[APP][ROOT/NONROOT][OFFICIAL] AdAway v6.1.1

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osm0sis

Senior Recognized Developer / Contributor
Mar 14, 2012
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So you determined that it was an app issue or a block list problem?

I had been just using my own custom block list until now,


but even that is resulting in the issue.

I've been across several phones and updated with all of the security patches for the last three years, but this is the first time I've encountered the problem.

I had to uninstall for now, but man do I hate how intrusive mobile ads are. This is the first time I've been without AdAway in a long time. I didn't realize how bad the mobile experience is without it.
Neither. Like I said, it was a ROM issue from upstream CAF that the ROM developers had to hack around. Once that was fixed everything worked fine. I only ever used AdAway default lists but I don't think AdAway had anything to do with it in my case.
 
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joefuf

Senior Member
Jun 22, 2010
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Ok (sorry p6p hasn't gotten march yet so i might be less helpful til rumored march 20)
In chat setting does it say connected. I assume you've not changed phone numbers or sims. Do you have fall back to sms mms turned on (it was default off when i momentarily switched to messages).
I assume you've turned chat off and on. And i assume when you rolled magisk back you also turned back the kernal boot. Running out of troubleshooting tbh.
Yeah, it says RCS is connected in Google Messages. Never changed my phone number or SIM card. I can fall back to SMS/MMS, but then I have to turn off/on RCS and disable AdAway to try to get RCS to reengage again.

When I rolled back Magisk, I just uninstalled Magisk, reinstalled the 25206 apk, patched and reflashed the init_boot.img, and I was good with modules again.

I've read about this RCS disable feature, but I have never used it or needed to use it


Not sure if that's what needs to be done or if that is for something else entirely. My old P6P is long gone.

I think that AdAway v6.0.3 maybe checks if it was granted root - if yes, then it does not prompt to choose root or non-root

When you uninstall AdAway, it also wipes its Data but the root grant nevertheless remains in Magisk db

Hence wipe AdAway Data or uninstall AdAway, but then additionaly open Superuser list in Magisk and remove AdAway

Then (install and) configure AdAway again, it should prompt then for root or non-root mode
Interestingly, I went through all of these steps with 6.0.3 installed, and after I wiped storage on the AdAway app (even before I uninstalled the app), it disappeared from the Superuser section of Magisk, so there was nothing to toggle off. I uninstalled again, reinstalled, and it still doesn't prompt for root or non-root. Just skips into the root app upon open and prompts for root permissions.
 

joefuf

Senior Member
Jun 22, 2010
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I note that messages was recently updated

have you tried adaway enabled older version of messages?
Have not. I'm on the beta of Google Messages, so my app gets updates like every other day.

I'm a little hesitant to try that kind of troubleshooting. Without going into it, I have like 20gb of texts on my phone, backing up and restoring everything going back to like 2013 every time I wipe or get a new phone. So Messages will have to cache it all which takes a few hours after a roll back.

I can live with the VPN version for now. Would like to know how to clear user data to get 6.0.3. if the March update comes out for other phones in the next few weeks and it becomes and issue, then I suppose that'll be our answer. If it's still just me, then I guess I'll have to try a new Messages app.
 

joefuf

Senior Member
Jun 22, 2010
325
40
Does it do this on stable? I had no idea you were on beta. I'd look at the change log since you upgraded to android's march 2023 to see if the problem reveals itself.
I'm pretty technical, but even looking at the March 2023 Security Bulletin, I don't really know what I'd be looking for to determine if there's anything in there that might have caused a conflict with Messages/RCS and AdAway.


If there's a changelog for Messages Beta releases, I'm not aware of it.

Strangely, when I woke up today and several times throughout the day, AdAway 6.0.1 running VPN mode with the latest Messages Beta installed started having the same issue. I couldn't send or receive RCS messages. Had to disable the AdAway app to get anything through.

