Hi!
Yeah, yeah, I know, I know, I'm a noob... Well, sort of actually coz even if it's my first public message I've been roaming this forum for quite a while. And thanks to you guys I understood how to root, how to flash a CD Rom and so on. Without disturbing anyone, ain't it nice?:good:
But now I have a question, I couldn't find the answer anywhere on the web hence this post.
I'm rooted on both my Galaxy Mini and my Galaxy Tab P6210 and I noticed that some apks leave files like webview.db, googlestats etc. on the data/data/whateverapk/databases folders.
On the Mini I found how to prevent those annoying files from polluting my system(yep, I don't like cookies and similar spying stuff) by changing the databases folder's perms to --x --- ---, or even sometimes -- --- ---. For the most stubborn apks I rwx --- --- the databases folder, then I erase all the text in the unwanted file and finally I lock the file's perms to --- --- ---. It works with most apks including Dolphin Mini and Opera Mini, cool. Only one or two resist and FC if I attempt to modify too much the perms but it's OK, I don't use then that often and I don't mind to delete the trash manually.
The problem is that on the Galaxy Tab it doesn't work on most apks, it makes them FC. I've tried all the possible perms combinations but nope, FC.
I guess, since the concerned apks are the same on my Mini and on my Tab, that it has to do with the OS, Gingerbread for the Mini, Honeycomb for the Tab. I noticed as well that some of the files on the Tab are different, on the Mini it's mostly googleanalytics.db, webview.db and webviewCache.db files, whereas on the Tab I have, apart from the above mentioned ones, some webview.db-shm, webview.db-wal, webcookieschromium.db and webcookieschromiumprivate.db files.
I guess .db has something to do with dropbox, but I don't use any dropbox, and I even deleted the (empty by the way) folder in my system. When I open those files I can see that they have something to do as well with sqlite, but I don't have any built in sqlite. I have one that has been installed by an apk in the /xbin folder but I erased it and it didn't change anything (don't worry, I put the sqlite back afterwards). It's very annoying, those files spy on us guys, they record all the web sites we visited, the email(s) or facebook accounts we use etc.
For now I have put bookmarks on my home screen and I delete manually the troublesome files just after I opened the relevant apk but hey, it's not very convenient!
Anyone knows how I can prevent them from coming back everytime I use an apk?
Thanks a lot for your help, and sorry for the long post:angel:
Already 3 days and over 50 views but no answer yet, what's wrong?
Is it that my question is of absolute no interest?
Or that the way I explained my problem was not clear?
Or that no one knows how to do it?
Or a bit of the 3?
It seems that you want to remove unnecessary garbage files that have been left out by some applications. I recommend that you use SD Maid, free is good enough, but of course PRO is better.
Anyway, SD Maid can clean File Corpses and clean the system files like the ff:
/data/log
/data/tombstones
/data/system/dropbox
/cache
Temporary Files
Log Files
Gallery Thumbnails(This one can really build up even with just the same files. I'm not exactly sure as to why it adds again and again but it saves me a lot. Like 300~600MB)
Empty Directories
LOST.DIR Directories
It can also optimize DBs. All of these are available on the free version.
As for cookies in browser, you can uncheck "accept cookies" but this might cause some websites to malfunction or not work.
Other things like cache you can use History Eraser, One Tap Cleaner and etc.
Hope I helped.
I think most don't want to delete them because they are normal caches and cookies, also some apps' settings are stored on those database files. I don't see any advantages in deleting those files (apart from saving couple of MBs storage space...) They aren't any "bad" or "spying" files.
By the way, the .db means database, not dropbox.
Sent from my GT-P6210
miksumortti said:
I think most don't want to delete them because they are normal caches and cookies, also some apps' settings are stored on those database files. I don't see any advantages in deleting those files (apart from saving couple of MBs storage space...) They aren't any "bad" or "spying" files.
By the way, the .db means database, not dropbox.
Sent from my GT-P6210
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Correct me If I'm wrong but it is necessary to clean caches and cookies once in a while because it can hog the device. Sometimes old caches are stored even if they are of no use anymore. It's like the principle of filling up your internal storage too much that you can see a dramatic decrease in performance. These kind of files updates a lot and does not seem to overwrite existing files or at least delete those that are unnecessary. It is not needed however to clean it every after use. Just once or twice a week is good enough.
Thanks for your answer but it's not what I was meaning, let me explain more clearly.
