# Question
Title: How to get fastboot identifier token to unlock bootloader on HTC One M9 where Android is no accessible?
I want to revive an old HTC One M9 rotting in my grandmothers locker for some years. I would like to flash the phone with a custom ROM but unfortunately it is locked,

so I can't access Android.

However according to the HTC documentation to unlock the boot loader on has to enable developer options in Android settings first:

> you will need to first manually enable OEM unlocking in Developer options in order to allow the bootloader to be unlocked and proceed with the next steps.

Apparently without doing so it is not possible to get the identifier token which is needed to unlock the bootloader.

```
fastboot oem get_identifier_token
< waiting for any device >
                                                   (bootloader) [KillSwitch] : /dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/frp
(bootloader) [KillSwitch] Last Byte is 0X00, disable unlock
(bootloader) [KillSwitch] oem unlock Turn Off!
OKAY [  0.063s]
Finished. Total time: 0.063s

```

Is there any way to unbrick this phone?

# UPDATE:

As suggested in the comments I tried to flash

> the original RUU ROM to restore a proper state

I got it here: https://htcstockrom.com/htc-one-m9

The following steps are suggested:

* Enter: fastboot oem rebootRUU
* Now enter: fastboot flash zip update.zip
* Once the installationis finished, reboot the device.

However `fastboot oem rebootRUU` makes the device humming and blinking but does not lead to a status where I could successfully upload the file (same problem described here): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVG4kT-LiQQ&feature=emb\_rel\_end

I can upload it in normal `download mode` but there I get:

```
FAILED (remote: '9 RU_SECURITY_FAIL zip from usb command in download mode')
fastboot: error: Command failed

```

# Answer
> 0 votes
The MMO TOOL HTC Module has a feature to get token ID.

You may have to search it by yourself to download it.

---
Tags: htc, bootloader-lock
---


title: How to connect Xiaomi 12 with Mac?

text:
# Question
Title: How to connect Xiaomi 12 with Mac?
I just recently bought a new Xiaomi 12 (MIUI 13.0.17 Global) and I cannot connect with USB to my Macbook Pro (OSX 12.1)

The issue starts with the prompt (selecting between MTP, File transfer, charging, etc) not even showing once I connect with USB, the cable should be fine, even an old PC recognizes it perfectly. USB debugging is enabled. What am I missing? Thanks!

# Answer
Found the issue, it was the adapter I was using with my Mac. Tried a different one and no problems after this.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: usb, usb-debugging, xiaomi, macos
---


# Question
Title: How to temporarily spoof ᴍᴀᴄ address without root?
There are many claims that it’s possible to change Wi‑Fi ᴍᴀᴄ address temporarily, but each time there’s a permission error when running one of the commands.

How to temporarily change ᴍᴀᴄ address without rooting the phone ?

# Answer
MAC address is always spoofed temporarily since it's a read-only number burned-in hardware and a part of it uniquely identifies the manufacturer. However many network interfaces allow setting a spoofed address. In order to make the change permanent the overriding process has to be repeated on every boot.

Secondly, configuring network interfaces requires at least Linux capability `NET_ADMIN` if not whole root. So, as you have observed, it's not possible to change MAC address or IP address or do other similar network configurations without the said capability or complete root access.
> 1 votes

# Answer
You need root to execute kernel commands to set non-default hardware addresses.

The MAC address can be spoofed with root, because you can force the kernel to mis-identify a network card.
> 0 votes

# Answer
For Android 10 and above randomized MAC address feature is available in Wifi settings of Settings app.

I have a Note 20 with Android 12 and this is how to randomize MAC address for a specific Wifi:

* Go to **Settings**
* Press on **Connections**
* Long press on **Wifi**
* Press the **Gear** on the selected Wifi Network
* Press on **View More**
* Scroll Up
* Press **MAC address type**
* Press **Randomised MAC**
> 0 votes

---
Tags: wi-fi, samsung, tablet, 8.1-oreo, mac-address
---


# Question
Title: How to read web page aloud on Android 13
In earlier versions of Android, I could open a web page in Chrome and ask, "Hey Google, read this aloud" and it would read the web page aloud. It would read the entire web page (doing a reasonably good job of filtering out navigation) but *not* the user interface for Chrome or Android (stuff like the status bar and the URL0. I found this very useful and used it regularly. My Pixel 4a recently updated from Android 12 to Android 13 and it works in a different, less useful way. Now it reads everything on the screen and only what's on the screen. It reads user interface elements, starting with the status bar, then the Chrome URL. Then it reads the web page text, including navigation, and stops at the end of the screen, no matter how much more text the page has.

How can I have the web page read aloud, similar to how it worked for me in the past? Can Google Assistant still do the job, but I need to coax it differently?

# Answer
> 1 votes
I don't use Google assistant, but out of curiosity, long-pressed the home button to invoke Google assistant on Pixel 4a, Android 13. On the pop-up dialog, tap “read" or say "read" and it does read out as you'd expect it to (only the page contents minus other elements).

It works fine as tested on this web page.

---
Tags: chrome-for-android, google-assistant, text-to-speech, android-13
---


# Question
Title: Open embedded audio and video in Word documents
How can I open embedded audio or video files in Word documents? I can play their audio/video files on my computer when I open the document with Microsoft Office, but on my phone, I can just see the text on the files.

# Answer
> 1 votes
I'm asserting that Microsoft Corporation has not ported this feature to their MS Office and Word apps. Why they have not implemented this feature since so long so is not something I would delve into. My assertion is based on the following arguments I'm providing.

The "technical limitations" mentioned in a thread on Microsoft Answers forum has not been explained or discussed. AFAIK, no such limitation exist. Much like how MS Word operates on the Desktop by downloading the embedded media and playing it in an external app/program, MS Word for Android can do the same. In Android, MS Word has to download the media in a location where third-party apps can access it. Download or Document folder under Internal Storage (/sdcard) can be used for this. MS Word can then fire an intent so that relevant apps which can open the downloaded media can play it, or alternatively, show up as options to the user to choose from to play the media with.

If the privacy or confidentiality of embedded media is a concern for not allowing third-party apps to access embedded media, and hence, dropping the feature altogether, than MS Word can create a proprietary or FOSS -- to reduce development costs -- audio and video player and ask the user to install it. This extension app coming from Microsoft can be programmed to have access to private data of MS Word app. This way, privacy and confidentiality concerns would be alleviated since the player would be Microsoft owned and verified.

I'm not an Android developer but I do think that porting this feature is possible. This is a matter of "when this feature would be ported", and not "whether this can be ported or not".

# Answer
> 0 votes
Doesn't seem to be possible for Word and PDF files due to imposed limitations of the OS and creators of that software, but however does seem to work for html5

Audio Video

---
Tags: applications, microsoft-word
---


# Question
Title: SPFlashTool ERROR : STATUS_BROM_CMD_STARTCMD_FAIL, device bricked
I was stuck in a boot loop after flashing AOSP ROM. So I decided to power off and use SPFlashTool to flash the stock ROM. But both SP and Tecno flash tools give the following error:

> ERROR : STATUS\_BROM\_CMD\_STARTCMD\_FAIL (-1073348607) , MSP ERROR CODE : 0x00.

The phone doesn't respond to any button presses. However, whenever I connected it to my PC, the charging indicator glows and even Windows can detect it, and the device is listed in ports.

Can anyone please help?

# Answer
Try opening the back cover. Search for test points and short them to ground. The phone will open up the port for flashing and use auth bypass utility offered at GitHub to bypass auth.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: unbricking, mediatek
---


# Question
Title: Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro shows Samsung logo on boot
I just noticed that my Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro shows the Samsung logo while booting.

The phone also shows the Samsung logo in the About Phone section.

Does anyone have any clue why is this?

# Answer
It seems you have installed the **One UI 3.0** theme.

"Samsung" and the Samsung logo are part of its design because it tries to imitate the Samsung's UI.
> 2 votes

---
Tags: samsung, xiaomi, boot-animation
---


# Question
Title: How does Android Chrome manage to leak a Gmail.com log-in to the Gmail app?
Using Android 12 and Chrome, when I logged in to gmail.com, I got a new email notification from a Gmail app installed on the same device but never accessed by me.

How did supposedly secure Chrome leak my login to this Gmail app?

(And I can't remove the emails captured by the Gmail app from it. Despite removing the Google account from the device and disabling the Gmail app, when enabled it still shows my emails.)

UPDATE: This report is incomplete, omitting to mention that immediately prior, I'd logged-in to the Google Play Store app (to get Chrome). See my own answer below.

# Answer
Asker here. Answer: It did not.

Further testing showed the culprit was not Chrome but Google Play Store (initially omitted from the report), and no log-ins to Gmail on Chrome are showing this leak.
> -1 votes

---
Tags: gmail, chrome-for-android, password
---


# Question
Title: Galaxy A10 screen replaced with a lower resolution screen
My Samsung Galaxy A10 had its screen cracked and had to send it to mobile care for the old screen to be replaced with a new one. The problem is that the old screen that came with this phone seems to be clearer than the new one because the text is fuzzy and the icons are blurry they replaced it with.

So, is it possible to replace the screen of a model with a lower quality screen?

# Answer
The pixel is what I think it's called. The Samsung Galaxy A10 features an IPS LCD display with a resolution of 720 x 1520 pixels. Nevertheless, you can replace the display screen with an OLED screen replacement, so the pixels will be the same, but the quality will be better.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: samsung, screen
---


# Question
Title: Prevent app icons from being added automatically to home screen on a Motorola device running Android 11
I am running stock Android 11 on a Motorola device. I am trying to disable the feature that adds newly installed apps to my home screen.

I read an article How to stop new apps from being added to your home screen on Android Oreo that says

> ### How to stop new apps from being added to your home screen on Android Oreo |
>
> 1. Navigate to your Android device’s home screen
> 2. Locate a blank section of the display and long press on it
> 3. Three options will appear. Tap on **Home Settings**
> 4. Toggle the switch off (so that it’s grayed out) next to **Add Icon to Home screen**

but the switch to "Add icon to home screen" is missing.

Can somebody help me disable the feature?

