Database Info

Compiled list of safe to Uninstall/Freeze Apps for Galaxy S8

UPDATE: Attached an importable XML file to the OP, which can be used to disable the below services/apps in bulk, within BK Disabler.
Coming from a long list of Nexus and Pixel phones running pure Android, The Galaxy S8 is my first phone with TouchWiz. While I love the phone and Samsung's take on the UI, I've been on a mission to get the Galaxy S8 to run as smoothly and efficiently as possible in order to avoid unnecessary battery drain and RAM usage. I've spent a good amount of time going down the list of preloaded processes on the S8 and researching to see which ones are safe to uninstall/disable without hindering any day-to-day functionality of the phone.
To start, since I have the T-Mobile variant, I uninstalled/disabled every T-Mobile related app/process on my phone. Then, after reading up on all of the below processes to ensure they were not necessary and safe to freeze, I used BK Package Disabler to freeze these:
com.samsung.aasaservice (AASAservice)
com.sec.android.AutoPreconfig (AutoPreconfig)
com.android.providers.partnerbookmarks
com.samsung.android.app.watchmanagerstub *don't freeze if you use Samsung Gear*
com.samsung.android.email.provider *don't freeze if you use the default Samsung Email app*
com.sec.edgtestapp (EpdgTestApp)
com.sec.android.widgetapp.samsungapps (Galaxy Essentials Widget)
com.samsung.android.app.vrsetupwizardstub (Gear VR SetupWizardStub) *don't freeze if you use Samsung Gear*
com.sec.android.service.health (Health Service) *don't freeze if you use Samsung Health*
com.lookout (Lookout) *As explorer-10 pointed out, make sure to disable Lookout as a Device Administrator under "Settings > Lock screen and security > Other security settings > Device Administrators"*
com.android.printspooler (Print Spooler)
com.samsung.android.beaconmanager (Samsung Connect)
com.sec.android.app.sns3 (Samsung Galaxy)
com.samsung.android.app.mirrorlink (Samsung MirrorLink 1.1) * don't freeze if you connect your phone to your car via USB for Android Auto*
com.sec.spp.push (Samsung Push Service)
com.sec.android.app.SecSetupWizard (Samsung setup wizard)
com.samsung.SMT (Samsung text-to-speach engine)
com.samsung.oh (Samsung+)
additional T-Mobile related processes that I froze:
com.tmobile.pr.mytmobile (T-Mobile)
com.tmobile.vvm.application ( T-Mobile Visual Voicemail)
com.tmobile.pr.adapt
Lastly, to make my phone feel a bit snappier, I enabled developer settings (Settings > About Phone > tap "Build number" 7 times) and turned Window animation scale and Transition animation scale both to "0". The end result of all this is a Galaxy S8 that feels just as fast/snappy as my Google Pixel did.
I imagine I missed a few processes that are safe to freeze since my main focus was just on ones that were constantly running and draining battery/RAM usage. So please feel free to comment with any additional processes you've found and I'll update the list.

Thanks for the list
Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

style99 said:
Thanks for the list
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem.

you could add these if you want to:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=72013208&postcount=2

M3ph15t said:
you could add these if you want to:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=72013208&postcount=2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow! That's a huge list. You can confirm that every one of those are safe to uninstall/freeze without hindering any core functionality of the phone?

Some things are obviously without functiuon, but nothing elemental like the search engine (I found a list where this was deactivated)
IE: The default Mail app or Google Quick Search are disabled, some menu point within the assistance menu are not working anymore, maximum powersaving isn't working anymore (because the minimalistic launcher which is used by it is also deactivated)
Atm I'm looking for the Speech engine (the Mic icon left of the Space bar), because it seems like I deactivated this and I use it quite often so it's a little anoying
EDIT:
The AOD is one point I disabled because I prefer not to use it, but that is something which could be usefull to someone else

You the real MVP

Will freezing this one actually get rid of the forced bookmarks in the samsung browser. i hate that.
com.android.providers.partnerbookmarks

I can't tell you that, because i prefer Firefox on all my devices (Bookmark Sync is essential for me)
Regarding the Voice dictation problem: I found the app I deactivated which was responsible for it: the Google App. So if you use this app OR the voice dictation feature, you should let it enabled.
Another problem I ran into: Contacts an Calendar sync (to Google) don't work properly anymore with the Samsung Calendar and Contacts app.
Temporary workaround: use the Google Contacts App (you'll find it on APK Mirror) and Google Calendar, these sync fine
I'll try to find a solution for it, but for now I don't have the time for it and will reset my device to get it working properly again.
I'll keep you and the original Post of mine updated with the new infos

bckrupps said:
Will freezing this one actually get rid of the forced bookmarks in the samsung browser. i hate that.
com.android.providers.partnerbookmarks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes. It also gets rid of the forced bookmarks in Chrome.

Its probably the most useful list I have found so far but for anyone to know whether they want to disable each service or not, they all need some sort of brief explanation of what they do. I disabled what i thought were obvious ones on mine (anything with bixby or gear in the name for a start) but there were lots that i left alone as i couldnt find anything on what exactly they did.

henrybravo said:
Yes. It also gets rid of the forced bookmarks in Chrome.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i tried it. unfortunately it doesn't delete the stock bookmarks in the samsung browser on att anyway. i was hoping it would. thanks for the help though

ewokuk said:
Its probably the most useful list I have found so far but for anyone to know whether they want to disable each service or not, they all need some sort of brief explanation of what they do. I disabled what i thought were obvious ones on mine (anything with bixby or gear in the name for a start) but there were lots that i left alone as i couldnt find anything on what exactly they did.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed 100%
A brief explanation would be highly beneficial.

Would be useful if you could make the first post into an importable xml file.

sn0warmy said:
Coming from a long list of Nexus and Pixel phones running pure Android, The Galaxy S8 is my first phone with TouchWiz. While I love the phone and Samsung's take on the UI, I've been on a mission to get the Galaxy S8 to run as smoothly and efficiently as possible in order to avoid unnecessary battery drain and RAM usage. I've spent a good amount of time going down the list of preloaded processes on the S8 and researching to see which ones are safe to uninstall/disable without hindering any day-to-day functionality of the phone.
To start, since I have the T-Mobile variant, I uninstalled/disabled every T-Mobile related app/process on my phone. Then, after reading up on all of the below processes to ensure they were not necessary and safe to freeze, I used BK Package Disabler to freeze these:
com.samsung.aasaservice (AASAservice)
com.sec.android.AutoPreconfig (AutoPreconfig)
com.android.providers.partnerbookmarks
com.samsung.android.app.watchmanagerstub *don't freeze if you use Samsung Gear*
com.samsung.android.email.provider *don't freeze if you use the default Samsung Email app*
com.sec.edgtestapp (EpdgTestApp)
com.sec.android.widgetapp.samsungapps (Galaxy Essentials Widget)
com.samsung.android.app.vrsetupwizardstub (Gear VR SetupWizardStub) *don't freeze if you use Samsung Gear*
com.sec.android.service.health (Health Service) *don't freeze if you use Samsung Health*
com.lookout (Lookout)
com.android.printspooler (Print Spooler)
com.samsung.android.beaconmanager (Samsung Connect)
com.sec.android.app.sns3 (Samsung Galaxy)
com.samsung.android.app.mirrorlink (Samsung MirrorLink 1.1) * don't freeze if you connect your phone to your car via USB for Android Auto*
com.sec.spp.push (Samsung Push Service)
com.sec.android.app.SecSetupWizard (Samsung setup wizard)
com.samsung.SMT (Samsung text-to-speach engine)
com.samsung.oh (Samsung+)
additional T-Mobile related processes that I froze:
com.tmobile.pr.mytmobile (T-Mobile)
com.tmobile.vvm.application ( T-Mobile Visual Voicemail)
com.tmobile.pr.adapt
Lastly, to make my phone feel a bit snappier, I enabled developer settings (Settings > About Phone > tap "Build number" 7 times) and turned Window animation scale and Transition animation scale both to "0". The end result of all this is a Galaxy S8 that feels just as fast/snappy as my Google Pixel did.
I imagine I missed a few processes that are safe to freeze since my main focus was just on ones that were constantly running and draining battery/RAM usage. So please feel free to comment with any additional processes you've found and I'll update the list.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How'd you get Lookout to disable via BK? I got a fall message asking to re-enable disabled apps and restart the app. Did that to no avail.

ewokuk said:
Its probably the most useful list I have found so far but for anyone to know whether they want to disable each service or not, they all need some sort of brief explanation of what they do. I disabled what i thought were obvious ones on mine (anything with bixby or gear in the name for a start) but there were lots that i left alone as i couldnt find anything on what exactly they did.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you referring to the list I put in the OP? If so, I already put a brief description in parentheses next to each service, wherever possible. Not really sure what else you'd like added to each line.
explorer-10 said:
Would be useful if you could make the first post into an importable xml file.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great point. I exported my current Disabled Services XML file from BK Disabler and uploaded it to Google Drive. The OP is updated with this XML file.
explorer-10 said:
How'd you get Lookout to disable via BK? I got a fall message asking to re-enable disabled apps and restart the app. Did that to no avail.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It didn't cause any issues for me. I simply installed BK Disabler, ran down the list of apps/services I wanted to disable (including Lookout) and it disabled them all, no problem. I just double checked and can confirm that Lookout is still disabled even after multiple OS updates from T-Mobile.
Maybe try uploading the XML file I just put in the OP to see if that method works.