Take any app, say a mp3 cutter. It doesn t need any internet connection to work but when one downloads it one sees that it requires internet access permission. One thinks it s ok and one downloads it. But then in the mp3 cutter databases one finds those webview.db files, and this is why I say that it spies on us coz why this mp3 cutter needs such databases? The same with offline dictionaries, or one tap cleaner (a very bad one by the way, put it through privacy blocker and you ll be amazed of all the infos it takes from you), or mp3 players etc. On browsers like dolphin it s the same story, and when one views those files one sees that they record all the sites one has been through although the apk doesn t need it (I know it for sure coz I delete the files before my browsing cession and it still works). Disabling the cookies doesn t help, it just prevents you from accessing web sites that need cookies like gmail, yahoo and the like. Apps like LBE or privacy blocker show partly what those apks do in our back, taking our IMEI number, our contacts, reading our sms and sending everything to who knows where and for who knows what purpose. But they don t show the databases leaks...
As I said in my first post another parameter is that for a same apk, with the same version, let s say dolphin 2.3, on my Galaxy Mini running GB I managed to block the perms and thus to prevent those files to pollute my system but on my Tab running HC it doesn t work and FC the apks. Plus the files are not the same, there are more of them and with different extensions on HC (again using the same apk on both GB and HC).
So the answer lies somewhere in the OS but I couldn t find where due to my limited knowledge and that s why I m here
Any hint or idea on how to eradicate those files from their source? Of course one can delete them manually and that s what I do but it would be so nice not to have to do it all the time. It s not about saving space, those files weight next to nothing, it s about privacy.
By the way I deleted most google apks and this is already a big relief. Other setting I did include blocking all the perms of the usagestats folder, of the throttle folder (well I just left r--, ---, --- otherwise it bootloops). Download testlogging and you will see for exemple of many spying stuff the google apks put on your tablet...
Anyway, back to the topic:
how can I permanently block those files? Many people on this forum and elsewhere are very concerned with their privacy, to the extend that some create privacy watching apks, but to my knowledge nobody ever bothered about those databases files although they represent a big privacy hole in our systems...
Thanks a lot for your help!
Send from my barebone Galaxy Tab P6210, 34 system apks left and counting down
Apart for some real serious stuff, apps need some way to persist information. If you prevent them to, you should expect fc when they try, no?
That's too much paranoia for me.
Enviado de meu MB525 usando o Tapatalk 2
Graffiti Exploit said:
Correct me If I'm wrong but it is necessary to clean caches and cookies once in a while because it can hog the device. Sometimes old caches are stored even if they are of no use anymore. It's like the principle of filling up your internal storage too much that you can see a dramatic decrease in performance. These kind of files updates a lot and does not seem to overwrite existing files or at least delete those that are unnecessary. It is not needed however to clean it every after use. Just once or twice a week is good enough.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, the caches can get bloated if the app doesn't remove unnecessary things automatically. In that case a clean is ok.
Sent from my GT-P6210
@unclefab
If the mp3 cutter that you mentioned in your example has ads it needs the internet permission for them, and some ad providers make the database files automatically. They just contain some ad web address cache and only "personal" information saved is your language setting, at least from my experience.
And blocking the apps saving the information doesn't help with privacy really much because they can still access the info, they just can't save it in the databases. A malicious app can send the info without saving it too.
Sent from my GT-P6210
leodfs said:
Apart for some real serious stuff, apps need some way to persist information. If you prevent them to, you should expect fc when they try, no?
That's too much paranoia for me.
Enviado de meu MB525 usando o Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have to agree with this one. Messing up with permissions can cause issues to certain applications and it really seems that he is paranoid.
If your concerned about such privacy, you shouldn't download the app on the first place. Although some developers get rid of such permissions because of some people's concern, this is unlikely to happen to every application. HC is a different platform from Gingerbread and so such issues that you have mentioned may occur.
Have you tried firewalls like DroidWall? I'm not sure if it really works, but it might lessen your burden from manually deleting files or privacy concerns like your data being accessed/used. Again, not sure.
Don t worry, I m not paranoid, my Tab is well protected, I have rather intricated settings between Privacy Blocker, LBE (by the way and FYI, LBE conflicts with Droidwall, both can t work together) Rom Tool Box, Logging Test and Permissions denied, so I don t think that any apk can steal any info from me!!!
Actually it s more a matter of principle, why apks like let s say Dolphin or Opera record all the sites I ve surfed, eventhough they don t need to do so (coz they still work after I deleted those files manually). And about the exemple given above, why apks which don t display adds need to have an internet permission and to put such webview.db files in the databases? Of course I m not obliged to download them, and actually I ve already erased many such apks, but for some I don t have any choice, specially for dictionaries (I travel a lot and need such stuff).
Plus it s a matter of curiosity, where the heck lies the source of those files? And why can I block those files easily on GB but not on HC? Yes, it s because the OS is different, I know, but how does it work? I don t know so much about Android OS but I like it and I want to learn more.
So back to the question, how can I tweak my system in order to prevent those files from appearing everytime use an apk? There are enough experts on thsi forum so hopefully someone knows the answer.
And BTW, when I see the difference between GB and HC, I mean more spying from the Google/Android OS, then I feel less eager to upgrade to ICS coz for sure it will get even worse, not to mention JB...
