Database Develop

APK Tool - Modifying Rosie.apk

Wasssup fellas! Ok so I'm no themer but I've started to delve into your world a little bit. I'm looking to draw on the experience of any of you that have successfully modified the Rosie. So here's my set up
I've got Apktool set up in Ubuntu before you ask I downloaded 1.3.1 not 1.3.2
I have all the dependencies in place
I've installed the framework (apktool if com.htc.resources.apk)
Rosie.apk decompiles with no errors (apktool d Rosie.apk out)
I've modified /res/values/colors.xml to add transparency to the app drawer? (This may be my issue)
Compiled (cd out/ .......apktool b) compiles with no errors
I've tried this signing Rosie.apk, Not signing it, Copying out the "Res" and "Resource" file and going into the original Rosie.apk with Ark Manager without extracting the archive and dropped in the "Res and "Resource" files.
Same result each time when I push the file via ADB or put it in a flashable zip the phone boots goes through the animation capacitive keys light up then the phone gets stuck on the last frame of the boot animation and just hangs there forever no boot loops just hangs there?
Any help would be more than appreciated, thanks guys!
Lou

(Bumping this)
After you've pushed the .apk - Type "adb logcat" and post it here.

I have been struggling with her too but I think I cracked her Just compile it again then use WinRAR (or whatever you're using) and take classes.dex from the newly compiled Rosie.apk and put the new classes.dex in the old Rosie.apk and then you should be fine. Ofc if you had modified some PNGs you would just take the res folder too

BTW could you tell me what to edit to get the transparent app drawer?

Bump. Did you ever get this working. I have been missing with Rosie.apk for about a week now. I am able to decompile, recompile and push without any errors. But non of my changes seem to take place.

sednafx said:
Bump. Did you ever get this working. I have been missing with Rosie.apk for about a week now. I am able to decompile, recompile and push without any errors. But non of my changes seem to take place.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I read somewhere that you also have to apply some changes to fusion.apk
If I can find the guide for this, I'll link it.

framwork-res.apk modifying

Hi,
i'am searching for a guide how to manipulate correctly the framework-res.apk.
All ways i have tested fails.
I would modify some symbols in Notification bar (battery 1%) but all Time the my Phone run into bootloop or all Application Crashes after Startup.
I've tryed Apk Manager 4.9 / and Manualy with apktool.
Help plz .....

what i did :
1-extract apk (i use 7zip/WinRAR)
2-edit/replace image file(s)
3-repack with zero compression level ('store' level)
4-sign the apk
5-replace file using apk or create flashable recovery zip.
regards.

signing the framework-res.apk will not work.. will make the device go into bootloop
what you need is extract the framework-res.apk using apktool and edit the things you want and then compile it again using apktool .... now open the original framework-res.apk and replace the file resources.arsc with the edited compiled one..
this way you will retain the signature of the original framework-res.apk

PapaDocta said:
signing the framework-res.apk will not work.. will make the device go into bootloop
what you need is extract the framework-res.apk using apktool and edit the things you want and then compile it again using apktool .... now open the original framework-res.apk and replace the file resources.arsc with the edited compiled one..
this way you will retain the signature of the original framework-res.apk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But when i add some new Files and Edit some XML the Sign will be Corrupted ?

no it won't...
You need to do two copies.. the original file and the moded one...
1. make a backup of the original file
2. extract the original file using apktool
3. edit and modify anything you like
4. compile the edited file
5. rename the compiled file to framework-res.zip and take the modified resources.arsc
6. using winrar or 7zip open (to view not extract) the backed up framework-res.apk
7. place the moded resources.arsc into the backed up framework-res.apk
by doing this you retain the original signature of the backed up file and not breaking it..

Thx, will test it ;-)

kowalski99 said:
But when i add some new Files and Edit some XML the Sign will be Corrupted ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Android system, signs system apk's on boot, you shouldnt sign them
Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk

My signed apk just work well.
AFAIK, we only cant re-sign htc's apk.

PapaDocta said:
signing the framework-res.apk will not work.. will make the device go into bootloop
what you need is extract the framework-res.apk using apktool and edit the things you want and then compile it again using apktool .... now open the original framework-res.apk and replace the file resources.arsc with the edited compiled one..
this way you will retain the signature of the original framework-res.apk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The right approach always depends, what you want to change. There is no need to decompile, if you only change a few standard png. If you change xml in values folder like color, styles or arrays, you can certainly not delete resources.arsc - resources have nothing to do with the signature anyway. So if you want to play safe, you should insert the original Meta-Inf (signature) and Android Manifest after compile. It is also recommended to zipalign the final apk in order to reduce RAM usage.

thanks he_stheone64 for the clarification.. i reached that conclusion based on my own research on the net and yeah i used to change the XML files to add language support and that the only way that worked with me..

And be sure to have a working and up-to-date sdk before trying to use apktool...
First, using a old sdk release i got a partially working result (few graphics bugs and strange reboots), then with a badly updated sdk on top off the old i got apktool making many errors. Finally, re-installing the last sdk from start i got apktool and my resulting apk working correctly.