# Answer
Instructions are missing a step - added below

1. Navigate to your Android device’s home screen
2. Locate a blank section of the display and long press on it
3. Three options will appear. Tap on Home Settings
4. Tap Home Screen Style, then the settings cog next to App Tray
5. Toggle off "Add app icons to the Home screen"
> 2 votes

---
Tags: home-screen-shortcuts, android-11, motorola
---


# Question
Title: What are country based features on Phone, controlled by?
There are features in the phone such as Samsung, that are only available in certain countries. Are these controlled by

1. Country of manufacture of phone
2. Target country for phone when it is manufactured
3. First Country it is used in
4. The Country of Telecom company you are connected to
5. The Country of your Google Account
6. The Country you are in

As an example, I have been waiting for many many years for Samsung to enable the **ECG** feature on the Watch (and support feature on the Phone) in New Zealand. We purchased the then latest watches almost 4 years ago, having been told it was imminent. Earlier this year Samsung were advertising ECG in NZ. Since it still did not work on the existing watch, we purchased the latest watch. It did not work.

A support page on Samsung said that this was based on the country you purchased your phone in. This is a ridiculous concept. So, I have a feature in UK, I shift to Australia and it stops working !!! In fact, all 6 of the above would be ridiculous.

**So, what decides when the feature is available in a country?**

VPN to Australia and with an Australian Google Account does not work. I am hoping that if I travel to Australia, buy the watch there, the feature will become enabled **AND** will stay enabled when I come back to New Zealand.

# Answer
**Background**

Medical related features are regulated by the country it is operating in. It was easier to search for the ECG feature on Apple Watch but the rules/thought process apply to Samsung devices.

From an Apple forum with the subject "ECG abroad"

> If you purchased your Apple Watch in a country that has given government approval for ECG, and you have it all setup in that country, then when you travel to another country that has given government approval for ECG, your Apple Watch should work.
>
> If you travel to a country that has not approved ECG, it should stop working until you travel to a country that has given approval.
>
> The rules are:
>
> Country where purchased must give government approval (manufacturing knows where the Apple Watch will be shipped for sale and initializes the software accordingly) Country where used must give government approval (Apple Watch has a GPS and know where it is when you try to take an ECG).

Other related Apple ECG question: How is the Apple Watch ECG disabled in certain countries?

**So am I stuck?**

You may want to look at the efforts to circumvent such restriction and appears to require root (which has complications if you want to use apps that need Knox/security like banking apps).

See: https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/restrictions-removed-samsung-health-monitor-wearos-1-1-1-209-root-age-country-device-restriction-removed-18th-sept-2022.4322527/

From XDA thread:

> \[Original Samsung Health Monitor\] SHM has device detection, country restriction and spoof location detection, the following countries were listed in the country restriction checking, I believe if you live in those countries, SHM should Work, otherwise, it wouldn't, SHM checks your GeoLocation, Sim Card, and Device CSC (if no sim or location provided)

**What Countries are supported?**

Apple has a page which lists supported countries for various features: https://www.apple.com/watchos/feature-availability/#branded-ecg

From the Samsung Health app page: https://www.samsung.com/ca/apps/samsung-health-monitor/ and switching to the ECG tab footnote in small print at the bottom (the Blood Pressure footnote has 63 countries).

Quote taken on 2022-10-21 from ECG footnote section:

> * A Galaxy Watch (Galaxy Watch 4 and later released models)\* and Samsung Galaxy smartphone (Android N OS version or higher) are required to use Samsung Health Monitor app. Due to country restrictions in obtaining approval/registration as a medical device, Samsung Health Monitor app only works on watches and smartphones purchased in the countries where the service is currently available. However, service may be restricted/unavailable when users travel to non-service countries and do a factory reset of the phone or delete and re-install the Samsung Health Monitor app. * Service is available on Galaxy Watch Active 2 and Watch 3 only in select countries. Check list below.- Samsung Health Monitor ECG app is available in 64 countries/regions\** (as of the end of August, 2022)
>
> 1. Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Chile, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, HongKong, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, US, UK and UAE – available with Galaxy Watch Active2, Galaxy Watch3, Galaxy Watch4 and later released models (excl. Galaxy Fit)
> 2. Bolivia, Canada, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Costa Rica, Christmas Island, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Israel, Nicaragua, Norfolk Island, Panama, Peru, Réunion, South Africa, Taiwan, Türkiye, Ukraine, Venezuela and Vietnam - available with Galaxy Watch4 and later released models (excl. Galaxy Fit)
>
> \** Service unavailable in other/overseas territories or regions unless specified next to the respective country.
> 5 votes

---
Tags: google-play-store, samsung
---


# Question
Title: How to block some SMS, but only allow phone calls?
Hi I have a Samsung Galaxy 2S. How do I block SMS texts of my choice and only allow the phone calls? How do I block certain numbers from texting and not all of them, in other words, but allow the ones I'm blocking from sending me texts to call me instead if they so choose?

# Answer
Blocking Contacts entirely is easily enough done. There is also SMS and call filtering applications that are free on the market- ESET AV is also a paid alternative. SMS filter and clean inbox are two alternatives for SMS blocking which both work quite well.

To combine both, there is a aFirewall SMS and call filter. With many of these apps you're able to create set filers for calls, SMS or contacts to prevent them from bothering you.
> 1 votes

# Answer
There is no blocking system built into the default messaging app. However, you can also block unwanted SMS or messages on your phone with other apps. There are already a few other apps here you've found. There is also the Google Messages app that you can find on the Google Play Store. By using this app, you can report any message as spam and it will be sent directly to the spam folder.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: sms, calls
---


# Question
Title: Messengers don't show incoming call when they are not active
Samsung A10 with Android 11. Nor Viber, nor Telegram shows incoming call when they are not active. I mean, that if the messenger is open (in memory) and it is currently being used (focused) then incoming call is shown. However, if another application is used (but messenger is still open) then incoming call is not shown.

I think, the problem is that when messenger is not active it loses internet connection, because when Telegram becomes active (user switched to Telegram) it shows in the title "Connecting". Viber also shows something similar.

This is my mother's phone. It worked well before, but something happened. Either she changed some settings or the problem in updates.

Could anyone help to fix this problem?

# Answer
> 0 votes
I found how to fix it. Settings \> Apps \> (⁝) menu \> Special Access. Here you will find something like `Data usage with traffic economy` (my translation). Find your application and enable it.

# Answer
> 0 votes
This is what happened to me as well. However, it wasn't with Messenger, but with another app. Go to settings\>apps and find the messenger. Then click the app and go to Notifications and turn on Allow notifications. Here you will find call notifications also then turn on also.

---
Tags: internet, viber-messenger, telegram
---


# Question
Title: How to set background image without fitting/expanding to fit screen?
When choosing a background/wallpaper image that has a very different size ratio than that of my screen, Android will choose to expand my picture until its height matches that of the screen. In the process, the width gets expanded too, even beyond the screen width if necessary. That means that much of the image is missing (left and right of the center part, by default - but the portion that is visible can be changed). How can I prevent this from happening, or otherwise choose the zoom factor with which my image gets set ?

Thanks.

PS. Android 11 on Samsung Galaxy A40

# Answer
A solution, annoying but works : Go to Gallery, open the image you want as wallpaper, zoom and pan until it positioned as you wish, then take a screenshot.

The resulting image will have exactly the right proportions (that of your screen), so that when setting as wallpaper Android will not force-expand it to fit some arbitrary criteria at all.

Gallery on my phone allows to zoom and pan at will, except for the fact that it will keep the image vertically centered on the screen as long as the image (even if zoomed) is smaller than the screen height (and similarly, it will keep it horizontally centered as long as the image, even if zoomed, is still narrower than the screen width).

Of course, this creates a second image, which wastes precious memory. But I don't know a better solution right now.

Also, the background of the screen in the areas not covered by the image will always be black. It would be nice of a potential solution would offer to apply any color instead (typically, I would choose one that integrates nicely with my image).
> 0 votes

---
Tags: images, wallpaper
---


# Question
Title: How can I close the surplus of tabs that prevents me from closing them
I have so many tabs open in Chrome that I have been literally unable to close them, and my browser has been rendered largely useless. HELP!

The central problem is that the focus bounces from tab to tab so fast that I can not stay on any one tab long enough to close it. In addition the "three dots" menu in the upper right, which I believe is supposed to have a "close all tabs" button, does only on rare occasions. I do not know what determines if this button is present or how to get it back when it is not. I'd accept an answer to any one of these questions), except: not 1) if there is no way to navigate to the "close all tabs" button.

1. Is there a map somewhere that shows which Chrome controls are available under what circumstances, so I can navigate to the "close all tabs" button?
2. Is there a way to freeze tabs in place, so that the focus changes only when I select a different tab? This is what I want most, because I would like to be able to open a tab and look at it, and sometimes save some info., before deciding if I want to close it.
3. Is there a way to make the "close all tabs" button appear when it is not on the three dots menu?
4. If there is no easy way to solve this with native Chrome, is there an app that would let me do so? If it does not provide a way to freeze the tabs in place, it has to work even though the focus is bouncing rapidly from tab to tab. I'm on a Moto G with Stylus 5G running Android 12, with security updates to August 2022

Thanks! I look forward to hearing from you. } --andrewH

# Answer
> 1 votes
How about just killing all the tabs via adb using the command:

```
adb shell am force-stop com.android.chrome

```

Use adb by plugging the tablet/phone into a PC and using CMD.EXE (Windows PC) to issue the command from the folder you unzipped the Android SDK Platform Tools to. Hopefully you have USB debugging enabled on your device, you may get a prompt upon plugging your phone into your PC that you may use to enable USB Debugging. To make sure adb is running issue the command:

```
adb devices

```

Which will show your device, if not you may need your phone/tablet' drivers and install them through device manager.

The use of `adb shell` allows you to run the specified shell command on your device, `am` is activity manager, `force-stop` is the command and that's followed by the app you want to stop

# Answer
> 0 votes
Use Tasker and create a task using AutoInput that will perform the tab closing for you.

The task could be configured to close all tabs, close the current tab, close x tabs, etc. You could trigger it from an icon, or even using your voice once you were familiar with the tools.

Please note there may be very small costs for these apps but they are entirely worth it.

