[APP][2.2+] AdbToggle (ROOT) - beta test is over!

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Attention: The beta test is over now!

Warning: Please read everything properly before you install anything!

Here's the developer of APP QUARANTINE. I'm just about to release a new app called AdbToggle and I need you guys to help me out testing the beta version. The final release will be a paid version that will be available in Google Play. But before throwing around with details about the beta test let me first tell you why I have developed this app!

First, what is the app doing?

AdbToggle like the name already says allows you to toggle the USB debug settings. You can do this in the app or by using a homescreen widget. Furthermore there's an automatic mode: when you unplug your device then USB debug mode is turned off. When you plug it in again then USB debug mode is still disabled, it will only be enabled again if you unlock your screen.

Why should I need to have this tool?

Maybe you already figured out that when you plugin your phone to your PC then the contents of your SD card are only accessible when your screen is unlocked. This is very good, however there's a major security risk that still allows an unwanted person to access your data.... and if you are rooted even allows for total control over your phone, like for instance bypassing the screen lock. When buying a new Android phone then this is of course not enabled by default, but if you are an Android developer or otherwise just like to play around with Custom ROMs and root apps, then the USB debug mode is usually enabled and voilà....

What are the requirements for AdbToggle

Since I posted this here on XDA-Developers you probably already figured out that you need to have a rooted phone. You even need to have full write access to the system partition (e.g. no NAND protection like on some HTC phones) because AdbToggle is only working when installed as system app. This is maybe for the downside.... however the good thing is that AdbToggle doesn't need root access anymore after you have installed it.

What do you expect from people who take part in the beta test?

If you are ready to take part in the beta test and help me in finishing a great security tool for Android then I'm more than happy! Please let me know what device you have and what Android version you are currently running! And then of course I'm awaiting your comments, ideas for improvements, bug reports, etc. You can post directly in this thread or use PMs.

How does it work? What should I test?

When launching AdbToggle then a nice blue Android shows up and holds your usb plug. Just hit it to toggle USB debug mode, however it will first tell you that it needs to install itself as system app. If you have a working busybox installation (Busybox is a set of Linux command line tools) then it will just copy itself to the system partition and then asks you to reboot your phone. If there's no busybox available then it will guide you to Sterickson's busybox installer, which is available in Google Play as well. Once you have used it to install busybox, launch AdbToggle again and it will succeed.

After the reboot open the app and toggle USB debug mode. You will see the standard Android USB notifications popup and disappear as you toggle, and at the same time the USB connection to your PC is made available or reset. You should also try to use the homescreen widget to just do the same.

Now to the automatic mode. Launch AdbToggle, click the settings icon in the action bar, enable the checkbox. From here you can try out different test scenarios:

1. Unplug your phone from your PC and turn of the screen. When you connect it you'll see the lock screen but USB debug mode is disabled. You can recognize this as the USB debug notification will not popup. You can verify this by typing "adb devices" from your PC and no device should be visible. Now unlock your screen and USB debug mode will be enabled.

2. Turn your screen off and on again. The lock screen appears but USB debug mode is still enabled. Why? You are still connected to your PC so it's rather impossible that someone took away your phone. Also when your screen goes off you probably don't want to loose your USB connection when you are working on something....

3. Unplug your phone from your PC and plug it in again. USB debug mode is still enabled. Why? Your screen is still unlocked. Again it's rather unlikely that someone took away your phone during this time. Actually what really happens is that USB debug mode is disabled when you unplug it, but it's enabled when you plug it in again and AdbToggle figures out your screen is unlocked....

4. Reboot your phone and verify if everything is still working fine without manually launching the app.

Further test cases

You should check if AdbToggle is still working after an update! As the beta test goes on probably there will be one or another update. You should be able to install the update through Google Play as usual and the new version should be working immediately. You must NOT reboot and NOT install the updated version as system application again. So at this point AdbToggle should just behave the same like your built in Google apps.

What about the UI? Does everything show up well on your phone? Is the Android always blue when USB debug mode is on, and gray when it's off? Does the widget always show the proper state as well?

Limitations / Known issues:

The automatic mode is currently not working on tablets with a separate power plug-in. I'm trying to solve this at some point but for the moment please test it on phones only!

Now please let me start!

Sure, go ahead and download AdbToggle from Google Play and have fun! However keep in mind that the beta version will expire and not working anymore in 05/2012.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...roid.adbtoggle

The first update has just been published!

The following issues were fixed:

- improved Busybox and Root detection
- AdbToggle service didn't work anymore after a while
- more reliable detection whether screen is unlocked or not

Besides, I have received a crash report which I have tried to fix... however the bug never happened on my devices so I'm not sure if I really got it. So if AdbToggle still crashes on your phone after the update then please get back on me with more information!

