Waydroid anyone?

[Edmund]

Waydroid anyone?

Hello, I am new here comming from Linux-Mint.
Wanted to use "waydroid" but that seems to be impossible on Mint.
Installed a virtual ( proxmox ) Ubuntu LTS, but no luck here either.

Following instructions found :
Commands Used:
1. sudo apt update
2. sudo apt install curl -y
3. sudo apt install ca-certificates -y

4. curl https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash

Here it goes wrong!
Failed to write, usr/share/keyrings folder is read only
( can't read the exact message at the moment since I am not on the
ubuntu computer )


5. sudo apt install waydroid -y
6. waydroid session stop
7. sudo waydroid container stop
8. sudo apt remove --autoremove waydroid

Help is appreciated.

[Joerg Walther]

Post by Edmund
Waydroid anyone?

Yep, got it running here, on 22.04 LTS.

Post by Edmund
Hello, I am new here comming from Linux-Mint.
Wanted to use "waydroid" but that seems to be impossible on Mint.

It doesn't work on Mint because Mint still uses the X server for
graphics, Ubuntu by default has Wayland.

Post by Edmund
4. curl https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash

The only thing I can see is that you are missing an argument in the
above command:
curl -s https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash

(https://docs.waydro.id/usage/install-on-desktops)

If it still doesn't work, the exact error message would be helpful.

-jw-

[Edmund]

Post by Joerg Walther

Post by Edmund
Waydroid anyone?

Yep, got it running here, on 22.04 LTS.

Post by Edmund
Hello, I am new here comming from Linux-Mint.
Wanted to use "waydroid" but that seems to be impossible on Mint.

It doesn't work on Mint because Mint still uses the X server for
graphics, Ubuntu by default has Wayland.

Post by Edmund
4. curl https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash

The only thing I can see is that you are missing an argument in the
curl -s https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash

Well that list of commands was copied from one of the youtubers.
Anyway I actually used :
"curl -s https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash"

Which first asked me the sudo password for "ed" ( default user )
After that :
"Warning: Failed to open the file /usr/share/keyrings/waydroid.gpg : read only
Warning : file system
$$$$$$$$$$$100.Oncurl: (23) Failure writing output to destination


What is important is that I created the empty file "waydroid.gpg" myself in an attempt the make it work
Before I created that file the message was the same ( i think ).

Post by Joerg Walther
(https://docs.waydro.id/usage/install-on-desktops)
If it still doesn't work, the exact error message would be helpful.
-jw-

[Paul]

Post by Edmund

Post by Joerg Walther

Post by Edmund
Waydroid anyone?

Yep, got it running here, on 22.04 LTS.

Post by Edmund
Hello, I am new here comming from Linux-Mint.
Wanted to use "waydroid" but that seems to be impossible on Mint.

It doesn't work on Mint because Mint still uses the X server for
graphics, Ubuntu by default has Wayland.

Post by Edmund
4. curl https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash

The only thing I can see is that you are missing an argument in the
curl -s https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash

Well that list of commands was copied from one of the youtubers.
"curl -s https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash"
Which first asked me the sudo password for "ed" ( default user )
"Warning: Failed to open the file /usr/share/keyrings/waydroid.gpg : read only
 Warning : file system
$$$$$$$$$$$100.Oncurl: (23) Failure writing output to destination
What is important is that I created the empty file "waydroid.gpg" myself in an attempt the make it work
Before I created that file the message was the same ( i think ).

Post by Joerg Walther
(https://docs.waydro.id/usage/install-on-desktops)
If it still doesn't work, the exact error message would be helpful.
-jw-

First of all, that pattern is a security nightmare.
You NEVER pipe an unknown script, into an elevated shell.

You can use an ordinary browser to examine the script.

firefox https://repo.waydro.id/

and the result is just text. You can read the text, see what
the code is doing. And check the permissions and existence of /usr/share/keyrings/ .
It's possible the distro you are on, puts the keyrings somewhere else.

