yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] th3:
I have some qs:

- Can this edit framework-res.apk?

I have major exceptions with Apktool which means I cannot compile system .apks from Gingerbread ROMs. But on the same setup, this app can make the files perfectly fine. The changes are the exact same.

- Is the compression level still at 9? (I think this causes errors for some system apks when resources.arsc is compressed)

- If changing system .apks, would I need to copy back the original resources.arsc/META-INF folders from the original, or should they work fine if I just push them back in as APK Edit makes them?

Thanks.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] djcsurf:
Just to let you know, on my Win7 laptop it did provide me with the modified file.

However after I mounted & installed via ES (it appeared to install ok) when I try to run it I get Force Close everytime.

I only modified the app name, yet the original file was 2,400,256 bytes, the modified file was 2,277,376 bytes.

Could compression be problem?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] betalove:
Actually the APK file is another form of the ZIP file.You can change the filename *.apk to *.zip and unzip it with WinRAR or 7Zip
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] ipulsemedia:
awesome

awesome simple tool looking foward to be able to edit the class.dex file too....change some things there....
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Matrix44:
friday is here :)

Matrix44
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Indiant:
Ahoj, Friday is my day :) My translation is ready to inject. :D
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] qzem:
Could we change default settings of the aplication with this tool? For example,if i could set in Adw launcher ex 3D drawer as default drawer view,when it is installed?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Matrix44:
mine also, but may He be think another Friday :D
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
It's Friday!!!

APK Edit is growing, little by little.

Before you know, it's got teeth and starts talking ;)

Enjoy the new release :)
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Matrix44:
Many thx !

Nice day,

Matrix44

EDIT:

APK Edit v0.3 doesn't see *.apk files on WinXP Proffesional SP3 :(

EDIT2:

everything is OK :)
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] thatcher:
I have edited title and the strings,logo, etc.

Tryied to copy via usb,,said successfull. However, I can't find app? I checked vi android commander /data/app not there,,doesn't show up with other apps either
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] djcsurf:
On XP-Pro SP3 [32bit] still same problem for me, says file is done but the .apk isn't available, only the .backup file.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] thatcher:
Same here just a .backup file. How about an option to save locally so that you can edit again later on or transfer with a different program?

Is it possible to automate private key signage?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
Sorry guy's / girls?, due to time issues I wasn't able to test on XP SP3.

My gues is that it is a compression issue, inherent to apktool.

Still thinking of replacing the backbone (apktool) with apk manager.

That way we have some more control on compression factors.

@thatcher

How about an option to save locally so that you can edit again later on or transfer with a different program?

This would not fix the problem.

The thing is that APK Edit can't (for some reason) create the apk file.

If I would create the option you are talking about it would result in the same problem.

Thing I have to do is create a better error handling so that it would prompt you with a "nice" error message.

Is it possible to automate private key signage?

It already does this automatically in the background using signapk.jar
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
Just did a simple test on XP SP3 (32bit).

Worked as expected, so it's not a compatibility issue.

Strange...

@djcsurf

I Tested it with my own application Light Control.

Could you test with this apk?

Note on HelloWorld.apk: Running the apk on your phone will probably not work, this is because some dependencies like homeseer and additional hardware is required.

So this is purely to test the mechanism of saving changes to an apk, NOT TO TEST THE INSTALL MECHANISM!
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] dcwiker05:
Handcent

Im trying to edit Handcet SMS to give it a dark grey and blue icon like my them has, and also change the name to just SMS. When I do these things and try to install the APK it acts like it works, but when I click the icon the screen just flashes and the app never opens... The icon and name changed correctly but I can not open the app.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] thatcher:
I loaded HelloWorld.apk and changed the name and tried to copy via USB. Said it copied successful but no app on phone. I am running XP SP3.

Is there a way to disable compression to see if that is causing it on XP SP3?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
Think this is one of those apps that doesn't like to be recompiled due to system dependencies.

No solution available yet for these type of apps i'm afraid
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
I'm afraid that compression settings are not yet available.

Need to to a lot of reprogramming to enable that, will work on it, for now you're stuck with the default "apktool" compression factor.

If you edit the HelloWorld apk again, did it save you're changes to the APK file, or is the file gone again?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] thatcher:
The file is gone, with only a .backup.

I can try this on Win7 at home tonight. Thanks and great work.

