We are the software development department of a company that makes industrial equipment and we have some Samsung Galaxy-Tab 4 tablets that we use as "remote controls" for the manufacturing equipment, using an app we wrote ourselves for the purpose and installed directly from Android Studio. This app is not distributed to other devices. We bought these tablets online, right out of the box from Samsung, i.e., there is no phone company or common carrier involved. These tablets are not registered with Google, i.e., there is no gmail account associated with them; in fact we can't even access Google Play with them. I unboxed these tablets myself and never registered them with with Google or Samsung.
So I was surprised when I came in this morning and saw a notice on the screen of one that a scheduled software update has been downloaded and was ready to go. It says it's 876.87 MB and it wants to do an OS upgrade to Lollipop.
I have no idea where the upgrade is coming from or how it's initiated. My concern is that if this happens at a customer site or trade show an unexpected upgrade could break our software or cause other mischief. Is there a way I can programmatically disable software upgrades?
As an app developer, no you cannot control firmware upgrades. They come from either the carrier, or if it's a wi-fi tablet, the manufacturer.
Your only option is to control the firmware. That means building your own firmware dist of Android for your chosen hardware. You can then disable (or otherwise control) the firmware update schedule / process my making changes in the firmware.
Owning the firmware is a very big deal compared to deploying an app.
I was surprised when I came in this morning and saw a notice on the screen of one that a scheduled software update
as a software developer I cannot understand your surprise. It's a very well known (and often criticise feature due to slow/delayed roll out) feature of the OS
I have no idea where the upgrade is coming from or how it's initiated
Those come from the device manufacturer (you said Samsung, right?) and do not need a login or account of any type. It's coded somewhere deep inside the OS to check the manufacturer server for updates. Same that happens with Windows, Mac OS, Linux or iOS.
There is absolutely nothing an app can do to disable the OS update from an API point of view. This would be a major security flaw. One can easily imagine a malicious app exploiting a known OS vulnerability and blocking the OS from update itself that would patch the vulnerability.
possible solutions for your case
Apart from creating your own custom OS to control the process the only possible way that I can think of, is to host your own VPN server that blocks the update server (or blocks the whole internet expect the resources you want to access from your app) and configure the device to this VPN under Settings -> WiFi.
ps.: I saw the mentioned link and I would advise against disabling system services (or at least test A LOT after you diable it) because that could cause other issues.
Related
My goal is to write an application for Android (>= 9.0) which basically offers a device-owner-style control like Google's "Android Device Policy".
The following criteria have to be met:
Zero dependency on Google servers or any other 3rd party infrastructure like existing EMM solutions (MobileIron et cetera)
The user should not be able to remove or disable the app
Provisioning methods: QR-Code, NFC, URL, ADB, actually any "local" way ...
Has to work with stock androids on regular consumer devices
In short: I'd like to write an unremovable device manager (including a web-based management UI), put it on a device I own, give that device to someone else, and being able to fully control the device remotely.
Is such a project even possible with the current situation of Android?
No.
Has to work with stock androids on regular consumer devices
Mostly, this is your biggest hurdle to overcome.
What you are asking for is the description of a very powerful MalWare. An app that ca run on any version of Android, that can't be uninstalled, but can do what it wants to "fully control the device".
If you move away from the idea of "stock android on regular consumer device", towards a suite of devices you have some say in distributing:
Here is a list of Google Partners who offer an EMM solution: https://androidenterprisepartners.withgoogle.com/emm/
Here is Samsungs effort at device control:
https://www.samsungknox.com/en
Here is Googles device management:
https://developers.google.com/android/management
You could write your own ROM of Android and be able to control the things you want, but that would require .. building a ROM aka a whole phone OS forked from AOSP.
The user should not be able to remove or disable the app
This is only possible if you have a system app.
Or something extreme (which with any extreme, is always possible to have problems), like having two apps, and they monitor each other for uninstall, and programatically reinstall (vs 1 app that can't do much when it is being uninstalled).
I wish to test my Android application against different versions of the Android OS on physical hardware. The need comes from testing interactions of my program with 3rd party hardware (barcode scanners).
In order to "switch" between Android OSs, I assume in order to "reimage" my phone, that I will have to root the phone then set the particular OS version with various images.
There seems to be much discussion on how to root the phones, however I'm curious if there is a easy/standard way to do this for developers (e.g. standard hardware which allows for this process to happen quickly/easily)? If not, how can I proceed?
