[Q] What does 'freezing' an app exactly mean?

Search This thread

kotuamoalt

Senior Member
Jun 23, 2016
210
58
OnePlus 8 Pro
Freezing the app works via decreasing the temperature of the app to roughly 50 Kelvin. At this point the the app's molecular structure becomes a super condensed crystal lattice. Due to the nature of the crystal lattice, android treats the super dense app as non existent. Essentially the app is deleted from your system completely. However, think of it not as a permanent deletion but rather a reversible one. Should you chose to 'restore' the app, you can defrost the app. You could defrost the app using a microwave but I for one use TB Pro as it does a far better job.
Your very funny technical description of the freezing process probably just cost some dummy his/her phone in a microwave. :)
 

juniecho

Senior Member
Jul 28, 2009
235
186
Seoul
old thread, but it means registering the app via the internal (android) package management system as inactive (disabled).
technically this is done by running shell command 'pm disable <package.name>'. pm will then check if the package is present, and if it is, force stop the app and mark the app completely inactive. all packages are managed by the package manager, so if package manager marks an app as inactive then the app cannot be run. however, since the app is still installed (validly) it can be found when sought by other apps, etc. and will be listed if you or an another app fetches a list of installed packages.

this is not like renaming the apk. renaming the apk will prevent the apk from being recognized by android, and that app is uninstalled completely. when you populate a list for all installed packages, it will not appear in this case.

generally it is safer to freeze(disable) the app, since it is done at user level and does not involve a write action on /system. when you factory reset your device the package database will be reset, and your app will be alive again.
 
Last edited:

Top Liked Posts

  • There are no posts matching your filters.
  • 16
    Freezing the app works via decreasing the temperature of the app to roughly 50 Kelvin. At this point the the app's molecular structure becomes a super condensed crystal lattice. Due to the nature of the crystal lattice, android treats the super dense app as non existent. Essentially the app is deleted from your system completely. However, think of it not as a permanent deletion but rather a reversible one. Should you chose to 'restore' the app, you can defrost the app. You could defrost the app using a microwave but I for one use TB Pro as it does a far better job.
    13
    so at the end is freezing and renaming the same thing? no one cleared that up, i usually just rename to BAK and thats it, what does TItanium apart from renaming?

    ok i answer myself, freezing is the same as going to app manager, and selecting DISABLE
    or from a root terminal using:
    pm disable {package_name} (e.g. # pm disable com.android.browser)

    wich calls:
    /system/bin/pm

    wich in turn contains:
    # Script to start "pm" on the device, which has a very rudimentary
    # shell.
    #
    base=/system
    export CLASSPATH=$base/framework/pm.jar
    exec app_process $base/bin com.android.commands.pm.Pm "$@"

    what it does is set a flag for a component to some of different values:
    COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DEFAULT
    COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED
    among others. (http://developer.android.com/reference/android/content/pm/PackageManager.html)

    where does it store this flag: I DONT KNOW
    is this flag a value inside some manifest/ini file? : IDK
    is this flag st in the file system? IDK
    can someone show me the light? :p

    edit: I DONT KNOW for sure but i think it stores it in : /data/system/packages.xml
    that is generated by package manager taking info fro each app manifest. i hope i am right, but dont take my word as absolute truth since it was a quick google research lol
    9
    Press THANKS

    Hi,

    what does it mean technically if an app is "freezed"? Is the APK moved to another location, or are the unix access rights altered, or is a reference to the app deleted from some kind of "registry" of the Android system, or what else? Can it be done manually by a file manager?

    Thanks,
    Stefan
    Press thanks if I helped
    Source - How TO Geek
    Manufacturers and carriers often load Android phones with their own apps. If you don’t use them, they just clutter your system and sometimes in the background, draining resources. Take control of your device and stop the bloatware.

    We’ll be focusing on disabling – also known as “freezing” bloatware here. It’s a safer process than uninstalling the bloatware completely, and is also easier to accomplish with free apps.

    Uninstalling vs. Freezing
    Uninstalling an app is exactly what it sounds like – the app is entirely removed from your device. Unfortunately, it’s not possible to get many of these preinstalled apps from the Play Store if you ever need them again. Uninstalling some preinstalled apps may result in problems or instability, so you could run into problems.

    It’s safer to “freeze” apps instead of uninstalling them. A frozen app is disabled completely – it won’t appear in your app drawer and it won’t automatically start in the background. A frozen app cannot run in any way until you “unfreeze” it. Freezing and unfreezing are instant processes, so it’s easy to undo your changes if you end up freezing a necessary app.

    If you really must uninstall apps, you should freeze them first and wait a few days to ensure that your phone or tablet works properly without them.

    You can’t uninstall or freeze preinstalled bloatware apps without root access and third-party app managers. Try and you’ll find the options grayed out in the standard Android interface.
    5
    old thread, but it means registering the app via the internal (android) package management system as inactive (disabled).
    technically this is done by running shell command 'pm disable <package.name>'. pm will then check if the package is present, and if it is, force stop the app and mark the app completely inactive. all packages are managed by the package manager, so if package manager marks an app as inactive then the app cannot be run. however, since the app is still installed (validly) it can be found when sought by other apps, etc. and will be listed if you or an another app fetches a list of installed packages.

    this is not like renaming the apk. renaming the apk will prevent the apk from being recognized by android, and that app is uninstalled completely. when you populate a list for all installed packages, it will not appear in this case.

    generally it is safer to freeze(disable) the app, since it is done at user level and does not involve a write action on /system. when you factory reset your device the package database will be reset, and your app will be alive again.
    3
    Hi,

    what does it mean technically if an app is "freezed"? Is the APK moved to another location, or are the unix access rights altered, or is a reference to the app deleted from some kind of "registry" of the Android system, or what else? Can it be done manually by a file manager?

    Thanks,
    Stefan