I unenrolled from Beta for the stable version. Currently have messages.android_20230220_00_RC03.phone_dynamic installed. With the same 6.0.1 VPN version, I'm have the same issue. This version was released on March 7, so that predates the release of the March 2023 Pixel update.

Any other ideas?
 

ipdev

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Feb 14, 2016
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I'm pretty technical, but even looking at the March 2023 Security Bulletin, I don't really know what I'd be looking for to determine if there's anything in there that might have caused a conflict with Messages/RCS and AdAway.


If there's a changelog for Messages Beta releases, I'm not aware of it.

Strangely, when I woke up today and several times throughout the day, AdAway 6.0.1 running VPN mode with the latest Messages Beta installed started having the same issue. I couldn't send or receive RCS messages. Had to disable the AdAway app to get anything through.

I unenrolled from Beta for the stable version. Currently have messages.android_20230220_00_RC03.phone_dynamic installed. With the same 6.0.1 VPN version, I'm have the same issue. This version was released on March 7, so that predates the release of the March 2023 Pixel update.

Any other ideas?
Using VPN mode, every now and then, I will notice something is not running correctly.
Mostly when switching between WiFi and Mobile Data.

For the lack of a better description, it is like AdAway VPN stalls.

When it happens, I normally just toggle AdAway off and on.

I do not recall if I had/have issues with Messages (Beta).
Phone (Beta), voice mail sync would sometimes be affected.

Sorry to say I have not had time to investigate and grab logs to make a report about it. 😓

Cheers. :cowboy:
 

joefuf

Senior Member
Jun 22, 2010
325
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Using VPN mode, every now and then, I will notice something is not running correctly.
Mostly when switching between WiFi and Mobile Data.

For the lack of a better description, it is like AdAway VPN stalls.
Good thought, but no similarity here. I rarely turn on WiFi. Left VPN on longer today and experienced the issue again on stable Messages.
 
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joefuf

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Jun 22, 2010
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Alright, now I'm back to absolve AdAway. I have no idea what's going on here...

I uninstalled AdAway last night and reflashed the March 2023 Pixel update. Left my phone unrooted overnight, and it was still able to send RCS messages in the morning.

Rooted before breakfast with Magisk 25206 which is the version I installed when I first got this Pixel 7 Pro at the end of February. Still haven't reinstalled AdAway, but I am experiencing the same RCS message issue again. Using stable Google Messages too, not even Beta.

Everything had worked fine on it for the two weeks or so before the March update, AdAway v6.0.3 included. I had the same difficulty with modules not working on Magisk 25210 that everyone else did, so I uninstalled Magisk and rolled back to 25206. In that process of not knowing why my modules weren't working, I had Magisk 25210 patch and flashed the boot.img which I now know is unnecessary, but I also reflashed the stock boot.img after the fact.

So now I'm back to square one without a culprit. Despite being on what I thought was good footing, I started experiencing that "Not sent. Tap for options" issue with RCS in Google Messages. I suppose I can try to wipe my phone and reflash the March 2023 update, but that's going to take all damn day to backup and restore my SMS messages. Hate having to do that and reserve full wipes for major issues.

I know it's now unrelated from the thread topic, but if anyone has any additional ideas or thoughts, I would appreciate the help. I'm stumped.
 
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Nergal di Cuthah

Senior Member
Sep 20, 2013
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Alright, now I'm back to absolve AdAway. I have no idea what's going on here...

I uninstalled AdAway last night and reflashed the March 2023 Pixel update. Left my phone unrooted overnight, and it was still able to send RCS messages in the morning.

Rooted before breakfast with Magisk 25206 which is the version I installed when I first got this Pixel 7 Pro at the end of February. Still haven't reinstalled AdAway, but I am experiencing the same RCS message issue again. Using stable Google Messages too, not even Beta.

Everything had worked fine on it for the two weeks or so before the March update, AdAway v6.0.3 included. I had the same difficulty with modules not working on Magisk 25210 that everyone else did, so I uninstalled Magisk and rolled back to 25206. In that process of not knowing why my modules weren't working, I had Magisk 25210 patch and flashed the boot.img which I now know is unnecessary, but I also reflashed the stock boot.img after the fact.

