Database Info

Android Users.. must read!Important Knowledge !

Android Terminology Guide
Hit thanks if i helped u !!
ADK: Android Development Kit, What people use to develop anything for the Android such as ROM's
The ADK (Android development kit) is divided into 3 parts
1. Android SDK (Software development Kit): used to make easy programs which only require touch & some sensors , e.g. Games
2. Android NDK ( Native Development Kit): this is used to Create apps which require Hardware or Use the native binaries & libraries of Android , eg. Camera , CyanogenMod Settings, Oxygen Settings , etc.
3. Android PDK ( Platform Development Kit): As the name suggests this is the main kit which allows to make all ".mk" files (eg. Android.mk , etc) & most of the files found on github
Basically Dev's like FXP , Z , Achotjan , kxhawkins , etc. Use the PDK to make AOSP/CM7 ROMs from source
& Also use NDK to edit the system apk's etc.. to make it stable
adb: Android Debug Bridge, a command-line debugging application included with the SDK. It provides tools to browse the device, copy tools on the device, & forward ports for debugging. If you are developing in Eclipse using the ADT Plugin, adb is integrated into your development environment.
AOSP: Android Open System Project, usually you will see this term when referring to a program or ROM. This will mean that the program or ROM was taken from Google & does not contain any modifications done by the phone Manufacturer or the phone service provider. This is Android the way Google intended.
Baseband or Radio: In communications & signal processing, the baseband describes signals & systems whose range of the frequencies measured from close to 0 hertz to a cut-off frequency, a maximum bandwidth or highest signal frequency; it is sometimes used to describe frequencies starting close to zero
Boot Loader/SPL: In literal terms, boot loader is code that is executed before any Operating System starts to run. The concept of boot loaders is universal to virtually all Operating systems that includes operating systems on your PC, laptop, Smartphone, & other such devices. Boot loaders basically package the instructions to boot operating system kernel & most of them also have their own debugging or modification environment. As the boot loader kicks off before any piece of software on your device, it makes it extremely processor specific & every motherboard has its own boot loader.
Boot Loader/SPL (Unlocked): A locked or unlocked boot loader is what gives you access to “root.” “Root” is another big word in the Android community. If you “root” a device, it means you have “super user” access or “administrator” access to the operating system that runs on your phone. Root access of your Android device gives you the ability to flash ROMs.
One of the most popular ROMs was created by a team called the CyanogenMod(CM), & their current rom is CM7, which is built on Android 2.3 Gingerbread. What this means is that if you have a phone that has an unlocked boot loader & root access, you can flash the CM7 ROM to your phone with a couple more steps. This also means that you can get access to most of the features in the latest version of Android that is commercially available, without having to wait for your manufacturer or carrier to give you an official update.
Boot Loop: Simply means something is preventing the phone from completing it's boot cycle & is stuck between the boot animation & the unlock screen, creating a looped animation. This is often fixed by either reloading a NAndroid, or Reflashing a ROM from the xRecovery/ClockworkMod Recovery/Flashtool.
Brick or Bricked: Jargon for a completely unrecoverable device, (no more than a brick or paperweight)
Note: It is my understanding that radio will boot first, followed by other systems. So it is IMPORTANT that your radio image/version will work with your SPL image/version. This is the one & only reason for phones being bricked. You cannot brick your phone by flashing a ROM or Boot image or recovery image. Once you flash the wrong radio for the SPL, the only known method of recovery is to send the phone back into SE for repair.
How do I know the phone is hard-bricked? A hard-bricked phone cannot boot into boot loader, recovery, or into normal operation modes. You cannot connect to a hard-bricked phone via adb or fastboot. You can only see one screen on the phone & it will be the first splash screen.
Bug or Software Bug: An Error or flaw in software that produces a failure or unexpected/unwanted result. Typically created from incorrect code, this is why some ROMs are better & smoother running than others because developers have taken the time to input "perfect" code (read put in a lot of hours & hard work)
Busybox: A single multicall binary that packages the functionality of most widely used standard Unix tools, BusyBox provides a fairly complete environment for any small or embedded system.
COMPCACHE: (compressed caching) is, in short, virtual swap, setting aside a certain percentage (usually 25%) of your RAM as 'compressed' swap. Compcache compresses the data that would normally go to swap, then moves it back into RAM, and reverses the process when moving it out of the 'compressed' swap. However, this is a classic space-time tradeoff. You effectively get more RAM from the compression, but it is slower than 'normal' RAM due to the CPU time required to compress and decompress the swapped pages.
ClockworkMod: A recovery program that is often used to apply updates, ROMs, or create a back up or restore a backup file
Dalvik: An open source, register-based virtual machine (VM) that’s part of the Android OS. The Dalvik VM executes files in the Dalvik Executable (.dex) format & relies on the Linux kernel for additional functionality like threading & low-level memory management. The virtual machine is register-based, and it can run classes compiled by a Java language compiler that have been transformed into its native format using the included "dx" tool.
Dalvik Cache: A program cache area for the program Dalvik. Dalvik is a java based virtual machine that is the basis for running your programs (the ones that have the .apk extension). In order to make access times faster (because there's not JIT (just in time) compiler installed by default), the dalvik-cache is the result of dalvik doing a optimization of the running program. It's similar to the prefetch files in Windows.
DDMS: Dalvik Debug Monitor Service, a GUI debugging application included with the SDK. It provides screen capture, log dump, and process examination capabilities. If you are developing in Eclipse using the ADT Plugin, DDMS is integrated into your development environment.
Deep Sleep: A state when the CPU is off, display dark, device is waiting for external input.
De-odex: Apk files have respective odexes that devs use to supposedly save space. Deodexing means you convert it back to a .dex file & put it back inside the apk. This allows you to easily replace files (not having to worry about odexes), but the main point was to deodex services.jar so that you can change all text to different colors (such as the clock color to white) & to deodex services.jar, you need to deodex everything.
Dev. or Developer: An individual that creates, or alters a file in such a manner as to advance the program
Drawable: A compiled visual resource that can be used as a background, title, or other part of the screen. A drawable is typically loaded into another UI element, for example as a background image. A drawable is not able to receive events, but does assign various other properties such as "state" and scheduling, to enable subclasses such as animation objects or image libraries. Many drawable objects are loaded from drawable resource files — xml or bitmap files that describe the image. Drawable resources are compiled into subclasses of android.graphics.drawable. For more information about drawables and other resources.
Fastboot: Protocol used to update the flash file system in Android devices from a host over USB. It allows flashing of unsigned partition images.
Flash: Rewrite the software/firmware on your phone using a computer to "flash" or completely rewrite the memory (ROM) of your phone. This is done using ODIN.
Flash Memory: a program technology that can be electrically erased & reprogrammed
Kernel: The main component of Android operating system.
It is a bridge between applications & the actual data processing done at the hardware level.
The kernel's responsibilities include managing the system's resources (the communication between hardware & software components).
[Usually as a basic component of an operating system, a kernel can provide the lowest-level abstraction layer for the resources
(especially processors & I/O devices) that application software must control to perform its function.
It typically makes these facilities available to application processes through inter-process communication mechanisms & system calls.
Operating system tasks are done differently by different kernels, depending on their design & implementation.]
Manifest File: An XML file that each application must define, to describe the application's package name, version, components (activities, intent filters, services), imported libraries, and describes the various activities, and so on. See The AndroidManifest.xml File for complete information.
Nine-patch / 9-patch / Ninepatch image
A re-sizeable bitmap resource that can be used for backgrounds or other images on the device.
Nandroid or Nandroid Backup: A file typically created in the custom recovery program, such as xRecovery, that is a carbon copy of whatever state your phone is in before a drastic change is made. The file then can be moved onto or off of the SD card for later use in case something should go wrong in the ROM or Update, or a Boot Loop occurs
ODIN: It is the program you can use to flash phones.
e.g. : 'Odin Multi-Downloader v3.95' is used to flash the Samsung Galaxy. It's usually included in firmware packs.
OEM: Original Equipment Manufacturer, the people who actually put together electronic hardware. Also refers to any equipment original to the phone, or produced by the company for the phone
OpenGL ES: Android provides OpenGL ES libraries that you can use for fast, complex 3D images. It is harder to use than a Canvas object, but better for 3D objects. The android.opengl and javax.microedition.khronos.opengles packages expose OpenGL ES functionality.
OS: Operating system, I.E. Windows Vista, LINUX or MAC or Android
OTA: Over-the-Air; method T-Mobile, & some other phone companies, uses to update Android phones. The new versions of Android are developed by Google & then released to OEM's, Sony Ericsson in our case. The OEM then writes drivers that enable the new software to work on the phone's hardware. They also develop any specialized UI (user interface), like Timescape & Mediascape, or other software they want to include. Once this is complete, they turn it over to the cell phone company, (e.g.)Tmobile, who then have to do the final checks to make sure the update works, & then distributes it over there data network using their cell transmitters.
Overclocking (OC): Speeding up the CPU past the factory presets to achieve a faster & more responsive device (prolonged run can be injurious to your device, so be careful.)
ROM: Read Only Memory, a program used to make changes to anything from the look of the home screen to icons to custom boot animation
Root: Common word associated with giving a user "super user" access to their phones programming & other various aspects that would normally not be possible, also known as "Jailbroken" for iPhone's, "Administrator Rights" in Windows OS.
Shell or SSH: The shell is the layer of programming that understands & executes the commands a user enters. In some systems, the shell is called a command interpreter. A shell usually implies an interface with a command syntax (think of the DOS operating system & its "C:>" prompts & user commands such as "dir" & "edit"). secure shell or ssh is a network protocol that allows data to be exchanged using a secure channel between two networked devices
SQLite: An embedded relational database management system contained in a relatively small (~275 kB) C programming library. It is multitasking concerning reads. Writes can be done only one-at-a-time. It is a popular choice for local/client storage on web browsers. It has many bindings to programming languages. It is arguably the most widely used database engine, as it is used today by several widespread browsers, operating systems, embedded systems among others
Stock: Simply means an unaltered state, such as when you first purchase your phone fromVerizon/Your Service Provider or when you repair your phone using PC Companion or SE Update Service(SEUS)
SU: "Super user", or root permissions
SWAP: is, in short, virtual RAM. With swap, a small portion of the hard drive is set aside and used like RAM. The computer will attempt to keep as much information as possible in RAM until the RAM is full. At that point, the computer will begin moving inactive blocks of memory (called pages) to the hard disk, freeing up RAM for active processes. If one of the pages on the hard disk needs to be accessed again, it will be moved back into RAM, and a different inactive page in RAM will be moved onto the hard disk ('swapped'). The trade off is disks and SD cards are considerably slower than physical RAM, so when something needs to be swapped, there is a noticeable performance hit.
Unlike traditional swap, Android's Memory Manager kills inactive processes to free up memory. Android signals to the process, then the process will usually write out a small bit of specific information about its state (for example, Google Maps may write out the map view coordinates; Browser might write the URL of the page being viewed) and then the process exits. When you next access that application, it is restarted: the application is loaded from storage, and retrieves the state information that it saved when it last closed. In some applications, this makes it seem as if the application never closed at all. This is not much different from traditional swap, except that Android apps are specially programed to write out very specific information, making Android's Memory Manager more efficient that swap.
Theme: A set of icons, backgrounds & app trays that change the aesthetics of the overall look of the Android & its applications. It has a set of properties (text size, background color, and so on) bundled together to define various default display settings. Android provides a few standard themes, listed in R.style (starting with "Theme_").
TUN/TAP: Refers to a network TUNnel, operates within layer 3 packets, or ip packets. Packets sent by a system via a TUN/TAP device are delivered to a user-space program that attaches itself to the device. A user space program may also pass packets into a TUN/TAP device. In this case TUN/TAP device delivers (or "injects") these packets to the operating system's network stack thus emulating their reception from an external source.
Underclocking(UC): Slowing down the CPU mainly to limit battery usage
Undervolting(UV): Basically keeping the clock speed same (or overclocking it) & reduce the voltage at each cpu cycle.
xRecovery: A recovery program based on the ClockworkMod Recovery sources used to apply updates, ROMs, or create a back up or restore a backup file
File Types:
.dex: Compiled Android application code file. Android programs are compiled into .dex (Dalvik Executable) files, which are in turn zipped into a single .apk file on the device. .dex files can be created by automatically translating compiled applications written in the Java programming language.
.sbf: Summation Briefcase File
.apk or APK's: An .apk file extension denotes an Android Package (APK) file, an .apk file can be opened & inspected using common archive tools. Each Android application is compiled and packaged in a single file that includes all of the application's code (.dex files), resources, assets, and manifest file. The application package file can have any name but must use the .apk extension. For example: myExampleAppname.apk. For convenience, an application package file is often referred to as an ".apk".
.tar: Similar to a zip file(derived from tape archive), a tar file archives multiple files into one file
.tgz: TGZ files (gnu-zipped .tar file) are commonly used as install packages for Slackware Linux.
pheeeeww!!This took sometime!!
Well this is all I can think of off the top of my head but as I think of more I will edit them in here & I encourage the mods to put things that I either forgot or just simply am not aware of. Also I request fellow user to suggest any terms frequently used & not added or any discrepancies found, kindly PM me!!
Thank you & happy hacking/flashing!!
_____________________________________
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Core Clock Speed: -
-----------------------
It is the actual clock speed that the CPU is running at. "Not the multiplied speed."
It's good to remember a CPU's performance is also effected by its memory's speed.
Similar rules exist for the GPU (Graphics Processing Unit).

