Programmatic bluetooth file transfer - security issue? - Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I need to programmatically transfer some files from one Android device to another via a Bluetooth connection. The devices will have been paired already and in close range. This isn't for something that will be for public consumption. It's for use between two devices under the permanent control of a company for use only within the company. One device (the sending device) will have an app that we'll write that calls for user input. Once the user choices are made and submitted, the sending device will send a file or files (probably text files that we'll create dynamically) to a specific path on the receiving device via that Bluetooth connection.
Both devices will probably be rooted, certainly the receiving device will be. But we'll write to a directory on /sdcard, not at the root level. It's likely that the OS will be 4.1.2 or later on both. It'll be 4.2.2 on the receiving device for sure.
I can execute this file transfer easily with something like ES File Explorer. But that won't work in the application that I'm developing because the users can't handle that sort of interactivity and wouldn't have the knowledge to create or choose the files to transfer if they could. They'll need the aforementioned app with the form to make this appropriately simple.
My question is: can I write an app that lets me transfer files via Bluetooth from one device to a specific path on another, without security issues on the receiving device stopping the transfer from successfully taking place? I'm figuring that if ES File Explorer and the like can do it, that I should be able to do it using the Android API. But I'm not clear on that, so better to ask than to have to tell my client after doing a bunch of work.
Any help would be appreciated.

Related

[Q] How to play/ save talkbox message?

Hello,
well i'm trying to save talkbox message in to a normal file type cus i wanna send it to my friend. i found out where the files are but they are. ilbc and i have no idea how to play/convert it.
Any suggestions?
Sent from my X10 using XDA App
Bump.....
Sent from my X10 using XDA App
TalkBox - how to get voice messages from iphone to pc
In order to copy voice messages created by talkbox app from your iOS device all you have to do is to gain access to your device file system with any free software (I used iExplorer ). acess your device and you will see at the root file system the directory User->Applications and there all you application data is stored - one of them is TalkBox (you will recognize it by enter every folder and check for the folder that finish with '.app' or see the icon of the application inside it). all the messages are in [talkbox-folder-id]->Documents->Audio at caf files (Core Audio Format). export it easily with your software to your pc. Cheers and Good Luck !
help
white-bear said:
In order to copy voice messages created by talkbox app from your iOS device all you have to do is to gain access to your device file system with any free software (I used iExplorer ). acess your device and you will see at the root file system the directory User->Applications and there all you application data is stored - one of them is TalkBox (you will recognize it by enter every folder and check for the folder that finish with '.app' or see the icon of the application inside it). all the messages are in [talkbox-folder-id]->Documents->Audio at caf files (Core Audio Format). export it easily with your software to your pc. Cheers and Good Luck !
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi
This all sounds really good as i have a deceased friend and wanting desperately to switch / access / back up talk box voice messages between my devices.
All was stored on my samsung galaxy s3 and now i have an s5 things are proving a little tricky so could you please brake down these instructions for me so i can successfully access them from the root.
I can access them in the device but only in the .ilbc format..
Thanks in advance

SMS Database Android

Hi,
I'm trying to create a desktop (java based) application that extracts SMS from an android device and prints the SMS onto a relational database. I just have a few questions......
/*Answer Found*/
After research I found out that the SMS are stored in a database. I've been pointed in various directions, but the most common is directory is com.android.provider.telephony.SMS although I can't actually find it on my phone. My phone is rooted and I'm looking for the file using a "File manager" app from the Play store.
So my first question would be "Where is the SMS database stored"? I'm assuming it's the same place for all phones as long as it's android based. Please correct me if I'm wrong......
I'm aware the database will be encrypted. Does anyone know what type of encryption is on the database, and if so - is it easy to crack?
Thanks in advance,
Wazza
Update: OK - So it turns out the file explorer I was using was a bit......naff. I've downloaded another and am now able to see the relevant DB.
My idea was to run the developers USB debugging mode onto the computer and extract the DB like that - However, the folders / files being shown when it's plugged into the PC are those on the SDCARD. (I believe this is the level above root?).
