How to enter developer options for android. How to enable secret settings for Android developers. How to speed up your Android phone

There is one interesting item "For developers" in the settings of your device. With its help, users can customize the behavior of the system, activate any functions, and developers can debug the operation of the desired application / game. For example, in this tutorial we will tell you how to enable "USB debugging mode"(see point 4 in the description of the developer menu functions), an error report is viewed in it, the factory unlock of the bootloader is turned on, and much more.


Despite the fact that all Android devices have the same settings for developers, device manufacturers may place this option in different sub-items of the Settings menu. Now we will analyze exactly how and where to enable / disable developer mode on an Android smartphone or tablet, and then we will tell you what functions and under what circumstances you can use.

How to enable developer mode on android:

For clarity, we have attached a video instruction in which the process of activating the "For Developers" menu is displayed.

If you have developer mode does not turn on on an android device- try pressing "everything in a row" in the section about the phone, in rare cases notifications may not appear, so just scroll through the menu, with a high probability you will find that the developer mode has been activated. Otherwise, indicate the model of your device and the firmware / build version in the comments and we will help you.

How to remove or disable the "For Developers" mode from the settings menu:

It should be noted that some of the devices do not allow this operation, but in most cases the item is hidden in one click.

Go to the menu "Settings", scroll to the point "For developers", go into it and uncheck the box opposite the word "Included"... The device will automatically return to the previous section and the "For Developers" item will disappear.


If for some reason you do not have a checkmark opposite "Enabled", then you should use the following instruction:

Open "Settings" -> "Applications" -> "Settings" -> Then go to "Storage" and select "Erase data, Clear cache". This method is suitable for most smartphones and tablets, so if it helped you, be sure to let us know in the comments to the article.

Next, there will be useful functions and features of the "For Developers" menu, which may be useful in certain situations.

  1. Do not turn off the screen

    If this parameter is activated, then the screen of your device will never go out, provided the charger is connected. This feature will be useful for developers of Android applications who are forced to follow their brainchild for a long time.

    Also, the function may be needed for social networks, where "live" updates take place and you do not have the time, desire, to constantly press the screen so that the screen does not turn off. Owners of devices with AMOLED displays should be careful, as the so-called "burn" effect may occur on the screen. The image is printed on the display and cannot be removed in the future.

  2. Factory unlocked

    Unlocking the bootloader on your smartphone / tablet allows you to use custom recovery and other goodies in the future. For example, on a device with a locked bootloader, there is no way to get into the Android recovery menu and return the system to its original form / install a new OS.


    In fact, this option does not allow you to unlock the bootloader, but it does give "permission" to do this with your device. If you do not plan to perform the previously listed manipulations, you should not activate this function.
  3. Running applications

    Everyone knows that Windows has a task manager, which displays which processes are currently running. This allows you to understand what is working at a particular moment and why the computer is unstable, which consumes most of the resources. You will not find such an analogue in the standard settings of Android devices, so the "Running Applications" function can be very useful.


    You will be able to view which applications are running in the background, for how long, as well as the amount of RAM they consume. Do not forcefully try to terminate running processes, this can lead to unexpected consequences. You do not need to worry, Android has long learned to manage RAM and users rarely feel a shortage of it.
  4. USB debugging mode

    One of the few features that developers need in the first place. The main purpose of USB debugging mode is to perform specific actions on your device through the transmitted commands from a personal computer. For example, by connecting to the Adnroid SDK, users will be able to install an application through a computer, get the necessary information and even get ROOT access.

    How to enable usb debugging on android

    To enable usb debugging mode on an android device - go to the "For Developers" menu, find the "USB Debugging" or "USB Debugging" item and activate it!


    Naturally, nobody cancels the usefulness of this parameter, but for safety it is worth turning off the USB debugging mode when you are not using it.
  5. Fictitious location

    It's no secret that Android phones and tablets can track by knowing your current location. But surely few people know that Android has a function that allows services, applications to report the fake location of the device. In other words, you should activate the function and then select the program for which the wrong location of your device will be displayed.

