Market apps won't update (Launcher Pro, Google Search, etc...)

[davesr72]

Good morning everyone.

I was browsing the new content in the forums, and saw the same question asked MULTIPLE times. Answers to this question have been asked, and answered repeatedly, not just by me, but by several others.

The main question being asked is that some market apps will not update. The app downloads, but fails to install/update. This is due to the apps being pre-packaged with the ROM and are located in the /system/app directory of the phone itself. There are several remedies to resolving this which are not difficult, and only take a few minutes, I will describe each one step by step.
The apps in question that have been the majority of issue are Google Search, and Launcher Pro, YouTube, and several others...but this should work with any app you are trying to update that is part of the ROM when you installed it.

FIRST!!! when fixing the Launcher Pro issue the FIRST thing you need to do is download a launcher like ADW, here is a link since adw is a free app http://dl.dropbox.co....launcher-1.apk

This launcher is only temporary, because if you delete LancherPro, you will not be able to use the phone since you have no launcher at all.

You need an app like Linda File Manager or Astro to install the above link. Make sure in menu>settings>applications that you have Unknown Sources checked.

If you do not use Root explorer, you will need to go into Ultimate Settings > Quick Commands and enable God Mode.

Using Root Explorer:

1. Download Root Explorer from the market if you do not have it (it is a paid app, AND definately work the cost). It is a great app to have, and my #1 that gets used.
2. Open Root Explorer (allow superuser request)
3. Navigate to /system/app
4. Scroll through the apps, until you find LauncherPro.apk...GoogleQuickSearch.apk....etc..
5. Mount r/w in the top right corner of the root explorer screen
6. Long press on the app(s) and select delete.
7. Reboot the phone *****THIS IS A MUST*****
8. Go to the market and re-download and install the apps you just deleted.

That is all there is to it.

Using Terminal Emulator:

1. Download and install the above ADW link **MUST**
2. Download and Install Android Terminal Emulator (by Jack Palevich) from the market
3. Hit the home button
4. Hit menu > Settings > Ultimate Droid > Quick Commands
5. Hit God Mode and hit Yes to turn God Mod on.
6. Allow superuser request, and wait until the "running command" disappears from the screen
7. Hit Home
8. Open up Terminal Emulator
9. Type this out in terminal using the physical keyboard. type 'su' (without quotes)
10. Type 'rm /system/app/LauncherPro.apk' (replace the apps names GoogleQuickSearch.apk, YouTube.apk instead of launcher pro if having issues with these apps).
11. Hit Home.
12. REBOOT THE PHONE!!!!! THIS IS A MUST!!!!!!!

Now go to the market and re-download and install these apps and you should be good to go.
NOTE: The above app names ARE CASE SENSITIVE!!!

Using Titanium Backup (free or donate):

1. Download and install the above ADW link **THIS IS A MUST***
2. Download Titanium Backup from the market if you dont already have it
3. Open Titanium Backup and allow superuser request.
4. At the top of the titanium back up screen there is a choice for Backup/Restore....select it.
5. A list of the installed apps comes up.
6. Scroll through the list of app and find launcher pro, google search, youtube, or what other app you are having issue with and select it (tap on it, not long press)
7. Select Uninstall, it will give you a warning message about uninstalling system apps.
8. Reboot the phone ***THIS IS A MUST!!!!!***

Now go to the market and redownload the apps you just uninstalled. That is it, you are good to go.

With all of these methods you may have to go into menu>settings>applications>manage applictions and select ADW and clear defaults to get launcher pro as your default launcher.


If you hare having issues with other part of the ROM, make sure to do a search in the forums before starting a new topic, it could save you time posting and waiting for a response.


If you have widget on the screen, remove it (long press it and drag it to ther trash can) either before or after you reboot the phone.

If you remove google search with the above instructions, and reinstall it from the market, i had issues with the search softkey no longer working from the home screen. I had to move the google search app from /data/app back to /system/app, then reboot the phone for it to work properly, but it wouldnt update from the market once i did that. Wish I had a better answer for that problem.