Update 2: Seems as if I jumped the gun posting this topic. A few more hours research and I've got to where I need to be.
For those who don't know - this is how I did it.
Plugging your phone into the PC and selecting USB Debugging mode temporarily disables the "SDCARD" on your phone so you can't tamper with it whilst uploading files via the PC.
I downloaded a file manager that allows the user to view root access files / folders. I then found the mmssms.db, copied it and pasted it into a folder on the "SDCARD". I was then able to plug the phone into USB Debugging mode and transfer the database file from the phone onto my desktop.
My next challenge is viewing the database. As started in the OP, I'm aware the database is most likely encrypted. How would I go about breaking this encryption and viewing it on a database.
:good:
If you want to make backup of SMS, just use SMS Backup & Restore. It will export your database to xml file.
przemcio510 said:
If you want to make backup of SMS, just use SMS Backup & Restore. It will export your database to xml file.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks przemcio but I'm doing it as a project. I don't want the easy way around

First File Manager For windows Phone 8 with Full SD Card Access Capability

Now Windows Phone 8 Got his First Real File manager.
Pocket File Manager .
Now The latest improvement:
- Full Access to media library
- Full access to video files
- Full access to SD Card
* I think Now Microsoft open windows phone 8 API's .
Common Developers....Hurry Up...
Now U can Make More Powerful File managers for Wp8.
Get it Here:
http://www.windowsphone.com/en-in/store/app/pocket-file-manager/56dd9c3d-fe0a-4ceb-84b0-043e58e55b19
Checked....Working Fine with All capabilities in....
Yeaaaah this was posted a couple days ago so I wouldn't really call it "GRAB IT FAST" (nor, for that matter, is this post quite in line with the forum rules as you're kinda-sorta advertising a paid app, even though it's not yours).
If you read the dev's forum thread (it's not here, it's easy enough to find though) you'll see he got special permission from Microsoft to use a capability which is normally only available to OEMs. Sure, it's a good sign and may mean good things to come, but don't go getting all breathlessly excited about it *just* yet!
Also, "Full API Access" is a pretty bad description. It doesn't appear to use any non-standard APIs at all, in fact (I decompiled it already). The filesystem APIs are available to all developers. You just can't *DO* much with them because apps run in sandboxes with very low permissions. The dev got permission to add *one* extra capability, ID_CAP_MEDIALIB_PHOTO_FULL, which gives full access to the pictures library and the SD card. It does not give anything even vaguely close to full access to the whole phone (as a trivial example, it still doesn't give access to the Documents folder). It's also not something that just any random developer is going to be able to use.
Thanks for trying, though, I guess...
Not the means of any ad here.
I just got it...usefull....
Delete the thread...if its not suitable here.
thanks
Amirphp said:
Not the means of any ad here.
I just got it...usefull....
Delete the thread...if its not suitable here.
thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think this thread should be deleted.
Anyway I just went to the Pocket File Manager facebook and this is what I found out :
"Hello developers.
I want to info you that in next version of Pocket File Manager we added support for third party application to save files into Phone storage and SD Card. It is very simple process and will cost you nothing.
How it works:
All what you need is to add special extension into your file and execute Launcher. PFM will receive file and save it to desired location , also it will remove extension so the file name remains original.
Extensions supproted:
.tosd - Save file to SD Card. For example you have file named "my new file.dat" and you want to save it to SD card. Rename the file to "my new file.dat.tosd" and use Windows.System.Launcher.LaunchFileAsync(); PFM will store the file named "my new file.dat" in SD Card. If no SD card is presents file will be stored into Phone's storage Picture folder)
.tols - Save file to PFM local storage.
.tops - Save file to Phone's storage under the Pictures folder.
If you have any questions fill free to ask!"
Maybe this can be helpfull to other developers that can't get the ID_CAP_MEDIALIB_PHOTO_FULL capability for their own app.
I think this is interesting ...
Best app
Super app!! Installed trial version on Lumia 925, all works as described. Hurry up developers!!!