You're not saving passwords in your browsers/webview-based-apps, right?...
Do you mind explaining why webview.db databases have you concerned?
Thanks.
They are saving information from him, that's why. Nothing can save his information, I think that is the point.
Dude relax, there are spy apps, there loggers, but you are blacklisting all webview based ones.
And as some guy told before, if they want to spy you, they don't need to save anything.
But seriously, you don't need to study much on Android OS to known why what you are doing are causing fc. Take any app in any platform that have internal Conf and db files. Corrupt them and mess with permissions, you should get something similar.
Enviado de meu MB525 usando o Tapatalk 2
Thank you for explaining me why they Fc but I had understood it by myself from the very begining, I m what you call a noob but I m not brain dead:silly:
All what I want to know is what generates those files in the OS, and how to prevent it from happening, provided that it s possible.
Apart from that it s ok for me if other people don t mind having files in their databases which record their web activity, and if they don t feel uneasy to know that the more advanced the Android OS the more files there is and the more difficult it is to block them (I said already 2 times that on Ginger Bread I block all those files and that the apks don t FC, which prove that the files are not required by the apks to work normally).
Thanks
I am not calling you noob buddy, but you were trying to solve a problem with no elegance at all.
Contact developers and ask why they are using webview and that you are not comfortable with files it creates. But if you use a program that uses it you have to accept those files, simple.
A lot of details of stuff like webview are API specific so changes version to version. So access of those files may changes on each version of android, as well as file location, name or how to handle errors. So the fact that what you did worked on gb, helps you with no conclusions.
Enviado de meu MB525 usando o Tapatalk 2
I didn t mean thay you (tu) called me a noob but that you in general (vos) call newbies noobs. Sorry for the misunderstanding, it s one of the many limitations of english compated to latin or germanic languages
So it sounds like what I was asking about is impossible to do, well, well, I will see what I can do with apktool, maybe I can change something in the manifest or ressources or I don t know where. Just for info, here s what s insideone of those files when it s newly created and before it starts spying:
SQLite format 3@
-� g
�� �k �6 � ` � ��" �tablepasswordpassword CREATE TABLE password (_id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, host TEXT, username TEXT, password TEXT, UNIQUE (host, username) ON CONFLICT REPLACE)/
C indexsqlite_autoindex_password_1password �+ �)tablehttpauthhttpauth CREATE TABLE httpauth (_id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, host TEXT, realm TEXT, username TEXT, password TEXT, UNIQUE (host, realm) ON CONFLICT REPLACE)/C indexsqlite_autoindex_httpauth_1httpauth
�" �tableformdataformdataCREATE TABLE formdata (_id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, urlid INTEGER, name TEXT, value TEXT, UNIQUE (urlid, name, value) ON CONFLICT IGNORE)/C indexsqlite_autoindex_formdata_1formdataR}tableformurlformurlCREATE TABLE formurl (_id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, url TEXT)J%cindexcookiesIndexcookiesCREATE INDEX cookiesIndex ON cookies (path)�� tablecookiescookiesCREATE TABLE cookies (_id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, name TEXT, value TEXT, domain TEXT, path TEXT, expires INTEGER, secure INTEGER)W--ctableandroid_metadataandroid_metadataCREATE TABLE android_metadata (locale TEXT) ��en_GB
@unclefab
Even if the webview.db has always all the fields it doesn't mean they need to have a value or string. For example the "password" field is almost always emtpy.
Sent from my GT-P6210
A little old, but worth the reading:
forensicsferret.wordpress.com/2010/09/30/android-browser-forensics/
Sent from my GT-P6210 using Tapatalk 2
Why would I use such apks?
I said it already, it s because I need them. I deleted some and replaced them by similar apks more privacy friendly, but for some I don t have any choice. For exemple browser. I managed to lock the perms on opera mini and it still works but you know opera mini, on some sites it doesn t display correctly so I have to use dolphin whose perms can t be locked. Talking about it I will try boat browser, it s not as good as dolphin but if it doesn t have those files it could be a solution...
Same stories with dictionaries. I m a language teacher who lives in asia and I need far eastern languages dictionaries. Try to find a thai english or thai indonesian dictionary which can work without those files... BTW if you are interested I found a good english chinese which works without any .db garbage;-)
Thanks for the links, interesting article, some food for thoughts...
Related
This has been bothering me for quite a while, so I conjured a little story to help sooth my frustration.
Lets say my Android device is the new tenant of a nicely formated loft, this loft being 16gb of square space. To commemorate this new exciting space my device throws a house party. Most of the Apps he invites are pretty well behaved, but some start spilling drinks, then puking on the carpet, then having an orgy, then bukkake-ing the root directory. After discovering such acts, the device politely requests the disruptive guests force quit and leave. "I need more space on my phone." the device replied as each questioned on their way out. To his disbelief, NONE of the Apps cleaned up their mess! Even worse it seems some of the classier Apps, though more organized seem to have been influenced too. Unfortunately the device is forced to live with it, as the police force stopped responding to calls in his neighborhood. One man tries, but it always returns to a mess.
