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Hi Folks,
I have a lot of .vol files in the root, namely mxip..., pim.vol, PocketInformant.vol, etc)
Can I move these? Firstly to the SD, or secondly to the \databases folder to tidy things up?
Has anyone tried?
I don't think so. Whatever you do, don't move pim.vol. You can try moving the PockInfo.vol .. the worst case is that you won't able to start PI. And, personally, I think PI is much smarter than the built in pim, so if PI cna't do it, the built-in pim sure can't.
These r system files used by the OS all the time so if u try to move them there might b a startup prob so its advisable not to play with these .
These r system files used by the OS all the time so if u try to move them there might b a startup prob so its advisable not to play with them .
thanks guys - seems no-one has moved these successfully so I'll live with the messy directory.
So with the advent of boot loaders such as Excellers which allow you to choose different builds of Android, what exactly do you need to copy off the SDCard to backup your build?
I dont mean the data, sms, mail, etc, but the actual entire build?
Is it enough to simply copy the Android folder and the files inside it including data.img or is there a need to copy the other folders and files that android creates in the root of your SD (LOST.DIR, rosie_scroll, etc)?
Android builds automatically create those folders and files if they do not exist for them, but will it cause issues if they already exist, since we can now switch between builds on the same card?
Any ideas??
Oh, and I did search, didnt find anything conclusive though.
As far as I know. Making a copy of the Android folder is enough. Be carefull though, the DCIM folder must be backup aswell if you have made any pictures/video's. The rest of the folders .secure etc are just temp folders.
For backing up you can use the free program Titanium backup aswell (found on market), use the search, someone wrote a nice guide for it some time ago. Can be used very easy to transfer your installed apps from one build to another. Transfering system settings isn't a good idea, especially not if you switching different builds. Only when updating your current build it should be ok (not recommended), but sometimes copying your data.img to your new build is enough to get your applications in the new build.
Machiel187 said:
As far as I know. Making a copy of the Android folder is enough. Be carefull though, the DCIM folder must be backup aswell if you have made any pictures/video's. The rest of the folders .secure etc are just temp folders.
For backing up you can use the free program Titanium backup aswell (found on market), use the search, someone wrote a nice guide for it some time ago. Can be used very easy to transfer your installed apps from one build to another. Transfering system settings isn't a good idea, especially not if you switching different builds. Only when updating your current build it should be ok (not recommended), but sometimes copying your data.img to your new build is enough to get your applications in the new build.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Basically I just want to try out different builds concurrently, switching between them with Exceller.
Data isn much of an issue since most of mine is in the cloud somewhere but its a pain installing some new build only to find the one you just had and spent time configuring, was a hell of a lot better.
Well i'm not entirely sure about where the settings are stored. But my guess is, just backup the android folder and you will be fine (think most is stored in the data.img). Delete all the other folders and switch to your new build. If you don't like it, switching back should be a breeze.
Why don't you just try it once. Change some settings, delete all the folders except for the android folder and boot again, see if the changes you made are still there.
Machiel187 said:
Well i'm not entirely sure about where the settings are stored. But my guess is, just backup the android folder and you will be fine (think most is stored in the data.img). Delete all the other folders and switch to your new build. If you don't like it, switching back should be a breeze.
Why don't you just try it once. Change some settings, delete all the folders except for the android folder and boot again, see if the changes you made are still there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
mainly because there arent enough hours in the day, so many roms, so little time.............
Well, since i'm at work and bored, I tried it for you.
Only imporant folder is the Android folder and our DCIM for your pictures. All the other directories do nothing but temp stuff on my rEVOlution 2.2. Deleted them all and android still booted just fine with all settings and homescreens I had applied.
Hope this awnsers your question now.
Excellent, thank you very much, I will be trying to clear some time later to try an alternate build on the same card. I will post how it goes.
Seems to work, as long as you edit the startup text to include the foldername of your build Exceller lets you switch between builds:
set cmdline "rel_path=YourbuildfolderHere"
Hi, im planning to buy a HTC HD2 these days and i will most likely use Android as the default OS. Now i wonder if the ROM must be installed on SD or can i just boot it? For example if i want to boot Sense rom one time and non sense next time, do i need to reinstall something or just boot it up?
Im really looking forward getting my HD2, ive been watching youtube like crazy now.. gotta go sleep hahah
There are boot loaders you can install in winmo. Some support multiple android builds which will allow you to choose sense/no sense builds on boot up. By doing so though, your data from your sense build will not be available on your non-sense build and vice versa.
Ignore the any "dual boot" app for a minute. Most Android builds I have seen can happily coexist with as many other builds as you have space for on your SD card. Just make sure:
* they reside in distinctly named folders (e.g. rename the build's Android folder to whatever you want)
* the startup.txt in each build's folder refers to the folder name (see instructions in the EBL thread)
As each build comes with clrcad+haret, you can now freely launch whichever build you want with File Explorer.
