DeGoogle Yourself

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A community for those that would like to get away from Google.

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How can I run apps without Play Store (self.degoogle)

submitted 10 months ago by private_eye to c/[email protected]

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For my degoogled android, I am uninstalling bloatwares using adb. Now, I even decided to remove Play Store and use Aurora Store and Obtainium; but haven't touched Google Play Service.

Everything was running smoothly till I recently installed ChatGPT Android; but the app is not even starting, and shows the message you need Play Store or Update it.

Is their any way around for it.

I am considering microG but not aware how those tech work; also no intention for rooting my phone

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[–] ikidd 8 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (2 children)

Try Insular which lets you install Play Store inside an island that is essentially a bare android system. If the apps access anything on the operating system like contacts, etc. they just get empty data (unless you populate that islands Contacts with what you need for an application). You can make multiple islands if you need to isolate other applications from each other, or you can just install all untrusted apps inside of one island and let them feed off each other. I've also seen people poison the data those applications get with bullshit data in the things they are accessing inside the island and sending back.

I've used this very successfully with GrapheneOS, it'll run my bank app for instance, so I don't have to keep Play Services on my mainland profile. You can also move apps from mainland to island, or island to island inside the Insular manager.

[–] private_eye 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Thanks, for the app. I had used Island for a while, but didn't thought this way.

I'm playing for while but sorry I was not able to find multiple island feature which you were talking about; I wanted to ask here first before searching myself.

Also what does FLOSS mean?

[–] ikidd 4 points 10 months ago

My bad, it must have been another one that I could make multiple profiles with, you are right, I don't see that on my Insular install currently.

FLOSS is Free Libre Open Source Software. IMO, the only software you can rely on having any control over has to be opensource. Nothing else is worth investing time into, because it'll eventually enshittify.

[–] private_eye 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

A doubt arised, does both profile need to have same app version or signatures.

I want to use a single app in both profile, but one is modded version in work profile. Because a message appears when installing that sort of says, "another user has installed the same app but its different".

[–] ikidd 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I think they're complete separate, so I believe it would work. You can Clone apps in the Insular manager, so that makes me think it's not an issue.

[–] private_eye 1 points 10 months ago

sadly no, they aren't working.