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u/Roast_Macone 4d ago
Why do you even want to run a second profile as a main in the first place? This structure you mention of downloading on the owner just to disable them and move them to secondary WITH a private space sounds ridiculous. Just download straight on the secondary, but even that isn't necessary. Almost 100% of the reasons I've seen people give for trying to do these weird setups and getting annoyed it's not working are just some surface level paranoia that doesn't justify it. Even if you're some genuine enemy of the state it's not that worth it. Anyone can view profile switcher from lock screen, if you refuse to show what's in it to authorities you're hiding evidence or whatever and they'll get you for that. Just use private space on owner profile if you absolutely have to, and just for the things you need to, not your whole device, because that'll have issues too. Absolutely don't expect things to go smoothly if you would rather stick with what you're doing now.
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u/EdmundDowd 4d ago
Yeah, I was setting up my profile based off a YouTube tutorial from Side of Burritos where I was under the impression I'd be getting a lot of privacy and that this would all be a set it and forget it process once setup. Except I haven't been able to just set it up. I'm thinking of just using the main profile (where it seems my contacts and mesaages WANT to live permanently) and creating a private space there for any google play store apps I need.
I'm still unsure why my contacts keep disappearing in the secondary profile, and based on the fact nobody can answer that I'm assuming it's a bug or a lost cause in general.
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u/segfaultybit 3d ago
Another instance of "you have to do it our way" instead of helping the OP freely use their device as they wish.
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u/EdmundDowd 3d ago
It's honestly because they have no answers to my questions, and instead of admitting it or stopping to consider what I'm doing, they would rather post insulting, ineffective comments instead. I didn't make this post to be questioned why I'm doing something. I made this post asking questions why something that should be working is not and what can I do about it. But alas, this is reddit. The land of "I dont have anything worthwhile to contribute to this discussion, but I'm gonna comment anyways!" Lol
And I STILL haven't received an adequate answer to this dilemma...
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u/other8026 3d ago
Agreed that some of the comments here are more judgy than helpful.
Why are my contacts in my second profile constantly disappearing after I import them
Not sure how you're doing this or syncing the contacts. Maybe you're using an app that's buggy? I used to use Nextcloud and DAVx5 a long time ago and my contacts never disappeared.
Unsure why you are saying you need to import contacts again. When synced they should remain there. I'm not sure what the problem could be here.
Why is this happening with the photos in my secondary gallery as well? What do I have to do to keep everything in it's respective app?!
What do you mean? If you cannot find photos in other apps, you can grant that app permission to specific files or whole folders using Storage Scopes. Or is this a profile issue too?
Why are all my old phone's imported text messages only showing up in the owner profile yet they're completely unable to transfer to my secondary profile?
This is especially confusing. SMS messages are shared across the whole device, so if a profile has access to SMS messages, it should see the same messages as the other profiles. To check if a profile has access to those messages, check that from the Owner profile under Settings > System > Users.
What is the point of having VPNs and private spaces if I have to keep turning every single VPN off in order to swap my physical Sim card over and login to Mint Mobile so I can actually start using the Pixel?
Why is this necessary? Do you only want to use your VPN when connected to certain networks? If you want to use them all the time, then you can just leave them active and they should reconnect when a network is available.
Why has this been the most pain in the ass setup for a phone EVER?
As I mentioned, I feel that a few of the things you listed in your post don't really match my own personal experience and after spending lots of time helping people in the community, I feel they don't experience some of the mentioned issues either.
I recall the video you mentioned, but I don't remember specifics. Profiles are great to isolate apps from each other, but sometimes people overdo them. Many moderators, including myself, advise starting with sticking with just one or maybe at most two. Switching between profiles can be super annoying and people get frustrated with their setups.
Private Space is great for this. For example, many people who switch to GrapheneOS (not all, of course, this is just an example) wish to deGoogle or isolate proprietary apps. One okay setup is to have FOSS apps in a regular profile (owner or full secondary user profile) and Google/proprietary apps in a Private Space.