I'm not exactly a security type, and I recognize about 1% of
potential threats. But I wouldn't do that, pipe stuff into an
elevated shell. I want to look at the code first, even code
that isn't elevated. Remember, when you were younger, people
used to put "rm -Rf * " into scripts as a kind of joke. This
is why we examine scripts, even scripts that came out of a repo.

People put "rm -Rf * " into scripts, to teach you about security.
And to teach you about backups.

Paul

[Edmund]

Post by Paul

Post by Edmund

Post by Joerg Walther

Post by Edmund
Waydroid anyone?

Yep, got it running here, on 22.04 LTS.

Post by Edmund
Hello, I am new here comming from Linux-Mint.
Wanted to use "waydroid" but that seems to be impossible on Mint.

It doesn't work on Mint because Mint still uses the X server for
graphics, Ubuntu by default has Wayland.

Post by Edmund
4. curl https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash

The only thing I can see is that you are missing an argument in the
curl -s https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash

Well that list of commands was copied from one of the youtubers.
"curl -s https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash"
Which first asked me the sudo password for "ed" ( default user )
"Warning: Failed to open the file /usr/share/keyrings/waydroid.gpg : read only
 Warning : file system
$$$$$$$$$$$100.Oncurl: (23) Failure writing output to destination
What is important is that I created the empty file "waydroid.gpg" myself in an attempt the make it work
Before I created that file the message was the same ( i think ).

Post by Joerg Walther
(https://docs.waydro.id/usage/install-on-desktops)
If it still doesn't work, the exact error message would be helpful.
-jw-

First of all, that pattern is a security nightmare.
You NEVER pipe an unknown script, into an elevated shell.
You can use an ordinary browser to examine the script.
firefox https://repo.waydro.id/

I don't know what to do with this.
I could thy to copy the waydroid.gpg in the keyrings folder but the
repositories ?? lets not forget I read that they changed the place to
store the repositories in this 24.04 version.
Chaos as usual.

Post by Paul
and the result is just text. You can read the text, see what
the code is doing. And check the permissions and existence of /usr/share/keyrings/ .
It's possible the distro you are on, puts the keyrings somewhere else.

How do I check and change the permissions?
The keyrings folder is there.

Post by Paul
I'm not exactly a security type, and I recognize about 1% of
potential threats. But I wouldn't do that, pipe stuff into an
elevated shell. I want to look at the code first, even code
that isn't elevated. Remember, when you were younger, people
used to put "rm -Rf * " into scripts as a kind of joke. This
is why we examine scripts, even scripts that came out of a repo.
People put "rm -Rf * " into scripts, to teach you about security.
And to teach you about backups.

And here I am thinking ( not really ) that stuff would actually work
under Ubuntu.
BTW at this moment I don't care about security, I have a virtual Ubuntu
and if all went into hell, I restore in less then 1 minute.

Post by Paul
Paul

[Paul]

And here I am thinking ( not really ) that stuff would actually work under Ubuntu.
BTW at this moment I don't care about security, I have a virtual Ubuntu
and if all went into hell, I restore in less then 1 minute.

Must you open every box of cereal from the bottom ?

This is not a simple project and you know that.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waydroid

"Waydroid is optimized for use with Intel GPUs, which usually function without
requiring additional setup. It also supports AMD GPUs. However, in certain cases,
users might need to create a custom Waydroid image if they experience compatibility issues."

OK, so what does that mean exactly ? Some of the references at the bottom of that
page, show mobile devices (that can run Linux kernels), running WayDroid. I could
believe that was a reference to an Intel iGPU (inside CPU) and not a BattleMage.
And AMD iGPUs are not simple devices, like just a frame buffer. They take a
regular driver for the most part (same as an AMD video card but with a different
hardware ID).

"Waydroid does not include an emulation layer. As a result, devices can only
run Android applications that match their specific hardware architecture.

Personal computers (x86) are limited to x86 Android applications,

while most phones and tablets (which use ARM64)
can only run ARM64-compatible applications.