FYI..I have tried right-clicking on the .exe and choosing a different compatibility mode... Win 2000 with same effects.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] djcsurf:
Unfortunatly the light control.apk gives me same result, no end .apk only the .backup

It says changes are saved but when I click ok it gives an error.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Matrix44:
The program is great, but would it be possible to add editing of the pop-up window text, so that one could translate them?

Thanks,

Matrix44
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Johnly.:
So this changes the file type?name? brilliant:D
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Matrix44:
I try edit language in Fancy Widget but after instaling it cannot load widget. I try edit two times but I had the some problem :(

EDIT:

I added language to app Navigon, everything looked well, instalation OK, but when I wonted to lunch app it didnt run :(

Did anybody make APK Edit v0.3 work ?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] th3:
Any answers to this? http://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=10541757&postcount=91
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Matrix44:
Hi,

is ti possible to add this future add and edit "arrays" ? Becouse the translation is in two files "strings" and "arrays" in "values" folder.

Many thx,

Matrix44

EDIT:

...to add editing all files (eg. arrays, colors, strings...) included in all "values" folders (eg. values-sk, values-fr...), because it is needed for complete translation.

Thx to your hard work !
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] rafalense:
Nice tool, good job

I knew Apk manager and apktool, this one looks much better

I will test it later
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] D4N14L:
Seems like a great idea! Little edits and all... though I'm not quite sure how many times I'm going to need to edit an APK file like this, I'll keep the tool around. Nice to have some options.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Beach_Head:
It seems you changed the way APK Edit view files. In v0.2, when you clicked on a folder it would launch the folder in a separate window. In v0.3 it does this internally but there's no back button. So we now have to right-click and explore the folder to be able to go back and forth between files/folders.

Will there be a fix for that or is that change permanent?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
Huh.... whahaha, didn't realize I changed it...

Will look into it ;-)

[EDIT] Have looked into it, on my desktop it works as expected (opens a new explorer window)

Some background info: The integrated file explorer is based upon a IE component.

Have you recently updated Internet Explorer or something?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Ibcus:
It opens an explorer window for me, however it fails to save the file.

It renames the file to .backup but doesn't actualy save the changes I made to a new apk file.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Beach_Head:
Hi! Sorry about that. It appears that the bug only appears on Vista machines. On Win7 machines, it works as it should. Don't know if you want to look into that...

BTW, I'm having the same problem some users are where I onky get a *.backup instead of the edited *.apk file.

Any updates as to why that is?

Thanks!
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] O_G:
Great app. But i get the same problem. Win 7 32bit.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] gigeoxy:
Then after that how would I access the .apk files to edit? I can see some of them when using my phone but when I plug in the phone to the computer they don't show up... I've read several threads where they say I need adb, but I want to make sure before I dive into that.

EDIT: I now have adb... but it's not helping me see the .apk files in apk edit. Any help please???
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] djcsurf:
Any more news?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
Not yet, had my mind on some other stuff...

Will be working on this one today ;)
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Droidzone:
Does anyone know what to edit in an apk to change it so that one can install both a modifed and an unmodified apk as duplicate in the phone. You know...two copies of the same apk slightly different?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
Learning on the way...

Seems that compression issues isn't always the issue, could have to do something with the recompiling of the xml files as well.

APK Manager uses APKTool to as it's backbone, with that knowledge it would be useless to change my approach.

You could try to fall back on a previous version of apktool, explanation on how to you can find in my main post under Known issues.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
Whaha, you wicked guy ;)

Wicked guys want wicked stuff...
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] djmcnz:
Edit the package name of the app in AndroidManifest.xml (package="new.package.name") and recompile.

In most cases this will be sufficient however, if the app has a recursive reference to itself (i.e. old.package.name) you'll also need to find those in the smali and edit them. Don't bother with this unless the compiling doesn't work or the app crashes.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
Think you have to rename the actual apk also.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] djmcnz:
Only if you're going to install them in the same place (data/system). But of course, yes if you are, it's just a normal file system and you can't have duplicate file names.

App.apk

app.apk

Should work however.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Droidzone:
Well that didnt work..

I'm trying to modify one of the jonasl HTC_ime mod ketboards so that I can install more than one of them. Usually when I have one installed, on installing the second one, system gives a message that "HTC_IME mod" already exists, do you want to replace?

