Help with dementia coffeemaker app. - General Questions and Answers

Hi,
I am working on a coffeemaker that helps people diagnosed with dementia getting a bit of there independence back. It has to show the directions of the coffee making process. The coffeemaker has some sensors placed on it to register what steps have already been completed and has a arduino + bluetooth module for communication. I would like to build an app that makes it possible to show a particular page of the app>res>layout depending on what number it gets from the arduino. So basicly it should whent receives like a 4 from the arduino it should set the contentview to r.layout.4. I am a absolute noob at android programming and I have no clue where to start. I even cant get the Bluetooth connection to work. The arduino code is working so when I am using a android Bluetooth serial terminal I can communicate with the arduino.
So it has to fetch the data of the incoming bluetooth (serial) data and according to that data view a page on the app.
I am also able to create the layoutfiles with the desired text and pictures.
Do you guys have some tips and like a good tutorial for me or some help/advice?
I have looked at the android development pages but I simply cant get it to work.
Thank you in advance,
Marijnsp

Related

New Coder For WinMobile

I have some questions about coding specifically, this seems like something to put in the development forum, but its rules seem to specify that it is not.
I am making some GPS applications currently for my phone and would like to have some tips on being "friendly" with other GPS programs.
I have created a program that does GPS tracking and records coordinates and speed while driving. When I run this at the same time as Google Maps, it loses the ability to query the GPS device intermittently. What I would like is to be able to see if the GPS device itself is available. Currently I am using the GPS library provided by the Microsoft Sample with some edits (it was doing some unfortunate thread locking that it had no right to know about for a class library).
My hope is that my GPS app can recognize that another program is using it, OR it can recognize that the GPS device has been disabled by another program and turn it back on. Currently the sample library is either Open or Closed but does not actually seem to query the device to get these device states back.
Does anyone have some good example code for this? I intend to keep coding it, but right now it seems I will have to ignore other software on the phone that might be using it until I can get some help on this.

RemoteTracker for Android -Antitheft software

Hi there,
This software is an Antitheft and you can use it to track your device when it was lost or stolen. It works catching a formated SMS/EMail sent from any phone/computer and then receiving useful informations back.
You can use it to others objectives, like keep your eye in your child. Use your imagination!
You can set up to four emergengy contacts to receive SMS if the thief change your SIM card and you still can track your device.
The RemoteTracker for Android is an evolution from an old project for Windows Mobile 6 (If you want to see the entire history, please click here).
I'm justing starting this project. There are much more to come.
To send a command to RemoteTracker, send a SMS with the syntax: RT#(command)#(phone or e-mail)#(password). Example: RT#EGP#[email protected]#1234. This version answer the commands below:
help - send to you a list of commands available in Android platform;
ehelp - same as 'HELP', but send the list by e-mail;
fhelp - same as 'HELP', but send the list to your FTP server;
gp - try to get GPS coordinates and send back to cel number passed as parameter;
egp - same as 'GP', but send the list by e-mail;
fgp - same as 'GP', but send a file to your FTP server;
gi - Send informations about your phone: IMSI, IMEI and ICCID;
egi - Same as 'GI' but the answer goes by e-mail;
fgi - Same as 'GI' but the answer goes to your FTP server;
cb - your phone will make a Call Back to you. Just make a call and let the microphone open;
cellid - Retrieve informations (CELLID, LAC, MNC and MCC codes) about the tower your phone are connected. Send to you by SMS;
ecellid - same as 'CELLID', but the answer goes by e-mail;
fcellid - same as 'CELLID', but the answer goes to your FTP server;
secret - if you forget your password you can use this command to receive by SMS your personal secret question;
lostpass - used to receive your password if you forgot it. You must send the answer for your secret question, so, you can use the secret command to help you;
Commands available only in PRO version:
PICSON - Makes RemoteTracker (only PRO version) watch for new photos and send them to Default EMail Address;
PICSOFF - Makes RemoteTracker (only PRO version) stop to watch for new photos;
EPICSON - Same as PICSON, but send an E-Mail back;
EPICSOFF - Same as PICSOFF, but send an E-Mail back;
FPICSON - Same as PICSON, but send the answer to FTP server;
FPICSOFF - Same as PICSOFF, but send the answer to FTP server;
PCALLSON - Makes RemoteTracker (only PRO version) takes a photo on a call is receive or made and send it to Default EMail Address;
PCALLSOFF - Makes RemoteTracker (only PRO version) stop to take photos on calls;
EPCALLSON - Same as PCALLSON, but send an E-Mail back;
EPCALLSOFF - Same as PCALLSOFF, but send an E-Mail back;
FPCALLSON - Same as PCALLSON, but send the answer to FTP server;
FPCALLSOFF - Same as PCALLSOFF, but send the answer to FTP server;
WIPEDATA - This command will return your device to factory default and format your SD Card.
There are another features inside RemoteTracker, like:
- SIM CARD change observer;
- Automatically restore your preferences if you reinstall it. This feature is particular useful if you have a custom ROM with RemoteTracker inside. Once configured, everytime your devices boots up, your preferences will be restored;
- Works as Device Admin, so it can't be uninstalled if you don't know the password;
- And more...
This project can be multi-language. In this version there is only English (sorry about it, my english is very bad because this is not my mother language). If you want to make your own translate, I can tell how. Very simple.
If you decide to try RemoteTracker, I would like to read reviews, comments and suggestions. Remember this is a beta version and may contain bugs. Use at your own risk and with caution.