Unfortunately, other than rooting your phone and flashing it w/ various OSs, you don't have a lot of options. My company keeps a tone of devices on hand running various different versions of android to address this exact challenge.
Otherwise, there are services out there that may be of help to you. Take a look at these:
http://www.deviceanywhere.com/
http://www.perfectomobile.com/
I'm sure there are others as well.
If it is just a testing of release candidate (not your BAU testing development), you may publish your app on Google Play as closed beta and then ask your friends (or some other community you trust) to play with the app.
My company makes a tablet Android app to control an industrial process. We had been using a Galaxy Tab 10.1, but as that's no longer available in the US we're evaluating the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1, running 4.03. We ship the tablet pre-installed with our app, and the app is carefully tested with the version of Android software running on the tablet.
As I was setting up one of the new tablets the setup wizard put up a message saying "You agree that your tablet may receive and install updates from Google" It wasn't asking me, it was telling me; there was no place to say "no" or disagree. Auto update is DISabled in settings.
How can I programmatically prevent a force-feed update to the tablet? Our users are connected to a local area net because the tablets are used to control other industrial products, but there is never any need to connect to the web beyond the factory walls, but we have no way to enforce that on our customers. The risk is that Google could force a change onto the tablet that might break our app.
Thanks in advance.
How can I programmatically prevent a force-feed update to the tablet?
Build your own firmware and use that rather than the stock firmware.
The risk is that Google could force a change onto the tablet that might break our app.
The risk of blocking the firmware updates is that Samsung (not Google) could deliver an update to the tablet that fixes flaws in the firmware that your customers would appreciate (e.g., better WiFi connectivity).
Please understand that the devices that you are using are consumer devices. Such devices are not intended for use "to control an industrial process". The expectation is that if you are using Android in such settings, that you would source your own device and have control over your firmware. Alas, there is not a whole lot of support for that at the moment, something I blogged about recently.
As long as you target your desired API, an update to the system should not break any functionality of your app. To answer your question, you cannot programatically disable automatic updates, it is a user function.
Check this link as well: Programatically enable/disable market auto-update
We want to place a device in a store that operates as sort of a kiosk device. As in customers walk up to it and start interacting with our custom app. The app could be developed for Android or the iPad, so I'm trying to decide which one to use and would like comments on the following ideas:
Is it possible for Android or iOS to access services over the USB port? This would enable us to disable the network.
Is one particularly better for 24 hour always on?
I like the iPad as I think its supply will be more constant as we move forward and need to replace devices due to ones gone bad. Also, our app will probably work on future generations of the iPad. With Android, I'm not sure there will be that sort of consistency from the tablet vendors.
Kiosk mode? I think with the iPad by putting it in a kiosk case that removes access to the home button and turning on the restrictions we'll get what we want. What about Android? I'd rather not have to get into rooting devices and replacing their firmware.
Remote control? Any way to remotely control iOS or Android in a standard means? Our app will be a client to a master server which will obviously be able to control the app somewhat (when used purely as a display device to a customer, controlled from behind the counter).
My feeling is that neither Android tablets or the iPad is best suited for this. Are there other options?
I will try to answer your points, but know that I am probably biased towards Android, because that is where my experience lies.
With Android 3.1+, at least with the Xoom, you have full USB host capabilities. Things like USB flash/hard drives, keyboards, mice, even digital cameras, all work. If you need custom interop with a USB device, you could go as far as to write a driver for it.
24 hour always on is not good for any device with a battery, but neither is better in this situation.
While android apps are forward-compatible, bad programming practices and/or deviations from "vanilla" Android software and hardware CAN break forward compatibility. That being said, if you grab a Google Experience device like the Xoom, you won't meet as many surprises.
In Android 3.0, the navigation bar is built-in at a low level, and it is not possible for apps to remove it. Therefore, it is trivial for anyone to break a "software nanny."
I know that it is possible to control android devices remotely, but without knowing your specific needs, I can't really offer more information than that.
Good luck!
iPad NOOO believe me I am a convert to Apple for my home and business but when we went to launch kiosk the iPad FAILED Big Time.. Here are a couple of little (Big) issues we ran into.
If the device reboots you cannot auto launch you iPad app since Apple does not allow that.
There is a serious memory leak in the iPads browser. We were running javascript / CSS3 and it cratered intermittently. I literally spent 2 hours "today" on the phone with Apple getting the MAJOR run around. I finally said let me speak to an Enterprise Sales Manager as my project could mean thousands of iPads and I got NO WHERE. One Apple employee even told me they don't have enterprise sales managers.