[Guide/Reference] The Basic APK & Theming Thread... {15/11/15}

Hi there.
The greatest thing about Android is that you can change just about every element of the U.I, and if all you want to do is change a few images it's as simple as copying and pasting, but this guide will teach you how to...
[*]Use ADB Commands
[*]Deodex
[*]Decompile
[*]Recompile
[*]Sign
[*]Zipalign
...in an easy to follow manner that will have you theming your own apks in no time. There are many many GUI programs which I'll link to below that automate the following process but experience has taught me that it's important to know the basic process for when those programs don't work, are no longer maintained or you just don't like them for whatever reason etc, and to be honest command line editing for me is just as quick, and I personally prefer the ability to have everything in one folder. So lets begin.
Some Requirements:
A Rooted Phone.
A BACKUP OF YOUR PHONE!
Java - Do this first if you don't have it installed already.
Notepad++ - An essential program for xml editing!
Photoshop or Gimp - You'll need one of these for image editing.
7-Zip or WinRar - Required for apk editing.
Patience. :silly:
Use Linux or a Mac? See the following threads for more information on using apktool on other Operating Systems...
[WIN/LINUX][Decompile/Compile] Quick Mod Tool 4.0 [decompile and compile with speed]
APK Manager for Mac OS X
[Linux][UTILITY][TOOL] APK Multi-Tool
[tutorial] decompiling,recompiling and signing in linux (27-01-2013)
How to install and use Apktool with Ubuntu
​
Quick Tips;
.apk files are applications on your Phone, but when they''re on your computer you can browse them exactly like you would a .zip file, so set your default zip program as the default program for handling apks which will makes things much easier when working with them.
Download themes for your Phone, for other Phones too even and compare the res folders and screen shots of the theme as that will give you a good idea of what image you need to look for when modding your own apks.
If all you want to do is change images then you don't even necessarily need to decompile, you can just drag and drop images in to an apk to replace a stock image so long as they have the same file name.
For more complex mods like changing text colors and layouts (.xml files) and editing .9 png images then you will have to decompile.
​
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Most of us will have Java already installed, but if you don't then get it installed before doing anything else. To save you the time and hassle of figuring out what else you need to download etc I've made a zip for you to download which contains Apktool and ADB.
Download APKTool_CMD.zip to a location of your choice, preferably the C:\ drive which will give you a folder to work from. This is how mine currently looks...
Once your folder is setup, java and other tools installed, you're going to want to get any apks you want to theme off your Phone and there are numerous different ways to this, but we're going to use adb commands to pull files to your computer so we need to open a command prompt window in your Apktool folder. To do this simply hold the shift key then right click your mouse in the Apktool folder and select "open command window here", or just click on the included command prompt.bat.
I like to pull the whole system as soon as I'm rooted as it gives me a backup of stock files which I can then copy and deodex to be themed.
The command to pull your whole system is...
Code:
[B]adb pull /system/ Z1C_368[/B]
...you can choose something other than Z1C_368 as your folder name but it will create that folder in your Aktool folder. Alternatively you can just download individual folders, the commands are as follows...
Code:
[B]adb pull /system/app/ Z1C_368 app
adb pull /system/priv-app/ Z1C_368 priv-app
adb pull /system/framework/ Z1C_368 framework[/B]
...or pull individual files...
Code:
[B]adb pull /system/framework/framework-res.apk[/B]
...so now you should have a APKTool_CMD folder with another folder within it and at least your app, priv-app and framework folders in that, which we can use for the next step.
The tool I use is this - [Tool/Utility] JoelDroid Lollipop Batch Deodexer. While I will deodex all the files I've pulled to my computer experience and battery life has taught me to only deodex the apps I've themed on the phone, rather than run a fully deodexed ROM.
Before you can do anything else you need to install your framework-res.apk and SemcGenericUxpRes.apk/twframework.apk, which will put two apks at C:\Users\YourPCName\apktool\framework which are the resources apktool uses to work its magic. The two commands to install your two resource apks are...
Code:
apktool if framework-res.apk
apktool if SemcGenericUxpRes.apk
The command for decompiling is...
Code:
[B][U]apktool[/U] [U]d[/U][/B] framework-res.apk
...which will create a folder named like for like except for the .apk extension, and in this folder is where you'll find a couple of folders, the main one always being the res folder as it's in this folder that you'll find your images and xmls to edit. First glance of a decompiled res folder can be overwhelming, 596 folders in my frameworks, but we only need to focus on a handful in the majority of apks, and they are...
drawable
drawable-xhdpi-v4 (drawable-xxhdpi-v4 depending on your device)
layout
values
...you may need to delve into others sometimes but it's very rare that I've had to.
Once you've finished making your mods you need to recompile your apk using the following command...
Code:
[B][U]apktool[/U] [U]b[/U][/B] framework-res
...notice you only use the folder name here. If you get any errors here due to a bad edit apktool will usually tell you, in a roundabout way, you just need to read the code it throws up then retrace your steps, correct any bad edit and try again. If all goes smoothly you'll now have a new folder called dist, which contains your newly modified apk, but you can't use that just yet.
This is where 7-Zip or WinRar comes in to play. We need to extract from the original apk the Android.Manifest.xml and META-INF folder, into the dist folder, then from the new apk extract the resources.arsc also into the dist folder, then drag and drop all three files back into the new apk, but NOTE, it's important that you choose store as the compression method, any other will break the apk, and if you replace a broken framework-res.apk you will bootloop.
And signing is as simple as that. Alternatively you can use the following command...
Code:
[B]java -jar signapk.jar testkey.x509.pem testkey.pk8[/B] framework-res.apk.apk framework-resS.apk
...notice the extra "S", the output name has to differ from the input name otherwise it will give an error, if done right it will create a new apk called framework-resS.apk, just remember to rename it back to the original before using it on your Phone.
[TOOL] pySignare - Quickly Sign APKs [Windows]
Signing For The Play Store
If you plan on Publishing a Theme or any other app/apk to the Play Store then using the above method to sign your apks just wont work because you need to give it an individual signature that is unique to you, thankfully @AndroidGraphix has written a great guide that will show you how, it's a bit more fidgety than the above method but simple enough to follow...
AndroidGraphix said:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
- Noobs guide to signing an APK with a Private Key​
DISADVANTAGES OF UNALIGNED APKs
Quite understandably, situation would be reserved for unaligned application packages. Resource reading would be slow and memory usage would be on the higher end of the spectrum. It would also depend on how many unaligned applications are present. For example, if less number of applications with an unaligned home application, you’d see slower application launch times. This is the best case scenario. For a worst case scenario, having a number of unaligned applications will result in the system repeatedly starting and killing processes, struggling with lags and huge battery drain.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
- SOURCE
Move your new signed apk into your APKTool_CMD folder, you can overwrite your original if you want, and use the following command...
Code:
[B][U]zipalign -v 4[/U][/B] framework-res.apk ZAframework-res.apk
...notice the ZA, zipaligning creates a new apk which has to be named different from the original, but use what you want, it'll need renaming again before you use it.