--> It is a work in progress. In future versions I will make a lot more.
Support this project
You can support this project making a donation clicking here or clicking the banners in the project website: http://remotetracker.sourceforge.net
All the best,
Joubert Vasconcelos
Hello friends!
To test RemoteTracker please download it from here:
http://remotetracker.sourceforge.net/RemoteTracker.apk
Before your tests, please turn on the Debug option. It will make RemoteTracker write the remotetracker.txt file in the root of your memory card.
All the best,
Joubert
I just released the second beta!!!
Now, RemoteTracker can automatically turn on the Mobile and WiFi network to try get location and send EMails!
For older phones RemoteTracker also will automatically turn on the GPS! Unfortunately this is impossible if you are using new Android versions (2.3.x or so).
A few minor bugs was fixed.
All the best,
Joubert
joubertvasc said:
For older phones RemoteTracker also will automatically turn on the GPS! Unfortunately this is impossible if you are using new Android versions (2.3.x or so).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
GPS can be enabled in 2.3+ - but only if device is rooted. That's what it says in the Cerberus entry in "AppStore" [edit: AndroidMarket].
Hi!
Yes, if you have a rooted device is very easy to enable GPS remotely. But I do not recommend in any way for users to root the phones for security reasons.
I think you are talking about Market, not AppStore We are talking about Android not Apple
All the best,
Joubert
New beta 0.3!!!
Hello again,
I just released version 0.3. Now we got FTP answers back!
In Configurations I added a session to input your FTP server details. The example commands GI and GP now works with FGI and FGP as well.
Once again minor bugs was fixed. If you want to try please download the APK here: http://remotetracker.sourceforge.net/RemoteTracker.apk
As soon as possible I'll make a TODO list and a Road Map.
All the best,
Joubert
Copying my post form the old thread so I can subscribe to this one:
Wow, nice to see this make it to Android.
Some suggestions,
1: Name it something that isn't obvious in the market. Don't want a thief easily finding it in the installed apps list. Going to the market and then buying "my apps" shows you exactly what's installed. So you should name it something totally different that nobody would suspect or want to remove. Like "memory maximizer" or something like that. Probably want to keep it in the middle of the alphabet so it's not at the top or bottom of the list.
2: Maybe make a way to remotely monitor the front/rear camera. Then you could get the thief on video (and also see if it's a crowd, or some huge guy you don't want to mess with, lol).
I'll try to help test when I get another phone and more time. Right now I don't have a lot of time to work out bugs. And more importantly I only have the 1 phone, and I can't afford to have it malfunctioning (I need it for work). I'll buy a used extra phone for testing and then I'll help test.
Thank's!
Be sure I'm worry about the Name I'll post on Market. Not now. I'm trying to make it working and I'll see what I can do later.
About cameras, yes, I think we can control them. At least take pictures and send to an e-mail account. To remotely monitor the cameras, may be I need a server to receive/transmit stream. Of course this is in my todo list
All the best,
Joubert
joubertvasc said:
Thank's!
Be sure I'm worry about the Name I'll post on Market. Not now. I'm trying to make it working and I'll see what I can do later.
About cameras, yes, I think we can control them. At least take pictures and send to an e-mail account. To remotely monitor the cameras, may be I need a server to receive/transmit stream. Of course this is in my todo list
All the best,
Joubert
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would rather set up my own server (or even directly stream peer to peer from the device). That way you don't get stuck with hosting fees and the app doesn't die if you decide to stop supporting it someday (not that you would).
There are many possibilities. I'll try all of them.
All the best
Joubert
Another beta
Hi all,
I release another beta. Once again, if you decide to try it, please download from http://remotetracker.sourceforge.net/RemoteTracker.apk.
I edited the first post to add new features. And I have a notice...
I created a free and pro versions. The free version will have the most common commands we had in Windows Mobile. Only specific commands for Windows Mobile I can't write for Android. Pro version will have new features to come (I don't know yet).
But I don't want to charge my friends, so, if you are a beta tester or help me with anything, I'll give the PRO version for free. But it's for future now I'm engaged to finish RemoteTracker free as best as I can do.
All the best,
Joubert
Possible Bugs
Hi Joubert,
Thank you for have been developing so useful application. I believe everyone here is excited about what you are doing.
I tried your better version and here what I have to say:
1) You stated that the command format is RT#EGP#[email protected]#1234, but what if I want to use command to upload that info to FTP? Then,theoretically, I don't need to indicate my email or phone in the command. At the same time commands like "RT#FGP#1234{this is a password}", "RT#FGP##1234{this is a password}" are not recognized as valid RT commands or even failed with fatal exception. How can I upload this info to FTP, what should be the format of the command in this case?Indicating an email inside the command or phone number when sending to FTP seems a kind of redundancy.
2) Once an Fatal error appeared, it started appearing for each further VALID command which were working before. Error states the following:
Fatal error: Call to a member function query() on non-object in /celerra/webstor/root.dev/usr/sms core.php on line 234, most likely there it has some null reference there.
3) In the log file I see that its trying to send messages to invalid address substituting "@" at "?". Does it mean it sends to correct address but it writes to the logs incorrectly or is it really a bug? Because I don't receive any emails at all.For example, when sending RT#EGI#[email protected]#De41Be02AF in the logs I see that it mentioned it sent the message to "test?test.ru" instead of "[email protected]"
This is it for now. I can try to help you out with programming. I have no experience in Android development but have been developing in C# for 7+ years.
