running custom executable from zip files on wp7 - Windows Phone 7 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I am trying to run a custom executable on my schubert. I can send the file to my email as a zip and then open it. Wp7 gives a warning saying 'do you want to run the executable' I click 'yes' but nothing really happens.
can we convert a silverlight xap file which is actually a zip file into an exeutable and run it?
Also is it possible to depoly an app from within the phone?

There are efforts underway to either run native apps (EXEs) or to install apps (from XAP files) on the phone itself. Currently, I don't think either is possible. Feel free to lend a hand, though. A little searching on the forum will turn up the relevant threads, but I know that a lot of work has been discussed in the DllImport Project thread on this sub-forum.

People have been able to make native apps, but they are DLL's, not EXE's. TouchExplorer/TouchXperience/a few registry editors, File Explorers are all Native. Although there a problem with native Apps & the Multitasking Registry Hack. Once one Native app is loaded, no other will start up unless you restart.

Related

Disabling Access To Games

Hi - is there any way on PocketPC 2003 to disable access to Solitaire and Jawbreaker. I'm pretty sure I can't remove them all together as they're in the ROM - but some registry hack to prevent access to them would be sufficient.
Try this...
You don't list what device or WM versions you are using, but here are two possible solutions you could try:
1) Read through the forums specific to your device, and learn how to cook your own ROM, removing the offending software.
2) Any file in your ROM can be "overwritten" by syncing to your pc and draggin a file with the same name to the folder containing the file you wish to replace. IE. I have a small, written for the pda application, which when run, displays a pop-up saying "This software has been removed because I do not wish for anyone using this device to have fun doing so!" or similar. I then name it solitare.exe and drag it into the Windows directory from my PC. It asks me am I sure I wish to overwrite the file, I click yes and bam! the file is "replaced". (I believe what actually happens is the OS delinks the file and places the new file in the old ones placeholder on the filesystem, it is still in the ROM as that is unwritable unless flashing, but it is no longer accessable, which is what you want to happen.
tried & failed...
I've created a solitare.exe as you suggested and placed it in the Windows directory - it doesn't seem to get run when executed however - The original game still gets run - I fear I may be doing something stupid.
Re: tried & failed...
gremlin said:
I've created a solitare.exe as you suggested and placed it in the Windows directory - it doesn't seem to get run when executed however - The original game still gets run - I fear I may be doing something stupid.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why do you want to block them?
Re: Try this...
pneuma said:
You don't list what device or WM versions you are using, but here are two possible solutions you could try:
1) Read through the forums specific to your device, and learn how to cook your own ROM, removing the offending software.
2) Any file in your ROM can be "overwritten" by syncing to your pc and draggin a file with the same name to the folder containing the file you wish to replace. IE. I have a small, written for the pda application, which when run, displays a pop-up saying "This software has been removed because I do not wish for anyone using this device to have fun doing so!" or similar. I then name it solitare.exe and drag it into the Windows directory from my PC. It asks me am I sure I wish to overwrite the file, I click yes and bam! the file is "replaced". (I believe what actually happens is the OS delinks the file and places the new file in the old ones placeholder on the filesystem, it is still in the ROM as that is unwritable unless flashing, but it is no longer accessable, which is what you want to happen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey pneuma.
2) Isn't working for me either. I thought gremlin was doing something wrong, but I just tried it myself, and, although my "fake" solitaire.exe (a renamed app) file is there, so is the original solitaire.exe. Tapping on the Solitaire icon under games runs the game as if nothing happened, although just opening the Games folder would tell you that it didn't work (the Solitaire icon is still the cards)
What did you do that we didn't? I'm using a Universal.
Peculiar...
Personally I haven't tried this specific to the games, but there was a nasty spash screen in the new WM5 for my Himalaya that I replaced in the method detailed above. It would appear however that solitaire might be a system program, as the following files:
\windows\solitaire.lnk
\windows\start menu\solitaire.lnk
have the following Target: ":MSSOLITAIRE"
but don't despair!
If you have resco explorer or some similar mobile based explorer replacement, try edit the links to point to the replacement exe, or even delete the links altogether, as well as the Games directory under "\windows\start menu\" (might not work deleting them though).
If the deletion or edits don't work you may well have to do the same trick, replacing these .lnk files with something else.
--Marc
Thanks to pneuma I think I've got a workable solution without having to hack into the ROM!
I've created two programs (using PocketBuilder) called Solitare.exe and Jawbreaker.exe which just pop up a response window saying "This Application Has Been Disabled"
I've also created two .lnk files - solitare.lnk and jawbreaker.lnk which contain:
22#"\Windows\Solitare.exe"
and
23#"\Windows\Jawbreaker.exe"
respectively
In my boot process I copy the executables and .lnk files to the \Windows directory and also copy the .lnk files to the
\Windows\Start Menu\Program\Games\
directory.
I don't think our users (sorry to diss them) are bright enough to figure out they have to remove all of these files to get the games working again.
Thanks for all your help.
Gremlin.
gremlin said:
(sorry to diss them)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But you're dissing them all the way by treating them like this.
Why shouldn't they be able to play Solitair or JawBreaker every now and then during a coffee of lunch break. A bit of light releif never did anyone any harm.
I'm glad I don't work with you. (Bah Humbug)
I have no say in how the users are treated - I am merely a developer - I get told what needs to be done and I do it. I can offer my suggestions at design time but ultimately it is not my decision how the users are treated on the shop floor.
If I was in management it would be a different story.
I'm lovely to work with - I make the tea and everything
gremlin said:
If I was in management it would be a different story.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Point taken. :wink:
I would argue that it's hardly worth the effort just to piss people off.
I'll have my tea with milk and no sugar.

