[Samsung Galaxy A32 5G] GalaxyA325G:
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). :)

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.

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.