I hope that entertained someone.
i know exactly how you feel... there is at least 7 unused folders just wasting space on my phone. not to mention random mp3's hidden deep within my phone...
PhxkinMassacre said:
i know exactly how you feel... there is at least 7 unused folders just wasting space on my phone. not to mention random mp3's hidden deep within my phone...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hope you understand about the unused folders and NOT the bukkake-ing!!
hello, nice story!
I won't say that I am even close to being a developer but I do develop some apps and the thing that I wan't to point out is that apps do not run when they are installed or uninstalled. It's not each application job to clear up the mess it may have created but package manager's which apparently leaves some files be just in case you would like to reinstall the app later(?)...
I would propose to look for a more efficient package manager or doorman/janitor for your loft
That's why I don't invite the guy whos only existence is to make farting noises!
Very good point. However, one thing I don't know is if uninstalling through the market cleans up the SD card better than using a third party mass uninstall app. Something you may want to experiment with.
Back at it again...
Here I am again, and I still don't flippin get it!
After reading some of your comments I realized my main point kind of got glazed over(no pun intended @Scudderb)
My big issue is that there's no hierarchy in place for this crap. In windows, program files are stored in the 'Program Files' directory. In Android (and I credit google and the developers for this sloppy BS) Apps are just throwing all their **** in with my stuff on the ROOT.
How is this acceptable. Seriously, HOW? And if its all cache files and/or temporary documents than WHY THE **** ISN'T ALL THIS CRAP BEING PUT INTO A TEMP/CACHE FOLDER.
I'm PISSED! Why does every app I install get to put their own folder on the ROOT WITH the FOLDERS and FILES that actually matter to me ex: like my music, pictures, movies, documents (OH and by the way, a lot of apps developers do a REALLY ****ty job with their NAMING CONVENTIONS so the folders being created may or may not even look related to the app that put it there!)
::end rant::
My apologies for the colorful language, folder structure and hierarchy are something I design as a web designer so when I see this crap going on in my phone like the inmates are running the asylum... I get angry.
Today I was cleaning up my SD card for the umteen'th time, and found that Foursquare was dumping its temp files directly onto the root of my directory. I blew my top and had to get it out of my system... so..
A MESSAGE TO ALL THE APPS PULLING THESE SHENANIGANS: GROW UP!
The problem here is that it's hard to do it right
For custom data, files are supposed to be saved into "/data/data/com.appname/blah" (that's from the top of my head, could differ slightly). That's the directory to use for data files, but there's one big issue with it: it's on the internal memory storage. We all know that internal memory on Android (without custom ROMs) is.. limited. That's probably why most devs are using SD for larger files.
There's also the "Android/data/com.package_name.blah/blah" directory on the SD card. This directory should be used by apps to store files into and is automatically deleted when the user removes the associated app (but only when you're running Froyo or greater).
The issue with this approach is that users (and developers too, when testing the app) will lose all their data when removing an old version of a specific app. Let's say there's a bug with the Market again and the app suddenly gets uninstalled. User will have to reinstall, result: data will be all gone. That's only one of the many doom scenarios.
I can't speak for other developers, but that's more or less the reason why I started to use a common directory outside of the preferred ones when I was doing apps. It's not a great situation, I fully agree. But would you rather have your data accidentally deleted?
If anyone knows a good way to get around this issue, I'd love to know more about it...
orly
Thanks for the reply @Stripeymilk
I can think of multiple solutions:
#1 Development community adopts a universal directory for files deemed 'User' or 'Save' data that should be stored for future use. (or Google creates this for developers)
#2 Development community adopts the practice of allowing users to pick the directory users want to store an apps data in. (prompt at app's first start)
#3 Store files/data in the cloud.
#4 Users dump trash in the lobbys/living-rooms of developer's and see how quickly they find a solution.
#5 USE THE "Android/data/com.package_name.blah/" FOLDER WHEN ALL YOU'RE REALLY DOING IS STORING CACHE/TEMP FILES!!!
BOTTOM LINE: Its not hard to do it right, Its just hard to get people to do it.
You make it sound so easy
1) I'm all for it, but Google needs to put its weight behind an approach like that because otherwise people will say "I like /Data better than /data or /Mydata or /MyData". It's a bit like coding conventions: everyone wants to be different.
2) Good for techy people, not so good for "normal" users. Could make it easier with a small "file manager", but that's too much work for indie devs. Could be a nice idea for a new open source project though.
3) Great idea, could actually work if the associated account would be created automatically (like in Cut the Rope for Android with Scoreloop), but:
- The backup functionality in Android for storing data in the cloud is available for API level 8 and greater, making it of not so much use when you're targeting API level 5 or 6 and greater. Could be fixed by using something like Google Storage combined with Jets3t instead, but that would be useless for apps written in C++, like many games are.