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

and if you are rooted even allows for total control over your phone, like for instance bypassing the screen lock.

Well, this tool is a must have... You think you're protected and then everything could be down just because the back door (the USB debugging) is enabled.
Some applications can disable USB debegging remotelly (like avast! Mobile Security), but it could be late...

Installation went well and the mobile (Samsumg Galaxy Nexus I9250 with Android 4.0.2 maguro official Google release) rebooted ok.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

1. Unplug your phone from your PC and turn of the screen. When you connect it you'll see the lock screen but USB debug mode is disabled. You can recognize this as the USB debug notification will not popup.

Worked.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

You can verify this by typing "adb devices" from your PC and no device should be visible.

Sure... no adb device plugged.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

Now unlock your screen and USB debug mode will be enabled.

Worked.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

2. Turn your screen off and on again. The lock screen appears but USB debug mode is still enabled. Why? You are still connected to your PC so it's rather impossible that someone took away your phone. Also when your screen goes off you probably don't want to loose your USB connection when you are working on something....

Worked.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

3. Unplug your phone from your PC and plug it in again. USB debug mode is still enabled. Why? Your screen is still unlocked. Again it's rather unlikely that someone took away your phone during this time. Actually what really happens is that USB debug mode is disabled when you unplug it, but it's enabled when you plug it in again and AdbToggle figures out your screen is unlocked....

Worked.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

4. Reboot your phone and verify if everything is still working fine without manually launching the app.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

You should check if AdbToggle is still working after an update! As the beta test goes on probably there will be one or another update. You should be able to install the update through Google Play as usual and the new version should be working immediately. You must NOT reboot and NOT install the updated version as system application again. So at this point AdbToggle should just behave the same like your built in Google apps.

Waiting for an update.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

What about the UI? Does everything show up well on your phone? Is the Android always blue when USB debug mode is on, and gray when it's off? Does the widget always show the proper state as well?

Seems ok, but it would be easier if it is a really widget, just toggle not open.
The application crashed twice, I've sent the reports.
When I click the widget, it gets blue/gray correctly but the icon does not show in system tray (i.e., you can't see the original icon of the USB debugging mode.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

However keep in mind that the beta version will expire and not working anymore in 05/2012.

Any possibility of beta testers get a Pro

Everything is working as you described. I'm on a Desire HD with BlackICE 1.50 Rom.

Thanks for your feedback!

Originally Posted by Technical

Seems ok, but it would be easier if it is a really widget, just toggle not open.
The application crashed twice, I've sent the reports.
When I click the widget, it gets blue/gray correctly but the icon does not show in system tray (i.e., you can't see the original icon of the USB debugging mode.

On my devices, when I hit the widget it turns off USB debugging, the Android notification disappears, and the icon is gray. I hit it again, USB debugging is enabled, Android notification appears, icon is blue.

Can you please ellaborate what is different on your phone? 'What' is opening? Or maybe you can post a screenshot?

About the crash: I've received the report and published a fix. Version 0.9.2 is the newest right now.

Originally Posted by Technical

Any possibility of beta testers get a Pro

I agree that everyone who comes back to me with some feedback should receive the pro version for free. However I have to find a good way to make this possible. I have send some people the apk of my other app 'App Quarantine Pro' for free and got a report that they were not able to update to the newest version through Google Play. So I have to verify on one of my phones when I do my next update, but under these circumstance I would not be satisfied with this solution. And I don't really want to manually push APKs for each update since I plan to keep this going for a couple years, and there will be more apps in the future as well, so...

Another idea is to try and refund the money through Google Play after purchase but at this point I also don't know yet if this will stop further updates or not. Probably it will....

A completely different idea is not sending the pro version to testers at all, but instead donate the first month's income of AdbToggle to xda developers. I'm using the App Quarantine user base (16K active users) to promote my own apps. For App Quarantine Pro this has been roughly 60 Euro in the first month so I guess with AdbToggle I'd be able to submit a fair amount as well...

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

On my devices, when I hit the widget it turns off USB debugging, the Android notification disappears, and the icon is gray. I hit it again, USB debugging is enabled, Android notification appears, icon is blue.

Can you please ellaborate what is different on your phone? 'What' is opening? Or maybe you can post a screenshot?

Well, I got only the icon to start the application. Then I remembered I should add the widget icon. Now it's working as it should.
I suggest you make the background transparent. It's ugly over a non-black wallpaper.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

About the crash: I've received the report and published a fix. Version 0.9.2 is the newest right now.

I cannot update it using Google Play. It's not shown there.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

I agree that everyone who comes back to me with some feedback should receive the pro version for free. However I have to find a good way to make this possible. I have send some people the apk of my other app 'App Quarantine Pro' for free and got a report that they were not able to update to the newest version through Google Play. So I have to verify on one of my phones when I do my next update, but under these circumstance I would not be satisfied with this solution. And I don't really want to manually push APKs for each update since I plan to keep this going for a couple years, and there will be more apps in the future as well, so...

