copy/exchange "favourites.xml" via ADB to new Device (Android 11 )
  • Hello Out There,

    I would like to transfer "favourites.xml" from one device to another, without going over the G-Drive Google Cloud Service.

    In the past that was quite easy, as the file could be copied into /sdcard/Android/data/com.mapfactor.navigator/files/navigator/backup Folder
    and import it then within the MapFactor App.

    This seems not possible anymore on my new Android 11 Phone.

    Could it be that the file  "favourites.xml" has to be in the /data/com.mapfactor.navigator folder ?
    problem is, that normal ADB user has no rights to view or edit/write files.

    Can the MapFactor app in the future be configured that way, that the  "favourites.xml" and also the other cfg files be on the "old" location, 
    to manually exchange them.

    On the Bottom of the Page "Settings Backup Offline" https://navigatorfree.mapfactor.com/en/support/, this does not work anymore :-(

    Or, when I backup via google gdrive cloud, where can I find my file on my gDrive ???
    The app shows me a backup, but I cannot find it on my gDrive ?

    Thank you
  • 15 Comments sorted by
  • @tomas, yes, thanks, restore on a 2nd device, that is well understood by me, but it still gives me not the opportunity to bring in my own initial favourites.xml  :-(. To sad.

    You are also telling me that it is in a "hidden/protected G-Drive" area, which I cannot access ?
    This is also very weired. Is there no commandline to access / exchange it ?



    Thank you


  • take your SD out and insert it in PC
    then you can access favourites
  • Hello Tomas,

    /sdcard is a Android system folder. Also in the device (cell phone) there is no sdcard to take out.
  • then try to connect your device to PC, you may/may not see it
  • I have tried that via Windows and Linux, no file. Also I was working with ADB. I have the fear that it is in the hidden/protected folder.

  • Neither the original nor the backupped files folders are globally hidden or in system folders. When connected to a PC, Your Android device will show an appropriate hint where You can switch the usb connection to different modes or it will ask for more permissions - simply choose file transfer.

    If you can see Your phone as a media device in windows explorer, this will work in almost all cases.
  • Don't know how it works in Android 11 - in previous versions you  had to activate "developer options" and then "USB debugging" within the developer tools to access all files in internal memory (and an SDcard, if present) via USB.





    Regards ...
  • This won't work on Android 11. The internal storage uses Linux filesystem with advanced permission system. The system recognizes that the file is not created by Navigator and it won't let the app access to it. On rooted device you could do 'adb shell chown' but on normal device it won't work.
  • one way to do it is to move Navigator to SD, insert SD in PC, backup your files and then you can move Navigator back
  • @lubos, - yes it ssems to me like that. On Android 10, no problems. Question to me is, if people/developers from MapFactor may change the folder or move CFG-files out of hidden/protected area.

    @tomas, - I will try that as a workaround, so pls. stay tuned, but next days I am no travel, so no chance to test.

    @All, - If I backup via G-Drive, where are my "favourites" I cannot find them in the "G-Drive - Backup" folder.
    Who has an Idea ?
  • you cannot access them on Drive, you can just see that backup exists
    settings/managed apps

    but you can restore them on another device with the same Google account
  • You could download the total commander app and install its gdrive plugin. Doing so, You can manually push around all important mfn files and backup as you like. Further more, this is quite a handy way to synchronize Your mfn settings on several devices.
  • Same problem here: MF stores data in folder /data/user/0/com.mapfactor.navigator/files/navigator/data
    Users dont have access here (Android 11+12 without root)
    So MF should
    A) change this, or
    B) provide within the navigator an internal Browser, so that every user can access the datafolder, or
    C) give user the opportunity to change datafolder within the app (like in locus maps)
  • Awesome workaround:
    Kick Android and install Lineage OS instead...works great on my old s5
  • I'm a big fan of Cyanogenmod/Lineage and used it for many years. But more and more apps dont "allow" rooted devices (DKB Banking/TAN2Go, Barclays App, Google Pay)... So I decided first time in my life for a stock-ROM....

    PS: german "Frickellösungen", to "hide" the root, didnt work for me...

Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

In this Discussion