This looks great! But I wish the ability to access even a small part of the SD card was open to all developers. Its been very difficult to build a productivity app when the only way to get files out of the phone is email. Looks like he got into the Nokia collection about a month before he added the capability, I assume Nokia made this happen.
That could be. Nokia has the ability to add ID_CAP_MEDIALIB_PHOTO_FULL to "their" apps if they want; they could probably arrange for this app to receive it.
I'm with you on the SD thing. The official APIs for SD access (read-only, limited to the file types you specify beforehand, can't specify reserved file types, can only see so many files) are really stupid.
The fact that 8.1 supposedly allows devs to enable installing apps to SD is encouraging. If that feature stays, there's a decent change it will mean the apps are installed to a FAT partition, which would mean they would have full access, automatically (MS can restrict access to the mount point, but then the app couldn't get at its own binaries and resources; if they allow that, they allow it all). Of course, they might split-partition the card, making part of it NTFS so that they can ACL it to hell again. Even then, though, you could remove the card and put it in a PC...
From my experience with the emulator, the SD card still appears to be a single partition, FAT32 to be exact. Installed apps are stored in a hidden folder, namely WPSystem\Apps. Unless there's some trickery here that I'm unaware of...
Heh, "hidden" folder. Yeah, that'll be effective. I bet they set the readonly flag too...
GoodDayToDie said:
Heh, "hidden" folder. Yeah, that'll be effective. I bet they set the readonly flag too...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That folder was there before, but now it also contains apps and appdata as well, besides some system files from before. Some folders are marked as partially read-only.
Well if there is a difference between the winRT file access and the winPTR 8.1 file access for apps I am yet to find it (aside from not being able to get on network locations and DLNA from phone).
I say devs should be more focused on getting their apps ready for 8.1 than still trying to live up with the *redacted* limitations of WP8.0...

[Q] Windows Phone 8.1 WhatsApp backup/restore

I've seen some threads about accessing the WhatsApp messages backup database files on iPhone, Android and older Windows Phone versions (7.x). However, none of the methods seem to be compatible with the WhatsApp messages backup database file found on Windows Phone 8.1. I am looking for a way to either extract/decrypt or restore an older messages backup database. Tried so far:
- Place messages.db file on SD card and reinstall WhatsApp. WhatsApp does NOT find the backup on installation. It only restores the most recent chats (not the ones from the backup file)
- Tried available tools for iPhone/Android (Python scripts with crypto 5/7/8). Database format is incompatible
- Tried opening the database file directly in Microsoft Access, SQLite Browser. Unrecognized file format
- Tried the Zune/WP Device Manager approach. Seems to work only with Windows Phone 7.x, Windows Phone 8 is not seen by the tool
- Tried Windows Phone Power Tools to access Isolated Storage for the WhatsApp app, but access to an apps isolated storage is not possible in Windows Phone 8 anymore.
- Tried the WhatsApp Xtractor, but it contains the same iPhone/Android python scripts that don't work with the Windows Phone version
- Even tried asking WhatsApp support directly, but they have not given any response yet
Can any WhatsApp / encryption wizard please help me out. I am more than willing to reward/tip you for it if the solution works!
i have the same problem ,pls pls pls tell me about the solution thx
Given that you already enabled full FS access on your phone or have control over an app wich has the ID_CAP_OEMPUBLICDIRECTORY capability, you can extract the unencrypted sqlite database from C:\Data\SharedData\OEM\Public\WhatsApp.
The structure of the database is quite complex (I suppose it grew over the years), but not too hard to understand.
However, I have no experience in using this mechanism as a backup/restore solution.
Source: blackhat . com/docs/ldn-15/materials/london-15-DeFulgentis-Witchcraft-For-Windows-Phone-Breakers.pdf page 68f
Sorry for broken link, I'm a new member.
I realize this is a pity, I want the Microsoft support seriously and updating applications
If you do not want to unlock / flash your phone in order to enable the full FS unlock, you can try the hack as shown in the Blackhat slides posted above.
