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Can't install .apk files

J

JNied

Lurker
I searched before posting and could not find a solution, but sorry in advance if this has already been answered somewhere.

I have found myself with no ability to install .apk files. I get to this screen:
11DhoJG

And everything works EXCEPT the "Install" button; I can scroll through the permissions, and I can cancel, but I cannot install. This happens for every .apk I try.

This is what I've tried:
I made sure the wasn't a dead spot on my touch screen by trying various other apps and orientations and they all respond to tapping the area of the screen that the install button appears on.

I have also tried running the file from two seperate file browsers, as well as straight from two seperate "APK Installer" apps, all with the same results.

There are some apps I would like to get that do not appear in the Play Store, so it is very frustrating that it will not let me install. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
SetCPU is a paid app on Play, it appears on all of my handsets when I search for it. Why are you trying to install the standalone apk?

What apps are you have difficulty with and where are you getting them from?

There are a few other legitimate app stores out there, GetJar and the Amazon App store spring to mind, have you tried either of those?
 
SetCPU was just an example that I used for the screenshot. And I'm using the .apk because it's free for XDA Dev members, and I'm completely broke ATM so I couldn't use the version from the Play Store.

Another example is N64oid, which I verified is not in the play store.

There are a few other emulators that are not available, as well as some root-based software that I could not find elsewhere.

However, the exact app is not important, because this happens with every .apk file I try, not just one or two that may be having their own issues.
 
Must admit when i just read the 1st post, i thought the exact same, that you were askin how to steal the app. Sorry for jumping to that conclusion mate :thumbup:

Sorry if this is pure patronising but you havent disabled Unknown Sources by mistake or anythin?
 
funkylogik;[URL="tel:5789088" said:
5789088[/URL]]Must admit when i just read the 1st post, i thought the exact same, that you were askin how to steal the app. Sorry for jumping to that conclusion mate :thumbup:

Sorry if this is pure patronising but you havent disabled Unknown Sources by mistake or anythin?
Click to expand...

I was going to suggest the same thing. Go into your settings and make sure that "Unknown Sources" is checked so that you can install the apk. files.
 
funkylogik said:
Must admit when i just read the 1st post, i thought the exact same, that you were askin how to steal the app. Sorry for jumping to that conclusion mate :thumbup:
Click to expand...
Haha, no worries.

funkylogik said:
sorry if this is pure patronising but you havent disabled Unknown Sources by mistake or anythin?
Click to expand...
itsallgood said:
I was going to suggest the same thing. Go into your settings and make sure that "Unknown Sources" is checked so that you can install the apk. files.
Click to expand...
Unknown Sources is checked, and was already before I looked into it.
 
HTC Evo 4G LTE

And to jump back for a second, I realized Unknown Sources couldn't be the problem anyway, because I get an error when it's not checked:
Screenshot_2013-05-01-19-22-23.png
 
Wish i could help mate.. i wana say though, thanks to your 1st post i searched Play Store because i wasnt sure if Set CPU had a free version and realised ive purchased it! Must have been a while ago and i dont remember buying it lol. I like using No Frills so ive no idea why i did buy it :confused::beer:
 
See this post over on XDA: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=31270717&postcount=13 (full thread: [Q] Can't install apk files.).

Here's the content of the solution post:

ATabby said:
It's the Services...

I posted this at forums a week ago. hope it helps somewhat.

it goes like this:

It's the Services indeed !

Go to Settings/Apps/Running. That should show your running apps and also if those apps has a Process or Service running. Some of these running apps have a Process running but no Services running please note. If you click on the toggle on the top right most of your screen where it says "Show Cached Processes", it will then show you just the Services or "Show Running Services" that are running.

In my frustration, when I couldn't press INSTALL when trying to install apk files, I stopped all the running Services at that time. It worked ! but I'm sure anyone can do it more elegantly by doing it one at a time starting with those apps that you recently installed. Then when you find the offending app. Kindly send an email to the dev informing what you went through so as to avoid this inconvenience for others due to poor coding
Click to expand...

Credit to ATabby from XDA if this helps you.

Best of luck and hope this helps!
 
scary alien, I tried that and still no good. I first shut down anything that I didn't NORMALLY use, then I tried to find anything related to packages/installers/etcetera, then I just shut down everything. Still can't install. Afterwords I tried rebooting and still no luck.

El Presidente, I have had the N64oid APK for quite some time, and honestly don't remember where I got it. I didn't even know it was a paid app. I found it elsewhere for free, though now that you've pointed it out I feel it may have been a shady source, so I will look into that (I had simply Googled "Nintendo 64 emulator for android" and sifted through the results). I am also aware of the danger of downloading from 3rd party sources, but I researched the apps I tried before committing to them, and I have anti-virus and security software on my phone, so I'm not TOO worried about all that.

I see now alternatives to the straight-apk install I have been trying, and I will look into them, but regardless of what or why, I should still have the ability. Even if I find workarounds for the apps I'm currently trying to obtain, I would still like the underlying problem to be resolved, if anyone has any other ideas.

In any case, thank you everyone for your help so far. Hopefully we can find a permanent solution.
 
I've found a couple of apps that cause this. They all involve some form of layering on top of your display.

1. Screenfilter: Dims the screen by layering a filter over your display.
2. Lux: similar to screenfilter, but can also add hue changes and some other differences.
3. The Halo overlay found in Paranoid Android and Liquidsmooth Roms. It's like Facebook chat heads and works for all notifications.

One of these has always been the culprit for me with this issue. See if you have these or similar apps installed and running.

I guess Google's reasons for this setting is security. They didn't want an app tricking you into clicking on install while they layered something on the screen that disguised the fact that you were installing a (possibly malicious) app.
 
Do you mean you can't install the installer or the apks still don't work?
Anyhoo.
Some apks may be faulty from the sites.Some may not be compatible with your version of Android.Some may get corrupted on download.Try other sources but only ever download direct links with the .apk extension.Anything else is risky and usually bogus.
 
It was a good suggestion, but the apks still don't install using apk installer.
And your other ideas are valid thoughts, but as JNied stated earlier, this isn't an apk issue. I faced the same problem and it went away when I disabled screenfilter, lux or Halo (whichever was running at the time]

You can try this yourself. Install screenfilter and try installing an apk.
 
Another app that does this is Twilight. It works like Flux on PC, making the screen warmer. Anyway, I experienced this trying to install some apks for UCCW, and the solution was disable flux for when I install.
 
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