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Connect a Device

Get your phone talking to adb. Three modes: USB, wireless, SSH-over-adb.

Mode 1: USB (simplest)

  1. Enable Developer Options: Settings → About phone → tap Build number 7 times
  2. Enable USB debugging: Settings → System → Developer options → USB debugging
  3. Plug in USB cable. Accept the trust dialog on the phone.
  4. Verify:
adb devices
# 59230DLCH0012Z  device

unauthorized?

If adb devices shows unauthorized, unlock the phone and accept the dialog. Still stuck? adb kill-server && adb start-server.

Mode 2: Wireless adb (no cable after pairing)

Android 11+ supports native wireless debugging.

Pair once

  1. Settings → Developer options → Wireless debugging → toggle on
  2. Tap Pair device with pairing code — note the IP, port, and 6-digit code.
  3. On your host:
adb pair 192.168.1.42:41337
# Enter pairing code: 123456
# Successfully paired

Connect

adb connect 192.168.1.42:5555
adb devices
# 192.168.1.42:5555  device

Make it stick

Add to ~/.zshrc / ~/.bashrc:

alias phone="adb connect 192.168.1.42:5555"

→ Details: SSH_ANDROID.md

Mode 3: SSH over adb (remote agent → phone)

You want your DevDuck running on a remote box (Jetson, VPS) to control a phone sitting on your desk. Two subsolutions:

3a. adb over SSH tunnel

On the host with the phone:

adb -a -P 5037 nodaemon server &   # listen on all interfaces

On the remote box:

ssh -L 5037:localhost:5037 user@host-with-phone
adb devices   # sees the remote phone

3b. adb running on the phone itself (Termux)

Install Termux on the phone, then:

pkg install android-tools openssh
sshd
adb tcpip 5555
adb connect localhost:5555

SSH into the phone from your agent's host, run commands there.

→ Full walkthrough: SSH_ANDROID.md

Multi-Device Targeting

Got more than one phone connected?

Option A: Set a default globally

export ADB_SERIAL=59230DLCH0012Z

All adb(...) calls will target that device unless overridden.

Option B: Per-call override

adb(action="screenshot", serial="59230DLCH0012Z")
adb(action="battery",    serial="emulator-5554")

Option C: Let the agent choose

agent("list all connected devices, then take a screenshot of the Pixel")
# Agent calls list_devices → sees serials + models → picks the right one

Custom adb Binary

If adb is not on PATH (or you want a specific version):

export ADB_BIN=/opt/android-sdk/platform-tools/adb

Troubleshooting

Symptom Fix
adb: command not found Install android-platform-tools (see Installation)
device unauthorized Accept the USB debug dialog on the phone
no devices after reboot adb kill-server && adb start-server
Wireless drops after suspend Reconnect with adb connect IP:5555 (script it)
Screenshot is black Phone is locked — try adb(action="wake") first
Permission denied on push Target a world-writable path like /sdcard/

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