I'm looking for ways to use a couple of Android apps on my Linux
machines. In particular I'd like to run the Tenda smart control app
Tenda Beli and also, maybe, the Onkyo media centre control app.

Has anyone here installed Anbox on Linux and, if so, does it really
run Android apps reasonably easily?

--
Chris Green
·

Having posted step by step tutorials for _every_ known freeware Android
emulator for Windows, it's interesting to ask how "AnBox" is different.
<https://docs.anbox.io/userguide/install.html>

What makes Anbox different from other projects like Shashlik or Genimobile?
"Projects like Shashlik or Genimobile use an emulator to run the
Android environment. The emulator creates an entire emulated system
which has its own kernel etc whereas Anbox runs the Android system
under the same kernel as the host operating system does.
No emulation layer like QEMU is necessary." <https://anbox.io/>

To install Anbox your system need to support snaps.
<https://snapcraft.io/search?q=anbox>

For general reference, here are some comparison articles.
*Best Android Emulator for Linux*
<https://www.lambdatest.com/blog/android-emulators-for-linux/>
1. AnBox
2. LambdaTest
3. Genymotion
4. Android x86 emulator for Linux (via VirtualBox)
5. Android Studio
6. ARChon
7. BlissRoms (Bliss OS)
8. AVD (Android Virtual Device)
9. Android VM
10. Shashlik
11. Jar of Beans
12. Android SDK

*5 Best Android Emulators For Linux*
<https://fossbytes.com/best-android-emulators-linux/>
1. Android x86 emulator for Linux (via VirtualBox)
2. AVD (Android Virtual Device)
3. Genymotion
4. BlissRoms (Bliss OS)
5. AnBox

*4 best Android emulators on Linux*
<https://www.addictivetips.com/ubuntu-linux-tips/best-android-emulators-on-linux/>
1. AnBox
2. ARChon
3. Genymotion
4. Android x86 emulator for Linux (via VirtualBox)

The good news is there's a general consensus above, which isn't always the
case in just a few of the first hits on a basic search for any given topic.
--
Posted out of the goodness of my heart to disseminate useful information
which, in this case, is to flesh out how AnBox compares to the emulators.

Andy Burnelli <spam@nospam.com> wrote:
>
> Having posted step by step tutorials for _every_ known freeware Android
> emulator for Windows, it's interesting to ask how "AnBox" is different.
> <https://docs.anbox.io/userguide/install.html>
>
> What makes Anbox different from other projects like Shashlik or Genimobile?
> "Projects like Shashlik or Genimobile use an emulator to run the
> Android environment. The emulator creates an entire emulated system
> which has its own kernel etc whereas Anbox runs the Android system
> under the same kernel as the host operating system does.
> No emulation layer like QEMU is necessary." <https://anbox.io/>
>
> To install Anbox your system need to support snaps.
> <https://snapcraft.io/search?q=anbox>
>
> For general reference, here are some comparison articles.
> *Best Android Emulator for Linux*
> <https://www.lambdatest.com/blog/android-emulators-for-linux/>
> 1. AnBox
> 2. LambdaTest
> 3. Genymotion
> 4. Android x86 emulator for Linux (via VirtualBox)
> 5. Android Studio
> 6. ARChon
> 7. BlissRoms (Bliss OS)
> 8. AVD (Android Virtual Device)
> 9. Android VM
> 10. Shashlik
> 11. Jar of Beans
> 12. Android SDK
>
> *5 Best Android Emulators For Linux*
> <https://fossbytes.com/best-android-emulators-linux/>
> 1. Android x86 emulator for Linux (via VirtualBox)
> 2. AVD (Android Virtual Device)
> 3. Genymotion
> 4. BlissRoms (Bliss OS)
> 5. AnBox
>
> *4 best Android emulators on Linux*
> <https://www.addictivetips.com/ubuntu-linux-tips/best-android-emulators-on-linux/>
> 1. AnBox
> 2. ARChon
> 3. Genymotion
> 4. Android x86 emulator for Linux (via VirtualBox)
>
> The good news is there's a general consensus above, which isn't always the
> case in just a few of the first hits on a basic search for any given topic.

Have you actually read any of the above 'reviews'? I went through
several that I found and they just said all the emulators were
wonderful, often in much the same words. None of them voice any real
critiicisms and none of them actually compare the emulators. They all
smack of someone simply reading the front page of the web site for
each emulator and summarising it! They almost smack of machine
generated language rather than having been written by an actual
thinking person! :-)

I was hoping that I'd find someone who had actually run Anbox (or any
of the others for that matter), I'm pretty sure none of the above
reviewers had run anything much.