So now we need to transfer your apk back to your Phone, you can do it by copying to your SD, then to your system, change permissions, then copy to the right folder, but that's not only time consuming but highly tedious too, so a simpler method is to use adb using the push command as this allows us to push straight to the system overwriting the original with the correct permissions too. To use this method you'll need you'll need an unsecure kernel and/or Chainfires adbd Insecure app. Try the app first but if you still can't mount and push files read this thread - [HOW TO]Make your favorite kernel adbd insecure to run ADB as root on /system and try again.
Rename your zipaligned apk to it's original name, then we need to mount the system before we can push direct to the the system, and the command for that is...
Code:
adb remount
...then we need to make sure we're pushing our apk to the right folder on the Phone, so for the framework-res it's...
Code:
[B][U]adb push[/U][/B] D:\Xperia\Z1C_368\APKTOOL\framework-res.apk /system/framework
...yet for the SystemUI it's...
Code:
adb push D:\Xperia\Z1C_368\APKTOOL\SystemUI.apk[B][U] /system/priv-app/[/U][/B]SystemUI
...if it's any one of those two then generally you need to reboot, so just type...
Code:
adb reboot
...your Phone will restart and if you've done everything right your new mods should be displayed, happy days. So that's it for how to use command prompt for modifying apks.
So now you know how to prepare an apk for editing your going to want to theme it obviously, and the following links will help you with that.
XML 101 - XML Modding Made Easy!
How To Edit Resources
The Ultimate Android Themeing Guide
[GUIDE] Smali coding guide for beginners
[Reference] Interactive Phone Modification [GUIDE]
[TOOL] Android Drawable Resizer Tool
[GUIDE] Want to learn how to theme?
[Guide] demystifying build.prop [Valid entries]
General Questions about Themes GO HERE!!!!!
[INFO] Custom framework-res.apk resources.arsc using vendor overlays
[Tutorial][NICS Themer] Create Your Own Themed apk & Become a Themer
​
U.I Modding
Tutorial :- Changing App Icons
[TUTORIAL]How to Theme Your MMS
[How-to] Edit the "About Phone" display
[Tutorial][VIDEO] Add/integrate apps into Settings app!
[TUTORIAL] Where to find the colors for making a theme
[MOD][GUIDE]LockScreen Clock with seconds[ANY ROM]
[TUTORIAL] How to add various framework/Settings mods
[TUT][JB] HOW TO THEME SystemUI.apk for TOTALLY newbie!
[HOWTO] Integrating/Adding applications to the settings menu
[TUTORIAL][ICS][GB][JB]How to change Android's black background
[GUIDE][Ultimate]Theme Apps To Dark Theme | Theme Whole System | Newbies Here! 12/11
​
Text...
Text Color Guide
[GUIDE] Tips for themers
[GUIDE][REF]Changing System Text Settings
​
Statusbar...
[MOD][TUT] Merge The WiFi And Signal Icons
[GUIDE][MOD][SYSTEMUI] How to add 0.00KB/s meter on statusbar GB/ICS/JB
[TUT] How To Center The Clock On The Statusbar..And Move Other Icons As Well!
[How-To]Removing Battery Percentage, Adding Toggles,Battery Circles to Statusbar
[GUIDE][Mods][All Devices]How to add/ Change Clocks to Analog/ Digital with Seconds
​
The three best/most popular GUI programs are...
@Diamondbacks - Virtuous Ten Studio
@Ticklefishs - [TOOL] Tickle My Android
@BDFreaks - [Tool]Advanced ApkTool
...there are others but these are I what I tend to see referred to the most.
TIP:
Restoring modified files if you mess up is easier and quicker with a CWM.zip, especially if you're modifying any framework apks! Just because an apk might build with no errors doesn't mean it won't give you any when installed to the Phone.
I hope after reading this explanation you're left wondering what all the fuss is about, as it really is quite simple. I'll use the following two images, btn_default_pressed_holo.9 & status_bar_close_off.9 to illustrate the basic point of the borders...
Decompiled .9pngs:
Recompiled .9pngs:
Those borders control which part of the image is stretched (Left & Top) and where on the image content will be displayed (Right & Bottom). We'll use Draw 9-patch which is for editing the borders of decompiled .9pngs and lets you see how the image, when stretched, will be displayed on the Phone. Notice that the borders are different sizes, well that's because I only want/need a certain part of the image to stretch to get the desired look on the Phone.
...in the image below the left side shows the stretched image and desired effect should look on the Phone and the right side shows how it would look if I had edited the borders incorrectly or used none at all...
You can get away by not using a border but you would need to edit your image to specific dimensions to accommodate for the stretching, for example it might look fine for a simple OK button but it might not look right if you used the same .9png for a screen press which stretches the whole length of the screen, so you're better off just using them to begin with, plus you'll more than likely get errors down the line while decompiling or recompiling your apk.
The use of the border is made even more clear when you add text to an image. For my status_bar_close_off.9 I've filled all four sides of the image (except for an empty pixel in all four corners as that is the max amount of border you can use) as I need it to stretch the image just how I've edited it...
...but if I used the same sized left side border as the btn_default_pressed_holo.9 then this is how it would look on the Phone...
...which is obviously not the look I'm trying to achieve, as the left side border is causing the image to stretch incorrectly.
So that's basically it, depending on the image you're editing you can usually leave the borders alone but if you create one from scratch then you might need to play about with them if your images doesn't look quite right when used on the Phone. Here's a few links that will assist you further, especially the batch editing...
How to edit .9.pngs
[TUTO] Create your 9.png !
[UTILITY][TOOL] 9patchPngSuite [Windows&Linux]
How to draw NinePatch images with Photoshop - .9.PNG
[TOOL][Multi-Platform][.9.png][ALL DPIs] Android Resizer Tool
[Tutorial][Commentary] How To Batch Edit .9PNG/PNG Images
[tool] 9compiler - batch process for themers android
ClockworkMod Recovery zips are used for flashing individual files to whole ROMS and can be a life saver if you push a badly edited apk to your Phone that results in a bootloop. There's also a few programs that can assist you with that too, but if all you're doing is replacing a few files all you really need is a template, then it's just a matter of creating the Phones folder setup in the zip which is simply creating folders: system\app - system\media\audio etc then dragging and dropping your files into it. A basic understanding of the updater script is essential, a ROM.zip will more than likely wipe your Phone whereas a Theme.zip may just replace files but it might delete some also.[/QUOTE]
See below for a CWM.zip Template but first some helpful links...
[Tool]easy flasher v4 (ur own update.zip)
[Tool][Windows/Linux] Android Flashable Zip Creator
[Utility-Tool][DEVandThemers]CWMflashpack.zipCreatorV1{TheCollective}w/EdifyScripting
ERRORS encountered in CWM Recovery
[TUT] [for NOOB] editing updater-script for noobs!
[TUTORIAL] Making Flashable ZIPs, EDIFY Script, ZIP Signing & Key Creation
​
This is my Restore_zip which is set up so you can add your own files to the framework and apps folders in the main system location, but you can easily add other folders to it if you want to add things like fonts, tones or anything else, just remember to add folders within folders if that's where the files you want to include are such as tones, media\audio\alarms for example.
If you navigate to META-INF\com\google\android you will find the updater-script which controls how the zip works and the text you see when you run it in CWM. As this zip is just for basically over writing files you don't need to edit anything except for a few lines...
...this is how I've edited it for my theme...
...so just edit it using Notepad++ to your liking.
When adding files to your zip add them using Normal as the Compression Method...
...Remember to remove the text files I've added otherwise they will be flashed to your folders too.
And that's pretty much it, the only way you're really going to learn is by reading then putting into practice what you've read and picking stuff up along the way, fortunately there are numerous guides for numerous mods and tools to help with a variety of tasks.
Notable credits and thanks to @iBotPeaches and @Brut.all for making it possible with - Apktool