**Tasker**
Tasker is an application for Android which performs tasks (sets of actions) based on contexts (application, time, date, location, event, gesture) in user-defined profiles or in clickable or timer home screen widgets.

**AutoInput**
AutoInput enables you to interact with any Android app automatically.

**UI Query**
Feature of AutoInput that allows you to query another app's screen for whatever it's showing, (buttons, text fields etc).

---
Tags: chrome-for-android, motorola-moto-g, android-12, browser-tabs
---


# Question
Title: Change Unlock method after device restart via ADB
My Android 11 device is asking for a password after I reboot in addition to the fingerprint auth. I forgot the password. Is there a way to change the default unlock screen to pattern unlock?

Note developer mode is enabled and I can access the device via adb, however, the device is not rooted.

Erasing the device will be the last resort.

# Answer
Even erasing the device 'might not' help since these days OEMs store your device password in specific partitions which doesnt wipe when you 'reset' from recovery mode. So if your device asks you the password even after factory reset and you see no options to reset it e.g., using Google Account, the last resort will be flashing stock ROM overwriting every partition except the ones that store IMEI. I'm sorry cant help with a specific guide since (1) You didnt mention your phone OEM and model (2) I might not be able to write one even you did (thanks to OEM defragmentation)
> 0 votes

---
Tags: lock-screens, password, pattern-lock
---


# Question
Title: What are the security implications of using an app built "for debug"?
I've just come upon several `.apk` files hosted with Github projects which are "compiled for debug" (i.e. having `application-debuggable` set, which one can e.g. check using `aapt dump badging /path/to/apk | grep debuggable`. Not being an Android dev, I only have vague ideas what that is for (extended debugging via ADB) – but that's not the question here.

**My question is from a *pure end-user perspective:* What are the (security) implications of installing/using such an app? What are the risks one must be aware of?**

Of course I searched the web for hints on this, but again only got vague hints like "thou shalt not", and "for a release this should be switched off" – no reasons, no background. For that one could think "obviously no big deal" – but notes like *Do spend some time thinking about the security implications for your users* in this context (see this answer at SO) suggest differently.

Can anyone here provide some insights?

# Answer
> 5 votes
There aren't really any *innate* problems with running a debug app. If someone grabs your unlocked phone, enables Developer Mode, and starts debugging they might be able to grab sensitive information from the app's memory slightly more easily — but that's not particularly realistic and easily countered with a lock screen.

Debug information will also make it harder to make use of security through obscurity, which we all know is not real security. This obviously isn't even a factor when it comes to open-source apps, since they can simply inspect the source to find a flaw.

However, the specifics of what code paths you've added for debugging can definitely be security holes. Maybe for testing and verification purposes, the debug version writes the user's password out to logcat when they sign in, for example. There is a great deal of PII that could be exposed this way.

For an end user, all that you know is that it's *probably more likely* for an arbitrary app to leak information if it's a debug version. Unless you are searching for it yourself, you're not likely to see it. That's probably enough reason to avoid such apps — doubly so since a developer who doesn't know the difference between Release and Debug versions is probably not protecting your data very competently either.

Dan Hulme also made a good point in chat: A debug version probably won't be properly signed, meaning that it could be "upgraded" from a malicious source. I would again presume this to be an unlikely occurrence, but it is another point against it.

# Answer
> 0 votes
With Android 12, a ew aspect is added to this: `adb backup` no longer includes app data by default, unless the app was built "for debug". So actually, if your device is not rooted and you rely on `adb backup` for your backups (e.g. if you do not use Google's cloud backup, and your ROM has no support for Seedvault¹ built in), you might actually wish this to be set.

¹ Seedvault comes included e.g. with LineageOS since Android 10, and also with some other custom ROMs

---
Tags: applications, security, debug
---


# Question
Title: "Neither user 2000 nor current process has android.permission.GRANT_RUNTIME_PERMISSIONS" when using `adb shell pm grant` command
I have installed a clipboard manager, Clip Stack on my Android 11 phone. When the app is opened, the developer helpfully gives the message that background clipboard access has been blocked by Android 10 but he has found a workaround and to run the following ADB commands:

> ```
> adb -d shell appops set com.catchingnow.tinyclipboardmanager SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW allow;
> adb -d shell pm grant com.catchingnow.tinyclipboardmanager android.permission.READ_LOGS;
> adb shell am force-stop com.catchingnow.tinyclipboardmanager;
>
> ```

I don't want to install Android Studio. I tried the following:

1. Enabled Developer Options on my phone and turned on USB debugging and Allow screen overlaps on settings
2. On my computer installed minimal\_adb\_fastboot\_v1.4.3
3. Connected my phone to my computer via usb
4. Clicked on the desktop shortcut for Minimal ADB and Fastboot to open a cmd window
5. Ran `adb -d shell appops set com.catchingnow.tinyclipboardmanager SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW allow;` The daemon started.
6. Ran `adb -d shell pm grant com.catchingnow.tinyclipboardmanager android.permission.READ_LOGS;` It gave error:

```
Exception occurred while executing 'grant':
java.lang.SecurityException: grantRuntimePermission: Neither user 2000 nor current process has android.permission.GRANT_RUNTIME_PERMISSIONS.
        at android.app.ContextImpl.enforce(ContextImpl.java:2028)
        at android.app.ContextImpl.enforceCallingOrSelfPermission(ContextImpl.java:2056)
        at com.android.server.pm.permission.PermissionManagerService.grantRuntimePermissionInternal(PermissionManagerService.java:1463)
        at com.android.server.pm.permission.PermissionManagerService.grantRuntimePermission(PermissionManagerService.java:1444)
        at com.android.server.pm.PackageManagerShellCommand.runGrantRevokePermission(PackageManagerShellCommand.java:2300)
        at com.android.server.pm.PackageManagerShellCommand.onCommand(PackageManagerShellCommand.java:251)
        at android.os.BasicShellCommandHandler.exec(BasicShellCommandHandler.java:98)
        at android.os.ShellCommand.exec(ShellCommand.java:44)
        at com.android.server.pm.PackageManagerService.onShellCommand(PackageManagerService.java:22307)
        at android.os.Binder.shellCommand(Binder.java:929)
        at android.os.Binder.onTransact(Binder.java:813)
        at android.content.pm.IPackageManager$Stub.onTransact(IPackageManager.java:4687)
        at com.android.server.pm.PackageManagerService.onTransact(PackageManagerService.java:4471)
        at android.os.Binder.execTransactInternal(Binder.java:1159)
        at android.os.Binder.execTransact(Binder.java:1123)

```

How can I proceed?

# Answer
For Oppos Color OS 12.1 (Android 12) this worked for me:

I *disabled* the option (sorry: it's German): "**Über USB installierte Apps prüfen**" (probably "Check apps installed via USB"):

After that the command `adb shell pm grant com.dp.logcatapp android.permission.READ_LOGS` succeeded. Before I got:

> java.lang.SecurityException: grantRuntimePermission: Neither user 2000 nor current process has android.permission.GRANT\_RUNTIME\_PERMISSIONS.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: adb, permissions, shell, copy-paste
---


# Question
Title: Is it possible put Waze in a movable tile window, the same way Google Maps can?
Is it possible put Waze in a movable tile window, the same way Google Maps can as shown below?

# Answer
**This is picture-in-picture (PiP) mode, and Waze has not supported it yet.**

Google Maps v9.60 added support for PiP mode in August 2018. Also, as per the official Android Developers documentation,

> Your app controls when the current activity enters PiP mode. Here are some examples:
>
> * An activity can enter PiP mode when the user taps the home button or swipes up to home. This is how Google Maps continues to display directions while the user runs another activity at the same time.
> * \[...\]

The support of this feature can be seen on the Google Maps' app info where it shows "Picture-in-picture" under the "Advanced" section, whereas Waze only has "Display over other apps".

Left/Top: Google Maps | Right/Bottom: Waze

As explained in the documentation, supporting PiP needs additional development on the app side, thus it is not something that can be enabled by the end user.

This feature has been suggested to Waze on November 2018, Activate "picture in picture" (PIP).. However, the latest status is "Not right now" since August 2022.

---

On the other hand, some vendors have their own customization, like Samsung's pop-up view that may be acceptable as an alternative.
> 2 votes

---
Tags: google-maps, navigation, waze
---


# Question
Title: How to capture intent on stock launcher shortcut without root
My device is running MIUI on top of Android 12. I'm using the dual apps feature baked into the rom and there are two shortcut for each of the apps (main and dual apps).

When I'm using stock launcher, the shortcut works as intended, where main WhatsApp shortcut (without the yellow icon in the bottom-left) launches the main WhatsApp and vice versa. However, when using third-party launcher, both of those shortcuts have the same behaviour:  without clear way of choosing a default.

I have searched the dual apps setting in my rom to no avail.

I tried to create a shortcut with Shortcut Maker, using this setting

that shortcut can launch the main WhatsApp without throwing a prompt so I'm guessing there is a way to specify which WhatsApp I want to launch using the settings provided in the Shortcut Maker.

What I'm asking is a way to capture or know the setting of the shortcut in stock launcher that directly launches the dual WhatsApp so I can implement that in Shortcut Maker.

# Answer
> 1 votes
For reference, I'm using Niagara launcher and Shortcut Maker.

Clone Whatsapp and Shortcut Maker, then create shortcut for each apps from Shortcut Maker respectively (for main, create from main Shortcut Maker). Add the shortcut to home page.

Shortcut created from main Shortcut Maker will launch Whatsapp (main) and shortcut created from dual Shortcut Maker will launch Whatsapp (dual).

---
Tags: applications, home-screen-shortcuts, intents
---


# Question
Title: 'fastboot devices' returns ??? (question marks) and device reboots
I came across this weird issue and wanted to share my findings somewhere.

At some point in the installation process of Magisk, I was required to use fastboot on Windows 10 21H2. I proceeded and downloaded the adb plattform-tools \+ adb drivers. Previously ADB-related things of the instruction (like adb-shell) worked flawlessly.

However during the usage of fastboot I encountered these issues:

I tried different USB-cables, -ports and -drivers.. When I ran `fastboot devices` (or any other fastboot-command, it returned `????????????` (or an error) and the device restarted..