Again thanks for you effort.
ser-j said:
Hi Joubert,
Thank you for have been developing so useful application. I believe everyone here is excited about what you are doing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm stuck right now. I can not go ahead because I'm not finding some answers. But soon I return to search. Very good to know there are people wainting my work to be done, because there are lots of good programs in Google Market (now Google Play).
ser-j said:
I tried your better version and here what I have to say:
1) You stated that the command format is RT#EGP#[email protected]#1234, but what if I want to use command to upload that info to FTP? Then,theoretically, I don't need to indicate my email or phone in the command. At the same time commands like "RT#FGP#1234{this is a password}", "RT#FGP##1234{this is a password}" are not recognized as valid RT commands or even failed with fatal exception. How can I upload this info to FTP, what should be the format of the command in this case?Indicating an email inside the command or phone number when sending to FTP seems a kind of redundancy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should use: rt#fgp##1234 The double # are still necessary. I'm working on a simpler syntax to be used in final version.
I'm worried about fatal errors. That's why I released beta versions. Please use Configurations Menu and check the Debug Options. After that you will see in the root of your memory card a file named remotetracker.txt. Send that file to me please.
ser-j said:
2) Once an Fatal error appeared, it started appearing for each further VALID command which were working before. Error states the following:
Fatal error: Call to a member function query() on non-object in /celerra/webstor/root.dev/usr/sms core.php on line 234, most likely there it has some null reference there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I really don't know what is this. Please send the log file to me. I wrote RemoteTracker for Android in Java, not PHP!!!
ser-j said:
3) In the log file I see that its trying to send messages to invalid address substituting "@" at "?". Does it mean it sends to correct address but it writes to the logs incorrectly or is it really a bug? Because I don't receive any emails at all.For example, when sending RT#EGI#[email protected]#De41Be02AF in the logs I see that it mentioned it sent the message to "test?test.ru" instead of "[email protected]"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you sending the command using another phone, the same phone or using some WEB service (like your carrier website)? There is no code to change '@' to '?'.
ser-j said:
This is it for now. I can try to help you out with programming. I have no experience in Android development but have been developing in C# for 7+ years.
Again thanks for you effort.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you very much for your tests. I need that! There are lots of Androids around the world and make something secure for everyone will be a journey.
All the best,
Joubert
Notices
I almost finished writing the commands that existed in RemoteTracker for Windows Mobile (at least the ones Android can execute).
But I'm still trying to make the security of RemoteTracker to be more robust. I had Features in Windows I can't write for Android yet:
- Prompt for password when uninstalling;
- Lock / Unlock the unit with the LOCK / UNLOCK commands;
I'm not able to use the camera without the need to provide a preview to the user. According to the source code of Android that is impossible, but I saw some programs doing that, so there is a way to do that and I'm looking for this information.
If anyone knows how please help me
All the best,
Joubert
Answers to the questions
Hi Joubert,
Sorry for being silent for so long.
joubertvasc said:
Are you sending the command using another phone, the same phone or using some WEB service (like your carrier website)? There is no code to change '@' to '?'.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am using Web service of my sim provider to send SMS. Didn't have a chance to try with sending SMS from the phone.
joubertvasc said:
Thank you very much for your tests. I need that! There are lots of Androids around the world and make something secure for everyone will be a journey.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, you are right.
As to the log file I will send it to you shortly.
Thank you. I'll wait for your log to see details. You can send it directly to my e-mail.
All the best,
Joubert
Hide Remote Tracker Application
Hi Joubertvasc:
Are you planing to make a feature to hide the Remote Tracker from the drawer and from any place of the phone. Like with the Theft Aware; you can access the application by dialing from the Phone Dialer. You enter your four code number then hit call. This will open the apllication without calling the number.
Regards;
Willie
Sounds good. I will take a look about how to do that.
Thank you.
Hi!
After a long time I'm back with a new version. This one has lots of bug fixes:
http://remotetracker.sourceforge.net/RemoteTracker.apk
My problem now is Android 3.1 and later, because they don't intercept messages all the time. They need human access the configuration module once to work. Security issue Google said... I'm trying to find an exit.
Best regards,
Joubert
G'day mate.
Long time no see. Great work on this app so far.
I've finally gotten around to installing it and play around with it a little.
I'm testing this on HTC One X with Revolution HD ROM
Here are a few ideas and tips for you to incorporate into your next version.
1. Include an option that allows users to set how many replies to get back from your software.
For Example. If I were to use #RT#GPS#1234, it currently only sends 1 reply. The problem with this is that most GPS units are accurate withing 5 - 10 meters. I tested it on myself where I am and it picks me up as being 2 houses down. If there was an option to send me 3 replies, in 60 second intervals, at least I would get the average GPS location of the phone. If your phone is stolen, it would also be a good idea to have unlimited SMS replies with 60 second intervals so I can get real time minute by minute location on where my phone is. Maybe this might be an idea for your Pro version. Have the option for how many replies to get and also an option for interval time between each reply.
2. Another idea for Pro version. Hide the RemoteTracker Icon from the Apps menu, or disguise it as a useless setting so if a thief were to look in the Apps menu, they wouldn't see it straight away, so wouldn't be forced to reset the ROM. Most thieves aren't smart enough to reset the phone as soon as they steal it, They normally wait till they get home..... but if he saw a tracking program, it would make them either turn the phone off right away, or reset the ROM right away.
