How to use ADB without PC, without drivers, by WiFi, browser (ADB tools APK)

December 1, 2020, by Santiago Comment

ADB is a powerful tool to do things on your Android that you could not without having root permissions, such as disabling or activating special application permissions (EJ). Also as an alternative to convert the SD into internal memory, install on the SD, restore factory, etc.

Normally you must connect your cell phone to the PC with the USB cable and enter the command you want to execute in ADB, but you can also do this wirelessly or even without the need for a PC, with the application Bags.

How to use ADB normally

1. First of all, if you have Windows, install the USB / ADB drivers for your Android.
2. Activate USB debugging on your Android device.
3. Connect your cell phone to the PC with the USB cable, wait for the driver installation to complete and also “Accept” the USB debugging window that you will see on the mobile.
4. Download and install the Minimal ADB and FastBoot tool from here (more information) and run the file cmd-here.exe. Another option is to use the official ADB, but this requires more configuration steps.
5. Enter the command “adb devices” (without quotes) and press Enter. You will see a string of characters and the word “device”, which means that the connection is successful and the device is ready to receive ADB commands. If you see the word “unauthorized”, it is probably not set CORRECTLY USB debugging on your Android.

Wireless ADB

ADB wireless connection successful

To send ADB commands wirelessly from the PC to the cell phone, both computers must be connected to the same WiFi. You will also have to do the five steps indicated above. What sixth step you will have to execute the following command:

adb tcpip 5555

The USB connection with the mobile will restart. Disconnect the Android device from the PC and enter the following command, changing “IP address” to the IP of your Android:

adb connectIP address

To know the IP of your phone you must go to Android Settings, WiFi, press and hold on the network to which you are connected, Manage network settings, Show advanced options.

And XDA Developers a discontinued APK called ADB Tools for this task, which required root permissions. As you can see, you do not need root permissions, nor a APP without such requirement for this purpose.

I have tested this wireless connection with both the official ADB and the mentioned Minimal ADB and it works in both cases.

ADB without drivers or programs

You can also use ADB without installing any additional programs, not even USB drivers. All you need on your PC is a Chromium-based browser, like Chrome or Microsoft Edge, with the flag chrome://flags/#new-usb-backend activated.

Once the above is done, you open the page webadb.com and connect your cell phone to the PC with the USB cable. If everything is fine, by pressing the blue button «Add device» you should be able to see your cell phone and connect to it to use ADB and the other tools offered by this page, such as the web file manager, install APKs, capture the screen or even the interactive shell. Unfortunately, for some unknown reason I have not been able to connect my Huawei cell phone to this web page to be able to use ADB and test all its possibilities.

ADB without PC (or almost)

ADB WiFi a powerful «action» of the Tasker application in its version 5.9.2, which will allow you to execute ADB commands on your cell phone no need for a PC. However, its disadvantage is that it requires you to activate this feature from the PC, although you will have to do it only once (as long as you do not restart the cell phone).

To activate the ADB WiFi option first install Tasker. You should have already completed the five steps mentioned at the beginning. As a sixth step, execute the following command:

adb tcpip 5555

Disconnect the device from the PC and you will be able to execute an ADB command from the same cell phone using Tasker:

1. Go to the Tasks tab.
2. Add a task with the “+” button.
3. Enter a name for the task and tap the “check” button.
4. On the next screen add an action with the “+” button.
5. In «Code» touch on «ADB WiFi». The “Allow USB debugging” window will open, which you must Accept.
6. In “Command” write the command without the word adb. That is, if the command is “adb reboot”, just type “reboot” (without the quotes).
7. Go back to the previous screen and press the “Play” button at the bottom to execute the command.

You can send all the ADB commands you want in this way (changing only the command in step six), as long as you do not restart the cell phone. If you do, you will have to repeat the adb tcpip 5555 command connecting the mobile to the PC with the USB cable. In other words, you would have to do this again if you tried the adb reboot command, which should have restarted the device by tapping on the “Play” button.

References: Android Developer, Joaoapps, Reddit