I'm sorry to be so negative but 'comparisons' like those above really
annoy me.

--
Chris Green
·

Chris Green wrote:

> I was hoping that I'd find someone who had actually run Anbox (or any
> of the others for that matter), I'm pretty sure none of the above
> reviewers had run anything much.

Hi Chris Green,

I understand your frustration, and I don't disagree with your comments.

I was careful in my original response to be very clear that I, myself,
haven't run the _linux_ Android emulators - but that I have reviewed in the
past _all_ the freeware Windows Android emulators, all of which can be
found on this newsgroup using the keywords of "emulator" and/or "tutorial".

Unfortunately for you, I am one of the few on this newsgroup with either
Android emulation or Linux experience - however others may exist
unbeknownst to either of us (e.g., Andy Burns is rather well versed in
Android particulars and he seems to be the type for Linux knowledge also).

There won't be many (any?) others, as those like Frank Slootweg can only
troll, and those like Rudy Weiser are fools who can barely count their
fingers even as they both think they're utter geniuses in all respects.

With respect to Linux, I have decades of UNIX experience but lately I've
been on Windows for the desktop, but you will find the 'alt.os.linux'
newsgroup still active (I posted to them just recently, for example).

> I'm sorry to be so negative but 'comparisons' like those above really
> annoy me.

Oh, I'm well versed on the comparative shills, but I wrote rather clearly
that my goal was to simply flesh out the one major difference of AnBox as
_they_ described it - and - I simply listed the known Linux Android
emulators which is what I often do whenever a functionality is requested.

The general approach is to look at the "comparative reviews" (yes, many are
shills, if not every one sometimes) and then look to see which tools rise
to the top - where I even noted that correlation is often never seen.

In this case, surprisingly, there was some correlation but as you noted, I
had never intended it to be a comprehensive review - after all - since I
said I had no experience with the tool you requested the information on.

Hence, we leave it to others, if they may exist, who can flesh out AnBox
more for your needs - where I stress the existence of the a.o.l newsgroup.
<http://groups.google.com/g/alt.os.linux>

Good luck.

Andy Burnelli <spam@nospam.com> wrote:
[long, friendly, reply snipped]

Thanks Andy, I wasn't complaining at you. :-)

I've learnt one thing, the name for such promotional fluff - shill. Is
this now a common web/internet usage?

--
Chris Green
·

Chris Green <cl@isbd.net> wrote:
> I'm looking for ways to use a couple of Android apps on my Linux
> machines. In particular I'd like to run the Tenda smart control app
> Tenda Beli and also, maybe, the Onkyo media centre control app.
>
> Has anyone here installed Anbox on Linux and, if so, does it really
> run Android apps reasonably easily?

I tried it out when it first came out, about 5 years ago. It ran some apps,
but success rate was perhaps 50%. It was probably related to the lack of
GSF. It may be you can install GSF or MicroG into it, I don't think you
could at that time.

It has maybe improved, but I would be prepared for difficulties with
commercial apps that like to use all the tracking/spying features that
Google provides. Since there's no Play Store you either sideload or use
F-Droid / Aurora to install apps.

It wasn't really a daily driver at that time, but it was a while ago so
maybe things have changed.

I see there's also Waydroid these days, and that seemingly can install
Google Apps/GSF:
https://www.reddit.com/r/pinephone/comments/xqleo6/pro_tip_waydroid_with_google_play_services/

Theo

Chris Green wrote:

> I've learnt one thing, the name for such promotional fluff - shill. Is
> this now a common web/internet usage?

A shill, as used on Usenet by me, usually is in reference to a reputed
comparison article whose "real" goal is to promote a specific product,
which, of course, is always one of the products supposedly being reviewed.

This American dictionary doesn't quite cover how we typically use it.
<https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shill>

This British one comes a little closer to the way we use it on Usenet.
<https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/shill>

Surprisingly, the Yahoo definition is much closer to how we use it.
<https://search.yahoo.com/yhs/search?p=dictionary+shill>
"an accomplice of a hawker, gambler, or swindler who acts
as an enthusiastic customer to entice or encourage others
a person who pretends to give an impartial endorsement of
something in which they themselves have an interest"

As for AnBox experience, all my experience is with all the freeware Windows
emulators (search for emulator or tutorial on this ng & you'll find them).
<http://groups.google.com/g/comp.mobile.android>

However, I noticed Theo gave an experienced answer to your question
specifically about AnBox, where in Theo's response he mentions AnBox's lack
of GSF (which, for me, is a boon as GSF is synonymous with Google spyware).

Theo also mentions the lack of the official Google Google Play Store client
(which is also noted in the AnBox FAQ), which, again, I consider a boon.

