yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] canadave:
OK, here's what my /xbmc_env.properties file says after I try to restore my Kodi backup:

xbmc.data=/sdcard/kodi_data/org.xbmc.kodi/files

As I mentioned, adbLink is creating that "kodi-data" folder when it tries to restore the backup.

I suspect it's some kind of permissions issue with the /sdcard/Android/data folder that's causing this for myself and other "new 4K Max" users.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Starting with Android 11, Google implemented "scoped storage" which removes the ability of the adb program to access /sdcard/Android/data/. This has the unfortunate side-effect of preventing adblink from accessing Kodi data at /sdcard/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi, meaning no backup/restore, no edit of xml files, etc.

To work around Google's restriction, adblink will determine if the file location /sdcard/Android/data is accessible. If not, adbLink will instruct Kodi to look for its files at /kodi_data/org.xbmc.kodi/files via the /sdcard/xbmc_env.properties file.

This works as expected with Google Android 11. I'll be testing Amazon's new stick next week.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Gary711:
I have a 4k Max, but checked and it is a 1st gen android v9 Only 8gb of internal storage as opposed to 18gb with the 2nd gen Max. I checked because I am not having a problem with Kodi
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Carboniferocity:
Not working with the new 4K Max. Any attempt to access /sdcard/Android/org.xbmc.kodi/files directly results in permission denied failure.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
For Android 11, /sdcard/Android/data/org,xbmc.kodi is sandboxed and is only available to Kodi, not adb or even to a non-elevated shell.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Carboniferocity:
Yeah, I just wanted to give you the head's up that your Google Android 11 workaround isn't working on the new Firestick 4K Max even though FireOS 8 is based on Android 11. It really sucks since so much Kodi configuration is done by editing files.

One interesting thing... the same location on an SD card is still accessible so it's possible that moving all Kodi data there will make it possible to access Kodi data again. The only problem with that is that to tell Kodi to move all its data somewhere else requires that you edit a Kodi data file. GRRRR!!!
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Yep, it stinks. Hopefully I can fix it w/o too much difficulty.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
For Kodi 20 to be able to read /sdcard/xbmc_env.properties on Android 11 it's necessary to set a permission:

For Android TV:

Settings -> Apps -> Kodi -> Permissions -> Files and Media

Select Allow Management of all files.

This works on Android TV. No new 4KMax to test until Monday, but it will hopefully be a similar fix.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
As a sidenote, Android 13 (at least on Samsung devices) does away with this unfortunate restriction caused by Scoped Storage. For Android 11 I know of no way around it other than changing Kodi's data location.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Gary711:
Just to be sure, this applies to all versions of kodi?
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Carboniferocity:
Yeah, found out that changing Kodi's data location solves the problem and adbLink successfully finds the new location. Well done.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Yes, if they are running on Android 11 or the Amazon variant.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Gary711:
Thank you.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Amazon's Android 11 aka Fire OS 8.1, is missing the "Allow management of all files" permissions setting for Kodi that you see on Android TV devices. This setting must be toggled on in order for Kodi to read the /sdcard/xbmc_env.properties file discussed above.

A workaround is to open the adb shell window and at the "karat:/$" prompt paste the following command:

appops set --uid org.xbmc.kodi MANAGE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE allow

After this Kodi will properly detect its new data location. I'll have new code to automate this in an upcoming release.

( It may be that the setting is buried somewhere in Amazon's GUI and I haven't located it yet.)
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] AFTVnews.com:
I've looked quite a bit and haven't found it buried anywhere, so it seems like Amazon just ported its permissions UI from Fire OS 7 without adding the new option. Thankfully, as you said, the setting can be set through ADB. Rather than just automating it for Kodi, perhaps consider adding the ability to set the permission for any app.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
That's a great idea, thanks.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
10/05/2023

Version 5.7

Jocala Software

adb binary updated to 34.0.4-10411341

aapt binary added for Windows & Mac. For Linux

users, adbfiles has a symlink to

/usr/bin/aapt which will need to be installed

via apt-get.

When using a Android 11/Fire OS 8.1 device, Kodi's

MANAGE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE permission is set

to "allow" (to permit Kodi to access local

files outside of its sandbox). This occurs

when a backup is restored.

See http://www.jocala.com/android11.html for

more details.

A "Set app permissions" function is added to the

Utility menu to allow changing the MANAGE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE

status for any application that includes this permission in

its manifest. This is for Android 11/Fire OS 8.1 or greater

devices only.

A "Get package name" function is added to the Utility

menu. The package name is required to change the

MANAGE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE permission for an application. This

function requires the aapt utility mentioned above.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Gary711:
Jeff, I am using all Android 9 and below FS's. Will 5.7 affect the ability for abd to do back up & restore on these devices? Just checking before I up-date abd.

