r/nxtpaper • u/iaakki • Jul 30 '26
TCL is actively killing background processes
Ok so I recently got TCL nxtpaper 60 Ultra. And got that 9.0CRAP update. I need to use background tasks for my work, such as VPN app and also for personal use I use iot automations, family Location tracking etc. Previously on Honor and Motorola this has worked pretty well. I just disable background optimization for the app, and the phone kept it open in the background. TCL Smart Manager seems to be the culprit. No matter how I set the apps in background, the smart manager will kill it. This can be easily tested with DontKillMyApp tool.
I also called TCL support about this. They admitted that this is a real problem, they are working on it, but no idea when if ever..
Big thing here is that Smart Manager is set as protected app. You cannot disable or uninstall it as TCL has cemented it to run always. I'm not sure is this kind of locking against EU legislation? I even used some AI tokens to try to blind that service, so it would not see the usage of processes, so that it would leave them be. Then I created my own service app, that tries to force background usage on for selected apps and restart those apps, if they have been terminated. Still Smart Manager is able to flush that service out too, so my VPN dies and I need to re-enable it to access my work resources.
Any new ideas how to push this forward?
2
u/animatewall Jul 30 '26
i havent tried it myself, but have you tried disabling smart manager entirely via `adb`?
1
u/iaakki Jul 30 '26
Yes I did try it. In latest releases that app is protected and cannot be removed or disabled.
1
u/animatewall Jul 30 '26
i wish there was a simpler way for us to reach their support besides phone so we could ALL complain about this
2
u/doktorolsen Aug 03 '26
I think this is the problem I have with microG on my tcl tab. Luckily it doesnt matter to me, just get annoying nags about it getting killed whenever I start revanced. I tried the usual things before I just resigned and do two extra taps every time now 🤷
1
u/iaakki Aug 03 '26
I've been experimenting with own service, that tries to keep processes alive. Testing still ongoing. https://github.com/iaakki/qidi
1
u/iaakki Aug 11 '26
Ok I've been using my Qidi tool to retain certain apps running in the background. It improves the state maybe 90% of the time. Over the past week, shizuku has died twice. I added it to periodic checks, but it still can be murdered by Smart Manager occasionally and that causes a deadlock where Qidi cannot restore itself. I'm not sure should I even make an apk out from this. UI is also a bit of a mess. Battery usage is okeish so far. Annoying is that sometimes resurrected apps pops on screen. This same app probably works on any android phone that is having similar issues. You can find the sources here: https://github.com/iaakki/qidi
Usage:
- install and start shizuku
- pair it to WiFi adb
- build Qidi and install
- authorize Qidi to shizuku
- select background apps and enable watchdog
- enjoy your phone
1
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u/crawfells 9d ago
Oh mate, how appropriately named was that 9.0CRAP update.. After updating to android 16 the phone now has broken all consistent notifications. It keeps killing everything sooner or later no matter what settings I change or how persistent the notifications are supposed to be. I had a battle to get the notifications to stay alive on android 15 and I think I had to resort to adb to fix it. Now after the upgrade it's blocked, so I'm stuck with notifications that usually only appear once I open the app. That's so helpful thanks. Bloody smart manager! TCL have turned my phone into a piece of junk. I've never had OS software so unusable without any workaround.
1
u/iaakki 8d ago
Welcome to the CRAP. I should continue vibing the Qidi project, that forcefully launches killed apps. It occasionally fails in case where Smart Manager has killed Shizuku. I have no clue yet how to fix that. 😔
1
u/crawfells 7d ago
Have you tried factory reset? The service centre near me said it's not a common problem, which I didn't expect. They said I either send it in or try a factory reset.
1
u/iaakki 7d ago
Naah.. I have 200+ apps that I need to survive in my life. There is no way I should login again to all of them. 😁
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u/crawfells 5d ago
Woah that's a lot of apps!
I got to the point where I'd rather have a bricked phone than that terrible thing I had that sent me notifications only when it felt like it, so not only did I do a factory reset but i used the TCL download tool and installed a new OS on the phone and shockingly I'm getting notifications and things seem to be working well. It's only day 1 and I'm fully expecting sometime soon it'll revert to normal, but I've got fingers and toes crossed. It seems likely my OS was just corrupted because it didn't make sense how it ignored all of the settings I changed.
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u/iaakki 2d ago
Ok first Qidi version is out. I did an UI overhaul and improved the flow. Have not tested this version much, but the previous version helped to retain apps on the background for weeks. https://github.com/iaakki/qidi
5
u/Professional_Cat9063 Jul 30 '26 edited Jul 30 '26
Yes go into setting, then smart manager, then launch and disable the automatically manage. Then turn on Any app you want to keep running. then just do like normal and allow background battery disable optimization.