So now I'm back to square one without a culprit. Despite being on what I thought was good footing, I started experiencing that "Not sent. Tap for options" issue with RCS in Google Messages. I suppose I can try to wipe my phone and reflash the March 2023 update, but that's going to take all damn day to backup and restore my SMS messages. Hate having to do that and reserve full wipes for major issues.

I know it's now unrelated from the thread topic, but if anyone has any additional ideas or thoughts, I would appreciate the help. I'm stumped.
What mods do you have, or better yet (since it sounds like something root is at fault) start a thread in thr magisk or p7p board and link me and I'll try to continue helping as i can.
 
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joefuf

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Jun 22, 2010
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What mods do you have, or better yet (since it sounds like something root is at fault) start a thread in thr magisk or p7 board and link me and I'll try to continue helping as i can.
You're probably right that it's something related to root. I'm headed on the road for a week, and I'll be without a PC. I don't want to struggle with this and not be able to do anything about it, so I'm just going to bite the bullet and factory reset tonight. If I don't succeed, I'll make a post. Very much appreciate the offer of assistance. Googling around, I realized how few resources there are these days compared to when rooting, ROMing, and modding used to be more commonplace.
 

zgfg

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Oct 10, 2016
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Xiaomi Mi 11
Alright, now I'm back to absolve AdAway. I have no idea what's going on here...

I uninstalled AdAway last night and reflashed the March 2023 Pixel update. Left my phone unrooted overnight, and it was still able to send RCS messages in the morning.

Rooted before breakfast with Magisk 25206 which is the version I installed when I first got this Pixel 7 Pro at the end of February. Still haven't reinstalled AdAway, but I am experiencing the same RCS message issue again. Using stable Google Messages too, not even Beta.

Everything had worked fine on it for the two weeks or so before the March update, AdAway v6.0.3 included. I had the same difficulty with modules not working on Magisk 25210 that everyone else did, so I uninstalled Magisk and rolled back to 25206. In that process of not knowing why my modules weren't working, I had Magisk 25210 patch and flashed the boot.img which I now know is unnecessary, but I also reflashed the stock boot.img after the fact.

So now I'm back to square one without a culprit. Despite being on what I thought was good footing, I started experiencing that "Not sent. Tap for options" issue with RCS in Google Messages. I suppose I can try to wipe my phone and reflash the March 2023 update, but that's going to take all damn day to backup and restore my SMS messages. Hate having to do that and reserve full wipes for major issues.

I know it's now unrelated from the thread topic, but if anyone has any additional ideas or thoughts, I would appreciate the help. I'm stumped.
Sorry, I cannot help you with RCS messages (not using) but I'm curious about your saga

Could you please clarify:

1) Are you using AdAway in the root mode?
If you go with a root file explorer like MiXPlorer and open /system/etc/hosts and /etc/hosts files, are them large ones with thousands of lines and do you read on top that they are patched by AdAway?

2) Blocking ads does work or not for you?

3) If you pause AdAway (main screen, button on the bottom in the middle) - AdAway screen will change the colour - and upon you reboot, do you still have problems with RCS

This last one is not related to RCS but if blocking ads generally don't work for you:

4) Do you maybe have a (textual) file like /etc/nsswitch.conf on your phone?
Or you could find a similar config file (in that folder?!) - file that defines the order of precedence in resolving hostnames, like:
hosts: files DNS
or
hosts: DNS files


PS, Test by putting native Private DNS to both, Auto or Off
 
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zgfg

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Oct 10, 2016
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Xiaomi Mi 11
Btw, is your Private DNS set to Off (not sure would it help but nevertheless)
First I thought that I got crazy but I've retested back and forth several times, on WLAN and Mobile Network:

1) Starting point:
My Systemless Hosts + AdAway working, ads are properly blocked, eg I cannot open ads.google.com.
I use Chrome

2) I keep AdAway as is, and I just open the native Private DNS setting and switch it from Auto to Off (!)