Thank You
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
No. The MANAGE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE stuff only affects Android 11 and greater. For Android 9 Kodi's data still lives at /sdcard/Android/data and doesn't require relocation.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Gary711:
Thank You
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Carboniferocity:
It's not a problem on my Android 12 phone either. It's just Android 10 and 11 which Google locked down too tight.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] ace2048:
First time poster, but a long time fan of this amazing software.

Is restoring KODI from backup working for the fireTV Max (gen 2)?

It times out when attempting to restore to folder kodi_data (using Mac).
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
My primary machine is a m1 mini. Restore works here with the new max and no other error reports as yet. Check your log for errors. If nothing obvious is listed you'll probably need to use the console to track down the issue. To do a restore using the console, the general form is:

adb push /path/to/backup /sdcard/kodi_data/org.xbmc.kodi/files/.kodi/

Watch carefully for errors that may pop up.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] ace2048:
Restore seems to complete via wifi (rather that USB). But KODI still fails to read the new location (sdcard/kodi_data). I have placed the xbmc_env.properties file in sdcard , with contents being:

xbmc.data=/sdcard/kodi_data/

I'm not sure what I'm missing? thank you in advance.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
The xbmc_env.properties should read:

xbmc.data=/sdcard/kodi_data/org.xbmc.kodi/files

I'm not sure what you mean by "complete via wifi (rather than USB)".
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] ace2048:
ADBlink connected with the USB cable to the fire stick would stall during restore. Connecting wirelessly to the stick let it complete the process.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Thanks for pointing this out. Simultaneous power and data over the USB port still works on the older sticks (just checked), but it doesn't work on the new 4KMax (timeout). It's not an adb issue, AFAIKT, it must be Android 11 or a hardware issue.

If I've misunderstood your issue, feel free to clarify.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] ace2048:
Summed up well. thank you for looking into this.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Gary711:
I am following closely. Holding off on getting a max 2nd gen. until this gets sorted.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Personally, I'm very happy with adb over IP for my sticks. I have no issues connecting to the new 4KMax.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] ace2048:
It's sorted. Just make sure you connect via IP. The extra device storage is worth it alone.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Gary711:
Thank you, I use a fork build of kodi on my 1st gen max. When I get a 2nd gen max I can BU it up and restore W/O doing anything to abd 5.7 then?
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
I don't see why not, but YMMV.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] amexpak1:
Hello and appreciate all your help I was wondering what would the steps I would take for the new 4k fire stick to be able to push my repository zip files so that I can see them when I'm in kodi and click install from zip and click external storage. On the older Fire stick it would just show up right there and I can click each one and install them. And on the new Fire stick they are there in the memory it just that kodi doesn't have access to see them. Any help would be greatly appreciated thanks again
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
adblink 5.7 has a function under the utility menu, "Set app permissions". Connect to your new stick, then run that function. Hopefully that will help.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] amexpak1:
Thank you!! Will try appreciate it
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Gary711:
Thank you jeff. I am going to order a few max 2nd gens soon and see how it goes then.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] ruppert10:
Hey guys amazon sent out an update to fix some issues.with the new stick it will not fix everything but hey it's a start 😀

Link :

https://www.aftvnews.com/amazon-add...-os-8-on-the-2nd-gen-fire-tv-stick-4k-4k-max/
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] cb_021050:
Hello, hope to get some help with an annoying error.

./adblink: error while loading shared libraries: libicui18n.so.70: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory

This is the output from terminal in ubuntu linux. Seems to be a noob error, so have mercy with me.

Thanks in advance.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
v5.8 is released. The only change is to scoped storage detection to fix an Android 12 issue.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Missed this message, sorry. It's a unicode library error. Not your fault, but I don't have a fix as yet. Currently, the only supported linux is the Linux Mint ubuntu fork.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] cb_021050:
Thank you for the reply.

No problem, using v4.3 that works on ubuntu 20.4.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
It's a priority to resolve this in the new year.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Kohlhaas:
Hi, I've been trying to replace my Mac Mini with Linux (MX-Linux 23, Debian-Bookworm-based) for a few months now.

"adblink" works well on my Mac. Thank you!

But unfortunately not on my Linux installation:

When starting the programme (version 5.8), the error also occurs - as already reported here:

"adblink: error while loading shared libraries: libicui18n.so.70: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory"

I have checked which packages I have installed:

libicu72 (with /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libicui18n.so.72)

What can I do?
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Unfortunately, the only distro currently working is Mint. No fix is available at this time.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
FYI, I tried installing on Debian 12x Bookworm, no joy. No libicu*70 available and symlinking didn't work. My next thought would be a rebuild of my development env for linux, but I won't have time to look into that until after the holidays. Sorry.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
adblink 5.8 is now tested with Alma, Arch, Debian, Mint & Ubuntu Linux distros. No issues that I've seen.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
12/02/2023 Version 5.9

Log viewer fails with scoped storage. Fixed.

