Open source compatible app to escape from Google Play developer service

Google applications and important Android features cannot be used without the Google Play developer service. The microG Project is a project that develops open source software that realizes compatibility with Google Play in order to flee from such Google Play developer services.

On Android smartphones and tablets, the Google Play Developer Service application is pre-installed and always runs in the background. Google Play Developer Service is a service program that provides APIs necessary for Google to use various services. Therefore, without the Google Play developer service, applications running on Android cannot provide Google authentication, personal information setting management, and location information services.

On the other hand, Google Play developer service is also an existence that consumes a lot of battery because the application capacity is large and memory usage is large. However, there are many applications that require the Google Play developer service to work properly, so it cannot be deleted.

Of course, there are Android smartphones that do not have the Google Play developer service installed, but the Google Rafi library and API cannot be used in such gigs, and they are excluded from the Google ecosystem. So, MicroG began in 2015 as a project to develop Google’s own core library and application program cloning software as open source.

MicroG consists of five things. The service core (GmsCore) is composed of a library for running an application program that uses Google Play developer service or Google Maps Android API v2. Service Framework Proxy (GsfProxy) is a utility that allows you to use the Google Cloud Messaging service, which includes an application developed for Google Cloud to Device Messaging.

Next, UnifiedNlp is a library that provides Wi-Fi and mobile phone base station-based location information to applications that use Google’s network location provider. Also, Maps API (mapsv1) is a system library that provides the same functions as Google Maps API. Store (Phonesky) is a front-end application that provides access to the Google Play store for downloading and updating applications.

The source code is on GitHub and you can download the apk file . MicroG is also supported by the Prototype Fund sponsored by the German Ministry of Education and Research from 2019 and the /e/ Foundation, which provides /e/, an Android-based free open source OS, from 2020. Has become. Related information can be found here .