Is there a way to view an application database on an Android device? The only solution I've found requires a developer device and I don't have one. I know I can root it and get the same result, but I'd rather not do that.
There is no way other than rooting the device.
If you just want to view/edit what is in the database you can follow the instructions near the end of this blog post:
http://www.screaming-penguin.com/node/7742
I used this method to make sure data was being written correctly and to add data as well.
For more on ADB: http://developer.android.com/guide/developing/tools/adb.html
Hope this helps
[Edit] I just re-read your question and I realize you may have been asking to view the database from your Android device - the method I suggested in the link allows you to view/edit from a computer with the ADB - NOT on the device.
If you create your .db on the SD Card, you can view it without root privileges. But, this is probably not what you want to do for your production app. Otherwise you need a dev phone or one with root access.
If you want a visual tool to open/display your .db files, MOTODEV Studio allows you to open an arbitrary .db file from your SD card. Look in the "MOTODEV Database" perspective for the ability to map a file to a database. developer.motorola.com
Related
I am using android studio to develop my first android app.
I am plugging in my phone, and testing my app on there to test changes as I go.
I am using a sqlite database. How do I view this database, the tables, and the contents (rows) of those tables?
Upon Google searching I found that this can be done when you root your phone. But surely you dont have to root your phone to view your databases when your developing an app?
Update:
People are using terminology assuming knowledge. If you want me to copy a database, explain how, if you want me to use adb, explain what it is. Otherwise it means not much to me. Thanks
Pull the sqlite database named as XYZ.db from your simulator or device using adb shell command or GUI interface provided by the AndroidStudio. Then Open it using The Sqlite Browser. It's a killer app for sqlite browsing.
As android is shipped with the sqlite3, you could use command line to view the data base saved inside the device / emulator. Command reference is Listed Sqlite3 android command
If you feel lazy enough to discover how to pull files from emulator / device using adb pull, following answer may help you.
how to pull
At least in my case I needed to root my device. After that I installed SQLiteEditor. With this app you can modify and view your database. Or if you don't want to install a new app you can use a root explorer and enter directly into your installed app in the DB. Is inside /data/data/{yourapp}.
Copy your database to your system
Using copy or paste Or
Using adb pull command
Then Googled for sqlitestudio-2.1.4, download and run , browse your database ,,then you can see your database rows, column, value etc.
I've created an application that uses an Android SQL database. Is there any way to find this database on the Mobile Phone that the Application is installed to?
Essentially I want to then use an SQL Database Viewer to look at all the rows?
root/data/data/package/databases/database
it should be in a file like that, in the emulator you can go straight to this using the file explorer in ddms, otherwise a rooted phone and ES file explorer
if you're using the emulator you can use the adb tool in the sdk-platform folder of the android install.
something like the following:
./adb shell
#sqlite3 /data/data/com.example.package/databases/database.db
you should then be able to do your queries.
If its on a phone, then try extract the database like above and use the sqlite3 tool to query that database.
A similar question has been answered here: https://stackoverflow.com/a/4556642/450534
The same answer provided there is:
If for whatever reason, you need to access the database on the phone, you must have root access (superuser in other words) on the phone. Then you will need a file explorer that uses root permission to give you access to the system files.
If all the above exists, then you will find the application database in:
/data/data/com.yourpackage.name/databases.
I’m trying to create an app that is able to access and modify a protected database within /data/data/. This process obviously requires root privileges and I am testing this on a rooted device. The general code to access the SQLite database is complete and works against a test database that is located elsewhere (on /sdcard/).
However when I want the application to access the database within /data/data/, it obviously fails as I am trying to access it as a normal user. I have read on the topic of using the su binary on Android for a bit now, and as far as I understand it usually used to execute shell commands only.
So my initial idea of making this work was to simply change the permissions of the file when the application starts, and change it back when it quits. So before actually bothering with implementing that in the application itself, I used my file explorer to change the permission to rw-rw-rw-. However my application was still not able to open the database.
My next idea was to use the sqlite3 program directly from the shell, but I found out, that my ROM does not come with it, so I would have to distribute it myself (Titanium Backup seems to do that).
However there is something that makes me wonder if there might not be a better way: I am using Root Explorer as my file explorer and it has a built-in way to browse any SQLite database. Given that it does not seem to ship with a custom sqlite3 binary, and that my phone does not have one itself, the access seems to happen using the normal Java tools. But how does the app get root rights then?
Is there a way to make an Android application run as root? Or did I forget setting something for the permissions earlier which prevented me from accessing it? Or does anyone know how Root Explorer does it?
You cannot raise the permissions of an already running process as far as I know. The simplest answer would be to copy it somewhere using the root shell / command line edit it, then copy it back as root again. And yes, I did read your question, just didn't explain the answer fully. Hopefully it's clear now. Not sure if root explorer does that or something else, but it would work.
I am working with SQLite in an App. It writes to the database, etc., with no problem. However, I can not find this new database. I have tried changing the directory with cd /data/data/packageName/databases, but it says "no such file or directory". Also, this database is not found when I click on the File Explorer in eclipse. My logging tells me the database was created and that it is being written to. I think I need to set the path in the shell or something to that effect using adb, but I have no idea how to do that. Can anyone give me some instruction? Also, I am using my phone for development. The database also does not show up when using the emulator.
Thanks very much.
Matt
Matt,
This thread gives a good explanation on why you might not be able to access the data folder on your phone.
Can't access data folder in the File Explorer of DDMS using a Nexus One!
You can still test the Sqlite code though. Just boot up an emulator. The emulator will have no access restrictions. Once it's booted up you can use the ddms tool (located in the tools directory under your android SDK install folder). It has a File Explorer and you can download the files from the /data folder.
Also, I am using my phone for development.
You cannot access the database on a standard Android device except via your own application code.
Your options are:
Do this sort of testing on an emulator, in which case you can access the directory that you are failing to access on the device
Add a database backup feature to your app, that copies the (closed) database to external storage, so you can examine it
Root your phone (leastways, I am under the impression this can help get you to this directory -- haven't done it myself)
The database also does not show up when using the emulator.
Try harder. If you can store data in the database and read data out of it using SQLiteDatabase, then the database file is there.
I am designing an app in android, for my app i created one database for data storage now i want to browse my app database from device so that i can monitor my tables and it's data. I am able to browse the database from AVD(using SQLite Database Browser) but it's not working for the device, so pls guide me.
Thanks,
Balaram.
Balaram , currently there is no way to browse database on the device (the way you want it) (without getting the root permission) similar to browsing on a SQLite Database Browser
While to browse the database on the device you need to follow programmatic steps given here at 'Using your own SQLite database in Android applications'.
Hope it is helpful.
You need to root the phone and get SuperUser permission to access app databases. The database will (after getting root) then be available in the "/data/data/com.your.application/databases" folder. Also, after getting root on your phone, you will a file browser capable of using the SU permission to display system files. For e.g. Root Explorer.
What works in the AVD works exactly the same on the device. Ideally, there is no need to grab your DB from the device. But if you must, be careful with the other system files.