yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Hi, Aurora Services won't be removed anytime soon. The warning message is that it will no longer be supported (which means no new features or maintenance). Regarding SessionInstaller asking to confirm installation, it will only be asked for the first time. If you installed an app from the Aurora Store and update it from the Aurora Store, you won't be prompted.
[Android Apps and Games] maxwell80:
Thank you for the quick answer!

I will give Sessioninstaller another try.
[Android Apps and Games] GalaxyA325G:
I'll check it out and let you know if something comes up, as I don't have the Google Play Store on my unrootable Android so I can't test out the observation below that I just saw on the Android Usenet newsgroup.

Just today, on the canonical Android Usenet newsgroup, for example, someone complained that the Google Play Store update mechanism doesn't update all the apps installed by the Google Play Store that have updates available in the Google Play Store repository.

It doesn't even come close.

They were surprised at that observation.

Does the Aurora Store update all the apps that it installed that have updates available on the Google Play Store repository?

If the answer is "yes", then that's a huge benefit of the Aurora Store client over the Google Play Store client that people may not be aware of.
[Android Apps and Games] kwallet:
it seems that the aurora store update check works properly, a few weeks ago even if ive tapped on "update" nothing happened, but today ive tried again and the app successfully updated itself to 4.4.2(56) on lineage20.

as i remember correctly ive installed the app as a standalone apk not thru fdroid.

on my other device (lineage17) the app was installed thru f-droid and the lates version available is 4.3.5.

is the new 4.4.2 is coming to fdroid aswell eventually or not? if not ill reinstall the newest version via apk.
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Hi, 4.4.2 is on F-Droid (just not marked as suggested yet). You can go to Aurora Store's page manually, scroll down, and install it manually for now. I will mark it as suggested next week and then it will be available as an Update for everyone like it normally does.

Also thanks for the feedback on self-update working properly on the non-Fdroid version. Have you permitted Aurora Store to run in the background? I have a report on GitLab where people mentioned it doesn't work for them.
[Android Apps and Games] kwallet:
omg i was mistaken, somehow i remembered that the latest version is always on the bottom so my brain didnt "see" the 442 :D

got it, thanks.

as for your question: i have two of the same device with los20, one of them asked if i allow background install of apps, the other phone didnt ask at all but both phone notified me everytime ive launched the app that there is an update, wanna install.. regardless of choice didnt happen anything so in the last couple of days/week ive always choose ignore. today i though lets try, i tap on update and it worked on both phones.
[Android Apps and Games] GalaxyA325G:
I love the Aurora Store (because I don't have to have a Google Account) so this is just a question - not a complaint - as it doesn't seem to be working the way I thought I understood from @theimplosion's comments above...

So it's just a question about Aurora Store "self update" coming from the point of view of the "regular user" [and not coming from the point of view from someone who reads this thread who therefore already knows what @theimposion said above about the latest available version being 4.4.2].

1. According to Muntashirakon, I installed Aurora Store from scratch on Sunday Feb 11, 2024 (but Muntashirakon doesn't say from which source - but it was from gitlab based on my post #2221 above on that same date).<https://gitlab.com/AuroraOSS/AuroraStore/-/releases>

2. Battery optimizations were disabled for the Aurora Store

Android 13: Settings

Apps > Aurora Store > Battery > Unrestricted

3. After the previous suggestion to me from @theimpulson to try out the auto-update, I set the Aurora Store v4.4.1.55 switches to

Android 13: AuroraStore: Settings > Updates

Self-updates = On

Extended updates = Off

Auto-update apps = Check & notify for available updates

Automatic updates frequency = 24 hours

4. Assuming I'm a "normal user", I wouldn't be reading this thread, so I wouldn't even know what @theimplosion said, which is "4.4.2 is on F-Droid (just not marked as suggested yet)". Right?

So how is a "normal" user supposed to know that 4.4.2 is available?

Isn't it supposed to show up somewhere inside the Aurora Store GUI?
[Android Apps and Games] kwallet:
btw normies are completly satisfied with googel's sht, usually doesnt even know this app exists nor care about their privacy.

about "4)": all versions do the job, no matter if its the latest or not.
[Android Apps and Games] SyCoREAPER:
Probably a really dumb question but I had a thought. I manually update F-droid apps, that said, I assume Aurora isn't looking at the package name and scraping F-droid but rather looking for 'Installed by Fdroid' from the system right?

