detecting default launcher, android - android

Is it possible to detect what the default launcher app is on a device from within your app?
I am poking around with PackageManager but don't seem to see what i am looking for, i would like my app of launcher type to behave differently when set as the default launcher so i am trying to programmatically detect whether the use has set it to be the default launcher or not
the code i tried below returns Android System no matter what i set as the default launcher:
pm = getApplicationContext().getPackageManager();
Intent i = (new Intent(Intent.ACTION_MAIN).addCategory(Intent.CATEGORY_LAUNCHER));
final ResolveInfo mInfo = pm.resolveActivity(i, 0);
Log.v("curent default launcher",":::::::::"+ pm.getApplicationLabel(mInfo.activityInfo.applicationInfo));


In the example that Google provides for a launcher replacement the activity has the following definition in the manifest:
<activity android:name="Home"
android:theme="#style/Theme"
android:launchMode="singleInstance"
android:stateNotNeeded="true">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.HOME"/>
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
</intent-filter>
</activity>
Based on that you should add the following categories for querying for the launcher
Intent i = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_MAIN);
i.addCategory(Intent.CATEGORY_HOME);
i.addCategory(Intent.CATEGORY_DEFAULT);

Related

How to hide app icon in apps launcher and run in other app

I have an android app which must be launch by another app in same device and i want to hide the first app launcher icon on andorid,how can i accomplish this ?
Code:
PackageManager p = getPackageManager();
p.setComponentEnabledSetting(getComponentName(), PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
Error Code : Unable to find explicit activity class
What is your solution for resolve my problem?
Thanks

Don't do that within your java code. Simply remove this tags from your manifest:
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
These tags are in your first activity tags in your manifest.

How to change android app icon based on date of the month [duplicate]

Is it possible to change an application icon directly from the program?
I mean, change icon.png in the res\drawable folder.
I would like to let users to change application's icon from the program so next time they would see the previously selected icon in the launcher.

Try this, it works fine for me:
1 . Modify your MainActivity section in AndroidManifest.xml, delete from it, line with MAIN category in intent-filter section
<activity android:name="ru.quickmessage.pa.MainActivity"
android:configChanges="keyboardHidden|orientation"
android:screenOrientation="portrait"
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:theme="#style/CustomTheme"
android:launchMode="singleTask">
<intent-filter>
==> <action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" /> <== Delete this line
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity>
2 . Create <activity-alias>, for each of your icons. Like this
<activity-alias android:label="#string/app_name"
android:icon="#drawable/icon"
android:name=".MainActivity-Red"
android:enabled="false"
android:targetActivity=".MainActivity">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
3 . Set programmatically: set ENABLE attribute for the appropriate activity-alias
getPackageManager().setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName("ru.quickmessage.pa", "ru.quickmessage.pa.MainActivity-Red"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
Note, At least one must be enabled at all times.