Good beginning, I think. In a few days I will start to translate in german, maybe we can attach this translation as a pdf?

excellent work dude keep it up

U rock dude keep it up..much helpful infrmtn esp for those who just flash roms without knowledge(like me)

Can u explain what is "set 777 permission" and 766, 755
Sent from my GT-S5670L using xda premium

Deshabilitado said:
Can u explain what is "set 777 permission" and 766, 755
Sent from my GT-S5670L using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Those digits represents the permissions for all users 1st digit for user 2nd for group 3rd for other..1 denotes execute,2 denotes write and 4 denotes read so if u add 1+2+4=7..hope u got it...

Try this link to understand file permissions..
http://www.tuxfiles.org/linuxhelp/filepermissions.html

asdfglkjhg said:
excellent work dude keep it up
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
martin_s5670 said:
Good beginning, I think. In a few days I will start to translate in german, maybe we can attach this translation as a pdf?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
vijayanandssj4 said:
U rock dude keep it up..much helpful infrmtn esp for those who just flash roms without knowledge(like me)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes we can do tht , will start the translation!
and thnx hope the knowledge helped u !!

udit.kumar said:
yes we can do tht , will start the translation!
and thnx hope the knowledge helped u !!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Now I found a good FAQ in german with more or less the same content, I will give the link (post2), better than a translation from me.
http://www.android-hilfe.de/samsung...4-unbedingt-lesen-die-faq-fuer-unser-ace.html

Thanks a lot for this useful info ...
Also the Fix Permissions Guide helped a lot to understand ...

It helps me to understand the various terms. Thank you!

Gr8 n very useful stuff

suhs_20 said:
Thanks a lot for this useful info ...
Also the Fix Permissions Guide helped a lot to understand ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
glad to knw

adissan said:
It helps me to understand the various terms. Thank you!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you are welcome
PS - Hit thanks!