In which case I need to have F-Droid instead and reinstall any app through it correct?
[Android Apps and Games] GalaxyA325G:
+1

It's even worse than that, as I've given up trying to help "normies" use the Aurora Store on the Android Usenet newsgroup as most of them get scared the instant they see the word "Store" in the name of the app.

They instantly think it's a completely different repository (sort of like how the Galaxy Store and the Amazon Store are different repositories).

No matter how many times I tell them that the Aurora Store scrapes the exact apps (literally, the same APK) that is on the Google Play Store repository - they still think it's a "copy" (like the APK archives are).

Sigh...

It probably would have helped had the Aurora Store been named something like "A Better Privacy-Aware Google Play Store Client" (or something to that effect with a catchier name...).
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Hi, not really. The new 4.2.2 additionally checks the signature certificate of the app to see if it was signed by F-Droid. This, however, wouldn't catch the reproducible build apps, so for them you will need to install them via F-Droid or F-Droid Basic client.
[Android Apps and Games] SyCoREAPER:
What do you mean by reproducible apps?

(also that's cool you guys implemented checking the signature rather than "installed by").
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
These resources from F-Droid clarify what this is:

- https://f-droid.org/en/2023/01/15/towards-a-reproducible-fdroid.html

- https://f-droid.org/en/docs/Reproducible_Builds/
[Android Apps and Games] SyCoREAPER:
Wasnt aware F-Droid did things that way. Thanks for that.

So with that said, would it be viable/possible for Aurora to look at where the app was installed from (F-Droid / Basic) to eliminate that possibility.
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
That is also implemented in 4.2.2. So it should be all good now.
[Android Apps and Games] SyCoREAPER:
I did encounter one issue. The app 'mpv' was reinstalled via F-Droid. It was the latest Build. Aurora found an update but the signatures were conflicting.

I uninstalled the F-Droid version and installed the GP version, no more update notice.

I know this is a very niche scenario, actual odd to me that the dev is updating GP before F-Droid (or they are naming them differently and confusing Aurora). Actually I think the latter is the case it had the same build # but F-Droid had (88) at the end and GP (8033).

So to the point, after all that I ended up figuring out what's going on while writing the question...

Would it be within your plans to add a 'Skip this Version' option to Aurora that would ignore updates for a specific app until the next update? Or Alternatively set a "preferred update source" per app. Or a list (like you have for Blacklist but for GP and Fdroid and restrict those apps to those sources?
[Android Apps and Games] GalaxyA325G:
I love the Aurora Store (because it enables me to not have a Google Account on my non-rootable phone) but I sure do get a LOT of cryptic errors.

Today, Monday March 4th at 1:57pm (Pacific) I got three DIFFERENT errors at the same time (and I got them yesterday also so I waited a dozen hours but they still came back).

Internal error! Please retry after sometime

length=3; index=-1

Oops, You are rate limited

All I want to know are two things with ANY Aurora Store error that EVERYONE would want to know (so there should be a table somewhere).

1. What is the error telling me?

(specifically the first two, as the third is self explanatory.)​

2. What can I do about it?
[Android Apps and Games] kwallet:
consider that there is an finite amount of accounts in the dispenser and everytime more aurora users are using the app in the same time we get less accounts/clients to use overall.