It works by replacing an apps' core files with your own, but keeping the capability restrictions of the original app. (Use http://forum.xda-developers.com/win...p-customwpsystem-patch-xaps-wpsystem-t2975419 for example)
So just target an app with ID_CAP_OEMPUBLICDIRECTORY, deploy your custom payload and use it to copy the WhatsApp files somewhere.
Given the full FS access, is there any way to access the Whatsapp key file like on Android. That's what you would need to access the backup files instead of the unencrypted current message database, which is easily opened as SQLite database?
Hello ... I'm new here ... just wondering if there is any answer to this question ... I know it's not a recent discussion, but I really need some help from you guys. I have a wp where whatsapp is installed, but it's asking for verification and I dont have no more the sim card related to that account ... I saw chats, but then I made a huge mistake (opened whatsapp while I was online) and now I cannot access to those anymore ... I have messages.db but I'm unable to retrieve the key to decrypt that ... there are tons of posts about similar issue on android or IOS, but I need the same for WP ... is it something someone can drive me through? Thanks a lot in advance
If your phone has the Full-FS-Unlock enabled you can get the unencrypted databases at C:\Data\Users\DefApps\APPDATA\Local\Packages\5319275A.WhatsApp_cv1g1gvanyjgm\LocalState (or similar package name).
Or you can get unencrypted backups from C:\Data\SharedData\OEM\Public\WhatsApp
Or you can use a interop-unlocked File Manager App
jumpz said:
If your phone has the Full-FS-Unlock enabled you can get the unencrypted databases at C:\Data\Users\DefApps\APPDATA\Local\Packages\5319275A.WhatsApp_cv1g1gvanyjgm\LocalState (or similar package name).
Or you can get unencrypted backups from C:\Data\SharedData\OEM\Public\WhatsApp
Or you can use a interop-unlocked File Manager App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The files in C:\Data\SharedData\OEM\Public\WhatsApp seem to be encrypted as well … Or can you just not open them with a standard SQLite viewer?
weaselmc said:
The files in C:\Data\SharedData\OEM\Public\WhatsApp seem to be encrypted as well … Or can you just not open them with a standard SQLite viewer?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, these files are indeed encrypted.
The winwazzapmigrator software did a good job migrating my database to a new android phone.
Tool to access file system on Windows 8.1 mobile
jumpz said:
If your phone has the Full-FS-Unlock enabled you can get the unencrypted databases at C:\Data\Users\DefApps\APPDATA\Local\Packages\5319275A.WhatsApp_cv1g1gvanyjgm\LocalState (or similar package name).
Or you can get unencrypted backups from C:\Data\SharedData\OEM\Public\WhatsApp
Or you can use a interop-unlocked File Manager App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can anyone help me with a tool to access the file system where app files are stored on a windows 8.1 mobile?
me too
PritiM said:
Can anyone help me with a tool to access the file system where app files are stored on a windows 8.1 mobile?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do have the same request...

Moving Pics to new phone while preserving the dates?

Hi all!
An oldie but a goldie!
I've changed from S6 32g, to S6Eedge 64g since I was running out of space.
Now I need to transfer 4000 photos (sorted by date) to the new phone. A direct copy/move from PC converts all the created dates to the current date (ie when transfer was done) which as you can imagine screws everything up royally!
Ive tried and failed in many many many ways including:
FTP
Syncing programs from pc to phone
ADB push
WEBdav
Hail marys, and praying to every god out there
They all bugger up the dates...........
The ONLY ONLY way Ive found out that works is by zipping up the original files, transferring to new phone, and unzipping locally with Total Commander. ONLY Total Commander seems to be able to unzip and preserve the dates, all the other file managers and extracting programs (I tried 10-15) out there can NOT manage this. Total Commander probably works cuz im rooted, and it can use this.
HOWEVER this only worked with smaller directories, but my main pics folder is an 8 gig compressed zip, and when I try the same way Total Commander only manages to unzip some 700 files and stops (anyone else come across this limitation?). So the only way I can manage is to zip up the original files in 7-8 different zip files and unzip locally individually, which is a big hassle.
