How to simulate home, back, menu, search, task and volume buttons?

Asked 14/12, 2012 at 9:54 Answered 13/7, 2020 at 2:14

android android-homebutton

I want to simulate all physical buttons of our Android devices.

So is there a way to simulate:

BACK BUTTON
HOME BUTTON
MENU BUTTON
SEARCH BUTTON
TASK BUTTON
VOLUME (+ AND -) BUTTONS

Hashum answered 14/12, 2012 at 9:54 Comment(4)

You want access those buttons from java code? – Perjured 14/12, 2012 at 10:11

there are lots of solution on GOOGLE.. – Aciniform 14/12, 2012 at 10:34

@RajeshRajaram No I want to go to home or show menu (etc etc) programmatically – Hashum 14/12, 2012 at 16:44

@AnandTiwari I found only Home Button code https://mcmap.net/q/479083/-android-simulate-home-click – Hashum 14/12, 2012 at 16:45

Create a KeyEvent and publish it.

KeyEvent kdown = new KeyEvent(KeyEvent.ACTION_DOWN, KeyEvent.KEYCODE_BACK);
Activity.dispatchKeyEvent(kdown);
KeyEvent kup = new KeyEvent(KeyEvent.ACTION_UP, KeyEvent.KEYCODE_BACK);
Activity.dispatchKeyEvent(kup);

Rojo answered 14/12, 2012 at 9:56 Comment(5)

Many thanks..but I want to do this programmatically and not only from an activity... – Hashum 14/12, 2012 at 16:46

This is exactly "programmatically" and you can always have a reference of your activity to call this method (you are not forced to call it within your activity). – Poultryman 26/12, 2013 at 19:47

@Aleksander Gralak : Your code does not call the activity.onBackPressed method btw... – Poultryman 26/12, 2013 at 21:3

You need to call it for both action down and action up. Like so this.dispatchKeyEvent(new KeyEvent(KeyEvent.ACTION_DOWN, KeyEvent.KEYCODE_BACK)); this.dispatchKeyEvent(new KeyEvent(KeyEvent.ACTION_UP, KeyEvent.KEYCODE_BACK)); – Promulgate 16/5, 2014 at 23:30

this method doesn't work anymore: ``` ComponentActivity.dispatchKeyEvent can only be called from within the same library group prefix(referenced groupId=androidx.core)``` – Aubreir 10/5, 2022 at 17:19

You can simulate pressing buttons even your app is closed, but you'll need Accessibility permission:

Create service extended from AccessibilityService:

class ExampleAccessService:AccessibilityService() {
    override fun onInterrupt() {
    }

    override fun onAccessibilityEvent(event: AccessibilityEvent?) {
    }
    
    fun doAction(){
        performGlobalAction(GLOBAL_ACTION_RECENTS)
//        performGlobalAction(GLOBAL_ACTION_BACK)
//        performGlobalAction(GLOBAL_ACTION_HOME)
//        performGlobalAction(GLOBAL_ACTION_NOTIFICATIONS)
//        performGlobalAction(GLOBAL_ACTION_POWER_DIALOG)
//        performGlobalAction(GLOBAL_ACTION_QUICK_SETTINGS)
//        performGlobalAction(GLOBAL_ACTION_TOGGLE_SPLIT_SCREEN)
    }
}

Call doAction() where you want action

Add to Manifest:

<application
...
    <service
        android:name=".ExampleAccessService"
        android:permission="android.permission.BIND_ACCESSIBILITY_SERVICE"
        android:label="Name of servise" // it will be viewed in Settings->Accessibility->Services
        android:enabled="true"
        android:exported="false" >
        <intent-filter>
            <action android:name="android.accessibilityservice.AccessibilityService"/>
        </intent-filter>
        <meta-data
            android:name="android.accessibilityservice"
            android:resource="@xml/accessibility_service_config"/>
    </service>
...
</application>

accessibility_service_config.xml:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<accessibility-service xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    android:accessibilityEventTypes="typeAllMask"
    android:accessibilityFeedbackType="feedbackAllMask"
    android:accessibilityFlags="flagDefault"
    android:canRetrieveWindowContent="false"
    android:description="your description"
    android:notificationTimeout="100"
    android:packageNames="your app package, ex: ex: com.example.android"
    android:settingsActivity="your settings activity ex: com.example.android.MainActivity" />

for more info look at https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/ui/accessibility/services.html

Mielke answered 1/2, 2018 at 15:59 Comment(0)

If you test your application's specific component such as Activity so you may use InstrumentationTestCase's sendKeys()method, passing there any combination of keys. Also you can use TouchUtils to simulate tapping, dragging and clicking actions

Gibran answered 14/12, 2012 at 9:58 Comment(0)

Try using android dispatchKeyEvent override method.

Nearly answered 13/7, 2020 at 2:14 Comment(0)

-1

Use onKeyListener for overriding the physical buttons in your device. See the doc.

The KeyEvent class have all the values for the physical buttons and on screen keyboard on your device. For Example KeyEvent.KEYCODE_HOME substitutes for the home button in the device.

Google it, you can find a lot of examples for KEYCODE events

Yield answered 14/12, 2012 at 10:7 Comment(0)

-1

Simulation for following keys:

-BACK BUTTON : override onBackPressed() in current activity.

-MENU BUTTON : you should look here and also openOptionsMenu(), menu

you should also look at this blog.

Aciniform answered 15/12, 2012 at 5:17 Comment(2)

back button doesn't always close the current activity, especially if the activity has "onBackPressed" being implemented in a different way. – Nickola 30/4, 2014 at 7:2

Also this won't work if you want to simulate the button click as part of a unit test. – Marou 28/12, 2014 at 12:42

-2

Try this your activity

public boolean onKeyDown(int keyCode, KeyEvent event)   
{
 if (keyCode == KeyEvent.KEYCODE_BACK)
 {

 }
 if (keyCode == KeyEvent.KEYCODE_HOME)
 {

 }
 if (keyCode == KeyEvent.KEYCODE_MENU)
 {

 }
 if (keyCode == KeyEvent.KEYCODE_VOLUME_UP)
 {

 }
 if (keyCode == KeyEvent.KEYCODE_VOLUME_DOWN)
 {

 }
}

Perjured answered 14/12, 2012 at 10:16 Comment(2)

Many thanks but I don't want to pick buttons event but to simulate them – Hashum 14/12, 2012 at 16:46

wrong direction.. the question clearly states simulate, not catch – Glochidiate 3/2, 2013 at 10:46

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