Hi there,
I know Ive asked this question before, and got some good help, though the thread was a much too long read so here a shorter version hoping to get more responses
Is it safe to use an old Android version? And if it isnt, is it safer to install Gapps so I can get some Google updates (for instance Stagefright fix)?
This tut says to keep 4.2 on your device which makes me wonder what to do: http://forum.xda-developers.com/general/security/tuto-how-to-secure-phone-t2960077
FYI I have a HTC Desire Z (there are some 5.x alfas), Sony Xperia T (pain in the ### to update so prefer not to update to newer Android with the risk of not being able to use my phone for some days if it needs some fixing) and a Gigaset 4.2 tablet.
Thanks a lot.
ruben112 said:
Hi there,
I know Ive asked this question before, and got some good help, though the thread was a much too long read so here a shorter version hoping to get more responses
Is it safe to use an old Android version? And if it isnt, is it safer to install Gapps so I can get some Google updates (for instance Stagefright fix)?
This tut says to keep 4.2 on your device which makes me wonder what to do: http://forum.xda-developers.com/general/security/tuto-how-to-secure-phone-t2960077
FYI I have a HTC Desire Z (there are some 5.x alfas), Sony Xperia T (pain in the ### to update so prefer not to update to newer Android with the risk of not being able to use my phone for some days if it needs some fixing) and a Gigaset 4.2 tablet.
Thanks a lot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Safe..
Safe as in as safe as it gets? Dont the Android updates do nothing at the security front?
I think that the object behind the linked post is not the same as what most people consider "secure". I only looked at it briefly but I think the guide you list is more for "how to make sure that the Big Brother cannot find you". The security that newer versions of Android fix are things like exploits that malware can use to steal your info.
If you're worried about the "malware" type of security, then AFAIK the latest version of Android for your device is the best choice. If you're trying to keep absolutely anyone from tracking you... I guess you can follow that guide... but that's really outside of my area of expertise.
in my view older versions of Android are not sure, because of uncorrected publicized flaws on older android vertions.
for the rest it's up to you.
KitKat was released about the same time as Windows XP end of support. Do you think it would be safe running XP right now? Many would not.
Firefox's ssl/tls is also FAR superior to stock/webview browsers, especially on KitKat and earlier.
Even in the new androids (5.0.0 and above) have vulnerabilities in proprietary libs.
All who know about the vulnerabilities, just silent.
Related
I've been using the site for sometime and just wanted to put an idea if someone smarter than myself wanted to come up with technical details to make this work or it may already be in development but I'm not aware of it.
Getting the latest android update on phone with hardware capable of using it keeps coming up in a lot of articles that I read and it feels that the masses will probably never come to xda forums to get the updates they may want or need due to their lack of understanding of how to go abouts updating a rom.
The roms for most phones are being done by the community quicker and more reliable than the manufacturer in some cases. Here is what I think would work for masses to get the updates without the knowhow:
Create a process to get these custom roms quickly and easily loaded on to anyone's phone without them thinking about how to reboot in recovery mode. Similar to the Samsung devices getting updates from heimdall app found on this site. However it needs to be dumbed down and should be automatic when the user plugs in the phone.
This could be done by having a windows/mac application which when your phone is plugged in or connected wireless to your local network it would recognise what device you have and any additional information such as boot loader information it needs to search for official roms automatically from the manufacturer. If there is no updates then give the user the option to search for a market like store for unofficial roms which come with a warning to run at your own risk. These would be from the xda forums however they will need to meet a certain requirement as flashing from pc/mac may require a unique process from adb which is the key part to this idea working and I'm not too familiar with it to know if it's possible for some phones or all android phones. This store will contain different roms with user ratings of which is the most reliable rom. Essentially creating a market for roms. The user then clicks install and first thing the software does is to backup everything to save the state on the users hard drive in case you need to revert back to original.
This market should be controlled like the app store by the creators incase people abuse it. This means the requirement for any roms listed would be to include the default google experience and maybe a section for non pure google experiences as an option. It would be better if google created this app/process but let the roms be user/manufacturer driven.
Then through word of mouth/twitter/blogs this windows/mac app and within short time many people will be on ICS without much effort on google.
The android market is crying out from something like this to funnel all custom roms into a place accessible for the masses(knowing the risks of doing so). This separates the hardware binding to one specific software made for it, the user should be able to choose from selection off software which suits best for the hardware he/she purchased.
Obviously this is just an idea but hoping you clever people can come up with something similar. XDA Android Updater maybe
Isn't this exactly what ROM Manager does?
TeeRom said:
Isn't this exactly what ROM Manager does?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nah he wants a better implementation that's dumbed down and on windows etc...
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA
Do you mean that custom ROM's are more reliable than stock ROM? Are you kidding, there are tons of issues with most custom ROM's, just read around here at XDA. But often those issues are not a big problem for a XDA enthusiast, since he chooses a ROM that suits him and also know how to work around those issues. But custom ROM is not something I would recommend my sister or my parents or any non-techie friend.
