Can I give the .Emu apps file permissions in Android TV 11?

[Flashlab2]

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Since my TV has been updated to Android TV version 11 with scoped storage the .EMU app can't open files any longer from ARC Browser. It says file permission are missing. For other apps I can give them the needed permissions but I can't for the .EMU apps. Is there a way to solve this?

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[Rakashazi]

I recommend checking with the ARC browser developer for any steps to configure it for scoped storage, and there's some additional info here: https://arcbrowser.com/saf

In case of issues, the per-app media folder is still accessible without scoped storage and is created by selecting "App Media Folder" from the file locations menu in any of my apps. The standard location is usually Android/media/com.explusalpha.[name of emulator] and it's possible to move files in there using any file manager app without special permissions. Just note that it will be wiped if you ever uninstall the app so be sure to backup any saves.

About why it's possible to grant storage permissions on other apps but not mine, I had to remove them on Android 11+ and use scoped storage exclusively due to a new Google Play policy introduced last year. Otherwise the apps couldn't be updated and would eventually become hidden to new users on Google Play in November, which when outdated apps will be cleaned from the listings.

[Flashlab2]

I have tested the saf option in ARC Browser and indeed it's sending a different link to the .EMU apps but this path also can't be accessed. In the ARC Browser readme it also states that the app ARC Browser sends the file to needs to have permission as well to access the files. It seems at the moment that the only folder the .EMU apps have access to is within their own app folder.

It seems other users have tried editing apks to add into the AndroidManifest.xml and this fixes it for some apps.

I'll see if I can try that too.

[Rakashazi]

Are you able to select Browse For Folder or Browse For File from the File Locations menu in any of the emulators?

[Flashlab2]

I did some testing in the meanwhile. Out of the box I can't use Browse For Folder or Browse For File. Browse For Folder gives a message within the app that the device doesn't support the feature while Browse For File gives a system message that says that there's no app for that action. So I sideloaded Material Files from the F-Driod store and then I can use Browse For File for some files as the action is then supported by Material Files. I can select some Genesis roms depending on the extension. Zip files give an error message that says you need to use Browse For Folder in NEO.EMU. But that doesn't work with Material Files.

So to test a different front end to see if the SAF link is bad I tried Launchbox and that is indeed able to send working links to the .EMU apps. But that doesn't work for zip files; so NEO.EMU still has a problem.

Manually adding the link in the custom path folder gives a permission error.

The only way I was able to play zipped roms was to put them in the media folder. But that is a hassle as I can't sync that with my NAS.

[Rakashazi]

Thanks for the testing. It looks like many Android TVs are missing the system document picker UI that needed for the Browse For Folder option to work. I think it should be possible for a file manager app to implement this, but so far haven't found any that do. I'll do some more research into it but I may have to write my own mini file manager to handle this case if there's no other solution.

[Flashlab2]

Maybe not relevant for the missing file picker but does SAF even allow sharing zip files or folders from frontends?

[Flashlab2]

It also seems that Google TV on the Chromecast does have a file picker. Would it be possible to extract that and copy that to Android TV?