Android Backup Tools

0.2.0 · active · verified Fri Apr 17

The `android-backup` library provides tools to unpack and repack Android backup files (.ab). It's designed to work with Android backup format version 0.2. The current version is 0.2.0, with a very slow release cadence, and it is explicitly a Python 2.x only library.

Common errors

```
SyntaxError: Missing parentheses in call to 'print'
```
cause Attempting to run Python 2.x code (like `print 'hello'`) in a Python 3 interpreter.

fix You are using `android-backup` in a Python 3 environment. This library is Python 2.7 only. Activate or create a Python 2.7 environment and run your script there.
```
FileNotFoundError: [Errno 2] No such file or directory: 'adb'
```
cause The `adb` command-line tool (Android Debug Bridge) is not installed or not found in your system's PATH.

fix Install the Android SDK Platform-Tools package, which contains `adb`. Ensure the directory containing `adb` (e.g., `platform-tools`) is added to your system's PATH environment variable.
```
JavaException: Class not found: com/android/vts/proto/ComponentSpecification
```
cause Java or related tools are not correctly set up, or the Android backup tools' Java dependencies are not met.

fix Ensure a Java Development Kit (JDK) is installed and configured correctly. Verify that `java` is in your PATH and that the library can access necessary Java components for processing Android backup files.

Warnings

breaking The `android-backup` library is *exclusively compatible with Python 2.7*. It explicitly does not support Python 3.x, and attempting to run it in a Python 3 environment will result in syntax errors or unexpected behavior.
Fix: Ensure you are running the library within a Python 2.7 environment (e.g., using `virtualenv`, `conda`, or directly invoking `python2` if available).
gotcha This library relies on external tools: `Android Debug Bridge (adb)` from the Android SDK Platform-Tools and a `Java Development Kit (JDK)`. These tools must be installed and their executables must be available in your system's PATH.
Fix: Install the Android SDK Platform-Tools and a JDK, then add their respective `bin` directories to your system's PATH environment variable.
gotcha The library explicitly states support for Android backup format version 0.2. Backups created with older or newer Android versions might not be compatible or could lead to unexpected issues.
Fix: Verify the backup file's format version. If it's not v0.2, consider using other tools or alternative methods for unpacking/repacking.

Install

pip install android-backup Install with pip

Imports

AndroidBackup
wrong:
```
import android_backup
```
correct:
```
from android_backup.android_backup import AndroidBackup
```
The primary class 'AndroidBackup' is nested within the 'android_backup' module itself, not directly at the top level of the package.

Quickstart

This quickstart demonstrates how to import and initialize the `AndroidBackup` class. Note that this library *requires Python 2.7* and external tools (`adb` and `java`) to be installed and accessible in your system's PATH for full functionality (unpacking/repacking).

# This code requires Python 2.7
import os
from android_backup.android_backup import AndroidBackup

# Create a dummy backup file for demonstration
# In a real scenario, 'backup.ab' would be an actual Android backup file
with open('dummy_backup.ab', 'w') as f:
    f.write('Android Backup\n1\n0.2\nNONE\n') # Minimal header for demo

# Ensure adb and Java are in PATH for actual operations
# This example will likely fail without a valid .ab file and external tools
try:
    print("Attempting to initialize AndroidBackup (requires Python 2.7, adb, and Java)")
    backup = AndroidBackup(filename="dummy_backup.ab")
    print("Backup object created.")
    # Uncomment the following lines to actually unpack/repack if you have
    # a valid backup file and external tools setup:
    # backup.unpack(output_path="./unpacked_data")
    # print("Backup unpacked to ./unpacked_data")
    # backup.repack(input_path="./unpacked_data", output_filename="repacked_backup.ab")
    # print("Backup repacked to repacked_backup.ab")
except Exception as e:
    print("Could not process backup (expected if external tools are missing or .ab is invalid):", e)
finally:
    if os.path.exists('dummy_backup.ab'):
        os.remove('dummy_backup.ab')

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