How to pin screens in android 5.0 for more security and privacy

Matt Klein has nearly two decades of technical writing experience. He’s covered Windows, Android, macOS, Microsoft Office, and everything in between. He’s even written a book, The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8. Read more.

Android 5.0 Lollipop is still trickling to Android users but we’ve already found a stream of great new features we want to talk about. Pinning a screen is nifty little security feature that lets you put your device into a glorified kiosk mode so the user can only use one app.

If you’ve ever used a tablet instead of a printed menu at a restaurant, you know how this works. You can only use the menu app and can’t leave the screen or open anything else. The nice thing about screen pinning is that you can pin anything so if you wanted to, for example, hand your phone off to your child so they can watch a cartoon on Netflix, they wouldn’t be able to access anything else.

You can turn on screen pinning in Lollipop’s security settings. To get there, swipe from the top to open the notifications and then tap on grey bar with the date and time. You’ll now be able to tap the “Settings” gear icon between the battery and user icons.

In the settings, tap on the “Security” label to open the security settings and then scroll down to the Advanced heading and tap “screen pinning.”

On the screen pinning screen, you want to tap the slider in the upper-right corner to enable screen pinning. Take some time to read up on how screen pinning works, if you’d like.

The idea now is to open the app (screen) you want to pin, and then tap the Overview button (the square navigation button along the bottom edge. With overview open, drag the current app up until you see the green pin icon in the lower-right corner. We’ve circled it in red for you in the following screenshot.

When you tap that icon, a dialog will pop up asking you if you want to use screen pinning. In order to unpin your screen, hold the “Back” and “Overview” buttons at the same time.

Note, if you have a screen lock, such as a PIN or pattern, then you can check the box next to “ask for [UNLOCK] before unpinning” and when you want to unpin the screen, you will need to first unlock the device to use it again.

You should most definitely always keep your device protected with a lock, and if you’re going to hand your phone or tablet off to your kids or a friend, then it’s a great idea to pin a screen protect it from disabling with your lock.

If you have Lollipop installed on your device, have you tried screen pinning yet, and did you find it useful? We’re interested to know what you think of the new Android, so please feel free to let us know in the discussion forum.

In the settings, tap on the “Security” label to open the security settings and then scroll down to the Advanced heading and tap “screen pinning.”

On the screen pinning screen, you want to tap the slider in the upper-right corner to enable screen pinning. Take some time to read up on how screen pinning works, if you’d like.

When you tap that icon, a dialog will pop up asking you if you want to use screen pinning. In order to unpin your screen, hold the “Back” and “Overview” buttons at the same time.

This StackOverflow question explores how to enable a device owner app, and thus kiosk mode, in the Android L developer preview. As the method requires a userdebug build of Android, rooting the device, and copying an XML file into the root filesystem, it doesn’t seem suitable for mass deployment of a single function Android device inside a company.

How are device owner apps going to be installed on production Android L devices?

2 Answers 2

(Edit: Updated after some more testing)

This feature seems to be called Screen pinning now, and the App does not have to be the device owner. If the device owner is not set the user will be prompted to accept. But there are issues with this for kiosk use, mentioned below.

There are two ways to activate screen pinning:

Manually: Users can enable screen pinning in Settings > Security > Screen Pinning, and select the tasks they want to pin by touching the green pin icon in the recents screen. Programmatically: To activate screen pinning programmatically, call startLockTask() from your app. If the requesting app is not a device owner, the user is prompted for confirmation. A device owner app can call the setLockTaskPackages() method to enable apps to be pinnable without the user confirmation step.

If you activate screen pinning programatically (non device owner App) or on the device using the pin in the recents you get the following behaviour:

A dialog appears asking the user if they want to enable screen pinning and if they want to require a password to exit. If they press yes the status bar and notifications disappear, back, home and recents buttons do NOT disappear. Tapping on home or recents makes a toast appear inform the user how to exit screen pinning.