Thank you. Its very useful information

Understanding Android platform in a nutshell (in layman's terms)

System.out.println("Hello peoples");
==>The purpose of this guide is to help people who don't know anything about programming,aren't modders,guys with knowledge about technology.
==>Initially I loved computers and their capabilities and have a little knowledge on the C and Java languages and just how computers (think).
You have to understand that computing tries to emulate human behaviors on how to solve problems.This is where programming kicks in.
So what is Android?
===================
1)Android in general is an operating system that was meant to run on mobile devices e.g. cell phones
and has expanded to tablets and notebooks.Android is divided into three language groups:
a)the system's framework and apps are written in java.
b)the Android's core [kernel] is pure C -language.
c)the Android's libraries are written in C++.
App libraries are called by apps that need more functionality that java can't provide.These are usually plugins like
decoders e.g. ffmpeg libraries that are used in video decoding,flash-players e.t.c. Here,java native methods are used and the android NDK platform
is used to enable the java apps call these libraries during execution.(Please read further on Android SDK,NDK and Jni).
So what happens when you have just flashed that new Rom.
====================================================================
First you have to understand that cell phones have their own embedded firmware not including the recovery and you will see why.
a)the recovery partition can be flashed to install aftermarket recovery roms.So even if you mess your recovery,you can still install again.(This varies with different phones).
b)their is that system chip which you cannot touch and there is a reason for it.Think of this partition like a PC BIOS.If you mess with your bios
your system is toast aka Bricking the system.Since phones are classed as embedded systems,manufactures don't want people messing with it as it would result into
cryptic errors and system vulnerability.
when the on button is pressed something simple yet complicated happens:
1==>The kernel which is compressed to save space usually in a (zImage) format is deflated or expanded.Since your NAND chips are partitioned,the kernel is given a very
special chunk in which is protected from user data.
2==>The kernel finds which base address it needs to start executing e.g.(0x00200000) and mostly when you put a wrong kernel base
address your phone enters into a boot-loop because arguments are being passed to invalid locations.It is important to know where your kernel base address
starts.You can try looking it up in your kernel sources(try searching for the mach msm folder and into the makefile) or just goggle it up or use Xda-Kitchen.
3==>with the correct kernel base address,execution starts.Usually the (init.rc) file in the (ramdisk folder) gives symlinks and creates structures i.e. folders that will house
modules and sets the correct paths to android files and framework.
4==>After arguments have successfully been passed,the handles are now passed to Android.Basically Android checks for (init.d) scripts that are available
this is true to GingerBread and Cyanogenmod 7.After that audio checks are done followed by camera services and then arguments are passed to (core.jar),a
critical framework file which is huge around 50Mb in size in CyanogenMod 7.
5==>Here the DalvikVM (Dalvik virtual machine) is called and the process of optimizing your system files starts.The framework get optimized first as this contains critical
code needed to run your device.Then your flingers and renderers and called.This are engines used by android e.g. (pixelflnger) which is used in touchscreen.
Your system's sensors are usually started around this point (your compass,light sensors e.t.c)your phone apps e.g. contacts,calendar get optimized around this point
and depending on the number of apps your manufacturer installed,it will take some time.
6==>your network get's activated around this point and is probably the time the capacitive buttons and lights on your gadget light up.This is usually a good indication
that your system has loaded.When your bootanimation ends the handles are passed to activate your home launcher.There is usually still a lot of activity going
on to fully ready your system and this is why if you try to use it immediately especially on low-end phones,your system lags or get (not responding) errors.
common misconceptions
=====================
1==>There is are reason why goggle gave minimum specifications needed to run Android because this is a full operating system(OS) unlike the past relic
phones that ran on 50MHz processors.
2==>please don't complain that some of your Ram is not the same as specified on the phones catalog(e.g. you have 256Mb of Ram but in the task manager it indicates you have 179Mb).
There is a reason to it.There are core processes that eat a chunk of your Ram and are hidden so that you don't try silly stuff like trying to kill them in thinking that your are trying to get more memory.
Think of it like this,it's like trying to kill (services.exe or svchost.exe) processes in Windows.You will just be trying to get system hangs,bluescreens
or just a system crash.
Will Add more info later.Please feel free to correct anything i might have not addressed properly or share your views.
Happy modding.
Kernel topic
============
In simple terms,the kernel is the core of any operating system e.g. windows, Mac,or any Linux distro like Ubuntu and Android.Android kernels come mostly
in the form of a compressed kernel (zImage).The kernel is written in pure C-language,which gives it direct access to memory and registers unlike java
which has to pass through the java VM(virtual machine).This makes code written in C-language to be very fast and robust but also dangerous.
==>Many Androids in the eclair regime ran on kernel 2.6.29. This was not a complete kernel and as by my experience there was alot of code missing from it.
2.6.29
======
==>a lot of androids did not have adb functionality due to the framework being embedded to allow USB mounting to PC.This was a very rigid method
of doing it(also a very old method).
==>In the case of other devices, when viewing the internal task manager,many processes were viewed as (0.00) byte files.In essence you could not determine
the amount of RAM your app was taking.This is true in the case of huawei u8120.
==>In the case of shutting down the phone,even in some cases under load,it did so very fast.It killed threads and handles mercilessly. Many people misunderstood
this concept and thought their phones ran faster as compared to 2.6.32 kernel.
2.6.32.9
========
Here there was a ton of improvements as developers and modders became more aware of support and tweaks.
==>Fixed issues like the internal task managers.It was now possible to accurately know how much RAM your apps were taking.
==>Resolved how the android system shutdown.Instead of merciless killing of handles and threads still running,it killed them appropriately.This is why
when shutting down your system takes a while.You can use adb to see these events.
==>Usb mounting to pc was also made somewhat generic and flexible across many devices.
==>It did change some methods on how the camera is being accessed mostly in eclair,donout and earlier versions of android phones.This issue made
cameras not function.
==>wifi methods were also changed and developers and modders had to re-write their code to allow compatibility.
==>This was also the year of many froyo phones and overclocking was a common thing.
extra notes
===========
During eclair era,many developers were in such a hurry to produce new android phones every few months that they never even thought of long-term support
to newer versions of android that would come much later.This is where i have to praise Iphones for standardisation of its OS across all of its devices.
==>If you try to copy paste code from 2.6.32.9 and paste it into 2.6.29 and expect it to work then expect tons of errors when compiling.The (g_android)
module was properly coded into 2.6.32.9 so if you try enabling it an older kernel,expect errors.
==>If you are a modder and looking to buy a new phone,please see if it has a fan base of coders or support.Avoid buying phones where you will not get
any support from the manufacturers or other devs e.g Huawei Technologies.This company sucks alot.After they produce a phone they forget about you the customer
so you will have to handle the upgrades all by yourself.
Do not use this command (make -i)when compiling kernels.It will skip errors and you may smile after it's finished but the end is just a tragedy.your kernel is bound
not to function properly or even function at all.
Happy modding.