I decompiled it, changed the package name in Androidmanifest.xml

Did a text search for "HTC_IME mod" in the whole decompiled folders and files including smalis..Didnt find anything else..

After compiling, on install it again tells me the same..
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] djmcnz:
What's the package name? ???.???.??? If that's different in the two files you can't get that duplicate message...

You may also need to search for the package name in the smali and replace instances (nothing else though).

And finally, you may need to change the directory structure in the file to emulate the new package name.

Although the final two aren't typically necessary.

If the app recompiled okay then your edits were safe, but given the duplicate package notice, I suspect you may have altered the wrong entry?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] leetut:
tried to change an icon from 'launcher pro'

now i just get Force Close

cant get into the settings to change the home launcher and reapply my back up

is there a way to fix this or can someone tell me how to hard reset the device

edit:

was able to put my back up back to data/apps by long press of home key (viva task manager!)

edit:

it doesn't work, gives me a .backup file that i rename to .apk but its still the original file with the original icons

can anyone give me a link to a program or app that can help me change the icons in my apk files?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
The fix to your problem is mentioned in my fist post:

Known issues:

Everything seems okay, but running the application on the phone crashes (Forced close).

This could be due to an issue in the version of apktool I used (version 1.3.2).

To fix download version 1.3.1 of apktool.

Unpack this to the following folder: "%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\APK Edit"

Then retry the whole thing.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] gruzman:
Will tray ....will see what will happen
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] muduck18:
simply awesome app. Thank you!
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] shh0:
Bug: "&" is changed to "&amp;"

Hello,

I think I've found a bug.

I edited some strings of the Gingerbread-keyboard (icon and app-name), and the

& sign changes to &

After another edit to &amp;, then &amp;amp; and so on.

Don't know, why this happens, but can you fix this issue?

App is here: http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=878073

direct link: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/1134234/AndroidTeam/rukeyboard2/ruKeyboard_2.0_r21_full.apk

I hope you can reproduce the issue and provide a fix. Thanks!
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
Tnx!

Seems like a problem inherent to using APK Tool (which I use in the background)

Problem is known to Brutt.all (issue 127).

As soon as he releases an update I will incorporate it in my app.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] shh0:
> Problem is known to Brutt.all (issue 127)

After some digging...

The Problem is known, or well recognized since Oct. 31st.

http://code.google.com/p/android-apktool/issues/detail?id=100#c22

And after 4 months no new releases, nor fixes. I haven't got much hope that this ever is going to be fixed. :(
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] DTdr2:
I use Android Manager to push to my Droid X (Newbie/Simpleton). Is there any way to get this as an option?

Used the app, works great, very easy to use, but a YouTube video would really be great. Can't wait to start spreading the word on this app. Keep up the good work.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] jimking:
Please write a guide for novice users!!!!!!!!!!

After have the apk what next.... Step by step.

Not only download this , that and nothing else...
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
YES SIR.....
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] arkazain:
Is there any specific size the icons need to be (e.g. 72x72 px)?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
Nope, you can add any size icon you want.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] DTdr2:
I use 38x for the notification bar and have seen both 72x along with 84x for the app drawer.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] toxicstone:
DL the zip file, then what? its a .exe file so i cant install it
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] polstein:
I tried this program today with no problems pull/modifying/pushing an app. Very exciting to see the new icon in all programs/recent programs/even programs like Clutch Pad where I wanted to see a custom icon.

However, I get the force close problem on the test program. Could be a dependency, I dunno.

Looking into the fix quoted. I downloaded & replaced the apk.jar file, but when I open up my sample program, it gets the name but will not allow me to replace an icon at all. ( Iget circles with slashes instead of the program icon).

Will dig to see if there are other version of the jar file.

---

I tried to experiment with things I learned making Custom Widget Locker animations using scripting to extrack, modify files (ie, replace the icon.png), re-zip and re-sign the apk. I did it manually, and it worked. So the problem could be a signing issue.

I presume your program is a simpler method of replacing the icon.png files (with an easy frontend) ?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Limerick_fr:
Hi All,

I've a dummy question about this app.

I paid for Doc2Go.

I've then 2 icons for the same app :

- the normal one (the largest one about 11Mb)

- the full app one, with a key on the icon (which looks like the previous one but is only about 80 Kb). So it seems to be just for the license key.

Both icons do the same : open Doc2Go

So I 'd like to remove one of these 2 icons... but of course I want to keep the full app.