LNK files useless?

hi,
please advise if i am wrong with my thoughts.
i think it is useless and a waste of performance to use LNK files (at least the ms ones).
lets have a look at the calendar.lnk:
if you want to launch the calendar app, you are launching first the calendar.lnk. the lnk file points to a registry setting (mscalendar). so the launcher (or systemhandler or whatever) needs to lookup there to findout what the programm-name and the required parameters are (in this case "poutlook.exe calendar". now after a while of doing nothing effectively the system finally begins to execute poutlook.exe calendar...
so whats the point of using lnk files?
i see so many launchers, programms even tweak utilities which make use of lnk files.
e.g. if you change one of your softkeys with a tweak utility to "phone", it does the same useless thing: it points to a link file instead directly to cprog.exe.
hopefully i am totally wrong but then please give me some advise.
thx
lnk is shortcut files
same as in windows
in windows if you want to start your program from the desktop
and dont want to copy the tons of files the exe file needs to start
to the desktop too you have a shortcut to the exe file
Some more on the subject:
The use of lnk files does not slow down the loading, in fact it can make it much more officiant.
Take Skype for example: it has a large executable (several MB). If you were to place that exe under "programs" to launch it it will take the system several seconds (quite noticeable period of time) just to find the icon inside the exe so even if you were just scrolling through your programs the device would appear to hang while the icon was loading.
A solution to that (which now became official part of the program installation) was to keep the icon in smaller exe (a resource dll or just plain ico file can also be used) and the lnk will "state" that the icon is not in the main exe.
Another use of the lnk files is the one you mentioned your self:
poutlook.exe calendar
Without lnk files you would be forced to type any parameters manually every time just like in the good old dos days.
By the way, the process you described, lnk-registry-exe does not take that long on current devices.
Just try launching a given exe directly and check if you notice any difference in lag.
If anything, it is the certificate check combined with relatively slow read speeds of flash memory that make WM 5 and 6 devices look sluggish.
levenum,
thanks a lot for your time and explanation.
sure, i was aware that lnk files help you to launch more easily programs with longer command strings when you use the default launcher.
but how about a different launcher (e.g. rltoday), where you setup once your config within that launcher. would you really point to the calendar.lnk file (which points to registry, which points to an exe file) instead of typing "poutlook.exe -calendar" directly into the launching path within rltoday?
anyway, if you say that there is no time lag, the discussion is more or less of "academical nature".
thanks
oliver
I am not familiar with rltoday, but it all comes down to how the programmer implemented the launcher.
There are two different commands, CreateProcess designed specifically to launch executable files and for that purpose only.
SellExecuteEx that acts exactly like a click in file explorer. The writer of the launcher has the option of which to use and I suspect they often use the second command.
The reason is simple: they want to give the user as much options as possible. If you want to bother and look up the exe and its command line, good for you, go for it. But what if you are a regular user who just wants to get that stupid icon on his today screen?
He wouldn't know or care about lnk->registry->exe. He just knows to look under windows\start menu\programs for something familiar.
Also having to interpret input of different types may be extra work so some launcher creators may want to only allow lnk and let the system understand and run their content.
That way they do not need to implement options for different icons, command line parameters and control panel applets.

[help needed] terminology and a clear answer?