3. I dont know much about Android programming, but an idea for capturing the Camera is to embed the photo into an MMS, or as an attachment in an email. Trying to muck around with FTP would be a waste of time because the average user wont have an FTP server, and you dont want to set up a central one because it would give every noob hacker a target to try and get into.
I will keep playing around and get back to you with any other problems or ideas for you.
Keep up the great work.
Loved the software on WinMo and looks like the Android version will be just as great.

Software development for an UAV - Track, recognise, and call for help.

Hi, we're currently working on a project where we would fly an UAV above some hills, and country side, and look for people in trouble, then call the "base" with the GPS coordinates, snapshot, and a couple of other info.
And since it's a university project, we need to keep the costs down. Hence why the following question.
Do you guys thing it would be possible to use an Android phone as a sort of "relay", where we would send a photo from a DSLR, get the phone to record a GPS coordinate as it receives the photo, and then send all of the data through a 3G connection every, say 1, or 2 seconds ?
Sounds like a simple thing, reasonably cheap (certainly in comparison to the other available options, such as sending data through a satelite, or a relay on the ground, or even more expensive - developing the whole system on our own)
This is only a simplified info on the project we are working on. The whole thing is a bit more complicated, but this is what we want to know from the Android side of things. Is this possible?
If so, has anyone already done that?
Would we need rooting for that?
And possibly, what phone/tablet would we need for this?

Software development for an UAV - Track, recognise, and call for help.

Hi, we're currently working on a project where we would fly an UAV above some hills, and country side, and look for people in trouble, then call the "base" with the GPS coordinates, snapshot, and a couple of other info.
And since it's a university project, we need to keep the costs down. Hence why the following question.
Do you guys thing it would be possible to use an Android phone as a sort of "relay", where we would send a photo from a DSLR, get the phone to record a GPS coordinate as it receives the photo, and then send all of the data through a 3G connection every, say 1, or 2 seconds ?
Sounds like a simple thing, reasonably cheap (certainly in comparison to the other available options, such as sending data through a satelite, or a relay on the ground, or even more expensive - developing the whole system on our own)
This is only a simplified info on the project we are working on. The whole thing is a bit more complicated, but this is what we want to know from the Android side of things. Is this possible?
If so, has anyone already done that?a
Would we need rooting for that?
And possibly, what phone/tablet would we need for this?

Figuring out Samsung Accesory Protocol internals

Hello,
I want to figure out the Samsung Accesory Protocol in order to create a "open source" Gear Manager app replacement. This thread is to ask if anyone has been trying to do the same thing as well as try to gather as much information about this protocol as possible. Generic discussion is also accepted, in case anyone has better ideas.
Right now all I know is that this protocol is based on RFCOMM, albeit it can be transported over TCP too. It has a level 1 "framing" which consists basically on
Code:
packed struct Frame {
uint16_be length_of_data;
char data[length_of_data];
}
packed struct FrameWithCRC {
uint16_be length_of_data;
uint16_be crc_of_length;
char data[length_of_data];
uint16_be crc_of_data;
}
I also know that there are various types of packets. "Hello" packets are exchanged early during the connection and contain the product name, etc. Authentication packets are exchanged right after the initial "hello" and contain some varying hashes (crypto warning!). Then the normal data packets are "multiplexed", as in usbmuxd: they have 'session' IDs which described towards which watch program they are talking with. All Hello and authentication packets are sent without CRC, but normal data packets are. The CRC implementation used is crc16, same poly as in the linux kernel.
I suspect that whatever we uncover about this protocol might be useful to e.g. pair Gear with an iPhone, with a PC, things like that.
Note: most of this comes from viewing Bluetooth logs. However it's clear that reverse engineering will be required for the cryptographic parts. In this case I believe it's legally OK to do so in the EU because it's purely for interoperability reasons. I don't want to create a competitor to the Gear2, I just want to talk to it.
Motivation: I bought a Gear2 in order to replace a LiveView that was dying (buttons wearing out, broken wriststrap clips, etc.) . I used it both for notifications as well as map/navigation.
Since I have a Jolla, no programs are available to pair with most smartwatches, but I've been developing my own so far (MetaWatch, LiveView). Thus I decided on a replacement based purely on hardware characteristics and price. Also Tizen seems more open than Android, thus I figured out it would be easier for me to adapt to the watch.
However it seems that I understimated the complexity of the protocol that connects the Gear with the GearManager. So my options in order to make use of this watch are:
Sell Gear2 back and buy something that's easier to hack (e.g. another LiveView ),
Figure out the SAP protocol and write a replacement Gear Manager app (what this thread is about),
Write replacement Tizen applications that don't use SAP. This involves writing new programs for Calls, Messages, Notifications, Alarms, Camera, watchOn, Pulse monitor, etc. i.e. a _lot_ of work if I want to exploit all features of the watch.
But at least one can reuse the existing Tizen settings app, launcher, drivers, etc. (I started porting Qt to the Gear2 with this idea)
Use a different Linux distro on the Gear 2. Such as Sailfish, Mer, etc. This involves all the work of option 3 + possibly driver work.
As of now I've not decided which option is easier for me so I'll keep trying to push them all.
javispedro said:
Hello,
I want to figure out the Samsung Accesory Protocol in order to create a "open source" Gear Manager app replacement. This thread is to ask if anyone has been trying to do the same thing as well as try to gather as much information about this protocol as possible. Generic discussion is also accepted, in case anyone has better ideas.