Useful Suff...
rovo89 said:
In this thread, I'm presenting a framework which gives you the possibility to modify your ROM - without modifying any APK (developers) or flashing (users)!
...
Advantages:
No need to modify any APKs. This means:
No need to decompile, change things in smali, compile, sign, ...
It will work for odexed and deodexed ROMs.
Your mod is not bound to a specific version of the ROM. Unless there is a major change in the methods called for a certain functionality, your mod will continue to work even when you upgrade your ROM. Hell, it will probably even work with different ROMs.
Multiple mods can be installed at the same time, even if they change the same package. So you can use these battery icons and those quick toggles. Even hooking the same method twice is possible. Of course, this only works properly if the mods are not trying to do incompatible things.
It does its magic at runtime. That means you can implement options to let the user decide if they prefer the bikeshed to be painted in red or blue. Or you can have some extra logic for certain ROMs without building different mod versions.
It can be disabled easily without having to reflash.
It's open source.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
- [FRAMEWORK ONLY!] Xposed - ROM modding without modifying APKs
Annex1 said:
CM10.1-THEME_BOOK
Theme book was created by Annex and Ebs512. I've been asked alot of questions from how to get started? what do I need to get started? to What Graphics program do I use? etc. We made a real simple theme guide to help get you started. This is in Layman Terms.. Nothing fancy.
ONLY THING FANCY IS MY FLASH BOOK
YOU MUST HAVE A FLASH PLAYER INSTALLED TO VIEW THIS!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
- [GUIDE] HOW TO THEME CM10.1 - Animated Book
[Guide] Porting XTheme themes
[How to] XMLGenerator.jar + batch script v2.0
[Guide] Xposed Framework/TabletUI (Noob-Friendly)
[Tool] Drawable XML generator for CM7 theme chooser
[Guide] How to port themes to T-Mobile Theme Chooser
[Tool] [Theme Creator] [CM/Avatar] Theme creator tool
[INDEX][WiP] List of APPs & MODs that use XPOSED Module
[Tool] nhnt11's XML Generator Revived V2+Extended UPDATED!
[DEV/GUIDE]Creating APKs for use with TMobile Theme engine
[Tool][PortCx] Port CM Themes to Xtheme Engine in One Click!
Theme-Porter [v1.0] [Any Firmware / Rom Compatible] [WINDOWS]
[GUIDE] T-mobile theme engine for the faint at heart (non-linux users)
[1/30/2013] Mega 4.2.1 BlackBean Theme Template [XXHDPI/XHDPI/HDPI/TVDPI]
[MOD][XPOSED][4.0+] XThemeEngine beta5 - Theme engine for any rooted phone
[APK][Xposed] ResXploit : Theming your android the easiest way! No decompiling APKs!
-·=»‡«=·-[JB][CM10] Theme Engine Template Updated To V4 [8-7-12][XHDPI/HDPI]-·=»‡«=·-