  6. Disable absolute level

    If you search, you can stumble upon many questions on the network regarding changing the volume of Bluetooth speakers, headsets and other devices using an Android smartphone. For unknown reasons, this does not always work, the sound becomes louder and quieter. If you are faced with a similar problem and would like to get rid of it, then do not forget to activate the "Disable absolute level" function. Otherwise, do not touch this parameter to continue the normal operation of the device.

  7. Visual response

    By activating this function, you will see small dots on the screen, allowing you to find out exactly where the press was made. It is useful in several cases: for developers, for people who are experiencing problems with pinpoint movements, as well as at the time of recording video from the device's screen for greater clarity.

In this article, we tried to explain what "Developer Mode" is, how to enable and disable it, and what useful functions you can use without fear of damaging your smartphone / tablet. Of course, there are a lot of other parameters in the developer's settings, but most of them have no practical meaning for ordinary users, but are intended primarily for people involved in software development.

  • 2 April 2018
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Developer mode, as the name implies, may be needed primarily by developers, but in fact, it is often used by ordinary users as well. For what? Yes, at least in order to. But sometimes there is a desire to turn off this mode and remove it from the menu. How to do it? Let's show an example on a Samsung Galaxy smartphone.

Please note that the developer menu itself has an On / Off switch, but turning it off does not make the section disappear from the settings. Not at all, he remains there, so you need to go the other way.

This path is simple and works great on devices based on Android 6, 7, 8, etc. Go to settings.

Find the section with applications. In our example, it is called that.

Look for the "Settings" line, click on it.

On the application page, open the "Memory" section.

Here you click "Clear data" (do not confuse it with the cache). This button can be located directly on the application page.

Confirm deletion.

The desktop will most likely open. Even if this did not happen, it does not matter, just open the settings and look where the "Developer Mode" menu was - it is no longer there.

Remember that you can turn on developer mode again at any time.

The popular operating system for mobile gadgets Android has extensive specialized functionality that is used by programmers and application debuggers, hardware testers, as well as advanced users who want to get the most out of their device. In particular, the OS provides the ability to display the load on the processor and memory module, to record statistics on the use of individual processes and programs. You can also simulate the screen in a variety of resolutions and color schemes, which becomes a real lifesaver for site testers and other professionals responsible for the usability of applications and network resources. To access these options, you need to enable Android developer mode.

How to do this, as well as how to turn off this environment, we will consider in detail below. The described actions will be identical for almost all devices running Android, be it a top-end smartphone from a well-known brand or a simple and cheap handset from a little-known one.

How do I enable Android developer mode?

To get access to the engineering functionality of the OS, you should do the following:


Android Developer Mode - Basic Toolkit

We go up one menu level and go down to the very bottom. Before the item " About the device"We see a new section" For developers". This is where the specialized settings are accessed.


Press the added menu item - the Android developer mode opens directly. From here you can access the following options:

  • « Bug report"- collection of information about the current state of the device and sending a complete report by e-mail.
  • « Backup password"- allows you to protect the creation of copies of information stored on the device, an individual password.
  • « Do not turn off the screen"- if you check the box, then when charging the gadget will always be highlighted.
  • « Select Wednesday"- here you can set the working environment. Modern gadgets use environments ART and Dalvik- it is better to give preference to the first one, it allows you to significantly increase the productivity of the device and the programs used.
  • « Enable Broadcast HCI Bluetooth Operations Log"- when this option is activated, all Bluetooth data will be displayed in a single file.
  • « HDCP check"- using this tool, you can set the order of the copy protection check.
  • « Process statistics"- with the help of this toolkit, the Android developer mode allows you to get information about the work of processes.

Functionality of the "Debug" block


This menu block contains the following operating options:

  • « USB debugging"- activation of the possibility of debugging via a USB cable connecting the gadget and the computer.
  • « Revoke access for USB debugging"- if you activate this function through the developer mode on Android, then a ban on debugging from the computer will be set.
  • « Generating an error report"- enable this option and get the opportunity to record information about the operation of the device and emerging problems.
  • « Fictitious location"- a tool from a number of spy gadgets, when activated, when requesting coordinates, false information will be given.
  • « Choosing an Application for Debugging"- this subsection allows you to select specific applications that require debugging.
  • « Waiting for the debugger to connect"- by default the function is inactive and indicates that the debugger device is not connected.
  • « Install via USB"- makes it possible to install third-party programs via a USB cable.
  • « Log buffer size"- here you can set the maximum memory size for the system log.

Android Developer Mode - Networks Section


The following functionality is implemented here:

  • « Wireless Monitors Certification»- Displays certificate information for connected wireless monitors.
  • « Wi-Fi Magazine"- a tool that allows you to save information about RSSI for each specific channel in the log when connected to a Wi-Fi network.
  • « Connecting to a mobile network»- if the Wi-Fi connection signal is too weak, the device will automatically connect to the mobile Internet network.
  • « Legacy DHCP client"- thanks to this option, you can use an earlier DHCP client, which is necessary for older devices.
  • « Save data transfer»- if this menu item is active, then the mobile network will not be disconnected when Wi-Fi is turned on, which will make it faster and easier to switch between data transmission channels.
  • « USB Configuration"- setting a standard order of connection to a computer.

Engineering menu - section "Entering text"


This section provides the following specific tools:

  • « Display of clicks"- if this tool is activated, then when you click on the screen of the device, a point will be displayed in the corresponding place.
  • « Touch display"- when this option is enabled, even accidental touches will be visualized on the screen.

Android Developer Mode - Drawing Section


  • « Displaying updated surfaces"- the updated windows are fully highlighted.
  • « Displaying element borders"- the fields and objects presented on the screen are highlighted with individual fields.
  • « Right to left text"- for all supported languages, text input from right to left is enabled.
  • « Animated windows"- turn on / off animation for windows, set the required scale.
  • « Animation duration"- setting the speed of animation effects.
  • « Emulation of additional screens"- the ability to enable a duplicate screen. This option is convenient, for example, when testing mobile programs and websites.

Android developer menu - sector "Hardware acceleration of visualization effects"


Implemented here are tools like:

  • « GPU acceleration"- when running this option, the GPU resource will be used by default for 2D graphics.
  • « Screen Refresh"- if this item is enabled, then when the picture is drawn on the display by means of the GPU, it will be highlighted.
  • « Displaying hardware updates"- using this tool will highlight hardware updates.
  • « Debugging overlays»- using this option, you can customize the display of screen overlays.
  • « Debugging non-rectangular truncations"- options for the function: a) Off, b) Displaying non-rectangular sections, c) Testing the drawing environment.
  • « 4 * MSAA"- activation of this mod launches the" 4 * MSAA "option for applications using OpenGL ES version 2.0.
  • « Disable hardware overlays"- if this tool is deactivated, then the GPU resource will be used for all compositing operations.
  • « Simulated anomalies»- setting a color scheme for users with impaired color perception.

Functionality of the "Multimedia" section

  • « Disabling audio streaming to USB devices»- prohibits automatic transmission of audio signals via USB-connection.

Monitoring submenu


  • « Strict regime»- backlighting of the screen when performing operations of a long duration.
  • « Displaying CPU utilization"- this option displays information on the degree of processor utilization on the screen.
  • « GPU runtime»- generates a report on the duration of the use of the GPU.
  • « Enabling OpenGL tracing"- activation of various ways of tracing OpenGL.

Engineering menu Android - section "Applications"


Android developer mode allows you to perform the following operations with installed programs:

  • « Don't save actions"- when this option is activated, all information about actions in applications will be erased after they are closed.
  • « Limiting background processes"- allows you to set a limit on the number of processes running in the background, which has a positive effect on the speed of the device.
  • « All ANR"- if this tool is used, then in case of lags and freezes of applications, the user will receive appropriate notifications.
  • « Inactive applications"- this option displays a list of running programs, allowing you to terminate those that are no longer needed.

This is how the Android engineering mod is arranged. The names of the functions may change depending on the version of the system and the Russification package, but their purpose is always preserved.

How to disable Android developer mode

When all the necessary operations are completed, you can exit the environment for developers. To do this, we perform the following sequence of actions:

  • Open the menu “ Settings"And scroll down to the section" For developers».
  • We go into it and see a switch at the very top.
  • Click on it - this turns off the Android developer settings block.

In Android 4.4 KitKat, many noticed that the item "For Developers" was gone. Actually, a similar situation will be with all versions of Android that came out after (and this is currently Android 5.0.1, 5.02, 5.1, etc.).
Thus, if the item "For Developers" has disappeared, then this article will come in handy for you.

How do I return or enable the developer clause?


  • 1) Settings -> About the phone(if the tablet is " About Tablet PC»).

  • 2) Scroll down, you will see an item such as " Build number»

  • 3) Tap on it several times (that is, press, 7 times)

  • 4) A joyful message will appear: “ You became a developer».

Ready!

Now you can go to Settings-> For Developers and enable USB debugging and other useful things.

P.S: item " For developers"Is in the section" System»

Why activate the "For Developers" item?

The most common option is when you get root-rights, you need to enable USB debugging, which is located in the "For Developers" section.

How do I turn off the "For Developers" item?

Settings-> section " System»-> For developers-> Off (top switch).

Thus, you understand why and where the item "For Developers" disappeared and now you know how to return it.

Android Developer Mode is a special set of features that is grayed out and hidden by default. Upon activation, it opens access to a set of auxiliary settings and capabilities. Among them: additional items for working with hardware and smartphone software, tools for debugging, logging, reporting, device diagnostics, etc.

In most cases, the functions of the developer mode are of little interest to the common user, since they are intended primarily for professionals: programmers, firmware developers, application creators and service center masters. But sometimes an ordinary user also needs to use the developer mode. You cannot do without access to the functions hidden in this section, when necessary, to allow unlocking the bootloader or (for example, for). And how to activate this mode and get into its menu, read below.

How to enable developer mode on Android

On Android 4.1 and below, the "For Developers" item is located in the settings menu. In newer versions of the OS, it is hidden by default.

To activate it, starting with Android 4.2 and ending with Android 7.1, go to the settings and find the "About phone" section (at the end of the settings menu). Find the item "Build number" there and quickly click on it 7 times in a row.

A message will appear on the screen telling you how many times you have left to click. Continue until you see the "You are now a developer!" Notification.

After that, the "For Developers" section will appear in the main settings menu.

How to activate the item "For Developers" on Android 8 and 9

On Android 8.0 and newer, to enable the developer menu, go to the System section (the last item in the settings menu). In this section, find the sub-item "About phone" (also at the very bottom).

By clicking on the "Build number" line 7 times, you will receive a notification that you have become a developer.

The "For Developers" item will appear in the "System" section of the main settings menu.

Developer mode in MIUI on Xiaomi

In the MIUI firmware on Xiaomi, the developer menu is activated in a similar way. The item "About phone" is the first in the settings menu. Go into it and find the "MIUI Version" parameter. Having quickly tapped it 7 times in a row, the notification "You have become a developer!" Will appear on the screen.

After activating the mode, go to the main settings menu and find the "Advanced settings" item (in the "System and device" group) there. The menu "For Developers" is at the end of the list, this is the third item from the bottom.

Overview of Developer Menu Features

The features in the developer menu are grouped by category. A brief description of each of them is below. Some options are not present in all smartphones, but since developer mode is part of the kernel, most of the options are available regardless of the firmware (pure Android, MIUI, EMUI, Flyme, etc.).

Memory... Displays the average consumption of RAM by Android OS and applications over the last period of operation.

Bug report... Can be interactive and detailed. The first allows you to take a screenshot, supplement it with information about the problem, and track the status. Detailed - collects detailed information about the system, covering many parameters. It is used if the smartphone works poorly, does not respond to actions, or slows down a lot.

Backup password... Allows you to set a password to protect your backed up data.

Do not turn off the screen... Leaves the screen backlight constantly active when the device is charging.

Enable HCI Bluetooth Log... Allows you to save Bluetooth HCI data packets to the BTSNOOP_HCI.log file (the location of the file differs on different smartphones and OS versions). With the help of special software, you can analyze the log data, for example, determine in which mode the sound is transmitted to the headphones (SBC, AAC, aptX, etc.).

Factory unlocked... Enables / disables unlocking the bootloader on devices with it locked. Activation is required, for example, for.

Running applications... List of running programs and displaying the consumption of system resources by each of them.

Color mode... Activates the SRGB color scheme.

WebView service... Choosing an engine for processing web pages by applications that do not have standard browser functions.

Automatic system updates... Turns on when the device is rebooted.

Debugging

Items of the "Debug" mode are responsible for debugging the operation of the OS from a PC, via a USB cable.

USB debugging... Enable / disable computer debugging support.

Revoke access... Prevent any computers from which debugging was previously carried out from interfering with the operation of the system.

Bug report... Displays the corresponding key in the menu.

Choose app for mock locations... Responsible for selecting the application that transmits false location coordinates (Fake GPS).

Enable Attribute Validation... Enables attribute checking in debug mode.

Choose an application to debug... Selecting a separate application for debugging. It will be useful for programmers and software developers.

Wait for the debugger to connect... The item is inactive until an application for debugging is specified.

Validate app during installation... Checking the security of applications when installing via ADB / ADT.

Log buffer size... Responsible for the size of the buffer into which the debug process log is written.

Debugging the GPU... Enables loading of GPU debug layers.

Tracking system updates... Track and analyze workflows to improve OS performance.

Networks

This section of the developer menu is responsible for wired and wireless (USB, BT, Wi-Fi) connections.

Wireless Monitors Certification... Displays the certification settings for WiDi / Miracast displays.

Detailed Wi-Fi log... Extended log for network connections.

Switch to mobile network... Automatically switches to the mob. internet if wifi is bad.

Always search for Wi-Fi networks... The smartphone searches for networks even when using EDGE / 3G / 4G.

Do not disable mobile internet... Keeps EDGE / 3G / LTE connection active at all times, even when Wi-Fi is on. Useful when Wi-Fi connection is unstable.

Hardware acceleration in modem mode... Using acceleration when connecting as a modem. It can come in handy when the internet speed is low.

USB configuration... PC connection mode: charging, MTP (data transfer), PTP (camera mode), RNDIS (network card), audio source, MIDI (sound synthesizer).

Show unnamed Bluetooth devices... Displays the MAC addresses of available wireless gadgets.

Disable absolute volume... Disable the absolute volume level. May help if BT headphones are playing too quiet / loud.

Enable in-band playback... Transmits audio signals from the phone to the headphones. Activate if the headset does not indicate an incoming call or message in any way.

Bluetooth AVRCP version... Selection of the control signal protocol version. The change sometimes helps if the smartphone does not respond correctly to button presses (pause, rewind, volume) of wireless headphones / speakers.

Audio codec for Bluetooth transmission... Selects the audio encoding mode. Allows you to switch between SBC, AAC, LDAC, aptX, etc. Which is logical, it only works if the headphones support multiple codecs.

Sampling rate for Bluetooth transmission... BT audio sampling rate. The higher - the better the quality, but it does not always work, and is effective only for Lose-less music formats.

Bluetooth audio coding depth... Likewise: the higher, the better the quality.

Bluetooth audio channel mode... Switch between mono and stereo. Can be useful if headphones don't want to play in stereo.

LDAC audio codec for Bluetooth: playback quality... Choosing a balance between quality and connection speed. Raising sometimes improves the sound, decreasing - improves the quality of the connection.

Input

The section responsible for displaying touches. Allows you to test the touch screen.

Visual response... Shows finger touch points. The correctness of the sensor is checked.

Show touches... The same, but in the form of dotted lines, not dots.

Rendering

A set of settings responsible for the interface. It is mainly useful for developers, inexperienced users are of little interest, with the exception of the last point.

Show surface updates... Shows the interface elements that are being refreshed with flickers.

Show element borders... Displays the borders of interface elements.

Flip interface... Forces radio buttons, sliders, and checkmarks to the right, aligns text to the left (Arabic style).

Animating windows... Animation speed in application windows.

Transition animation... Animation speed when switching between items / programs.

Animation duration... Roughly the same as the previous point.

Emulation of additional screens... Displaying an additional screen, on top of the main one, with a duplicated interface.

Minimum width... The most useful item is for managing the scale of the interface. If the elements are too large - you can increase the DPI, too small - decrease (minimum 320). The feature is present in Android 7 and newer, but not everywhere.

Hardware accelerated rendering

Working with graphics. In addition to developers, it may be needed in case of problems with 3D.

GPU acceleration... Includes continuous use of the GPU for 2D processing.

Show screen updates... By blinking, it highlights the areas of the interface processed by the graph. processor.

Show hardware updates... Highlights items that are processed by hardware in green.

Debug overlay... Highlights areas where GUI elements overlap.

Debugging complex shape truncation operations... Selection of elements of complex shapes in the GUI.

Enable 4x MSAA... Enables 4x image smoothing. Makes the picture smoother, but loads the chipset.

Disable hardware overlays... The graph is involved. processor for processing overlays.

Simulate anomaly... Adapts color rendering for people with impaired color perception (color blindness, etc.). Monochrome mode can be useful for devices with OLED screens in reading mode (when color pictures are not needed), as it saves battery power.

Renderer... Selecting a graphics processing engine. The item is not present on all smartphones.

Multimedia

Disable Audio Transfer (USB)... Disables audio output to external devices such as amplifiers / DACs / sound cards / Type C headphones with digital output.

Monitoring

Strict regime... Causes the backlight to flicker when performing resource-intensive tasks.

Show cpu load... Displays data about the processor load. Not available on all smartphones.

Profile GPU rendering... Displays the activity of the GPU, in the form of graph bars, or transfers to ADB.

Applications

This subsection is responsible for working with applications.

Preempting Background Activities... Deletes application data after it is finished.

Background process limit... Limits the number of processes that are simultaneously active in the background. May help eliminate excessive battery drain.

Background check... Shows the processes running in the background.

All ANR... Activates notifications that the application is frozen and unresponsive, even if it is minimized.

Show Alert Channel Alerts... Enables display of notifications outside of a valid channel.

Inactive applications... Displays and allows you to change the status of active / inactive applications.

Allow saving to external drives... You can, even if they don't support it. May help on devices with small (8-16 GB) memory, but not always.

Resizing in multi-window mode... Allows you to force resizing of application windows in multi-window mode, even if they do not support it.

Enable MIUI optimization... An item available in the developer menu on Xiaomi. Improves system performance, because it is active, but disabling it can help with some bugs.

Notify about dangerous functions... Available on Xiaomi. Warns if a program is exhibiting atypical activity and wants to do something suspicious.

How to disable developer mode

You can turn off developer mode on Android using the switch at the very top of its menu. However, to hide it completely, you may need to clear the settings program data.

On older versions of Android, to remove the "For Developers" menu from the settings, open the "Applications" submenu. Select "All" (double swipe to the right), open the "Settings" application card, click on the "Erase data" button and confirm the deletion of data.

On Android 8 and newer, select Apps & Notifications in Settings. Click the "Show all applications" button, find "Settings" in the list. Having selected it, you will see the "Storage" parameter among the items. Open it and click "Erase Data".

In MIUI on Xiaomi, select "All Apps" in Settings. Find the Settings app in the list and open its card.

Click on the "Clear" button at the bottom, click "Clear All" and select "OK".

Done, developer mode has been disabled and removed from preferences. You can turn it back on in the way described at the beginning of the article.

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