- Cloud storage isn't free. Developers can't pay for that as it would be too expensive. If every Android user would've gotten free cloud storage from Google it could be a nice alternative, but (yeah, there's always a but) most current users don't have that.
4) If you're prepared to send your trash by plane to another country, go for it!
5) Agreed. Useful for temp data.
I'm not trying to make it sound easy, believe me I know how it isn't. I'm trying to make it sound simple, because really.. it is...
In response:
1) I agree and this is exactly what I mean by the real hard part is getting people to do it. This requires widespread endorsement by developers big and small - that this is a 'best practice' that should be adhered to. I think the gate swings both ways though.
example: Twitter didn't invent hash tags, their users did, and with its widespread adoption, Twitter adopted/implemented it too.
2) Another good point, though this process can be curated to drive the user in the right direction (holding their hand). The XBOX 360 does this for every game you play, the first thing it does is ask you which storage device you want to use for game saves.
example: in combination with solution # 1, the default folder the app saves to could be '/data/theAppsName' and the prompt could say "This app saves files to your SD CARD in '/data/theAppName'. Would you like to choose a new location?" [Yes] [No] [?]. The [Yes] option brings up a simple file manager, the [No] option uses that location, the [?] option brings up an easy to understand write up on what its asking and why its asking it.
3) We'll get there eventually, my point really was if you've got the resources, why not. Its a solution better than #1 and #2
4) I plan on sending human clones to create trash individually and exponentially
5) AMIRITE~!
In all seriousness though, thank you @Stripeymilk for taking the time to go in depth and have a conversation about this. I seriously think it doesn't take an act of Godogle to solve this (to what I beleive) is a big issue!
I can't agree more with you.
As developer (Windows, iSeries) I try to make my programs as structured and readable as possible. The same goes for the files and folders used used by the programs, but sadly, even with all the available resources, some people (colleagues) make a complete mess of it, cause "that's not/less important", as long as the program does what it's intended to do ...
It's all about the resources and people using them the right way!
Cool, didn't know about the hash tags on Twitter
Well, we're on a great site here with developers on it. If everyone here would adhere to the same standard, it could at least be a nice push to make the Android SD card world a better place.
What's the directory we're going to settle on? Any pros and cons?
Good Day Folks.
I'm a Noob in need of help and i'm hoping the more experienced among us might be able to assist. I have an issue with disappearing phone storage. Over the course of a week I realized that I was losing about 1MB a day. My phone would basically be dormant and I would still see my storage space dropping by this amount everyday.
Cache cleaning didn't work. Later I realized that Android creates a bunch of log files in Data/System/Dropbox that was responsible for the disappearing phone storage trick I've been seeing for a while now.
I know now that Google has incorporated into Android as of the 2.2 iteration, a DropBox Manager that's responsible for logging all of the events that take place during the course of a running Android session. Everything from what took place at boot to force close details.
I understand that this is used for debugging purposes but I'm no developer . So my question is.... Can this DropBox Manager be disabled....somehow.
I really don't need all these files (and its A LOT OF THEM) being created as they serve no practical purpose for me. Not sure if anyone else might have noticed this but I'm hoping to receive some help. Even if it means pointing me in the right direction so I can work on it myself.
I really don't have a clue on how to start. Any help will be appreciated....Seriously...
Currently using G1 with CM6 Magpie running on EZTERRY's 2.6.34.7 kernel.
Its perfect except for this annoying problem.......
Hm what happens if you rename the directory. It might throw some errors in the logger, but probably won't create anymore files.
I just deleted the content of my dropbox folder, the DropboxManagerService was throwing some errors that he could not open files, but the phone was fine, no FCs or anything.
Renaming the directory just results in a random reboot. My guess is that when Android tries to create a new log, its unable to find the directory and then it just freezes and after a while it reboots. Once restarted it just reappears... I've tried that too.
And its true.. Its ok to delete the files. Its what I do currently. All of those files in Data/System/Dropbox as well as the ones located in Data/Tombstones are ok to delete. As I said, its just used for debugging purposes. Whats really annoying though is that, no matter how many times you delete anything, they just get repopulated just as fast as they're deleted. I'm ok with micro-managing my memory and phone storage (its a G1 after all) but this is ridiculous. It just creates too many of these log files too quickly.
If there was a way to turn the DropBoxManager service off then that would be the end of it all.
What's unusual about it too is that in my particular case, the contents of these text files just have two things listed in them. Pertaining to my online accounts associated with the phone: My Google account and My Whatsapp account...
It just repeats the same thing over and over again. I'm starting to think that the event data might actually be synchronization data or at least synchronization attempts made at regular intervals. But ultimately i'm guessing....