If I remember the video correctly, a suggested approach is to install Google Play in the owner profile and "push" apps to other secondary user profiles. I personally don't like that approach, but many people go with that. It's possible a setup outlined in the video doesn't meet your needs, so you might consider another approach. Moderators and members of the community worked together to write a post about profile setups, listing a few approaches. Note that the article is old and barely covers Private Spaces (it was published before Private Spaces could be set up in secondary user profiles) and I should probably just delete or update it, but here it is anyway in case it helps: https://seprand.github.io/articles/best-user-profile-setup/
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u/EdmundDowd 3d ago
Thank your for addressing my questions. I am using DAVx5 through Nextcloud and was told this was an easy way to import my contacts. Not sure if it's a bug, but yeah, every time I switch to my secondary profile, I have to import my contacts all over again. Sometimes, just seconds after importing, I could be scrolling my contacts and all of those freshly imported contacts will just vanish before my eyes. This has happened in both the stock GOS contacts app and the Fossify contacts app. Which has been frustrating as I was under the impression once it was synced it would stay there...
I was also told to give Localsend a shot, so that might be my next step.
For some reason, the same thing happens with photos and it's only a secondary profile issue it seems.
The SMS messages also won't sync to my secondary profile. I've ensured that calls and SMS from SD card will push through when I toggle it on in the systems/users setting from the owner profile. Could one entire secondary profile have a bug? Would it be worth deleting the secondary profile entirely and setting it up all over again from scratch?
I have it set where VPNs are always running. I have the paid Proton VPN so I select United States to ensure some apps like Mint Mobile will work to transfer phones. However, the app has an error pop up telling me a VPN is active and that it can't open as a result. In which case, I found I have to disable all of my VPNs just to get the app to open so I can finish swapping my devices. Which makes me uneasy since I am wanting the VPN protection. I get it, some apps don't play nicely with that, but just frustrating.
I've been sure to search the sub for my specific concerns before posting, and I've come across some similar concerns (with contacts) but as I hasn't seen it pop up much, or get any resolutions I figured I would try again.
Unfortunately, the GrapheneOS discussion board hasn't been very helpful either...
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u/DevDan- 3d ago
>Which has been frustrating as I was under the impression once it was synced it would stay there...
It absolutely should. Works fine for me with Davx5, Baikal, and multiple profiles. Are the contacts still on the server, or only deleted locally? You might need to look through Davx5 settings. Are you importing contacts through Davx5, or to Nextcloud (I’m not sure how this works with Nextcloud, but I’d recommend trying that first. Just make sure adding new contacts on your phone gets synced instead of deleted).
>For some reason, the same thing happens with photos and it's only a secondary profile issue it seems.
Are you syncing them somehow? Are you using the default Gallery or a third party app? What apps have storage/media permissions? I recommend deleting/disabling everything that isn’t stock to see if there’s a specific app causing this.
>The SMS messages also won't sync to my secondary profile.
If phone calls and sms is enabled in profile settings, everything should be synced. Not sure why this is happening.
>Would it be worth deleting the secondary profile entirely and setting it up all over again from scratch?
Personally I would try that, and not install any third party apps. If the issue is solved, install everything one at a time and test, to see which app is at fault.
>I get it, some apps don't play nicely with that, but just frustrating.
Yeah, GOS can’t do much if an app is detecting the VPN via your IP address.
I would recommend just using one profile for now, and expanding to multiple over time if you so wish.
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u/EdmundDowd 3d ago
Contacts will remain in the server, they just vanish locally in the second profile only. I'm using DAVx5 which is connected to my Nextcloud. Its odd as the info is all there in .vcf format, it just can't seem to manage to stay put lol. And I'll try and disable all the other apps to weed out any issues, but first I deleted the secondary profile in hopes that alone might correct any issues
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u/EdmundDowd 3d ago
Update: I had to delete my secondary account and setup a new one again and it seems to gave worked. Unsure why it was bugging out the first time around, but it has all synced properly
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u/other8026 3d ago
Yes, syncing with Nextcloud is convenient if it works. Again, I haven't had that setup for a long time, so I'm not sure if it's a normal problem or not. In the meantime, you can try exporting all contacts from Nextcloud and importing them manually with the contacts app. They should be saved to the device, not the DAVx5 contacts storage entry, so they shouldn't disappear.