There are many roms which have become very mature and to a stage with minimal issues. I installed a ICS for my brothers desire, there may be some issues out there but many he won't come across such as migration apps from titanium backup. However he still gets to experience e latest functionality that the OS brings and he seems much happier with as the experience has become more smoother and quicker. I agree that there will be some which will be very much beta most of its lifetime and the market should reflect the known issues such as we have on the forums here.
Hey guys,
It's already a long time since the release of Android L preview and I was wondering if we were ever going to get an update to it. Can't believe this version is going to last until the public release.
Doubtfully, as it's just a preview of what's to come. The update will be the official release, followed by normal updates via OTA's.
Who knows, I guess Google could update the preview, but I seriously doubt it... Besides they never did a preview like this before. Usually we just wait until the new OS comes out. Believe it lol.
RoyJ said:
Doubtfully, as it's just a preview of what's to come. The update will be the official release, followed by normal updates via OTA's.
Who knows, I guess Google could update the preview, but I seriously doubt it...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm, let's hope for it. There are some annoying bugs in Android L, but the advantages of Android L over 4.4.4 overrule the bugs, so I'm not downgrading, though.
Just curious, what advantages? I tried it, but ended up back on KK. I never run a stock nexus device, so I probably won't even run L at all until ROM devs get their hands on it after official release.
RoyJ said:
Just curious, what advantages? I tried it, but ended up back on KK. I never run a stock nexus device, so I probably won't even run L at all until ROM devs get their hands on it after official release.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mainly the ones Google is bragging about; I really notice energy is maintained more efficiently, battery lasts longer than stock. Probably compared to a rooted device, it doesn't. The notifications and notification center toggle are great(!); love I don't need a separate ugly app for that. The new design is somehow fun; I'm a designer. Although it's better than KK, I'm not that fond of it, compared to some custom designs or even iOS, which both I like more. And the do-not-disturb functionality sometimes come in handy.
Just the way to handle it, it's got better.
Some google developer said that there wont be any updates to android L preview. And if you ask me, its not needed. This is only for devs to test and update their apps to android L guidelines so when google releases L officialy, more apps will take advantage of new design and animations.
Sent from Pure Nexus 5
There is already a sticky thread devoted to Android L discussion: Android "L" Developer Preview Help, Troubleshooting, Q&A, please continue there are don't open threads related to Android L discussion :good:
Hi to everyone reading this
I am a fairly long time user of xda, usually just lurking and watching threads as they go along, but have now decided to try my hand at developing a rom or two for our (unfortunately) long forgotten villec2, since everyone seems to develop for the S4 variant. I have seen android 5 ported to the S4 variant, and I would like to know if what I am trying to do is at all possible, and if it is, if anyone can point me in a starting direction.
What I am trying to accomplish, is to get a working (bootable, not much else) rom that can boot up on my phone, and then from there add drivers/modules (unsure about naming conventions used in android, coming from a java/C++ background) for the different phone functions as I learn more about the system. So far, I have not found much on upgrading device trees / vendor files (not even exactly sure what these are for since most I see are completely different, even for the same version of android) from 4.4 to 5.0.1, and if I should simply write many of these files from scratch. I know this is a huge en devour, and I am in for much frustration, but I am doing it for two main reasons. One, everyone seems to have forgotten the villec2 device, and I feel like I will still be using it for quite a long time, and being able to use the latest and greatest in android technology will be quite nice to say the least. And two, I am doing it for learning, broadening my own experience with android, since I have yet to really write my own rom, I have only done a few rough builds from other people's repositories like cm.
At this point, I have a AOSP build environment from the master branch, have not yet done a build from it, and would just like any nudge someone can give me in a starting direction. Would it be possible to obtain some of the files I need for android L from my current device,, which is running a android 4 variant? Should I look elsewhere for these files?
niekz said:
Hi to everyone reading this
I am a fairly long time user of xda, usually just lurking and watching threads as they go along, but have now decided to try my hand at developing a rom or two for our (unfortunately) long forgotten villec2, since everyone seems to develop for the S4 variant. I have seen android 5 ported to the S4 variant, and I would like to know if what I am trying to do is at all possible, and if it is, if anyone can point me in a starting direction.
What I am trying to accomplish, is to get a working (bootable, not much else) rom that can boot up on my phone, and then from there add drivers/modules (unsure about naming conventions used in android, coming from a java/C++ background) for the different phone functions as I learn more about the system. So far, I have not found much on upgrading device trees / vendor files (not even exactly sure what these are for since most I see are completely different, even for the same version of android) from 4.4 to 5.0.1, and if I should simply write many of these files from scratch. I know this is a huge en devour, and I am in for much frustration, but I am doing it for two main reasons. One, everyone seems to have forgotten the villec2 device, and I feel like I will still be using it for quite a long time, and being able to use the latest and greatest in android technology will be quite nice to say the least. And two, I am doing it for learning, broadening my own experience with android, since I have yet to really write my own rom, I have only done a few rough builds from other people's repositories like cm.