[FAQ] Android related terms and abbreviations

I'm making this "DICTIONARY" for android abbreviations & terminology and also about Moto G
use this if Moto G is your first android,if you are new at XDA or if you have any doubt
Thanks to @kloud_ and @appdroid for making other guides that i gonna merge and adapt with this one
Ctrl+F is your new best friend,use it
ANDROID REFERENCE LIST​
ADK: Android Development Kit, What people use to develop anything for the Android such as APPs and ROM's
adb: Android Debug Bridge, a command-line debugging application included with the SDK. It provides tools to browse the device, copy tools on the device, & forward ports for debugging. If you are developing in Eclipse using the ADT Plugin, adb is integrated into your development environment.
Android Unveiled on 5 November 2007, Android is a mobile operating system running on the Linux kernel developed by Google.
AOSP: Android Open System Project, usually you will see this term when referring to a program or ROM. This will mean that the program or ROM was taken from Google & does not contain any modifications done by the phone Manufacturer or the phone service provider. This is Android the way Google intended.
ART - successor of Dalvik, a virtual machine (VM) that’s part of the Android OS. ART is faster than Dalvik and saves more energy
Baseband or Radio: In communications & signal processing, the baseband describes signals & systems whose range of the frequencies measured from close to 0 hertz to a cut-off frequency, a maximum bandwidth or highest signal frequency; it is sometimes used to describe frequencies starting close to zero
Binary - (sometimes called bin's) a group of executable files.
Bloatware:unnecessary features that are not used by end users and come with the phone (like Samsung touchwiz or other APPs) (luckly Moto G is almost a pure/stock android)
BootLoader: In literal terms, boot loader is code that is executed before any Operating System starts to run. The concept of boot loaders is universal to virtually all Operating systems that includes operating systems on your PC, laptop, Smartphone, & other such devices. Boot loaders basically package the instructions to boot operating system kernel & most of them also have their own debugging or modification environment. As the boot-loader kicks off before any piece of software on your device, it makes it extremely processor specific & every motherboard has its own bootloader.
Boot Loader(Unlocked): A locked or unlocked boot loader is what gives you access to “root.” “Root” is another big word in the Android community. If you “root” a device, it means you have “super user” access or “administrator” access to the operating system that runs on your phone. Root access of your Android device gives you the ability to flash ROMs. Alert:unlocking your Moto G boot-loader will void your warranty
Boot Loop: Simply means something is preventing the phone from completing it's boot cycle & is stuck between the boot animation & the unlock screen, creating a looped animation. This is often fixed by either reloading a NAndroid, or Reflashing a ROM from the xRecovery/ClockworkMod Recovery/Flashtool.
Brick or Bricked: Jargon for a completely unrecoverable device, (no more than a brick or paperweight)
Bug or Software Bug: An Error or flaw in software that produces a failure or unexpected/unwanted result. Typically created from incorrect code, this is why some ROMs are better & smoother running than others because developers have taken the time to input "perfect" code (read put in a lot of hours & hard work)
Busybox: A single multicall binary that packages the functionality of most widely used standard Unix tools, BusyBox provides a fairly complete environment for any small or embedded system.
CDMA/GSM - A type of network communication between phones and carriers. GSM phones normally are included with SIM Cards that authorize them onto the network. CDMA have this authorization built in and do not need a sim card.
COMPCACHE: (compressed caching) is, in short, virtual swap, setting aside a certain percentage (usually 25%) of your RAM as 'compressed' swap. Compcache compresses the data that would normally go to swap, then moves it back into RAM, and reverses the process when moving it out of the 'compressed' swap. However, this is a classic space-time tradeoff. You effectively get more RAM from the compression, but it is slower than 'normal' RAM due to the CPU time required to compress and decompress the swapped pages.
ClockworkMod - CWR - CWM: A recovery program that is often used to apply updates, ROMs, or create a back up or restore a backup file
Dalvik: An open source, register-based virtual machine (VM) that’s part of the Android OS. The Dalvik VM executes files in the Dalvik Executable (.dex) format & relies on the Linux kernel for additional functionality like threading & low-level memory management. The virtual machine is register-based, and it can run classes compiled by a Java language compiler that have been transformed into its native format using the included "dx" tool.
Dalvik Cache: A program cache area for the program Dalvik. Dalvik is a java based virtual machine that is the basis for running your programs (the ones that have the .apk extension). In order to make access times faster (because there's not JIT (just in time) compiler installed by default), the dalvik-cache is the result of dalvik doing a optimization of the running program. It's similar to the prefetch files in Windows.
DDMS: Dalvik Debug Monitor Service, a GUI debugging application included with the SDK. It provides screen capture, log dump, and process examination capabilities. If you are developing in Eclipse using the ADT Plugin, DDMS is integrated into your development environment.
Deep Sleep: A state when the CPU is off, display dark, device is waiting for external input.
De-odex: Apk files have respective odexes that devs use to supposedly save space. Deodexing means you convert it back to a .dex file & put it back inside the apk. This allows you to easily replace files (not having to worry about odexes), but the main point was to deodex services.jar so that you can change all text to different colors (such as the clock color to white) & to deodex services.jar, you need to deodex everything.
Dev. or Developer: An individual that creates, or alters a file in such a manner as to advance the program
Drawable: A compiled visual resource that can be used as a background, title, or other part of the screen. A drawable is typically loaded into another UI element, for example as a background image. A drawable is not able to receive events, but does assign various other properties such as "state" and scheduling, to enable subclasses such as animation objects or image libraries. Many drawable objects are loaded from drawable resource files — xml or bitmap files that describe the image. Drawable resources are compiled into subclasses of android.graphics.drawable. For more information about drawables and other resources.
Execute - To "run" or "start" a binary
Fastboot: Protocol used to update the flash file system in Android devices from a host over USB. It allows flashing of unsigned partition images.
Flash - Flashing : The process of applying a firmware image (or ROM) to a device. It generally entails a very specific order of steps. Failing to complete any one of these steps properly may result in soft/hard) bricking
Flash Memory: a program technology that can be electrically erased & reprogrammed
FOTA - "Firmware over the air" this normally refers to ROM's but can refer to radio firmware (see OTA)
Kernel: The main component of Android operating system.
It is a bridge between applications & the actual data processing done at the hardware level.
The kernel's responsibilities include managing the system's resources (the communication between hardware & software components).
[Usually as a basic component of an operating system, a kernel can provide the lowest-level abstraction layer for the resources
(especially processors & I/O devices) that application software must control to perform its function.
It typically makes these facilities available to application processes through inter-process communication mechanisms & system calls.
Operating system tasks are done differently by different kernels, depending on their design & implementation.]
Governor - A system embedded into the kernel to automatically change the current working CPU frequency depending on the workload. It would only go up to what it is overclocked (or underclocked) to, this is called the maximum frequency. It would not drop bellow the (just as easily configurable) minimum frequency.
Jelly Bean - JB - Android from 4.1 to 4.3
JDK - "Java Development Kit" an SDK for the java platform. It is needed to run the Android SDK.
JRE - "Java Runtime Environment" a collection of binarys and files to allow java software to execute.
KANG - The process of creating a code based of someone else's code.
Kit Kat - KK - Android 4.4 the newest android available (supported by Moto G)
Library's/Libs - a set of instructions for applications to use to function. A functioning camera lib would allow the camera to be used.
Logcat :A debugging tool built into Android devices that displays system logs as they occur. See Logcat.
Manifest File: An XML file that each application must define, to describe the application's package name, version, components (activities, intent filters, services), imported libraries, and describes the various activities, and so on. See The AndroidManifest.xml File for complete information.
Nine-patch / 9-patch / Ninepatch image
A re-sizeable bitmap resource that can be used for backgrounds or other images on the device.
Nandroid or Nandroid Backup: A file typically created in the custom recovery program, such as xRecovery, that is a carbon copy of whatever state your phone is in before a drastic change is made. The file then can be moved onto or off of the SD card for later use in case something should go wrong in the ROM or Update, or a Boot Loop occurs
OEM: Original Equipment Manufacturer, the people who actually put together electronic hardware. Also refers to any equipment original to the phone, or produced by the company for the phone
OpenGL ES: Android provides OpenGL ES libraries that you can use for fast, complex 3D images. It is harder to use than a Canvas object, but better for 3D objects. The android.opengl and javax.microedition.khronos.opengles packages expose OpenGL ES functionality.
Open-Source - (not to be confused with free) A piece of software that is free to edit, use, distribute and share with no charge.
OS: Operating system, I.E. Windows Vista, LINUX or MAC or Android
OTA: Over-the-Air; method T-Mobile, & some other phone companies, uses to update Android phones. The new versions of Android are developed by Google & then released to OEM's, Sony Ericsson in our case. The OEM then writes drivers that enable the new software to work on the phone's hardware. They also develop any specialized UI (user interface), like Timescape & Mediascape, or other software they want to include. Once this is complete, they turn it over to the cell phone company, (e.g.)Tmobile, who then have to do the final checks to make sure the update works, & then distributes it over there data network using their cell transmitters.
Overclocking (OC): Speeding up the CPU past the factory presets to achieve a faster & more responsive device (prolonged run can be injurious to your device, so be careful.)
RAM- Could be one of three meanings: 1. Memory for the CPU to process processes. 2. Random Access Memory, a place where information can be used, executed from, modified, or deleted
Recovery - Its a dedicated Android partition, that has Recovery console installed. This is invisible during normal operation of the android device.
ROM: Read Only Memory, a program used to make changes to anything from the look of the home screen to icons to custom boot animation
Root: Common word associated with giving a user "super user" access to their phones programming & other various aspects that would normally not be possible, also known as "Jailbroken" for iPhone's, "Administrator Rights" in Windows OS.
Shell or SSH: The shell is the layer of programming that understands & executes the commands a user enters. In some systems, the shell is called a command interpreter. A shell usually implies an interface with a command syntax (think of the DOS operating system & its "C:>" prompts & user commands such as "dir" & "edit"). secure shell or ssh is a network protocol that allows data to be exchanged using a secure channel between two networked devices
SQLite: An embedded relational database management system contained in a relatively small (~275 kB) C programming library. It is multitasking concerning reads. Writes can be done only one-at-a-time. It is a popular choice for local/client storage on web browsers. It has many bindings to programming languages. It is arguably the most widely used database engine, as it is used today by several widespread browsers, operating systems, embedded systems among others
Stock Android : Simply means an unaltered state, such as when you first purchase your phone fromVerizon/Your Service Provider or when you repair your phone using PC Companion or SE Update Service(SEUS)
SU: "Super user", or root permissions
Superuser: A program, which gives unlimited access privileges to perform any or all operations on the operating system.
SWAP: is, in short, virtual RAM. With swap, a small portion of the hard drive is set aside and used like RAM. The computer will attempt to keep as much information as possible in RAM until the RAM is full. At that point, the computer will begin moving inactive blocks of memory (called pages) to the hard disk, freeing up RAM for active processes. If one of the pages on the hard disk needs to be accessed again, it will be moved back into RAM, and a different inactive page in RAM will be moved onto the hard disk ('swapped'). The trade off is disks and SD cards are considerably slower than physical RAM, so when something needs to be swapped, there is a noticeable performance hit.
Unlike traditional swap, Android's Memory Manager kills inactive processes to free up memory. Android signals to the process, then the process will usually write out a small bit of specific information about its state (for example, Google Maps may write out the map view coordinates; Browser might write the URL of the page being viewed) and then the process exits. When you next access that application, it is restarted: the application is loaded from storage, and retrieves the state information that it saved when it last closed. In some applications, this makes it seem as if the application never closed at all. This is not much different from traditional swap, except that Android apps are specially programed to write out very specific information, making Android's Memory Manager more efficient that swap.
Theme: A set of icons, backgrounds & app trays that change the aesthetics of the overall look of the Android & its applications. It has a set of properties (text size, background color, and so on) bundled together to define various default display settings. Android provides a few standard themes, listed in R.style (starting with "Theme_").
TUN/TAP: Refers to a network TUNnel, operates within layer 3 packets, or ip packets. Packets sent by a system via a TUN/TAP device are delivered to a user-space program that attaches itself to the device. A user space program may also pass packets into a TUN/TAP device. In this case TUN/TAP device delivers (or "injects") these packets to the operating system's network stack thus emulating their reception from an external source.
Underclocking(UC): Slowing down the CPU mainly to limit battery usage
Undervolting(UV): Basically keeping the clock speed same (or overclocking it) & reduce the voltage at each cpu cycle.
xRecovery: A recovery program based on the ClockworkMod Recovery sources used to apply updates, ROMs, or create a back up or restore a backup file
Wipe - to clean your device memory,recommended before flashing
File Types:
.dex: Compiled Android application code file. Android programs are compiled into .dex (Dalvik Executable) files, which are in turn zipped into a single .apk file on the device. .dex files can be created by automatically translating compiled applications written in the Java programming language.
.sbf: Summation Briefcase File
.apk or APK's: An .apk file extension denotes an Android Package (APK) file, an .apk file can be opened & inspected using common archive tools. Each Android application is compiled and packaged in a single file that includes all of the application's code (.dex files), resources, assets, and manifest file. The application package file can have any name but must use the .apk extension. For example: myExampleAppname.apk. For convenience, an application package file is often referred to as an ".apk".
.tar: Similar to a zip file(derived from tape archive), a tar file archives multiple files into one file
.tgz: TGZ files (gnu-zipped .tar file) are commonly used as install packages for Slackware Linux.
######
Will add latter some MOTOROLA MOTO G especific terms here
######
If you doubt is not about general android,but about Moto G,
--Check this FAQ made by @matmutant
Frequently Asked Questions -Motorola Moto G
--Also check this Resource Guide made by @Perseus71
Welcome to your Motorola Moto G
#####
Help improving this topic,quote me and give your suggestion
thanks for a still unknown ADM for sticking this thread
if i helped you with this post,just hit the thanks button,

