Database Info

[Q] Disabling Android 2.2 DropBoxManager

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.

[Q] android App path

I have installed an Android Application which was developed by the friend of mine. It had installed on my Android phone (HTC G2, with Android 2.2). I need to locate the application forlders, and especially SQLite database which was created along with the application, because I need to copy it to my PC. I did seach on SD card but I did not found it, so I assume it must be on the device RAM, but I really don't know the structure and how the apps are organized. I might suspect the SQLites data filename, but that all I know at the moment.
Can somebody pint me to some utility which will allow to find the database, and the application path, and most of all to copy it to the PC ???
Thanks - Arthur

The database and any other "data" used by the app will be located in /data/data/ then inside a directory that corresponds to the app's package name. If we use the Kindle app as an example, the path to it's data would be: /data/data/com.amazon.kindle

unfortunately I checked this foldeor on RAM as well as SD and couldn't find it. device /data folder is empty, and SD gas some other stuff bot not this App.

aklisiewicz said:
unfortunately I checked this foldeor on RAM as well as SD and couldn't find it. device /data folder is empty, and SD gas some other stuff bot not this App.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I should have also said, you need to be rooted in order to see the contents of the /data directory. Without root access, it will be shown as empty because you do not have permission to view or modify. If your phone is rooted, you can use Root Explorer, Terminal Emulator, or adb to access /data and copy, modify, create, or delete files there.

Thank you for your time. That would explain why I do not see it.
OK, I have HTC G2 from T-Mobile, I think it has Android 2.2
Nothing was changed or updated on this phone since I bough it last fall. I'm not with T-Mobile anymore so I do not wat to mess up with the phone unless I'm really sure what am I doing. The only nice thing is that the phone is unlocked now. The reason I ask those questions is because I am working on some tool, which is a desktop program wchich supposed to sync SQLite data from device to the PC.
What I want to do is to connect the device through USB cable, then have it mapped is it normally does (i.e. drive H. Then access the SQLite file from the desktop application by opening the database through that link and syncing the records. Not sure but I hope this approach would work. If it cannot work that way then eventually I want to copy the SQLite dB file to the PC sync database and then copy it back to the device. I already have a desktop App which work on SQLite localy so now I want to access the device, having the same dB file residing on my android phone instead on my local HD.
What could be the reason that the installed APP doesn't want to move to SD ???
I would appreciate any suggestions...
What is required to root the phone? I've herd there are some risks. Besides I probably have to find some other solutions as none of the App users would want to root their devices (or have a knowledge how to do it).

aklisiewicz said:
Thank you for your time. That would explain why I do not see it.
OK, I have HTC G2 from T-Mobile, I think it has Android 2.2
Nothing was changed or updated on this phone since I bough it last fall. I'm not with T-Mobile anymore so I do not wat to mess up with the phone unless I'm really sure what am I doing. The only nice thing is that the phone is unlocked now. The reason I ask those questions is because I am working on some tool, which is a desktop program wchich supposed to sync SQLite data from device to the PC.
What I want to do is to connect the device through USB cable, then have it mapped is it normally does (i.e. drive H. Then access the SQLite file from the desktop application by opening the database through that link and syncing the records. Not sure but I hope this approach would work. If it cannot work that way then eventually I want to copy the SQLite dB file to the PC sync database and then copy it back to the device. I already have a desktop App which work on SQLite localy so now I want to access the device, having the same dB file residing on my android phone instead on my local HD.
What could be the reason that the installed APP doesn't want to move to SD ???
I would appreciate any suggestions...
What is required to root the phone? I've herd there are some risks. Besides I probably have to find some other solutions as none of the App users would want to root their devices (or have a knowledge how to do it).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Took me a bit to get back to you but figure better late than never...
Here is a good FAQ on rooting among other things specific to the G2(the US variant of the Desire Z). In order to root your G2, this guide looks to be good as he's simplified and automated a good bit of the process, should be safe, and seems to work. You'll need to install the two apps he mentions in step 1 and download the zip file he mentions in step 2 which is attached at the bottom of the post then just follow the instructions.
As for the database stuff, if you end up needing to access the /data directory you'll have to be rooted. Also, moving the app to the sdcard won't really help you with having access to the app's files. Froyo built-in App2SD just moves the apk file to a hidden directory on /sdcard (.android_secure) but the app data, cache and all that stuff will still be on internal memory. But to answer why the app won't move to the sd card, I'm guessing it's because the app itself must allow for it to be moved since by default, an app doesn't have this enabled unless the app dev gives it that ability.
To communicate with the phone, even with root access, you'll probably have to do so through adb commands or use an adb shell to be able to run shell commands on the phone. This would require adb be set up on the user's computer. If you want to play around with adb, there's a nice guide called ADB for Noobs that goes through setting it up and starting out using it. I can't say I've really done anything with SQLite databases on Android and certainly not then syncing it to a computer so I could be off-base or overlooking a workaround.