Ive googled many threads on this problem, most of them were unresolved and some solutions refer to previous android versions or software and dont work anymore.
I'm hoping that you all dont spend four days setting up a new phone everytime ( home screen and app settings is a whole different drama! Thank you Titanium backup! iOS really has the jump on Andoird when it comes to changing phones...)
The only thing I can think of which I havent tried yet is USB OTG, since I dont have the cable. Anyone can confirm whether this method keeps the dates unchnaged?
So in your experience, whats the best way of doing this? How do you guys do it?
Why you need to store such a large amount of photos in your phone.
Did you try to sync to flickr or google photos?
Sent from my MI 5 using Tapatalk
I want to have immediate access, cant rely on patchy internet connection, areas without coverage (inside a lot of buildings, or basements) and can you imagine how much it would cost when roaming?
Everybody is talking about cloud cloud cloud, without taking account that its not a solution for all sitautions..
Update and for future help for people who will come across this issue.
I managed it!
I used Total Commander on the phone through the LAN plugin function, to access my backup folder on the pc, select all files and copy to local phone directory.
You need to initiate the copy from the PHONE on Total Commander, ie pull the files onto the phone, dont copy them by drag and drop from PC.
It took a while but it was done!
Dates and timestamps all preserved and correct!
k.aalai said:
Update and for future help for people who will come across this issue.
I managed it!
I used Total Commander on the phone through the LAN plugin function, to access my backup folder on the pc, select all files and copy to local phone directory.
You need to initiate the copy from the PHONE on Total Commander, ie pull the files onto the phone, dont copy them by drag and drop from PC.
It took a while but it was done!
Dates and timestamps all preserved and correct!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been trying to tackle this same problem over the last few days with no luck. I just tried total commander and it was unsuccessful. Was there anything special you did? Like you mentioned the entire copy process was initiated on the phone via total commander. However, I'm not rooted so I'm wondering if that's the issue...
k.aalai said:
Update and for future help for people who will come across this issue.
I managed it!
I used Total Commander on the phone through the LAN plugin function, to access my backup folder on the pc, select all files and copy to local phone directory.
You need to initiate the copy from the PHONE on Total Commander, ie pull the files onto the phone, dont copy them by drag and drop from PC.
It took a while but it was done!
Dates and timestamps all preserved and correct!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi!
I'm facing the same problem\task as yours and I want to know how did you transfer photos TO the PC with the file creation dates saved?
Has any of you tried compressing the images on your device to a zip file and then unzipping them on the PC?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I Am The Egg Man,
They Are The Egg Men.
I Am The Walrus!
Coo Coo Cachoo!
I DO NOT PROVIDE SUPPORT VIA PM UNLESS ASKED/REQUESTED BY MYSELF.
PLEASE KEEP IT IN THE THREADS WHERE EVERYONE CAN SHARE
Hello its me, the OP.
Re your question about moving files from phone to PC, I used the usual way of plugging the phone into pc by USB, and simply copying from windows explorer. Things were ok for me like that.
Or as Ibuporfen said, try zipping the pics folder on the phone, transfer the zip file, and decompress on the pc.
I think the confusion here is the difference between CREATED and MODIFIED dates.
Try copying a file locally in windows ie from PC to PC, you see it always gets the current CREATED date and not the original date. I use the MODIFIED dates as my preferred sort method, which is the common sort option in many apps, so MODIFIED date is the one that matters to me.
Are you by any chance on the pc trying to sort by CREATED date instead of the MODIFIED? If proper sorting is what you are trying to achieve, is the created date critical for you? And if for some reason MODIFIED date column is not showing up, you can always add that column in the windows file explorer.
As a general update, my procedure now, for repeated use which I do about once a week, to have a current backup of the photos on the phone is as below:
1- Get "FTP server" (by olivetreesoftware, or any other ftp Server for android)
2- Get goodsync https://www.goodsync.com/ for pc
3- Setup a sync job from phone to pc over FTP (this was the only way I cold reliably get access to the phone and its files, cuz now the USB conncection is all about MTP, music files and that kinda of rubbish, which makes it really difficult to accesses it just as a disc.
