ADB
Android Debugging Bridge - Basics
Enable developer mode (Samsung)
- Go to 'Settings'
- Go to 'Device Info'
- Press the 'Buildnumber' 7 times
- Developer mode is now activated
Enable USB debugging (ADB)
- Go to 'Settings'
- Go to 'Developer Options'
- Press to check to enable the 'USB debugging' feature
Minimal ADB and Fastboot (Windows)
- Download Minimal ADB and Fastboot V1.3.1
- Open cmd.exe (start > run > "cmd.exe" > enter)
- Type in cmd the following command:
cd C:\Program Files (x86)\Minimal ADB and Fastboot
Device Factory Reset
- Samsung: Press and hold Home + Volume Up + Power
Search and logging
Search for packages (commands)
adb shell
pm list packages
- Shows all available packages
pm list packages | grep <app.name>
- Shows only the package(s) named <app.name>*
Logcat
adb logcat > C:\Users\wwiki\Desktop\androidlogging\logcat.txt
adb logcat -v long > logfile.txt
Backup
Command parameters
-
- adb backup [-f <file>] [-apk|-noapk] [-shared|-noshared] [-all] [-system|nosystem] [<packages...>]
- Example
adb backup -apk -shared -all -system -f C:\Users\%username%\Desktop\ADBTOOL\AndroidBackups\xcover3-backup.ab
Summary
- -f <file>
Use this to choose where the backup file will be stored, e.g. '-f /backup/mybackup.ab', which will save it at the root of your drive (C:\ for Windows, etc.) in a folder called backup, as a file named 'mybackup.ab'. I recommend using this flag to set a location manually, as with my first backup test, it said that it completed successfully, but I was unable to locate the backup file. I have no idea where it was saved, but it wasn't where it should have been located.
- -apk | -noapk
This flags whether or not the APKs should be included in the backup or just the apps' respective data. I personally use -apk just in case the app isn't available in the Market, so that I don't have to go hunt it down again. The default is -noapk.
This flag is used to "enable/disable backup of the device's shared storage / SD card contents; the default is noshared.", which for the Nexus I would certainly flag to -shared, but from my test, it did not restore all of the contents of my internal storage, so I recommend backing up music, pictures, video, and other internal storage items manually, just to be on the safe side. The default is -noshared.
- -all
This flag is just an easy way to say to backup ALL apps. The packages flag (further on) can be used to choose individual packages, but unless you're just wanting to backup a specific application, use -all for a full system backup.
- -system | -nosystem
This flag sets whether or not the -all flag also includes system applications or not. I used -system, but this is probably unnecessary, and I would almost guess that it is safer to use -nosystem, but use your own judgment on this. The default is -system.
- <packages_>
Here you can list the package names (e.g. com.google.android.apps.plus) specifically that you would like to backup. Use this only if you're looking to backup a specific application.
Restore backup through ABD
adb restore C:\Users\wwiki\Desktop\androidbackups\backupfile
Install / uninstall apps
Install app
adb install C:\Users\wwiki\Desktop\eva\AppLockpro_1.49.apk
Uninstall app
adb uninstall com.appslocker.pro
Shell clear data associated with app
adb shell pm clear com.appslocker.pro
Push image or file to device
adb push C:\Users\wwiki\Desktop\eva\MyPhotograph.png /sdcard/Download/
Common directory paths
System directories
- /data
- /cache
- /system
External storage directories
- /storage/sdcard0
- /storage/sdcard0/Alarms
- /storage/sdcard0/DCIM
- /storage/sdcard0/Download
- /storage/sdcard0/Movies
- /storage/sdcard0/Music
- /storage/sdcard0/Notifications
- /storage/sdcard0/Pictures
- /storage/sdcard0/Podcasts
- /storage/sdcard0/Ringtones
Application directories
- /data/data/package/cache
- /data/data/package/files
- /data/data/package
Application external storage directories
- /storage/sdcard0/Android/data/package/cache
- /storage/sdcard0/Android/data/package/files/Alarms
- /storage/sdcard0/Android/data/package/files/DCIM
- /storage/sdcard0/Android/data/package/files/Download
- /storage/sdcard0/Android/data/package/files/Movies
- /storage/sdcard0/Android/data/package/files/Music
- /storage/sdcard0/Android/data/package/files/Notifications
- /storage/sdcard0/Android/data/package/files/Pictures
- /storage/sdcard0/Android/data/package/files/Podcasts
- /storage/sdcard0/Android/data/package/files/Ringtones
Analytical device data
Useful commands
Clear launcher
adb shell pm clear com.android.launcher
adb shell pm clear com.android.launcher