Thank you for your valuable information. You guys are really great help, and I appreciate your time. I will study the links provided.
In the meantime my main concern is to access SQLite database, as I need to get to the records, or at least be able to copy it back and forth between device an PC. I guess the database file would be something like MyDatabase.db , but I have no cule how to find it and copy it. As you have said it might be in some system protected directory. The main issue is that I will ne a solution which would work on every standard device (no the rooted one), so I need something very easy for the user to setup and follow. I have seen a utility that allow to manipulate SQLite records directly on device, but again thsi tools requires to root the phone (which I'm reluctant to do) because ot the above reasons. If you could help my to resove this I would be very graceful!
Arthur

aklisiewicz said:
Thank you for your valuable information. You guys are really great help, and I appreciate your time. I will study the links provided.
In the meantime my main concern is to access SQLite database, as I need to get to the records, or at least be able to copy it back and forth between device an PC. I guess the database file would be something like MyDatabase.db , but I have no cule how to find it and copy it. As you have said it might be in some system protected directory. The main issue is that I will ne a solution which would work on every standard device (no the rooted one), so I need something very easy for the user to setup and follow. I have seen a utility that allow to manipulate SQLite records directly on device, but again thsi tools requires to root the phone (which I'm reluctant to do) because ot the above reasons. If you could help my to resove this I would be very graceful!
Arthur
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unless there is some trick I don't know about you are going to have to be rooted to get access to the database. I found a couple links discussing this: here and here. The second link does mention that the app with the database you want to access could be written to store the database on the sdcard where it would then be accessible but that would be unsecure since anything could read/modify it there.

Thanks, looks like I have to do more research on my own. It is hard to believe for me that Google would not allow to access the same database from different Apps. I've seen there is a Java class ContentProvider which seems to allow that, so I will study this, perhaps it will help. Thank for you help.
Arthur

[APP] Undelete Beta - recover deleted files on rooted devices

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...

Save WhatsApp Conversation

Hello!
I have a question regarding WhatsApp. Is there a possibility to save WhatsApp conversations/history? Through any homebrew-App?
I searched through Google and XDA, didn't find anything useful, unfortunately.
Thanks in advance.
Greetings,
Crash1k

You need to copy out the Isolated Storage for the app. There are a few tools that can do this, including any filesystem browser (such as WP7 Root Tools). An easy way to get the file(s) from your phone to the PC would be my Root Webserver app; find the App GUID of WhatsApp and go to http://<PHONE_IP>/FileSystem/Applications/Data/<APP_GUID>/Data on the PC while the phone runs the webserver app.

Thanks for your fast answer.
Since I'm pretty new to this homebrew-and-phoneHacking thing I don't have much of a clue how to work with those programs. I have downloaded "HtcRootWebServer_231.zip" and the ".xap" file, but I don't know how to get started. Are there any instructions online, perhaps on your homepage, if you have one?
Thanks again.

Oh boy... okay, I assumed you'd already be familiar with dev-unlock at least, so this is going to be a bit complicated. First of all, what phone do you have? On some phones, you won't even be able to run the app because of restrictions that we don't know how to get past.
The summary:
To install an app to the phone from a XAP file, your phone needs to be developer-unlocked. There are a few ways to do this, including an official one from Microsoft (though that costs money unless you're a student). To deploy the apps, you'll probably want to download the Windows Phone SDK from Microsoft as it has all the tools.
To use high-privilege apps, you'll need your phone to be "interop-unlocked" which you can read about on XDA-Devs. Not all phones can currently be interop-unlocked, though many can.
Once your phone is IUed, install the webserver and also WP7 Root Tools v0.9. Use the Root Tools to mark the Webserver app as "Trusted"; this will give it the permissions it needs (it has its own permission elevation code, but I'm almost sure your phone isn't compatible).

if your phone is unlocked:
install wmdc by ultrashot, then, connect it to wmdc, then browse <YOUR WP NAME>\\Applications\Data\218A0EBB-1585-4C7E-A9EC-054CF4569A79 then copy everything from it