It's an old question, but still active as there is no explicit Android feature. And the guys from facebook found a work around - somehow. Today, I found a way that works for me. Not perfect (see remarks at the end of this answer) but it works!
Main idea is, that I update the icon of my app's shortcut, created by the launcher on my home screen. When I want to change something on the shortcut-icon, I remove it first and recreate it with a new bitmap.
Here is the code. It has a button increment. When pressed, the shortcut is replaced with one that has a new counting number.
First you need these two permissions in your manifest:
<uses-permission android:name="com.android.launcher.permission.INSTALL_SHORTCUT" />
<uses-permission android:name="com.android.launcher.permission.UNINSTALL_SHORTCUT" />
Then you need this two methods for installing and uninstalling shortcuts. The shortcutAdd method creates a bitmap with a number in it. This is just to demonstrate that it actually changes. You probably want to change that part with something, you want in your app.
private void shortcutAdd(String name, int number) {
// Intent to be send, when shortcut is pressed by user ("launched")
Intent shortcutIntent = new Intent(getApplicationContext(), Play.class);
shortcutIntent.setAction(Constants.ACTION_PLAY);
// Create bitmap with number in it -> very default. You probably want to give it a more stylish look
Bitmap bitmap = Bitmap.createBitmap(100, 100, Bitmap.Config.ARGB_8888);
Paint paint = new Paint();
paint.setColor(0xFF808080); // gray
paint.setTextAlign(Paint.Align.CENTER);
paint.setTextSize(50);
new Canvas(bitmap).drawText(""+number, 50, 50, paint);
((ImageView) findViewById(R.id.icon)).setImageBitmap(bitmap);
// Decorate the shortcut
Intent addIntent = new Intent();
addIntent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_INTENT, shortcutIntent);
addIntent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_NAME, name);
addIntent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_ICON, bitmap);
// Inform launcher to create shortcut
addIntent.setAction("com.android.launcher.action.INSTALL_SHORTCUT");
getApplicationContext().sendBroadcast(addIntent);
}
private void shortcutDel(String name) {
// Intent to be send, when shortcut is pressed by user ("launched")
Intent shortcutIntent = new Intent(getApplicationContext(), Play.class);
shortcutIntent.setAction(Constants.ACTION_PLAY);
// Decorate the shortcut
Intent delIntent = new Intent();
delIntent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_INTENT, shortcutIntent);
delIntent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_NAME, name);
// Inform launcher to remove shortcut
delIntent.setAction("com.android.launcher.action.UNINSTALL_SHORTCUT");
getApplicationContext().sendBroadcast(delIntent);
}
And finally, here are two listener to add the first shortcut and update the shortcut with an incrementing counter.
#Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
setContentView(R.layout.test);
findViewById(R.id.add).setOnClickListener(new OnClickListener() {
#Override
public void onClick(View v) {
shortcutAdd("changeIt!", count);
}
});
findViewById(R.id.increment).setOnClickListener(new OnClickListener() {
#Override
public void onClick(View v) {
shortcutDel("changeIt!");
count++;
shortcutAdd("changeIt!", count);
}
});
}
Remarks:
This way works also if your App controls more shortcuts on the home screen, e.g. with different extra's in the Intent. They just need different names so that the right one is uninstalled and reinstalled.
The programmatical handling of shortcuts in Android is a well known, widely used but not officially supported Android feature. It seems to work on the default launcher and I never tried it anywhere else. So dont blame me, when you get this user-emails "It does not work on my XYZ, double rooted, super blasted phone"
The launcher writes a Toast when a shortcut was installad and one when a shortcut was uninstalled. So I get two Toasts every time I change the icon. This is not perfect, but well, as long as the rest of my app is perfect...

You cannot change the manifest or the resource in the signed-and-sealed APK, except through a software upgrade.

Programatically, you may want to publish the application launcher yourself :
Note: this method no longer works starting with Android 8.0 - Oreo
In your AndroidManifest.xml, add :
<uses-permission android:name="com.android.launcher.permission.INSTALL_SHORTCUT"/>
Then you need create your app launcher intent:
Intent myLauncherIntent = new Intent();
myLauncherIntent.setClassName("your.package.name", "YourLauncherActivityName");
myLauncherIntent.addFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK);
Create an install shortcut intent with your app launcher and custom icon:
Intent intent = new Intent();
intent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_INTENT, myLauncherIntent);
intent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_NAME, "Application Name");
intent.putExtra
(
Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_ICON_RESOURCE,
Intent.ShortcutIconResource.fromContext
(
getApplicationContext(),
R.drawable.app_icon
)
);
intent.setAction("com.android.launcher.action.INSTALL_SHORTCUT");
And finally launch the broadcast intent:
getApplicationContext().sendBroadcast(intent);

Assuming you mean changing the icon shown on the home screen, this could easily be done by creating a widget that does exactly this. Here's an article that demonstrate how that can be accomplished for a "new messages" type application similar to iPhone:
http://www.cnet.com/8301-19736_1-10278814-251.html

#P-A's solution partially works for me. Detail my findings below:
1) The first code snippet is incorrect, see below:
<activity
...
<intent-filter>
==> <action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" /> <== This line shouldn't be deleted, otherwise will have compile error
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" /> //DELETE THIS LINE
</intent-filter>
</activity>
2) Should use following code to disable all icons before enabling another one, otherwise it will add a new icon, instead of replacing it.
getPackageManager().setComponentEnabledSetting(
getComponentName(), PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
BUT, if you use code above, then shortcut on homescreen will be removed! And it won't be automatically added back. You might be able to programmatically add icon back, but it probably won't stay in the same position as before.
3) Note that the icon won't get changed immediately, it might take several seconds. If you click it right after changing, you might get an error saying: "App isn't installed".
So, IMHO this solution is only suitable for changing icon in app launcher only, not for shortcuts (i.e. the icon on homescreen)