I really don't have a clue... Have you ever heard of anything like this on XDA......possible resolutions of this issue?
epolaris said:
I really don't have a clue... Have you ever heard of anything like this on XDA......possible resolutions of this issue?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not yet .
What about replacing the folder by a symlink to /dev/null ?
You could also try to change permission on the folder.
Ok... I'm a real Noob but I'll take a shot.. When you say symlink what do you mean.
I'm not really familiar with Android at that level yet its really just flashing and such.
But I know a symlink is really just a reference to a location that the OS would interpret and follow (like a pointer i think). So, is it that you're suggesting some sort of redirection where the Data/System/Dropbox directory is pointed to another arbitrary location. Kind of like a creating a dead link that Android is unable to follow up on. Or maybe, redirecting the folder to an entirely new location that Android would then follow. I'm not sure... How do you perform a symlink in Android... I'm willing to try.
You can do it with a console on the phone it self or using adb shell. You need root of course.
You could make a link to another location where you have more space?
Or you change to permissions of that directory to write only.
Or you can mount a different file system to that directory that is read only.
On how to do that just google a bit for linux tutorials on that topic.
I have just googled a bit and it seems you can't symlink directories to /dev/null.
If all that doesnt help post again, there might be an option to make an app delete the files automaticly, first time they get created.
If that would be an option too let me know, im in the mood to program something intresting .
Disabling Android 2.2 DropboxManager [RESOLVED]
I took your advice and did the research you suggested and it worked.
The first thing I tried was changing the permissions on the "Data/System/Dropbox" directory and it worked. But I didn't use CHMOD and console command line to do it.
I have a program called Root Explorer that allows me to permanently change the permissions on any file or folder I select. I set all of the offending folders to read only and the log files stopped being written to those folders.
These are the directories I set to read only:
1. "Data/System/Dropbox"
2. "Data/System/UsageStats"
3. "Data/Tombstones"
Since changing the permissions on these folders my phone storage has stopped dwindling out of control. No additional programming necessary
Disabling the DropBoxMangerService itself is not necessary which is good.
I'm going to take your advice and read up some more on Linux commands (specifically Ubuntu as its what I currently use).
You have been very helpful, thanks for the advice. If you have any ideas about Froyo ROMS (Maybe even Gingerbread ) I should try let me know.
Thanks again....
I have also found these files. They can take MUCH space in memory and nothing seems to delete them. I made the dropbox system folder RO but I think this is a bug. It should be reported to the dropbox team. Is there a bug report form somewhere? I did not find it... Just found the forum, QA,...
[edit]I reported it in the forum... Just see http://forums.dropbox.com/topic.php?id=41227 [/edit]
vax said:
I have also found these files. They can take MUCH space in memory and nothing seems to delete them. I made the dropbox system folder RO but I think this is a bug. It should be reported to the dropbox team. Is there a bug report form somewhere? I did not find it... Just found the forum, QA,...
[edit]I reported it in the forum... Just see http://forums.dropbox.com/topic.php?id=41227 [/edit]
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are mistaken: /data/system/dropbox, has NOTHING todo with www.dropbox.com !
See http://developer.android.com/reference/android/os/DropBoxManager.html
Dark3n said:
You are mistaken: /data/system/dropbox, has NOTHING todo with www.dropbox.com !
See http://developer.android.com/reference/android/os/DropBoxManager.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey, just looked at your SD Maid app (looks cool).
So what do you know about /data/system/dropbox? I just read that htc uses the dir to store phone events which is then sent to the htc cloud of spying-on-your-ass. But since non-htc phones have this dir, is htc merely misusing the directory and it has other legit uses, or is this a directory we should try to keep cleaned out?
(I like the idea of changing perms so nothing writes to it if that's the case.)
600 MB additional free storage
Hi all
Just found a smart way to increase your Dropbox account with 600 MB:
1 Sign into your existing Dropbox account (or create a new account)
2 Goto https://www.dropbox.com/free
3 Follow instructions ... and voila 600 MB additional free storage
Mittaa said:
Hi all
Just found a smart way to increase your Dropbox account with 600 MB:
1 Sign into your existing Dropbox account (or create a new account)
2 Goto https://www.dropbox.com/free
3 Follow instructions ... and voila 600 MB additional free storage
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yay, nice to see you didn't read the thread at all.
This has nothing todo with dropbox.com
Yea other day I got the SD Maid, and the Pro version after I saw how handy it was. I too on my G1 (with 2.2) see that dropbox folder.. and lately Ive been thinking its causing my G1 to constantly reboot. When I look, it has 300+ files in it. So I clear that folder and seems to stop rebooting for a lil while.
Not sure what the deal is here however, been trying to find out. HOWEVER it only seems to reboot once its connected to the internet, so I am wondering if this is where it tries to upload and so. Not really sure. That and its hard to tell in logcat whats going on before it reboots.
