Preserving Settings During APK Updates: Complete Guide

Yes, you correctly understand the basic principles of preserving settings when manually updating applications through APK. Let’s examine this in detail.

Table of Contents

• Main APK Installation Methods
• Preserving Settings with Different Methods
• Comparison of Installation Methods
• Practical Recommendations
• Special Cases and Nuances
• Conclusion

Main APK Installation Methods

Manual installation of APK files on Android devices is also known as “sideloading”. There are two main methods:

1. Clean Install - Complete removal of the old version of the application before installing the new one
2. Update - Installing the new version over the existing one without removing the old one

By default, Android prevents installation of APK files from unknown sources for security reasons, but this option can be enabled in the settings.

Preserving Settings with Different Methods

Clean Install (uninstall + new installation)

With a clean install, all data from the previous application is completely deleted, including:

• Application settings
• Saved data
• Cache
• Files in the application’s internal storage
• Application databases
• User profiles

Research confirms: “Uninstalling the application also deletes this related data. If you then clean install it, you’d also note size difference”

Update (installing over the old version)

When installing a new APK over an existing one without removing the old version:

• User settings and data are preserved
• The application continues to use existing data files
• All saved user data remains accessible

As noted in sources: “If you don’t uninstall the existing app, and you use adb install to install the new APK, the existing app data will be preserved”

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Comparison of Installation Methods

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Practical Recommendations

When to use clean install:

1. When serious application malfunctions occur
2. When changing accounts or subscription types
3. When you need to free up space (as all cached data is deleted)
4. When installing an app with a different name but from the same developer

When to use update:

1. During regular updates to a new version
2. When preserving all user settings is important
3. When installing fixed versions of the application
4. For system applications (which cannot be uninstalled)

Important: “If you don’t tell otherwise, application data will be preserved when you upgrade”

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Special Cases and Nuances

App signing

Updates are only possible if:

• The new APK is signed with the same key as the old version
• Or if a developer signature is used (debug signature)

Data structure changes

If the developer has changed the structure of saved data, the following may occur:

• Problems displaying old settings
• Need to reset some parameters
• Loss of some settings if the data structure has changed

System applications

For system applications, updating without deletion may require:

• Root access
• Using special ADB commands
• Changing access permissions

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Conclusion

Yes, your understanding is absolutely correct:

1. ✅ With a clean install (uninstall + install new version), all settings from the previous application are completely deleted

2. ✅ When updating by installing an APK over the old version without deletion, all settings are preserved

3. ✅ Both methods are correct, and the choice between them really depends on the user’s goals:

   • Update - for preserving data and regular updates
   • Clean install - for solving problems, changing accounts, or a complete reset

The main rule: if your settings are important, use update without deletion. If a clean start is important or there are problems - use a clean install.

Sources

1. Repeato - Testing an ADB Update Versus Install
2. Android Enthusiasts Stack Exchange - Does clean installing instead of updating save more space?
3. Android Enthusiasts Stack Exchange - Will updating an app with a sideloaded apk delete app data?
4. Android Enthusiasts Stack Exchange - Re-install app without losing personal data
5. Stack Overflow - Android application update vs remove and install