As mentioned before you need use <activity-alias> to change the application icon.
To avoid killing the application after enabling appropriate activity-alias you need to do this after the application is killed. To find out if the application was killed you can use this method
Create activity aliases in AndroidManifest.xml
<activity android:name=".ui.MainActivity"/>
<activity-alias
android:name=".one"
android:icon="#mipmap/ic_launcher_one"
android:targetActivity=".ui.MainActivity"
android:enabled="true">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
<activity-alias
android:name=".two"
android:icon="#mipmap/ic_launcher_two"
android:targetActivity=".ui.MainActivity"
android:enabled="false">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
Сreate a service that will change the active activity-alias after killing the application. You need store the name of new active activity-alias somewhere (e.g. SharedPreferences)
class ChangeAppIconService: Service() {
private val aliases = arrayOf(".one", ".two")
override fun onBind(intent: Intent?): IBinder? = null
override fun onTaskRemoved(rootIntent: Intent?) {
changeAppIcon()
stopSelf()
}
fun changeAppIcon() {
val sp = getSharedPreferences("appSettings", Context.MODE_PRIVATE)
sp.getString("activeActivityAlias", ".one").let { aliasName ->
if (!isAliasEnabled(aliasName)) {
setAliasEnabled(aliasName)
}
}
}
private fun isAliasEnabled(aliasName: String): Boolean {
return packageManager.getComponentEnabledSetting(
ComponentName(
this,
"${BuildConfig.APPLICATION_ID}$aliasName"
)
) == PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED
}
private fun setAliasEnabled(aliasName: String) {
aliases.forEach {
val action = if (it == aliasName)
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED
else
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED
packageManager.setComponentEnabledSetting(
ComponentName(
this,
"${BuildConfig.APPLICATION_ID}$aliasName"
),
action,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP
)
}
}
}
Add service to AndroidManifest.xml
<service
android:name=".ChangeAppIconService"
android:stopWithTask="false"
/>
Start ChangeAppIconService in MainActivity.onCreate
class MainActivity: Activity {
...
override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {
...
startService(Intent(this, ChangeAppIconService::class.java))
...
}
...
}

Try this solution
<activity android:name=".SplashActivity"
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:icon="#drawable/ic_launcher">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity>
<activity-alias android:label="ShortCut"
android:icon="#drawable/ic_short_cut"
android:name=".SplashActivityAlias"
android:enabled="false"
android:targetActivity=".SplashActivity">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
Add the following code when you want to change your app icon
PackageManager pm = getPackageManager();
pm.setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName(YourActivity.this,
"your_package_name.SplashActivity"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
pm.setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName(YourActivity.this,
"your_package_name.SplashActivityAlias"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);

AndroidManifest.xml example:
<application
android:allowBackup="true"
android:icon="#mipmap/ic_launcher"
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:roundIcon="#mipmap/ic_launcher_round"
android:supportsRtl="true"
android:theme="#style/AppTheme">
<activity android:name="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity"
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:launchMode="singleTask">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN"/>
<!--<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER"/>-->
</intent-filter>
</activity>
<activity-alias android:label="RED"
android:icon="#drawable/ic_android_red"
android:name="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity-Red"
android:enabled="true"
android:targetActivity="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
<activity-alias android:label="GREEN"
android:icon="#drawable/ic_android_green"
android:name="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity-Green"
android:enabled="false"
android:targetActivity="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
<activity-alias android:label="BLUE"
android:icon="#drawable/ic_android_blue"
android:name="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity-Blue"
android:enabled="false"
android:targetActivity="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
</application>
Then follow below given code in MainActivity:
ImageView imageView = (ImageView)findViewById(R.id.imageView);
int imageResourceId;
String currentDateTimeString = DateFormat.getDateTimeInstance().format(new Date());
int hours = new Time(System.currentTimeMillis()).getHours();
Log.d("DATE", "onCreate: " + hours);
getPackageManager().setComponentEnabledSetting(
getComponentName(), PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
if(hours == 13)
{
imageResourceId = this.getResources().getIdentifier("ic_android_red", "drawable", this.getPackageName());
getPackageManager().setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName("com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample", "com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity-Red"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
}else if(hours == 14)
{
imageResourceId = this.getResources().getIdentifier("ic_android_green", "drawable", this.getPackageName());
getPackageManager().setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName("com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample", "com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity-Green"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
}else
{
imageResourceId = this.getResources().getIdentifier("ic_android_blue", "drawable", this.getPackageName());
getPackageManager().setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName("com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample", "com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity-Blue"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
}
imageView.setImageResource(imageResourceId);