Thanks
Excellent information. This works on my Sony Ericsson Xperia Pro MK16a, Rooted. Thank you so much. My best regards.
Try to change the permisions of the folder, I'm not sure if it would work but you could try ^^
Sent from my GT-I9001 using xda premium
All is ok
All was fine. The permissions :laugh:changed with root explorer. Thank you so much
Note completely disabled but only 1 file in the /data/system/dropbox folder with these Android shell commands (or use Sqlite3 editor):
content insert --uri content://settings/secure --bind name:s:dropbox_max_files --bind value:i:1
Or for Android 4.2+
content insert --uri content://settings/global --bind name:s:dropbox_max_files --bind value:i:1
settings put global dropbox_max_files 1
Reboot.
more dropboxmanager settings:
dropbox_age_seconds
dropbox_max_files
dropbox_quota_kb
dropbox_quota_percent
dropbox_reserve_percent
I've been using the advice from this thread to control this "dropbox" data collection directory for several years now until I updated to 9.0 and found that the folder and default permissions were restored after every reboot. Was irritating bc I can use root to modify /system but no longer have control over my own data partition Something is over-riding my root-user!!!
I tried different apps, TWRP's FM, adb, and almost gave up when init.d scripts wouldn't work either. init.d will work tho. A simple script to run
Code:
#!/system/xbin/sh
busybox rm -f /data/system/dropbox
at boot. You can probably chown and chmod if you want but I just deleted it. Just put it in your init.d folder and make sure you give it the correct permissions (root:shell -755), then immediately perform a soft reboot. Use hardware keys if you have to. You want the phone to go immediately OFF, no spinny wheels or "powering off" notifications. That's the only way I could get rid of the damn thing.
Anyway, I came across this thread while searching for a solution and thought I would add this in case any other paranoids like me are concerned about this mysterious "dropbox" directory. This will probably break any ability for google to troubleshoot your phone but I don't think that's real anyway. It's just spyware as far as I'm concerned.
p.s. (off-topic) Thanks @Dark3n I'm also a frequent SD Maid user btw and in case you happen to read this, I thought I might mention I intended to send a donation via your app the other day (i like to show love when ppl share badass works) but balked at the only available option for "pizza," not bc I don't appreciate it that much but I can afford a little every now and then. If you add a smaller option, "coffee" or beer or whatever, maybe even an outside of googlePlay option, BTC perhaps. I'd be happy to shoot a few dollars at you.
Undelete
Welcome to the open beta of our newest root application - Undelete for Android, an application for root users that allows you
to recover deleted files on your SD card or internal storage.
Features:
- Fast scanning logic
- Restore any file that has not been written over
- Securely wipe/shred files
- Works with images, video, music, archives and binaries
Currently, only FAT is supported. On Tegra devices, only the external SD is supported.
We may write a special version supporting EXT4 if this app is successful.
Be warned: this is an early Beta build, provided "as is" with no support of any kind.
We take no responsibility for any issues that may arise from using the app. In some rare cases attempting to restore files may
corrupt the memory entirely (though we have not seen this problem, it is theoretically possible).
That said it has been in development for a while and well tested on the devices we have at the office - Incredible S, Nexus S,
Xoom, Transformer, Sensation, Galaxy S I/II, Galaxy Ace, Desire.
Market:
https://market.android.com/details?id=fahrbot.apps.undelete&feature=search_result
Screens:
You guys make nice apps!
Thanks. We are pretty awesome. And humble too
Really great idea! Looking forward to support for ext3 and ext4
For most people this will be enough. The only ones who will truly suffer will be those with no sd tablets like the galaxy tab family...
I myself build a variant of cm on ext4, but have no need to restore data from the internal memory.
Just took it for a spin and it found one file I deleted. It also showed an asec file. You might want to filter those out or have it for advanced users only.
I can see a need from some users to undelete from /data/app and /data/data. For example, an accidental app install. If you can tie the apk and deleted app data directory together, it would be even more convenient. I know some might have Titanium Backup but this would cover the cases where they don't or only have an older backup. Just an idea
Damn..I'm impressed. Keep up the good work.
One more question . Do you have plans to implement deeper recovery methods?
As mister morden told londo mollari - one thing at a time
Looking forward to it.
OK, you're going to hate me, but I have another suggestion . Since you opened a can of worms with file recovery some of your more paranoid users will want secure deletion (rewriting the file with junk data or 1s and 0s, etc) I think this would go pretty well in this app. So have a section for users to pick the file to be securely deleted and also give them an option to overwrite files that can be recovered.
doesn't seem to work for me,crashes every time I attempt to restore something
You'll have to be more specific. What file system are you using? What phone? Did you send logs?
Has anyone had problems? Lets get some feedback please!
No problems yet. I tried undeleting a few things and it has worked without a hitch.
ftgg99 said:
You'll have to be more specific. What file system are you using? What phone? Did you send logs?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
incredible,cm7 rom with latest nightly and log was sent
I havent looked at the logs yet, have been avoiding work on my bday. However, there is no guarantee that a file can be recovered, sometimes the data is just corrupted.