GoodDayToDie said:
Oh boy... okay, I assumed you'd already be familiar with dev-unlock at least, so this is going to be a bit complicated. First of all, what phone do you have? On some phones, you won't even be able to run the app because of restrictions that we don't know how to get past.
The summary:
To install an app to the phone from a XAP file, your phone needs to be developer-unlocked. There are a few ways to do this, including an official one from Microsoft (though that costs money unless you're a student). To deploy the apps, you'll probably want to download the Windows Phone SDK from Microsoft as it has all the tools.
To use high-privilege apps, you'll need your phone to be "interop-unlocked" which you can read about on XDA-Devs. Not all phones can currently be interop-unlocked, though many can.
Once your phone is IUed, install the webserver and also WP7 Root Tools v0.9. Use the Root Tools to mark the Webserver app as "Trusted"; this will give it the permissions it needs (it has its own permission elevation code, but I'm almost sure your phone isn't compatible).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks a lot for your help, and I'm sorry you had to write this much. I already know how to deploy .xap's and these things, but I have no clue when it comes to the Webserver and how to find the conversations with that. I'll try this for now. I appreciate your help and effort.
aramadsanar said:
if your phone is unlocked:
install wmdc by ultrashot, then, connect it to wmdc, then browse <YOUR WP NAME>\\Applications\Data\218A0EBB-1585-4C7E-A9EC-054CF4569A79 then copy everything from it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is this the same method as the one GoodDayToDie explained?
Thanks for your answer!
//Edit:
I tried it like you, GoodDayToDie, told me. I downloaded your HtcRootWebServer_231.xap and HtcRootWebServer_231.zip. (even though I have a Samsung Omnia 7 with windowbreak unlock (I think that's interop unlock, don't know for sure though)). Then I deployed the .xap, opened the App in the phone but didn't know what to do with the numbers and text fields (like what kind of Admin name and password I should fill in...). After I gave up on the phone-part, I tried to work with the .zip file, but I don't know what to do next. There are 2 folders, one is called "Homebrew" the other "WebServer", I tried to open the programs which are placed in the subfolders (I opened both with Microsoft Visual Studio Solution) but I only get an error and it won't show anything.
Do you know where the problem is? (aside from my lack of knowledge of course :/ )
Thanks for your help.

Crash1k said:
Thanks a lot for your help, and I'm sorry you had to write this much. I already know how to deploy .xap's and these things, but I have no clue when it comes to the Webserver and how to find the conversations with that. I'll try this for now. I appreciate your help and effort.
Is this the same method as the one GoodDayToDie explained?
Thanks for your answer!
//Edit:
I tried it like you, GoodDayToDie, told me. I downloaded your HtcRootWebServer_231.xap and HtcRootWebServer_231.zip. (even though I have a Samsung Omnia 7 with windowbreak unlock (I think that's interop unlock, don't know for sure though)). Then I deployed the .xap, opened the App in the phone but didn't know what to do with the numbers and text fields (like what kind of Admin name and password I should fill in...). After I gave up on the phone-part, I tried to work with the .zip file, but I don't know what to do next. There are 2 folders, one is called "Homebrew" the other "WebServer", I tried to open the programs which are placed in the subfolders (I opened both with Microsoft Visual Studio Solution) but I only get an error and it won't show anything.
Do you know where the problem is? (aside from my lack of knowledge of course :/ )
Thanks for your help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes, it goes to one objective, but in a simpler method

Eh, WebServer doesn't require installing anything on the PC, WPDM doesn't (directly) require installing anything on the phone. In both cases, you'll need to have WP7 Root Tools installed.
For WPDM + TouchXperience:
Install Windows Phone Device Manager from TouchXperience.com.
Start Zune and connect your phone.
Start WPDM and wait for it to install the TouchXperience app on the phone.
Open WP7 Root Tools v0.9 and go to the Policy pivot.
Mark TouchXperience as "Trusted" and exit Root Tools.
Open TouchXperience (and WPDM on the PC, if you closed it) and connect them.
Either do what @aramadsanar suggested, or use the Installed Apps feature of WPDM to make a backup.
For Root Webserver:
Install Root Webserver (the XAP; the ZIP file is the source code); you already did this.
Open WP7 Root Tools v0.9 and go to the Policy pivot.
Mark "Webserver (HtcRoot)" as Trusted and close Root Tools.
Connect the phone to WiFi (on the same network as your PC) and launch the webserver app.
Set a username and password you can remember ("admin" and "root" for example, though that's insecure).
On the PC, open a web browser and go to the phone's IP address, then drill down into the FileSystem like I said (aramadsanar gave you the app's GUID).
Download the files from the Isolated Storage to your PC, and save them somewhere.