4- This way I easily copy the files from my phone, to a backup folder on a pc so i have an uptodate backup, and every week or so when I run the program, the backup folder gets updated with all the deletions and additions that have happened on the phone! For copying BACK from pc TO phone, I still use the TotalCommander method, and I think to preserve dates, phone needs to rooted....
I had to this many times recently, since for some strange reason, there was a time that some system app (Samsung S6 Edge, never found which app or why) would suddenly change ALLLLLLLL the dates of ALLLLLL my pictures to the present moment, so you can imagine how that messed up all the sorting of the pics! I had to update my ROM and thankfully this bug has not appeared again. I still get some random changes when the seconds field is set to zero, but as long as the year/day/hours/minutes are not messed up, I can live with that.
Hope this helps!
PS Cant wait to upgrade my phone, to one with an SD card, so I don't have to go through all this rubbish!
k.aalai said:
Update and for future help for people who will come across this issue.
I managed it!
I used Total Commander on the phone through the LAN plugin function, to access my backup folder on the pc, select all files and copy to local phone directory.
You need to initiate the copy from the PHONE on Total Commander, ie pull the files onto the phone, dont copy them by drag and drop from PC.
It took a while but it was done!
Dates and timestamps all preserved and correct!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey where do you stay mate? Because Im about to come over to your place and KISS YOUR BEAUTIFUL FACE! ITS FINALLY WORKING! AFTER 3 DAYS OF GRINDING TO FIND A SOLUTION. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! I have around 9000 plus photos that I keep with me at all times (from older iPhones, just jumped into the android bandwagon, which is why I had to do this), and its my only photo journal, and I need to access them based on the date and organization of the gallery. Its still transferring as I type this, but I know its working since I checked the gallery and the pictures that usually pop up in "today"'s folder, shows up in the right date.
Once again man, THANK YOU.
FOR THOSE WHO ARE STUCK:
Get Total commander
Get the lan plugin for Total commander:
Click on LAN, add in the static IP address, user name and password of the PC that contains the pictures you want to transfer.
Copy paste FROM THE APP itself! (Make SURE the folder that contains the pictures have the SHARE feature on in Windows.
I cant post links here yet so search for these on youtube:
'How to access files on Windows PC from Android"- by Busy Ping (I know its not Total Commander in the video, but it's the exact same process)
"Total Commander able to work around most SD write limitations in KitKat (tested on Note 3)" - By Android Police
Hope this works for you guys! Good luck!
You are welcome Vangelis!
A question though, are you on OREO, and if not are you rooted?
Cause the method/drama above is needed on pre Oreo phones, and works only on rooted devices (as I found out after lots of trial and error). The problem is/was lack of write permissions on non rooted devices, ie apps were not allowed to update the dates on files if not rooted.
I just came back to this thread to update it and add whats below, and I saw your post!
On my new S8 which I got in January, I couldn't be bothered with rooting etc, so I didn't have my pics on the new phone for a couple of months and just waited for OREO.
As I posted on an Oreo update thread elsewhere, this is now fixed on Oreo:
YEY! Finally got the XEU update!
And miracle of miracles, Google finally fixed the file write permissions, which means even when non-rooted you can copy files to the phone, and the file dates don't change. Which means that you can copy your pics etc from a PC to the phone and the file dates stay intact, so the sort order isn't screwed up! Only been waiting 4 years for this, since most phones removed the external SD card option! Now we have the SD card back, but for other apps like whataspp etc that still use the internal memory, this is finally fixed!!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
However, some apps (filemanagers, filesync apps etc eg Airdroid) still dont do this properly, but totalcommander works perfectly. I still havent tried a direct copy from pc to phone (by usb cable) so no idea if this simplest method works now.