This thread looks nice and useful, but make sure not to duplicate things from my FAQ or @Perseus71 guide that would be useless and confusing

@matmutant
Yes sir, I'm taking this care and wanna make this thread useful
if you know any thread that i should include in this topic or have any tip,just let me know

My Thread has a list of terms similarly in the first post. But this list seems more specific to Moto G.
Either way there seems to be some terms that are missing here but are present in mine.
Would you be kind enough to merge the differences so I will link to yours and get rid of mine ?

@Perseus71 Just realized I missed some terms, thanks for noticing, will merge them and also include new terms such as "ART" "KK "JB" "google now"

That would be a nice idea, and then rename this thread to something like "Android related terms and abbreviations" because it's neither a FAQ, nor a Guide

72off said:
@Perseus71 Just realized I missed some terms, thanks for noticing, will merge them and also include new terms such as "ART" "KK "JB" "google now"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
matmutant said:
That would be a nice idea, and then rename this thread to something like "Android related terms and abbreviations" because it's neither a FAQ, nor a Guide
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 all round.
@72off please let me know when you are done.

@Perseus71 @matmutant
Updates on 15/01 = new terms added
Binary - (sometimes called bin's) a group of executable files.
CDMA/GSM - A type of network communication between phones and carriers. GSM phones normally are included with SIM Cards that authorize them onto the network. CDMA have this authorization built in and do not need a sim card.
Execute - To "run" or "start" a binary
FOTA - "Firmware over the air" this normally refers to ROM's but can refer to radio firmware (see OTA)
Governor - A system embedded into the kernel to automatically change the current working CPU frequency depending on the workload. It would only go up to what it is overclocked (or underclocked) to, this is called the maximum frequency. It would not drop bellow the (just as easily configurable) minimum frequency.
JDK - "Java Development Kit" an SDK for the java platform. It is needed to run the Android SDK.
JRE - "Java Runtime Environment" a collection of binarys and files to allow java software to execute.
KANG - The process of creating a code based of someone else's code.
Library's/Libs - a set of instructions for applications to use to function. A functioning camera lib would allow the camera to be used.
Open-Source - (not to be confused with free) A piece of software that is free to edit, use, distribute and share with no charge.
RAM - Could be one of three meanings: 1. Memory for the CPU to process processes. 2. Random Access Memory, a place where information can be used, executed from, modified, or deleted
Recovery - Its a dedicated Android partition, that has Recovery console installed. This is invisible during normal operation of the android device.
Wipe - to clean your device memory,recommended before flashing
Jelly Bean - JB - Android from 4.1 to 4.3
Kit Kat - KK - Android 4.4 the newest android available (supported by Moto G)
ART - successor of Dalvik, a virtual machine (VM) that’s part of the Android OS. ART is faster than Dalvik and saves more energy
Right now 18/01 ordering by alphabetic order [completed]

Reference Links
It might be nice to add in some reference links for many of the terms to the official android pages.
ART - http://source.android.com/devices/tech/dalvik/art.html
.DEX - http://source.android.com/devices/tech/dalvik/dex-format.html
Dalvaik - http://source.android.com/devices/tech/dalvik/index.html
ADB - http://developer.android.com/tools/help/adb.html
Logcat - http://developer.android.com/tools/help/logcat.html
Other suggestions
At the end of the Dalvaik section you might add a sentence that says "see ART".
Maybe a mention about XPosed framework since it is very prevalent now.
In the definition of ROM it might be nice to explain a ROM image.
This is something I cannot find: What exactly does AOSPA(+) mean? Alternative?
Kernel is alphabetically in the wrong position in the list.
Explanation for the term MOD / Modification.
Add cool Android KitKat and Jelly Bean history link http://www.android.com/kitkat/
:good: Thanks for the nice list.

OTG missing?