Im a bit of a noob when it comes to Android.
im more a windows mobile person however....
For xmas i recieved an android tablet which is an awesome toy! but ive had issues with making the widgets work on the home screen - they dont show up.
Ive read forums and forums all day and each forum points back to xda:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=780828&page=13
Looks great, downloaded the apk tried to copy it to the system/app folder but it wont let me do it.
Ive managed to confuse myself after hours of reading so hoping someone can give me some ideas.
Ive read about needing the device 'rooted' i still dont understand what this is n how i do it.
Ive also read the file is to be pushed into the folder??
Ive downloaded the terminal emulator, file explorer etc... tried copy/paste, move, cut etc... all with the same answer of insufficent access.
The terminal emulator on the other hand i cannot use as its all touch screen with no hard buttons once running i cannot type into the program.
surely theres an easier way to load things into the system folders?
Sorry if its the wrong section or what seems a simple ask for some direction, I'm used to windows mobile and htc sence modding where you can just delete and replace files at will
Hey,
Root is like the administrator in Windows. By default, you have a user account, not a root or admin account. And therefore you're access permissions are limited. You do not have write permissions to most internal directories and are pretty much limited to the sd card, which is kinda like 'home' in linux or 'my documents' in windows. Also, cannot run applications that require su (superuser, ie: root, admin).
Rooting is the act of accessing the root user account, or admin account. Like 'jail-breaking' in the apple world.
How to root your android depends on which model you have.
For installing the widget app, as long as its an .apk file, you should be able to just click on it and be prompted to install it.
To access your widgets, should be able to log press on a blank area of the home screen and get a option box to select from. Or if you have a 'menu' button there should be an add option.
To use the Terminal, long press 'menu' and your keyboard will popup. Or click menu and there will be an option for the keyboard, also settings to change color, text size and others.
Sent from my ERIS using XDA App
Also, in the terminal, it will use linux commands, not windows commands.
You can google android commands and get a list of common commands.
Good luck. Have fun. If you don't have some linux experience, it may seem like there's a steep learning curve, but most things will become easy after a little tinkering.
Sent from my ERIS using XDA App
im finding this an incredibly steep curve - a bit too steep lol
I would recommend searching <(name of device) root guide> and then you will find your way around.
But, i don't think you need root, root is for when you need to install applications that you need higher permissions to control system settings. Also to install different versions of android.
Your problem seems to be only a bug. If you want to install an application that is not on the market, you just go to your settings and turn on installing from unknown sources.
You don't need to put it in system apps, the apk is like an .exe, just put it on your sd card, install a file manager program like ASTRO, and then open that app, go to the directory you transfered the file, and click it, ASTRO will give you the ability to install it.
patriotaus said:
I would recommend searching <(name of device) root guide> and then you will find your way around.
But, i don't think you need root, root is for when you need to install applications that you need higher permissions to control system settings. Also to install different versions of android.
Your problem seems to be only a bug. If you want to install an application that is not on the market, you just go to your settings and turn on installing from unknown sources.
You don't need to put it in system apps, the apk is like an .exe, just put it on your sd card, install a file manager program like ASTRO, and then open that app, go to the directory you transfered the file, and click it, ASTRO will give you the ability to install it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont think rooting is essential to do this but from what ive read - it helps.
the app in question is this: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=780828
this should replace the file on my system which doesnt work. unless anyone has a suggestion to get the same item by installing an apk to achieve as per the instructions state "copy into system/app and set permissions"

[Q] Pull a XAP off a phone?

Is there a way to pull XAPs off of your phone? I'd like to pull a few apps with ugly icons off and edit their icons (it's fairly easy, I've done it before with stuff off of XDA).
... people keep asking this. The reasons vary but the question has been asked a lot.
The phone doesn't even store the XAP files, so no. It's like asking if you can get the "setup.exe" out of somebody's copy of a PC game.
However, the files in the XAP, and for your particular case the images in the XAP, are unpacked onto the phone's filesystem in \Applications\Install\<APP_GUID>\Install\. You can use an app like WP7 Root Tools to access them. I can't promise it'll work with marketplace apps (the binaries, at least, are signed and the signatures are checked every time the app is loaded) but it's quite possible there are no hash checks on content files.
Advanced Config allows you to change the icons for any app. If it's a free app there is a program floating around here that allows you to download the xaps to your computer from the marketplace then you can use winrar or whatever zip program you want and replace the app icon.

[Q] Repacking .XAP on the phone

Hi
I have big problem with wp7 PC Softwares like 7market OR ezDeploy because it doesnt run on my pc
Now,is there any way to repack apps in the phone (like in File Explorer) ??
It's not really practical at all, no. One app can't (legitimately, without hacks or a custom ROM) access the filesystem enough read another app's install location. Rebuilding a XAP file (assuming you can access the install directory) is theoretically possible, but I'm having a hard time seeing many legitimate reasons to do so.
Thanks 4 your answer my friend
But how Private Marketplace repacking after download the app???
XAP files are just ZIP archives; they're easy to unpack, modify, and repack. As I said, you *could* re-create them from the install location (you'd have a to tweak a few things, but it woulnd't be that hard).
As for "Private Marketplace", I'm not familiar with this tool but, from your description, it sounds like it downloads the marketplace XAP from Microsoft's servers, then repackages it so it can be sideloaded. That's interesting (and potentially sketchy, but I'll assume these are only free apps) but I don't see what it has to do with repackaging XAPs on the phone.
What is your goal, here?
By the way, the "re-package a XAP on the phone" thing has come up several times before. Please use Search before posting.

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