The user can then hold down back and recents to exit screen pinning. If the user selected to require a password, they will get kicked straight to the lock screen. This behaviour means it is not suitable for a kiosk imo. As it is too easy for kiosk users to end up looking at the lock screen.

To get a proper kiosk mode we need to set the device owner. Google’s documentation says you need to do this with NFC:

To deploy and activate a device owner, you must perform an NFC data transfer from a programming app to the device while the device is in its unprovisioned state.

Using NFC to do this seems a bit complex (what if a device does not have NFC?). I have not investigated this yet so if anyone can provide info how you go about setting the device owner by NFC? Which now becomes the main point of your question. (i.e. setting the device owner on a non rooted device)

But to confirm the behaviour is as expected if you root a device you can set the device owner as per Google’s previous instructions (adding a device_owner.xml) as I mentioned here

Now you can properly lock the App, no dialog appears for the user to accept, when enabled the recents and home button disappear and the user cannot leave the App unless your App unlocks itself. A proper kiosk mode. I have tested this on a Nexus 7 2013 with the latest Lollipop build.

You can lock your device to a single app with a new feature in Lollipop called Screen Pinning.

Contributing Writer, ZDNet

Jason Cipriani is based out of beautiful Colorado and has been covering mobile technology news and reviewing the latest gadgets for the last six years. His work can also be found on sister site CNET in the How To section, as well as across several more online publications.

The latest version of Android offers a new feature Google calls “Screen Pinning.” When enabled, you can lock down your device so the person using it only has access to one app. Undoubtedly a convenient feature for those who often offer a device to a child for a Netflix session or a friend to check his or her e-mail.

The steps required to enable Screen Pinning on Android 5.0 Lollipop. Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET

Screen pinning isn’t enabled by default on Android 5.0 Lollipop. To enable the feature you’ll need to follow these steps:

Launch the Settings app on your Android device.
Scroll down until you find the Security option. Tap on it.
At the bottom of the Security page tap on Screen pinning.
Slide the switch to the On position.

Now that screen pinning is enabled, you’re able to pin any app to your screen on a whim. The actual process of pinning an app takes two taps and is accessible at anytime. You can only pin the last app you accessed, so before following the steps below, launch the app you’re going to pin.

A pinned app on Android 5.0 Lollipop. Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET

To pin an app, tap on the overview button (it’s the square button along the bottom of your screen).
Drag the title bar for the app you’re going to pin up, until it’s in the middle of the screen.
In the bottom-right corner of the app overview will be a blue pin button. Tap on it.
Each time you pin an app, you’ll be asked to confirm the action. You’ll also have to decide if you want to require a security code to leave the pinned app.
Tap on Start to pin the app.

Once the app is pinned, the user can navigate anywhere within the app, but he or she can’t leave it. So if you pin Chrome, the user will be able to browse the Internet, but that’s it.

Exiting a pinned app requires you to touch and hold the back and overview buttons at the same time. After a couple of seconds, your device will switch to the overview screen.

Android 5.0 offers user accounts , which is arguably better suited for sharing a device with your kids, but in instances where you want to quickly hand over a device with limited access Screen Pinning is super convenient.

For more Lollipop tips, please see CNET How To’s guide to Android 5.0 Lollipop.

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The lock screen in Android 5.0 Lollipop is a strange beast. Google has done away with the lock screen widgets, which never really caught on, and replaced them with notifications.

At the same time, there are multiple new ways of securing the lock screen and keeping your personal data private. The options to do all this are scattered throughout the settings, because Google apparently likes to keep us on our toes. Here’s how to get it all set up.

Tune your notifications

This first step will be familiar to long-time Android users. Go into the main system settings and find the Security menu. From there, change the screen lock type to something other than swipe—PIN, pattern, password, or whatever you want. Remember that if your device is encrypted you’ll need to enter this code when starting up.

Notifications show up on the lock screen just like they would in the notification shade.