sn0warmy said:
Are you referring to the list I put in the OP? If so, I already put a brief description in parentheses next to each service, wherever possible. Not really sure what else you'd like added to each line.
Great point. I exported my current Disabled Services XML file from BK Disabler and uploaded it to Google Drive. The OP is updated with this XML file.
It didn't cause any issues for me. I simply installed BK Disabler, ran down the list of apps/services I wanted to disable (including Lookout) and it disabled them all, no problem. I just double checked and can confirm that Lookout is still disabled even after multiple OS updates from T-Mobile.
Maybe try uploading the XML file I just put in the OP to see if that method works.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nevermind, I got it to freeze/remove. It was still enabled under device administrator.

explorer-10 said:
Nevermind, I got it to freeze/remove. It was still enabled under device administrator.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Weird, Lookout is not an option under Device Administration on my phone. I can't remember if I disabled within Device Administrator prior to disabling it with BK Installer. Nonetheless, I updated the OP with this bullet point for disabling Lookout in case anyone else runs into the same issue.

sn0warmy said:
UPDATE: Attached an importable XML file to the OP, which can be used to disable the below services/apps in bulk, within BK Disabler.
Coming from a long list of Nexus and Pixel phones running pure Android, The Galaxy S8 is my first phone with TouchWiz. While I love the phone and Samsung's take on the UI, I've been on a mission to get the Galaxy S8 to run as smoothly and efficiently as possible in order to avoid unnecessary battery drain and RAM usage. I've spent a good amount of time going down the list of preloaded processes on the S8 and researching to see which ones are safe to uninstall/disable without hindering any day-to-day functionality of the phone.
To start, since I have the T-Mobile variant, I uninstalled/disabled every T-Mobile related app/process on my phone. Then, after reading up on all of the below processes to ensure they were not necessary and safe to freeze, I used BK Package Disabler to freeze these:
com.samsung.aasaservice (AASAservice)
com.sec.android.AutoPreconfig (AutoPreconfig)
com.android.providers.partnerbookmarks
com.samsung.android.app.watchmanagerstub *don't freeze if you use Samsung Gear*
com.samsung.android.email.provider *don't freeze if you use the default Samsung Email app*
com.sec.edgtestapp (EpdgTestApp)
com.sec.android.widgetapp.samsungapps (Galaxy Essentials Widget)
com.samsung.android.app.vrsetupwizardstub (Gear VR SetupWizardStub) *don't freeze if you use Samsung Gear*
com.sec.android.service.health (Health Service) *don't freeze if you use Samsung Health*
com.lookout (Lookout) *As explorer-10 pointed out, make sure to disable Lookout as a Device Administrator under "Settings > Lock screen and security > Other security settings > Device Administrators"*
com.android.printspooler (Print Spooler)
com.samsung.android.beaconmanager (Samsung Connect)
com.sec.android.app.sns3 (Samsung Galaxy)
com.samsung.android.app.mirrorlink (Samsung MirrorLink 1.1) * don't freeze if you connect your phone to your car via USB for Android Auto*
com.sec.spp.push (Samsung Push Service)
com.sec.android.app.SecSetupWizard (Samsung setup wizard)
com.samsung.SMT (Samsung text-to-speach engine)
com.samsung.oh (Samsung+)
additional T-Mobile related processes that I froze:
com.tmobile.pr.mytmobile (T-Mobile)
com.tmobile.vvm.application ( T-Mobile Visual Voicemail)
com.tmobile.pr.adapt
Lastly, to make my phone feel a bit snappier, I enabled developer settings (Settings > About Phone > tap "Build number" 7 times) and turned Window animation scale and Transition animation scale both to "0". The end result of all this is a Galaxy S8 that feels just as fast/snappy as my Google Pixel did.
I imagine I missed a few processes that are safe to freeze since my main focus was just on ones that were constantly running and draining battery/RAM usage. So please feel free to comment with any additional processes you've found and I'll update the list.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I appreciate this however I'm curious how much difference in battery life does this really make or is it more of a nuisance thing than anything else?
Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

I just installed BK Disabler and it fails to activate with an unknown error, there are some troubleshooting steps in broken English which don't work, what a joke...
Did anyone run into a similar problem?

Performance boost for Mi A2 Lite (Android 10 - No Root)

Hi,
Adaptive battery helps to boost performance if you tweak it enought. I did this on my own device and it blazing fast right now. No root required for this guide. Use at your own risk.
First Step:
Step by step:
1- Go to Settings - Apps & Notifications - See all apps - 3 dot - Show system
2- Tap to app
3- Turn off all Notifications of that app
4- If you cant turn off Notifications, Tap Advanced - Disable Notification dot
5- Turn off Background data
6- Tap Advanced - Battery - Background restriction - Restrict
7- Go back to See all apps
8- Repeat 2-7 steps until the last app.
Rules:
Dont do this to Clock and your most used apps. I didnt touched Telephone, Notifications, Sms related apps.
Second Step:
Disabled apps:
1- Android Auto
2- Android Setup
3- Android Setup (another one)
4- Basic daydreams
5- Bookmark provider
6- Carrier Services
7- com.android.providers.partnerbookmarks
8- Companion device manager
9- Default Print Service
10- Device setup
11- Digital Wellbeing
12- Files
13- Fingerpirnt test
14- Google
15- Home screen tips
16- HTML Viewer
17- Lens
18- Maps
19- Market Feedback Agent
20- Nfc Service
21- Photo Screensavers
22- Print Service Recommendation Service
23- Qualcomm Mobile Security (telemetry app)
24- Tags
25- PAI
26- ConfigUpdater
27- Storage Manager
28- com.android.wallpaperpicker (any other HD wallpaper app will not affect from it)
29- com.android.cts.ctsshim
30- com.android.cts.priv.ctsshim
31- Google One Time Init
32- Google Partner Setup
Third Step:
Permissions:
1- Deny all permissions on Disabled apps.
2- I gived only Physical Activity permission to Google Play Services app. (I cant do this on v11.0.10)
3- Google Play Store app has only Storage permission.
4- Go to: Settings/Privacy check the permissions to deny unwanted access.
5- Disable - Display over the other apps permission on Disabled apps.
6- Disable - Modify system settings permission on Disabled apps.
Fourth Step:
Developer Settings:
1- Lower Animator duration scale to 0,5x
2- Game Driver Prefences:
- Find your games and choose ' Game Driver ' for them.
- Find your most used apps (Firefox, YouTube, Nova launcher,.. etc.) and choose ' Game Driver ' for it.
3- Enable Wi-Fi Scan Throttling.
4- Background check:
- ANT HAL Service, disable
- Calendar Storage, disable
- ConfigUpdater, disable
- Dirac Control Service, disable
- GFManager, disable
- Spock, disable
(I disabled everything in there except Google Play Store app on my own device.)
Fifth Step:
Ad-Blocking:
1- Go to: Settings/Network&Internet/Advanced/Private DNS/Private DNS provider host name:
dns.adguard.com
2- Go to: Settings/Privacy/Advanced/Ads - Enable - Opt out of Ads Personalization
3- Go to: Settings/Privacy/Advanced/Ads - Disable - Enable debug logging for ads
Sixth Step:
Final:
1- Do the last thing: Restart your phone.
2- Enjoy!
Pros:
- Apps no longer restarts.
- Performance improves.
- Battery life improves.
- Ram management works as expected.
- It smoothens the UI.
- Device starts working as iOS'ish performance.
- Youre gonna love your phone again.
Cons:
- Dont think so.
Notes:
I did this to 182 apps plus the applications I installed (i didnt add them to that count). It takes time. Requires a lot of patience to do that. But the results incredible.
Warnings!:
1- Do not touch Reset app preferences button after this. You will be lose everything what you did so far. If you do, Slow performance will be back.
2- Do not disable Adaptive Battery.
How to Reset everything back to Default:
1- Go to: Settings/Apps and Notifications/See all x apps/Three dot/Reset app preferences
2- Go to: Settings/Advanced/Developer Options/Turn Off
3- Restart your phone.
4- Done!

Is this for real? Were you ok when you started this thread?
First of all 70% of the apps you disabled are extremely useful in the day to day world and are vital, that's why Google put them there, and that's why people with 3rd party Android modifications install them.
Android Auto, it's your phone fully integrated into your car, I use it every time, and that's why I waited for the full system integration of Android Auto in Android 10.
Carrier services, it's the STK service that it's extremely useful when you want to check the internal services from your carrier, like cost control, carrier updates, etc.
Print service, again, for real? This service enables your phone to print to cloud services or wi-fi printers, extremely useful.
Digital Wellbeing is the system version of activity tracker, I love it, it offers me all the devices privacy and limitation features that instead I would have to set myself. The black and white screen at night, the autoDND, and a tracker to see how much I use the phone.
And I can go on with my explanations. This is not a tutorial, this is how you can dumb down the phone even more than Xiaomi did. Breaking every system integrated functionality to what? Replacem them with 3rd party apps from god knows what developers on the Play store.
5- Disable - Display over the other apps permission on Disabled apps.
Are you for real again? This way you kill all the apps that use bubbles like whatsapp, phone, sms, facebook messenger and you can't use them during multitasking anymore.
2- Go to Settings/Privacy/Advanced/Ads - Enable - Opt out of Ads Personalization
Do you even know what this does? This removes the ad personalization, but it still tracks you. This is not a performance boost, this is still getting track but you get random ads instead of relevant ads.
1- Lower Animator duration scale to 0,5x
This is the worst thing a user can do. In the build.prop there is a setting that defines how many events per second can occur on the screen at a given time, decreasing animation time may overflow that limit and force the SoC to use more power. What you gained by disabling/crippling good services on your phone it's now being used by the processor itself, since you're forcing it's buffers.
- Device starts working as iOS'ish performance.
- Youre gonna love your phone again.
Again, this is a joke, isn't it? How can someone love a phone with broken HARDWARE features that cannot be fixed through app management, kernel issues, driver issues, etc? If you were to browse just a little XDA forums you'd see how much nonsense you wrote in this thread. This is not a performance boost, this a dumbed down phone with performance being as placebo as it gets.
I will report this thread to the moderators/admins, because this is not acceptable on a development forum. I never saw so much fake news in this place in my entire life.