AS this thread is always under development,i'm glad for the suggestions to make this a better thread
DigitalSnow said:
It might be nice to add in some reference links for many of the terms to the official android pages.
ART - http://source.android.com/devices/tech/dalvik/art.html
.DEX - http://source.android.com/devices/tech/dalvik/dex-format.html
Dalvaik - http://source.android.com/devices/tech/dalvik/index.html
ADB - http://developer.android.com/tools/help/adb.html
Logcat - http://developer.android.com/tools/help/logcat.html
[ ^ Perfect]
Other suggestions
At the end of the Dalvaik section you might add a sentence that says "see ART" [good idea]
Maybe a mention about XPosed framewor http://cdn3.xda-developers.com/images/editor/color.gifk since it is very prevalent now. [will be done]
In the definition of ROM it might be nice toexplain a ROM image [ok]
This is something I cannot find: What exactly does AOSPA(+) mean? Alternative? [ I thinck so since it's mostly related do paranoid android rom]
Kernel is alphabetically in the wrong position in the list.[Yeah,kernel is drunk,gonna slap him on the face and move to his place]
Explanation for the term MOD / Modification.
Add cool Android KitKat and Jelly Bean history link http://www.android.com/kitkat/ [wrong link]
:good: Thanks for the nice list.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@Fedroid
OTG missing?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
how could i forget? will be added. thanks

Nice info.I will add it into my bookmark. :good:

Great post thank you.
I suggest, the add of GPE definition : "Google Play Edition". Especially in the case of Moto G
Was not so obvious to me until I google it.

Another term that might be good to add is AWS since it is a unique factor between Moto G models.
AWS: Advanced Wireless Services in terms of the Moto G is the 3G UHF Frequency of 1700 MHz - 2100 MHz "T-Mobile"

[CWM][ARMv7][Intel][Optware-ng: dropbear, transmission, pyload, minidlna & many more]

[CWM][ARMv7][Intel][Optware-ng: dropbear, transmission, pyload, minidlna & many more]
Optware-ng is a Optware fork that uses modern toolchain and boasts to be (nearly) firmware-independent. I686 and hardfloat ARMv7 feeds were tested to run on android devices. Of course, since Optware(-ng) originally targets Linux devices, not all packages work, while some others require additional tweaking. But most packages do work fine, e.g., have you ever wanted to turn your android box into torrent leech/seed box? No good Play Store options to achieve that (of which I'm aware of). With Optware-ng, I have personally tested transmission to work fine, and there're also other torrent clients that may work too. Now, what about using your tablet as a DLNA server? You could use minidlna. There's also pyload and plenty of other useful apps.
To make installing Optware-ng simple, I've made these CWM flashables:
Optware-ng-armv7-binaries[CWM].zip
Optware-ng-Intel-binaries[CWM].zip
Optware-ng-init-script[CWM].zip
To install Optware-ng, simply flash Optware-ng-<YOUR-ARCH>-binaries[CWM].zip and then Optware-ng-init-script[CWM].zip. The first archive installs Optware-ng binaries to /data/Optware-ng, and the second installs initialization script in /system/etc/init.d and also creates /system/etc/passwd. After flashing, reboot your device, and it should become accessible via SSH with following credentials:
login: root
password: password
port: 2222
Needless to say that init.d support is required for this to work.
Please test and report back

To change SSH login password, edit /opt/etc/default/dropbear:
Code:
nano /opt/etc/default/dropbear
and restart dropbear or just reboot.
For better security you may use public key authorization only: set password to blank and add your public keys to /opt/etc/dropbear/authorized_keys (don't forget to `chmod 600 /opt/etc/dropbear/authorized_keys` after you create it!)

Project home:
https://github.com/alllexx88/Optware-ng

[DEV][APP] waut.ch! - Calibration for Android - version 145

Utility for background calibration, curation and tuning of the device towards an intuitive interface.
Subsystems being battery, entropy, encryption, disk, cpu, memory, filesystem, ui, scheduler, and network, all safe and open source technology.
Presented in this educational gaming metric format with infinite feedback and an interestingly assymetric chance. scribble anywhere, check in some stress, or find the 8!
waut.ch! does one hope to receive from this?
Well, increasing degrees and amounts of a certain "Je ne sais quoi" or responsiveness from the user interface for a start. Better battery life perhaps. Better quality of life, maybe.
And waut.ch! can only perhaps be described as "A qualified quantification of the placebo effect"
waut.ch! might benefit from this?
In the Android device space:
Designers
Users
Manufacturers
Recyclers
Developers
Compilers
Support personnel
OEMs
The Friendly Neighborhood Nerd/Technician.
“Make the most of yourself....for waut.ch! is all there is of you.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson ( paraphrase )
All along the waut.ch! tower - Bob Dylan
waut.ch! - Sometimes used in some colloquium as "watch!", keen upon reducing the TDP of mobile devices to 1.0 watt!
ARM variants of Android only Donut 1.6+
Please uninstall either Seeder or CrossBreeder prior to using this.
Root recommended, else reactivity metric is interesting and introduces uniqueness into the entropy pool anyway. Metric may demonstrate a certain asymmetry that is expected from predictable human actions. Efforts have been made to remove time seed logic from haveged in order to improve upon encryption and system-wide performance and security.
Also numerous other subsystems require careful calibration to facilitate this process.
Rewritten code, subset of functionality for upstream project - CrossBreeder ( https://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2113150 )
Please feel free to view and analyze source and functionality and report bugs and discuss etc on the XDA forum:
( https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/apps-games/app-waut-ch-calibration-android-t3549967 )
Google Play store:
( https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ch.waut )
Please visit: /data/data/ch.waut/files/bin on the device itself for partial shell source code and XDA Downloads section and Github for full source code.
Reboot at convenience liberally or sparingly to reseed the entropy pool or as is known in common parlance, for good luck!
Thanks.
Havged source code:
https://github.com/Openand-I/haveged
Adhoc Payment URL to support development efforts : https://paypal.me/openand/10
Frappe ( "free-paid" ) same-version to support development efforts : http://waut.ch
Custom haveged source code as used in this piece of software: https://github.com/Openand-I/haveged
=====
Version Name: 59a6333e-9ed9-43f8-8dad-51ed46c17e28
cb.sh: cache pressure - 500
cb_io.sh: read_ahead - 0
cb_io.sh: nr_requests - 0
$ md5sum *.apk
661c30b02b2321300624af98feaa5bad *145-waut.ch.apk
661c30b02b2321300624af98feaa5bad *oi.apk
$ sha256sum *.apk
6d23b8da87dc5516583a55a3203c9f5068ea8fe8765ece489080ef663c8aee15 *145-waut.ch.apk
6d23b8da87dc5516583a55a3203c9f5068ea8fe8765ece489080ef663c8aee15 *oi.apk
https://github.com/Openand-I/haveged
https://github.com/openand-inc/waut.ch
https://forum.xda-developers.com/devdb/project/?id=19218#downloads
https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/general/app-waut-ch-calibration-android-version-t3858365
https://github.com/openand-inc/waut.ch/raw/cb0c60025f86a4fdc4778506e97ee80eb1c00b45/oi.apk
https://github.com/openand-inc/waut.ch/raw/master/145-waut.ch.apk
-------------------------
Recommended:
- ntp: automatic system time update from internet is enabled.
please check the clock and fiddle around with the timezone settings in case of any issues. one may need to set the timezone manually.
then simply run the app to initiate a time sync
the network time sync happens at around 3am. so the time to check is in the morning.
- Please disable mount namespace separation in the superuser app to take advantage of the mount optimisations.
- Reboot once and occasionally to reseed the entropy pool. It's good luck!
- Do ensure that the waut.ch service has started upon reboot. Just run if it doesn't start it automatically!
Note: Please note that the haveged binary in the APK is a static binary and works on both PIE and non-PIE environments. It is also UPX compressed. UPX for Android didn't compile. So UPX for linux was used to compress the executable file. It is an elegant solution as both on disk and in memory space(?) is reduced by 70% per executable. One is welcome to decompress the file using 'upx -d'.
Full source code is provided on Github and build scripts are attached here and on Github.
There is no license required to both install the app or distribute it, both within the developer ROM community or in commercial form. Adhoc payment URL to support development - https://www.paypal.me/openand/10
Again do note that the license to use the APP and source code is free worldwide and irrevocable in full or partial form. All other open source components simply inherit their license. But under no circumstances is any use thereof legally binding or relevant.
--------
Utility for background calibration, curation and tuning of the device towards an intuitive interface.
Subsystems being battery, entropy, encryption, disk, cpu, memory, filesystem, ui, scheduler, and network, all safe and open source technology.
Presented in this metric format with infinite feedback and an interestingly assymetric chance. scribble anywhere, check in some stress, or get lucky for that matter!
-----
ARM variants of Android only Donut 1.6+ ( should even be compatible with the latest ARM Android 9+ )
Please uninstall either Seeder or CrossBreeder prior to using this. And other "mods" or "tweaks".
Root recommended, else reactivity metric is interesting and introduces uniqueness into the entropy pool anyway. Metric may demonstrate a certain asymmetry that is expected from predictable human actions. Efforts have been made to remove time seed logic from haveged in order to improve upon encryption and system-wide performance and security.
Also numerous other subsystems require careful calibration to facilitate this process.
Rewritten code, subset of functionality for upstream project - CrossBreeder ( https://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2113150 )
Please feel free to view and analyze source and functionality and report bugs and discuss etc on the XDA forum:
( https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/apps-games/app-waut-ch-calibration-android-version-t3858365 )
Google Play store:
( https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ch.waut )
Please visit: /data/data/ch.waut/files/bin on the device itself for partial shell source code and XDA Downloads section and Github for full source code.
The app will amongst other maintenance tasks tune sqlite databases regularly and reseed the entropy pool or as is known in common parlance, for good luck!
Thanks.
Payment URL: https://paypal.me/openand/10
XDAevDB Information
waut.ch!, App for all devices (see above for details)
Contributors
idcrisis
Source Code:
[url]https://github.com/Openand-I/haveged[/URL]
[url]https://github.com/openand-inc/waut.ch[/URL]
[url]https://forum.xda-developers.com/devdb/project/?id=19218#downloads[/URL]
Previous Version Information - 144
305bd30f-0c8a-40d8-baf5-330c68f62d51
Status: Stable
Created 2017-01-01
Last Updated 2020-08-18
$ md5sum *.apk
8ea8e8c132a584767a12e394f7975654 *144-waut.ch.apk
8ea8e8c132a584767a12e394f7975654 *oi.apk
$ sha256sum *.apk
4925066a106c83b18ac6e563f03331c56b72777e66973db591c9776d706595e3 *144-waut.ch.apk
4925066a106c83b18ac6e563f03331c56b72777e66973db591c9776d706595e3 *oi.apk
https://github.com/Openand-I/haveged
https://github.com/openand-inc/waut.ch
https://github.com/openand-inc/waut.ch/raw/master/144-waut.ch.apk
https://github.com/openand-inc/waut.ch/raw/f699d3763507ec1f91d82b9ce25c53036b460a9e/oi.apk
-----
Version notes:
haveged: static non upx binary used
cb.sh: lock fixes
Recommended:
- ntp: automatic system time update from internet is enabled.
please check the clock and fiddle around with the timezone settings in case of any issues. one may need to set the timezone manually.
then simply run the app to initiate a time sync
the network time sync happens at around 3am. so the time to check is in the morning.
- Please disable mount namespace separation in the superuser app to take advantage of the mount optimisations.
- Reboot once and occasionally to reseed the entropy pool. It's good luck!
- Do ensure that the waut.ch service has started upon reboot. Just run if it doesn't start it automatically!
Please support development, simply use https://paypal.me/openand/10 or the payment URL.
Or you can simply buy the "frappe" ( free-paid ) version of the app: http://waut.ch