Few seconds later, my Chrome starts showing the ads elsewhere and ads.google.com page now opens?!

3) I switch Private DNS back to Auto, and Chrome starts again properly blocking the ads

MIUI 13/A12,
Chrome 111.0.5563.58

---

On my another phone
MIUI 12.5/A11
Chrome 111.0.5563.57 (PlayStore does not notify to update Chrome)

I cannot 'reproduce', no matter if Private DNS is Auto or Off, ads are always properly blocked

My phones have different versions of Magisk (Delta vs Canary), but since the /etc/hosts file is properly patched by AdAway, it shouldn't matter

Hence I suggest to those who claim that they cannot get ads blocked (although Systemless hosts + AdAway are properly enabled and configured), to test with Private DNS Auto (and Off, back and forth)

---

Of course, if you set Private DNS to dns.adguard-dns.com, then you don't need AdAway anymore (but you could no more reconfigure Blocked and Allowed lists at your will) since AdGuard DNS will block you ads
 
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zgfg

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Xiaomi Mi 11
How should new users configure Chrome for AdAway?

From AdAway app, link to GitHub yields to:

There, for more info, GitHub directs to the AdAway site:

Scrolling down there opens FAQ section.
It instructs to disable Data Compressor Proxy - but the link opens Google Chrome Help:

where it notes that Lite mode was no more supported since the end of March, 2022

Is this Lite mode the same as disabling Data Compression Proxy?

I tried to search on Internet both for the Lite mode and Data Compression Proxy but whatever the various guides say, my current Chrome settings look different and don't offer the required option(s),?!

0n the other side, the last time when I Factory reset my phone was around the end of Aug 2022.
I don't remember how exactly I had to reconfigure the Chrome at that time, but since then the ads in my Chrome are successfully blocked
 
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DRatJr

Senior Member
Having a bit of trouble and didn't know if anyone else was. It keeps saying this:

Screenshot_20230322-104024.png



Was using Adaway just fine on my P6Pro. It was rooted and blocking just fine. Then out of the blue it stopped working. I tried removing and readding sysemless hosts module, uninstalling and reinstalling most current version (6.0.3) etc.

Now I have wiped my phone and gotten it at a fresh start. I rooted it, installed magisk, enabled systemless hosts module, rebooted, installed aday, and will the same issue.

This is the device info:
Pixel 6 Pro
Stock Rooted
Magisk 25.2 (25200)
Build Number: TQ2A.230305.008.E1

Other apps were having similar issues, such as revanced not being able to allocate space to patch an app. I thought the two would be related, but revanced no longer has the issue, only adaway. Any help would be super appreciated.

UPDATE: It seems to work with this version AdAway-dev-220513.zip. I uninstalled previous, installed this, and it worked just fine. I'm guessing then it may be on the app's side and not mine?
 
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joefuf

Senior Member
Jun 22, 2010
325
40
Sorry, I cannot help you with RCS messages (not using) but I'm curious about your saga

Could you please clarify:

1) Are you using AdAway in the root mode?
If you go with a root file explorer like MiXPlorer and open /system/etc/hosts and /etc/hosts files, are them large ones with thousands of lines and do you read on top that they are patched by AdAway?

2) Blocking ads does work or not for you?

3) If you pause AdAway (main screen, button on the bottom in the middle) - AdAway screen will change the colour - and upon you reboot, do you still have problems with RCS

This last one is not related to RCS but if blocking ads generally don't work for you:

4) Do you maybe have a (textual) file like /etc/nsswitch.conf on your phone?
Or you could find a similar config file (in that folder?!) - file that defines the order of precedence in resolving hostnames, like:
hosts: files DNS
or
hosts: DNS files


PS, Test by putting native Private DNS to both, Auto or Off
Sorry, I had a busy few days.

I took the time to backup and wipe my Pixel 7 Pro, flashing the March 2023 update to my phone with the Google tool. I think I ended up doing this like four times for various reasons.