I think you're being a bit too hard on the guy. If someone's browsing the XDA and finds this post, chances are they know a bit about the aforementioned settings and will not tamper with anything that they wouldn't want working properly. He just listed the things that he doesn't really care about too much, and also mentioned those that he didn't touch.
It is a tad bit misleading but I don't think this will be breaking anyone's phone, as it just takes a couple of "reverts to default" to set everything as it had been before.
TeoXSD said:
Is this for real? Were you ok when you started this thread?
First of all 70% of the apps you disabled are extremely useful in the day to day world and are vital, that's why Google put them there, and that's why people with 3rd party Android modifications install them.
Android Auto, it's your phone fully integrated into your car, I use it every time, and that's why I waited for the full system integration of Android Auto in Android 10.
Carrier services, it's the STK service that it's extremely useful when you want to check the internal services from your carrier, like cost control, carrier updates, etc.
Print service, again, for real? This service enables your phone to print to cloud services or wi-fi printers, extremely useful.
Digital Wellbeing is the system version of activity tracker, I love it, it offers me all the devices privacy and limitation features that instead I would have to set myself. The black and white screen at night, the autoDND, and a tracker to see how much I use the phone.
And I can go on with my explanations. This is not a tutorial, this is how you can dumb down the phone even more than Xiaomi did. Breaking every system integrated functionality to what? Replacem them with 3rd party apps from god knows what developers on the Play store.
5- Disable - Display over the other apps permission on Disabled apps.
Are you for real again? This way you kill all the apps that use bubbles like whatsapp, phone, sms, facebook messenger and you can't use them during multitasking anymore.
2- Go to Settings/Privacy/Advanced/Ads - Enable - Opt out of Ads Personalization
Do you even know what this does? This removes the ad personalization, but it still tracks you. This is not a performance boost, this is still getting track but you get random ads instead of relevant ads.
1- Lower Animator duration scale to 0,5x
This is the worst thing a user can do. In the build.prop there is a setting that defines how many events per second can occur on the screen at a given time, decreasing animation time may overflow that limit and force the SoC to use more power. What you gained by disabling/crippling good services on your phone it's now being used by the processor itself, since you're forcing it's buffers.
- Device starts working as iOS'ish performance.
- Youre gonna love your phone again.
Again, this is a joke, isn't it? How can someone love a phone with broken HARDWARE features that cannot be fixed through app management, kernel issues, driver issues, etc? If you were to browse just a little XDA forums you'd see how much nonsense you wrote in this thread. This is not a performance boost, this a dumbed down phone with performance being as placebo as it gets.
I will report this thread to the moderators/admins, because this is not acceptable on a development forum. I never saw so much fake news in this place in my entire life.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

novak.vujacic97 said:
I think you're being a bit too hard on the guy. If someone's browsing the XDA and finds this post, chances are they know a bit about the aforementioned settings and will not tamper with anything that they wouldn't want working properly. He just listed the things that he doesn't really care about too much, and also mentioned those that he didn't touch.
It is a tad bit misleading but I don't think this will be breaking anyone's phone, as it just takes a couple of "reverts to default" to set everything as it had been before.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Harsh, maybe. But a "a bit misleading" is an understatement. Killing parts of the core system is NOT a performance boost, it's like going to vacation all packed up and throwing everything down the road to your destination so you save fuel. This is not the first time he done posts like this (check the "I thought this is stock android, why does it has 200 apps?" thread). This kind of misleading threads are misinforming the users here, most of them who are just basic users coming from Mi Forums in search for solutions (since the phone is so broken due to poor updates). These posts then get copy and pasted to Mi Forums and there you go, you have a good amount of users now with crippled phones. The same happened to how to update to 11.0.2, there was a step there that made users lose their data, poor tutorials, poor understanding of technology and you made that user lose whatever was on his device.
I hope a moderator would close this thread and let it sink to the bottom of this forum, this is not quality information and it's not helping anyone. You say he said what he didn't touch? I beg to differ: "Notes:
I did this to 182 apps plus the applications I installed (i didnt add them to that count). It takes time. Requires a lot of patience to do that. But the results incredible." This was added later it seems, and out of 212 system core apps... 182... uhm... he kinda' killed everything and brags for "performance". Really?

Hahah, oh well, maybe he really likes bloatwarefree or any-warefree user interface :'D I think that the idea that he is coming from is not necessarily bad, I also disabled many google and system apps because they really do drain battery and throttle performance, plus I wasn't really using them too much. A good balance between functionality of the phone for any John Doe and functionality of the system itself is important though. He did overdo it most certainly, but then again, everyone should always be cautious when tampering with the system using the instructions from strangers on the internet...
TeoXSD said:
Harsh, maybe. But a "a bit misleading" is an understatement. Killing parts of the core system is NOT a performance boost, it's like going to vacation all packed up and throwing everything down the road to your destination so you save fuel. This is not the first time he done posts like this (check the "I thought this is stock android, why does it has 200 apps?" thread). This kind of misleading threads are misinforming the users here, most of them who are just basic users coming from Mi Forums in search for solutions (since the phone is so broken due to poor updates). These posts then get copy and pasted to Mi Forums and there you go, you have a good amount of users now with crippled phones. The same happened to how to update to 11.0.2, there was a step there that made users lose their data, poor tutorials, poor understanding of technology and you made that user lose whatever was on his device.
I hope a moderator would close this thread and let it sink to the bottom of this forum, this is not quality information and it's not helping anyone. You say he said what he didn't touch? I beg to differ: "Notes:
I did this to 182 apps plus the applications I installed (i didnt add them to that count). It takes time. Requires a lot of patience to do that. But the results incredible." This was added later it seems, and out of 212 system core apps... 182... uhm... he kinda' killed everything and brags for "performance". Really?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

novak.vujacic97 said:
Hahah, oh well, maybe he really likes bloatwarefree or any-warefree user interface :'D I think that the idea that he is coming from is not necessarily bad, I also disabled many google and system apps because they really do drain battery and throttle performance, plus I wasn't really using them too much. A good balance between functionality of the phone for any John Doe and functionality of the system itself is important though. He did overdo it most certainly, but then again, everyone should always be cautious when tampering with the system using the instructions from strangers on the internet...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So, the whole point of this thread is? Lying to people, giving them false information and basically clickbait. That was the whole point, a clickbait thread with extremely bad information in it. Disabling apps, especially Google ones in an Google rom is bad. Tweaking developer settings (which are for developers and not users) is a bad idea if you don't know what is the point of X setting. Instead of making a thread like this explain how people can customize their phones explaining what features do, what is safe for disabling/deleting and what is the general purpose of this. He also said he has no problem, but can he use the feed on the home screen after disabling Google app. I bet he can't anymore. Can he use Google assistant anymore in Auto app for example? No because he disabled it when disabling Google. He doesn't explain the purpose, he doesn't explain that is a cascade of dependencies between some of the core apps. Even the lite version of GAPPS comes with Google (the app) as main and on. If it wasn't a dependency it would have been removed, right? This is coming from actual developers that prepare GAPPS packages for custom roms. Want another one? He disabled HTML Viewer, now when he's going to go into settings and go into about, it will crash when trying to open HTML elements like certifications and so on. That being said it will also crash whenever you're trying to view a help file based on HTML in any 3rd party app. Companion device manager, well if you have a nice companion device like smartwatch, smart headphones, anything smart, now it ain't smart no more, you killed it, but does he explain that? No, he just marks it as bloatware, when unfortunately it's a system core service and not a Google app.
Let me tell you a thing, as core apps, and as an operating system Android 10 is good, but the optimization on how the OS interacts with the hardware is faulty, and it's been proven numerous times. There are enough people who did actual research to do so, if you're disabling apps you may fix the battery drain and performance throttle until Xiaomi decides to break something else, somewhere else and then you're up for the task again to find and disable whatever you "don't need". Google kinda' patches sometimes the problem with it's own apps, but you ain't going to see a difference because the apps are now in a frozen state (talking about important apps here, not the extras). Now for the extras, I still don't understand why in 2020 Android don't let you delete extras app, this will both help people like you who like balance, maybe have some better 3rd party alternatives you like etc. and also help people like OP who has no idea what he's doing, killing the whole system and hoping for the best. iOS did this since... idk when, but from what I remember iOS 12 can lets you uninstall preinstalled apps that are not important and later reinstalling them from the store (books, home, and whatever else is there). Disabling apps in Android just keeps the memory clogged with useless data... so, where is the improvement? Ohh, a few minutes to hours of battery more...
Also, to give you another reason to read about it, when you say you disabled some system apps and you get better battery it's placebo. Why? Because while most of the system apps are optimized for the current API level the phone is running your 3rd party apps aren't... and from what I've checked on APKMirror, extremely few apps are actually fully optimized for Android 10 as target. Optimized system apps + not optimized 3rd party = low sot. Disabling system apps just compensates a little for the not optimized ones, the not optimized ones running the same as before. By disabling your system apps you just made room for more mess to run, which in the end, it's not optimal, it's just placebo.
So, tl;dr: informative threads, information, explanations, facts, data, demonstration not this joke.

