(NO ROOTING REQUIRED. Secure Settings will encourage you to root but skip that, its not neccessary for this trick to work)
I know many, like me that is annoyed that you are FORCED to have a PIN/pattern/password lock when you use secure credentials to manage your VPN connections, and saved passwords for websites and such.
Here is the solution. It requires you to buy a specific app on market, the app is not mine, and is rather expensive, but the app is very useful for other purposes too so its really worth the money.
1: You need to gather these apps:
Secure Settings: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.intangibleobject.securesettings.plugin (FREE)
Tasker: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.dinglisch.android.taskerm (6$)
When you're done buying Tasker and downloading Secure Settings, do this:
Enable Device admin for Secure Settings (Settings-->Security-->Device Administrators-->check "Secure Settings").
Initalize data storage. Set the pin to 0000
To initalize data storage, you can set up a VPN connection or save a password. Data storage is successfully initalized, when you no longer can disable PIN protection. (When the topmost 3 alternatives are greyed out). If you still can disable these, data storage is not initalized and is empty.
Now go to Tasker, and set up this:
Tasks -> (+) -> name: "boot"
Add Task: Task->Wait. Set Delay to 30 seconds
Add Task: Plugins->Secure Settings. Edit. Then set Password/PIN to ENABLED, pick the radio button "Pin Code", enter the PIN 0000 in both boxes.
Add Task: Task->Wait. Set Delay to 5 seconds
Add Task: Plugins->Secure Settings. Edit. Then set Password/PIN to DISABLED.
Save the task.
Now go to Profiles, name the profile "boot", select Events->System->Device boot.
Pick the task "boot".
Save, enable tasker - done.
Reboot your phone
NOTE: The device needs about 1-2 minutes to decrypt your saved credentials at boot, during this time, attempting to access VPN settings or saved password will render a password dialog. Just cancel the dialog and wait a little bit more.
The reason you need to set a PIN to 0000 before clearing it, is so Secure Settings can save your current PIN in memory, else it wont decrypt secure storage. It takes some seconds to commit the PIN set, why you need to wait 5 seconds before clearing the PIN. When you clear the PIN after this, Secure Settings will also decrypt your Secure Storage.
The reason of waiting 30 seconds at boot is because Android is extremely busy at startup, so task executing the first 30 seconds isnt reliable, so you need to wait a little before doing anything.
Enjoy your PIN-free, Pattern free, Password free lockscreen on your VPN enabled device with saved website passwords.
(NOTE to android developers: I Really hope you do NOT do anything to this. If the user want to have unsecured credentials storage, let them have. The setup here is pretty complicated so its nothing you do at mistake and then think your phone is protected. Its not a loophole either because you need to know the current PIN/Password to set up this)
I know many, like me that is annoyed that you are FORCED to have a PIN/pattern/password lock when you use secure credentials to manage your VPN connections, and saved passwords for websites and such.
Here is the solution. It requires you to buy a specific app on market, the app is not mine, and is rather expensive, but the app is very useful for other purposes too so its really worth the money.
1: You need to gather these apps:
Secure Settings: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.intangibleobject.securesettings.plugin (FREE)
Tasker: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.dinglisch.android.taskerm (6$)
When you're done buying Tasker and downloading Secure Settings, do this:
Enable Device admin for Secure Settings (Settings-->Security-->Device Administrators-->check "Secure Settings").
Initalize data storage. Set the pin to 0000
To initalize data storage, you can set up a VPN connection or save a password. Data storage is successfully initalized, when you no longer can disable PIN protection. (When the topmost 3 alternatives are greyed out). If you still can disable these, data storage is not initalized and is empty.
Now go to Tasker, and set up this:
Tasks -> (+) -> name: "boot"
Add Task: Task->Wait. Set Delay to 30 seconds
Add Task: Plugins->Secure Settings. Edit. Then set Password/PIN to ENABLED, pick the radio button "Pin Code", enter the PIN 0000 in both boxes.
Add Task: Task->Wait. Set Delay to 5 seconds
Add Task: Plugins->Secure Settings. Edit. Then set Password/PIN to DISABLED.
Save the task.
Now go to Profiles, name the profile "boot", select Events->System->Device boot.
Pick the task "boot".
Save, enable tasker - done.
Reboot your phone
NOTE: The device needs about 1-2 minutes to decrypt your saved credentials at boot, during this time, attempting to access VPN settings or saved password will render a password dialog. Just cancel the dialog and wait a little bit more.
The reason you need to set a PIN to 0000 before clearing it, is so Secure Settings can save your current PIN in memory, else it wont decrypt secure storage. It takes some seconds to commit the PIN set, why you need to wait 5 seconds before clearing the PIN. When you clear the PIN after this, Secure Settings will also decrypt your Secure Storage.
The reason of waiting 30 seconds at boot is because Android is extremely busy at startup, so task executing the first 30 seconds isnt reliable, so you need to wait a little before doing anything.
Enjoy your PIN-free, Pattern free, Password free lockscreen on your VPN enabled device with saved website passwords.
(NOTE to android developers: I Really hope you do NOT do anything to this. If the user want to have unsecured credentials storage, let them have. The setup here is pretty complicated so its nothing you do at mistake and then think your phone is protected. Its not a loophole either because you need to know the current PIN/Password to set up this)
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