In the Android world, encountering errors and bugs in applications or the system is not uncommon. Both users and developers often encounter unexpected messages, crashes, or abnormal behavior that require detailed information about what's happening inside the device to resolve.
Accessing and understanding bug reports in Android can seem like a complex task if you are inexperienced., but it's a fundamental tool for detecting the source of problems and improving the performance of apps and the Android system itself. Here, we explain in detail how these reports work, what information they contain, and how you can generate and use them, whether you're a user or a developer.
What are error and crash logs in Android?
Bug reports in Android are comprehensive collections of technical information about the state of the system and applications at the time a failure or problem occurs. They include internal logs, stack traces, memory dumps, application versions, hardware status, and a host of other information. It's like taking an X-ray of a device to see exactly what's going on "inside" when something goes wrong.
These reports are not only useful for technicians or developers: It's becoming more common for technical support teams for apps and services, such as Avast or Google Play, to request a Bug Report when a user reports a bug that's difficult to reproduce or investigate with just screenshots or simple descriptions.
What data does an Android bug report include?
An Android crash report is usually generated in ZIP format. and can easily weigh tens or even hundreds of megabytes, as it incorporates:
- System logs (logcat): Details all events that occur in the device's applications and services, ordered chronologically and with different levels of importance.
- Stack traces: They capture the exact execution flow of the code where a failure or exception occurred.
- Memory dumps and usage statistics: They help identify problems due to lack of resources or memory leaks.
- Information about active apps and services, versions, and statuses: Very useful for checking which exact version of each software was running at the time of the error.
- History of system activities and events: This includes starting and stopping apps, processes, event broadcasts and receivers, screen changes, battery activity, and wake locks.
- hardware data: Sensor status, CPU usage, device model details, and Android version.
- Process logs, services, RAM usage, and ANR (Application Not Responding) errors.
The main file inside the ZIP is a text file (.txt) that compiles all of the above, sometimes accompanied by metadata, screenshots, and application-specific dumps. Reading and analyzing these files can be tricky if you're inexperienced, but for developers, it's pure gold when it comes to debugging and fixing hard-to-find errors.
How to generate a crash report on Android?
There are several methods to generate a Bug Report in Android, but all of them require that you first activate Developer Options from your device. This is done by going to Settings, and usually:
- You'll About of the phone o Software Information.
- You press seven times in a row on the 'Build Number' until the system confirms that Developer Options are enabled.
Once activated, you can choose from several methods to create the report:
From the device (Easy method)
This method is the easiest for most users, as everything is done from the phone or tablet itself.
- Accede to Settings> Developer options.
- Look for the option Take error report o Submit bug report and play it.
- Choose the report type (usually 'full' or 'interactive'). In interactive versions, you can also add screenshots and comments.
- Wait for the report to finish generating (this may take from seconds to several minutes, depending on the device).
- When it's finished, the system will notify you with a notification, and you can share it directly via email, Drive, or other apps.
Remember that this file may include personal or sensitive information, so share it only with trusted services or developers.
Using Android Debug Bridge (ADB)
This method is more advanced and designed for developers or users with computer skills.
- Download and install the Android SDK Platform-Tools (includes adb).
- On the device, also activate the USB debugging within the Developer Options.
- Connect your mobile phone or tablet to your PC via USB.
- Open a console or terminal on your computer and run:
adb devices(to check that the device is detected)adb bugreport <ruta_de_destino>(for example,adb bugreport C:\BugReports\)
From the Android emulator
When testing on the emulator, You can generate a bug report by opening Extended Controls., and using the function Bug ReportSelect "File a bug," add additional information if desired, and save the generated report for later analysis.
How to interpret or consult crash logs?
Bug reports on Android are not intended to be read directly by the average user, but there are certain parts that are more accessible:
- If you open the ZIP and enter the file bugreport-XXXX.txt You will see different sections, such as system logs, event logs, memory dumps, active processes, open applications, package listing, etc.
- Using tools like logcat or advanced text editors you can search for keywords like “crash”, “exception”, “ANR”, or the package name of the problematic app.
- To identify causes of ANR (Application Not Responding) errors, look for “am_anr” entries in the event log, or “ANR in” entries in the system logcat.
- If you're experiencing memory issues or process crashes, check the sections related to "am_low_memory" or unusual RAM and CPU usage.
These reports help developers reproduce and fix bugs by providing accurate context into the system's environment and execution flow.
Automatic error collection systems: Crashlytics, Android Vitals, and more
In addition to manual reporting, there are built-in automated systems such as Firebase Crashlytics and Android Vitals (in the Google Play Console).
- Crashlytics Automatically collects bugs and performance issues in real time, grouping errors by severity, device, version, etc. It allows developers to see exactly where a bug occurs in their code and what its impact is on users.
- Android Vitals, accessible from the Play Console, centralizes crash and ANR data received from the devices of users who have authorized the sending of statistics, helping to identify patterns and prioritize which bugs to fix first.
Both Crashlytics and Android Vitals allow you to view stack traces, detect error frequency, and gain context information about your device, versions, memory, and more.
Other tools and tips for managing bug reports
- Specialized SDKs like Datadog, which allows you to integrate custom crash reporting, event tracking, trend analysis, and error collection in both Java/Kotlin and native code (C/C++ via NDK).
- Advanced settings: You can customize what data is collected, how it is stored, and how it is sent to comply with privacy policies and adjust the amount of data collected.
- Some SDKs allow you to associate ANR errors even before the user view is present using additional methods in the configuration.
As a first step to ensuring security and privacy, it's important to review the included data before submitting a Bug Report, as many contain sensitive information.