I understand... Some app works with a "license" apk for another (free) apk. I can remember of ROM Manager (and ROM Manager Premium License), for instance. I don't know if the Market issue will arise the same.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

Another idea is to try and refund the money through Google Play after purchase but at this point I also don't know yet if this will stop further updates or not. Probably it will....

Yes, refund cancel the updates (generally).

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

A completely different idea is not sending the pro version to testers at all, but instead donate the first month's income of AdbToggle to xda developers. I'm using the App Quarantine user base (16K active users) to promote my own apps. For App Quarantine Pro this has been roughly 60 Euro in the first month so I guess with AdbToggle I'd be able to submit a fair amount as well...

I'd liked the idea of App Quarantine, but I bought recently Ultimate Backup Pro and it does freeze/defrost app.

new version 0.9.3

- removed widget background/border kind of thing
- make sure app is revived after it's been killed
- update widget state during automatic toggle

Originally Posted by Technical

I cannot update it using Google Play. It's not shown there.

It really should be there. Please check again. Otherwise try to restart market, clear cache or reboot your phone. But I see no reason why it should not be available for you....

Originally Posted by Technical

I understand... Some app works with a "license" apk for another (free) apk. I can remember of ROM Manager (and ROM Manager Premium License), for instance. I don't know if the Market issue will arise the same.

yet another possible option. I hate that you have to install two APKs to make the app run, however it might be one of the easiest solutions. Well, I still have left some weeks to figure out the best solution!

Originally Posted by Technical

I'd liked the idea of App Quarantine, but I bought recently Ultimate Backup Pro and it does freeze/defrost app.

Everyone as he prefers Though AQ's sole purpose is to freeze apps and therefore it also offers more unique features than traditional System app removers or Backup tools.

I received a crash report with a comment "Changed to AOKP 28 and App crashed."

Can the guy who sent the report please give me more details....

- did you flash a new ROM without clearing Dalvik cache? are other apps crashing too?

- is AdbToggle still installed on the system partition?

- what were you exactly doing when it crashed?

new release 0.9.4

- fixed bug when widget stopped working after some time
- fixed crash in license info dialog on Android 2.x
- allow other apps to use AdbToggle (see App Quarantine)
- generally improved stability


Final two weeks of beta test!!!

When the beta test is over then the free version will still be available, however the automatic mode will only work in the paid version.

All testers who submit(ted) reports in this thread will receive the pro version.

AdbToggle now allows other apps to enable/disable USB debugging mode. This is already working with App Quarantine.
A free SDK will soon be available so other developers can add support as well!

Well seems to be a must have, as I often forgot to deactivate USB debugging when I'm finished with it. I tested it on my Samsung Galaxy S2 (GT-I9100).

So first, installation from Play, and installed fine as system app (don't needed the install of busybox as CF-ROOT for Galaxy S2 includes it). And next the testing :

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

1. Unplug your phone from your PC and turn of the screen. When you connect it you'll see the lock screen but USB debug mode is disabled. You can recognize this as the USB debug notification will not popup. You can verify this by typing "adb devices" from your PC and no device should be visible. Now unlock your screen and USB debug mode will be enabled.

Works.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

2. Turn your screen off and on again. The lock screen appears but USB debug mode is still enabled. Why? You are still connected to your PC so it's rather impossible that someone took away your phone. Also when your screen goes off you probably don't want to loose your USB connection when you are working on something...

Works.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

3. Unplug your phone from your PC and plug it in again. USB debug mode is still enabled. Why? Your screen is still unlocked. Again it's rather unlikely that someone took away your phone during this time. Actually what really happens is that USB debug mode is disabled when you unplug it, but it's enabled when you plug it in again and AdbToggle figures out your screen is unlocked...

Works.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

4. Reboot your phone and verify if everything is still working fine without manually launching the app.

Works.

Further test cases

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

You should check if AdbToggle is still working after an update! As the beta test goes on probably there will be one or another update. You should be able to install the update through Google Play as usual and the new version should be working immediately. You must NOT reboot and NOT install the updated version as system application again. So at this point AdbToggle should just behave the same like your built in Google apps.

Not yet tested. No update since installed, this morning, will wait on next update to report.

Originally Posted by ramdroid77

What about the UI? Does everything show up well on your phone? Is the Android always blue when USB debug mode is on, and gray when it's off? Does the widget always show the proper state as well?

The UI is all fine, nothing is lost.
The droid is always blue and grey according to the situation, between reboots, disconnecting and ticking in the settings, tested different cases.
Widget seems ok too.

No crash to report, all fine after testing for the moment. This shows that beta will end soon, as there is nothing to report.