TeoXSD said:
So, the whole point of this thread is? Lying to people, giving them false information and basically clickbait. That was the whole point, a clickbait thread with extremely bad information in it. Disabling apps, especially Google ones in an Google rom is bad. Tweaking developer settings (which are for developers and not users) is a bad idea if you don't know what is the point of X setting. Instead of making a thread like this explain how people can customize their phones explaining what features do, what is safe for disabling/deleting and what is the general purpose of this. He also said he has no problem, but can he use the feed on the home screen after disabling Google app. I bet he can't anymore. Can he use Google assistant anymore in Auto app for example? No because he disabled it when disabling Google. He doesn't explain the purpose, he doesn't explain that is a cascade of dependencies between some of the core apps. Even the lite version of GAPPS comes with Google (the app) as main and on. If it wasn't a dependency it would have been removed, right? This is coming from actual developers that prepare GAPPS packages for custom roms. Want another one? He disabled HTML Viewer, now when he's going to go into settings and go into about, it will crash when trying to open HTML elements like certifications and so on. That being said it will also crash whenever you're trying to view a help file based on HTML in any 3rd party app. Companion device manager, well if you have a nice companion device like smartwatch, smart headphones, anything smart, now it ain't smart no more, you killed it, but does he explain that? No, he just marks it as bloatware, when unfortunately it's a system core service and not a Google app.
Let me tell you a thing, as core apps, and as an operating system Android 10 is good, but the optimization on how the OS interacts with the hardware is faulty, and it's been proven numerous times. There are enough people who did actual research to do so, if you're disabling apps you may fix the battery drain and performance throttle until Xiaomi decides to break something else, somewhere else and then you're up for the task again to find and disable whatever you "don't need". Google kinda' patches sometimes the problem with it's own apps, but you ain't going to see a difference because the apps are now in a frozen state (talking about important apps here, not the extras). Now for the extras, I still don't understand why in 2020 Android don't let you delete extras app, this will both help people like you who like balance, maybe have some better 3rd party alternatives you like etc. and also help people like OP who has no idea what he's doing, killing the whole system and hoping for the best. iOS did this since... idk when, but from what I remember iOS 12 can lets you uninstall preinstalled apps that are not important and later reinstalling them from the store (books, home, and whatever else is there). Disabling apps in Android just keeps the memory clogged with useless data... so, where is the improvement? Ohh, a few minutes to hours of battery more...
So, tl;dr: informative threads, information, explanations, facts, data, demonstration not this joke.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nothing is clickbait in here. You will see the difference when you follow the steps. I am so happy with my phone.

Someone forgot to take his meds again...
TeoXSD said:
So, the whole point of this thread is? Lying to people, giving them false information and basically clickbait. That was the whole point, a clickbait thread with extremely bad information in it. Disabling apps, especially Google ones in an Google rom is bad. Tweaking developer settings (which are for developers and not users) is a bad idea if you don't know what is the point of X setting. Instead of making a thread like this explain how people can customize their phones explaining what features do, what is safe for disabling/deleting and what is the general purpose of this. He also said he has no problem, but can he use the feed on the home screen after disabling Google app. I bet he can't anymore. Can he use Google assistant anymore in Auto app for example? No because he disabled it when disabling Google. He doesn't explain the purpose, he doesn't explain that is a cascade of dependencies between some of the core apps. Even the lite version of GAPPS comes with Google (the app) as main and on. If it wasn't a dependency it would have been removed, right? This is coming from actual developers that prepare GAPPS packages for custom roms. Want another one? He disabled HTML Viewer, now when he's going to go into settings and go into about, it will crash when trying to open HTML elements like certifications and so on. That being said it will also crash whenever you're trying to view a help file based on HTML in any 3rd party app. Companion device manager, well if you have a nice companion device like smartwatch, smart headphones, anything smart, now it ain't smart no more, you killed it, but does he explain that? No, he just marks it as bloatware, when unfortunately it's a system core service and not a Google app.
Let me tell you a thing, as core apps, and as an operating system Android 10 is good, but the optimization on how the OS interacts with the hardware is faulty, and it's been proven numerous times. There are enough people who did actual research to do so, if you're disabling apps you may fix the battery drain and performance throttle until Xiaomi decides to break something else, somewhere else and then you're up for the task again to find and disable whatever you "don't need". Google kinda' patches sometimes the problem with it's own apps, but you ain't going to see a difference because the apps are now in a frozen state (talking about important apps here, not the extras). Now for the extras, I still don't understand why in 2020 Android don't let you delete extras app, this will both help people like you who like balance, maybe have some better 3rd party alternatives you like etc. and also help people like OP who has no idea what he's doing, killing the whole system and hoping for the best. iOS did this since... idk when, but from what I remember iOS 12 can lets you uninstall preinstalled apps that are not important and later reinstalling them from the store (books, home, and whatever else is there). Disabling apps in Android just keeps the memory clogged with useless data... so, where is the improvement? Ohh, a few minutes to hours of battery more...
Also, to give you another reason to read about it, when you say you disabled some system apps and you get better battery it's placebo. Why? Because while most of the system apps are optimized for the current API level the phone is running your 3rd party apps aren't... and from what I've checked on APKMirror, extremely few apps are actually fully optimized for Android 10 as target. Optimized system apps + not optimized 3rd party = low sot. Disabling system apps just compensates a little for the not optimized ones, the not optimized ones running the same as before. By disabling your system apps you just made room for more mess to run, which in the end, it's not optimal, it's just placebo.
So, tl;dr: informative threads, information, explanations, facts, data, demonstration not this joke.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Here's my take...if an App has the option to disable said app, then it is not important to the overall function of the phone. There are many that fit this criteria - and obviously many that don't.

I did everything on this guide to v11.0.10 and its like butter smooth now.
These are new tweaks for Developer Options:
1- Find your most used apps (Firefox, YouTube, Nova launcher,.. etc.) and choose ' Game Driver ' for it.
Game Driver also improves other apps responsiveness not just Games.
2- Background check:
- ANT HAL Service, disable
- Calendar Storage, disable
- ConfigUpdater, disable
- Dirac Control Service, disable
- GFManager, disable
- Spock, disable
(I disabled everything in there except Google Play Store app on my own device.)
I added these apps to Disabled list:
- PAI
- ConfigUpdater
- Storage Manager
- com.android.wallpaperpicker (any other HD wallpaper app will not affect from it)
- com.android.cts.ctsshim
- com.android.cts.priv.ctsshim
- Google One Time Init
- Google Partner Setup
How to Reset everything back to Default:
1- Go to: Settings/Apps and Notifications/See all x apps/Three dot/Reset app preferences
2- Go to: Settings/Advanced/Developer Options/Turn Off
3- Restart your phone.
4- Done!
Note: Xiaomi blocked Disabling Location for Google Play Services. I am getting infinite loop on v11.0.10

Thanks a lot Man !
I don't know whether you are still using this device. But believed me I was so frustrated about the performance after the update. And I honestly don't care much about disabling hard critical apps in the system as the phone now works buttery smooth. All my required apps works and no one can tell the difference. Maybe android inside is crying and bragging what have you done what have you done screw the system the phone feels great . Thanks man ! :good:

This guide worked perfect. I didn't even follow all the steps but handpicked the ones that seemed to have most impact for me.

I am curious to try, what are the most valuable apps you think i should stop?
I am not really afraid to broke my phone as i thinking to move again to custom rom

JUST INSTALLED THIS
and its perfect now
[ROM][12][Daisy][OFFICIAL]Syberia Project
/* * Your warranty is now void. * * Syberia Team not responsible for bricked devices, dead SD cards, * thermonuclear war, or you getting fired because the alarm app failed. Please * do some research if you have any concerns about features...
forum.xda-developers.com

General List of Safely Removable Packages Over ADB

Hi everyone,
Z Flip 3 finally arrived and now it's time for me to clean it up .
Over ADB i've removed those packages:
Code:
com.samsung.android.app.settings.bixby
com.samsung.systemui.bixby2
com.samsung.android.bixby.service
com.samsung.android.bixby.agent
com.samsung.android.bixbyvision.framework
com.samsung.android.bixby.wakeup
com.samsung.android.app.routines
com.samsung.android.visionintelligence
com.microsoft.appmanager
com.microsoft.skydrive
com.samsung.android.aremoji
com.samsung.android.aremojieditor
com.samsung.android.ardrawing
com.sec.android.app.samsungapps
yet, there are other apps that I would like to remove but i dont know the name of the packages:
AR Space ( Spazio AR )
Samsung Free
Emoji AR Stickers ( i've removed 2 packages but still i can see the app in the app list on android as disabled )
Google Duo
upday
Vodafone AppBox
If anyone has any other package that could be safely removed, list it here and descirbe what is it related too.

Quick Debloat ATT (SM-711U1)
No for non-rooted/stock/bootlocked phones This is my debloat list, simply copy paste into ADB. I still run some Google and Samsung services but this takes out all the carrier, Microsoft, Facebook and Samsung garbage that they lock into the...
forum.xda-developers.com
Just tweak it [ZFlip3] - debloat, root, plugins, battery...
ZFlip3 stock setup model used: Z Flip 3 SM-F711B, Android 11, October 2021 firmware, Europe (EUX), then Android 12, Februaru 2022. adding an article in a flagship marathon ..->V30->Note9->6T->Mi9->S10->7T->Tab S6->Tab...
forum.xda-developers.com

twistedumbrella said:
Quick Debloat ATT (SM-711U1)
No for non-rooted/stock/bootlocked phones This is my debloat list, simply copy paste into ADB. I still run some Google and Samsung services but this takes out all the carrier, Microsoft, Facebook and Samsung garbage that they lock into the...
forum.xda-developers.com
Just tweak it [ZFlip3] - debloat, root, plugins, battery...
ZFlip3 stock setup model used: Z Flip 3 SM-F711B, Android 11, October 2021 firmware, Europe (EUX), then Android 12, Februaru 2022. adding an article in a flagship marathon ..->V30->Note9->6T->Mi9->S10->7T->Tab S6->Tab...
forum.xda-developers.com
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have all those packages as in the first post and I would like to keep things stock, just want to remove those over ADB. Running a command for each package looks simple and safer to me.

