Waydroid Installation and Usage Guide for X11

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. System Requirements
3. Installation
   • Installing Weston
   • Installing Waydroid
   • Initializing Waydroid
4. Usage
   • Launching Waydroid
   • Stopping Waydroid
5. Additional Configuration
   • Hiding Waydroid Apps from System Launcher
   • Enabling Clipboard Integration in Weston
6. Automation
   • Automated Startup Scripts
7. Uninstallation
8. Troubleshooting
9. References

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Introduction

This guide details the process of installing and using Waydroid on an X11-based Linux system. Waydroid allows you to run a complete Android system in a container, seamlessly integrated into your desktop environment. This guide covers the setup, basic usage, and customization options to enhance your Waydroid experience.

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System Requirements

Before proceeding with the installation, ensure that your system meets the following requirements:

• Running an X11 environment.
• Administrative privileges (sudo access).
• curl and ca-certificates packages installed.

Install these dependencies by executing the command:

sudo apt install curl ca-certificates -y

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Installation

Installing Weston

Weston is the Wayland compositor required for rendering the Waydroid environment. To install it, run:

sudo apt install weston -y

Installing Waydroid

Follow the steps below to install Waydroid.

Step 1: Add the Waydroid Repository

Add the official Waydroid repository by running the following command:

curl https://repo.waydro.id | sudo bash

Step 2: Install Waydroid

Once the repository is added, install Waydroid using:

sudo apt install waydroid -y

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Initializing Waydroid

Initialization must be performed within a Weston session. Follow these steps to initialize Waydroid:

1. Start Weston:

   Open a terminal and run:

   weston --socket=mysocket

   This will start a Weston session on the specified socket.

2. Initialize Waydroid:

   In the Weston terminal, you can initialize Waydroid using one of the following commands:

   • Vanilla Android (No Google Apps):

     sudo waydroid init

   • Android with Google Apps (GAPPS):

     sudo waydroid init -f -s GAPPS

Once initialized, Waydroid is ready for use.

Fix for Missing Binder Module

If you encounter an error related to missing binder modules, such as:

[21:15:53] Failed to load binder driver
[21:15:53] ERROR: Binder node "binder" for waydroid not found

Refer to this guide for instructions on resolving the issue.

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Usage

Launching Waydroid

Once initialized, launch Waydroid within the Weston session:

1. Start Weston:

   weston --socket=mysocket

2. Launch Waydroid Interface:

   In the Weston terminal, run:

   waydroid show-full-ui

   This will launch the full Android system in the Wayland environment.

Stopping Waydroid

To stop Waydroid, use the following command:

waydroid session stop

This will gracefully terminate the session.

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Additional Configuration

Hiding Waydroid Apps from System Launcher

Waydroid apps may appear in your system's application launcher by default. To hide these entries, run the following script:

for a in ~/.local/share/applications/waydroid.*.desktop; do
    grep -q NoDisplay $a || sed '/^Icon=/a NoDisplay=true' -i $a
done

This will add a NoDisplay=true entry to all Waydroid .desktop files, hiding them from the launcher.

Enabling Clipboard Integration in Weston

To enable clipboard sharing between Weston and the X11 environment:

1. Install pyclip:

   sudo pip install pyclip

2. Install wl-clipboard:

   sudo apt install wl-clipboard

This allows for seamless copy-paste functionality between Waydroid and your Linux environment.

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Automation

To automate Waydroid startup and shutdown, follow the steps below.

Automated Startup Scripts

1. Create a Weston Configuration

Create a ~/.config/weston.ini file with the following configuration to improve input handling and hide the panel:

[libinput]
enable-tap=true

[shell]
panel-position=none

2. Create a Waydroid Startup Script

Save the following script as /usr/bin/waydroid-session.sh:

#!/bin/bash

# Start Weston
weston --xwayland &
WESTON_PID=$!
export WAYLAND_DISPLAY=wayland-1
sleep 2

# Launch Waydroid
waydroid show-full-ui &
WAYDROID_PID=$!

# Stop Waydroid when Weston exits
trap "waydroid session stop; kill $WESTON_PID; kill $WAYDROID_PID" EXIT

wait $WESTON_PID

Make the script executable:

chmod +x /usr/bin/waydroid-session.sh

3. Create a Desktop Entry

Create a desktop entry to launch Waydroid easily. Save the following file as /usr/share/applications/waydroid-session.desktop:

[Desktop Entry]
Version=1.0
Type=Application
Name=Waydroid Session
Comment=Start Waydroid in a Weston session
Exec=/bin/bash -c "cd /usr/bin && ./waydroid-session.sh"
Icon=waydroid
Terminal=false
Categories=System;Emulator;

Make it executable:

chmod +x /usr/share/applications/waydroid-session.desktop

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Uninstallation

Removing Waydroid and Associated Components

If you want to completely remove Waydroid and any associated packages from your Ubuntu-based system, you can use the clean-removal.sh script. Follow the instructions below:

1. Ensure the script clean-removal.sh is executable:

   chmod +x clean-removal.sh

2. Run the script with root permissions:

   sudo ./clean-removal.sh

What This Script Does:

• Stops and disables the Waydroid container service.
• Removes Waydroid, Weston, and related packages.
• Cleans up any configuration files and residual files.

This ensures that your system is returned to its state before the installation of Waydroid.

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Troubleshooting

• Weston fails to start: Ensure Weston is correctly installed and that your X11 environment is properly configured.
• Waydroid doesn’t launch: Verify the Weston session is active and Waydroid is installed correctly.
• Performance issues: Consider adjusting your system’s resource allocation for better performance.

For more information, refer to the official Waydroid documentation.

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References

• Waydroid Official Documentation
• Weston Reference Documentation

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This guide covers both the installation and configuration of Waydroid, including clipboard integration and automated startup for a smoother experience.