inliver233
c66658b6b3
Progressive-disclosure skill for Android APK reverse engineering: recon, ad removal, membership limits, dex surgical patching, repack/sign, runtime data, Frida, environment setup, and a hard-won failure catalogue.
113 lines
5.3 KiB
Markdown
113 lines
5.3 KiB
Markdown
# Runtime data — DataStore, SharedPreferences, SQLite, protobuf
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Sometimes the cheapest fix is not code at all, but a value in app data. And sometimes that is exactly the wrong fix, because it does not survive a fresh install (`pitfalls.md` P11).
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## Decide first: data or code?
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| Question | Answer |
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|---|---|
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| Does the deliverable need to work after a clean install? | Then it must be **code**, not data |
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| Are you iterating on your own device? | Data edits are a fast way to test a hypothesis **before** writing the patch |
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| Is the value written by the app itself (a token, a cache, a counter)? | Data — and the server may re-assert it |
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**Recommended workflow:** use a data edit to *prove the hypothesis* (cheap), then implement the same effect in code (durable), then verify with a clean install.
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## Where app data lives
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```
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/data/data/<pkg>/ (== /data/user/0/<pkg>)
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├── files/
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│ ├── datastore/*.preferences_pb AndroidX DataStore (protobuf)
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│ └── ...
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├── shared_prefs/*.xml SharedPreferences
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├── databases/*.db SQLite (Room, etc.)
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└── <sdk caches>/ crash logs, download state, ad configs
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```
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Read with root:
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```bash
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adb shell "su -c 'ls -la /data/data/<pkg>/files/datastore/'"
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adb shell "su -c 'xxd /data/data/<pkg>/files/datastore/<name>.preferences_pb | head -20'"
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```
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## AndroidX DataStore (protobuf)
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Format:
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```proto
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PreferenceMap { map<string, Value> preferences = 1; }
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Value {
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oneof value {
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bool boolean = 1; float float = 2; int32 integer = 3; int64 long = 4;
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string string = 5; StringSet string_set = 6; double double = 7; bytes bytes = 8;
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}
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}
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```
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**Encoding an entry requires TWO tag levels:**
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```
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outer (map field 1, wire type 2) : 0A <len(inner)>
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inner (one map entry) : 0A <len(key)> <key> 12 <len(value)> <value>
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value payload (e.g. int64) : 20 <varint> # field 4, wire type 0
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value payload (e.g. int32) : 18 <varint> # field 3, wire type 0
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value payload (e.g. bool) : 08 <0x00|0x01> # field 1, wire type 0
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value payload (e.g. string) : 2A <len> <utf8> # field 5, wire type 2
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```
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Omitting the **outer** tag produces a file the app cannot deserialize, and the failure is usually a **stack-less crash** (`pitfalls.md` P8). Use `scripts/datastore_inject.py` rather than hand-rolling it.
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Procedure:
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1. `am force-stop <pkg>` (DataStore caches in memory and writes back)
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2. Write the file (as root), preserving ownership — `cp -f` over the existing file keeps its owner
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3. `restorecon` if SELinux is enforcing
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4. Start the app and observe
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Verify by reading the file back with `xxd` before launching.
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## SharedPreferences (XML)
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Simple XML. Edit with the app stopped. Types are explicit (`<boolean>`, `<int>`, `<long>`, `<string>`). Same ownership rules.
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## SQLite
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```bash
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adb shell "su -c 'sqlite3 /data/data/<pkg>/databases/<db>.db \".tables\"'"
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adb shell "su -c 'sqlite3 ... \"select * from <table> limit 5;\"'"
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```
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Useful for: auth sessions (tokens), user profile caches (often a raw JSON blob), and any server state the app persists. A JSON column often contains the exact server payload — the fastest way to learn field names.
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## Ownership — the silent killer
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The app runs as its own uid. A file written by root with the wrong owner is unreadable, and directory permissions are `drwx------`.
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```bash
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uid=$(adb shell "dumpsys package <pkg> | grep userId=" | tr -dc '0-9')
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adb shell "su -c 'chown -R $uid:$uid /data/user/0/<pkg>'"
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adb shell "su -c 'restorecon -R /data/user/0/<pkg>'"
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```
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Symptom of getting this wrong: crash in a database-init path right after launch, often `Cannot open database ... Directory ... doesn't exist`.
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Note: after every reinstall the app's uid **increments**, so a restored data directory needs this again.
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## Introducing a value that does not exist yet
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If the key is absent, the app uses a default. Two options:
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1. **Add the key** with the exact protobuf shape above.
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2. **Confirm the default first** — sometimes removing a key already yields the behavior you want (e.g. clearing an expiry so it reads as "not set").
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## Making the fix durable
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If the effect must ship inside an APK, move it into code. Patterns, in order of preference:
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- **Patch the read path** so the value is always the desired one. Find where the Flow/getter is built and make it emit a constant.
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- **Patch the decision**, not the data: find the comparison that consumes the value and make it resolve the way you want.
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- **Do not patch the generic encoder/boxer** used by the whole app (`pitfalls.md` P6).
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Reference case: a promo popup was gated by `<key>_expires_at`. Writing a large value via DataStore suppressed it on the test device, but a fresh install lost it. The durable fix replaced the dedicated map-lambda that produces the value so it always yields a far-future timestamp — a single-purpose class, safe to patch, no effect on the shared serialization helpers.
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## Cautions
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- Editing data while the app is running is unreliable: in-memory caches win.
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- The server may overwrite your value on next sync. If the app re-fetches and re-persists the authoritative value, a data edit is temporary by design — which is exactly why the durable version belongs in code.
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- Do not edit a token you do not own and expect it to be accepted; tokens are validated server-side (`references/server-api.md`).
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