Today, as I was preparing to leave for a week away from home, I had been texting P2 just fine for the last few hours after restoring Magisk and AdAway (root) when I just had this feeling... And yup, RCS was broken again.

So I disabled AdAway, waited a bit, and that didn't help so I had to reboot. It happened again, so I removed Systemless Hosts from Magisk and uninstalled AdAway. So far, I have been okay.

Now, I am suspecting that something in the March 2023 Security Update plus Systemless Hosts module from Magisk is the culprit. I nuked this thing so cleanly and multiple times, so I see no way that it can't not be a result of something I am doing.

The only modules that I have are
1. Debloat v17.3.3 by veez21
2. Systemless Hosts directly from Magisk
3. Universal SafetyNet Fix v2.4.0 by kdrag0n

I was able to tell that AdAway was affecting my Hosts file when I had it enabled. It was successfully blocking ads. I do not have a /etc/nsswitch.conf file on my phone.

I tried to use a throwback solution and downloaded DNS66, but that seemed to crash or something on my phone because after loading my block list and opening an app of any kind that used internet, I got "Reconfiguration Error" and I couldn't do anything in the app when I reopen it; it's just frozen.

At one point, before reflashing, I was able to get AdAway v6.0.3 to allow me to choose VPN even though it was root from the initial install, but I can't seem to retrigger that. I thought it was after removing Systemless Hosts or disabling the module but not removing it, but now that's not helping. Just goes into the root format and doesn't function because it doesn't have the necessary components. And denying it root permissions doesn't do it either.

Has anyone else updated to the Pixel March 2023 security update on their phone yet? Not sure how small of a population there is here and how many of that population has Pixel phones. Still, after everything was working just fine for so long across so many devices, I'm surprised I am the only one having issues. Can't seem to find any other reports of the "Not sent. Tap for options" error with RCS in the wild.
 
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Nergal di Cuthah

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Sep 20, 2013
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Google Pixel 6 Pro
You could try the more up to date displax mod of usnf (2.4.0 mod 1.2) and make sure you've denylisted messages

Is it possible that an app that's needed got debloated (spitballing again sorry, i do have the update now but dont know anyone i could rcs with. I guess you could pm me your number but that's probably a no no on xda (and kinda a no no personally).
 
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joefuf

Senior Member
Jun 22, 2010
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You could try the more up to date displax mod of usnf (2.4.0 mod 1.2) and make sure you've denylisted messages

Is it possible that an app that's needed got debloated (spitballing again sorry, i do have the update now but dont know anyone i could rcs with. I guess you could pm me your number but that's probably a no no on xda (and kinda a no no personally).
I can do without Universal SafetyNet Fix realistically. It's just for Google Pay which I hardly ever use because I don't like having any PIN/Pattern lock on my screen. I'm too trusting and prefer just being able to swipe up without even looking to unlock my phone. It's currently uninstalled and I've been fine. Now that I think about it, I guess I haven't tried that combo, so maybe I will try to run AdAway again and see if it is okay as long as Universal SafetyNet Fix is gone.

Forgot to mention Debloat in my post, but all I removed was Google stuff - YouTube, YouTube Music, Google TV, GMail, and Google Fi. I'm on Verizon. Never had an issue with that, and I've been using it since like ~2018 if I had to guess.

I'll go one more A/B test round with this config before I start bugging you by texting you every thirty minutes, haha. Appreciate the offer.
 

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  • 1
    Non root uses VPN, hence make sure you don't run another VPN in parallel
    If it helps, an example of that mistake of trying to run (non-rootable) two VPNs at a time would be to try to use both of these at the same time.

    AdAway (non-root system-wide hosts-based ad blocking)
    NetGuard (non-root system-wide hosts-based ad blocking)
    adblocker_netguard_vpn.jpg
    1
    I've been using the app for many years now, but have had massive problems in the last few weeks. Latest Android 14 with February patches. Network connection suddenly stops working after a while and only works again after manually stopping/starting the app. Notifications are not delivered. Restarting / reinstalling or updating the sources only fixes the problem temporarily. Problem occurs on several devices.