Recommended:
- ntp: automatic system time update from internet is enabled.
please check the clock and fiddle around with the timezone settings in case of any issues. one may need to set the timezone manually.
the network time sync happens at around 3am. so the time to check is in the morning.
- Please disable mount namespace separation in the superuser app to take advantage of the mount optimisations.
- Reboot once and occasionally to reseed the entropy pool. It's good luck!
- Do ensure that the waut.ch service has started upon reboot. Just run if it doesn't start it automatically!

Issues:
- superuser - Please disable mount namespace separation in the superuser app ( for optional but recommended mount options ). Also please revisit the app entry inside the superuser app to ensure the waut.ch service can run on boot unattended. One can see the logs on another day to ensure that the scheduler ran correctly in the night.
- Non root users - User Interface can help in clearing the random device. Please try and obtain root to avail of most features
- Some Samsung users - One is also requested to raise a ticket with Samsung who may be running old PE detection rules that flag any compressed EXE.
- x64 users - Reports are that the binaries run on 64 bit as they are static! Please compile one's variant of the binary if required. Entropy generations removes CPU jitter and hence runs cooler and more secure.
- Intel users - User Interface can help in clearing the random device. Please compile one's variant of the binary if required. Entropy generations removes CPU jitter and hence runs cooler and more secure.
- Maintenance scheduler VACCUUMS and INDEXES "ALL" SQLITE databases. Some folks may not like that. But given that they're no WAL mode anyway, it's a bottleneck worth removing safely.
- There is a concerned effort to state that 32-bit ARM Android Go/One < 1 GB RAM devices are all that's required for long term functioning. Higher no issues.
- Please try and use a heap size of 96MB. Attempts have been made to set heap size dynamic but ideally this should be done in the build.
- Please clear cache or factory reset upon issues to gain at least another year of MTTR ( Mean Time To Recovery ) for each device.
Thank you!

License
License concerns:
haveged - inherited - https://github.com/Openand-I/haveged
busybox - inherited - https://github.com/openand-inc/busybox
- Busybox simple extract, possibly edit the .config file in 'vi' and type 'make'
The requisite tools are installed using:
apt-get install gcc-arm-linux-gnueabi
apt-get install libncurses5-dev
apt-get install gawk
The following is a step in another direction as the 'make' command works perfectly after extraction, but this is provided for posterity:
wget http://busybox.net/downloads/busybox-1.24.1.tar.bz2
tar -xjf busybox-1.24.1.tar.bz2
cd busybox-1.24.1/
make ARCH=arm CROSS_COMPILE=arm-linux-gnueabi- defconfig
make ARCH=arm CROSS_COMPILE=arm-linux-gnueabi- menuconfig
At the menu, you can configure BusyBox options. Once configured, you can build BusyBox:
make ARCH=arm CROSS_COMPILE=arm-linux-gnueabi-
sqlite3 - inherited - https://github.com/openand-inc/sqlite
waut.ch - 'none', non legally binding, and non legally relevant on a worldwide scale and irrevocable ( derived works are allowed to add their own licenses as long as the import ( meaning ) of the phrase "non legally binding and non legally relevant" is implied throughout ( not required to include text at all )) and does not reflect upon future updates of this software in any manner adversely.

He is back! Welcome back! Looking forward to this great new project! The only thing I might be missing is the dnsmasq filtering, which in my opinion if by far better solution than any kid of firewall/blocker
Sent from my Galaxy Tab 2 3G using Tapatalk

qWantUS said:
He is back! Welcome back! Looking forward to this great new project! The only thing I might be missing is the dnsmasq filtering, which in my opinion if by far better solution than any kid of firewall/blocker
Sent from my Galaxy Tab 2 3G using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mate!
There are some serious issues with DNSMASQ.
- It crashes on wrong syntax of any option. Cannot do for a server.
- Command line syntax changes between original branch, Android and Cyanogen MOD. Not merged.
- Android fork far behind main branch
- Consumes port 53 on server run without sharing interfaces. This is on the Android branch. Main branch has this resolved.
- CPU loop for most Android DNS versions that show up only upon server run, rather than the tethering run. Possibly hijacked open source branch.
- Tethering modifications to Android branch ( command line addons ) not required any more as the main branch has incorporated methods to dynamically change IP addresses on the fly.
- It is probably encumbered by coding standards and export issues with only one developer. It is emblematic of most such over-reused projects.
- Hash table in memory, therefore future block list will use up RAM. Some others have disk based caching.
- Static blocklists are fairly not scalable for 10 years hence. Needs wildcard blocklists.
- DNS cache poisoning/overloading ( leading to denial of service) possible by any process/app.
It is therefore recommended to use either of:
pdnsd
unbound
djbdns
and standalone dhcp clients and servers from the Entware repository. And also these are interesting:
DANE
DNSSEC over TLS
BTW, all Android is encumbered by simple denial of service attack simply by reading from /dev/random by any app.
In order to try and package this into a simplish product, deleting /dev/random was not implemented.