Applying the suggestions mentioned, I've faced the issue of app getting killed whenever default icon gets changed to new icon. So have implemented the code with some tweaks.
Step 1). In file AndroidManifest.xml, create for default activity with android:enabled="true" & other alias with android:enabled="false". Your will not contain but append those in with android:enabled="true".
<activity
android:name=".activities.SplashActivity"
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:screenOrientation="portrait"
android:theme="#style/SplashTheme">
</activity>
<!-- <activity-alias used to change app icon dynamically> : default icon, set enabled true -->
<activity-alias
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:icon="#mipmap/ic_launcher"
android:roundIcon="#mipmap/ic_launcher_round"
android:name=".SplashActivityAlias1" <!--put any random name started with dot-->
android:enabled="true"
android:targetActivity=".activities.SplashActivity"> <!--target activity class path will be same for all alias-->
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
<!-- <activity-alias used to change app icon dynamically> : sale icon, set enabled false initially -->
<activity-alias
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:icon="#drawable/ic_store_marker"
android:roundIcon="#drawable/ic_store_marker"
android:name=".SplashActivityAlias" <!--put any random name started with dot-->
android:enabled="false"
android:targetActivity=".activities.SplashActivity"> <!--target activity class path will be same for all alias-->
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
Step 2). Make a method that will be used to disable 1st activity-alias that contains default icon & enable 2nd alias that contains icon need to be changed.
/**
* method to change the app icon dynamically
*
* #param context
* #param isNewIcon : true if new icon need to be set; false to set default
* icon
*/
public static void changeAppIconDynamically(Context context, boolean isNewIcon) {
PackageManager pm = context.getApplicationContext().getPackageManager();
if (isNewIcon) {
pm.setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName(context,
"com.example.dummy.SplashActivityAlias1"), //com.example.dummy will be your package
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
pm.setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName(context,
"com.example.dummy.SplashActivityAlias"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
} else {
pm.setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName(context,
"com.example.dummy.SplashActivityAlias1"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
pm.setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName(context,
"com.example.dummy.SplashActivityAlias"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
}
}
Step 3). Now call this method depending on your requirement, say on button click or date specific or occasion specific conditions, simply like -
// Switch app icon to new icon
GeneralUtils.changeAppIconDynamically(EditProfileActivity.this, true);
// Switch app icon to default icon
GeneralUtils.changeAppIconDynamically(EditProfileActivity.this, false);
Hope this will help those who face the issue of app getting killed on icon change.
Happy Coding :)

To get the solution by Markus working I needed the first Intent so be:
Intent myLauncherIntent = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_MAIN);
myLauncherIntent.setClassName(this, this.getClass().getName());
myLauncherIntent.addFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK);

about Launcher android

I have 2 questions about launcher below:
I have 3-4 launchers on device, how can i know which launcher has been set default on my device (with code).(Done)
I have own custom launcher app, I want clear default launcher on my app and without use:
Intent uninstallIntent = new Intent(Settings.ACTION_APPLICATION_DETAILS_SETTINGS, packageURI);
uninstallIntent.setFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK);
startActivity(uninstallIntent);
as some app as: Kid's Shell or Kids Place. I have try follow Clearing and setting the default home application but nothing change.
Please show me how to solve 2 things.
Thanks for any advise.