    Found some Bug reports on devs github, but no solution.

    Non-rooted Devices...
    1
    So what do you suggest for 'not rooted' devices?
    For developers to fix it?

    Tik Tok has connection problems...
    Screenshot_2024-02-28-20-36-58-088_com.zhiliaoapp.musically.jpg
    1
    1. Yesterday I installed AdAway and set it up as my VPN app.
    2. Today I installed an app that SAID it has no ads but it has ads.
    • <ht tps://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.quantum.updater>
    AdAway does NOT block those ads.
    • AdAway doesn't block the full-page ads
    • AdAway doesn't block the bar ads
    Why not?
    What did I do wrong in my setup?
    1
    Do it by logDNS. Check the Wiki:

    Start the log and open your preferred site.
    Whitelist what has to be whitelisted.
    Followed the guide. It's simple enough until I try to find the hostname I am supposed to white list - there are probably 50 entries just clicking on one article. Plus the names don't give any clue what they are related to. I tried white-listing about a dozen different entries but none allowed the comments to be read. At this point it's still easier to turn off Adaway and scroll the articles then turn it back on when I'm done.

    Thanks for the guide though.
  • 3363
    icon.png
    AdAway

    AdAway is an open source ad blocker for Android using the hosts file.


    Google Play Store notice

    According the Google Play Developer Policy, especially the "Device and Network Abuse" section, ad blocker like AdAway violates the "Apps that block or interfere with another app displaying ads." rule and can't be distributed on distributed on the Play Store.
    As Free and Open Source Software, AdAway is available from F-Droid Store or this XDA thread :good:


    Requirements

    This application requires Android 8 or above and does no more require root.

    For older Android versions, a rooted device is required.


    Changelog

    If you don't want to read each announce post of this thread, you can:


    Downloads

    Stable versions are available on GitHub releases and F-Droid Store:
    Beta versions are available on GitHub releases only: AdAway 6.0.2b

    The app provides an in-app updater for both GitHub and F-Droid builds.
    Keep in mind beta channel is limited to GitHub builds, and F-Droid releases usually have a several days latency.


    Problem? Read this

    * If you use Chrome and still see ads on web pages, remember to disable the "data saver" or "reduced data usage" browser option.
    * Check your APN settings for any proxy, the proxy itself could be allowing ads. Disable the proxy.
    * After you install or make any change to AdAway, you must reboot for those changes to take effect.
    * If you are still having issues please read and understand all the info in the wiki before asking for help here.

    Otherwise, this is the right thread to discuss about it or file a bug report here.


    Contributors

    PerfectSlayer, Vankog, jawz101
    Source Code: https://github.com/AdAway/AdAway
    170
    Hi all,

    A new year is coming and I wish you all to have nice holidays :victory:

    Just few words about this ending year. There was about 12 releases in 2019 which brings you a new UI, a lot of bug fixes, Android 10 support, Gist and GitLab hosting support and better Magisk support.
    All of this is possible thanks to the community to help users to discover the app, learn how to use it and report any new bug and also your moral, nice words and thanks you can send to me, and financial support.
    Thanks a lot for all donators, GitHub sponsor and the Pixel 2 you sent me to test Android 10 support.

    For the next year, I hope to release the next version (V5), at least in beta to start. It's been 9 months since its first lines of code and things are working quite nicely.
    It aims to make the app simpler to use for the main use cases, support rooted and non rooted devices and remove old hacks/workaround which are no more needed on recent setups.

    But before this big next update, I still have time to fix current issue with a new release :p

    Changelog:
    • Fix GitLab hosting support (commit date parsing failed)
    • Translation update

    Thanks:

    Special thanks to @gallegonovato for its helpful bug report and @Vankog for translation update.