I was pretty certain that the device itself was fine, as well as the installation of ADB tools and driver. Nothing seemed to work and I only read about solutions like using a different PC, which was no option in my opinion.

# Answer
> 2 votes
Thanks to this hint from cychau, I used a **USB 2.0 hub**, which showed me that it's a \>`USB 2.0` related issue. Another suggestion (from bitbox in #7) was to restrict the system to only use USB 2.0 through BIOS settings.

Hope this helps someone in the future :)

---
Tags: rom-flashing, usb, fastboot, usb-drivers
---


title: How to disable com.facebook.appmanager?

text:
# Question
Title: How to disable com.facebook.appmanager?
I have no facebook account, and I'm not using the facebook app; I can't even find any facebook app any more. Still Android's log is flooded by messages from `com.facebook.appmanager`:

```
java.lang.SecurityException: Caller com.facebook.appmanager needs to hold android.permission.SCHEDULE_EXACT_ALARM to set exact alarms.
    at android.os.Parcel.createExceptionOrNull(Parcel.java:2471)
    at android.os.Parcel.createException(Parcel.java:2455)
    at android.os.Parcel.readException(Parcel.java:2438)
    at android.os.Parcel.readException(Parcel.java:2380)
    at android.app.IAlarmManager$Stub$Proxy.set(IAlarmManager.java:377)
    at android.app.AlarmManager.setImpl(AlarmManager.java:957)
    at android.app.AlarmManager.setImpl(AlarmManager.java:917)
    at android.app.AlarmManager.setExactAndAllowWhileIdle(AlarmManager.java:1185)
    at com.facebook.analytics2.logger.dl.a(UploadSchedulerNoDelayHack.java:160)
    at com.facebook.analytics2.logger.dl.a(UploadSchedulerNoDelayHack.java:152)
...

```

However I don't find any active app to disable or stop.

How can I get rid of that process?

# Answer
If you want to uninstall the app, you could do that via the adb shell, as described here

Essentially:

1. connect phone to a computer with adb installed, and check connectivity with `adb devices` in a terminal
2. Once it finds a device, start an adb shell by entering `adb shell`
3. Search package with `pm list packages | grep 'facebook'`
4. Remove: `pm uninstall -k --user 0 <pkg found above>`

hth!
> 1 votes

---
Tags: facebook, android-12, oppo-coloros
---


# Question
Title: Why does Phone Link require internet access?
I noticed that Microsoft's Phone Link app does not work without an internet connection. Some other apps discover and connect directly to your mobile device via your local Wifi or USB.

I am concerned that:

1. Phone Link might leaks my screen share and possibly other private info too to some unknown server of which I have no control.
2. That my expensive internet data (in a third world country) will go to waste with screen sharing. Does it streams every screen update from my phone to the outside world and then back to my PC which is connected to the same Wifi network?
3. Someone outside my home network might be able to control my phone and for example install malicious software.

**What would be the purpose of the required internet connection and how does Phone Link's connectivity work behind the scenes?**

# Answer
Well...

I just encountered a likely issue which me led to google search and found your question. I realized that @Robert is right when he said, "My guess is that internet connection is necessary for authentication via MS account. For that purpose the MS authentication servers are required as MS has no way to perform a peer-to-peer authentication. As the requirement is that PC and phone have to be in the same Wi-Fi I don't think that screen images are transmitted via cloud (otherwise this requirement wouldn't make sense)"

I started this morning trying to view my phone's screen on my system without internet. The phone link app was already working and showing my apps, messages, notifications, calls, and contacts using the bluetooth but there was no way to view the phone's screen as the system is offline even though they were both connected to the same wifi network. I'd already blocked my PC's access to the internet through the NetLimiter app. Afterwards, I unblocked the internet, it got connected, asked for permission from my phone and the screen came up as expected on my PC!

Now, to troubleshoot the actual challenge...

* I blocked the internet again
* Close the phone cast app and my phone's screen turned back on to show the screen casting has ended.
* Opened the phone's screen again from the PC (without internet remember) ...and everything came up without asking for any permission.

This confirms that the internet connection required in the first instance was to just authenticate the connection with your microsoft account. Moreover, you're always required to connect both your phone and your pc to the same wifi connection.

Hope this helps.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: wi-fi, privacy, internet, screen-sharing
---


# Question
Title: How can I increase the maximum number of background apps on Android 10+?
The way Android works, there are two cases in which an app is killed.

1. The device is low on RAM. This is kind of self-explanatory, there is generally no page file on Android, and RAM is finite.
2. The maximum number of cached processes is reached. To quote a comment in the AOSP source code:

> The maximum number of cached processes we will keep around before killing them. NOTE: this constant is *only* a control to not let us go too crazy with keeping around processes on devices with large amounts of RAM. For devices that are tighter on RAM, the out of memory killer is responsible for killing background processes as RAM is needed, and we should *never* be relying on this limit to kill them. Also note that this limit only applies to cached background processes; we have no limit on the number of service, visible, foreground, or other such processes and the number of those processes does not count against the cached process limit.

I've noticed that it's not quite that simple, though. Time especially seems to be a factor. I can open 10, 20 apps and it's not a problem. Let the phone sit overnight, and it will only be 4 apps in my case.

In the first case, the solution is fairly obvious: somehow increase the amount of usable RAM, whether that's by reducing the number of services running, using zRAM, using a device with a lot of RAM, etc. My device (SHIFT6mq) has 8GB of RAM, and usually only about half of that is being used, so that's obviously not the restriction in my case. Which leads us to 2.

The solution here is less obvious. The most promising bit I found is this: https://github.com/crok/crokrammgmtfix, and the accompanying blog post here: https://telegra.ph/Fine-tuning-an-Android-system-04-20. I've tried the magisk module, and tried what's listed on the blog post. Doesn't matter, when I execute `su -c dumpsys activity settings` the results stay the same, and when I wake up, there are still only 4 apps running, whereas there were many more before I went to bed. I also found this thread on XDA: https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/how-to-disable-adjust-the-background-task-limit.3886743/, which has very similar measures. Problem is, this all seems to apply to Android versions under 10 - and I definitely couldn't get it to work on Android 10.

Now, some would say, that's the way it should work. You know what? If I wanted the app closed, I wouldn't have left it open. Now leave it open. I have 8GB of RAM, which has shown to be more than enough for that. And it closes the apps overnight... which is specifically when I have the phone plugged in.

So, how do I tweak the settings of the activity manager (or anything else for that matter) so that it stops killing apps I explicitly left open, when there's more than enough RAM available?

Note: I realize there are some devices (e.g. Samsung, Huawei) with overly aggressive battery saving measures on top of that in AOSP. This is not what I'm referring to. The stock ROM on the SHIFT6mq is very close to AOSP.

# Answer
> 1 votes
Well, this sure enough confirmed my hypothesis of "if no one on stackexchange knows the answer, you're going to have to figure it out yourself".

So I did.

The answer to this question is twofold. There's the window manager and the activity manager, and both play a certain role in this.

While it was tempting to write a TL;DR at the top here, I didn't, because especially with the second part, you have to be very careful with what you're doing, at least for now.

## Window Manager/Recent Tasks

Let's start with the window manager, as this will also be interesting for people without large amounts of RAM. Also, it's quite a bit simpler.

It works with a number of variables: `config_activeTaskDurationHours` as well as a number of `NumVisibleRecentTasks` variables. `config_activeTaskDurationHours` determines, as the name suggests, how long a task is considered active, that is, relevant to the user. On my device, this was set to 6. After those 6 hours, the "task" no longer appears in the recent apps list, with one exception: the number of open apps would be lower than, in my case, `config_minNumVisibleRecentTasks`, launcher included. In that case, the app is not discarded. If the number of open apps is the same as `config_minNumVisibleRecentTasks`, though, then as soon as you open an app that isn't opened yet, the oldest open app that hasn't been used for more than 6 hours is discarded.

There are also a couple of other related settings that weren't relevant in my case:

* `config_minNumVisibleRecentTasks_grid`: This is for when apps are displayed in a grid. This view is not available on many builds of Android, though.
* `config_minNumVisibleRecentTasks_lowRam`: The same setting for low RAM devices.
* `config_maxNumVisibleRecentTasks`, `config_maxNumVisibleRecentTasks_grid`, and `config_maxNumVisibleRecentTasks_lowRam`: these are upper limits for the numbers of recent tasks. In my case `config_maxNumVisibleRecentTasks` was set to -1, which means there is no maximum limit.

These are all grabbed from resources, and can be modified with GravityBox (root and XPosed/EdExposed/LSPosed required), under the Advanced tuning section, in the Framework section. They require a restart to activate the changes.

In my case, I set both `config_activeTaskDurationHours` and `config_minNumVisibleRecentTasks` to a ridiculous level: 5000. That way, it takes over a half a year for a task to have a chance to be removed, and that only if there are more than 5000 apps open, which I suspect will never happen.

## Activity Manager/OomAdjuster

This was a bit of a tougher nut to crack for me, and took a good amount of searching through the source code to find the answer - although the answer may not have really required it. Oh, well.

I first tried writing an XPosed module to override `com.android.server.am.ActivityManagerConstants`, specifically `updateMaxCachedProcesses`. Unfortunately, I couldn't get it to hook the method properly, I don't know why. Mind you, I've never tried writing an XPosed module before, and I did this with AIDE - maybe sometime I'll unpack Android Studio again and try it in there. But if anyone wants finer control, this should offer an avenue to do that.

At the end, my original suspicion that you might be able to use the background process limit unoficially to increase the limit ended up being true. Sure enough, if you go into developer settings and change the background process limit to, say, 4, the output of `su -c dumpsys activity settings` looks like this at the end:

```
mOverrideMaxCachedProcesses=4
CUR_MAX_CACHED_PROCESSES=4
CUR_MAX_EMPTY_PROCESSES=2
CUR_TRIM_EMPTY_PROCESSES=15
CUR_TRIM_CACHED_PROCESSES=10

```

Note that the trim levels aren't changed, and IMO it doesn't make sense to change those levels even if the device has a high amount of RAM. Essentially, if the process numbers are below the trim levels, the system doesn't even bother trimming memory.