the exact type of error is not too relevant imho.
[Android Apps and Games] VPH20:
The store has been down since yesterday. Any fixes?
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
You might be affected by this issue. My suggestion would be to try signing out and using an anonymous account for now or try creating a new secondary account and use that with Aurora Store. I am not sure why the API is sending no response for selected accounts at the moment. The API does return status 200, no errors are thrown or rate limits are imposed. Maybe Google is testing something on server side.
[Android Apps and Games] pauliusval99:
Is there any plan to implement Android 12+ unattended updates, like in F-Droid Basic? I don't want to root my device when I can just disable most google apps.
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
It has been there for quite a long time now, probably a year or so.
[Android Apps and Games] pauliusval99:
Do you have to explicitly enable it somewhere? I have Android 14 but it still gives me the "update/cancel" pop-up every time I try to update something.
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Nope. But it has certain requirements like you should install the app from the Aurora Store and update it strictly from the Aurora Store only. The app also needs to target the latest SDK.
[Android Apps and Games] pauliusval99:
I don't have any other apps/stores that could try to update my apps, everything happens through Aurora. Most of my apps target API 33, which should be new enough. For open source apps that I install from F-Droid repo, the F-Droid Basic app works perfectly well. But for commercial apps I have to use Aurora and I can't find a way to make it update them in background.
[Android Apps and Games] GalaxyA325G:
Sometimes that's the answer (as in "Oops, you are rate limited") but sometimes it's NOT the answer (as in "length=3; index=-1").

Luckily, the problem was fixed in an instant by wiping out all vestiges of the prior version of the Aurora Store and installing the latest Aurora Store version

I wiped out the Aurora Store & re-installed it using the latest available version from

<h ttps://gitlab.com/AuroraOSS/AuroraStore/-/releases>

Before: 4.4.1(55)

After: 4.4.2(56)

After that single change, the first two of three errors reported in post #2268 have disappeared (for now).

Internal error! Please retry after sometime

length=3; index=-1

Oops, You are rate limited
[Android Apps and Games] kwallet:
i have 442 on both of my phones and one of them is constantly giving rate limited or leng3index-1 errors.

other phone's aurora works well.
[Android Apps and Games] ravts:
Please add the ability to whitelist apps in the Aurora Store. I need to update only selected apps, i.e. apps I explicitly specify to update, not 'all but selected' (blacklist).
[Android Apps and Games] galih_ken:
Hi. Do you have to completely uninstalled app before downloading from Aurora store to stop whatever tracking from playstore or you just update the app?
[Android Apps and Games] benno4403:
Anyone else get an SSL error and/or unable to resolve host erorr?
[Android Apps and Games] dimmerbrightener5643:
Same here
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Looking into it, thanks
[Android Apps and Games] katefrench:
Getting this error from yesterday. FYI - Im using NetGuard & it was working fine till yesterday.
[Android Apps and Games] samhhmobil:
Same here... (just only without NetGuard) 😟
[Android Apps and Games] NRG-ONE:
with anonymous account i have "Oops. You are rate limited"

@theimpulson
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Please follow this issue for further updates on server issues: https://gitlab.com/AuroraOSS/AuroraStore/-/issues/1076
[Android Apps and Games] xdabushrang3r:
Is this a server issue too? I'm getting this after updating to 4.4.2
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
It is and it should be fixed now: https://gitlab.com/AuroraOSS/AuroraStore/-/issues/1078
[Android Apps and Games] xdabushrang3r:
Thank you! It is fixed for me 😍😍😍
[Android Apps and Games] kwallet:
are updates will be available in fdroid later?

also when it happens do i understand correctly that i have to reinstall the app again?
[Android Apps and Games] the00guy:
Did the new Aurora store client remove the ability to download multiple app updates in parallel? I've noticed the selector is gone and apps only download and install one at a time, greatly slowing the process down from how fast Aurora used to update many apps.

Also it seems if there is a paid app with an update in the list the whole update operation fails until you skip that one app update.
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Yes. The option was implemented using a four-year-old third-party library which was dropped as a result this feature was dropped as well.
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
F-Droid is the recommended source so yes. All updates for Aurora Store will be available in F-Droid and no, you don't need to reinstall app again for updating.
[Android Apps and Games] the00guy:
Appreciate the answer sir, it will be missed!
[Android Apps and Games] 8gz:
Please, return the behavior of checking for updates even if the signing certificate doesn't match. I mod some apps for my own use (to remove certain permissions), and I depend on Aurora to tell me when a new version is out so that I can mod that. At least you can add an option in the filter settings similar to the F-Droid option.

Ideally, for me the F-droid ignore option would be on but if the certificate is not signed by F-Droid, the ignore option would be off.