Thanks a LOT for those great instructions, GoodDayToDie! That's really nice, thanks for your effort.
I tried the WebServer method since I didn't want to install Windows Phone SDK 7.1, but I didn't manage to get into my phone through the browser (by typing the I.P. of the phone, which is listed on the Webserver App, just as you said), that's why I was forced to use the other way. Well, who cares, it worked! I have my messages file, but the next problem shows up. I can open the file with the Editor, but it shows weird symbols and you can't read the messages actually. I tried many other programs but none work. Do you guys know how to open those files? The ending is ".sdf". I google'd it for nearly two hours, couldn't find anything useful.
Thanks for the help so far.

You used the WiFi address of the phone, right? The WWAN (cellular) connection is almost certainly firewalled. For example, on my home network the router usually gives my phone IP address 192.168.0.73 on WiFi, so I type in "http://192.168.0.73" into the browser on my PC. It'll ask for username and password; give it what you put on the phone.
As for the file contents, I can't help there. They might be encrypted, in which case the crypto key is somewhere but might be hard to find. Or they might be compressed, in which case you need to find a decoder for that compression. Either one would produce files that appear to be meaningless binary to a casual glance.
One thing you could try for the compressed file possibility is tell 7-Zip to open the file. It's usually very good at recognizing compressed formats. If it's encrypted, you'll probably need to decompile WhatsApp to figure out how. If WhatsApp is obfuscated, you're going to be in a tough spot.
By the way, I assume you downloaded the messages file directly, rather than using the data backup function of WPDM, right?
Hmm... what do you need these files for? If it's just for backup, what you have is *probably* sufficient, so long as you grabbed *all* the files from the IsolatedStorage.

Yeah, I used the WiFi address which is listed on the WebServer App, and I typed that IP Address just like you said into my browser, with "http://" etc., but it still didn't work. It doesn't even ask me for any password or username.
I don't think they are compressed, because I already tried to open/extract them with 7zip, all I got was an error because of the incompatibility. The other thing is, that when I open the files with the "Editor", I can see my messages there, but there are many many other symbols there, which makes it impossible to read the messages. They are too wide spread and you can't tell which messages belong together etc.
Even though I have no idea how to "decompile" WhatsApp, I won't ask you to tell me, since it sounds pretty complicated. I hope there is another way to solve this problem.
Yes, I simply saved the file on my Desktop, didn't use the BackUp function.
That's right, they're "just" for backup, and I didn't grab just the IsolatedStorage folder, I took the whole "Data" folder, just like aramadsanar told me to.
Thanks again for your fast and detailed answer.

If the wifi address didn't work, either your phone was not on WiFi (did the address start with 169.254.?) or your PC was not on WiFi or even connected to the same WiFi network. You can (in theory; I've never tried) also connect to the phone over wired Ethernet by plugging in the phone to the PC with its USB cable, and running Zune on the PC. That will add an ethernet entry to the phone IP list, but I don't know if it can be used for server ports from the PC.
There are a number of free apps for decompiling managed (.NET) code. The latest version of .NET RAIN, distributed right here on XDA-Devs, can do it, for example. Decompiling turns the intermediate-language binary code in a managed DLL or EXE file into C# or VB.NET or whatever. It's not a perfect reversal; the decompiler has to guess what the original source code looked like, and of course comments are missing. It's good enough to read pretty easily, though.
It sounds like what you have is probably a database file of some kind. There are only a few database formats available for WP7 apps (a few more can be accessed using native code).

[Beginner Guides]How to Backup Almost Every Android Device

Introduction:
After I saw that that there is an Adb command to backup Android devices, I said to myself why I don't make batch file to make it easier for people to use it ? Luckily, it didn't take me long before I made a batch file that is able to backup your device ,any Android device, which is extremely easy to use.It consists of only 5 questions that will help decide what you wish to backup. This batch file uses a unadvertised feature in Android 4.0+ to Backup everything on your Android device. A Galaxy S4,a Chinese branded mobile phone, or even a tablet. This batch file can backup all of them.
Disclaimer:
I’m not responsible if something goes wrong on your phone(Usually nothing goes wrong), you’re doing this on your own responsibility. Rooting your phone will void your warranty so don’t root your device unless you know what you are doing.
Method:
Advantages:
Easy to use.
Backs up all your apps with all their data.No need to worry about reinstalling them again.
Uses Android stock feature so it less likely –if not at all- to find an incompatible Android device.
Extremely useful for cheap unbranded chinese Android Devices
Doesn't require a rooted device.
Disadvantages:
If you have a mobile device you need to backup your messages and call logs separately.
Needs a Windows PC .
Download:
To download the toolkit and for more instructions on how you can use it, consider visiting How to Back up Almost Every Android Device