The developers are considering adding an emulation layer in the future
"

While you claim this is a container technology, my guess is the previous
paragraph shows it runs on the native CPU type with native CPU capabilities.
That means it is not an ARM-on-x86 QEMU or something. It is either
an x86-on-x86 container or an ARM-on-ARM container running directly
off the native CPU. And the advantage of doing that, is not having
to fiddle with QEMU devices to gain access to hardware, like the Wifi.

*******

The secret to trying stuff, is identifying the "lowest friction way of doing it".

You started off with the right idea. You selected the "popular platform"
Ubuntu, in the hope that a Ubuntu-person had paved the road with gold.
This seems a good idea. Then, you sniff around the entrails, to figure out
how "mature" the materials are. Is the Ubuntu Install a slam dunk,
or little better than a hack in sheeps clothing ? As soon as I see
"keyring", a little alarm goes off on my desk.

One reason for running from a container, could be the easier access to
the graphics subsystem.

You can see in this discussion, they're trying to run Waydroid in VirtualBox.
This of course, emulates a graphics, but it does not emulate a *useful* graphics.
The Android x86 applications start running, but no graphics appear. And in
some cases, stuff crashes. Now, we're getting some feeling for how
hard this is to do, if you do it the wrong way.

https://github.com/waydroid/waydroid/issues/310

I'm seeing what some of the potential friction points are.
You quite likely know all this too, but are hoping for
an experiences Ubuntu to find and push some magic button.

Is running an Android x86 app going to be good enough, or would
you instead be starting with an ARM chromebook or an ARM tablet
with Linux kernel capability, and running Waydroid on that
Android ARM Apps can run ?

*******

Since I have Fedora 41 loaded in the cooker and already have a project
underway, I can take a divergence and try your little project on it.
OK, so what is my first problem going to be ? Well, the graphics choice
on my part, is poor.

Have to remove 16 core machine and put 6 core machine in place, transfer NVMe,
install 4 DIMMs, test. NVMe didn't work in CPU slot, worked in PCH slot,
booted and into Fedora 41. Different machine graphics and all. Running
AMD iGPU before this trial runs. The 16 core machine was NVidia.

*******

Here are the Fedora 41 instructions:

Fedora
------

Waydroid can be installed from the official package repository.

sudo dnf install waydroid <=== Python and small incidental packages

After installing, launch Waydroid from the applications menu and proceed
with the initialization by pasting these URLs in the OTA fields:

System OTA: https://ota.waydro.id/system

Vendor OTA: https://ota.waydro.id/vendor

Vanilla or GApps? <=== this selector decide whether Android x86 from Lineage
or Android x86 with Google Play Store (would need GMail Acct/GoogleID?)
I tested Vanilla only, not interested in Play Store shenanigans.

https://docs.waydro.id/usage/install-on-desktops

*******

My download isn't all that fast, did the install, did a remove,
did the install "dnf" command again, did a reboot to try to pick
up the container service. Don't really know whether any of that
was necessary, but the idea was, to avoid too many command line tricks.

After all, this is a demo of "picking the right distro" for an eval OP.

Notice, in my pictures, there are no keyrings of faffing about, really.

Even though I was slow finding the recipe, I got the job done.

[Picture] WayDroid-on-Fedora-41.gif

Loading Image...

Work smart, not hard.

Shuttleworth is going to have to pick up the pace

Paul

[Edmund]

Post by Paul

And here I am thinking ( not really ) that stuff would actually work under Ubuntu.
BTW at this moment I don't care about security, I have a virtual Ubuntu
and if all went into hell, I restore in less then 1 minute.