Where things take an unexpected turn is after setting the code, you will be asked what sort of notifications you want available on the lock screen. You can choose to have them all shown, only non-sensitive content, and none. Don’t worry—this is not an irrevocable choice. You can go into the Sound and Notification menu at any time to change this global setting.

So what does “sensitive content” mean, anyway? You can pick any app to set its notifications as sensitive, which will prevent any of its notification text from appearing on the lock screen. There are a few ways to reach the right menu. The easiest way to manage multiple apps is to go into Sound and Notifications and scroll to the bottom. This is where you’ll find the option to change the global notification security mentioned above, but we’re looking for the App Notifications line.

Set apps as sensitive to keep private info off the lock screen.

The App Notifications list shows all your installed apps. Simply select the ones you want to set as sensitive, set the Sensitive switch to the on position, and your secrets will be safe. You’ll still get notifications, but they’ll just say, for example, that you have 2 new emails, rather than listing the subject lines. You can also access an app’s notification settings by long-pressing on one of its notifications and tapping the info button that appears. This gets you to the same menu in a single tap.

Smarter Smart Lock

Maybe you noticed the lack of face unlock in the security options. That’s because Google has completely revamped that feature as part of the new Smart Lock system. There are currently three features in Smart Lock—trusted devices, trusted face, and trusted places. That last one is still rolling out via a Google Play Services update, though. All these options are used to bypass your pin, pattern, or password, temporarily defaulting back to the simple swipe-up unlock gesture.

You don’t have to put in the code every time.

Trusted devices lets you specify a Bluetooth device or NFC tag that will keep the phone unlocked when the phone is connected to it. Trusted face takes the place of face unlock, but the setup process is much the same. You position the viewfinder so it can see your face and wait a moment. When you wake the phone, it can look for your face in the background while you check out the notifications on the lock screen. If it spots you, the lock screen switches on the fly to a simple swipe. You’ll see the little padlock icon at the bottom change to show that it’s unlocked. It’s very clever.

The last option, trusted places, has toggles for your home and work addresses (if you’ve set them in Google Maps) but you can also add a manual location. If you’re in that area, the phone will remain unlocked. Should the phone leave that geofence, the secure lock screen reasserts itself. This and the other Smart Lock options can be temporarily disabled by pressing the lock icon at the bottom of the lock screen. That will force a secure unlock the next time the phone is used.

Android will remind you about Smart Lock the first time you use it to bypass the lock screen.

Google has vastly expanded your options in Android 5.0, and it can be a little intimidating, Just take a few minutes and set everything up so you can properly enjoy the peace of mind it brings. With the right settings, you can have a more secure phone and make it faster and easier to use.

Android’s newest update is coming soon, with devices running 5.0 Lollipop beginning to ship November 3. While the visual update might be the one that most users pay the most attention to, Android 5.0 also has a number of under-the-hood changes, including some major updates to the overall security of the platform. Google has put a lot of effort into addressing the biggest threats to Android user security, which still overwhelmingly represent lost or stolen devices, and today the company is detailing a few of these efforts.

Lollipop adds some new lock methods that make it easier to keep your device secure, which is a huge boon to the overall integrity of the platform. The biggest roadblock to mobile device security is actually user apathy, which sees people skipping basic security practices like implementing a lock screen pin code because it’s inconvenient when you’re checking your device every few minutes. Lollipop offers Smart Lock to help address this, which uses paired devices to let you tell your device it’s okay to open up without requiring a password or other means of authentication.

The device-based Smart Lock has a similar motivation, and effect, to Apple’s Touch ID: Both serve to get around user reluctance to set up on-device security measures. Using Touch ID is easier than constantly typing in a password, and using Smart Lock offers the same kind of convenience. You can set it up using any NFC or Bluetooth-enabled device that has been paired with your Android 5.0 smartphone or tablet – provided they’ve actually paired, which isn’t always true of short-range wireless communication methods. The pairing requirement adds a layer of security, meaning your smartphone won’t unlock if you happen to be near an NFC terminal you’ve used for an in-store payment at some time in the past, for instance.