On my Android phone, for example, the official Google Google Play Store
client was disabled the day I booted the phone (recently replaced by
T-Mobile) and I have no problem whatsoever with using the FOSS Google Play
Store client which Theo mentioned, Aurora. <https://auroraoss.com/>

The beauty of Aurora ties in with the reputed lack of GSF on AnBox because
you can easily set a permanent filter to ignore any apps with GSF code.
<https://i.postimg.cc/d0pK9MFY/whatsapp03.jpg> App store search filters

In summary, I consider it a benefit, not a drawback, if it's true that
AnBox doesn't come with the Google Play Store client and yet another
benefit if AnBox doesn't support GSF as I almost never use either myself
(where the Aurora FOSS Google Play Store client easily filters GSF apps).
<https://i.postimg.cc/P5YYKT3H/aurora14.jpg>
--
Posted out of the goodness of my heart to disseminate useful information
which, in this case, is to point Chris Green to Theo's helpful advice.

Andy Burnelli <spam@nospam.com> wrote:
> Chris Green wrote:
>
> Theo also mentions the lack of the official Google Google Play Store client
> (which is also noted in the AnBox FAQ), which, again, I consider a boon.
>
I've dug far enough into Anbox to find out that one can load apps into
it using adb (the android debugger). I already have adb installed and
working on my desktop machine so that route is OK for me.

> On my Android phone, for example, the official Google Google Play Store
> client was disabled the day I booted the phone (recently replaced by
> T-Mobile) and I have no problem whatsoever with using the FOSS Google Play
> Store client which Theo mentioned, Aurora. <https://auroraoss.com/>
>
Yes, I use Aurora on my 'real' Android phone, plus F-Droid of course.

--
Chris Green
·

Chris Green wrote:

> I've dug far enough into Anbox to find out that one can load apps into
> it using adb (the android debugger). I already have adb installed and
> working on my desktop machine so that route is OK for me.

It's good you're aware of adb since it pretty much does everything.
Here, for all to benefit from (which is the goal of every Usenet thread),
are some tested examples in one of my many adb tutorials on the net.
C:\> adb devices
That should report the devices that adb is connected to, for example:
List of devices attached
192.168.0.2:54321 device

C:\> adb shell netstat
That should list the phone's TCP/IP connectivity tables.

C:\> adb shell service list
That should list all the running services on the phone.

C:\> adb shell ps
That should list all the running processes on the phone.

C:\> adb shell ifconfig
That should provide your Android network interface information.

C:\> adb shell "cd /sdcard/Download && ls"
That should list files in your internal storage Download folder.

C:\> adb shell "cd /sdcard && mkdir temp"
That should create a "temp" directory in your internal
storage sdcard on your Android phone.

C:\> adb shell screencap -p /sdcard/temp/screenshot.png
That should snap a screenshot of your android phone & store it
in the newly created temp folder on the Android phone.

C:\> adb shell screenrecord /sdcard/temp/screenrecord.mp4
Do whatever on the Android phone & then press Ctrl+C to end.
That should create an MP4 recording of your Android screen.

C:\> adb install "C:\path-to\filename.apk"
That should install the APK from Windows over Wi-Fi onto Android.
(Note this is useful when you have hundreds of apps like I do!)
<https://i.postimg.cc/bN875p8b/apk01.jpg> Windows APK archive

C:\> adb push "C:\path-to\filename.apk" /sdcard/Download
That should copy the named file from Windows to Android &
(in this case) put it in your internal storage "Download" folder.

Note that each phone OEM "can" use a different filespec for
internal & external sdcards (e.g., /storage/emulated/0/Download).

C:\> adb push C:\path\apk_archive\ /sdcard/Download/apks
That should create a folder named "apks" in the Android phone's
internal storage "Download" folder and then copy all the files
from the Windows "apk_archive" folder into that new "apks" folder.

C:\> adb shell
$ /storage/emulated/0/DCIM
$ ls
$ exit
That should allow you to interactively manage the Android
filesystem from Windows over Wi-Fi. Note these are common:
/mnt/sdcard/DCIM
/sdcard/DCIM
/sdcard/DCIM

C:\> adb logcat
Use this if you're a glutton for punishment as it will forever
spit out a log of what's going on your phone (until you Ctrl+C).

C:\> adb logcat *:E
The values are:
V: Verbose (lowest priority)
D: Debug
I: Info
W: Warning
E: Error
F: Fatal
S: Silent (highest priority. Nothing is printed)
Note logcat has multiple options, e.g.,
adb logcat Tag1:I *:S
That will list output log messages with the tag "Tag1"
and priority level Info or higher.
The *:S at the end will exclude the log from other tags
with any priority.