As a suggestions(same as in my previous post, Im still doing it since it works very well), this is my current setup for regular backup of all my phone pics to a pc :
Put an ftp server on your android, https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.theolivetree.ftpserver&hl=en
Get this app for your pc, https://www.goodsync.com/
On the goodsync app, add the directories on the phone you need backed up, plus the backup storage directory, and any additional options
Whenever you want to backup your phone pics, just launch the ftp app on phone, and through goodsync, backup all the new and changed pics etc to a pc hard drive through the WIFI (don't need to plug in the phone). Works great!
PS I copied my pics to the now OREO phone, first with the totalcommander through wifi (to check that it works now!), and then using a USB stick with the OTG adapter (since it was 13gigs, and then using totalcomamnder to copy from usb to internal memory). And it worked fine, so this is another method. You could also try putting a zip file on the phone and unzipping them there, which hopefully due to the fixed permissions should work also!
Hi there,
I have similar problem on my Huawei Mate 10 PRO, which runs on Android 8.0.0, with the security updates from 01.01.2018., kernel 4.4.23+. This phone has only the internal storage, no sd card. And when I am trying to copy/move files from external storage (i.e. with usb drive on OTG), then the files have the current date, the original is gone. I tried to change the date of file in the internal storage with total commander, and I get the error with no priveleges. Do you think, that this
And miracle of miracles, Google finally fixed the file write permissions, which means even when non-rooted you can copy files to the phone, and the file dates don't change.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
have to be implemented in update for my phone and only this can solve my problem?
Hello there!
I have no experience with Huawei, so cant give you a perfect answer. As far as I found out the write privilege option was implemented in Oreo, so I assume that means from the first versions of Oreo.
I can suggest a couple of things though.
1- Zip your pics on the pc, and then put the zip file on the usb card, and try unzipping to the phone (using totalcommander) . If it doesn't work, try copying the zip file first on to the phone memory and unzip from there
2- Use totalcommander to copy the files on to the phone using the network method as mentioned previously.
PS on further thoughts, try copying a file ALREADY on the phone, to a different directory, and see what the date is on the copied file. If I remember correctly, before the Oreo update, when I copied a file (instead of move) it always got a new current date, but now when I copy it still retains the original date. By checking this, you can find out if your Huawei, will or will not let an app set the date when performing a copy/move operation.
worked like a charm thanks!
Setting up sync job is confusing
k.aalai said:
Hello its me, the OP.
Re your question about moving files from phone to PC, I used the usual way of plugging the phone into pc by USB, and simply copying from windows explorer. Things were ok for me like that.
Or as Ibuporfen said, try zipping the pics folder on the phone, transfer the zip file, and decompress on the pc.
I think the confusion here is the difference between CREATED and MODIFIED dates.
Try copying a file locally in windows ie from PC to PC, you see it always gets the current CREATED date and not the original date. I use the MODIFIED dates as my preferred sort method, which is the common sort option in many apps, so MODIFIED date is the one that matters to me.
Are you by any chance on the pc trying to sort by CREATED date instead of the MODIFIED? If proper sorting is what you are trying to achieve, is the created date critical for you? And if for some reason MODIFIED date column is not showing up, you can always add that column in the windows file explorer.
As a general update, my procedure now, for repeated use which I do about once a week, to have a current backup of the photos on the phone is as below:
1- Get "FTP server" (by olivetreesoftware, or any other ftp Server for android)
2- Get goodsync https://www.goodsync.com/ for pc
3- Setup a sync job from phone to pc over FTP (this was the only way I cold reliably get access to the phone and its files, cuz now the USB conncection is all about MTP, music files and that kinda of rubbish, which makes it really difficult to accesses it just as a disc.
4- This way I easily copy the files from my phone, to a backup folder on a pc so i have an uptodate backup, and every week or so when I run the program, the backup folder gets updated with all the deletions and additions that have happened on the phone! For copying BACK from pc TO phone, I still use the TotalCommander method, and I think to preserve dates, phone needs to rooted....