getPackageManager().clearPackagePreferredActivities(defaultLauncherPackgeName);
Added:
If you want to set your launcher as default, try:
ComponentName cN = new ComponentName(mContext, FakeHome.class);
p.setComponentEnabledSetting(cN, PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
Intent selector = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_MAIN);
selector.addCategory(Intent.CATEGORY_HOME);
mContext.startActivity(selector);
p.setComponentEnabledSetting(cN, PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
And in AndroidManifest.xml:
<activity
android:name="com.test.FakeHome"
android:enabled="false" >
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.HOME" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
</intent-filter>
</activity>

How to stop the NDEF_DISCOVERED intent receiver when i close that application?

i filter the intent like this
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.nfc.action.NDEF_DISCOVERED"/>
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT"/>
<data android:mimeType="text/plain" />
now the problem is, when i discover the Ndef tag near to my mobile the event which i implemented in my application is running(even my application at close state).
How to stop this one?

Probably the best solution is using NFC foreground dispatching. But turning the Intent filter in the manifest file off can be accomplished through the use of an <activity-alias> element in the manifest. By putting the Intent filter in the <activity-alias> instead of the <activity> element itself, you can disable and enable it at will in your app.
So suppose you have in your manifest:
<manifest xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
package="your.app.package">
...
<activity-alias android:name=".yourActivityAlias"
android:enabled="true" android:targetActivity=".yourActivity">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.nfc.action.NDEF_DISCOVERED" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
....
</manifest>
Then you can disable the <activity-alias> from an activity in your app through:
PackageManager pkgMgr = getPackageManager();
ComponentName comp = new ComponentName("your.app.package", "your.app.package.yourActivityAlias");
pkgMgr.setComponentEnabledSetting(comp, PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
Please, note that the new setting only takes effect upon restarting the app (so you may want to consider 0 instead of PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP). Also, it often takes a little while for the packagemanager to make the new setting effective (probably depends on the processing speed of the device).

Use the ForegroundDispatchSystem.
Example:
http://developer.android.com/resources/samples/ApiDemos/src/com/example/android/apis/nfc/ForegroundDispatch.html

How to change an application icon programmatically in Android?

Is it possible to change an application icon directly from the program?
I mean, change icon.png in the res\drawable folder.
I would like to let users to change application's icon from the program so next time they would see the previously selected icon in the launcher.

Try this, it works fine for me:
1 . Modify your MainActivity section in AndroidManifest.xml, delete from it, line with MAIN category in intent-filter section
<activity android:name="ru.quickmessage.pa.MainActivity"
android:configChanges="keyboardHidden|orientation"
android:screenOrientation="portrait"
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:theme="#style/CustomTheme"
android:launchMode="singleTask">
<intent-filter>
==> <action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" /> <== Delete this line
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity>
2 . Create <activity-alias>, for each of your icons. Like this
<activity-alias android:label="#string/app_name"
android:icon="#drawable/icon"
android:name=".MainActivity-Red"
android:enabled="false"
android:targetActivity=".MainActivity">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
3 . Set programmatically: set ENABLE attribute for the appropriate activity-alias
getPackageManager().setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName("ru.quickmessage.pa", "ru.quickmessage.pa.MainActivity-Red"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
Note, At least one must be enabled at all times.