Face unlock is also redesigned here, and has been rebuilt to analyze a user’s image continually, as more of a background security process than a device unlocking mechanism.

“Rather than pretending to take a picture, and analyze it, it’s analyzing a user’s face on an ongoing basis,” explained Android security engineering lead Adrian Ludwig in a briefing call. “If a user’s opted in and is using this method, at the moment it detects that a user isn’t the one that it’s expecting, it locks. That’s very different from the previous model.”

Used with something like an Android Wear smartwatch, this means that your phone will be ready to use without a lock code whenever it’s on your person. Used with something like a smart TV, it means that you’ll be safe to bypass security measures only when you’re at home, where your device is unlikely to be pickpocketed or left behind. It’s a feature that offers a lot of initial convenience, and that also has tremendous potential for increased sophistication once Google begins iterating and tying it to other Lollipop features like Guest mode and the ability to offer multiple user accounts, and segregated work data buckets.

Security is also more robust by default, thanks to automatic whole-phone encryption for newly activated devices. In Lollipop, when you power on a new smartphone or tablet, it encrypts all data automatically, and creates a unique key that remains on the device to decrypt the data. Android introduced its encryption features three years ago, but now it’s on by default on new devices, though anyone upgrading on an older device will still have to go into settings to enable it, should they want that additional level of protection.

“The question we’re posing is not ‘does the feature exist,’” Ludwig said. “The question is ‘how do we make sure that [the feature] is available and as easy to use as possible.” Ludwig says that a big barrier to users employing encryption previously has been that a user enabling it on an existing device could take hour depending on how much data was on their phone, whereas now that it’s enabled by default at the beginning of device setup, it takes no time at all.

The encryption key is also wrapped in your device unlock password, and with all Nexus devices, and other new Android hardware that supports it, a secure element located in the device hardware itself that isn’t accessible to the rest of the system.

Finally, Google is pointing to its use of Security Enhanced Linux (SELinux) to enable even further clarity around the isolation of individual apps. This really just means that users have to worry less about apps containing vulnerabilities that allow them to read info from other apps – basically it offers better visibility about how sandboxing works on the platform.

“Our goal with the security model of Android is that you should never have to care, honestly,” Ludwig explained. “I don’t think it’s realistic that the average person should think about security. That’s sort of the confidence level that we’re hoping for in Android, and SELinux gets us that much closer to it, where you don’t have to worry about security, you don’t have to spend time thinking about it.”

Ludwig says that their own research shows that actual risk to users from malware is “extraordinarily low,” with only less than 1 in 1000 Android users ever affected by a malicious local software attack. Device theft and loss is what needs to be addressed as the top immediate threat, and that’s what many of these features focus on. Google is also focusing now more on network level compromises, but in the near-term Lollipop should do a lot to help reassure IT departments worried about absent-minded employees losing track of devices.

The type of lock that’s acceptable may be predetermined by your system administrator.

Where I can define what’s acceptable? I can regenerate the certificate if needed.

So I can use slide lockscreen again.

(I’m using CM9 RC1, Android 4.0.4)

6 Answers 6

The problem with disabling the lockscreen security using the toggle/profile is that the lockscreen widgets don’t appear either so you can’t slide to unlock. Also, when you reboot your phone the buttons don’t work until you retoggle the setting again.

Another way is to install the certificate as usual then backup the /data/misc/keychain and keystore directories using something that preserves the ACLs such as Root Explorer to a location that supports ACLs. I suggest copying them to /tmp. Then clear the credentials from Settings and enable Slide To Unlock. Then copy back the folders from /tmp. The CA will be installed.