If one file doesnt work, another will.
Any issues?
avgjoemomma said:
OK, you're going to hate me, but I have another suggestion . Since you opened a can of worms with file recovery some of your more paranoid users will want secure deletion (rewriting the file with junk data or 1s and 0s, etc) I think this would go pretty well in this app. So have a section for users to pick the file to be securely deleted and also give them an option to overwrite files that can be recovered.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are already apps on the market that do this, look for SHRED, the typical name for this sort thing on PCs. I saw a few, although they all claim that due to journaling it will possibly not work.
Not sure what VFAT they're using, but the ones I know of don't journal So YMMV.
Indeed, deletion may not be right for this application...
Is there any app that would do this? Ive been flashing my HTC 7 Pro few times now and the most annoying this is linking the accounts that are not autolinked because they are not spelled excactly the same.
If there is no solution someone with skill should have a look at this. It would be so great to back up the linked accounts just before flashing and then restore. Would save a huge ammount of time.
It's stored in the various PIM databases on the phone. We know where these DBs are, and we have the APIs to read them (though it requires elevated access, so a custom ROM, HtcRoot, or WP7 Root Tools 0.9). So far, though, nobody has written an app to back up the contents of the database from one phone image and restore them to another. That'll be a non-trivial task, since of course none of this stuff is documented. It should be possible with some work, though.
GoodDayToDie said:
It's stored in the various PIM databases on the phone. We know where these DBs are, and we have the APIs to read them (though it requires elevated access, so a custom ROM, HtcRoot, or WP7 Root Tools 0.9). So far, though, nobody has written an app to back up the contents of the database from one phone image and restore them to another. That'll be a non-trivial task, since of course none of this stuff is documented. It should be possible with some work, though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wasn't it rumoured that Microsoft's 'full back up' will include this feature somewhere around Apollo?
Would be great to have this so I really hope it comes...
As you may know there is a spyware linked to the my Xperia App that seems to be affected alot of Xperia Z3 users (Maybe all of us). It's creating a baidu folder and it seems that no matter what you do is coming back, worst, it's sending info to a server in China.
There is currently another thread in the Z3 Compact Forum, but I'm posting this here for all of us that never goes over there , http://forum.xda-developers.com/z3-compact/general/spyware-preloaded-z3-phones-baidu-t2921634/post56366715#post56366715.
I've been following the instructions over there but as you will see, it's not working as expected for me, it's even mentioned that it may be linked to ES File Explorer (I do have that installed) but I've also removed ES and still doesn't work.
Please check your Z3s and see if you have the baidu folder, if you do, you're also infected.
erasat said:
As you may know there is a spyware linked to the my Xperia App that seems to be affected alot of Xperia Z3 users (Maybe all of us). It's creating a baidu folder and it seems that no matter what you do is coming back, worst, it's sending info to a server in China.
There is currently another thread in the Z3 Compact Forum, but I'm posting this here for all of us that never goes over there , http://forum.xda-developers.com/z3-compact/general/spyware-preloaded-z3-phones-baidu-t2921634/post56366715#post56366715.
I've been following the instructions over there but as you will see, it's not working as expected for me, it's even mentioned that it may be linked to ES File Explorer (I do have that installed) but I've also removed ES and still doesn't work.
Please check your Z3s and see if you have the baidu folder, if you do, you're also infected.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There seems to be very little information about what is responsible for the folder creation, and what, if any, malware is on the phones. All I see is breathless speculation about "infecting" and "sending data to china". If true then Sony has something to answer for, but I've not seen anything approaching a sensible analysis of what data is being sent, what app is producing it etc. But by all means, delete the empty folder if you like!
poldie said:
There seems to be very little information about what is responsible for the folder creation, and what, if any, malware is on the phones. All I see is breathless speculation about "infecting" and "sending data to china". If true then Sony has something to answer for, but I've not seen anything approaching a sensible analysis of what data is being sent, what app is producing it etc. But by all means, delete the empty folder if you like!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not an empty folder, it has data and when you look at it they are databases, it may look as paranoid but given that the only information we have right now is that it's sending data to China servers, I don't feel too comfortable just working with the phone as I was before knowing that.
Most of us have mostly replaced our Computers and Laptops with our Smartphones, that means that every connection I do to check and do Financial stuff have been done over my smartphone for quite some time now. Even worst, I have lastpass installed with all my personal and office passwords on it (it's encrypted both ways) because as a System manager I need to deal with a couple of dozens Office passwords and information plus my personal ones and at 42, that's not a possible task anymore without any help.
For those of you interested in block this, it seems that the instructions that you can find in the link works, my problem was that I had the my Xperia app activated as a Device Administrator, that was preventing everything from work.