Hi Guys, I tried to do a small tweak to my ROM like just a color change to signal bars, as mentioned in the XDA university, but once the apk is pushed to system/app and restarted, it went to bootloop. I just changed the color of a image file using GIMP (as mentioned), then dint work, so just tried decompiling SystemUI.apk and then recompiling then folder without any changes and push to system folder, even that dint work, then i saw this thread, i tried the replacing the resources.arsc from old apk (opened using winrar, and dragged to my folder), the opened my new recompiled SystemUI.apk with winrar and added this resources.arsc file which i extracted with compression option as Store, then pushed it bcak to /system/app folder , every time i pushed i connected the phone in recovery mode. But still in bootloop, the moment i replace the apk with original one, it works, can some one pls point out what am I doing wrong ?
Hardware - I9100 - galaxy S2
ROM - JellyBAM 3.3
Kernel - Siyah 5.1+
thanks,
merin

merin_83 said:
Hi Guys, I tried to do a small tweak to my ROM like just a color change to signal bars, as mentioned in the XDA university, but once the apk is pushed to system/app and restarted, it went to bootloop. I just changed the color of a image file using GIMP (as mentioned), then dint work, so just tried decompiling SystemUI.apk and then recompiling then folder without any changes and push to system folder, even that dint work, then i saw this thread, i tried the replacing the resources.arsc from old apk (opened using winrar, and dragged to my folder), the opened my new recompiled SystemUI.apk with winrar and added this resources.arsc file which i extracted with compression option as Store, then pushed it bcak to /system/app folder , every time i pushed i connected the phone in recovery mode. But still in bootloop, the moment i replace the apk with original one, it works, can some one pls point out what am I doing wrong ?
Hardware - I9100 - galaxy S2
ROM - JellyBAM 3.3
Kernel - Siyah 5.1+
thanks,
merin
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi There
Try using 7zip to update the apk instead of winrar. if that doesn't work, post your logcats,
Thanks

trevd said:
Hi There
Try using 7zip to update the apk instead of winrar. if that doesn't work, post your logcats,
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will try that when i get back home today, and is there any option i need to set when using 7zip like store mode ?
thanks,
merin

hi, I tried with 7zip, 1st i just opened the recompiled zip with 7zip and dragged and dropped the resources file from original apk to this archive, and pushed to phone , still boot looping, and then tried to right click on the resource file from original apk, and selected add to 7zip archive, and changed the archive format to .zip/compression mode to Store and saved, then pushed to phone, still boot looping. So here i have attached the logcat, hope that is correct how i have done it, after rebooting the phone, i typed in consle logcat > log.txt and it was waiting for device, once in boot loop i did ctrl + c, then it exited. Please let me know if you need more info, do i need to attach my original SystemUI.apk and framework-res.apk ??
Happy New Year !!!
thanks,
merin

Nice tuts I will try at home :thumbup:
Sent from my ST18i using xda premium

merin_83 said:
then i saw this thread, i tried the replacing the resources.arsc from old apk (opened using winrar, and dragged to my folder), the opened my new recompiled SystemUI.apk with winrar and added this resources.arsc file which i extracted with compression option as Store, then pushed it bcak to /system/app folder , every time i pushed i connected the phone in recovery mode. But still in bootloop, the moment i replace the apk with original one, it works, can some one pls point out what am I doing wrong ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi.
Are you copying the AndroidManifest.xml and META-INF folder from the original to the new apk too?

Actually i did the exact thing you said yesterday, when i found in the youtube, and it worked thank you!, but dint copy the resource file (but had some fc's when opening camera 1st time), may thats the reason,,, so i should copy AndroidManifest.xml and META-INF and resource file ?, and is this a standard procedure when we do a recompile every time ? or it varies with situation ?
thanks,
merin

Hey hi guys....can any 1 tell me how to set boot image which i want hmmmmm
Sent from my HTC Desire HD using xda app-developers app

merin_83 said:
so i should copy AndroidManifest.xml and META-INF and resource file ?, and is this a standard procedure when we do a recompile every time ? or it varies with situation ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's how I do it every time and never have an issue (unless I've screwed up somewhere), so yes.
sagar4all007 said:
Hey hi guys....can any 1 tell me how to set boot image which i want hmmmmm
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

oh okey thank you XperienceD, does it make a difference if we just use apktool or Androidsuite for decompiling and building ?
thanks,
merin

merin_83 said:
oh okey thank you XperienceD, does it make a difference if we just use apktool or Androidsuite for decompiling and building ?
thanks,
merin
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think androidsuite uses apktool for its decompiling and build it just uses it through a ui as apktool is command line so its more a preference of use for you
Sent from my GT-N7000 using XDA Premium HD app

ttibbetts83 said:
I think androidsuite uses apktool for its decompiling and build it just uses it through a ui as apktool is command line so its more a preference of use for you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What he said. I've set this up for when such programs don't always work.