Still works for the ones you do, but it will go faster.
[HOW-TO][DEBLOAT][ADB] The ultimate ADB debloating thread for the S20/+/U series
Hi, i´ve seen some threads and questions about debloating in the s20 forum, but by having a quick look at them, theres not much information for beginners. Thats why I decided to sign up and join the xda community. I would like to make this the...
forum.xda-developers.com

twistedumbrella said:
Still works for the ones you do, but it will go faster.
[HOW-TO][DEBLOAT][ADB] The ultimate ADB debloating thread for the S20/+/U series
Hi, i´ve seen some threads and questions about debloating in the s20 forum, but by having a quick look at them, theres not much information for beginners. Thats why I decided to sign up and join the xda community. I would like to make this the...
forum.xda-developers.com
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Still, i need to know the name of those packages:
AR Space ( Spazio AR )
Samsung Free
Emoji AR Stickers ( i've removed 2 packages but still i can see the app in the app list on android as disabled )
Google Duo
upday
Vodafone AppBox

MySelf_v1 said:
Still, i need to know the name of those packages:
AR Space ( Spazio AR )
Samsung Free
Emoji AR Stickers ( i've removed 2 packages but still i can see the app in the app list on android as disabled )
Google Duo
upday
Vodafone AppBox
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Search them in Google Play / Galaxy Store from a browser.
Samsung Members - Apps on Google Play
Expert support, community connection & exclusive perks. Possibility starts here.
play.google.com
See how the URL comes up as id=com.samsung.android.voc?
com.samsung.android.voc is the package
It's really not something you need a spreadsheet to find out.

twistedumbrella said:
Search them in Google Play / Galaxy Store from a browser.
Samsung Members - Apps on Google Play
Expert support, community connection & exclusive perks. Possibility starts here.
play.google.com
See how the URL comes up as id=com.samsung.android.voc?
com.samsung.android.voc is the package
It's really not something you need a spreadsheet to find out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We're not all developers here

MySelf_v1 said:
We're not all developers here
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You don't need to be a developer. There is no code involved in the above instructions.

Install "Package Disabler Pro" on your Smartphone.
This app list the real name of the app.
Example:
Vodafone Appbox = package:com.aura.oobe.samsung.gl
Delete it with adb:
start with developer options, then you have to do:
"adb shell"
"pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.aura.oobe.samsung.gl"
An other example:
Samsung Free = package:com.samsung.android.app.spage
"pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.samsung.android.app.spage"
Astalavista baby

The first time I saw this topic (that is, easy-debloat without using a rooted version of Android) was from this article, which is a bit out of date but explains the basic premise:
https://www.xda-developers.com/disable-system-app-bloatware-android/
If you're not familiar with the Google program "adb" this may be helpful too:
https://www.xda-developers.com/install-adb-windows-macos-linux/
And even some documentation from the authors of the ADB command:
https://developer.android.com/studio/command-line/adb/
As you know, many pre-installed applications can be removed via Settings→Apps, as you'd expect. If removal is prevented then try using Google's Android Device Bridge command (running on a PC or Mac; I use Linux) using the adb command.
You're right to be concerned about what applications are related to a package disabled or uninstalled by any of these methods. An application may have prerequisites or corequisites. As always, use care making changes like this!
Example​Imagine you prefer Google's Contacts application, rather than Samsung's. As best I can tell, on Android 12, the Samsung Contacts application cannot be uninstalled or disabled by a novice user via Settings-->Apps. But what might happen if you could successfully remove Samsung's Contacts application? I tried this scenario and here's what I found: Samsung's Contacts application appears to be required for Settings-->Safety and emergency-->Medical info.
How did I test this? Well, it's possible to force a disable Samsung Contacts using a command similar to:
adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.samsung.android.app.contacts​Package com.samsung.android.app.contacts new state: disabled-user​
If you now try to navigate to Settings-->Safety and emergency-->Medical info, you'll get a pop-up message saying something like:
Unable to open Contacts. Tap SETTINGS,​go to App info > Permissions, then allow​the following permissions and try again:​Contacts​
This is why I think Samsung’s Contacts is a prerequisite for some services. Services which do need Samsung’s Contacts application’s services will notify you with a pop-up message, like the one above. (And no, installing Google’s Contacts application doesn’t help.)
In any case, if you're unhappy, you can easily undo what you've done so far with this command:
adb shell pm enable com.samsung.android.app.contacts​Package com.samsung.android.app.contacts new state: enabled​
Your phone should be none the worse for trying this example. But for fun, let's continue the scenario, Samsung Contacts can be uninstalled rather than merely disabled:
adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.samsung.android.app.contacts​Success​
However now it’s not possible to even navigate to Settings-->Safety and emergency-->Medical info. The item remains under the Safety and emergency settings, but it is not grayed out (a common way to know you can’t tap on an item), and clicking it doesn't work (no error message). So I think Samsung's Contacts application is a hard prereq for Medical info. ("Hard", as in "There's no way around it.") What's more, the Emergency contacts (also under the Safety and emergency entry in Settings) item doesn't work. So more than one feature isn't working.
If you change your mind you can reinstall the package:
adb shell pm install-existing com.samsung.android.app.contacts​Package com.samsung.android.app.contacts installed for user: 0​
After a reinstall I'm pretty sure your phone is again working well. End of example.
I'm not an expert on this topic. And I don't mean to start a new discussion about this topic on this thread. I thought you'd like an answer to your question, with what I hope are specific examples and links. There's another (one of many, actually) active discussion, which mentions certain corequisite and prerequisite packages, by name, and why you might want to keep some. See:
[ADB] [NO-ROOT] Samsung Optimization Guide - A Better Experience
PS: At the end of my playing around I decided to keep Samsung's Contacts application, and hide it as best I can by using a feature in Nova Launcher Prime. Why? It was important for me to have my phone able to display medical info (allergies).

wpscully said:
The first time I saw this topic (that is, easy-debloat without using a rooted version of Android) was from this article, which is a bit out of date but explains the basic premise:
https://www.xda-developers.com/disable-system-app-bloatware-android/
If you're not familiar with the Google program "adb" this may be helpful too:
https://www.xda-developers.com/install-adb-windows-macos-linux/
And even some documentation from the authors of the ADB command:
https://developer.android.com/studio/command-line/adb/
As you know, many pre-installed applications can be removed via Settings→Apps, as you'd expect. If removal is prevented then try using Google's Android Device Bridge command (running on a PC or Mac; I use Linux) using the adb command.
You're right to be concerned about what applications are related to a package disabled or uninstalled by any of these methods. An application may have prerequisites or corequisites. As always, use care making changes like this!
Example​Imagine you prefer Google's Contacts application, rather than Samsung's. As best I can tell, on Android 12, the Samsung Contacts application cannot be uninstalled or disabled by a novice user via Settings-->Apps. But what might happen if you could successfully remove Samsung's Contacts application? I tried this scenario and here's what I found: Samsung's Contacts application appears to be required for Settings-->Safety and emergency-->Medical info.
How did I test this? Well, it's possible to force a disable Samsung Contacts using a command similar to:
adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.samsung.android.app.contacts​Package com.samsung.android.app.contacts new state: disabled-user​
If you now try to navigate to Settings-->Safety and emergency-->Medical info, you'll get a pop-up message saying something like:
Unable to open Contacts. Tap SETTINGS,​go to App info > Permissions, then allow​the following permissions and try again:​Contacts​
This is why I think Samsung’s Contacts is a prerequisite for some services. Services which do need Samsung’s Contacts application’s services will notify you with a pop-up message, like the one above. (And no, installing Google’s Contacts application doesn’t help.)
In any case, if you're unhappy, you can easily undo what you've done so far with this command:
adb shell pm enable com.samsung.android.app.contacts​Package com.samsung.android.app.contacts new state: enabled​
Your phone should be none the worse for trying this example. But for fun, let's continue the scenario, Samsung Contacts can be uninstalled rather than merely disabled:
adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.samsung.android.app.contacts​Success​
However now it’s not possible to even navigate to Settings-->Safety and emergency-->Medical info. The item remains under the Safety and emergency settings, but it is not grayed out (a common way to know you can’t tap on an item), and clicking it doesn't work (no error message). So I think Samsung's Contacts application is a hard prereq for Medical info. ("Hard", as in "There's no way around it.") What's more, the Emergency contacts (also under the Safety and emergency entry in Settings) item doesn't work. So more than one feature isn't working.
If you change your mind you can reinstall the package:
adb shell pm install-existing com.samsung.android.app.contacts​Package com.samsung.android.app.contacts installed for user: 0​
After a reinstall I'm pretty sure your phone is again working well. End of example.
I'm not an expert on this topic. And I don't mean to start a new discussion about this topic on this thread. I thought you'd like an answer to your question, with what I hope are specific examples and links. There's another (one of many, actually) active discussion, which mentions certain corequisite and prerequisite packages, by name, and why you might want to keep some. See:
[ADB] [NO-ROOT] Samsung Optimization Guide - A Better Experience
PS: At the end of my playing around I decided to keep Samsung's Contacts application, and hide it as best I can by using a feature in Nova Launcher Prime. Why? It was important for me to have my phone able to display medical info (allergies).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You bring up a very good point, and that is so helpful

kat3k said:
You bring up a very good point, and that is so helpful
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like many here, I remove bloatware the easy way, when I can. If not then I use Nova Launcher to simply hide the rest from the application drawer. Out of sight, out of mind, as they say. ;-)

Dumbing down phone as much as possible with Custom ROM

Hello.
I plan to turn my phone as "dumb" as possible, leaving only apps that are absolutely necessary and practical, essentially making my phone as minimalistic, simple and distraction free while at the same time maximizing the hurdle to install new apps due to the lack of willpower aswell as the general battery life.
I have the POCO F1 with LineageOS 19.1, root is currently enabled via Magisk.
I considered just buying a regular dumb phone, but unfortunately I do not feel they are worth it; plus I'd want to still use Spotify.
I'd greatly appreciate ideas/solutions for this particular project. Thank you in advance!