So, how can we assign a higher value? This is where things get complicated. I tried to call `ActivityManager.setProcessLimit()` with the permission `android.permission.SET_PROCESS_LIMIT` (which is only available to system apps but can also be granted via ADB) as defined in the IActivityManager Interface, but I couldn't get it to work (again, I was working with AIDE, so that may be the problem, I may try it again on Android Studio later).

However, there is a little known android shell command, `service call`, which essentially lets you call a whole bunch of methods from different service interfaces, see Where to find info on Android's "service call" shell command?. What you're looking for is the activity service, which is defined in `android.app.IActivityManager.aidl`, and you're looking for the method `setProcessLimit(int max)`. Using the terminal, we can do `service list` to get a list of the services that can be called here. In my case, the service name I'm looking for was activity. Then, we look up the `setProcessLimit(int max)` command in the source code. Since I'm reasonably close to AOSP, I can look it up in there. In my case, it's the 40th command.

WARNING: Before I show what I needed for my device, **don't just blindly follow this**. This is different for just about every version of Android, and if you mess it up, **it could cause problems**. Read the link from the paragraph beforehand to be sure, at the very least be sure to understand my explanation in the previous paragraph.

In my case, I decided to set it to something ridiculous, so I took the tenfold of the original value, 600. That turned it into: `service call activity 40 i32 600` (be sure to run `su` before that as this needs root privileges). Now, when I call `su -c dumpsys activity settings`, the section looks like this:

```
mOverrideMaxCachedProcesses=600
CUR_MAX_CACHED_PROCESSES=600
CUR_MAX_EMPTY_PROCESSES=300
CUR_TRIM_EMPTY_PROCESSES=15
CUR_TRIM_CACHED_PROCESSES=10

```

Halleluja! We did it! Mind you, AFAIK, you'll have to repeat the `service call` command on every restart, and if you mess around with the background process limit setting in developer settings, you'll also lose what you just set.

Maybe someday I'll try the approach with a root/adb app or an XPosed module again, and If I do, I'll update this answer. But for now, I'm happy with the results. RAM usage is now more between 5.5 and 6GB, as opposed to 4GB. Apps seem to be restarting less. Life is better.

# Answer
> 1 votes
I updated my module that's been mentioned in the original question and actually there's a way to set `max_cached_processes` to a value that survives restarts - even without root, with simple adb commands. Check the module's documentation and all the links lead me to the solution. Cheers!

## Android 9 and below:

```
settings put global activity_manager_constants max_cached_processes=256

```

## Android 10 and above:

```
/system/bin/device_config put activity_manager max_phantom_processes 2147483647
/system/bin/device_config put activity_manager max_cached_processes 256

```

Or something like this:

```
[ $(getprop ro.build.version.release) -gt 9 ] && cmd device_config set_sync_disabled_for_tests persistent
[ $(getprop ro.build.version.release) -gt 9 ] && cmd device_config put activity_manager max_cached_processes 256 || settings put global activity_manager_constants max_cached_processes=256
[ $(getprop ro.build.version.release) -gt 9 ] && cmd device_config put activity_manager max_phantom_processes 2147483647
[ $(getprop ro.build.version.release) -gt 9 ] && cmd settings put global settings_enable_monitor_phantom_procs false
[ $(getprop ro.build.version.release) -gt 9 ] && cmd device_config put activity_manager max_empty_time_millis 43200000
[ $(getprop ro.build.version.release) -gt 9 ] && cmd settings put global settings_enable_monitor_phantom_procs false

```

---
Tags: ram, task-management, aosp
---


# Question
Title: Does factory reset wear out UFS storage?
I have factory reset my tablet ten times. Will factory resetting an android device wear out Nand memory, ie UFS storage? How long are Twp and p/e cycles in ssd style nand storages?

How many factory resets can be done to a 64GB UFS? My device's ufs status was checked in Samsung technical service. -100 output in Galaxy diagnostics application, what does it mean?

In short, does formatting damage the storage memory on mobile devices?

# Answer
A factory reset is nothing you have to worry about in terms of flash wear out.

Modern Android devices do encrypt all user data by default, even if you have not set-up a lock screen pattern/PIN/password.

If you perform a factory reset Android simply overwrites the used encryption keys and may be a quick format on older devices using Full Disk Encryption.

So for a factory reset I would expect less than a megabyte flash write operations.

The larger part of write operation may occur after the first reboot when all the per-installed apps are upgraded to their latest version. This will cause way more flash write operations than the whole factory reset process.
> 6 votes

---
Tags: samsung, factory-reset
---


# Question
Title: Reviving a Samsung Galaxy III Mini (GT-I8190N)
I have an old Samsung Galaxy III Mini (GT-I8190N) that was running O2 (UK telco) firmware and the latest Jellybean browsers: Chrome 42, Firefox 68 etc., that worked with TLS 1.2.

I've flashed the firmware with the last Samsung BTU 4.1.2 Jellybean firmware, which takes Chrome down to version 28. That doesn't work with TLS 1.2, and attempting to update via Google Play fails with "Error: No connection", which I'm assuming is also a TLS error.

What steps do I need to take to restore Google Play so I can patch the apps to the same versions as the O2 firmware?

Edit: Post Robert's answer:

I sideloaded a 24.x version of Google Play Store and a 20.x Google Play Services. That got things moving again. They updated to 25.2 and 21.33 respectively. A sideloaded earlier version of Firefox wouldn't update, but the APK of 68.11 is available from Mozilla's servers.

Chrome, Firefox, Opera and Opera Mini all work with TLS1.2. The stock Android Browser 4.0 doesn't.

# Answer
> 0 votes
The main problem is that the old versions of Google Play Services and Google Play Store app don't support TLS 1.2. Only the newer versions support TLS 1.2 on Android 4.0 - 4.2.

The best way to bypass this is to download Play services and Playstore APK files from 3rd party sites like apkmirror or apkpure and install them manually as update.

---
Tags: 4.1-jelly-bean, google-play-services, side-loading
---


# Question
Title: my device shows briefly under adb devices then disappears
I got a (rooted) nexus 5 (with twrp custom recovery), and I develop on it using android studio 2.0. Recently when I type in adb devices, it shows my device for a couple of seconds then it vanishes! ie

```
$ adb devices
List of devices attached
03a3d66d0a4e64bd    device

$ adb devices
List of devices attached
03a3d66d0a4e64bd    device

$ adb devices
List of devices attached

$ adb devices
List of devices attached

```

i tried everything:

* changing usb port
* `adb kill-server` then `adb start-server`
* restarting phone
* installing android 6.0.1 update..

any ideas?

this is my adb version:

```
$adb version
Android Debug Bridge version 1.0.32
Revision 09a0d98bebce-android

```

# Answer
I had this exact problem recently. I plugged the phone directly into the laptop instead of via a USB Docking station. Solved the problem. I have no idea why it does it.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: rooting, adb, nexus-5
---


# Question
Title: Allow favorited contacts to ring the phone when calling in silent mode
I'm using Samsung Galaxy S9 on Android 9. I can allow favorite contacts to call in the "Do not disturb" mode. But I also want them to ring the phone when calling in silent mode.

Is there a way?

# Answer
In my Motorola G8 Power I can go to Sound configuration, and inside it I have the do not disturb section. There I can select which people, apps or alarms should be able to interrupt the DND mode.

This Google support post can provide you further information. There you can see, for instance, a section *Set what to block*, transcribed below:

> 1. Open your phone's Settings app.
> 2. Tap Sound & vibration And then Do Not Disturb. .
> 3. Under "What can interrupt Do Not Disturb,"
> 4. choose what to block or allow.
>     * People: Block or allow calls, messages, or conversations.
>     * Apps: Choose which apps can send you notifications.
>     * Alarms & other interruptions: Block or allow alarms, media, touch sounds, reminders, or calendar events.
>
> Tip: With any settings, critical notifications show. For example, you can't block system security notifications.

However, if you just lowered the volume, I don't think there is an exception list. You can find more details about volume and vibration settings at this page
> 0 votes

# Answer
Android doesn't have a way to ring on silent mode, but here's a workaround I'm stealing from Vicki Hermann on Quora, brilliant. Set your default ringtone for all contacts as "Silent" (if your phone doesn't natively have a silent ringtone, you can download one). Then choose the contacts that you like and assign them a custom ringtone. After that you can leave your phone on normal ring mode (stay off silent mode) and no calls will ring except the ones with loud ringtones assigned.

https://www.quora.com/How-can-I-set-up-my-Android-phone-so-the-phone-only-rings-when-a-specific-person-texts-me-but-is-silent-the-rest-of-the-time/answer/Vicki-Herrmann
> 0 votes

---
Tags: calls, ringtone, silent-mode
---


# Question
Title: How to allow only certain people to make my phone ring on silent mode?
I usually sleep with my cellphone on silent mode, but some important people are allowed to wake me up whenever they want. When it's not on silent mode, some inconvenient people usually wake me up for nothing.

Is there a way to make a call filter and allow only these important people to make my phone ring?

# Answer
> 0 votes
The short of it in Tasker is to create a new profile as follows:

## New Profile:

Context: Time

* From: 22:00
* To: 6:30

Context: State\> Phone Call

* Type: Incoming
* Number: C:FAV (This is any starred contact, You can also list specific contacts if you like)

## Task

New Action: Audio Setting \> Ringer Volume

* Level: 7

## Exit Task

New Action: Audio Setting\> Silent Mode

* Mode: On

I will try to update later with screenshots and more in depth walkthrough.

# Answer
> 0 votes
It can be done without an app. Set your default ringtone to silent for all calls. Then choose certain contacts and assign them a custom ringtone. Never put your phone on silent mode, all calls will be silent except the contacts you customized.

---
Tags: audio, calls, silent-mode, alerts
---


# Question
Title: Android head unit stuck due to enabling "simulate secondary display"
Got an Android head unit with no physical buttons (has 1 tiny reset hole only). I was playing around with developer settings and enabled Simulate Secondary Displays with 4K option. Unfortunately this lead to the simulated display overlay taking over the entire screen with no way to get rid of it as the touchscreen is not unresponsive over the overlay. As a note, USB debugging mode was not enabled on the headunit prior to this happening.