    Download:

    AdAway 4.3.2 on AndroidFileHost (md5: 78fde09a0e92044c45e901bb1cec8e2e)
    159
    Hi all,

    Long time no see! It's been more than two months since the last update.
    I can't say I was not active on the project as I start working on a new version (5.x.y) as a side project.
    I won't share the source code yet as it is not ready at all and I don't want to give an ETA but this new version targets the following goals:
    • 1. Revamp the UI
    • 2. Clean up old support
    • 3. Address one of the main drawback of the app

    1. The card based UI does not feel right. Welcome card takes too much space, update button / status has a lot of critic. I guess I can do better.
    I started a new simpler and lighter design which provide the most useful information on home screen and all main actions to trigger in one tap (no more burger menu).
    It is still under heavy development but I hopefully get a friend onboard, specialized in graphics and design, to help me :highfive:

    2. In order to simplify the development, I clean up the app and remove support for old features.
    I bump target SDK version so I finally get Java 8 language feature (it was released 5y ago…) and move to topjohnwu root library (instead of home made one). It means systemless support is now handled by Magisk and other root solutions will still work.

    3. Think of what prevent most of users to use AdAway? Now it's gone!
    It's not gone forever. It's still here but there will be a fallback to workaround it.
    I won't tell more until the first public beta but I guess you get the point :fingers-crossed:

    In the meanwhile, here is a new version!

    Feedback:

    Is anyone using a hosts list hosted on Gitlab? It keeps showing "Unknown update status".
    GitLab, like GitHub do not set LastModified HTTP header so update status is not supported... yet!

    Changelog:
    • Add Gist and GitLab hosting support for hosts file
    • Add option to set default IPv6 redirection
    • Improve reboot command
    • Improve UI for overlays
    • Update translations

    Thanks:

    Special thanks to @MSF Jarvis and ralayax for theirs contributions and @andy356 for its helpful bug report.

    Download:

    AdAway 4.2.5 on AndroidFileHost (md5: ab81225745afaaa7646024109de299c0)
    148
    Hi all,

    Feedback:

    Hmm, not working for me for this URL, v4.1.0 shows something like not updated in -360 days (some large negative value). Can you please see if you can reproduce?
    https://raw.githubusercontent.com/StevenBlack/hosts/master/alternates/fakenews-gambling-porn/hosts
    It works well here. I failed to reproduce as I change the HTTP client library and how I use it.
    But update date for the source you link definitely works now.

    All the F-Droid apps I know of have manual push updates to the store.

    Isn't automatic build basically for nightlies?
    Not really. You could choose a lot of different mode.
    For example, F-Droid server watches AdAway GitHub repository to find tags which match a specific versioning pattern.

    I exist still... do you know what i have to do to transfer ownership? if i edit project it doesn't let me change the primary author so i assume i have to PM some higher up to make this happen?
    Thank you so much! :highfive:

    This is now done, @PerfectSlayer is the OP of this thread.
    Thank you too!


    Changelog:
    • Add hosts source download cache
    • Add snackbar notification to update host from DNS request listing
    • Update UI from Material Design to Material Theming
    • Update gradle, plugins and dependencies
    • Fix crash parsing not defined host source last modified date
    • Fix native modules build script (required for F-Droid build server)
    • Fix Transifex issues

    Thanks:

    Special thanks to all recent donators! Your help is really appreciated :good:

    Download:

    AdAway 4.2.0 on AndroidFileHost (md5: 023169e7c345ef7297095793024f8478)
    144
    Hi all,

    I talked enough about it the past weeks and here it is: the first beta for the next version of AdAway.
    As you know, the main feature is the removal of root requirement but it also comes with a lot of improvements like an easier to use UI, a builtin updater, new cache and databases to improve reliability or even a quick pause/resume adblocking button that 3rd party apps can control.

    It took me literally a year and 330+ commits to build it (the first commit of this branch was April the 7th) and I hope it will be worth it.
    It should allow the app to be viable in the future with root being more and more difficult to achieve at each new Android release and Google hardening SafetyNet checks.