Must you open every box of cereal from the bottom ?
This is not a simple project and you know that.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waydroid
"Waydroid is optimized for use with Intel GPUs, which usually function without
requiring additional setup. It also supports AMD GPUs. However, in certain cases,
users might need to create a custom Waydroid image if they experience compatibility issues."
OK, so what does that mean exactly ? Some of the references at the bottom of that
page, show mobile devices (that can run Linux kernels), running WayDroid. I could
believe that was a reference to an Intel iGPU (inside CPU) and not a BattleMage.
And AMD iGPUs are not simple devices, like just a frame buffer. They take a
regular driver for the most part (same as an AMD video card but with a different
hardware ID).
"Waydroid does not include an emulation layer. As a result, devices can only
run Android applications that match their specific hardware architecture.
Personal computers (x86) are limited to x86 Android applications,
while most phones and tablets (which use ARM64)
can only run ARM64-compatible applications.
The developers are considering adding an emulation layer in the future
"
While you claim this is a container technology, my guess is the previous
paragraph shows it runs on the native CPU type with native CPU capabilities.
That means it is not an ARM-on-x86 QEMU or something. It is either
an x86-on-x86 container or an ARM-on-ARM container running directly
off the native CPU. And the advantage of doing that, is not having
to fiddle with QEMU devices to gain access to hardware, like the Wifi.
*******
The secret to trying stuff, is identifying the "lowest friction way of doing it".
You started off with the right idea. You selected the "popular platform"
Ubuntu, in the hope that a Ubuntu-person had paved the road with gold.

Actually I read some about it when I tried to install it on Mint.
Ubuntu and with one specific DE - Gnome - was supported tested and
working.....
Admittedly the wayland part is working or so it seems.

you must know how I think about this continuous insanity with a zillion
incompatible Linux flavors with each a number o incompatible DE's.
So you can imagine I was not over the moon to switch to another linux
flavor myself but there isn't much choice.

Having said that, I am still interested in Arch, AFAIK that is the most
"complete" and flexible linux flavor

Post by Paul
This seems a good idea. Then, you sniff around the entrails, to figure out
how "mature" the materials are. Is the Ubuntu Install a slam dunk,
or little better than a hack in sheeps clothing ? As soon as I see
"keyring", a little alarm goes off on my desk.
One reason for running from a container, could be the easier access to
the graphics subsystem.
You can see in this discussion, they're trying to run Waydroid in VirtualBox.
This of course, emulates a graphics, but it does not emulate a *useful* graphics.
The Android x86 applications start running, but no graphics appear. And in
some cases, stuff crashes. Now, we're getting some feeling for how
hard this is to do, if you do it the wrong way.
https://github.com/waydroid/waydroid/issues/310
I'm seeing what some of the potential friction points are.
You quite likely know all this too, but are hoping for
an experiences Ubuntu to find and push some magic button.
Is running an Android x86 app going to be good enough, or would
you instead be starting with an ARM chromebook or an ARM tablet
with Linux kernel capability, and running Waydroid on that
Android ARM Apps can run ?

Interested in iboplayer.... there are windows versions but I don't want
to reboot into Windows.

Post by Paul
*******
Since I have Fedora 41 loaded in the cooker and already have a project
underway, I can take a divergence and try your little project on it.
OK, so what is my first problem going to be ? Well, the graphics choice
on my part, is poor.
Have to remove 16 core machine and put 6 core machine in place, transfer NVMe,
install 4 DIMMs, test. NVMe didn't work in CPU slot, worked in PCH slot,
booted and into Fedora 41. Different machine graphics and all. Running
AMD iGPU before this trial runs. The 16 core machine was NVidia.

Bloody hell, you really go at it.

Post by Paul
*******
Fedora
------
Waydroid can be installed from the official package repository.
sudo dnf install waydroid <=== Python and small incidental packages
After installing, launch Waydroid from the applications menu and proceed
System OTA: https://ota.waydro.id/system
Vendor OTA: https://ota.waydro.id/vendor
Vanilla or GApps? <=== this selector decide whether Android x86 from Lineage
or Android x86 with Google Play Store (would need GMail Acct/GoogleID?)
I tested Vanilla only, not interested in Play Store shenanigans.
https://docs.waydro.id/usage/install-on-desktops
*******
My download isn't all that fast, did the install, did a remove,
did the install "dnf" command again, did a reboot to try to pick
up the container service. Don't really know whether any of that
was necessary, but the idea was, to avoid too many command line tricks.
After all, this is a demo of "picking the right distro" for an eval OP.
Notice, in my pictures, there are no keyrings of faffing about, really.
Even though I was slow finding the recipe, I got the job done.
[Picture] WayDroid-on-Fedora-41.gif
https://i.postimg.cc/65nyMbSv/Way-Droid-on-Fedora-41.gif
Work smart, not hard.
Shuttleworth is going to have to pick up the pace