How about some links for how to guide for Ubuntu user and some links on .XML file editing I was doing .apk mods on windows then started messing around with Ubuntu and find its I little more work to get it setup but all an all it to me is a better environment for android then windows IMOA
Sent from my GT-N7000 using XDA Premium HD app

ttibbetts83 said:
How about some links for how to guide for Ubuntu user
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After a quick search for android theming ubuntu there doesn't seem to be a lot of information for it, and this post...
Nikkopt said:
What and where have you heard about Ubuntu helping on theming? It depends on personal taste and choice. You also have much more tools to help you graphically on windows and mac os.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
from this thread - Which version of Ubuntu is recommended for theming? suggests why.

here are some links for ubuntu installs that will help with .apk modding on ubuntu for those who want it
how to setup apktool on ubuntu
http://my.opera.com/ubuntunerd1/blog/2012/08/20/how-to-apktool-with-ubuntu-under-construction
ubuntu version of paint.net
http://pinta-project.com/
xaraxtreme looks to be a good program from what i have read but i have not tryed it out yet
http://www.xaraxtreme.org/download.html
gimp is avalable through ubuntu software center and for .xml ubuntu has built in editer software just by right click and open with text editer

hex color website http://www.procato.com/rgbfind/

Nice guide my friend :good:
if anyone get apktool doesn't work on apk JB 4.2.2 ROM you can use this Latest apktool http://d-h.st/cze

Rizal Lovins said:
Nice guide my friend :good:
if anyone get apktool doesn't work on apk JB 4.2.2 ROM you can use this Latest apktool http://d-h.st/cze
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks Rizal.

[Q] How to enable mass storage in CM 10.1 ?

Does anyone know how to enable USB Mass Storage on our phones under CM10.1? I've searched around and found this thread. But since I'm not familiar with changing build.prop I don't dare to do it myself. There are some CWM .zip files around to enable it, but they are on other phone's forums and I'm sure they just replace/change the build.prop so it's definitely not a good idea to flash those on a different phone than the ones they were intended for....
Long story short, does anyone know how to enable it on ours?
TIA!

Update on the process:
I was able to edit the build.prop according to the instructions, but that alone doesn't seem to do anything.
So I decided to try the next step, but where it tells me to do the changes below I wasn't sure what to do.
Thom75 said:
in framework-res.apk/res/xml/storage_list.xml
where oryginal line look like this:
Code:
<storage android:mountPoint="/storage/sdcard0" android:storageDescription="@string/storage_sd_card" android:primary="true" android:removable="true" android:maxFileSize="4096" />
after change look like this:
Code:
<storage android:mountPoint="/storage/sdcard0" android:storageDescription="@string/storage_sd_card" android:primary="true" android:removable="true" android:allowMassStorage="true" android:maxFileSize="4096" />
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was able to find the framework-res.apk file, copied to my computer and tried to open it with an XML editor... looked too complicated so I left it alone.
Does anyone know how to mess with that?

Open the .apk file with WinRar
-Drag the file you want to edit on your computer
-Edit the file on your computer
-Delete the old file in Winrar from the apk file
-Put the new file from your computer back in Winrar and save the "new" apk file
-Put the new .apk file on your smartphone
Before you install the new .apk file take a Root Explorer and look at the permissions of the old .apk file and set this permission on the new once...
I hope i could help you

Sivvis said:
Open the .apk file with WinRar
-Drag the file you want to edit on your computer
-Edit the file on your computer
-Delete the old file in Winrar from the apk file
-Put the new file from your computer back in Winrar and save the "new" apk file
-Put the new .apk file on your smartphone
Before you install the new .apk file take a Root Explorer and look at the permissions of the old .apk file and set this permission on the new once...
I hope i could help you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you very much for your help! I didn't know apk files were just a compressed library of other files.
Now I am stuck trying to edit the "storage_list.xml" file... I tried to open with a few different xml editors, but could not get clean text like the example before. Any sugestions?
I attached the file below:

Apoena said:
Now I am stuck trying to edit the "storage_list.xml" file... I tried to open with a few different xml editors, but could not get clean text like the example before. Any sugestions?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, how about decompiling the .apk file with APK Tools instead of just opening it with WinRar? :laugh:
Yes, now I get a clean, editable, decompiled xml file.
I'll try editing both when I get home tonight and will post the results.

I guess this is a problem because of the emulated layout. There is a trick with setprop sys.usb.storage.config mass_storage but it does not work.
Keep me informed if you find something valuable (i'm on original CM10.1, latest nightly 0423 actualy).

Ok, here's the update from last night:
I started over since I flashed the nightly, which is good so I restarted with a clean slate.
- Edited build.prop - OK
- Copied framework-res.apk to my computer
- Decompiled framework-res.apk
- Edited storage_list.xml
- Recompiled framework-res.apk with new storage_list.xml
- Copied framework-res.apk back to my phone
- Deleted original framework-res.apk
- ...... instant restart & bootloop before I could paste the new framework-res.apk in its place
No big deal, just restored a nandroid backup I made before messing with anything and I'm back in business.
Apparently you can't mess with the framework-res.apk while your phone is on (with the OS running)... so now I need to research the right way to push/pull these files from ADB while on CWM recovery. I appreciate if someone could point me in the right direction since I'll be busy at work today.
To be honest, my gut feeling tells me that this is not going to work anyway. But look at what I learned so far... two days ago I wouldn't even think of compiling/decompiling anything... this is what XDA is all about, right?