Jocala Software
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] TX16095:
After upgrading from v5.8 to v5.9, I am now receiving the following error message from each of my three DIRECTV Osprey boxes with any attempt to backup the Kodi installation:

"Connected to 192.168.1.xx:5555

Android version: 11

process time duration: 0 seconds

adblink

package: "C:/adbLink/adbfiles/adb" -s 192.168.1.xx -s 192.168.1.xx:5555 shell pm list packages

org.xbmc.kodi is installed

Backup: kodi's files not found at /sdcard/kodi_data/org.xbmc.kodi"

No issues encountered prior, screenshot attached, and reversion to v5.8 did not fix the issue...
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
The 5.9 update only changed code for the log viewer. Otherwise, it's identical to 5.8.

Did these boxes autoupdate to Android 11 from an earlier release?

Android 11 sandboxes Kodi's normal data location /sdcard/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi. No version of adblink is allowed to read or write there under Android 11: http://www.jocala.com/android11.html

Since you can connect, open an adb shell and paste this command:

ls /sdcard/Android/data/

This will demo the permission errors

You should be able to do a restore. adblink restoring to an Android 11 box will change Kodi's data location to /sdcard/kodi_data/ where adblink is able to do r/w ops.

Of course there could be something else going on. Email a backup log to jocala@jocala.com. Happy to look at it.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] TX16095:
Yeah, apparently there was an update to Android 11 at some point. Restoring from an old backup and then creating a new one worked like a charm. Thanks.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] TX16095:
Just an idea, but given the general storage-starved nature of many, if not most, Android boxes upon which KODI resides, an option to delete the original .kodi folder after the new location is created/populated and the xbmc_env.properties file is created would be nice. In my case, manually deleting the old folder resulted in an almost 1.5 GB recovery of what is very limited storage capacity.

In any event, thanks again for your ongoing efforts to make this already-great app ever-better.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Sandboxing won't allow it, the deletion must be done via settings :(

karat:/sdcard $ rm -r /sdcard/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi
rm ro dir /sdcard/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi (y/N):y
rm: /sdcard/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi: Permission denied
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
With FireOS8 the sleep settings are changed. Unfortunately, the current timer dialog does not work for the 4KMax stick. To turn sleep on/off use a workaround from below:

Connect to the device then press the ADB Shell button. At the prompt paste in a command from below:

Sleep off:

karat:/ $ settings put global stay_on_while_plugged_in 1

Sleep on:

karat:/ $ settings put global stay_on_while_plugged_in 0

This will be added to the timers screen in the next release.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] sus67:
@jocala

is it possible to change the kodi path in adbLink ?

Would be nice to use the drop-down menu and Backup/Restore buttons for another (named) kodi version.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Try the adjustments on the device record:

Package name

File path
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] sus67:
@jocala

how to pre-set other package name as standard for Start/Stopp Application for Kodi or Other?
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Not possible, currently.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] schn1tt3r:
I'm feeling real dumb right now. I don't know how to send over my Kodi User and Addon folder. Is sending these two folders not an option anymore with Fire OS 8? I've set Kodi's permition on the firestick to allow all access, but I cant ADBlink to the android/data folder to send them.

or is the only way to copy over your kodi build is using the backup and restore feature?

EDIT: Not sure if I am undestanding right, but there is an option inside the Kodi app that lets you change the data folder and you can select one that is like /sdcard/download/kodifiles and send the files there?

EDIT2: For clarification, I am pulling my User/Addons folder from my old firestick and want to send them to my new 2nd gan 4k max
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
adbLink

The issue is Android 11 sandboxing. The link above will hopefully explain.

TL;DR, do a restore of an existing backup to your new 4Kmax. It should be ok at that point.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] schn1tt3r:
Thank you, I was coming back to edit the post. Your awesome instructions here http://www.jocala.com/adblink.html helped me out.

I just backed up and restured and adblink created the folders as you described.

If a friend buys a new firestick and I want to install a custom Kodi build for him, can I edit a build on Kodi PC and select "restore" on adblink and select the AppData\Roaming\Kodi (or a new folder where I just drag addons and userdata folders) as backup location or does the backup have to be generated with adblink?
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
You should be able to use ~/AppData/Roaming/Kodi as a restore source w/o issues!
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] MHAK20:
Hello all, please forgive me but I’ve never used adblink before yesterday. I was using filezilla and es file explorer to move my build around my devices. I recently acquired a new firestick, that has the android data file locked and my ild way of transferring my build isn’t working anymore. I tried using adblink to move my build from a windows laptop to the new firestick but couldn’t figure out how. Couldn’t really find any tutorials for a noob like myself. I would appreciate any help I can get. I’m running adblink version 6.0 thanks again 🙏

