor I am not responsible for any damage if you go down this route in modifying your own kernel.


Android and Google contact sync: "Starred in Android"

"Starred in Android" is a special group. You don't add a person to the group through the groups interface, but by tapping the little star on the contact profile on your phone. That sorts them to the top of the "favorites" list.

There's no concept of a starred contact on the web app side, so I guess they decided to create this special group. (In fact, from what I recall, this group won't be created until you actually "star" a contact.)

So, don't scroll to the bottom of your contact to try to add them to the "Starred in Android" group. Scroll to the top and tap the star.


This works. No idea for the logic behind it. Any body knows why, please edit to explain or answer


How do I root Android Lollipop developer preview?

Right now the only officially supported devices for the developer preview are the Nexus 5 & Nexus 7 (2013).

Chainfire has issued updated SuperSU binaries that allow rooting, but the recently updated developer previews seem to have broken this, resulting in the SuperSU binaries not being recognised.

Fortunately, Chainfire has responded with a quick fix: flashing a custom android kernel.

Simply flash the modified kernel in fastboot then the SuperSU binaries zip and your device should be rooted.

EDIT: Some users have reported issues with the kernel Chainfire provided. Try flashing this one instead.


Phone won't turn on - Samsung Galaxy S II

Check out this solution: http://www.widefide.com/mobile/samsung-galaxy-sii-not-booting-heres-the-solution

It was written by me years ago and helped a few who had their S2 bricked.
Follow in order: First soft reset, then hard reset and if it doesn't reboot even afterwards, move on to the third (advanced) step.


How can voice search improve recognition

Try this Can I train Google Voice Actions to better recognize my voice?

Digging around Android forums and elsewhere, I found a good number of testimonies from speech-to-text enthusiasts who saw better results from simply speaking at a normal clip. Google representative Nadja Blagojevic offered much the same advice for the search giant's voice product in both Android and its Chrome browser: "Speak naturally and clearly, but don't strain to enunciate too much or speak slowly."

http://lifehacker.com/5825965/speak-faster-to-improve-voice-recognition-apps

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=630707


About accessing premium sms in Samsung j7pro

The app needs to request "Premium SMS" at least once before it will start showing up in Use premium text message service
So, first try to send a premium SMS using your messaging app and then the app will be available for you to make the permanent choice.


Why does my Samsung galaxy blaze randomly shut off and won't reboot until it is plugged into the wall?

open setting choose backup and reset. Once that is done turn the phone on It should be as good a s new. I took this off T-mobile help thanks Tmobile


Is there a PDF (or epub) reader that allows to take notes (or at least to copy text)?

RepliGo Reader ($5) allows you to copy text and to make annotations.

Also, if you convert them to epubs the Nook app allows you to make notes.  It may let you copy text on a non-DRM'd book but I don't have any of those so I'm not able to test it.  (Just note that while the Nook lets you read PDFs the Nook app currently doesnt.


This is interesting haven't tested this thoroughly but you can try this;

  Tasker now has WRITE_SECURE_SETTINGS permission to the Manifest.
  Hence it is now easier to control device Secure/Global settings
  without needing an additional plug-in such as AutoTools or SecureTask.

You can enable this new permission by issuing the following command via ADB (important):

adb shell pm grant net.dinglisch.android.taskerm android.permission.WRITE_SECURE_SETTINGS

Now the business end you, since you want to use the Java function proceed as follows:

We need to call,

cr = CONTEXT.getContentResolver();
Settings.Secure.putInt(context.getContentResolver(),
Settings.Secure.DEV_FORCE_SHOW_NAVBAR, 1);)

As usual create a task to this this, name it accordingly.

The following actions are found under Code → Java function

A1: Java Function [ Return:cr Class Or Object:CONTEXT Function:getContentResolver {ContentResolver} ()

A2: Java Function [  Class Or Object:Secure Function:putInt{boolean} (ContentResolver, String, int) Param(ContentResolver): cr Param(string):dev_force_show_navbar Param:(int):1

Save and execute task to test

However I would have preferred a simpler route with run shell (Tasker) or adb:

A1: Code Run shell [Command: settings put secure dev_force_show_navbar 1 Tick Use root]

or

adb shell settings put secure dev_force_show_navbar 1


How do I restore my app (K-9 Mail) settings from an adb backup?

OK, some googleing later I found Titanum Backup and that it supports restoring selectively from adb backups. I copied the backup to my SD-Card and then restored using Titanum Backup and and just worked. (However I'd still be interested in what I missed in the first place).

Note however that the free version does not support restore from adb files.