In order to install applications and games on your Android phone or tablet, you must use the application Google play... However, the creator's policy implies another way to install applications - directly from the device. To do this, you need to download the apk file, transfer it to your device and install it. This is for those users who cannot connect to. Therefore, today we will talk about how this process is going in general.

What we need:

• The device itself (smartphone or tablet).

• The apk file downloaded to your computer (for this you can use the famous w3bsit3-dns.com forum).

• A file manager installed on your device.

We go into our device and select memory either on the flash card, if available, or in the device itself - it depends only on your desire. For example, let's select the main device. For convenience, create an APK folder in it and place the downloaded apk files into it.

Please note: if the application comes with a cache, you need to install it using the path indicated in the description. , we told earlier.

The files were on the device. Now we can disconnect it from the computer (we don't need to disconnect it) and open the file manager on the device. In our case, "ES Explorer" is used, but you can use any other, up to the built-in file manager to your firmware, if any. We go to the section with the device, find the folder where you transferred the file, open it and see the file (or files).

To install the apk file, you need to tap on it once or twice, depending on the file manager, and select "Install".

If you see the message "For security reasons, the installation of applications from unknown sources is blocked on the device", click on the "Settings" button.

You will be taken to the "Security" section. Here, check the box next to "Unknown sources (allow the installation of applications from unknown sources)".

If everything is in order, click "Install".

Next, you will see the permissions the app gets. Be careful: if the application can call or send SMS messages, it is quite possible that it was created to steal funds from the subscriber's personal account, since the same SMS are sent in such a way that the owner of the device will never guess about it, while his personal account is quietly empties, because these messages are paid.

After the application is installed, you will see a corresponding notification on the screen.

Everything, nothing more is required of you.

How to install apk file on Android without file manager?

Not all users have a file manager on their devices, so installing apk files is a real nightmare for them, because it is believed that nothing can be installed without a file manager. This is not true! To install the apk file, you can and should use a browser - it is definitely installed in your firmware.

So, we launch any browser and write the following phrase in the address bar: file: /// sdcard /... This will open the file system of your device.

And then it’s a matter of technology. Click on the apk file and install it. In our case, however, when you click on the file, it is downloaded. Then you need to call the shutter and in the shutter click on the file again to install it.

In any case, this will not cause you problems.

You can ask your questions using comments.

Most Android games, if they are not simple arcade games, weigh more than 100 MB, so when you download them, the file with the cache is still included. What is cache and how do I install it? In our universal instructions, you will learn how to install games with a cache on Android, and it also describes how to do this operation in situations when the cache is not in a folder, or when you downloaded a file on your computer.

The cache for applications and games on Android is a special file with resources, which was created so that when updating, users do not need to download the entire volume of the game again - only executable files in the APK.

To manually install the cache on an Android device, you need to perform simple steps. To do this, you need a file manager with a built-in archiver that works with ZIP files. We recommend using the popular one.

Cache installation instructions:

1. Download the APK installation file and cache, for example, from the Treshbox.

Install the downloaded APK, but don't start.

Open the file manager with a built-in archiver. Find the downloaded cache (usually in the Download folder). It will be a ZIP or RAR archive. In our case, it is called com.rovio.battlebay.zip... There is already a folder in the archive com.rovio.battlebay, and in it cache in OBB format. All this needs to be transferred to the directory along the way Android → obb.

Select the archive by long pressing → the "Unpack to" button and select the directory / Android / obb(sometimes it happens / sdcard / Android / obb). The same can be done in another way, if you use an alternative file manager: unpack the archive in the folder where it is located; copy and paste the com.rovio.battlebay folder into / Android / obb /.

As a result, a folder with a cache should appear in the / Android / obb directory. In our case, com.rovio.battlebay.

Only then can you start the game.

Note: cache for games from some developers needs to be placed in non-standard folders, for example:

• Games from Gameloft - sdcard / gameloft / games / [cache folder]. The game downloaded from Google Play will be located in a different path - sdcard / Android / data / [cache folder].
• Games from Electronic Arts (EA) - sdcard / Android / data / [cache folder].
• Games from Glu - sdcard / glu / [cache folder].

How to install a cache if it is not in the archive or in a folder

Often the cache is not downloaded in a packed form, but simply as an OBB file. In this case, the installation is slightly complicated:

1. You have downloaded the APK and cache. Installed the first, but the second is a file with the name in the main.7610.com.rovio.battlebay.obb style.

Then you need to find out Game ID and create a folder with it in the / Android / obb directory: go to the page of the game you need on Google Play (in our case, BattleBay); pay attention to the url - play.google.com/store/apps/details?id= com.rovio.battlebay& hl = ru; ID is hidden in it; the game ID text is written after id = and before & if the latter is present. So our ID is com.rovio.battlebay.

Copy the ID from the address bar and in the file manager go to the / Android / obb directory. There we create a folder whose name is the ID of our game. Just paste com.rovio.battlebay into the folder name field.

Next, we return to the cache that you downloaded. Copy main.7610.com.rovio.battlebay.obb and go back to /Android/obb/com.rovio.battlebay. Insert the cache file there.

We start the game.

How to install cache from computer

All these steps for installing the cache can be done directly from the computer if you connect your device in external storage mode. Just unpack the archive with the cache and transfer the folder with the OBB file to the familiar directory / Android / obb to microSD card or in internal memory.

For more information on installing a cache on Android, see our video instructions:

When installing applications, Android OS does not ask the user about the destination folder for the installation. This approach makes it easier to install games and programs, but makes it harder to find the apk or application folder to remove residual files.

