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Where does Android store its drafts

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Hi

I have a draft email that i have saved in the stock Android email app. I want to retreive it but my screen is broken. the phone works perfectly but i cannot seem to access that app.

USB debug is working but i dont no where it stores those files?
 
Most apps store their data in sql database files in /data/data/<app>/databases, and I'd guess that's where your draft mail will be as well. I can't give the app name with confidence as that may depend on what device you have (and I don't have the stock app on my phone to refer to).

You may not be able to access this without root. But you could try "adb shell" followed by "ls /data/data" and see whether you can spot a directory name which could be your email app. Then use the ls command again to see what's in that directory, and "adb pull <path to file>" to copy it once you've located it.
 
yes you are right. it doesnt seem to let me access that folder. any idea? is there a program i can use to retrieve it.
 
its just the basic mail app that is on the stock htc one phones. ive tried using the interface thing and adb is picking up the phone but none of the commands seem to work on the phone
 
Welcome to the forum :)

Hmm, maybe. You can't access it directly, but maybe you can use a backup tool, which will then put a backup of the app data in an accessible spot. Whether you can do anything with that backup once you have it is a different question.

So, some options:

Helium is a backup app from the Play Store which does not require root. Whether you can install and run it with the current state of your phone's screen I'm not sure. You can install it by visiting play.google.com on a computer and selecting to install from there - that will push the app to your phone. But running it will require interaction with the phone.

ADB itself has an "adb backup" command, which if it works properly on your device should back up your data to your computer. I have read that it's not reliable on all models.

If you were rooted there would be other options, but then if you were rooted you could access the file directly using adb. Unfortunately on many devices the first step in rooting, unlocking the bootloader, wipes the device, which would be self-defeating here.

If those don't work, I suggest asking over in the Android Lounge section of the forum. That way more people will see the question than over in this corner, which gives us more chance of someone having a bright idea.
 
Stock HTC Mail. Ah, unfortunately I uninstalled that (I don't use it, and I'm rooted and S-Off so I can do that).

With usb debugging enabled then you should be able to use basic adb commands, but I'm pretty sure that without root it won't let you see the contents of /data that way. And unlocking the bootloader on a One will indeed erase the device. :(
 
I found and emulating screen program but cant use it because of the ring lock. how would i go about using adb to back it all up without being able to unlock it
 
my last resort is to buy an usb OTG cable and use use the mouse as teh touch function is dead. would that work? does OTG require anything to setup or is it plug and play? will it work on the lock screen. its a HTC one x Stock
 
According to HTC the One supports a mouse over OTG, so I guess the One X might as well.

I've no idea whether it will let you release the lock screen, and as I don't have a wired mouse with me I can't test it on my One (I do have an OTG cable, one of the first things I bought). I'd expect it to be plug and play, though I've only used it with flash drives myself.

The lockscreen doesn't prevent ADB access (or doesn't on my One - I just tested), but that wasn't helping, so it sounds like the mouse thing is worth a go.
 
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