I’ve described how to do exacly this on my page, “Installing CAcert certificates on Android as ‘system’ credentials without lockscreen – instructions” at

Basically, the commands are:

To get the correct filename, then convert the certificate:

Copy them to /system/etc/security/cacerts/ and chmod the new .0 files to ‘644’. Reboot and verify. On your android device select ‘Clear cerficates’ and you are able to remove the pin (by entering the pin and changing your lockscreen to ‘none’ or ‘wipe’

Here I used the CAcert root certificate, but you probably want the class3.crt certificate as well, or use your own certificates.

I’ve discovered a solution that works without additional software or manual file copying:

Set your lock screen to “pattern”. Enter a pattern and an unlock PIN. Remember the unlock PIN.
Install your user certificate.
Turn the screen off and on.
Enter the pattern wrongly a few times, until the “Forgot pattern?” option appears.
Click “Forgot pattern?”, scroll down, enter the unlock PIN and confirm with “OK”.
Close the “Screen unlock settings” window with the back button without selecting an option.

The system is now set to “Swipe unlock”, but the user certificate is still usable (tested with the web browser and a custom app using DefaultHttpClient).

Tested on an Android 4.1.2 on a Galaxy Tab 2 10.1.

Just wanted to add an answer that’s a variant of guttermonk’s for one particular use case: installing a certificate on a Bluestacks instance. At this writing the setting app for Bluestacks has been modified so that setting a pin or password is impossible, and so adding a user certificate is impossible also. But we can get a root certificate into the system with guttermonk’s approach plus some other steps. I was able to install a certificate without a pin or password and without ever installing it in the user’s certificate store.

Root privileges on the Bluestacks instance
openssl (on the host, e.g. as provided with Git Bash)
A terminal app in Bluestacks (e.g. Termux)

In my case, I had downloaded the cert file within Bluestacks and didn’t have openssl available there. We can copy the file to the directory shared with Windows:

cp /sdcard/Download/mycert.cer /sdcard/windows/BstSharedFolder

In Windows we can use the openssl to get the hash of the certificate (I assume that’s what this is).

Back in Android, we can make the system partition writable, copy the certificate to the system certificates directory, and fix up its permissions and ownership. Mount the system partition read only afterward, for safety.

You can make use of CyanogenMod’s profiles.
(For other readers: this needs the custom CyanogenMod Rom version 9+)

Just create or modify an existing profile and switch off “screen lock” there.

It’s: System Settings->Profiles->Default->Lock screen mode->Disabled

Integrate your certificate into the standard Android keystore file

See CAcert’s excellent howto here

I’m not sure however if you can do this with a self-signed cert (you might have to switch to a self-made CA maybe (use tinyca for a nice gui-tool on *nix)).

I found a way to solve the problem, but it requires root and may only work with root, self-signed, or intermediate CAs.

If you have a certificate that is not trusted by Android, when you add it, it goes in the personal cert store. When you add a cert in this personal cert store, the system requires a higher security level to unlock the device. But if you manage to add your cert to the system store then you don’t have this requirement. Obviously, root is required to add a certificate to the system store, but it is quiet easy.

Here is how to do it :

1 – Add your cert normally. For example, my cert was called some.crt . It will be stored in your personal store and android will ask you a pin/password. Proceed.

2 – With a file manager with root capabilities, browse files in /data/misc/keychain/cacerts-added or /data/misc/keystore . You should see a file here called 1000_USRCERT_some it’s the certificate you have added in step 1.

3 – Move this file to system/etc/security/cacerts (you will need to mount the system partition r/w)

4 – Reboot the phone

5 – You are now able to clear the pin/password you have set to unlock the device.

Worked for me with a self-signed cert on Android 4.4.2. Hope it helps!

It seems like some days, our devices rule our lives and the distractions never end. Fortunately, you can manage interruptions with Android Lollipop so you don’t have to turn off your phone or tablet for it to leave you alone.

The thought of unplugging is often just that, a thought. We’d like to simply turn off our smartphone and ignore it, but for many, that’s not realistic. Like it or not, the smartphone is often a central communications hub so banishing it to a desk drawer for days at a time, isn’t happening.