If those weren't enough even though we are just in the proof of concept phase, we are already getting request for other options. These other options are going to require access to the OS which Apple yea right. We are moving to Android immediately.
Sorry Apple I love you but you loose here.
If your using an Ipad you should consider if it can support the power for the USB thing. Watch this Using Powered USB Port
Your idea about putting the tablet behind another piece of glass/plastic is neat. To then deal with remote controlling, you might consider doing some Bluetooth programming.
My mobile development has been primarily with iOS, so I am biased toward that SDK. I will mention that the data/sync/charge port for iOS has (I believe) never changed. Your Gen 1 iPhone sync cord works on your iPhone 4... and your iPad or iPad 2. So, in terms of third party hardware, you may see more consistency with Apple.
I haven't found a good answer regarding whether it is easier to do Bluetooth programming for iOS or Android, but I think to stay cost-effective, you might see which one is more open to third-party devices. Here is an SO post/answer about iOS and third-party Bluetooth devices; I've not found anything on Android regarding third-party Bluetooth remotes, but considering a lot of hardware running Android is third-party, your chances from a naive perspective seem pretty good. Here's the Android Bluetooth API.
Buying an iOS or Android handheld to remote control an iOS or Android tablet does seem a bit steep, but then again, maybe not. Cost also depends on your ratio of remotes to tablets. 1:1? 1:N? N:1? N:M?
The lowest end iPod goes for $229 as of May 20, 2011. Android does have more variety in terms of hardware. You may be able to get a cheap Android phone with no service plan to act as a Bluetooth remote for an Android tab.
I have provided a solution for the kiosk mode using iPad here Lock-down iPhone/iPod/iPad so it can only run one app
I am afraid that I don't really know for Android if the same thing is possible.
To address the issue of crashing applications you can use an exception trampoline (see discussion here https://blog.compeople.eu/apps/?p=275) to catch the crash and reboot your app.
If the entire device is restarted however then other apps that are on the device can be started and will subsequently be locked in.
To answer your other points:
You can use a configuration profile to control network access. Force it to use a VPN or Proxy that only allows your custom app with embedded credentials to use. That way other network access can be prevented.
Your concern over future compatibility is spot on. The Android marketplace is so fragmented then maintaining a fleet is difficult.
If you have an app that is behaving as a server and is locked in then remote control is possible.
We manufacture tablet kiosks that support both android and iPad devices. In fact we are the only iPad kiosk that has achieved apple approval.
Generally speaking i think you will have an easier time with an iPad as the software and hardware will remain more consistent over time. Which is important if you have to change out a fault unit or deploy more kiosks 6 months or year from now when the original device is no longer manufactured.
I seem to be a bit at loss with the status and development of MIDlet managers for Android or Windows Mobile devices.
I know of JBlend and JBed but I can't work out who those projects belong to.
JBlend is installed on my LG540 by the manufacturer but not on Galaxy S1 for example.
I need to find a way to give a reliable set of instructions to the users to get these installed on their device.
Is there is a central place to download them from?
Is there a road map for those projects (i.e Android 2.3)?
Why aren't those available from the Market place?
Is a midlet manager available on all Windows mobile 7 devices?
Some (eg. JBed) were said to be found on Android Market, however those were probably from some 3rd parties without legal rights, they don't appear on the Market now.
JBed :
I found some versions of JBed were ripped off of firmwares of some Android phones. The company doesn't have it listed as a downloadable product, so it seems to be developed for bigger companies, like phone manufacturers, to be integrated in their firmwares. That seems to be the reason why we don't see much info or new releases.
JBed is owned by Myriad Group (formerly known as Esmertec)
http://www.myriadgroup.com
Netmite App Runner :
App Runner is a converter + Android runtime (for shared java functions). It's said to be a corporation, though it looks like a one-man operation. The 'homepage' of the website instantly redirects to the 'Android App Runner' pages, which are just a few poorly structured html text, with poorly written English, and the author uses the words 'we' and 'I' interchangeably. No company info. The application is not available on stock market applications, to what I see.
http://www.netmite.com/android/
Most (all?) Java emulators need root access, and require phone owners to do some hacks on the device, which in most situations invalidate their warranties. This is another disadvantage for them to spread.
I would expect a stock java emulator on most phone models, probably license fees and maintenance (firmware updates) are keeping manufacturers away.