C:\> adb shell getprop | FindStr /i "ro.build.version"
Get properties off the phone & grep for the given keyword.

C:\> adb shell getprop ro.build.version.security_patch
This will report the property of the security patch level.

C:\> adb shell getprop ro.build.fingerprint
This will report basic hardware information about your phone.

C:\> adb shell input swipe 500 1000 500 100
This will instantly swipe from center to the top of the screen.

You can add a time period, e.g., take 3 seconds to swipe that.
C:\> adb shell input swipe 500 1000 500 100 3000

C:\> adb shell input text "K-9\ Mail"
This will enter into the phone's search GUI a search for that app.

C:\> adb shell pm list packages
That should list all the packages installed on your Android phone.

C:\> adb shell pm list packages | findStr /i "facebook"
That should list all the packages with that string in their name.

C:\> adb shell pm path com.facebook.appmanager
That should list the path to the named package, e.g.,
package:/system/app/FBAppManager_NS/FBAppManager_NS.apk

C:\> adb pull /system/app/FBAppManager_NS/FBAppManager_NS.apk
That should copy the APK from Android over to Windows.

C:\> adb shell dumpsys package com.facebook.appmanager
This should list an app's components, activities & services, etc.

C:\> adb shell pm list permissions | FindStr facebook
This should list all permissions granted for that particular app.
C:\> adb shell pm revoke com.facebook.appmanager android.permission.READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE
This should revoke the stated permissions from that app.

C:\> adb shell pm grant com.facebook.appmanager android.permission.READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE
This should grant the stated permissions to that app.

C:\> adb shell pm clear com.facebook.appmanager
This should clear all the application data in that package.

C:\> adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.facebook.appmanager
That should uninstall the named package for the current user.
(You don't need root to uninstall system apps for the current user.)

Note this app will provide, by default, a list of all apps
you've installed, in the reverse order that you installed them.
*App Inspector* by UBQSoft
Free, ad free, gsf free, rated 4.3, 100K+ installs
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ubqsoft.sec01>

C:\> adb shell pm install-existing com.facebook.appmanager
That should re-install that package that you had just uninstalled.
(This works because it was only uninstalled for the current user.)

C:\> adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.facebook.appmanager
That should disable the named package.

C:\> adb shell pm list packages -d | findStr /i "facebook"
That should find the disabled apps & then grep for "facebook".

C:\> adb shell pm enable com.facebook.appmanager
That should enable the named package.

C:\> adb shell pm uninstall com.facebook.appmanager
If you omit the "-k --user 0" part, it uninstalls for all users.

C:\> adb bugreport
That should create a zip file of your current bug-report data.

C:\> adb shell am start -n com.google.android.gms/.ads.settings.AdsSettingsActivity
That should pop up an Android "Reset Advertising ID" settings page.

C:\> adb shell input tap 500 400
If run after the command above, that will tap the button to
asking to "Opt out of Ads Personalization" in that Activity
if that button is like mine, at the X=500 & Y=400 location.

On my phone, this is the "Reset advertising ID" button location:
adb shell input tap 500 200
On my phone, this is the "OK" button on that GUI above.
adb shell input tap 700 1000

C:\> adb shell am force-stop com.google.android.gms
If run after bringing up the advertising-id reset Activity,
it will close the activity without doing anything else.

C:\> adb shell input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME
That should press the "Home" button.
C:\> adb shell input keyevent KEYCODE_CAMERA
That should press the "Camera" button.
C:\> adb shell input keyevent KEYCODE_BACK
That should press the "Back" button.
C:\> adb shell input keyevent KEYCODE_HEADSETHOOK
That should press the "Headset" button.

Linux should work similarly, save for perhaps the punctuation escapes.

>> On my Android phone, for example, the official Google Google Play Store
>> client was disabled the day I booted the phone (recently replaced by
>> T-Mobile) and I have no problem whatsoever with using the FOSS Google Play
>> Store client which Theo mentioned, Aurora. <https://auroraoss.com/>
>>
> Yes, I use Aurora on my 'real' Android phone, plus F-Droid of course.

It's great you use the FOSS Google Play Store client on your phone.
I think it's just about the second best app in all of Android land.
The best app, IMHO, is NewPipe (or maybe NetGuard) or FairMail maybe.
<https://newpipe.net/>
<https://netguard.me/>
<https://github.com/M66B/FairEmail>

As for F-Droid, I never use it. I just download the APKs using my
desktop web browser and then I slide them over onto Android.
<https://f-droid.org/repo/com.sovworks.edslite_237.apk>