It's an old question, but still active as there is no explicit Android feature. And the guys from facebook found a work around - somehow. Today, I found a way that works for me. Not perfect (see remarks at the end of this answer) but it works!
Main idea is, that I update the icon of my app's shortcut, created by the launcher on my home screen. When I want to change something on the shortcut-icon, I remove it first and recreate it with a new bitmap.
Here is the code. It has a button increment. When pressed, the shortcut is replaced with one that has a new counting number.
First you need these two permissions in your manifest:
<uses-permission android:name="com.android.launcher.permission.INSTALL_SHORTCUT" />
<uses-permission android:name="com.android.launcher.permission.UNINSTALL_SHORTCUT" />
Then you need this two methods for installing and uninstalling shortcuts. The shortcutAdd method creates a bitmap with a number in it. This is just to demonstrate that it actually changes. You probably want to change that part with something, you want in your app.
private void shortcutAdd(String name, int number) {
// Intent to be send, when shortcut is pressed by user ("launched")
Intent shortcutIntent = new Intent(getApplicationContext(), Play.class);
shortcutIntent.setAction(Constants.ACTION_PLAY);
// Create bitmap with number in it -> very default. You probably want to give it a more stylish look
Bitmap bitmap = Bitmap.createBitmap(100, 100, Bitmap.Config.ARGB_8888);
Paint paint = new Paint();
paint.setColor(0xFF808080); // gray
paint.setTextAlign(Paint.Align.CENTER);
paint.setTextSize(50);
new Canvas(bitmap).drawText(""+number, 50, 50, paint);
((ImageView) findViewById(R.id.icon)).setImageBitmap(bitmap);
// Decorate the shortcut
Intent addIntent = new Intent();
addIntent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_INTENT, shortcutIntent);
addIntent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_NAME, name);
addIntent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_ICON, bitmap);
// Inform launcher to create shortcut
addIntent.setAction("com.android.launcher.action.INSTALL_SHORTCUT");
getApplicationContext().sendBroadcast(addIntent);
}
private void shortcutDel(String name) {
// Intent to be send, when shortcut is pressed by user ("launched")
Intent shortcutIntent = new Intent(getApplicationContext(), Play.class);
shortcutIntent.setAction(Constants.ACTION_PLAY);
// Decorate the shortcut
Intent delIntent = new Intent();
delIntent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_INTENT, shortcutIntent);
delIntent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_NAME, name);
// Inform launcher to remove shortcut
delIntent.setAction("com.android.launcher.action.UNINSTALL_SHORTCUT");
getApplicationContext().sendBroadcast(delIntent);
}
And finally, here are two listener to add the first shortcut and update the shortcut with an incrementing counter.
#Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
setContentView(R.layout.test);
findViewById(R.id.add).setOnClickListener(new OnClickListener() {
#Override
public void onClick(View v) {
shortcutAdd("changeIt!", count);
}
});
findViewById(R.id.increment).setOnClickListener(new OnClickListener() {
#Override
public void onClick(View v) {
shortcutDel("changeIt!");
count++;
shortcutAdd("changeIt!", count);
}
});
}
Remarks:
This way works also if your App controls more shortcuts on the home screen, e.g. with different extra's in the Intent. They just need different names so that the right one is uninstalled and reinstalled.
The programmatical handling of shortcuts in Android is a well known, widely used but not officially supported Android feature. It seems to work on the default launcher and I never tried it anywhere else. So dont blame me, when you get this user-emails "It does not work on my XYZ, double rooted, super blasted phone"
The launcher writes a Toast when a shortcut was installad and one when a shortcut was uninstalled. So I get two Toasts every time I change the icon. This is not perfect, but well, as long as the rest of my app is perfect...

You cannot change the manifest or the resource in the signed-and-sealed APK, except through a software upgrade.

Programatically, you may want to publish the application launcher yourself :
Note: this method no longer works starting with Android 8.0 - Oreo
In your AndroidManifest.xml, add :
<uses-permission android:name="com.android.launcher.permission.INSTALL_SHORTCUT"/>
Then you need create your app launcher intent:
Intent myLauncherIntent = new Intent();
myLauncherIntent.setClassName("your.package.name", "YourLauncherActivityName");
myLauncherIntent.addFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK);
Create an install shortcut intent with your app launcher and custom icon:
Intent intent = new Intent();
intent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_INTENT, myLauncherIntent);
intent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_NAME, "Application Name");
intent.putExtra
(
Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_ICON_RESOURCE,
Intent.ShortcutIconResource.fromContext
(
getApplicationContext(),
R.drawable.app_icon
)
);
intent.setAction("com.android.launcher.action.INSTALL_SHORTCUT");
And finally launch the broadcast intent:
getApplicationContext().sendBroadcast(intent);

Assuming you mean changing the icon shown on the home screen, this could easily be done by creating a widget that does exactly this. Here's an article that demonstrate how that can be accomplished for a "new messages" type application similar to iPhone:
http://www.cnet.com/8301-19736_1-10278814-251.html