At this point, I have a AOSP build environment from the master branch, have not yet done a build from it, and would just like any nudge someone can give me in a starting direction. Would it be possible to obtain some of the files I need for android L from my current device,, which is running a android 4 variant? Should I look elsewhere for these files?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you seen this thread?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2581659
I know it's not for C2 but maybe you can find some info there or someone can give you some advice
Sent from nowhere over the air...
I have checked out the thread, but unfortunately most of these guides refer to an already made vendor/device tree, which does not yet exist for the c2 (for android 5 anyways). Ill likely need to write my own it seems. Sadness..
Hi!
i really excited for this thread. i have a villeC2 and its very sad that phone just update at 4.1. its a really great phone whit much potential... if i can i help you but i don't know everything about compile roms. but i can try the rom like a beta tester. i really glad to do that. so.. if you continue whit this, i help you like a beta tester contacte me.
You can examine recent posts c2 development cm11 kitkat and offical pacman pages.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/chef-central/android/guide-android-rom-development-t2814763
https://forum.xda-developers.com/ch...ide-how-to-port-lollipop-marshmallow-t3283452
https://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2707438
i think we should port HTC Sensation roms
i dont know what's the difference between C2 and Sensation kernels . but i saw viperC2 and SAM rom files is the same
---------- Post added at 17:39 ---------- Previous post was at 17:06 ----------
https://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2178042
For those that haven't seen this yet, https://9to5google.com/2016/03/22/android-linux-kernel-vulnerability-patch/ it seems that Android is becoming less developer friendly as the versions get newer, and older kernels get patched, removing as many ways as they can for users to obtain root privileges.
So much for the openness of Android and their commitment to being for the people.
Android used to be fun to do development for, and now it's just a huge headache.
egingell said:
If Google includes root, it will probably be a stripped down version and be non-replaceable like a lot of the other stuff people wish they could replace.
Sent from: LG G4 MM 6.0 / SGS4 LP 5.0.1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, but if they offered the option from the start then we would have root and be able to change to another application like SuperSU. It wouldn't be that difficult for them to implement into the code. CM has the option to enable root out of the box and to switch the app that controls root access.
Android could do the same thing if they really wanted to.
hacknmtk said:
Yes, but if they offered the option from the start then we would have root and be able to change to another application like SuperSU. It wouldn't be that difficult for them to implement into the code. CM has the option to enable root out of the box and to switch the app that controls root access.
Android could do the same thing if they really wanted to.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The key point in my post was that it would likely not be replaceable. Meaning there would be no changing to SuperSU.
And manufacturers, such as Samsung--especially Samsung, might even remove it, anyway. I've always gotten the impression that it was the manufacturers hindering a lot of development, not Google themselves.
Sent from: LG G4 MM 6.0 / SGS4 LP 5.0.1
egingell said:
The key point in my post was that it would likely not be replaceable. Meaning there would be no changing to SuperSU.
And manufacturers, such as Samsung--especially Samsung, might even remove it, anyway. I've always gotten the impression that it was the manufacturers hindering a lot of development, not Google themselves.
Sent from: LG G4 MM 6.0 / SGS4 LP 5.0.1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've noticed that with MediaTek and their lack of support to developers.
Getting source code from them is difficult, and then when you do its either incomplete or a lot of it needs rewritten.
At least Samsung releases the full source code that can be merged with AOSP and compiled (or at least they could when I was doing development on their devices). Things may be different now though. I haven't messed around with Qualcomm devices in awhile.
I need to develop for Android 3.0. I need a way to test the apps I am creating. I need a way to run Android 3.0 as I plan on having that be the minimum version of Android I want to support.
Also, I bought this device for the fact that it was the first Android 3.0 tablet in existance, so it is therefore the oldest (but still not slowest, surprisingly) device I need to develop for. If I need to run a version of Android closest to Android 13 as possible, I would have just purchased an Asus ROG Phone 6.
Every time I try to search for a way to downgrade this tablet, I just don't find it. I try searching for this device's stock ROMs, but I can only find the latest official stock ROM, which is Android 4.1, which I do not need.
Also, can someone just post updated links for everything we need to root this tablet? It looks like some of them (like the Motorola USB drivers) are broken.
I eventually did manage to find an old stock ROM for this tablet that makes it run Android 3.0 again! Looks like my first issue is solved.
Unfortunately, I ran into another issue, I couldn't find a charger, I bought some barrel chargers that were supposedly for this device, but they don't actually plug in. I hate those proprietary barrel chargers so much right now!
I see you already found it, but in case anyone else needs old files, many of them are in the dev threads. These ones still have many active links for the Wingray model.
[SHARE][WINGRAY][CM11][EOS] Missing Downloads Here
My old Xoom is running strong. Since I still have all installation files and most of them are not available here anymore I decided to upload and share them. What I Am Sharing: cm-11-20150725-UNOFFICIAL-2201+0200-wingray.zip...
forum.xda-developers.com
My list of compiled Roms for Motorola Xoom
This is the forum for the roms I compile for Motorola Xoom. I have nicknamed these future roms Moto-Rola for personal reasons. xD I will try to make them faster and put some cute things on them, even if I start with KitKat versions. As you all...
forum.xda-developers.com