Has anyone had issues with this backup tool? I have a 6.9 GB .ab file in my backup folder, so I'm 90% sure I did the backup correctly... But I can't get it to restore. I point the tool to the backup, it reads back the complete file extension correctly, I select "backup now" on the phone and let it run till it gets to the "thank you for using this tool, press any key to continue" and it closes itself out. There's nothing on the phone though. I've performed the restore twice, the second time I made sure the file extension was exactly how windows shows it in the event that the tool is case sensitive. Still nothing on the phone.

@tsiah: The script seems to be using the adb backup command. According to this thread (at the bottom) you need to set a desktop backup password:
copkay said:
NOTE 06/12: There seems to be a bug in which backup and restore operations will fail unless a desktop backup password is set under Developer Options. It will not work with a blank password.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The post itself is a little bit older, so you might have to search around if this is still the case.

zAfi2014 said:
@tsiah: The script seems to be using the adb backup command. According to this thread (at the bottom) you need to set a desktop backup password:
The post itself is a little bit older, so you might have to search around if this is still the case.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great... That would have been nice to know before hand
So now I've wasted all this time trying to get it to work and it probably won't ever work at this point...

tsiah said:
Great... That would have been nice to know before hand
So now I've wasted all this time trying to get it to work and it probably won't ever work at this point...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you did the backup, didn't your phone ask you for a password to input?

polobunny said:
When you did the backup, didn't your phone ask you for a password to input?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It says you can encrypt it with a password but that it's optional.

I've been messing around with this a little bit more. I set a password in developer options and attempted the restoration again. It runs for about 30 minutes, I get the toast "restore ended" (something to that effect) and nothing has changed.
Currently attempting to restore in safe mode. No idea if it'll take or not.
I lost a lot of photos that were attached to an app (you have to manually select the ones you want to save and save them to your library...wtf? good idea dev!) my wife is quite upset that the photos are gone and I'm about at my wits end trying to get this restoration to work.
What I can't understand is why the file is 6.9 GB, but there's no restoration taking place. Everyone that reported issues with the password not being set was getting a 0kb or maybe a few hundred mb as their file they pulled in the backup. I really don't think the backup failed...but why is the restore failing???

Attempting the restoration in safe mode made no difference.
Pretty bummed out.
I've been twisting the ear of someone over at VSCO cam. No idea if it will make a difference in future versions of the application but IMO they should inform you when you START using their app that you MUST manually save all the photos you want to keep...or, the logical thing that every other camera on the planet does, JUST SAVE THE DAMN PHOTOS!
VSCO stores pictures in some cache folder of their own. If you uninstall the app or have to factory reset a phone and you haven't selected and saved all your photos inside the app, you lose everything. They don't own MY pictures. I think that kind of blurs some...ethical? ...lines. Storing them in a folder that basically "belongs" to them? not cool VSCO. Not cool at all.
I'm pissed about this whole situation.
Sometimes I just want to tell all technology to bite my shiny metal ass...
---------- Post added at 10:20 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:15 AM ----------
kalo0osh97 said:
Disadvantages:
If you have a mobile device you need to backup your messages and call logs separately.
Needs a Windows PC .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
add to this list that the restoration might not work, even if the backup seems to have worked properly...
I won't ever use this backup method again. It's way too time consuming and you can't depend on it.

I know this post is pretty ancient, but I just wanted to toss in that the beginnerguides domain appears to have expired and been picked up by a domain scalper, so the resources this thread mentions are no longer available Here's hoping they can be put up somewhere else, or that someone has a link to similar instructions!

microwiz said:
I know this post is pretty ancient, but I just wanted to toss in that the beginnerguides domain appears to have expired and been picked up by a domain scalper, so the resources this thread mentions are no longer available Here's hoping they can be put up somewhere else, or that someone has a link to similar instructions!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
very true ! will the author of the 1st post please respond !

kalo0osh97 said:
To download the toolkit and for more instructions on how you can use it, consider visiting How to Back up Almost Every Android Device
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the site seems to be empty....

I have tried to restore using beginner guide's toolkit but everytime i restore....a message pops up and says "restore started" after 3 seconds..."restore ended" ...but there is no changes to my actual phone files...nothing got restored. What is the problem with this toolkit ? I expected this to work several years ago and now it doesn't and I basically lost all my files and everything