Wow I am impressed.
Still, why do I get "unable to write ... read only" while our friend
Joerg Walther doesn't encounter such problems?
Maybe my version of ubuntu 24.04 has some new features :-)

Post by Paul
Paul

[Joerg Walther]

Post by Edmund
Still, why do I get "unable to write ... read only" while our friend
Joerg Walther doesn't encounter such problems?

I installed Waydroid last year on a very fresh install of Ubuntu 22.04,
it has been working ever since on a Thinkpad T480.

Post by Edmund
Maybe my version of ubuntu 24.04 has some new features :-)

One would expect updated installation instructions for 24.04 on the
Waydroid page considering that Ubuntu is one of the most popular Linux
distros...

-jw-

[Edmund]

Post by Joerg Walther

Post by Edmund
Still, why do I get "unable to write ... read only" while our friend
Joerg Walther doesn't encounter such problems?

I installed Waydroid last year on a very fresh install of Ubuntu 22.04,
it has been working ever since on a Thinkpad T480.

Post by Edmund
Maybe my version of ubuntu 24.04 has some new features :-)

One would expect updated installation instructions for 24.04 on the
Waydroid page considering that Ubuntu is one of the most popular Linux
distros...

Well the part what goes wrong here is the same as I found for al
Debian based versions. Many reporting problems but I am the first one
with a "read only" problem.
Never mind, maybe I try Arch which seems like a better choice for the
long run anyway.

Post by Joerg Walther
-jw-

[Dan Purgert]

Post by Edmund

Post by Joerg Walther

Post by Edmund
Still, why do I get "unable to write ... read only" while our friend
Joerg Walther doesn't encounter such problems?

I installed Waydroid last year on a very fresh install of Ubuntu 22.04,
it has been working ever since on a Thinkpad T480.

Post by Edmund
Maybe my version of ubuntu 24.04 has some new features :-)

One would expect updated installation instructions for 24.04 on the
Waydroid page considering that Ubuntu is one of the most popular Linux
distros...

Well the part what goes wrong here is the same as I found for al
Debian based versions. Many reporting problems but I am the first one
with a "read only" problem.

"read only" is not a problem with Waydroid, or your distro. It is
potentially a problem with your filesystem. A simple check is to run the
command

mount | grep '(ro'

The expectation is no results. If you do get results, then either

(A) Something has gone wrong on the listed filesystem(s) OR
(B) You've explicitly mounted the filesystem(s) as read-only

With no results, then the implication is that either the target file or
directory is flagged as immutable -- check that with the 'lsattr'
command.

Post by Edmund
Never mind, maybe I try Arch which seems like a better choice for the
long run anyway.

It's no better than any other distro. Different paradigm than many, but
whether that's "better" or not is a matter of taste.

[Joerg Walther]

Post by Dan Purgert
mount | grep '(ro'
The expectation is no results.

Not in Ubuntu, which uses snap. Every single snap is mounted ro, so he
has to expect lots of results. Only his hdd mount(s) should be without
ro.

-jw-

[Dan Purgert]

Post by Joerg Walther

Post by Dan Purgert
mount | grep '(ro'
The expectation is no results.

Not in Ubuntu, which uses snap. Every single snap is mounted ro, so he
has to expect lots of results. Only his hdd mount(s) should be without
ro.

Bah, missed he went to 24.04(or newer?). What a pain.

[Jonathan N. Little]

Post by Joerg Walther

Post by Dan Purgert
mount | grep '(ro'
The expectation is no results.

Not in Ubuntu, which uses snap. Every single snap is mounted ro, so he
has to expect lots of results. Only his hdd mount(s) should be without
ro.

Then maybe better then

mount | grep -v snapd | grep '(ro'