EnigmaticLife said:
Hello.
I plan to turn my phone as "dumb" as possible, leaving only apps that are absolutely necessary and practical, essentially making my phone as minimalistic, simple and distraction free while at the same time maximizing the hurdle to install new apps due to the lack of willpower aswell as the general battery life.
I have the POCO F1 with LineageOS 19.1, root is currently enabled via Magisk.
I considered just buying a regular dumb phone, but unfortunately I do not feel they are worth it; plus I'd want to still use Spotify.
I'd greatly appreciate ideas/solutions for this particular project. Thank you in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What you'd like to do isn't really "dumbing down" XD - it is simply making a "barebones Android" phone with only the apps/functions you need without usual bloat that comes preinstalled on the new devices. This is in fact something a lot of people on XDA are passionate about, as it helps optimize for space, speed, battery life and privacy.
For the Android phone to be considered usable in modern day and age, it needs a handful of apps:
Dialer
SMS messenger
Contacts
File manager
Gallery
Clock
Calendar
Calculator
Web browser
Camera
Installing vanilla LineageOS rom (or any other rom with no GoogleApps) will give you this default Android experience. For 99% of tasks that do not involve Google this is enough.
However, most people want something more than just a dialer, and so phone manufacturers pre-install some other stuff for them: Google (play store, chrome, maps, drive, mail), Payment (Samsung Pay), Gallery/Music apps, social media apps, fancy wallpapers etc. This is what makes the phone "smart" for you, I guess?
In case you want to cut it down further, you can use adb to remove certain apps from this list. This includes certain system apps too, like unnecessary fonts or accessibility services (web search is your friend here). Theoretically the phone can serve as a GSM calling brick only with the following:
Dialer
SMS messenger
Contacts
But then you'd be doing the hardware a misservice - why lug around Octa-core 8GB RAM 4000mAh HD TFT6.1" 999GB device if you could achieve the same with a Nokia 1100 or 3310? These are still being sold
UPDATE: Just saw your additions about Spotify. If you only want to use the phone for Calling/Web browsing/YouTube/Spotify, go with the "Install No GApps LineageOS -> Sideload apps you need and nothing else".
Word of WARNING though: a lot of popular messaging/steraming/quality of life (maps) apps APSOLUTELY DEPEND on google ecosystem (i.e. GApps like google play, google play services and google services framework).
WITHOUT GOOGLE THESE APPS WILL LIKELY CRASH or won't work as intended. I.e. Whatsapp will not give you "New message" notifications and will not ring UNLESS you have it open in your face right when the call comes in. Delivery/Ride sharing apps that need google maps will not show you the map. Facebook messenger will has the same problem as Whatsapp. List of risks is far too long, and you will need to have an idea of whether the app requires google and whatsnot.
Therefore Make absolutely sure that barebones phone is what you want. If it is, a lot of apps that reliably work with the barebones setups can be found on Fdroid.
Despite having "dumb" in the name, this procedure requires one to be amazingly smart about it
To conclude, you have the following ways of achieving this:
1. Install no-Gapps (i.e. "vanilla") lineageOs, delete what you wont need, sideload .apk of apps you are after
2. Install stock android rom, then Degoogle and Debloat it. Guides for your particular model can be found here on XDA
3. Install SlimROM, a custom Android distro whose developers had the same idea as you did, i.e. optimized for simplicity.

Totesnochill said:
What you'd like to do isn't really "dumbing down" XD - it is simply making a "barebones Android" phone with only the apps/functions you need without usual bloat that comes preinstalled on the new devices. This is in fact something a lot of people on XDA are passionate about, as it helps optimize for space, speed, battery life and privacy.
For the Android phone to be considered usable in modern day and age, it needs a handful of apps:
Dialer
SMS messenger
Contacts
File manager
Gallery
Clock
Calendar
Calculator
Web browser
Camera
Installing vanilla LineageOS rom (or any other rom with no GoogleApps) will give you this default Android experience. For 99% of tasks that do not involve Google this is enough.
However, most people want something more than just a dialer, and so phone manufacturers pre-install some other stuff for them: Google (play store, chrome, maps, drive, mail), Payment (Samsung Pay), Gallery/Music apps, social media apps, fancy wallpapers etc. This is what makes the phone "smart" for you, I guess?
In case you want to cut it down further, you can use adb to remove certain apps from this list. This includes certain system apps too, like unnecessary fonts or accessibility services (web search is your friend here). Theoretically the phone can serve as a GSM calling brick only with the following:
Dialer
SMS messenger
Contacts
But then you'd be doing the hardware a misservice - why lug around Octa-core 8GB RAM 4000mAh HD TFT6.1" 999GB device if you could achieve the same with a Nokia 1100 or 3310? These are still being sold
UPDATE: Just saw your additions about Spotify. If you only want to use the phone for Calling/Web browsing/YouTube/Spotify, go with the "Install No GApps LineageOS -> Sideload apps you need and nothing else".
Word of WARNING though: a lot of popular messaging/steraming/quality of life (maps) apps APSOLUTELY DEPEND on google ecosystem (i.e. GApps like google play, google play services and google services framework).
WITHOUT GOOGLE THESE APPS WILL LIKELY CRASH or won't work as intended. I.e. Whatsapp will not give you "New message" notifications and will not ring UNLESS you have it open in your face right when the call comes in. Delivery/Ride sharing apps that need google maps will not show you the map. Facebook messenger will has the same problem as Whatsapp. List of risks is far too long, and you will need to have an idea of whether the app requires google and whatsnot.
Therefore Make absolutely sure that barebones phone is what you want. If it is, a lot of apps that reliably work with the barebones setups can be found on Fdroid.
Despite having "dumb" in the name, this procedure requires one to be amazingly smart about it
To conclude, you have the following ways of achieving this:
1. Install no-Gapps (i.e. "vanilla") lineageOs, delete what you wont need, sideload .apk of apps you are after
2. Install stock android rom, then Degoogle and Debloat it. Guides for your particular model can be found here on XDA
3. Install SlimROM, a custom Android distro whose developers had the same idea as you did, i.e. optimized for simplicity.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is really interesting. I am thinking of trying to do this with a Google pixel 4a. Would I be able to do the lineage OS with that? I haven't found other threads that speak on this topic, am I right? Thinking that I would like to customize exactly what apps I have on the phone etc.

LineageOS for Google Pixel 4a exists:
LineageOS Downloads
download.lineageos.org

Can I prevent an update (or at least stave it off) or must I accept the upcoming update? (I don't want the baseband to increment for rooting)

My phone is forcing upon me an update that I wish to stave off, if possible, or stop altogether if possible.
The upcoming update will happen in a day if I don't figure out how to stop it.
How can we definitively tell if the baseband will be incremented with any given forced update?
And how can we tell if this is a security-only update, or if the baseband will be updated too?

Use Package Disabler or an adb edit to disable these two services. Stops it dead in its tracks.

blackhawk said:
Use Package Disabler or an adb edit to disable these two services. Stops it dead in its tracks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah. Too late! This time anyway.
But your information is good for next time.
I'll use this information in the future (and so can others, which is the point of my fleshing what you just had suggested as the answer) to disable the following two services on my T-Mobile Galaxy A32 5G (SM-326U) Android 12 setup...
<com.sec.android.soagent>
What is com.sec.android.soagent?
What is SOAgent in Samsung Galaxy?
What does com.sec.android.soagent do?
<com.ws.dm>
What is com.ws.dm?
What does com.ws.dm do in a Google Activity?
What does Com WS DS mean?
When I looked to disable those two services using my MuntashirAkon App Manager...
<https://github.com/MuntashirAkon/AppManager>
I found that perhaps that second service has a different name?
<com.sec.android.soagent>
<com.wssyncmldm>
What is com.wssyncmldm?
How to disable com.wssyncmldm
Step by step guide to disabling com.wssyncmldm
All you need to know about com.wssyncmldm
Why disable com.wssyncmldm
How to fix com ws sync mldm
Everything you need to know about com.wssyncmldm
As for "Package Disabler", I didn't even know you could disable system packages without being root (alas, my phone can't be rooted).
It's nice to know you can disable system apps without root.
So that others don't have to look for it, I think I found it here, at least with my first set of search terms.
Package Disabler
<https://www.packagedisabler.com>
The only NON-root solution that let’s you disable any unwanted packages that come pre-installed / installed with your phone / tablet.
You can disable apps with 1 click. Disabled application / package will not be uninstalled or updated using Google play or any other means.
This app also provides password / uninstall protection to avoid misuse.
When I searched on XDA-Developers forum threads for package disabler, I found a bunch of hits, but I don't know which are canonical updated threads.
Package Disabler Pro- De-Bloat & Remove Stock Apps For Better Ram-Battery Life
Package Disabler - Android 11?
which also suggests LADB(Kunal Adb) or PC adb
Package Disabler?
Package Disabler?
New package disabler,works!!!
Package Disabler
Package disabler pro
[GUIDE] [No Root] Disable System Apps & Bloatware: Package Disabler Pro - T-Mobile
Has anyone found an alternative apk to package disabler pro?
Need Help with my note 8 Bootloop caused by disabled Packages
What bloatware have you safely disabled/removed on the Galaxy Tab S3?
These non-forum articles showed up in a google search for more information about this useful "package disabler" tool which purports to disable system packages without needing to be root.
Debloat Galaxy Devices Without Root
Universal Android Debloater helps you get rid of unwanted apps and bloatware on your phone
How to disable any pre-installed system app bloatware on Android without root
Android Central Package Disabler
Regarding the adb commands, I use adb all day every day for a variety of things (see below) but I haven't used adb (or ladb) to disable a service which requires root as I didn't know you could do that.
How to duplicate what adb does to ad hoc open any given Activity on the Android phone?
[adb] [Wireless debugging] [Wi-Fi] Is there an updated XDA tutorial yet on setting up adb COMPLETELY wirelessly as of Android 11+ (no USB cable!)?
[adb] What is the adb syntax to connect wirelessly to Android by unique serial number (instead of by Wi-Fi LAN IP address & random port assignment)?
[adb] [Wireless debugging] [Wi-Fi] Is there an updated XDA tutorial yet on setting up adb COMPLETELY wirelessly as of Android 11+ (no USB cable!)?
(PSA) Using the new Android 12 TILE for 'Developer options' 'Wireless debugging' to establish adb connection over Wi-Fi without USB
[adb,scrcpy,vysor] What ports does Android 12 randomly set when Wi-Fi connecting via Wireless debugging adb "pair" or "connect" commands?
Android 12 Developer options adb "Wireless debugging" option keeps turning off
For any given trusted computer, can we make an adb usb debugging connection on day one & then SAVE adbkey.pub authentication keys for use years later?
As for how to use either local adb (ladb) to disable packages (without needing the PC and without needing to be rooted), my first task was to look up what the ladb commands might be...
Say hello to LADB, a local ADB shell without needing root or a computer!
How to debloat your phone (and more) without connecting to a PC
And then let's look up some of the adb commands to figure out what they are to disable the two services using a PC but without needing to be rooted.
XDA-Developers guide to ADB
ADB Tips & Tricks: ADB commands that every power user should know about!
Obviously I have some homework to do before I can successfully disable the two services listed above without needing to be rooted (as my phone can't be rooted) using just adb (which seems like the easiest way to approach this task)...
Since I'm always connected to my phone via adb anyway (as I mirror my screen and audio onto my PC) I may as well use the adb commands to disable the two update services, where might these be the related necessary adb commands to employ for that task?
C:\> adb shell pm list packages | findstr /i soagent
That should find "package:com.sec.android.soagent"​
C:\> adb shell pm list packages -d | findstr /i soagent
That should find the disabled packages & then grep for "com.sec.android.soagent" which shouldn't (yet) be in that list​
C:\> adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.sec.android.soagent
That should (I hope) disable the listed package (is that correct?)​
C:\> adb shell pm enable --user 0 com.sec.android.soagent
That should (if desired), re-enable the listed package (is that right?)​​Likewise, these are likely the related steps for com.wssyncmldm:
C:\> adb shell pm list packages | findstr /i wssyncmldm
C:\> adb shell pm list packages -d | findstr /i wssyncmldm
C:\> adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.wssyncmldm
C:\> adb shell pm enable --user 0 com.wssyncmldm
But first, may I confirm that my two services are of a different name than that which was initially suggested?
And may I confirm the adb commands to disable those two services?