Right now all I know is that this protocol is based on RFCOMM, albeit it can be transported over TCP too. It has a level 1 "framing" which consists basically on
Code:
packed struct Frame {
uint16_be length_of_data;
char data[length_of_data];
}
packed struct FrameWithCRC {
uint16_be length_of_data;
uint16_be crc_of_length;
char data[length_of_data];
uint16_be crc_of_data;
}
I also know that there are various types of packets. "Hello" packets are exchanged early during the connection and contain the product name, etc. Authentication packets are exchanged right after the initial "hello" and contain some varying hashes (crypto warning!). Then the normal data packets are "multiplexed", as in usbmuxd: they have 'session' IDs which described towards which watch program they are talking with. All Hello and authentication packets are sent without CRC, but normal data packets are. The CRC implementation used is crc16, same poly as in the linux kernel.
I suspect that whatever we uncover about this protocol might be useful to e.g. pair Gear with an iPhone, with a PC, things like that.
Note: most of this comes from viewing Bluetooth logs. However it's clear that reverse engineering will be required for the cryptographic parts. In this case I believe it's legally OK to do so in the EU because it's purely for interoperability reasons. I don't want to create a competitor to the Gear2, I just want to talk to it.
Motivation: I bought a Gear2 in order to replace a LiveView that was dying (buttons wearing out, broken wriststrap clips, etc.) . I used it both for notifications as well as map/navigation.
Since I have a Jolla, no programs are available to pair with most smartwatches, but I've been developing my own so far (MetaWatch, LiveView). Thus I decided on a replacement based purely on hardware characteristics and price. Also Tizen seems more open than Android, thus I figured out it would be easier for me to adapt to the watch.
However it seems that I understimated the complexity of the protocol that connects the Gear with the GearManager. So my options in order to make use of this watch are:
Sell Gear2 back and buy something that's easier to hack (e.g. another LiveView ),
Figure out the SAP protocol and write a replacement Gear Manager app (what this thread is about),
Write replacement Tizen applications that don't use SAP. This involves writing new programs for Calls, Messages, Notifications, Alarms, Camera, watchOn, Pulse monitor, etc. i.e. a _lot_ of work if I want to exploit all features of the watch.
But at least one can reuse the existing Tizen settings app, launcher, drivers, etc. (I started porting Qt to the Gear2 with this idea)
Use a different Linux distro on the Gear 2. Such as Sailfish, Mer, etc. This involves all the work of option 3 + possibly driver work.
As of now I've not decided which option is easier for me so I'll keep trying to push them all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think your thread should probably go in the Dev section for Tizen. Have you made any development? If your want it moved, report your own post with the button in top right labeled report. You can then suggest your thread be moved to the new Tizen Development section. Ok, I wish you all the luck, you seem to be very talented programmer/dev. Thanks for your contributions.
Chris
noellenchris said:
I think your thread should probably go in the Dev section for Tizen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, some mod already moved this thread from Development, where I originally posted it, into Q&A. This is not exactly "Tizen" development (SAP is used in may Samsung devices seemingly).
noellenchris said:
Have you made any development?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, lots of progress. I have been able to write a program that connects to the Gear2 from my PC, succesfully "completes" the setup program and synchronizes the date&time. Things like changing the background color etc. are now trivial. I will soon port it to my Jolla.
I am now looking into how to send notifications to the watch. I've not been able to get Gear Manager to actually send any notifications (to use as "reference"), because goproviders crashes when I try to simulate notifications on my android_x86 VM
If anyone can send me an HCI / Bluetooth packet capture of their Android device while it is sending notifications to the Gear2 I would really appreciate it.
Unfortunately, the main problem here is that Samsung uses some cryptographic authentication as a form of "DRM". I am not exactly sure why.
There was no way for me to discover how the crypto worked so I took the unclean approach and dissasembled their crypto code (libwms.so). That means there's no way I would be able to distribute the code now without risking a lawsuit from Samsung.
Sadly this means that while I can distribute the protocol specifications I obtained, legally distributing "Gear Manager replacements" is probably impossible.
javispedro said:
Well, some mod already moved this thread from Development, where I originally posted it, into Q&A. This is not exactly "Tizen" development (SAP is used in may Samsung devices seemingly).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ya, I was kinda in a Gear 1 mind set, and they have separate threads for Android and Tizen....
Chris
javispedro said:
Unfortunately, the main problem here is that Samsung uses some cryptographic authentication as a form of "DRM". I am not exactly sure why.
There was no way for me to discover how the crypto worked so I took the unclean approach and dissasembled their crypto code (libwms.so). That means there's no way I would be able to distribute the code now without risking a lawsuit from Samsung.
Sadly this means that while I can distribute the protocol specifications I obtained, legally distributing "Gear Manager replacements" is probably impossible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would gladly write a MIT-licensed C library implementing your protocol specifications. That would be correctly following the chinese-wall approach to reverse-engineering, right?
Anyway, AFAIK, being in Europe decompiling for interoperability purposes is allowed -- I know that wikipedia is not to be taken at face value, but: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reverse_engineering#European_Union
Antartica said:
I would gladly write a MIT-licensed C library implementing your protocol specifications. That would be correctly following the chinese-wall approach to reverse-engineering, right?