One solution would be to hide one of these icon.

My question is : is it possible to do something like that with APK Edit ?

Thank you,

Lim.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] djmcnz:
Yes,

Edit androidmanifest.xml and remove the relevant "launcher" section... that should remove the icon. Only do it to one apk. This may not work if they have included some tricks but it should work.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Limerick_fr:
Thanks djmcnz.

Where can I find this .xml file and can I edit it within its current location ?

Is a special app needed to edit an .xml ?

The one I want to "hide" is the key file as is it is the lightest one. Do you think it is the good one to choose ?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] djmcnz:
That file is in the root of the apk, I don't use Apk Edit but I assume it allows you to modify this file. If not you'll need to use apktool to decompile the app.

The file is standard xml so it's human readable and pretty easy to understand.

And yes, I would remove the icon for the key file. This file is the least likely to change because I suspect the big file is the one that will receive app updates. Any updates from the Market will revert your changes.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Limerick_fr:
I'm not a coder so I don't know exactly which line(s) to remove. :o

Here is the code

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<manifest android:sharedUserId="com.dataviz.docstogoapp" android:versionCode="832" android:versionName="3.001" android:installLocation="internalOnly" package="com.dataviz.docstogoapp"
xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android">
<uses-sdk android:minSdkVersion="3" />
<supports-screens android:anyDensity="true" android:smallScreens="true" android:normalScreens="true" android:largeScreens="true" />
<uses-permission android:name="com.android.vending.CHECK_LICENSE" />
<application android:label="@string/app_name" android:icon="@drawable/dxtg_unlocked" android:debuggable="false">
<activity android:label="@string/app_name" android:icon="@drawable/dxtg_unlocked" android:name="com.dataviz.dxtg.common.android.JumpScreenActivity" android:taskAffinity="com.dataviz.dxtg.common.android.JumpScreenActivity" android:excludeFromRecents="true" android:launchMode="singleTask" android:configChanges="keyboard|keyboardHidden|orientation|uiMode">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity>
<provider android:label="@string/app_name" android:name="com.dataviz.dxtg.common.android.protection.DocsToGoProtectionContentProvider" android:process="com.dataviz.docstogo" android:authorities="com.dataviz.dxtg.common.protection.android" />
</application>
</manifest>

Which lines should I removed just in order to don't have the icon anymore in the drawer (but I want to keep the license key, of courses ;).

And BTW, I don't want to have a blank space at the place of the icon. I think this should happened if replacing existing icon by a full transparent one.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Anoniem100:
Worked on the new release today...

Could be a dependency issue, working on the new release today.

Think it will be ready next week, new feature I'm really proud of will be:

- Automatically download dependencies from your phone when needed :)

- Setting of APKtool version can be done in the settings tab
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] ahuru:
Hello, I can't install anything. Whenever I press ok I get an error "Unhandled error has occured...." I'm just replacing some images.

Same problem with dAii7 - Whenever I press OK a pop up error always appear.

EDIT: Found out that even if I didn't edit and just click push to phone it still gives me an error. It says the icon is being used?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] djmcnz:
Sorry for the delay, remove the entire section highlighted below.

Edit: You won't have a blank space, just no launcher icon. The app (and icon) will still be visible in 'Manage Apps'. You won't be able to create a shortcut to it and it won't show up in apps like FolderOrganizer - but I think this is the desired behaviour.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Limerick_fr:
Thanks.

I already tried to remove <activity> to </activity> and it removes the icon.

... but it also removes the key :(.

After I tried to remove from <intent-filter> to </intent-filter> and that time, the icon stays in the drawer.

Then the app proposes to upgrade through Market.

It seems then that it is not possible...:confused:
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] djmcnz:
Okay, what that means is that the other app is actually looking for that intent to determine if the key is installed. There are better ways to do this but I'm afraid you can't change how it happens.

However you could try removing the icon from the other app, it may work in reverse. Of course if that app changes from the Market you will lose your edit.

What launcher do you use? Most allow you to hide app icons now...
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Limerick_fr:
I'm on Android Revolution which keeps HTC Sense.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] djmcnz:
Try LauncherPro+ ;)

Will make the task very simple...
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Limerick_fr:
I was happy with Sense, but OK, I'll give it a try :)
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Matrix44:
What does it look like with new relase ?

Nice day,

Matrix44