I've hooked up a USB keyboard and have managed to get to the app drawer but can't seem to find a way to scroll through and select the "settings" app. Pressing 'TAB' or the arrow keys don't seem to be able to cycle through the app drawer.

If anyone could help with any of the 3 solutions, I would be grateful:

1. How to navigate through app drawer to get to "settings" app on android via USB keyboard?
2. How to bring up the android search bar with the keyboard only (that way I can search for "settings")
3. How to boot up android headunit in safe mode (tried it on my mobile phone and was able to disable simulated display once in safe mode). However my headunit has no physical buttons.

Thanks

this is as far as I can get with keyboard - can't seem to browse the apps inside the app drawer

# Answer
> 0 votes
Since you don't have USB debugging enabled, your best bet is to flash the headunit with `recovery.sh`. I'm not sure the details on your make/model, but for example on a Honda Clarity 2018 PHEV headunit, you would simply have a USB drive (formatted to the correct type, I believe it was FAT32 off the top of my head) with `recovery.sh` in the root directory plugged into your USB slot (may need to alternate between each if you're unsure which will work correctly), then reboot the headunit. It my also take more than one attempt to power-cycle before it pops up, but it should eventually boot into recovery menu. The `recovery.sh` file itself may be challenging to find, again depending on your make/model, in the case of my example it was acquired through a reputable 3rd party's site, the developer for HondaHack.

EDIT: I've successfully booted into safe-mode on my head unit once, by holding down some combination of the "soft" keys on the side of the unit (volume buttons, menu, etc).

---
Tags: settings, external-keyboard, developer-options, keyboard-shortcuts, automotive-head-unit
---


# Question
Title: Can any data be recovered without a password/PIN?
If someone doesn't know the password required on boot, is there a way to access the data on the device?

It should be encrypted, but I read about Samsung adding something called Maintenance Mode where you can prevent repair techs from accessing your data. From this I assume it's otherwise possible for them to access your data even if they don't know the password. And if a repair tech can access the data, then a phone thief can as well.

If this data can't be accessed, then what's the point of Maintenance Mode and similar features on other brands?

# Answer
Here's what Samsung explained about Maintenance Mode and how it helps:

> Maintenance Mode is a way of creating a separate user account when you hand in your device to be repaired so they can operate core functions without being able to access to any of your private information. All the user needs to do is select Maintenance Mode in the “Battery and device care” menu within “Settings” and reboot their smartphone. As soon as it’s rebooted, all their personal information including their photos, documents and messages will be restricted.2

> Once Maintenance Mode is switched on, the person who was entrusted with the device won’t be able to retrieve user-installed apps either. Data or accounts generated when using Maintenance Mode are automatically deleted as soon as the owner exits Maintenance Mode. They will be able to download apps on Galaxy Store, but those will be automatically deleted along with any data or accounts created as soon as the owner exits Maintenance Mode.

This seems to be like Guest user account which the user can create and has been offered in Android devices for quite a long time. A user account in Android restricts one user from accessing private data of another user. This private data is encrypted for the user accounts. Guest user is configured to automatically dispose of all the changes a user has made while using the guest account, once the device is switched to another user account.

A problem with multiuser setup in Android devices is that upon reboot Android requires the primary user (owner) to provide their credentials, even if only a secondary or a guest user want to use the device. If Samsung has not solved this problem with their Maintenance mode than it might prove to be annoying for both the users and technicians alike.

To summarize, enabling Maintenance mode and giving your device to a stranger would not enable them to access your private data since it is encrypted and they would not have your credentials to unlock your lock screen. Make sure to use a slightly complicated credential before you hand over your device. Brute forcing is harder on Android since the OS progressively restricts these attempts. By using complicated credential the other person would not be able to make way with easier guesses such as 'password', '1212', '12345', etc.
> 3 votes

---
Tags: security, encryption
---


# Question
Title: how to not set default gateway after android dial an vpn connection
As the question says, I found in iOS there is an option "send all traffic", if you unselect it, the traffic won't go through the VPN connection, the windows ipv4 setting have a similar option, but I found no such option in android, anyone knows how not to set the default gw in android.

# Answer
> 0 votes
In the phone's settings tap, Network & internet and then Advanced and then VPN settings then tap forget or are you looking for more of a automated script to do it

---
Tags: vpn
---


# Question
Title: Connect RCA composite video and output to Android phone
I'm trying to connect an RCA composite video cable to an Android phone (Samsung Galaxy S6, specifically). My use case is this: I have a small camera that transmits composite video for use in FPV mode in RC aircraft. On the video receiver, the output is analogue composite video via an RCA out cable/connector. I want to connect this RCA cable to the Android phone to play the (live) video stream.

I can see various connectors on shopping sites such as these:

https://www.amazon.com.au/ELASO-Adapter-Composite-Converter-AV2HDMI/dp/B0995FXFN1/

But it's not 100% clear to me if these will work as most of these seem to be designed for the opposite use case: people more commonly want to connect their phone to their TV and **OUTPUT** video from their phone to their TV. I want to do the opposite (**INPUT** video into my phone), and it's not clear if these types of devices will support this.

What is the best solution to enable what I want to do? I'd ideally prefer one device/connector rather than chaining multiple adapters together, but I'll do whatever needs to be done as long as I'm certain it will work.

# Answer
> 0 votes
The Samsung Galaxy S1 manufactured for Asian market has a built in RCA video out feature using the headphone jack

---
Tags: video
---


# Question
Title: Samsung Messages/SMS - What exactly does logging into your google account do?
Does doing so let others know that you're texting them from a google account and it'll show your google account, or is it just a way to keep track/save your SMS messages you send?

What is the main function of having a google account used to send SMS messages? I haven't found any use for it.

# Answer
> 1 votes
If you're sending sms with an internet connection, you can tunnel your messages through a vpn for privacy concerns. Is the only "useful" function, I can think of. If, it matters. Sms through your regular mobile data is not so private.

---
Tags: samsung, sms, google, android-12, google-messages
---


# Question
Title: Samsung Galaxy loosing mobile network connection randomly until restart
I'm using a `Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 4G` and every time I enter a building's basement, even for just a short time period, the connection is cut and my phone looses it's connection to the mobile network.
(Sometimes it also just happens randomly and I only notice it once a song stops playing in the background).

I can still connect to WI-FI, but the 4 bars disappear and I'm not receiving any signal/connection, until I completely restart my phone or take out my SIM-card and put it in again, which probably restarts the SIM-driver.

Is it possible to manually restart the SIM-driver, which does not require me to restart my phone, nor take out my SIM-card?

(And is there an answer to why my phone is even doing this in the first place?)

Thank you very much!

# Answer
> 0 votes
### Original solution by @Robert.

I'm just answering my own question, so other people facing the same problem, know that there is, in fact, a solution.

`Just activate "airplane mode" for a few seconds and then deactivate it again`, in order to not just disable mobile network, but also 'the voice part'.

---
Tags: samsung, sim-card, mobile-network
---


# Question
Title: Most of the pages show "insecure connection" in Opera
I have changed some security settings in my Android yesterday (I don't remember which one). Today most of the pages show "insecure connection" in Opera. I cannot even go to youtubel.com

Everything opens as normal in Firefox.

I've reinstalled Opera, but the problem remains.

How can I undo this?

# Answer
I've fiddled with the problem for a couple of days.

My working solution was to backup my files, reset to factory defaults, reinstall apps (took 1-2 hours).

---

Update: @Irfan Latif is correct. These were indeed the security -\> trusted credentials. That comment should have being the accepted answer.
> 1 votes

# Answer
I'd say the reason re-installing Opera didn't fix it is because your probably still using the same profile. Let me put it this way, when you re-installed you still had all your bookmarks still without having to import them again... ergo same profile.

Did you try going into Settings, Advanced and then click on Reset Settings (which restore settings to their original defaults)?

If you don't have that option or that doesn't work for you, do a backup of your bookmarks, et cetera and then create a new profile. Try entering opera:about in the url bar and then see if it tells you where your profile is located, close Opera, navigate to that location and delete everything. Upon re-opening Opera it should create a new profile.

I assume this is regular Opera and not Opera GX, you may want to have a look at this if switching between profiles sounds good to you.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: security, opera-browser
---


# Question
Title: How do I change temperature units in Android Wear's Weather app?
Just got a Fossil Q Founder smartwatch. Currently, it is showing Fahrenheit. How do I change the default weather app to use Celsius?

I've changed literally every single setting I can think of. I have used the Fossil app to change the watch faces to show the temperature in Celsius. I have Google Now cards configured to show in Celsius. I even tried downloading the Google News and Weather app and changing the temperature units used there. I checked every settings menu I could find in both the Android Wear app and the Fossil app. Nothing.

Rocking a Nexus 6P. Everything is the latest.

Multiple Google search results have pointed to Google Now weather card settings as the place to change the units in the Android Wear app, but as I mentioned above, I already have those set since before I even had the watch. I tried changing to Fahrenheit and back to Celsius, but still no luck. I've tried restarting the watch and my phone a million times, but also had no luck getting the settings to take on my watch.

Can someone please help? It doesn't help that Google has the worst support imaginable. I would bet my life savings that if I called them for support, they would tell me to do a factory reset without even attempting to understand that actual issue.

# Answer
> 7 votes
I contacted Fossil who said that the temperature units on the watch are based on the language setting you select when you set up the watch. If you select US English, then it will be Fahrenheit (probably the only language setting that uses Fahrenheit).

I am Canadian and there is not usually a Canadian English option, and UK English has caused strange anomalies for me in the past. Plus I live in the USA, I just want Celsius and I don't think I'm the only one. I informed them that their solution for units is not adequate.

I am using the AccuWeather app which I paid for years ago and I like it. But their Android Wear app is broken right now on my watch and they are aware of the issue and working on it, but it has been some time (plus their latest material design update took ALL of their flexibility out of unit selection so that is quickly becoming an issue).

# Answer
> 2 votes
It's because your phone language is set to US English.

Just change your handphone language to another type of English, such as English (United Kingdom), then the weather on your watch will change to Celsius.