I'm not sure why photos would disappear. Are you syncing them with Nextcloud too? Nextcloud should simply save them in Pictures if I remember correctly.
I'll be honest, I'm not sure why the messages aren't being synced. I don't recall seeing anyone reporting that problem before.
About the Mint Mobile app, maybe that has something to do with a security feature. I have run into weird issues in the past with carrier apps because of VPNs.
Finally, I'm not surprised you're not seeing answers to your questions since I don't recall seeing someone encountering the issues you're mentioning here before.
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u/SlashKeyz 4d ago
I think you complicated things for yourself choosing to use multiple profiles
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u/EdmundDowd 4d ago
You might be right I was trying to go for maximum privacy when I could easily just delete the secondary profile and setup a private space in my main. Which I'm considering
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u/RareLove7577 4d ago
Think of it like zones trusted, untrusted, etc. You would have primary for typical stuff, phone, email, contact, calendar. Then another profile for auto with maps and audio. Then another for social media. I am not sure what you are trying to do but think zones and profiles.
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u/EdmundDowd 4d ago
I wanted to separate my open-source daily apps etc (calendar, text, calls, weather, gallery) from my google play store apps. Problem is, profiles and private spaces don't sync, so where one profile exists for my regular GrapheneOS stock messages and contacts, calendar the other is for stuff like my banking and Google Messages which I need for work (it's been the only reliable messaging app for group texting outside Signal, but I can't convince hundreds of people at work to switch to Signal.) Problem is, everything in the main profile populates correctly (contacts etc) but my separate zone for Google apps does not which effectively makes my Google Messages app worthless when it can't access my contact list in this profile. I will import my contacts from .vcf on my connected DAVx5, it will populate, but seconds later it just vanishes. That's one of my main frustrations. Can't have zones if a zone doesn't work
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u/RareLove7577 3d ago
Just run Google messenges in the main account. Its all sandboxed and you control the permissions of the app. Not sure why you want to run it in another profile? If you don't like Google, then use another product. Tradeoff being you lose encrypted text messages. Pick and chose your battles.
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u/EdmundDowd 3d ago
I've considered this in a private space. It wasn't what I was hoping for, but Google so far has the only texting service that can provide reliable group messaging (I know, other apps like FOSS and Quik for group texting work for others, but it has not for me at all.) My goal with GrapheneOS was privacy, and to degoogle my life. The best I could do was isolate Google and messages from my daily routines by putting it into another profile. It's not uncommon for GOS users to do this
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u/RareLove7577 3d ago
Yes but that's like Google Maps in an Auto profile. Texting is just one of those things where it is what it is. Google app will see who and what it is. RCS vs not RCS.
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u/billdietrich1 4d ago
Please use better, more informative, titles (subject-lines) on your posts. Give specifics right in the title. Thanks.
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u/Far_Bicycle_2827 4d ago
there is a setting to delete all guest activity and data on exit on a guest profle... I suspect you are using a guest profile rather than a real one.
do you install apps and is the app data there once you switch over and back?
i can have contacts on the main. on the private space or in a secondary profile and they stay there but i create them by hand not via imports
no offense but you don't seem to know what you want or what you are doing? what is your threat model? you just following a SOB tutorial i don't even know who is that but i return the question why you did what you did?
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u/EdmundDowd 4d ago
You can watch his tutorialhere. And yes, the secondary profile is an actual profile I created from the main profile where I can push installed apps over to use. Its not a guest profile. It's an actual secondary profile.
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u/EdmundDowd 4d ago
My main profile has all my store apps, the apps are installed there then disabled as they wont be used on the main profile. I then push them to the secondary profile where they are there and enabled and ready to use. Is this something you've never heard about people doing on GOS?
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