idcrisis said:
Mate!
There are some serious issues with DNSMASQ.
- It crashes on wrong syntax of any option. Cannot do for a server.
- Command line syntax changes between original branch, Android and Cyanogen MOD. Not merged.
- Android fork far behind main branch
- Consumes port 53 on server run without sharing interfaces. This is on the Android branch. Main branch has this resolved.
- CPU loop for most Android DNS versions that show up only upon server run, rather than the tethering run. Possibly hijacked open source branch.
- Tethering modifications to Android branch ( command line addons ) not required any more as the main branch has incorporated methods to dynamically change IP addresses on the fly.
- It is probably encumbered by coding standards and export issues with only one developer. It is emblematic of most such over-reused projects.
- Hash table in memory, therefore future block list will use up RAM. Some others have disk based caching.
- Static blocklists are fairly not scalable for 10 years hence. Needs wildcard blocklists.
- DNS cache poisoning/overloading ( leading to denial of service) possible by any process/app.
It is therefore recommended to use either of:
pdnsd
unbound
djbdns
and standalone dhcp clients and servers from the Entware repository. And also these are interesting:
DANE
DNSSEC over TLS
BTW, all Android is encumbered by simple denial of service attack simply by reading from /dev/random by any app.
In order to try and package this into a simplish product, deleting /dev/random was not implemented.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Very comprehensive explanation indeed! I am no expert in Linux, only an average user [emoji6]
I was not aware of so many obstacles using dnasmasq, but aware of it's unreliability while using it for blocking stuff in pfsense. But I must say, I had similar experience with unbound, however, probably due to the lack of linux knowledge.
The way I understand is that host blocking is no longer viable due to scales of blocking required today. But sadly there is no alternative for that on android. I have been trying another tool, called sharkmasq but developer sadly abandoned it, while it seems very unfinished and unreliable. I also understand the reasons behind leaving netfiltering out of your development, just, in desperation, I search for the hope [emoji3]
P. S.
Thank you very much for your reply and for your time putting it together. Nevertheless I will look forward to further developments of this new exciting project!
Sent from my LG-D855 using Tapatalk

Uhm, my device seems more responsive even when I use a very low CPU frequency, but is it normal that the app doesn't ask for root permission even if I'm fully rooted? I'm using a Nexus 5 running Nougat. Thank you
Inviato dal mio Nexus 5 con Tapatalk 2

Hi, yes, part of the design criteria. Without root, the metric is interesting. With root, it will automatically start the background processes including the daily cleanups.
Best way to know that the background processes are running is to install Seeder ( but whatever you do don't start it! . Entropy should show around 4096.

Still in the testing phase, does it worth excluding the app from "android optimisation list"? I also use "power nap", not sure will that cause any side effects...
Sent from my LG-D855 using Tapatalk

Let us know If Seeder has RNGD off and still reports ~ 4096 entropy then all is hunky dory.

The new update asked me for root permission, all right here now

Have been busy lately with life, but had occasionally played with phone. So my findings so far: I use this app on my old galaxy tab 2 3g on slim6. Seeder shows entropy being filled in no time at all. Can't really say much about performance, but it seems that it behaves a little smoother. I also use it on my daily LG G3 on stock MM rom with custom kernel, but seeder is reporting very low entropy, if seeded is left on for 1 minute, I can see that entropy never goes above 900? Goes up slowly but then gets used, and then very slowly goes up again and gets used.
Sent from my LG-D855 using Tapatalk

Reboot once after first install kicks in the animation changes. And good luck
New version uploaded with haveged updates. Build scripts also added.
Feedback solicited about the compiler flags etc. Basically the idea is that the ARM v5 binaries should work for all past and future versions of 32-bit Android without modification.
UPX binary could only be compiled for x86 linux.
To answer question, second device, not running, may need to check su logs
Also backend binaries are 32 bit, may not work on 64 bit. GUI's ok.

I am very confused about the frontend of this app that looks like some number game that I really don't understand . Also, I don't understand the description very well. Finding the 8??? Reboot when animation kicks in? What animation?? Nothing seems to happen. I just see a still of a beach with a red number
But something DID happen though, so I am in business. I will keep you curious for a moment, while firstly giving you a good reason for a hard laugh:
I am trying to revive an LG L3 E400! Yep, that's right . Just for fun and educion. In fact I already succeeded quite a bit. I flashed JellyCast V7rev1, used some stuff from V6 SuperCharger (not entropy thingie coz I already intended to use CrossBreeder for that) and 3 scripts from Fly-On Mod. I came here via the CrossBreeder thread (of course). I have already tried CrossBreeder 7.2.13 (I followed advise from @f3tus here, he advised to use that older version). Entropy went up (so it worked) but I did not experience much performance improvement. I did experience more "not responding" issues though. So I reverted to the pre-CrossBreeder backup. And then came your app.....
So that's a very short summary of the many, many, many hours I spent last 2 weeks on this ancient minimalistic but very adorable phone. Now... back to this Waut.ch! app. Presuming that it had done something, I checked the entropy level after first reboot: still a jumpy number between 150 and 200 or so. Despite the fact that the service shows up as running. Then, a lot more playing with the "game" without understanding what I was doing. Just hoping for some wonder. Some message.... just...... something! But nothing. Just a beach with a red number. And a clock. And a questionmark. Or exclamation mark. Pffffff.. So.... let's reboot again. Then eat a sandwich and drink (more) coffee. Then check entropy again. And there it is! Steady at 4089! At first I thought his app was failing because the number didn't change anymore. Just steady. With the old CrossBreeder 7.2.13 I got 4096 a lot but it was a very jumpy number, going even below 1000 a lot. Well, some time passed while writing this post so let's check again: Wow, right now it says 4091 (99%)! One hour later: 4092! (It had spontaneous reboots inbetween).
I am testing it now for a few hours and have these problems:
"Not responding" issues (same as old CrossBreeder).
Spontaneous reboots (3 already). One of them failing to boot at all (stuck at JellyCast logo).
Two times, after a reboot, GPS was disabled. Not consistently though.
No noticable performance gain.
By the way, I am testing like real world usage. Just opening, using and closing apps. I use the same apps all the time so that gives a very good feeling about performance. More meaningful than benchmarks to me. My goal is to make this phone suitable for normal daily usage.
Your app is using a combination of serveral mods, right? I would like to be able to enable / disable each one separately. How can I do that? For example, I have a gut feeling that my "not responding" issues (and reboots?) do not come from the entropy mod but perhaps from governor tweaks or something else. Any chance that you will add enable buttons in the app? Or supply seperate scripts?

Update: I DO have performance gain! Not consitently though. Apps sometimes starting faster than ever. Also still the aforementioned quirks. Last hours no more auto-reboots. Entropy reaching 4096 now, just a little bit wobbly. There seems to be a lot of potential.

The stutter was an issue with the last version.
Do try the latest one and let us know.
Also better if you install the Play store also so the updates are automatic.
Version name is changed GUID if comparing. Better than comparing version numbers.
GUI is non functional, just a visual representation of haptic feedback and actual randomness spread.
It's like drawing points in the whites of a poached egg. If you can see a pattern, you'll be rich in the stock market

Today I removed the app. The biggest problem is random reboots for me. As said, it has potential because sometimes apps started faster than ever on my ancient LG L3. But not consistently. So maybe I 'll try again later.
Sorry for my first post, probably tl;dr. I will repeat my most important question: can you provide us with separate scripts? I mean: I would like to test the entropy thing without the other tweaks as you described in the OP.

Dude!
You're probably using an old version. We'll never know. Will we? Will we now?
There's a small trick that borders on superstition. The famous random device block gremlin tends to disappear if you run the GUI in scribble mode. Basically what may be happening is the block is hit and then the stupid kernel makes whatever decision it makes. Usually at the cost of usability in favour of some stupid religious Linux fervour. Someone should report that to LINUX.
Or another entropy generator, haveged or RNGD or Seeder may be running. Which is a big no! Best to run it on stock ROMS or full custom ROMs ( please ask the developer if they're running any variant of above and to recommend coexistence or better variant of any subcomponents or piece of code. ). In other words, open source!
Also, the separate scripts are in the /bin directory on the phone itself. May require bash and ADB skills.
And full source on XDA and GitHub.
I'll construe this as a possible request to also post the shell scripts from GitHub into the XDA project as separate attachments. Which I can do. In due course
Cheers.

Well, I took it from Play Store. Is that an old version?