Note that the builds are not perfectly insulated from each other:
Most builds seem to use an "Android" folder on the SD card for various data and caches. Avoid putting a build in this folder! Be wary that data in this folder may be incompatible between builds, though I have not yet had such a problem. If in doubt, rename the folder to something else (or backup and delete) and reset your build.
Also note that many apps directly use the SD card for storage - this may cause data leakage between builds (I find it's a good thing, as data [like downloaded game files] and configs are basically reused).
I also find it very useful to "temporarily factory reset" a build. Basically, I rename data.img to data.img2 and reboot. This way I can figure out if a problem is caused by my own meddling, or by something in the build, then I rename back and reboot when done. I often keep a backup data.img in which I have only set up the barest essentials (OOBE, Market account, Ti-backup and Root Explorer) for such testing.
Now, for a "dual boot" WM app which supports several build folders, I recommend EBL.
I have a confusion regarding android. this is very general query.
In Computer, first we have to have exe file to install anything and then we click on it to install the app on windows computer generally. when the app is installed on computer, we have installed app files in program files and then a dump (that is exe file) which we keep to install this app on any other computer.
Now, please let me know if this is applicable in android phones also?
I know that in android, there is .apk file instead of .exe file in computer. I observed that after installation apk file disappears. Is this true?
Not sure if in understood well, did you mean if instal anything from SD card? If you are asking that the answer is yes, i install everything from SD card and the apk file stay there after installation.
What if u install any app from Market?
vijay.gupta said:
I have a confusion regarding android. this is very general query.
In Computer, first we have to have exe file to install anything and then we click on it to install the app on windows computer generally. when the app is installed on computer, we have installed app files in program files and then a dump (that is exe file) which we keep to install this app on any other computer.
Now, please let me know if this is applicable in android phones also?
I know that in android, there is .apk file instead of .exe file in computer. I observed that after installation apk file disappears. Is this true?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Even in Android you can see the .apk files under /system/app. Also applications installed by you can be backed up & later restored using software available on market.
"Normally" these apks dissapear when you download from.market, but all of.your apks are stored in your phone, the thing is that you have to hav permission to do that, when you download an apk (the single file) and store it in sd card to install it, the apk is copied to the phone.
Sent from my GT-I5801 using XDA App
But if u back up ur apps as .apk and install them later using softwares (with exception of Titanium backup) u will loose connection between the app and android market (that means no updates)
the best option is to backup ur apps with titanium backup along with user data and restore it using the same
how do i access /system/app? Do I need to root the phone in order to see this directory?
vijay.gupta said:
how do i access /system/app? Do I need to root the phone in order to see this directory?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Download Terminal emulator from market & you are ready to go to /system/app !!!!
You can also download Root Explorer and so the same
Thank all. Can you please confirm what I am writing below:
Suppose I buy a android phone (with android 2.1 so you cannot install apps from SD card) in which I installed an application named XYZ from Market. Now, there is a apk file for XYZ which gets downloaded somewhere in the phone memory and then it gets installed automatically.
Now, I just want to know, where does this apk file go after XYZ is installed? Does it stay in phone memory with the installed files of XYZ.
If it goes to phone memory and not deleted from there, then phone memory
if u install .apk from market it will be stored and installed in /data/app in phone memory. i do not think it is stored twice in the phone.
Do u mean to say that only the installed file gets stored and. apk. File got deleted automatically after getting installed?
vijay.gupta said:
Do u mean to say that only the installed file gets stored and. apk. File got deleted automatically after getting installed?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Remember that an .apk file its a variant of the .jar files when you install an .apk this file gets stored inside the phone along with its necesary dependencies when the app starts, the os reads this file line by line while the app is executed.
In short terms the .apk file its the application itself that need a proper interpreter to run, in that way when you install and app to the phone, it copies this file and links the dependencies, so the .apks downloaded from makret are stored directly inside the app folder, in that way you can extract them from this folder and use it in another android phone.
You are relying too much on the windows ways of things. You see an exe file installion in windows essentially unpacking everything (other things aside) where it is needed and you then often see a bunch of files and folders. This is not what happens in android, the apk file is conserved when installed and can be found in the root part of your phone. Its data/app/ if installed on your phone, mnt/asec. (or something like asec) if installed on your sd card. You can copy that file to your sd card or send it to another device and install it again. I did just that today (I sent an apk to a friend)
anyway i dont think its same if i delete .apk + odex files from /data/app as i uninstall it with titanium backup. i think TB will be delete also data stored by the app inside the database (its the place where the apps are saving data, settings, etc...)
In case you are installing from Android Market:
1. When you are at market, it doesn't ask you to download. You will only get option either to install or update the existing app.
2. If you are a normal user, after installing, you won't be able to see the apk file anywhere on your memory card. But if you are a root user or with the help of special file managers and specific apps like root explorer and terminal emulators, you can locate those spk files in the phone's hidden memory.
3. If you are a root user, or with the help above mentioned type of apps, you can locate the apk files in phone memory and copy it on your memory card and distribute it to your wish.