Anyway, AFAIK, being in Europe decompiling for interoperability purposes is allowed -- I know that wikipedia is not to be taken at face value, but: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reverse_engineering#European_Union
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, the problem is not the protocol specifications per se, which I'm actually quite confident I'd be able to redistribute (I'm in EU). The problem is the cryptography part, which is basically ripped off from the Samsung lib "libwsm.so" . Unless we can find out what cryptographic method that lib uses, distributing alternate implementations Is a no-go.
javispedro said:
Well, the problem is not the protocol specifications per se, which I'm actually quite confident I'd be able to redistribute (I'm in EU). The problem is the cryptography part, which is basically ripped off from the Samsung lib "libwsm.so" . Unless we can find out what cryptographic method that lib uses, distributing alternate implementations Is a no-go.
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Click to collapse
If you have the time, I don't mind researching the possible crypto used (although I've only studied DES/3DES, AES and Serpent, hope that whatever scheme used is not very different from them).
Some ideas to start from somewhere:
1. As you have used its functions, it is a block cipher? I will assume that it is.
2. What is the key size and the block size?
3. Are there signs that it is using a stack of ciphers? (that is, applying one cipher, then another to the first result and so on)
Antartica said:
If you have the time, I don't mind researching the possible crypto used (although I've only studied DES/3DES, AES and Serpent, hope that whatever scheme used is not very different from them).
Some ideas to start from somewhere:
1. As you have used its functions, it is a block cipher? I will assume that it is.
2. What is the key size and the block size?
3. Are there signs that it is using a stack of ciphers? (that is, applying one cipher, then another to the first result and so on)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello, I've not forgotten about this, just somewhat busy and been using the MetaWatch lately
1. Yes it is clearly a block cipher, and the block size Is 16bytes.
2. I don't know about the key size, it is obfuscated.
3. Doesn't seem like a stack of ciphers. It looks like some overcomplicated AES. But to be honest AES is the only encryption I know of
By the way I think I will upload my current test "manager" source code to somewhere after removing the crypto specific files . Since the protocol itself has been obtained cleanly. Note I've used Qt (not the GUI parts) so it's useless for creating a library; the code will probably need to be rewritten to do so, but it may be useful as "protocol specs".
javispedro said:
Hello, I've not forgotten about this, just somewhat busy and been using the MetaWatch lately
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No problem. Curiously, I've transitioned from the metawatch to the Gear1 fully (null rom, not pairing with bluetooth to the phone but gear used as a standalone device).
[off-topic]I'm not using my metawatch anymore. I was modifying Nils' oswald firmware to make it prettier and to have some features I wanted (calendar, stopwatch), but it was very inaccurate, supposedly because of missing timer interrupts (the existing LCD drawing routines were too slow). I rewrote the graphics subsystem just to stumble into a known mspgcc bug, and trying to use the new redhat's mspgcc resulted in more problems (memory model, interrupt conventions). In the end I couldn't commit enough time to fix that and my metawatch is now in a drawer[/off-topic]
Returning to the topic:
javispedro said:
1. Yes it is clearly a block cipher, and the block size Is 16bytes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good. We can at least say it isn't DES/3DES nor blowfish (64 bits block size). Regrettably there are a lot of ciphers using 128-bits block size; that I know: AES, Twofish and serpent.
Perusing the wikipedia there are some more of that size in use: Camellia, sometimes RC5 and SEED.
javispedro said:
2. I don't know about the key size, it is obfuscated.
3. Doesn't seem like a stack of ciphers. It looks like some overcomplicated AES. But to be honest AES is the only encryption I know of
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Click to collapse
I understand that to mean that you cannot use that library passing your own key, right?
What a pity! One way to test for these ciphers would have been to just cipher a known string (i.e. all zeroes) with a known key (i.e. also all zeroes) and compare the result with each of the normal ciphers :-/.
javispedro said:
By the way I think I will upload my current test "manager" source code to somewhere after removing the crypto specific files . Since the protocol itself has been obtained cleanly. Note I've used Qt (not the GUI parts) so it's useless for creating a library; the code will probably need to be rewritten to do so, but it may be useful as "protocol specs".
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Perfect. I don't need anything more .
Ok, so I've uploaded my SAP protocol implementation: https://git.javispedro.com/cgit/sapd.git/ . It's "phone" side only, ie it can be used to initiate a connection to the watch but not to simulate one. In addition, it's missing two important files: wmscrypt.cc and wmspeer.cc which implement the closed crypto required to "pair" the watch. The most important file is sapprotocol.cc which implements the packing/unpacking of the most important packet types. The license of those files is GPLv3 albeit I'm very happy if you use the information contained on them to build your "Gear Manager" program under whichever license you'd prefer.
For anyone who hasn't been following the above discussion: I've figured out a large part (useful for at least establish contact with the watch and syncing time/date) of the SAP protocol used between the Gear watch and the Gear manager program on the phone. This has been done mostly by studying traces and afterwards talking to the watch using my test implementation above to figure out the remaining and some error codes. The debug messages left by the watch's SAP daemon were also immensely helpful. As long as I understand this is perfectly safe to do, publish and use as I'm in the EU and is basically the same method Samba uses.
Unfortunately, the protocol contains some crypto parts required for the initial sync (subsequent connections require authentication). However, the communication itself is not encrypted in any way, which helped a lot with the process. Because it's impossible for me to figure out whatever authentication method is used, I had to disassemble the library implementing this stuff (libwms.so). This is still OK according to EU law, but I'm no longer to release that information to the public. I'm looking for alternatives or ideas on how to handle this fact.