You can probably roll it back from 12 to 11 if you want provided the boot loader wasn't upgraded too.
This stock Samsung N10+ hasn't been updated in over 3 years; still running on Pie. Current load is over 2.5 yo, still fast, very stable with minimal maintenance. Security simply isn't an issue with its current configuration... screw the Google scare hype. This is what Android is capable of... if you leave it be.

blackhawk said:
You can probably roll it back from 12 to 11 if you want provided the boot loader wasn't upgraded too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for that suggestion, where I really don't know that much about Android, which I openly admit. I can research if pointed in the right direction though.
I am told the bootloader for the T-Mobile A32-5G needs to be version 5 or below (maybe even 3 or below) in order to root the Samsung Galaxy A32-5G, and mine is currently version 8.
I don't know how to roll back a bootloader, but even so, I'm not sure I understand your suggestion of rolling back the Android version from 12 to 11.
How would changing the OS change the bootloader version?
blackhawk said:
This stock Samsung N10+ hasn't been updated in over 3 years; still running on Pie. Current load is over 2.5 yo, still fast, very stable with minimal maintenance. Security simply isn't an issue with its current configuration... screw the Google scare hype. This is what Android is capable of... if you leave it be.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I very much appreciate your kind and thoughtful advice that pointed me in the direction of the two packages that I needed to disable, which is what I needed to research in the right direction.
I also much appreciate that you mentioned adb will do the job of disabling those packages without me being rooted, as that too was a required datapoint that I didn't know until you told me.
Thank you very much for your kind advice, where I do agree with you this hype about having the latest security patches isn't something I'm all that worried about.
However....
There is this "nagging concern" that, as of Google's Project Mainline and Project Treble (both since renamed), the way that the 25 core modules update is no longer via carrier updates but over the air with Google Framework Services updates (not to be confused with Google Play Services updates).
AdServices multi-package multi-type Android 13
adbd com.android.adbd APEX Android 11
AppSearch com.android.appsearch APEX Android 13
ART com.android.art APEX Android 12
Bluetooth APEX Android 13
CellBroadcast com.android.cellbroadcast APEX Android 11
Conscrypt com.android.conscrypt APEX Android 10
Device Scheduling com.android.scheduling APEX Android 12
DNS Resolver com.android.resolv APEX Android 10
DocumentsUI com.android.documentsui APK Android 10
ExtServices com.android.ext.services APK (Android 10)
ExtServices com.android.ext.services APEX (Android 11)
IPsec/IKEv2 Library com.android.ipsec APEX Android 11
Media Media: com.android.media Android 10 (extractors)
Media Codecs: com.android.media.swcodec APEX Android 10 (extractors, MediaSession API) Android 11 (MediaParser API)
MediaProvider com.android.mediaprovider APEX Android 11
ModuleMetadata com.android.modulemetadata APK Android 10
Network Stack Network Stack Permission Configuration: com.android.networkstack.permissionconfig
Captive Portal Login: com.android.captiveportallogin
Network Components: com.android.networkstack APK Android 10
NNAPI Runtime com.android.neuralnetworks APK Android 11
OnDevicePersonalization Runtime Multiple Multiple Android 13
PermissionController com.android.permissioncontroller APK Android 10
SDK Extensions com.android.sdkext APEX Android 11
Statsd com.android.os.statsd APEX Android 11
Tethering com.android.tethering APK Android 11
Time Zone Data com.android.tzdata APEX Android 10
UWB com.android.uwb APEX Android 13
Wi-Fi com.android.wifi APEX Android 11
It's all very confusing HOW Android updates nowadays.
Some updates are over the air by the carrier
Other updates are done separately for the 25 core modules
Still others are done over a Google Play Store app Activity
(These last app updates are not really part of the Google Play Store app but the Activity for app updates appears in the settings for the Google Play Store app so a lot of people associate those app updates with the Google Play Store app).
In short, does this method of disabling two packages "really" work to stop all updates?
Or does it just work for the Project Mainline updates?
Or just the carrier supplied security updates?
I don't know.

You're welcome.
The bootloader version can be upgraded but not rolled back on a Snapdragon. If just the rom was upgraded from 11 to 12 it can be rolled back by flashing Android 11 if the bootloader wasn't upgraded too. I think this is the case for you but check it to be sure. Personally I don't muck with the firmware. A Samsung Experience center at a Best Buy can also flash it back to 11.
I really don't worry about updating any apps unless there's a improvement I need, so I don't.
It leads to a more stable platform since everything is already running well, more importantly it's fulfilling its mission. In the end that's all that counts. This is my solution; it may not be what others do but it works very well for me. I send almost zero time now troubleshooting... it just runs.

blackhawk said:
You're welcome.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Without you, I wouldn't have known the name of the two packages, nor that adb can disable them without me being rooted. Thanks.
What I don't know, yet anyway, is which of the following software versions those two packages above facilitated the updates for...
Android version [e.g., Android 12]
Baseband version [e.g., A326USQS8BVL3]
Security update [e.g., Dec. 1, 2022]
Google Play System [e.g., March 1, 2022]
Google Play Services [e.g., 22.42.12 (190400-481949630]
Google Play Store [e.g., 33.5.16-21 [0][PR] 4933219047]
Firmware (such as the Qualcomm modem firmware)
25 Core modules in Project Mainline
These are apparently updated either over Google Play Services on the net or OTA by partners.
Default/original apps (such as Chrome, YouTube, etc.)
User apps (of which there may be hundreds)
blackhawk said:
The bootloader version can be upgraded but not rolled back on a Snapdragon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didn't think it was going to be easy to unlock the bootloader, let alone roll it backward a notch or two.
BTW, it's not a Snapdragon I don't think.
DevCheck (see attached screenshot) shows it to be a "Mediatek Dimensity 720" powering this SM-A326U Galaxy A32 5G.
blackhawk said:
If just the rom was upgraded from 11 to 12 it can be rolled back by flashing Android 11 if the bootloader wasn't upgraded too. I think this is the case for you but check it to be sure. Personally I don't muck with the firmware. A Samsung Experience center at a Best Buy can also flash it back to 11.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've seen that link, and I found it fantastic, where I think I'm stuck in not being able to root unless something new comes up - which is my main purpose here in at least freezing the bootloader version at 8.
The main lack of information I have at the moment is I don't know WHAT PROCESS updates the bootloader.
blackhawk said:
I really don't worry about updating any apps unless there's a improvement I need, so I don't.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm with you 100% in that I don't update ANY apps unless I KNOW it has something I want (which almost never happens).
That's good that neither of us worries about app updates because most people don't realize what a MESS app updates truly are!
I've found out most people THINK that the Google Play Store does a check for new apps for ALL your installed apps - but I've tested it and it doesn't even come close (see attached screenshot proof).
The Google Play Store app update section isn't even part of the Google Play Store (it's an Activity within it but it's independent of the Google Play Store app itself) - but what's worse is the fact it updates barely any apps.
Maybe a dozen. Maybe even two dozen.
But the Google Play Store app update Activity MISSES hundreds upon hundreds of apps, which the screenshots below prove to be the case.
Luckily, as a result of that opinion which we both share that we don't update apps unless we need to, this whole app update mess isn't an issue for either one of us, but bear in mind that a LOT of people "think" the Google Play Store app "updates" all their apps.
It's not even close.
blackhawk said:
It leads to a more stable platform since everything is already running well, more importantly it's fulfilling its mission. In the end that's all that counts. This is my solution; it may not be what others do but it works very well for me. I send almost zero time now troubleshooting... it just runs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm like you in that I don't update the hundreds of apps unless any one of them needs to be updated, which almost never happens.
But what is driving me nuts is the CONFUSION about what process updates what part of the Android operating system.
For example, I'm currently at:
The Google Play System = March 1, 2022
Settings > About phone > Software information
The Google Play Services = Version 22.42.12 (190400-481949630)
Settings > Apps > Your apps > Google Play Services
The Google Play Store = 33.5.16-21 [0][PR] 4933219047
Settings > Apps > Your apps > Google Play Services
But what is the process that updates those three entities?
It behooves us to nail this down as I'm confused what is updated when & how.
While there are at least a half dozen important layers of Android which are updated on a variety of schedules, I think the fundamental updated layers may be:
The Android OS version, baseband & security patch levels
The Google Play {System,Services,Store} system update levels
The versions of the 25 core modules of Project Mainline
The versions of the firmware in Project Treble
The versions of all the apps supplied with the native OS
I'm embarrassed, for example, to state that I have no idea whatsoever what updates the BASEBAND, for example.
Worse, I have no idea what process updates the 25 core modules of the Project Mainline modules (which is the core of Android).
Project Mainline core modules in Android 10
Project Mainline core modules in Android 11
Project Mainline core modules in Android 12
Project Mainline core modules in Android 13
What process updates those two dozen critical core modules?