    I will try to answer to the most expected questions here so you still can post a link to this FAQ later to lost users.

    FAQ:

    Does this version replace the v4.x versions?
    No. This is still a preview version and does not replace the stable one.
    It is available to test it and report issues and feedback before being promoted to stable.

    Can I upgrade and revert safely?
    Yes. Both v4 and v5 use the same settings export format.

    Why does this version targets Android 8+ Oreo only?
    Like the v4, v5 is expected to offer support for latest devices.
    Android 8 and above represent more than 60% of device distribution and will grew through time.
    If you use an older device, root solutions work very well and v4 is here for you (like v2 and v3 stayed for legacy devices).

    How the hell does it work without root?
    This version provides two adblocking methods: the usual root one using hosts file and a new one using local VPN.
    The VPN solution allows to filter and alter connections of your devices without root access.

    Is using a VPN safe?
    In the case of AdAway, yes. It uses VPN API but does not connect to a VPN server.
    In the case of VPN client app, it depends.
    To give you more details, a VPN client app uses the VPN API to create a virtual network interface on your device and redirect all your traffic into it.
    If you imaginge the VPN like a pipe (the right word is tunnel), client VPN app outputs all your traffic on a VPN server which is able to check what you are doing on the Internet.
    With AdAway, your network is not redirected to a VPN server but your device internet connection (same as no VPN). VPN API is only used to get traffic into it to break the connections to ad servers.

    Is VPN use battery?
    Yes, like everything you do on device.
    Witouth root, a VPN service will be running permanently to filter your traffic.
    Good news is it will only filter DNS traffic. Not all traffic is redirected into it so it won't be as expensive as you can fear.

    Did you come up with this idea alone?
    Absolutely not! I spent a lot of hours trying to find altenatives to hosts based adblocking (like routes or private DNS). But nothing was better than VPN based adblocking.
    So we (MrRobinson and I) approched Julian Klode, developer of DNS66 more than three years ago to see if we can merge our apps. It wasn't that easy as we don't develop our apps the same way so I ended up by integrating the DNS66 adblocking method into AdAway. It is fine for Julian, his app is Open Source and he himself built it from the core code of AdBuster app (an VPN based adblocking app).

    Should we stop using DNS66 for AdAway?
    Not at all. DNS66 is a great app and provides some features that AdAway doesn't have (yet?), like DNS settings.
    DNS66 is a great app, keep using it if you like it!
    If both apps used the same adblocking method a year ago when I start this version, I keep adding feature to the VPN adblocking method and most of them won't be in DNS66.
    If Julian ports them back to DNS66, it's great if it can help his app and users!

    Is it me or the app put on weight?
    Yes, the app significantly grew due to new libraries like VPN related ones and Android Jetpack.
    It also stores more data on device: a http cache, a host database, a hosts copy, etc...
    I think 15~20mo of storage is still fine.

    Changelog:

    Without further ado, check the summarized changelog (it was hard to summarize a one year development)

    • Add new home screen
      • Provides all main controls from one screen
      • Displays currently blocked, allowed and redirected domains
      • Displays current hosts sources status and control to force apply
    • Add non root ad-blocking feature
      • Uses a builtin local VPN to filter DNS request to blocked domains
      • Based on the work of dns66 by julian-klode
      • Allows to excluded system applications and per user applications
    • Add builtin updater with changelog display
    • Add feature to quickly pause and resume ad-blocking
    • Add wizard screen for first run setup
    • Add feature to display and filter all blocked, allowed, redirect domains
    • Improve preferences screen
    • Add broadcast receiver to control ad-blocking from third party applications
    • Update Android target to Android 10
    • Improve root and shell support
    • Split translation files to easier understand their context
    • Add GitHub action test and build tasks

    Download:

    AdAway 5.0.0 beta (sha2: 200fd7789b174735d3af5925b4e568b09475bb3f39a79d24d6617af4b19cd19d)

    If you like my work, feel free to support me. Check my sign for donation links. Thanks all! :highfive: