QtADB - A Multi Platform Android Mangement Application

Talking about Phone Management, I posted about MyPhoneExplorer application software which is very easy to use, efficient phone management software for android and other devices few weeks ago. But, the software has some limitations i.e. It is only available for Windows users.  So, there comes the need to find an alternative to this application. This is where QtABD steps in. With multi platform support for Linux, Windows and MacOS, it is yet another powerful phone management utility for Android devices. In this article, I'll discuss about various features of this application and will also guide you to get started with using it.

QtADB titled 'Your Android Manager' supports all android phones from various manufactures including Samsung, HTC, Motorola and Sony which has busybox installed on it. This means you may need to root your device for QtADB to work well with it, but the task is worth for all the plethora of features it offers. Also, you'll need Android Debug Bridge (ADB) and Qt Libraries (being developed on Qt) for this software to run well on your system. Once, you'll got all these you are ready to use it simply by installing it on your system.

Being a phone management application, QtADB packs most important tools including a File Manger, Application Manager, SMS manager and other utilities that will let you access android shell, display your phone information such as device model, battery percentage and others stats, as well as let you take screenshots of your device and save them as .png images. Not only this, you can even boot your device into recovery, fast-boot or normal boot and it will detect your device and accordingly display settings (as applicable) for your device. You can get the best overview of all these features at this article, where I've captured most features in screenshots for your better analysis of the software.

While the software is best suited for advance and rooted users, normal users can also get the benefits from this app to the extent of their will and knowledge. For your reference I've listed the features of this application software below.

1. File manager
   
   • Copying/Moving files and directories between phone and computer.
   • Creating and Removing files and directories and others.
2. App manager
   
   • Support for System applications (Uninstall, backup, etc.)
   • Installing and Removing android applications.
   • Creating and Restoring backup of apps with (optional) application data.
3. SMS Manager (Need to install QtADB.apk on your device)
   
   • Receiving SMS (balloon in tray).
   • Read or Send SMS
4. Shell
   • Opens android shell
5. Screenshot
   • Take screenshot of your device. (You'll need to refresh manually as it doesn't have auto refresh feature).
   • Save screenshot to .png file
6. Fastboot
   • Flash bootloader, radio and recovery.
   • Boot Recovery.
7. Recovery
   • Nandroid backup/restore. [You'll need custom recovery that supports these options.]
   • Wipe data, battery stats and cache.
   • Flash android roms.
   • Fix uid mismatches.
8. Reboot (From Tools=>ADB menu)
   
   • To Bootloader
   • To Recovery
   • Normal reboot.
9. QtADB Settings
   • Set font used by app.
   • Set starting paths (or remember paths on exit).
   • And other settings.
10. Display Logcat with filters for various levels (bugs, errors, information, debug, etc.)
11. Automatically detects phone (device, fastboot and recovery mode) and shows options accordingly.

That's all. These are the settings provided by the software to manage and work with your android handset. In case you happen to be looking for something like for your device then, it's time to act. So, let's get you started on installing and using this application to get the most out of your device. Download QtADB for your Operating System from below and install it on your PC and you are done.

Requirements :

• Qt 4.7 Libraries: Libqtgui4, Libqt4-network and Libqt4-declarative.
• Use your default package installer to download them and install them. Windows users doesn't need these as they are included in the QtADB download package available below.
• Android Debug Bridge (ADB) Libraries :
  
  1. Binaries for linux : linux_binaries.tar.gz
  2. Binaries for windows : windows_binaries.zip
  3. Binaries for macos : osx_binaries.zip

Download QtADB v0.8.1 (Latest)  :

• Linux 32bit version : QtADB_0.8.1_linux32.tar.gz
• Linux 64bit version : QtADB_0.8.1_linux64.tar.gz
• Windows version for new users (Required libraries included) : QtADB_0.8.1_windows.zip
• MacOS version : QtADB_0.8.0_osx.zip

P.S. Those who have android sdk doesn't need ADB libraries, you can simply use binaries in platform-tools. Also, Windows users can follow these step by step instructions to install ADB on your system.

Additional Downloads :

• QtADB.apk : Needed to be installed on your device to use SMS Manager feature.
• ADB Wireless : An app to be installed on your device to use Android Debugging without the need of wired connection. Needed if you want to connect with QtADB via WiFi.

Once you have got the required downloads from above, you just have to install them to get started. The simple and easy graphical user has everything organized for you so, I'm sure you'll get along with it pretty easily. Below are simple steps to setup QtADB for Windows, Linux and MacOS users should find their own way to install it on your system. Note, you'll need adb libraries and Qt4.7 libraries for QtADB to work properly. Windows users doesn't need anything.

1. Download QtADB_0.8.1_windows.zip file from above.
2. Extract the files to a folder.
3. Browse to the directory where you extracted the files.
4. Run QtADB.exe file and you're done.

For the first run, you'll need to add the path to your ADB binaries in QtADB settings. To do so :

1. Run QtADB.exe and go to Settings.
   
2. Click on Change SDK path button at the bottom of the screen.
   

   

   QtADB => Settings

3. Browse to either your pre-installed ADB directory or to the directory where you extracted ADB binaries which you can download from above and click on Select Folder in the Open File dialog box.
   

   

   QtADB => Choose Path to dir with adb and aapt binaries dialog box.

4. Click Save Settings button to save the changes. You can also manage other settings here.

That's all, once you connect your device to and run the program you shall be able to see all the options at the left sidebar. Now, feel free to manage your android device however you want. Note that QtADB in widows seem to crash sometimes. But, if you operate it carefully, you should have no problem. Linux and MacOS users shouldn't have such problems as Qt and C++ (which are used to develop QtADB) is native to these platforms.

Also, another thing I noted was that the recovery options (except reboot) are not working on my Samsung Galaxy Pop GT-S5570. Whether it is only my device or the recovery options are not supported at all is still a doubt for now. But, other features work great and you shall be able to get the most out of this application software. Also, if you miss any feature that QtADB doesn't have or want to suggest  some new features you can do so at http://qtadb.uservoice.com/forums/87039-general. And, if you have any questions regarding this software then, you can ask your queries below or view this extensive list of Frequently Asked Questions at the official site.