# Answer
> 0 votes
I just bought a Fossil Q Founder watch.

If you go to watch setting, then change watch face, scroll to classic, tap the setting bar below the displayed face, then it will allow you to scroll down to weather unit. Tap it and it will allow you to change between Celsius and Fahrenheit.

# Answer
> 0 votes
If you're using a face control app (WatchMaker, Facer, etc.) you may have to go into the settings for that and change it.

I use a ton of WatchMaker's faces and I was losing my mind changing languages and Google Now settings, until I saw the settings in the app.

# Answer
> 0 votes
Here is how you change it:

1. Log in to your Google account on your computer
2. Go to https://myaccount.google.com/u/1/language
3. Change your language preference default to English and then choose Canada.
4. Make sure you use the same account for Google Wear OS.
5. If you are using the same account, after this change, restart your Fossil watch and you should be good to go.

I have tested this on Fossil Gen 5 and it works.

# Answer
> 0 votes
I had the same issue with my Fossil Sport watch. I live in Canada and it showed as Fahrenheit. When I set up the phone, it did not give an English (Canada) option, so I picked English (United States).

I found a solution though. I updated my language setting on my phone through Settings, System, Languages and inputs, Languages. I had English (United States) as my default language and English (Canada) as my second language. I deleted English (United States) and that changed English (Canada) to my default. Once I did that, my phone immediately updated with Celsius.

Reference: Wareable - How to change the language on Wear OS

# Answer
> 0 votes
The units used are derived from the language setting selected upon pairing the watch. They cannot be set separately from the language selection, but fortunately it is possible to change them later on.

On the phone paired to the watch, go to `Settings -> System -> Languages & Input -> Languages`. There you will be able to set English as your preferred language, and in a second step whatever country you prefer to derive units and regional typing conventions from (date format, decimal point/comma, etc), no matter wether english is actually spoken in that country officially.

# Answer
> -1 votes
Go to your Android Wear app \> Your feed \> Weather \> change the temperature to Celcius.

---
Tags: 6.0-marshmallow, android-wear, weather, temperature
---


# Question
Title: Cxxdroid can execute c++ binary in any internal storage directory, but Termux cannot
I was testing some c++ executable in my old smartphone (Android 8, no root). Here's the description of the problem:

I have both Termux and Cxxdroid installed in that phone. And in termux, I have clang installed.

Let's enter Termux.

```
cd /storage/emulated/0/c++    # current dir is now c++ which sits in the internal storage
ls    # this prints 'hello.cpp', a simple hello world program. let's compile it.
clang++ hello.cxx -o hello
ls    # this prints two files now, hello and hello.cxx. let's execute hello.
./hello    # prints: bash: ./hello: Permission denied. let's grant permission.
chmod +x hello
./hello    # prints: bash: ./hello: Permission denied

```

As you can see, there's no way I can execute hello in the c++ directory. I know that if I move hello in $HOME and run it, it would work right away. But that's not the case.

Now, let's enter Cxxdroid. Enter 'Terminal' from left menu. Let's execute our hello binary.

```
cd /storage/emulated/0/c++
ls    # contains two files. hello.cxx and hello (which is the binary generated from Termux clang). let's run it.
./hello    # prints 'Hello World'

```

See? The same binary does not run in Termux but runs right away in Cxxdroid. Why? What technique is Cxxdroid using under the hood? Permission of the hello binary for both Termux and Cxxdroid is:

```
ls -l hello    # prints: -rw-rw---- 1 root everybody 115588 Apr 25 00:32 hello

```

Any help is appreciated.

# Answer
> 0 votes
You need to root access. without root you can try this

```
cp /storage/emulated/0/c++/hello $HOME
chmod +x $HOME/hello
$HOME/hello

```

---
Tags: file-permissions, termux
---


# Question
Title: Create a QR code that connects device to wifi SSID & opens a URL?
Many questions regarding QR are from years ago. My question is, will a single QR handle 2 functions.

What I'm trying to achieve is. A QR which allows user to connect to my Wi-Fi (Hotspot) AND open a desired website. NOT A CAPTIVE PORTAL.

# Answer
While usages of QR codes can be very versatile, **there are only a few universally standard formats for a QR code, including WiFi and URL, but not as a combination.**

For example, the common format for WiFi QR code is: `WIFI:S:<SSID>;T:<WEP|WPA|blank>;P:<PASSWORD>;H:<true|false|blank>;;`. Scanning it using a camera/QR code scanner app may trigger an intent to connect to that WiFi. On the other hand, scanning a QR code with a URL format, such as `https://example.com` may open the link in a browser automatically.

However, combining both of them does not mean that it will work for both. On the contrary, it may only recognize the first part or even break for both since it is not one of the recognized formats anymore. E.g. scanning a QR code for `WIFI:S:MySSID;T:WPA;P:MyPassW0rd;;https://example.com` on Google Pixel 3a, Android 12 with Google Camera app, ZXing Teams's Barcode Scanner app, and WiFi Setting's built-in scanner only lets the user connect to the "MySSID" access point without opening the URL.

For such non-standard formats, the user also needs a custom app that can handle multiple formats simultaneously in a single QR code.
> 2 votes

---
Tags: applications, wi-fi, wifi-hotspot, qr-code, url
---


title: Viewing web pages offline

text:
# Question
Title: Viewing web pages offline
I have a lot of saved web pages that I want to view whenever I want without the page connecting to the web site (I can do this on WM). How do I do this on Android? Every time I click on the HTML file it says "no connection".

# Answer
You can use OffLine Browser by Nikodroid. It can save web pages (and related links) and then allows you to read them when you are offline.
> 3 votes

# Answer
One can use Pocket or Instapaper to save something from your desktop for offline reading on your mobile.
> 2 votes

# Answer
You could also generate PDF files using the share feature of the Android system. I am currently researching the best way. For now I am using Web2PDF with Chrome on my Nexus 10. Does not work perfectly with all sites though. For those that do no work yet I am using the website PDFmyURL.com.

Today I noticed hat Firefox can save PDF of whole pages by default. It is hidden in Extras...
> 1 votes

# Answer
You can use PaperSpan app to save original page offline to SD Card. Saving links can be done through computer, and app will sync and save offline.
> 0 votes

# Answer
You can open MHTML files with MHT & MHTML Viewer, Reader app.

I am using my file explorer to open the MHTML files using this app. Sometimes I need to use the option "Open as" to see this app as an option. Another way to open MHTML files is to browse your files using this app.

I am not affiliated to the app in any way though. Opera is also an excellent app to save (and view) MHTML files.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: offline
---


# Question
Title: In Android, view previously opened web page when offline
On a laptop, I can open some tabs in the browser, switch to another window, disconnect from the network, return to the browser window, and the tabs are still there.

On Android, when I return to the browser, the contents of the tabs is lost (well, usually -- sometimes it's still there). Is there a simple way to have the pages cached as it would be on PC?

Namely, on the phone I open a web page in Chrome, read half of it, close my phone (or let it turn off the screen after some seconds of inactivity) or use some another app (such as make a call), go out of home (no wifi), open my phone, return to the Chrome window, and I would expect to see the same page (and the same tabs), even if I am offline by that moment.

But the page is gone and says it won't be shown without connection.

I know I can use other apps to save the pages in a folder and open them from that folder.

However, can't it work just transparently without the need to explicitly save the pages and explicitly open them? Open a page, do something else, return to the browser window, and see the same page.

I am OK using any browser (Firfox? Opera?) that can do this.

# Answer
The Sleipnir browser for Android has an option for making all tabs remain loaded even when the phone is offline. No need to specifically save a tab or do anything special to make your tabs available when you're offline. I'm not sure about the details, but it seems to fit your needs. The Mac/Windows versions of Sleipnir has much cooler features than the Android version, but it is still worth a try.
> 2 votes

# Answer
You can use Via Browser from Play Store.
> 0 votes

# Answer
On your laptop, you cache images and websites to disk while on Android you only cache in memory. Meaning that when the app quits (or the system determines that it can quit the app automatically), the page is removed from your device.

Opera’s browsers does indeed allow you to save any webpage for later offline use. You must, however, choose to save it while you are online.

Many reading-list apps also does it if you want to explore other options.
> -1 votes

---
Tags: wi-fi, firefox-for-android, browser
---


# Question
Title: Having confusion building erofs format system.img for Android
I try to edit an Android 11 `system.img` file that was extracted from `super.img`. Now I have an issue that is very confusing to me. First, I extracted `system.img` by this command (The file system is `erofs`, which is used on HUAWEI android devices):

```
sudo fsck.erofs --extract=./extracted --no-preserve --force --overwrite system_a.img

```

And I got a directory tree that contains files like this:

```
.
└── extracted
    ├── 3rdmodem
    ├── 3rdmodemnvm
    ├── 3rdmodemnvmbkp
    ├── acct
    ├── apex
    ├── cache
    ├── config
    ├── cust
    ├── d -> /sys/kernel/debug
    ├── data
    ├── data_mirror
    ├── debug_ramdisk
    ├── dev
    ├── eng
    ├── hw_product
    ├── linkerconfig
    ├── log
    ├── metadata
    ├── mnt
    ├── modem_log
    ├── odm
    ├── oem
    ├── patch_hw
    ├── preas
    ├── preavs
    ├── preload
    ├── prets
    ├── pretvs
    ├── proc
    ├── res
    ├── sec_storage
    ├── splash2
    ├── storage
    ├── sys
    ├── system
    ├── system_ext
    ├── vendor
    └── version

```

Then, I did some modifications and tried to pack it into a `system.img` using this command:

```
sudo mkfs.erofs -zlz4 -Enosbcrc -U00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000 --ignore-mtime lz4.system.img ./extracted/

```

Everything was perfect, no errors or warnings were shown with this command, and `lz4.system.img` was generated successfully. I compared two files by using `file` command after finishing the re-packing:

```
@localhost:~/Desktop/extracted_super> file lz4.system.img  system_a.img
lz4.system.img: EROFS filesystem, blocksize=12, exslots=0, uuid=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000, incompat: LZ4_0PADDING
system_a.img:   EROFS filesystem, blocksize=12, exslots=0, uuid=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000, incompat: LZ4_0PADDING

```

But I found something different between the one I generated and the original one.