Thanks
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Hi, there is already an option called Incompatible updates in settings > updates. Turn that on and it will be shown.
[Android Apps and Games] 8gz:
1. Thanks. That works but It will be great if we can split incompatible vs disabled into two options.

2. How about an option to "ignore this update", like F-Droid. It is helpful when you downgrade waiting for a bug fix.
[Android Apps and Games] RainGater:
Thank you for the awesome app and much appreciate it.

Btw, I downloaded the latest version 4.4.3 and it has the same file size as 4.4.2 and when I install 4.4.3, it stays the same as 4.4.2. Any ideas?

https://auroraoss.com/AuroraStore/Release/
[Android Apps and Games] kwallet:
if there is an update available in the "updates" tab and you put that one on a blacklist then if one taps on "update all" button in the top right corner, the blacklisted app will be updated aswell.
[Android Apps and Games] 8gz:
There are countless sites like it) usually has the unsplit APK of apps. I can confirm (at least for the apps that I have tried) that these are the original APKs because they update fine over the version downloaded by Aurora (again, no promotion intended. Use any 3rd party APK site at your own risk).

My question/suggestion is: It seems that Google provides the unsplit APK through some channel. Iis there a way to get the unsplit APK officially through Aurora? Split APKs are a hassle and I hate them in 95% of the situations (the exception being giant apps where a split APK makes sense for size)

{Mod edit: Link removed. Oswald Boelcke, Senior Moderator}
[Android Apps and Games] 8gz:
Searching by permissions would be awesome. Is it possible?
[Android Apps and Games] biopsin:
grrr v4.4.3 removed the custom download folder option.

Is it gone for ever?
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Nope, it will be back in future versions, probably 4.6 or something. It needs a bit of work to work properly as expected.
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Not sure but if there is a way and you can link me to it, I will be glad to add it in Aurora Store.
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Having too many options is not something I would want. It becomes hard to maintain app and slows down bug fixes and updates. I will look into ignoring specific updates though but no promises. There is an issue on GitLab about this as well, so I will post update about it here too when there is one.
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Sounds like a bug, thanks. I will look into it.
[Android Apps and Games] Bec de Xorbin:
Aurora wants to update 64-bit Chrome (631209933) to 32-bit version (631210031). This is not wanted and Play Store itself never updates to 32-bit version if 64-bit version is present.
[Android Apps and Games] mlkdom:
Scrolling Not Working

Aurora Store 4.4.3 - App Links (initial configuration)
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
How is it not working? Do you mean all the pages or app links vertical scroll? Screen recording will be helpful.

Sent from ASUS_AI2302 using ReLabs
[Android Apps and Games] kwallet:
if i am correct, there is a short mp4 video screenrecording as attachment. on the third step (which links aurora opens) u cant scroll down in landscape mode. (why he is using that, idk)
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
My bad (relabs needs work). Thanks for mentioning.
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
I will wrap the UI in a scroll view but which device is this?
[Android Apps and Games] 8gz:
1. Thanks.

2. Have you thought about search by permission? I think you missed my post above.

3. Bug/unwanted behavior: search for something, then open one of the app results. When you go back to search, it is performed again from the start instead of what should be a static list.

4. Bug. Search "keyword 1". If the results are unsatisfactory, you search "keyword 2". Open a result of second search. Go back. Now the results of search 1 rather than 2.
[Android Apps and Games] Revan335:
Hello,

I have many Times the Problem that the App Download hang by 0℅ and sometimes started by cancel all pending Download/Updates.

Very nerved this.😞

How can I fix this?

Its on WLAN and Mobil too.

Many Thanks and for your Work for the Freedom/Open Source!

Greetings!
[Android Apps and Games] mlkdom:
Tested on Samsung S24 and Samsung A3 2016 in vertical and horizontal orientation
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Aurora Store 4.4.4 is now up! If you are on 4.4.3 builds from GitLab/Website, go to the updates tab in the Aurora Store. If you are on the F-Droid build, please wait for a few more days, it will be out soon.