In the meanwhile, let's talk about the protocol. It's basically a reimplementation of the TCP(/IP) ideas on top of a Bluetooth RFCOMM socket. This means that it's connection oriented and that it can multiplex several active connections (called "sessions") over a single RFCOMM link. Either side of the connection can request opening a connection based on the identifier of the listening endpoint (called a "service"). Strings are used to identify services instead of numeric ports as in TCP. For example, "/system/hostmanager" is a service that listens on the watch side. Once you open a session towards this service (i.e. once you connect to it) you can send the time/date sync commands. In addition to be the above the protocol also seems to implement QoS and reliability (automatic retransmission, ordering, etc.). It's not clear to me why they reimplemented all of this since RFCOMM is a STREAM protocol, and thus reliability is already guaranteed!! So I've not focused much on these (seemingly useless) QoS+reliability parts of the protocol.
Let's start with the link level. There are two important RFCOMM services exposed by the watch: {a49eb41e-cb06-495c-9f4f-aa80a90cdf4a} and {a49eb41e-cb06-495c-9f4f-bb80a90cdf00}. I am going to respectively call those two services "data" and "nudge" from now on. These names, as many of the following ones, are mostly made up by me .
The communication starts with Gear manager trying to open a RFCOMM socket towards the "nudge" service in the watch. This causes the watch to immediately reply back by trying to open a connection to the "data" service _on the phone_ side. So obviously this means that your phone needs to expose the "data" RFCOMM service at least. In addition, the watch will try to open a HFP-AG connection (aka it will try to simulate being a headset) to your phone. Most phones have no problem doing this so no work is required. Of course, if your phone is a PC (as in my case ) then you'll need to fake the HFP profile. I give some examples in my code above (see scripts/test-hfp-ag and hfpag.cc).
Once the RFCOMM socket from the watch to the phone "data" service is opened, the watch will immediately send what I call a "peer description" frame. This includes stuff such as the model of the watch as well as some QoS parameters which I still don't understand. The phone is supposed to reply back to this message with a peer description of its own. See sapprotocol.cc for the packet format.
After the description exchange is done, the watch will send a "authentication request" packet. This is a 65 byte bigint plus a 2 byte "challenge". The response from the phone should contain a similar 65 byte bigint, the 2 byte response, and an additional 32 byte bigint. If correct, the watch will reply with some packet I don't care about. Otherwise the connection will be dropped. It obviously looks like some key exchange. But this is the crypto part that's implemented in libwms.so....
After these two exchanges link is now set up. The first connection that needs to be opened is towards a service that is always guaranteed to be present, called "/System/Reserved/ServiceCapabilityDiscovery". It is used by both sides of the connection to know the list of available services present on the other side. Despite this, you cannot query for all services; instead, you must always know the name of the remote service you're looking for. There's some 16-byte checksum there which I don't know how to calculate, but fortunately the watch seems to ignore it!! I suspect that you're expected to actually persist the database of available services in order to shave a roundtrip when connection is being established. But this is not necessary for normal function. This service is implemented in capabilityagent.cc, capabilitypeer.cc . This part was actually one of the most complex ones because of the many concepts. I suggest reading the SDK documentation to understand all the terms ("service", "profile", "role", etc.).
If everything's gone well, now the watch will try to open a connection to a service in your phone called "/system/hostmanager". Once you get to this message things start to get fun, because the protocol used for this service is JSON! It's implementation resides in hostmanageragent.cc, hostmanagerconn.cc . For example, Gear Manager sends the following JSON message once you accept the EULA: {"btMac":"XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX", "msgId":"mgr_setupwizard_eula_finished_req", "isOld":1}. At this point, the watch hides the setup screen and goes straight to the menu.
Well, this concludes my high-level overview of the SAP protocol. Hope it is useful for at least someone!
Things to do:
Personally I'm looking for some traces of the notification service. Ie the one that forwards Android notifications towards the watch. For some reason it doesn't work on my phone, so I can't get traces. I suspect it's going to be a simple protocol so a few traces will be OK. It's the only stuff I'm missing in order to be able to actually use the Gear as a proper smartwatch with my Jolla.
We still need to tackle the problem of the cryptographic parts. Several options: either "wrap" the stock libwms.so file, try to RE it the "proper way", .... I'm not sure of the feasibility of any of these.
Many other services.
javispedro said:
After the description exchange is done, the watch will send a "authentication request" packet. This is a 65 byte bigint plus a 2 byte "challenge". The response from the phone should contain a similar 65 byte bigint, the 2 byte response, and an additional 32 byte bigint. If correct, the watch will reply with some packet I don't care about. Otherwise the connection will be dropped. It obviously looks like some key exchange. But this is the crypto part that's implemented in libwms.so....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
About that 65-byte bigint... that is a 520-bit key. The usual length of ECDSA keys is exactly 520-bits, so we may have something there: it is possible that they are using ECDSA signing (just like in bitcoin, so there are a lot of implementations of that code).
Not forgotten about this!
Just an status update:
I'm still in the process of defining the API of the C library using javispedro's sources as template.
It's tougher than I originally supposed because the C++ code has a lot of forward-declarations of classes, which is very difficult to map into C. To counter that I have to move elements between structures and I'm not so comfortable with the codebase yet.
And then there is still the hard work of translating the Qt signals/slots to plain' old callbacks... and implementing the bluetooth part using bluez API... and... well, I hope that is all.
Anyway, patience .
I've now had access to a Samsung S2 and thus I have been able to obtain more traces. The latest Git now contains code to connect to the notification manager service, thus allowing to send notifications from the phone to the watch.