4. If you are worried for paid apps and losing your phone or apps because of resetting or any other reason then stop worrying. A record of your paid apps is stored in google servers. So, even if you reset your phone or lose your phone, once you log in to a your new android device with the same google account, it will automatically show your paid apps. You don't have to pay for it again. Just need to install it again. This is applicable only if you are paying for the app through android market and you are logging into your android device with the same google account you had before losing your apps.
In case of installing via your SD card:
1. apk files are just like java files (.jad or .jar). You can download it on your PC from various sources and transfer it to your SD card or any of your friends' via USB, bluetooth or any other way.
2. After transfering the apk file to your SD card, it doesn't get automatically installed. You have to click it or open it to install, just like how we double click the exe file in windows.
3. Whether installed or not installed, the apk file you transfer to your SD card will always remain there unless and untill you or someone else delete it or you format your memory card.
4. Once installed, a copy of the same apk file would also be there in your phone's hidden memory, which you can access using special apps.
If you worried about losing your apps, try searching for other apps which backups apk... you can do so at android market. Moreover, also search on the net about having root access on your android device.. it'll let you access files in your phone's memory.
I hope, this would solve down all your queries !!!
Thanks next2 devil. Very gud explanation. It cleared almost all confusions. I have some more confusions that i want to clear out.
1) just a general query that just like exe file got unpacked after double clicking on it and install its files in c: genrally, does the same happen with apk, jad and jar files?
2) just want to clear out that phone memory which is hidden for normal users contains the copy of only those apk files that are currently installed on the phone and not the ones that are uninstalled or not installed at all?
vijay.gupta said:
Thanks next2 devil. Very gud explanation. It cleared almost all confusions. I have some more confusions that i want to clear out.
1) just a general query that just like exe file got unpacked after double clicking on it and install its files in c: genrally, does the same happen with apk, jad and jar files?
2) just want to clear out that phone memory which is hidden for normal users contains the copy of only those apk files that are currently installed on the phone and not the ones that are uninstalled or not installed at all?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. I am not sure about JAD and JAR files, but yes, APK files unpack itself to get installed. You can come to know the exact size/space that would be taken by the app directly from the android market. Details would be given there.
2. Yes, the phone memory would be having copy of files only which is installed. There would be no copy of any apk file which in not installed.
Thanks next2devil. Your response give rise to one more query.
if i compare unpacking logic from windows, there is no need for original exe file to remain in existence after it has been installed and user can delete exe file after installing it. Deleting exe file has no negative impact on the working of installed app. Please let me know if this is also the case with apk files? If yes, then what is the need of apk file to remain in phone memory after it has been installed?
vijay.gupta said:
Thanks next2devil. Your response give rise to one more query.
if i compare unpacking logic from windows, there is no need for original exe file to remain in existence after it has been installed and user can delete exe file after installing it. Deleting exe file has no negative impact on the working of installed app. Please let me know if this is also the case with apk files? If yes, then what is the need of apk file to remain in phone memory after it has been installed?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Short and simple. Deleting the apk file from /data/app removes the app.
Sent from my Lestatious v1.4.5.5 Galaxy 3 FROYO
My wife has a NC and likes it the way it is, i.e. BN store, but I would like to add an app that does not require root. I was thinking that I could use a clockwork recovery SD card with a zip of the app, just like we do with google apps.
Will this work?
How do I make a apk into a flashable zip?
The app is You Version Bible
Thanks
-EDIT-
So I have figured this out, it is possible to install apps (that do not require root) with out rooting anything. I would call it side loading via CWM sd card.
The key was to use the mount paths from ManualNooter (\META-INF\com\google\android\updater-script)
0.1.) Get apks for you apps (either with titanium or copy from 'data/app')
0.2.) Get a apk for 'Nook Color App Manager' (search the android market, can't post links yet)
1.) Start with the ManualNooter file and remove all folders but 'data' and 'META-INF'
2.) Delete all files in the 'data/app' folder
3.) Place the apks you want to install in the 'data/app' folder
4.) Edit '\META-INF\com\google\android\updater-script' using a programing text editor (otherwise you will not see the line spaces) remove all sections except the following: 'Mounting partitions...' 'Installing apks to /data/app...' 'Unmounting Partitions...'
5.) Save the script file and put all this back together in the zip.
6.) Use the CWM sd card to install the file. (if you don't know how, use google)
7.) Remove card and reboot after done. A new app App Manager will show up in your nook app list, go to the home page to run it and add links for your new installed apps.
Note: I did not post an files as I used other peoples work i.e. GMPOWER and apps from the market
So I have done lots of research and even tried this. I think I got the app installed but in this case there is no way to show the app in the stock launcher as it only lists apps it installs.
For reference I will include the procedure to install apps via CMW(Clockwork Mod Recovery)
Thread
You download the file attached to post 17 in the above thread, it is a empty zip that can be filled with your apks that you want. Simply place the new file on a CWM sd card and install the file via regular instructions in the above post.
If I ever find a script to add a link to the stock launcher I will post that and then this might be a usable idea for side loading apps.