Changelog :

• Fixed issue with login related to Google Accounts

• Moved navigation drawer items into a separate dialog

• Switched to NavigationRail for large-screen devices

• Ability to export downloads to an external location
[Android Apps and Games] david003:
I updated to 4.4.4. Initially, it worked fine, but now since yesterday I get this message:

length=3; index=-1

I've rebooted a few times, but it's still the same.
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Not sure why this happens but users says clearing app data helps
[Android Apps and Games] david003:
Thanks. I cleared the app data and cache and it's working now.
[Android Apps and Games] Essex_Hal:
Device Fire stick 4K

Installed but can't navigate the app.

4.4.4 not working at all

Old version use to sort of work.
[Android Apps and Games] drnightshadow:
Hi! In 4.4.2 f-droid version is language bug. My default language is English, but all apps describes and comments are in weird language, picture attached (look at more about section).

Update: version 4.4.4 same

@theimpulson
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Hi, no such issues here. Are you using some kind of device/locale spoof? or Maybe VPN with a different region? or maybe the account being used has a different region set?
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Aurora Store isn't optimized/developed for large-screen devices. I hope to improve support for them this year sometime but cannot promise an exact date. There is an issue open on GitLab that you can follow for further updates on this topic.
[Android Apps and Games] drnightshadow:
No, no VPN , no spoofing locale and not even close to my region. All settings are English and system is LineageOS 21 all in English (USA).

Update: logout and login again in anonymous account and problem solved... Weird.... Thank you for help @theimpulson !
[Android Apps and Games] GalaxyA325G:
I love Aurora Store because it allows me to not have a Google Account set up on the device (which greatly simplifies privacy setup).

As an enhancement request, one (nice simple useful) feature that similar app-finding google-play-store search engines have that would be nice in Aurora Store would be an "X" at the right side of the search box (which I call an "xclear") to instantly wipe out the previous search term.

Above is the simple "xclear" in action in an app similar to the Aurora Store which wipes out all the previous search terms in a single tap.
[Android Apps and Games] SyCoREAPER:
Generally this isn't a big deal but having to set up the blacklist each time can be time consuming. Any chance of a backup option in app for all settings?

Also FYI, page 1 still shows 4.4.2
[Android Apps and Games] 8gz:
I mod apps for personal use. Until the last version, I was able to get the APK of each released app update from the Aurora directory in the internal storage. And I can't get around that by updating the app then saving the bundle because of mismatched signatures. If I save the bundle, it exports the current (rather than new) version (Also, the APK is zipped even if it is one unsplit file).

Thank you
[Android Apps and Games] starship8493:
Device: Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite / Lineage OS 20 (Android 13) with MindTheGapps / clean install (no root / magisk / etc) / Aurora Store 4.4.4.

Problem: can't sign in Aurora Store via kid's Google account (managed via Family Link).

Details: After entering username and password, 2FA kicks in. Tried several 2FA methods, same result: after confirming 2FA, sign-in fails with "Something went wrong, please try again".
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
It might be something to do with 2FA. Maybe try once without it?
[Android Apps and Games] starship8493:
Disabled 2FA, same problem. Further on, Family Link could be the issue, but google doesn't allow removing kid's accounts from the family group (and personally, I'd rather not do it).
[Android Apps and Games] Heat84:
I don't know if Aurora or MicroG can help me with this but I'll ask anyway.

I use LineageOS for my OS on a rooted phone and Swift Back Up (with a premium membership)for backing up my phone. Automatic scheduling isn't accessible anymore. When I try to access it, I get this message:

Failed to get premium plans list.

Message:

Unable to get purchase plans from Google Play Store.

Please check if Google Play is installed and does not have certification issues.

Thanks
[Android Apps and Games] theimpulson:
Hi, try installing the app using Shizuku or Root installer. Though I assume this is a microG-related issue. Try the latest release or contact the app developer for support.
[Android Apps and Games] Heat84:
I'm pretty sure if I contact the developer, they'll just tell me to make sure Google Play Store is installed. What root installer are you talking about?

Is MicroG supposed to make it possible to install apps from the Google Play Store without Google Play services or store being installed on your phone? I have it installed, but I can't install any apps from the Google Play Store. I also didn't install the GApps package that you can install when you install LineageOS.

By the way, all categories of the microG self test have check marks.