[android-developers] Re: How can I identify permanently certain builds of my app (for tracking)?

Update: There is a flag to detect if the app was preinstalled: ApplicationInfo.FLAG_SYSTEM

Am Dienstag, 9. Juli 2013 22:38:42 UTC+2 schrieb user123:

I need to identify certain builds of my app permanently. The reason is, that these will be pre-installed in certain devices and they need some different tracking parameters.

I don't want to create a new app for this - the app has to be the same as the "normal" one, which can be downloaded from Google Play.

Before any app update, the solution is clear - just create 2 different builds, with same package name and signature, one goes directly to be preinstalled on the devices and other to Google Play.

But the preinstalled apps have to receive updates, and AFAIK, all differences will be overwritten.

Possible solutions which come to my mind:

• Pre-installed build saves a preference. Problem: the user can clear the preferences at any moment. This has to be reliable.

• Server side identification. Problem: the app doesn't require user login to be used - so there would be only left the IMEI, which has to be sent to the server the first time to say "I'm preinstalled", but this would need server changes, which are unwanted + not sure about legal implications of sending IMEI (maybe a hash - but still, this isn't nice).

• Identify the app through the place it's stored. But I don't know where people will store these pre installed apps. I assume they go in the same place as normal apps. They are not system apps / firmware. So I guess this is also not a possibility.

•  Different settings in the manifest: The whole manifest, as well as the code, seems to be overwritten on updates, so I guess this is also not a possibility.

Is there any other way to identify my installation subset. Maybe I'm missing something very basic. Or what do you advice, generally?

Thanks in advance.

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