How to get your paid apps back in Froyo

By Phil Nickinson
last updated

Good news for you folks running Froyo who are sorely missing your favorite paid applications from the new and improved Android Market. A fix has actually been around at XDA Developers for a couple of days, and it's as simple as pushing over a new build.prop file that spoofs the Market into thinking you're running an older version of Android (Eclair really is ancient, ya know?) while keeping your Froyo goodness intact. There's really not too much hackery involved, though you'll likely want to run a nandroid backup first, just in case. And if you somehow have Froyo but still have no idea what we're talking about, better to just leave this one alone. [XDA Developers]

Note: Make sure the file you push back to your phone is, in fact, named build.prop and not something else.

Phil Nickinson
Phil Nickinson
8 Comments
  • Get our Apps back? My apps were all in the list under downloads in froyo,,, I don't understand why we need to trick it to be eclair? Is there some sort of bug or something? All my free and paid apps that I've removed or lost are under the downloads kist in froyo...
  • I was wondering the same thing. I've been reading these posts pretty carefully since 2.2 was announced and never saw any mention of lost apps. (what does "kist" mean?)
  • Some of the paid copy protected paid applications can no longer be seen in the market after the froyo update. For example, I've been trying to find the Vlingo app in marketplace but it simply doesn't show up. This does not mean that the apps that are already installed on your android device disappears.
  • My apps say "installed" under 2.2. When I upgraded to Froyo I didn't lose any data. I also just purchased Armored Strike Online from the Market for $2.99 with no problems.
  • Reading through the instructions at XDA, it seems that your phone has too be rooted to apply the fix? Is this correct?
  • This story is a bit misleading. For all those confused:
    The missing apps are known as "protected" apps. They can be FREE or PAID apps. The problem arises because Google hasn't whitelisted this froyo rom to have full access to the market yet. You can't copy protected apps unless you have root access. However, if you have root access, you can change some info in the build.prop file and then you will be able to see and install protected apps. This is because the modifications make it look like your phone is running a different OS that is whitelisted. Hope that helps people out! But most PAID apps should still be visible, and any you had installed before will still be installed.
  • Interesting to know all of this. Thanks everyone, for being so helpful.
  • I just flashed my Captivate to 2.2 and i am actually not seeing my paid apps in my downloads. I dont see any of the ones i previously downloaded on 2.1. Help, i dont feel like losing money.