Which folder contains installed applications

The location of data in the Android OS is standardized. And each file type is assigned a corresponding folder. For applications this folder is called Android, and is located in the internal memory. At the same time, there are two more folders inside:

In the Data folder application data is stored. Obb - cash games... Sometimes the application occupies both folders - data in Data, and cache in Obb, but more often this location only applies to games. Other files that appear during the use of applications are stored in their respective folders for music or pictures.

When apps are installed to the root folder

It should be noted that not all applications end up in the Android folder - some programs are saved in the root of the internal storage (that is, they are in the same place as the Android folder, and not inside it). For example, for Viber or Titanium Backup applications, the system fundamentally creates the Viber and Titanium Backup folders, and inside these folders the files that you receive through the application data are stored: all data, cache, as well as other files that appear during use - pictures , stickers, databases, etc. are saved inside the created folders. If you want to go in and clean them, then the path to them looks like this: Internal storage-> Viber. Some devices may refer to “internal storage” as “internal memory”.

Where is the apk stored?

When downloading an apk from google play or from other sites, the files go to the “Download” folder, and the full path to the apk will be as follows: internal storage-> Download. In general, all files downloaded from the Internet fall into this directory. Therefore, for convenience, the system provides a category called APK. Going into this directory, you will only see the apk files downloaded to your device. To get into this category, open the explorer (which is installed by default on your android device), select the “Categories” tab and click on the APK icon.

Output

Most APK applications and programs are saved in the "Android" folder. If the application is not in this folder, then you should look in the root folder of the internal storage (built-in memory), as shown in the article.

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Some smartphone owners do not even suspect that games and applications can be downloaded not only from Google play... Like Windows, operating Android system allows you to download and install the application in the form a separate file... But if computer programs have the .exe extension, then the installation file with the mobile utility has the .apk extension.

Installation consequences

By default, almost any smartphone does not allow you to install programs and games from other sources. What is the reason for this?

• First, Google receives a certain percentage of the sale of each app. It is simply not profitable for it to give users the opportunity to search for games and programs elsewhere.
• Secondly, the Google Play online store makes it much easier to find any application, and also publishes reviews on it. In this regard, the company is doing its best to teach users to download software only from Google Play.
• Thirdly, on third-party resources, under the guise of a very useful utility, a virus may well be hiding.

Attention: some sites actually hide viruses under the guise of applications. Usually their action is to send SMS to expensive short numbers. This problem is partly solved in Android 6.0, where you can prohibit any actions you dislike for a particular program.

It should be remembered that if you decide to install the APK file on Android, then you should not hope for its subsequent update. The fact is that only those applications that were installed through the aforementioned Google Play are able to update on a smartphone.

Installing the APK file

You can download the file with the .apk extension either using a computer or directly to a smartphone using an Internet browser. If you decide to use a computer, then you need to transfer the file to mobile device... The easiest way to do this is by connecting it with a USB cable. Then all that remains is to drop the APK file into the folder Download or any other.

If, when connected to a computer, the device does not want to give you access to the file system, then go to “ Settings"And go to the section" For developers».

Here you should check the box next to the item " USB debugging».

Now you can definitely transfer the file to your smartphone. But that's not all! Now you need to run it in order to start the installation process. To do this, use any file manager. This could be ES Explorer or a utility with the simplest name File manager("Explorer" in the Russian version of the online store). Using such a program, you need to go to the folder Download(if the APK file was downloaded there). Then you just have to click on the file.

The final step is to confirm the installation of the application. Along the way, the device will tell you exactly what permissions the program requires. On Android 6.0, permissions are issued already during the use of the application, as it accesses certain parts of the operating system.

If, when you click on the APK file, a window pops up informing about the impossibility of installation, then you should use the following instruction:

Step 1... Exit to the smartphone menu and go to “ Settings».

Step 2... Go to the section " Safety».

Step 3... Activate the checkbox next to the item " unknown sources».

Step 4... Now head back to the file manager to retry installing the application.

Some smartphones running more than current version Android, you don't have to pre-allow installation from unknown sources. It is enough just to run the downloaded apk file through the explorer, through the window that appears, go to the settings and move the slider "Allow installation from external sources" into an active state.

That's all. This completes the installation. You can see the shortcut of the new program in the menu - you will have to drag it to the desktop manually, it will not automatically appear there.

On Android, this is an installation from the official store Google applications Play. For most users, this method is the only one, because In principle, there is a great variety of programs on Google Play, for every taste.

However, sometimes you need to install an application that is not in Google Play, but it is available on third-party resources that distribute software for Android in the form of installation APK files. Such a situation may arise, for example, when the user for some reason wants to install old version application that can no longer be installed from the official store. In this article, we will explain how to install the .apk file on Android.

Allow installation of applications from unknown sources

By default, in operating system Android disabled the ability to install from unknown sources, in order to protect the user from the penetration of viruses on his device. To install an application from the downloaded apk file, the user must be given permission to install it. This is done as follows:

Now you can install applications that you downloaded as apk files.

Install the application from the APK file

If the file is downloaded from the Internet directly to a smartphone or tablet, then using any file manager, find where it was downloaded and simply run it for installation by its name. If you do not know where the file was uploaded, then the article "" will help you in your search.

In case the apk was downloaded using a computer, then your device to the computer's USB port
and copy the file to any comfortable spot in the internal memory of the device, where using the file manager you can run .apk for installation.

At the beginning of the process, a window will appear prompting you to familiarize yourself with the permissions that the installed application requires for its work.

To complete the apk installation, press the button " Further" or " Cancellation»In case you change your mind. When the installation is complete, the application icon will appear on the desktop.

At the end of the article, I would like to warn you that downloading Android applications from dubious sources increases the risk of infecting your smartphone or tablet with viruses. Download apk files only from well-known and well-established sites.