WagZ

[xkape]

davesr.. that's a pretty nice writeup for people with those issues. Good job and thanks for posting it!

[beergnome]

Greetings!
I just performed a rest to factory defaults, wiped the whole thing out. And installed the latest update that I could find.
Afterwords, none of my google apps would install properly. I downloaded root explorer, and followed the instructions to delete google maps. Rebooted, and tryied to reinstall.
Same problem.
Am I doing something wrong?

[mkjellgren]

Greetings!
I just performed a rest to factory defaults, wiped the whole thing out. And installed the latest update that I could find.
Afterwords, none of my google apps would install properly. I downloaded root explorer, and followed the instructions to delete google maps. Rebooted, and tryied to reinstall.
Same problem.
Am I doing something wrong?

Holy old thread Batman!!!

Anyway, you may want to try the market doctor in titanium backup to restore market links. You might also want to try going to settings>applications>manage applications>market and select clear data.

[beergnome]

Greetings!
I just performed a rest to factory defaults, wiped the whole thing out. And installed the latest update that I could find.
Afterwords, none of my google apps would install properly. I downloaded root explorer, and followed the instructions to delete google maps. Rebooted, and tryied to reinstall.
Same problem.
Am I doing something wrong?

Holy old thread Batman!!!

Anyway, you may want to try the market doctor in titanium backup to restore market links. You might also want to try going to settings>applications>manage applications>market and select clear data.

hey! November aint that old! yeah, yeah, should've put a *bump* at the head

hmm.. just did the clear market Data thing.. still the same result...
off to try the titanium backup thing, wish me luck, I'm trying to avoid doing a complete "rerooting" I'm starting to get scared of bricking, but I want my maps and nav back.

thanks for the hints!

[beergnome]

okay, got the free version of Titanum back up, but it looks like the market doctor is only available in the paid version. and, it also looks like it works on installed apps.
in my case now, I deleted maps in hopes of reinstalling it, so there is nothing there for it to fix

the version I'm running is 2.2.1
baseband = C_01.3e/03p

kernal version
2.6.32.9-g68eeef5
android-build@apa26#1

build number
FRG83

[mkjellgren]

You know, I never tried to replicate your problem until now. And as it turns out, I'm having the same problem with a couple of apps that had updates waiting. The apps I tried to update were rom manager and where and both did exactly what you are reporting. They download completely but then show an "installation unsuccessful" notification. This is not a problem I've run into in a long while (perhaps back in november...haha) and I think I remember there being an issue with the market itself the last time. So if I were to guess at this point I would say to simply try again tomorrow. I'm running project elite 4.2 by the way so I'm assuming we are seeing the same issue on different roms with different apps. Hopefully the issue resolves itself with time.

[mkjellgren]

I think I may have found a fix...at least it worked for me. Go to settings>SD card and phone storage> and unmount the SD card. Now go to the market. Any apps that you may have had installed to the SD card will appear to have been uninstalled. Never mind that, they'll come back when you remount your SD card. Now simply install the apps in question. Presto change-o!! Installation successful!! Now go back and remount your SD card, wipe market data like before and all of your apps should be installed just fine as well as listed under my apps in the market. Hopefully this works for you as well as it did for me.

[beergnome]

I think I may have found a fix...at least it worked for me. Go to settings>SD card and phone storage> and unmount the SD card. Now go to the market. Any apps that you may have had installed to the SD card will appear to have been uninstalled. Never mind that, they'll come back when you remount your SD card. Now simply install the apps in question. Presto change-o!! Installation successful!! Now go back and remount your SD card, wipe market data like before and all of your apps should be installed just fine as well as listed under my apps in the market. Hopefully this works for you as well as it did for me.

alas.. instillation unsuccessful

the Gmail update did the same thing

I'm thinking more and more I need to go the unroot_update.zip route at this point.

[mkjellgren]

Before you do that Google "android market installation unsuccessful" and read the first few links. There are a few suggestions you could try.