#P-A's solution partially works for me. Detail my findings below:
1) The first code snippet is incorrect, see below:
<activity
...
<intent-filter>
==> <action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" /> <== This line shouldn't be deleted, otherwise will have compile error
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" /> //DELETE THIS LINE
</intent-filter>
</activity>
2) Should use following code to disable all icons before enabling another one, otherwise it will add a new icon, instead of replacing it.
getPackageManager().setComponentEnabledSetting(
getComponentName(), PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
BUT, if you use code above, then shortcut on homescreen will be removed! And it won't be automatically added back. You might be able to programmatically add icon back, but it probably won't stay in the same position as before.
3) Note that the icon won't get changed immediately, it might take several seconds. If you click it right after changing, you might get an error saying: "App isn't installed".
So, IMHO this solution is only suitable for changing icon in app launcher only, not for shortcuts (i.e. the icon on homescreen)

As mentioned before you need use <activity-alias> to change the application icon.
To avoid killing the application after enabling appropriate activity-alias you need to do this after the application is killed. To find out if the application was killed you can use this method
Create activity aliases in AndroidManifest.xml
<activity android:name=".ui.MainActivity"/>
<activity-alias
android:name=".one"
android:icon="#mipmap/ic_launcher_one"
android:targetActivity=".ui.MainActivity"
android:enabled="true">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
<activity-alias
android:name=".two"
android:icon="#mipmap/ic_launcher_two"
android:targetActivity=".ui.MainActivity"
android:enabled="false">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
Сreate a service that will change the active activity-alias after killing the application. You need store the name of new active activity-alias somewhere (e.g. SharedPreferences)
class ChangeAppIconService: Service() {
private val aliases = arrayOf(".one", ".two")
override fun onBind(intent: Intent?): IBinder? = null
override fun onTaskRemoved(rootIntent: Intent?) {
changeAppIcon()
stopSelf()
}
fun changeAppIcon() {
val sp = getSharedPreferences("appSettings", Context.MODE_PRIVATE)
sp.getString("activeActivityAlias", ".one").let { aliasName ->
if (!isAliasEnabled(aliasName)) {
setAliasEnabled(aliasName)
}
}
}
private fun isAliasEnabled(aliasName: String): Boolean {
return packageManager.getComponentEnabledSetting(
ComponentName(
this,
"${BuildConfig.APPLICATION_ID}$aliasName"
)
) == PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED
}
private fun setAliasEnabled(aliasName: String) {
aliases.forEach {
val action = if (it == aliasName)
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED
else
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED
packageManager.setComponentEnabledSetting(
ComponentName(
this,
"${BuildConfig.APPLICATION_ID}$aliasName"
),
action,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP
)
}
}
}
Add service to AndroidManifest.xml
<service
android:name=".ChangeAppIconService"
android:stopWithTask="false"
/>
Start ChangeAppIconService in MainActivity.onCreate
class MainActivity: Activity {
...
override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {
...
startService(Intent(this, ChangeAppIconService::class.java))
...
}
...
}

Try this solution
<activity android:name=".SplashActivity"
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:icon="#drawable/ic_launcher">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity>
<activity-alias android:label="ShortCut"
android:icon="#drawable/ic_short_cut"
android:name=".SplashActivityAlias"
android:enabled="false"
android:targetActivity=".SplashActivity">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
Add the following code when you want to change your app icon
PackageManager pm = getPackageManager();
pm.setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName(YourActivity.this,
"your_package_name.SplashActivity"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
pm.setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName(YourActivity.this,
"your_package_name.SplashActivityAlias"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);