Edit one: I feel dumb for posting this but do I have to connect my laptop to adblink? Or is it considered connected since I have it installed? If I do have to connect it how do I do that? I managed to connect my new fire stick to it. But when I tried to connect my laptop it wasn’t working.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] TX16095:
@jocala , the first thing I do when opening File Manager in adbLink is resize the window to a much larger size. Would it be possible to add an option/setting that would allow for the saving/remembering of the last window size for such windows? Thanks.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
There are videos:

adbLink2 Video Help

And help pages:

adbLink

More help links at jocala.com and help within the adblink program itself. Have a look, feel free to post questions about anything you need clairification on.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
TBH, I don't know. I'll look into it.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] Gary711:
Hi, My knowledge using Abdlink is limited, but yes you do need to connect each firestick to to abdlink via your FS network ip address. from your laptop.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
04/12/24

Version 6.1

File manager dialog geometry saved between sessions.

Start program dialog: The Start program choice is now saved between sessions

Stop program dialog: The Stop program choice is now saved between sessions

Send text to device: Send text string to active input field on connected device

Quest headset (beta): Change various settings on the Quest headset. Tested with Quest 2/3. Changes are not persistent, and are cleared by rebooting the device.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] TX16095:
Confirmed that this is working as-anticipated. Thanks for the quick inclusion.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] cali.s:
i want to know if its possible to install split apks?
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Not via the GUI.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] JeffATL:
I am trying to move Kodi install between CCwGTV and new Onn 4K Pro

I opened ADBLink and connected and tried the backup button and got the same error. Then from ADBLink I started the shell and changing directories until I got there with no blocks. Based on that I went to console and was able to do a pull but then got the error addons folder not found and realized I had to pull entire .kodi folder rather than just userdata folder - trial and error

I am just reading about A11 and the sandbox thing. Now we have Android 12 , are things different or same?
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Trial and error, I guess. The work-around using /sdcard/xbmc_env.properties still works if it's needed due to sandboxing. However, my Samsung tablet's running Android 14 and /sdcard/Android/data is r/w.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] sus67:
How can I enlarge adblink in Windows? The normal options (marked in green) are inactive.

Spoiler content hidden.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
You can't. The main window is fixed size. The filemanager window is resizable though.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] schn1tt3r:
I have 5 firesticks and the one I bought last can't connect with adblink. I read on reddit that the latest update for firestick blocked ADB? Is this info right or what am I doing wrong? I can connect to all other firesticks just not the last one I've bought.

EDIT: Just restarted firestick and now works.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] githottub:
Is there a way to use adbLink as a portable app (e.g. from a flash drive) without having to install it on the local Windows PC? Thanks!
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Sorry, no.
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] githottub:
So if I'm starting out on a new TV with Android 12, I would need to manually copy all the files within /sdcard/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi into a newly created folder at /sdcard/kodi_data/

And then adbLink will do a backup? Also, will adbLink then also automatically create the required xbmc_env.properties file in /sdcard/? If not, are there instructions for creating it or a copy of it for download so I can manually make sure it is there?

Thank you!!!
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
xbmc.data=/sdcard/kodi_data/org.xbmc.kodi/files

is the content for xbmc_env.properties.

If you have a backup handy, you can restore it to the new device and adblink will set up the xbmc_env file and the /sdcard/kodi_data folder.

The contents of the kodi_data folder are:

-> org.xbmc.kodi

--> .kodi

----> addons

----> userdata

(at a minumum)
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] githottub:
Sorry, I should have explained better. I'm starting on a brand new Android TV with a brand new Kodi install. I've got it setup how I want now but there is no previous backup to restore. So, this would be the first backup. But when I try to run it, adbLink just gives me the error that it's not finding anything in /sdcard/kodi_data/ which is why I posted my question above. Since it appears adbLink can't automatically move the files there, I asked if I need to first move them there manually? Once I do that, I presume the backup will then run but will it automatically create the required xbmc_env.properties file in /sdcard/? If not, what exactly do I need to do? Thanks!
[Fire TV Themes and Apps] jocala:
Unfortunately, if your device is using scoped storage, Kodi's default data directory /sdcard/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi is sandboxed ... your current setup can't be copied or moved elsewhere by adblink or other non-Android applications. That includes using the command-line; you'll get permission denied errors.

You may be able to move sdcard/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi to /sdcard/kodi_data/ using a file manager from the Play store that has the MANAGE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE permission set. You'll then need to create the xbmc_env.properties text file with the line:

xbmc.data=/sdcard/kodi_data/org.xbmc.kodi/files

What I do is maintain Kodi's installation on my computer. I can then restore it's data to any device. adblink's restore creates the xbmc_env file and sets the needed storage permissions.