I had to this many times recently, since for some strange reason, there was a time that some system app (Samsung S6 Edge, never found which app or why) would suddenly change ALLLLLLLL the dates of ALLLLLL my pictures to the present moment, so you can imagine how that messed up all the sorting of the pics! I had to update my ROM and thankfully this bug has not appeared again. I still get some random changes when the seconds field is set to zero, but as long as the year/day/hours/minutes are not messed up, I can live with that.
Hope this helps!
PS Cant wait to upgrade my phone, to one with an SD card, so I don't have to go through all this rubbish!
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Even after setting up right and left folders i keep getting errors. Can u kindly give me a link or guide me how to set it up ?
will this lan method also work for normal files ? i.e. non pic files such as .m4a voice recorded files, pdf files, word, excel files etc...
thank you
Maybe a quick update from me: after switching phones I installed Whatsapp and it reloaded all media (animated gif, pics and video) from it's own backup store. And all the dates were 31 May 2018. I copied these Whatsapp folders to my linux pc over wifi using Ghost Commander and the SMB plugin. Works similar to TC, no root required.
Now the neat trick: because the date (and sometimes the time) is in the filename, I could reset dates to the original with a oneliner using touch.
After that, copied the folders back with Ghost Commander (replace always) and all was set
---------- Post added at 12:38 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:34 PM ----------
[email protected] said:
will this lan method also work for normal files ? i.e. non pic files such as .m4a voice recorded files, pdf files, word, excel files etc...
thank you
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Definitely (with Ghost Commander, but TC will be the same I expect). I have copied MP3 and M4A files, .epub files, etc....
have been tryin to get my 4000+ photos to my iphone since last week. just figured out this easiest way to do this. Using the Documents app wont show the correct date and time the photos were taken. Using a .zip file wont work either. If u have the correct dates n time on the files u have on ur pc, download SHAREit to ur pc and iphone. Connect both to same wifi and probably i dont have to tell u guys how to do a file transfer.
If the dates are wrong on the files on the pc, download File Date Corrector n fix the dates.
Cheers!
We're all trying to do the same thing! It's amazing an easier solution doesn't exist off-the-shelf.
So I've just been through the same process coming here late in the game. Like you guys I've been trying to copy images from my OnePlus 3 to my new OnePlus 6 without changing date information. And here's what worked for me :
I installed RAR on both phones from the Play store. I connected an external USB memory stick using an OTG cable. As I am using Oreo I had to enable OTG from the top menu on both phones (I added the OTG option using the top menu editor) before the phones would see the external memory.
Then the process was really straightforward and extremely fast: I created RAR archives for groups of folders from the source phone directly on the memory stick - I had to give it permission to access the external drive - then I moved the memory stick to the new phone, copied the RAR archives to a temporary folder on the phone and finally expanded the contents directly back to their correct positions in the file system.
I can't believe how fast it has been compared, for example, with trying to use SuperBeam over WiFi which also changed file dates and seemed to remove exif data from images making it impossible to index them. Gbytes copied in seconds rather than minutes.
k.aalai said:
PS I copied my pics to the now OREO phone, first with the totalcommander through wifi (to check that it works now!), and then using a USB stick with the OTG adapter (since it was 13gigs, and then using totalcomamnder to copy from usb to internal memory). And it worked fine, so this is another method. You could also try putting a zip file on the phone and unzipping them there, which hopefully due to the fixed permissions should work also!
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Definitely works with a zip file unzipped using totalcommander on oreo.
I just copied a zip file from pc to phone via normal usb cable.
Then unzipped to the right folder. All dates modified correct.
Works like a charm and very easy.
Finally!! after a long time suffering with zips i accidentally found a program that saved all my pics/videos with modified dates correctly. Fast and you can use in portable mode.
Best find of the year so far! :victory: :laugh:
Download here: fosshub.com/MyPhoneExplorer.html
1 - Connect your device via USB with debug enabled
2 - Click on the Sync icon (or F1) to find the device
3 - Go to Files and choose the folder you want to save
4 - Click on the icon Download files... and choose the destination location
5 - Enjoy!!!
PS: By default it keeps a copy of everything saved in cache folder, to delete go to Settings> Advanced 2 and mark Delete filecache on exit.

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