AndroidManifest.xml example:
<application
android:allowBackup="true"
android:icon="#mipmap/ic_launcher"
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:roundIcon="#mipmap/ic_launcher_round"
android:supportsRtl="true"
android:theme="#style/AppTheme">
<activity android:name="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity"
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:launchMode="singleTask">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN"/>
<!--<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER"/>-->
</intent-filter>
</activity>
<activity-alias android:label="RED"
android:icon="#drawable/ic_android_red"
android:name="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity-Red"
android:enabled="true"
android:targetActivity="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
<activity-alias android:label="GREEN"
android:icon="#drawable/ic_android_green"
android:name="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity-Green"
android:enabled="false"
android:targetActivity="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
<activity-alias android:label="BLUE"
android:icon="#drawable/ic_android_blue"
android:name="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity-Blue"
android:enabled="false"
android:targetActivity="com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
</application>
Then follow below given code in MainActivity:
ImageView imageView = (ImageView)findViewById(R.id.imageView);
int imageResourceId;
String currentDateTimeString = DateFormat.getDateTimeInstance().format(new Date());
int hours = new Time(System.currentTimeMillis()).getHours();
Log.d("DATE", "onCreate: " + hours);
getPackageManager().setComponentEnabledSetting(
getComponentName(), PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
if(hours == 13)
{
imageResourceId = this.getResources().getIdentifier("ic_android_red", "drawable", this.getPackageName());
getPackageManager().setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName("com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample", "com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity-Red"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
}else if(hours == 14)
{
imageResourceId = this.getResources().getIdentifier("ic_android_green", "drawable", this.getPackageName());
getPackageManager().setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName("com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample", "com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity-Green"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
}else
{
imageResourceId = this.getResources().getIdentifier("ic_android_blue", "drawable", this.getPackageName());
getPackageManager().setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName("com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample", "com.pritesh.resourceidentifierexample.MainActivity-Blue"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED, PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
}
imageView.setImageResource(imageResourceId);

Applying the suggestions mentioned, I've faced the issue of app getting killed whenever default icon gets changed to new icon. So have implemented the code with some tweaks.
Step 1). In file AndroidManifest.xml, create for default activity with android:enabled="true" & other alias with android:enabled="false". Your will not contain but append those in with android:enabled="true".
<activity
android:name=".activities.SplashActivity"
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:screenOrientation="portrait"
android:theme="#style/SplashTheme">
</activity>
<!-- <activity-alias used to change app icon dynamically> : default icon, set enabled true -->
<activity-alias
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:icon="#mipmap/ic_launcher"
android:roundIcon="#mipmap/ic_launcher_round"
android:name=".SplashActivityAlias1" <!--put any random name started with dot-->
android:enabled="true"
android:targetActivity=".activities.SplashActivity"> <!--target activity class path will be same for all alias-->
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
<!-- <activity-alias used to change app icon dynamically> : sale icon, set enabled false initially -->
<activity-alias
android:label="#string/app_name"
android:icon="#drawable/ic_store_marker"
android:roundIcon="#drawable/ic_store_marker"
android:name=".SplashActivityAlias" <!--put any random name started with dot-->
android:enabled="false"
android:targetActivity=".activities.SplashActivity"> <!--target activity class path will be same for all alias-->
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT" />
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
</intent-filter>
</activity-alias>
Step 2). Make a method that will be used to disable 1st activity-alias that contains default icon & enable 2nd alias that contains icon need to be changed.
/**
* method to change the app icon dynamically
*
* #param context
* #param isNewIcon : true if new icon need to be set; false to set default
* icon
*/
public static void changeAppIconDynamically(Context context, boolean isNewIcon) {
PackageManager pm = context.getApplicationContext().getPackageManager();
if (isNewIcon) {
pm.setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName(context,
"com.example.dummy.SplashActivityAlias1"), //com.example.dummy will be your package
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
pm.setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName(context,
"com.example.dummy.SplashActivityAlias"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
} else {
pm.setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName(context,
"com.example.dummy.SplashActivityAlias1"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_ENABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
pm.setComponentEnabledSetting(
new ComponentName(context,
"com.example.dummy.SplashActivityAlias"),
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED,
PackageManager.DONT_KILL_APP);
}
}
Step 3). Now call this method depending on your requirement, say on button click or date specific or occasion specific conditions, simply like -
// Switch app icon to new icon
GeneralUtils.changeAppIconDynamically(EditProfileActivity.this, true);
// Switch app icon to default icon
GeneralUtils.changeAppIconDynamically(EditProfileActivity.this, false);
Hope this will help those who face the issue of app getting killed on icon change.
Happy Coding :)

To get the solution by Markus working I needed the first Intent so be:
Intent myLauncherIntent = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_MAIN);
myLauncherIntent.setClassName(this, this.getClass().getName());
myLauncherIntent.addFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK);

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