Imho, the framework_res.apk and various tricks are all enabling or disabling a sys.usb.storage.config key. I'm not understanding nor finding informations about CM10.1 emulated layout, and if there are any reasons to forbid mass storage (because, yes, it seems it is disabled because it is not compatible).
This is something i have hard time with. On Android, you have tons of improvement for rom or kernel XY, but generally undocumented. If you apply this 'per device', the information is very fragmented and difficult to grab.
I was looking for a simple brief on base MTD partitions layout for LG P880, it seems the only way to have this is to dig KDZ files. Perhaps a Wiki would help the wannabe contributers like me to start ?

Any Solution For This Problem ??? I Can't Transfer Any Files To My O4X , What's The Point Of Cyanogenmod Then ??????????????

Nooby305 said:
Any Solution For This Problem ??? I Can't Transfer Any Files To My O4X , What's The Point Of Cyanogenmod Then ??????????????
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Flash the latest nightly. MTP is working and you cab transfer files that way.
Sent from my tree using a ladder

effectively, if you are flashing for USM, you should stay on LG stock.

I know that the topic got a little old but I'd like to refresh it since more people (e.g. Ubuntu users) could be interested in enabling Mass Storage.
What I've done is:
1) pulled /system/framework/framework-res.apk
2) decompiled it with APKtool
3) added
Code:
android:allowMassStorage="true"
in storage_list.xml
4) builded a new apk
then I've rebooted my phone into recovery and (@Apoena you may be interested in it - there is a possibility to access /system through adb connected with phone in recovery mode) pushed the new framework-res.apk. I've also changed the entry in build.prop to
Code:
persist.sys.usb.config=mass_storage,adb
Everything seemed fine until I've tried to reboot the phone: instead of CM boot logo I got a black screen. Anybody has an idea what went wrong (maybe something during recompilation of the apk)?
And of course sorry for any language mistakes, I'm not a native speaker

[MOD][TEMPLATE] Magisk Module Template with EvilTheme Patcher

Hello everyone.
This is a little mod to the Magisk Module Template that allows you to patch APK files on-the-fly and have them created as a Magisk Module.
For example, you could have a modified camera module for your ROM, where this patcher would replace the classes.dex file with mods, then pack that as a Magisk Module, using the original file found in the /system (ROM)
For some of the devs that have been around for a while, you would be aware of the old VRTheme modding system, which would allow you to patch files on-the-fly. EvilTheme is basically a newer version of that, so combined with Magisk can be very useful
Here's what this module CAN do:
Replace resources.arsc, classes.dex, AndroidManifest.xml, and META-INF folder
Replace compiled res folders / files
Here's what this module CAN'T do:
Replace files in res/values or smali folders
How to use EVilTheme
(Example using /system/priv-app/SecSettings2.apk)
In the eviltheme folder, go to system and make a folder called priv-app. Inside it, make another folder called SecSettings2.apk
Now make folders as necessary, according to the location of the files you want to theme. For example, battery_icon_50.png is located in res/drawable-hdpi, so make a folder named res inside SecSettings2.apk.
Inside it, create a folder named drawable-hdpi, then paste your new battery_icon_50.png inside.
Repeat step 2 until you've placed your theme files in their appropriate locations.
When you're done, go back to the root folder of the theme (the one that contains eviltheme, engine, etc.) and put all the objects in a ZIP file.
You should use Deflate compression with compression level on Normal, but if your theme is huge, you can safely try compressing using Deflate and the level set to Ultra or whatever high level is available.
Test your mod.
For information regarding the Magisk Module subbmision etc, please read the information HERE
Link to Github Repository: HERE
Enjoy

Nice! Sounds interesting!
I've been using vrtheme for years and even contacted spanna aabout adapting the script to achieve modding of live system files this eliminating the need for recovery zips and even Aroma!
So I have a question about the use and locations of the asset files.
Would it be possible to change, at least the location from which the files get pulled from and placed into the execute folders?
So basically could it be set to pull the image/resource, whatever file from either a data folder or my preference, sd storage?
I've used an asset folder built into my system for similar commands, but with enough options and large files the system partition can get extremely crowded.
Does my question make sense?
Basically i would like to eliminate a big section of my packed 2gb Aroma zip. About 700mb is all vrtheme injected compiled files.
Either way I will definitely be looking into this!
Thanks

stangdriver44 said:
Nice! Sounds interesting!
I've been using vrtheme for years and even contacted spanna aabout adapting the script to achieve modding of live system files this eliminating the need for recovery zips and even Aroma!
So I have a question about the use and locations of the asset files.
Would it be possible to change, at least the location from which the files get pulled from and placed into the execute folders?
So basically could it be set to pull the image/resource, whatever file from either a data folder or my preference, sd storage?
I've used an asset folder built into my system for similar commands, but with enough options and large files the system partition can get extremely crowded.
Does my question make sense?
Basically i would like to eliminate a big section of my packed 2gb Aroma zip. About 700mb is all vrtheme injected compiled files.
Either way I will definitely be looking into this!
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You could, but you would have to look at update-binary and installtheme.sh, then modify it for your needs. So instead of copying the modded files from the flashable zip, you would just have to remove the unzip function and change the path of where they are unzipped to to the location of where the files are on your data partition.
Give it a try

so with this I can technically change the rotation of an app without ever messing with the apk? I've tried editing the AndroidManifest.xml, but after editing I've never been successful putting it back into the apk

dimm0k said:
so with this I can technically change the rotation of an app without ever messing with the apk? I've tried editing the AndroidManifest.xml, but after editing I've never been successful putting it back into the apk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you plan to change androidmanifest.xml you will have to include the newly created META-INF folder for it too.