1. File size wasn't the same (later I realized that it is normal because it wasn't signed)
2. There are contents that differ from each other, I am enclosing the screenshot to make it clear to distinguish them:

As you can see on the right side of the picture, that's the original `system.img`, it contains some of the strings that seem to have something to do with `selinux`, in turn, the new one doesn't have it.

My questions are:

1. What are the strings?
2. What should I do to fix this? Is it because the new one hasn't been signed, so they are not the same?

# Answer
For those who don't know the reason for this issue, I have found how to fix it by adding a parameter `--file-contexts=plat_file_contexts`.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: file-system
---


title: Force browser to hide nav & tab bar

text:
# Question
Title: Force browser to hide nav & tab bar
This is dangerously close to "recommend me an app" although it is not necessarily so.

I am currently doing a lot of reading on an online library site. Usually my browser (chrome, android 4.4.2) will go to a "full screen" mode when I scroll down a page of sufficient size. But such is not the case here, and that site is not unique in this sense either. The how and why of this is irrelevent to me, I just want to be able to read with the nav bar hidden.

Unfortunately, with the trendy "easier to use" (i.e., dumbed down) interface AFAICT you cannot force this behavior. Last time I used firefox it had tabs in a manually hidable sidebar, so I installed that. But it now looks and behaves just like chrome :( As an irony, it seems that firefox's own homepage is an example of one which will not invoke fullscreen when scrolling down.

I am aware of "immersive mode" apps but have not tried this because I presume it will then just hide the system notification bar and I will get a slightly bigger view of the browser with tabs along the top. However, if I'm wrong please correct me.

Does anyone know of a way out of this, including a browser which still includes a manual fullscreen mode (as silly and archiac as it may sound)?

# Answer
Sadly Google Chrome and other browsers don't have a feature to hide the url bar and tab bar. One alternative is the app Full Screen Browser. Its features are:

* Web browser that allows for full screen viewing.
* Hide or dim navigation bar (Home, Back etc).
* Hide action/status bar
> 5 votes

# Answer
I am using Fully Kiosk Browser to read books on https://openlibrary.org

It works great. Key features:

* Immersive mode from the start
* Ability to choose screen orientation without having to enable rotation system wide. I like reading in landscape. There is also reverse landscape.
* Home screen shortcut for the website (library or book in my case) so that we can quickly jump into reading.
* No ads or any other nonsense
> 3 votes

# Answer
Use Opera Browser. It has a dedicated full screen mode that works like a charm!
> 0 votes

---
Tags: browser
---


# Question
Title: How can I reset the WindowManager resolution and DPI settings in the Google TV user selection screen?
I was experimenting with the `wm size` and `wm density` commands, and now the Google TV user selection screen does not let me pick a user, telling me that 1920x1080 is not a supported resolution when I do so.

Strangely, the resolution is not actually the problem, but rather the DPI, which is halved. Resetting the DPI with `wm density reset` allows me to select a user, but this must be done after every reboot.

How can I reset these broken settings?

# Answer
> 3 votes
The issue is caused by a problematic resolution setting. When the resolution is set to 4K with a command like `wm size 3840x2160`, the WindowManager resolution stays at 1080p, but halves the emulated DPI. The 3840x2160 resolution setting gets saved, causing this behavior on every boot.

To permanently fix the issue, run the following commands on the user selection screen:

`wm size 1920x1080`
`wm density reset`

---
Tags: adb, android-tv, google-tv
---


title: Enable Call recording

text:
# Question
Title: Enable Call recording
Google has blocked call recording in my country. If I root my Samsung S20 and put in a custom ROM will I be able to use call recording apps?

# Answer
Yes, it's possible to enable call recording if you have root access.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: call-recording
---


# Question
Title: How can I configure a Pixel 6 so that it always charges at max speed?
My Google Pixel 6 phone charges between 3W and 15W with the charger included with the Pixel 6 phone. How can I configure it so that it always charges at max speed? (Or at least whenever I ask for it, eg when I need to it get charged asap before I head out).

Device is not rooted.

# Answer
Settings -\> Battery -\> Adaptative charging -\> turn it off:

Source: Reddit - How can I configure a Pixel 6 so that it always charges at max speed?
> 0 votes

---
Tags: charging, google-pixel-6
---


# Question
Title: With Google's Family Link, how to grant unlimited access to select apps?
I just have set up Google Family Link parental control. It very nice and seems to work well for the most part.

However, I want to allow some apps (e.g. Wikipedia) without screen time restriction. I have found ways to give app permissions selectively, but not usage restrictions selectively.

**How to exclude some select apps from the screen time limit?**

**Additionally, is there a way to exclude/allow select apps from the device lock?** (E.g. I would like to allow to play music even at bedtime, but nothing else)

# Answer
> 0 votes
Your first request is now possible. Set the app(s) to "Always allow". (Source.)

Your second request is still impossible. After bedtime, "Always allowed" apps can no longer be used. (Source.) If necessary, consider giving your child an old MP3 or CD player which can play music. Or, you could simply allow your child to fall asleep without music.

---

Since you mentioned Wikipedia:

Wikipedia is not censored. It includes some graphic material relating to sex, and other graphic material relating to violence. This material includes text, photos, and videos. Do you really want your child to be able to access this material in the middle of the night?

Please consider blocking Wikipedia on your kid's phone completely. The kid can still use Wikipedia on a computer in your living room, or in the school library; these are probably safer places to use Wikipedia.

---
Tags: parental-control, google-family-link
---


# Question
Title: Showing how much per-app screen time allowance is remaining, on a child device running Google Family Link
# Background information

You're a parent. You use Google Family Link to help provide parental controls on your child's Chromebook and Android devices.

(As Google admits, no parental-control software is perfect. Therefore, you also keep all your child's devices in your own bedroom every night, until the child is old enough to need overnight smartphone access.)

Among Family Link's other features, it lets you set two types of daily usage limits (on most devices):

* A.) Device-wide daily usage limits.
* B.) Per-app usage limits.

However, if you set a per-app usage limit: Google Family Link doesn't seem to offer any on-screen indication on the child device showing the remaining time allowed for that app.

# A question

Is there any way to make a child Android device show a notification whenever an app is in use, showing how much time is left before Google Family Link will block the app?

# Answer
I found a way to achieve this, but you'll have to install an additional app.

* On the child device, install the app Stay Focused by Innoxapps. This app is free and ad-supported.
* Open the app.
* Scroll down to "Quick Actions".
* Tap "Block Apps".
* Set time limits on various apps, each of which is equal to the Google Family Link time limit for that same app.

Whenever one of these apps is in use, Stay Focused will show a notification in the notification drawer indicating how much daily time is left.

The child can freely edit the time limits you've set in Stay Focused, but doing so is futile. Even if the child edits the Stay Focused time limits, Family Link will continue to enforce the time limits you've set in your Family Link settings.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: parental-control, google-family-link, content-filter
---


# Question
Title: USB tethering is Constantly disconnected automatically
I use USB tethering to access the internet for my PC, but after enabling USB tethering and using it for about 5 minutes, it disconnects, and I should enable it again on my android phone. What should I do to stop disconnecting automatically?

The USB cable is not broken (It doesn't have any problem with charging). I bought it about one month ago. Device: Samsung Galaxy A7 2016 Android version: 7.0

# Answer
in "Developer Settings"

search for "Default USB configuration"
and select "USB tethering"

Reboot the phone (connected to the PC via USB)
and try to access the internet...
> 0 votes

---
Tags: usb, usb-tethering
---


# Question
Title: What does a "crossed-out globe" system icon mean?
The "crossed-out globe" icon appears and disappears randomly. Don't really know which app or state it's representing. Seems like an unavailable connection.

What does it mean?

# Answer
Thanks to user Firelord, I went to System to check which version of Android and CalyxOS I do have. I stumbled over the "Statusbar icons" area. There you can enable/disable notification icons. The crossed-out globe stays for Firewall. I assume, that a firewall match (block) shows this icon.
> 5 votes

---
Tags: notification-icons
---


title: RCA tablet to VGA monitor

text:
# Question
Title: RCA tablet to VGA monitor
I have an Android RCA tablet that I need to connect to a VGA Monitor. I have purchased a cable with a mini HDMI on one end and a VGA on the other end to fit both the tablet and the monitor but it doesn't work.

Does anyone have any advice?

# Answer
> 1 votes
Switching to an answer, now that we've narrowed in on your needs:

A straight cable can't handle this. What you'll need is a converter. Per your comment question, here's a well-reviewed one on Amazon for pretty cheap that will do the job. You'll want to pair that with a female-HDMI to male-mini or micro-HDMI (make sure you're sure which you have) adapter, which are usually less than a dollar, and a standard, run-of-the-mill VGA cable, and you SHOULD be good to go.

# Answer
> 0 votes
I have the 7" Voyager. It does not have a mini-HDMI port, just a micro USB. So with that being said, I don't think it's possible.

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Tags: external-display
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# Question
Title: Mobile data disabled but data is still using mobile data
I have a SIM card that I use **only** to receive SMS.

It does not do not include mobile data in the plan, and it is "pay as you go". This means that as soon as my phone connect to the internet, even to transmit/receive 1 bit, I get charged 1€ for the day.

I used this SIM card with both a Nexus 6P and a Pixel 1, with:

* Mobile data disabled
* MMS disabled (no auto download) and never sent/received
* Roaming disabled

and still both phones use mobile data and I get charged 1€ every day!!

I tried with my ancient Nexus 4 and everything work as expected: mobile data disabled, no mobile data used, and no charges.

What are my newer phones sending/receiving?! Is there a way to stop this?

# Answer
That is a common problem and most likely caused by VoLTE (Voice over LTE which means Voice over data connection). Recent cellular systems like LTE (4G) and 5G don't have a separate service for voice data, instead they use special VoIP technique for speech data (usually called VoLTE).

The system can not distinguish between data traffic used for VoLTE which should not be charged as data and regular data traffic.

So if in your country 2G or 3G is still available you should configure your phone to only allow 2G and 3G (disable 4G and 5G). And if there is a setting disable VoLTE/Vo5G or how it is called.

VoWiFi (Voice-over-WiFi) should be OK as it affects only communication in WiFi systems.
> 1 votes

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Tags: mobile-data
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