How to capture screenshot from other Android apps from non root app?

Question

I want to capture a screenshot of Android applications running on my phone.

I tried using the ScreenShot UX app. This can be done on another phone. Any idea how to get a screenshot of an Android app from a service that runs in the background?

I want my service to periodically capture the screen and send the server.

Answer 1

Check out the Android-screenshot-library , which allows you to programmatically capture screenshots from Android devices without having to have root privileges.

Answer 2

The only way to take a screenshot of an application that does not belong to you is to get the original framebuffer. The frame buffer is usually located in /dev/fb0 or /dev/graphics/fb0 . On some devices (such as LG Optimus One) access to them is possible without root privileges, but on most (for example, Nexus S) of them you must be rooted for this. This is usually prohibited for security reasons, since a malicious application can take screenshots in the background and send them to a remote server, revealing information such as email identifiers and passwords, and in some cases bank account information.

Answer 3

Starting with Android 5.0+, you can use the new functionality in the SDK called media projects to make screen capturing without root privileges. Below is a sample Google code here .