Could this be used to convert substratum themes to work systemlessly with magisk?
Sent from my Pixel using XDA Labs

qwer777 said:
Could this be used to convert substratum themes to work systemlessly with magisk?
Sent from my Pixel using XDA Labs
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're talking about pre-packaged APK theme files, no it probably won't work, as they still need to be installed.
This is more for files that are already installed that require patching.

Nice work
Got one question - is it possible to modify classes.dex if .apk file is not in system folder? I mean for example, if system app gets updated, it creates new folder in data/app/ with the name of the package and with either -1, -2 or whetever number at the end (ex. data/app/com.google.android.youtube-2).
Do I need to just integrate update into system and then modify it? Or just create new folder in eviltheme one with data/... instead of system/...?
Thanks

I tried to modify system/framework/framework-res.apk/res/drawable-xxhdpi-v4/default_wallpaper.jpg, but unfortunately it did not work. Neither on InFocus M808/mod stock 6.0(mt6753) nor on SamsungS5Neo/mod stock 6.0.1(exynos7580)
Both tried with official Magisk 12.0 and newest beta.

nevermind i didn't read all the way

drei.liter.milch said:
I tried to modify system/framework/framework-res.apk/res/drawable-xxhdpi-v4/default_wallpaper.jpg, but unfortunately it did not work. Neither on InFocus M808/mod stock 6.0(mt6753) nor on SamsungS5Neo/mod stock 6.0.1(exynos7580)
Both tried with official Magisk 12.0 and newest beta.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Started another try to replace some icons. did not work. am I missing something or is this template just faulty?
anybody who got this working?

drei.liter.milch said:
Started another try to replace some icons. did not work. am I missing something or is this template just crap?
anybody who got this working?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was a bit rude.
Edit: better to give some details on what you've actually done, maybe even upload your files. Easier to find any faults on your side or possible bugs that way.

I want to add the clock onto my lockscreen statusbar. Would this help me achieve that?

Didgeridoohan said:
That was a bit rude.
Edit: better to give some details on what you've actually done, maybe even upload your files. Easier to find any faults on your side or possible bugs that way.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes ok, the word "crap" maybe was a little bit over the top. i'm sorry for that. I just would like to know, if anybody can report this module/template as working. If so, I would go on looking for the error on my side.
I've actually followed exactly the guide given in OP. (It seems not that tricky to me)
-placed folder tree system/framework/framework-res.apk/res/drawable-xxhdpi-v4/ in the eviltheme-folder and put my default_wallpaper.jpg file in drawable-xxhdpi-v4 folder
-edited module.prop und config.sh
-zipped the whole template folder
-installed via magisk manager
-rebooted
tried with to different phones, beta and official magisk (see my first post)
I'll reproduce my logs and attach them later.
anyway thanks for the hint

drei.liter.milch said:
yes ok, the word "crap" maybe was a little bit over the top. i'm sorry for that. I just would like to know, if anybody can report this module/template as working. If so, I would go on looking for the error on my side.
I've actually followed exactly the guide given in OP. (It seems not that tricky to me)
-placed folder tree system/framework/framework-res.apk/res/drawable-xxhdpi-v4/ in the eviltheme-folder and put my default_wallpaper.jpg file in drawable-xxhdpi-v4 folder
-edited module.prop und config.sh
-zipped the whole template folder
-installed via magisk manager
-rebooted
tried with to different phones, beta and official magisk (see my first post)
I'll reproduce my logs and attach them later.
anyway thanks for the hint
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Flash Via Recovery, it may work. didnt work for me when i installed from magisk manager.
btw i have a question, is there any way to remove a file from the apk?

shekhawat2 said:
Flash Via Recovery, it may work. didnt work for me when i installed from magisk manager.
btw i have a question, is there any way to remove a file from the apk?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thx, i'll try that. which magisk-version do you use? and i guess maybe you can remove a file by placing a dummy.

drei.liter.milch said:
thx, i'll try that. which magisk-version do you use? and i guess maybe you can remove a file by placing a dummy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No brother, I want to delete the file, not to replace it with dummy file. Replacing with dummy file will give system ui FCs.
I saw something delete.list in the installtheme.sh, but I don't know how to use it. If anyone can help, pls help me.
BTW I am using Magisk v12.

shekhawat2 said:
No brother, I want to delete the file, not to replace it with dummy file. Replacing with dummy file will give system ui FCs.
I saw something delete.list in the installtheme.sh, but I don't know how to use it. If anyone can help, pls help me.
BTW I am using Magisk v12.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, I see. Perhaps you find sth about it in the vrtheme-topic. Btw. flashing in recovery doesn't work either. I'm not messing around with this anymore and continue using flipster :good:

Where can we download? I want to change Viber's background to pure black so I will change the AndroidManifest. Will this theoretically work?

I was wondering what, if anything, I would need to change for this to work on a pixel. On Pixel's, the install path is system/system. I couldn't tell whether or not this could detect the correct path on its own.
Edit: Never mind. I got it to work.