That was the last missing part to be able to use the Gear 2 as a 'daily' smartwatch with my Jolla, so I've now also ported the code to run under Sailfish. In fact I'm using this setup at the moment. My first comment is "wow the vibrator IS weak".
You can find a log of sapd's (ie my code) startup qDebug() messages; they may be useful (if you can't yet get your code to run)
I suspect that there may still be some important battery issues because the watch keeps printing error messages about SAP services it can't find on the phone (and instead of sleeping, it starts busy polling for them.... :/ ). It does not seem to happen while the watch is out of the charging cradle, so it may not be important, but not sure yet.
As for the encryption, I'm not sure how to proceed. I could describe the code to you, but that would be risky, because I don't understand what it does. Thus the only way (for me) to describe it would be to pass on the mathematical formulas/pseudocode ... Apart from that, we also have the problem of the keys...
Antartica said:
The usual length of ECDSA keys is exactly 520-bits, so we may have something there: it is possible that they are using ECDSA signing
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They do use ECDH indeed, and they link with OpenSSL and import the ECDH functions. However it's not clear if they use ECDSA; while the crypto algorithm DOES resemble DSA, I cannot fully identify it.
Congratulations for managing to make it work with the Jolla .
I have finally found a suitable "flattened" class hierarchy as to be able to map your code into C; see the attachs. Basically, I have to move the functionality of SAPConnectionRequest, SAPSocket, CapabilityPeer and SAPConnection into SAPPeer, and then it is suitable for my needs.
javispedro said:
As for the encryption, I'm not sure how to proceed. I could describe the code to you, but that would be risky, because I don't understand what it does. Thus the only way (for me) to describe it would be to pass on the mathematical formulas/pseudocode ... Apart from that, we also have the problem of the keys...
They do use ECDH indeed, and they link with OpenSSL and import the ECDH functions. However it's not clear if they use ECDSA; while the crypto algorithm DOES resemble DSA, I cannot fully identify it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you manage to describe it using mathematical formulas as in
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellipt...ture_Algorithm#Signature_generation_algorithm
it would be perfect, but I reckon that to be able write that you need intimate knowledge of the code and don't know if you have time for that :angel:
And identifying the hash function used would be a problem in itself...
One idea: how about a ltrace so we have the calls to the openssl library? That may uncover new hints.
Anyway, I have a lot of work before me until I need that, so don't fret over it.
Hi there! Any chance that the Gear can (really) work with an iPhone?
gidi said:
Hi there! Any chance that the Gear can (really) work with an iPhone?
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agreed. Needs iPhone support please.
Antartica said:
Congratulations for managing to make it work with the Jolla .
I have finally found a suitable "flattened" class hierarchy as to be able to map your code into C; see the attachs. Basically, I have to move the functionality of SAPConnectionRequest, SAPSocket, CapabilityPeer and SAPConnection into SAPPeer, and then it is suitable for my needs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You may want to look at the official Samsung SDK docs to match their class hierarchy. I tried to match my hierarchy to theirs, but this happened very late in the development process, so there is some weirdness.
Antartica said:
One idea: how about a ltrace so we have the calls to the openssl library? That may uncover new hints.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I more or less know what it is doing with OpenSSL, but that's because I looked at the dissassembly. They use OpenSSL for key derivation (ECDH), but the actual cryptographic algorithm is their own. This 'block cipher' is the part they have tried to obfuscate. Not much, but still enough to require more time than what I have available It is basically a set of arithmetical operations with some tables hardcoded in the libwsm.so binary, so no external calls to any library. The hardcoded tables are probably derivated from their private key, which is most definitely not on the binary. In fact I suspect this is basically AES with some changes to make it hard to extract the actual key used, so that's where I've centered my efforts.
Technically it should not even be copyrightable, so maybe I could just redistribute my C reimplementation of the algorithm, but as with any other DRM who knows these days... and that still leaves the problem of the tables/"private key".
Digiguest said:
agreed. Needs iPhone support please.
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Click to collapse
Well you are welcome to implement one such iPhone program yourself. Will be happy to resolve all the protocol questions you have.
(But please stop with the nagging).
Wasn't nagging at all. Just agreeing with him. I am no programmer so I have to rely on others for answers. Sorry if you thought otherwise.
Looking for to see more work on it though. Keep it up.
Hi there! Nice work on getting Gear2 to work with Jolla.
I'd love to get Gear1 to work with WP8.1. Do you have the code for Jolla
on github/bitbucket so I could give it a peek? Thanks in advance.
Duobix said:
Hi there! Nice work on getting Gear2 to work with Jolla.
I'd love to get Gear1 to work with WP8.1. Do you have the code for Jolla
on github/bitbucket so I could give it a peek? Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
javispedro had the sources in gitorius, but they are not there anymore (surely related to gitlab buying gitorius).
I attach a tarball with javispedro sources as of 19 October 2014.
Note that it lacks the files implementing the crypto, so just porting it is not enough to be able to communicate to the gear. OTOH, I know that there are some differences in the protocol between the Android Gear1 and the Tizen Gear2 (if the gear1 has been updated to Tizen, it uses the same protocol as gear2). Specifically, to be able to communicate with both watches, the gear manager package has both gear manager 1.7.x and gear manager 2.x. javispedro's code implements the gear 2 protocol.
Personally, I have my port on hold (I have problems with bluetooth in my phone, so there is no point in porting sapd right now as I would not be able to use it).

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