com.wssyncmldm is what does all OTA firmware updates for the phone including the bootloader as far as I know. To stop OTA upgrades only it needs to be disabled. It's the only one that can permanently screw you up.
I'm not familiar with the MediaTek chipsets. Galaxy store updates it's apps as well, I firewall block it unless I need to use it.
I keep installable backup copies of all my apps including system. That way on a reload or if they get an unwanted update, I'm ready.
Worksv on Android 9,10, not sure about higher. Newer versions are on Playstore.

blackhawk said:
com.wssyncmldm is what does all OTA firmware updates for the phone including the bootloader as far as I know. To stop OTA upgrades only it needs to be disabled. It's the only one that can permanently screw you up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for confirming com.wssyncmldm does the over-the-air firmware updates, and, particularly the caveat that it's the only updater package that can permanently screw the ability to root up.
Android is broken into so many components that I am going nuts trying to figure out what updates what - so that helps (a little).
blackhawk said:
I'm not familiar with the MediaTek chipsets. Galaxy store updates it's apps as well, I firewall block it unless I need to use it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for bringing up the Galaxy App update mechanism, which I had omitted in my description of what updates apps above.
The OTA update often updates default system apps
The Google Play Store Activity Updater updates "some" apps
The FOSS Google Play Store clients also update "many" apps
The Samsung Galaxy Store updater updates its own apps
There are app updaters I've tested which update ALL apps
(Of course, these assume an update is available.)
Just so that you know, I never create ANY login on my phone, so I can't log into the galaxy store even if I had wanted to do so.
Is there any app in the Samsung Galaxy Store worth the login requirements?
That means I don't have a Google Account set up on my phone either (even as I have a Google Account), so I've learned empirically that if you log into the GMail app even once, it CREATES a Google Account on your phone.
The phone works better WITHOUT the Google Account setup.
Likewise if you log into the Google Maps app, or Google Voice, etc., but luckily ALL the Google apps have equivalent apps which generally work better than the Google apps do anyway.
GMail === FairMail mail client
Chrome === Ungoogled Chromium web client
YouTube === NewPipe YouTube client
Google Play Store === Aurora Google Play Store client
Google Maps === works fine w/o a login
Google Calendar === Etar
Google Messages === Pulse SMS (before Klinker sold to Maple Media)
Google launcher === Nova Launcher (before they sold out)
etc.
Note a good reason for SAVING all the APKs you install is shown in the case of Nova and Pulse where both went over to the dark side.
blackhawk said:
I keep installable backup copies of all my apps including system. That way on a reload or if they get an unwanted update, I'm ready.
Worksv on Android 9,10, not sure about higher. Newer versions are on Playstore.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like you, I maintain all my APKs independently OUTSIDE of the current daily drive phone, where it's all completely automatic.
The FOSS Google Play Store clients have an option to NOT DELETE the APK when you install any app off the Google Play Store repository.
That fact bears repeating.
When you install an app off the Google Play store, presumably this sequence occurs:
1. The client finds the app & then you download the APK
2. The client initiates the installation of the APK
3. Then the client always DELETES the downloaded APK
But when you install that same app off that same repository using the FOSS Google Play Store clients, and if you check the box to NOT DELETE the APK after installation, then THIS sequence happens.
1. The client finds the app & then you download the APK
2. The client initiates the installation of the APK
3. Then the client always DOES NOT DELETE the downloaded APK
In addition, my Android file system and my Windows file systems are exactly the same (so to speak) since I use free WebDAV servers to mount my entire Android filesystem onto Windows as a drive letter over Wi-Fi (no cables necessary).
Can you mount BOTH Android internal & external storage onto Windows as a drive letter over Wi-Fi using a SINGLE WebDAV server?
That way, when I need to re-populate a new phone, I first bring over the homescreen and all the icon locations (which Nova does nicely), and then, one by one, I populate the apps by SLIDING them over using my mouse to slide from Windows to the mirrored Android.
See the screenshots below proving all that I say above.
BTW, I have one WARNING about extracting APKs, where I've tested ALL the free extractors extent, and where I've had some bad experiences where the extracted APK doesn't work on a different model phone (generally it's different in every way, hardware & software).
I've had MUCH BETTER experience just NOT DELETING the APK when it's downloaded off the Google Play Store repository, or the F-Droid repository, or the GitHub/Sourceforge/Guardian/etc., repositories.
This problem, I think, will only get worse as of the August 2022 decree by Google regarding APEX files (instead of APK files) on the Google Play Store repository.
In summary, Android UPDATES are complex, and I do NOT profess to understand what updates what - so any help anyone can provide is welcome as I am confused as to what updates what.
Since my credibility matters, screenshots below prove all I say above.

I use whatever comes in handy and don't go more nuts than I need to in order to get the job done.
The reason to be able to access the Samsung Galaxy store are the free icon packs and themes.
Edge add ons and certain other apps like Sound Assistant. The Good Lock family of apps are of particular interest for a Samsung user.
Nova isn't as fast or efficient as One UI. One UI is a very stable launcher and very customizable.
My stock N10+ homescreen running on One UI, modified with various Good Lock apps and One handed Operation plus. Digi Clock and Energy Ring are 3rd party apps.

blackhawk said:
Nova isn't as fast or efficient as One UI.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nova free went over to the dark side as of the Branch acquisition.
Nova Launcher and Sesame Search have been acquired by Branch, an analytics company
As a direct result of the Branch acquisition, my Nova free is the last known good version (namely the pre-branch 7.0.57 version):
<https://novalauncher.com/beta>
<https://novalauncher.com/apk/NovaLauncher_7.0.57.apk>
Name: NovaLauncher_7.0.57.apk
Size: 8687535 bytes (8483 KiB)
SHA256: 05AE72221D8D4F3D6A111A3220A0C87040806AF4E53053EF64F2DE426990893E
Mostly what I like(d) about Nova free is the ability to save the homescreen (and all the folders, shortcuts, and icons) EXACTLY and then re-load it on any number of phones, no matter what make/model of that phone.
Another feature I really liked about Nova free is its ability to put icons on any grid and in any location whatsoever.
Last summer I had opened a thread seeking a replacement app launcher...
Nova launcher used to be the best free Android launcher - until now - so what's better?
We discussed the merits at that time...
blackhawk said:
One UI is a very stable launcher and very customizable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm happy with my last-known-good-version of Nova free, but because they went over to the dark side, I have to find another app launcher.
If OneUI does those things, I might consider it.
Save homescreen/folders/icons & re-use later
Put icons on any grid (or no grid) whatsoever

GalaxyA325G said:
Mostly what I like(d) about Nova free is the ability to save the homescreen (and all the folders, shortcuts, and icons) EXACTLY and then re-load it on any number of phones, no matter what make/model of that phone.
The only other thing I really liked about Nova free is its ability to put icons on any grid and in any location whatsoever.
I'm happy with my last-known-good-version of Nova free, but because they went over to the dark side, I have to find another app launcher.
If OneUI does those two things, I might consider it.
Save homescreen/folders/icons & re-use later
Put icons on any grid (or no grid) whatsoever
Does it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
SmartSwitch can save icons and homescreen, however on a clean load I wouldn't use SmartSwitch other than to save homescreen settings so you'll need to rebuild the icons and apps although Goodlock apps and homepage settings remain in effect. So it's not like you just landed on mars and everything looks unworldly with no button navigation
Other than folders you're locked into the grid pattern.
One UI is faster, more efficient and very stable. In fact in 3 years I've never had it crash and force a reboot. Let me put this way, one of the most surefire ways to boot loop a Samsung is a 3rd party launcher. Been there, done that twice, back to back full reloads That convinced me to live with the white page indicators. That's my only real criticism of One UI.
Pick your poison wisely...

I didn't read the whole thread, but for instance it's already enough to freeze the "Software-Update" package to stop "Software-Update" notifications.
In my S8 with Android 9 it's located in /system/priv-app/FotaAgent/FotaAgent.apk. Just rename to "FotaAgent.apk.bak" and that's it!