With the release of Android 5.0 Lollipop, Google has added functionality that lets you mute a lot of the distractions that force their way into your life, letting you take extended breaks where nothing gets through, or only a few select apps and contacts, so-called priority interruptions, can notify you.

Turning Down (or Off) Interruptions

The new feature, aptly named Interruptions, can be found by opening the settings and tapping “Sound & notification.” Here, you will find Sound controls for media, alarms, and notifications; you want to tap “Interruptions” underneath them.

Right off, you can decide whether notifications always interrupt you, only interrupt you when they’re set up as priority interruption, or you can turn them off completely for a duration.

If you turn them off completely, you can do so in eight time increments (from fifteen minutes to eight hours), or indefinitely, which means that your device will not interrupt you until you turn interruptions back on (you might not get phone calls so don’t forget you’ve turned them off).

Priority interruptions break down into events and reminders, and messages. If you enable messages, you can prioritize who can directly contact you by contacts, starred contacts, and anyone in general.

Priority notifications also let you set your “downtime” so you can pick days (or nights).

And, specify your start and end times.

You may also set individual app notifications to priority interruptions. If you scroll to the Notification area in the Sound and Notification settings, you can access individual app notifications.

All the apps and their notifications can be subdued from here.

For example, here’s the Gmail app’s notifications settings.

We turn on “Priority” so it can not only interrupt us but Gmail notifications will also appear above others. This is useful, because when we get a lot of varying notifications from other apps (not during quiet time), Gmail messages will always be at or near the top. There’s a lot more to app notifications in Lollipop, so if you want to learn more about them, we invite you to check out this article.

Finally, when downtime is enabled, a star will appear in the top-right corner of the status bar.

A circle with a line running through it means all your notifications are blocked.

It’s nice to see that Google is adding so many great features that are actually aimed at making Android users’ lives truly easier, if not more serene. It’s further proof that Android is a mature, mobile operating system with new features that, rather than feeling bloated and unnecessary, actually have a lot to offer the average, daily user.

We’ve shown that Smart Locks save you time from always having to unlock your device in trusted places, and that you can pin screens for enhanced kiosk-like security. Now, being able to quiet interruptions lets you tune out all the background noise and concentrate on important stuff, or simply take a nap.

Still, we’d like to hear what you think. As Lollipop makes its way on to more and more devices, many of you are trying it for the first time. As such, you probably have all kinds of questions and comments, so we urge you to let us know what you think in our discussion forum.

Lori Kaufman is a technology expert with 25 years of experience. She’s been a senior technical writer, worked as a programmer, and has even run her own multi-location business. Read more.

You probably have some settings that you access on a regular basis. Instead of going into the Settings app on the status bar every time, you can create shortcut widgets to specific locations in the Settings app for one-click access.

To do this, touch the “All Apps” icon in the dock either at the bottom of the screen (in Portrait mode) or on the right side of the screen (in Landscape mode).

When the “Apps” screen displays, touch the “Widgets” tab at the top of the screen.

Swipe to the left to scroll through the various available widgets until you get to the “Settings shortcut.” Hold your finger down on the widget…

…and drag it to the “Home” screen. The “Widgets” screen closes and the widget can be placed on any one of your “Home” screens. Once you decide on a location for the widget, lift your finger from the screen.

The following list displays containing the different parts of the “Settings” app. Select the part you want to open using this shortcut by touching it.

The widget displays on your “Home” screen with the name of the part of the “Settings” app you chose to apply to the widget.

Touching the newly created widget directly opens the selected part of the “Settings” app.

You can create as many “Settings” widgets as will fit on your “Home” screens to provide quick and easy access to commonly used settings.

I can’t stress enough how important it is to use a security lock screen on your mobile devices. If you ever misplace your phone or tablet, no one will be able to get into the device. However, constantly entering a code to unlock your device is a royal pain in the you know what.

Finally, Finally, Finally Google has implemented Trusted Devices in Android. With Android Lollipop and a new feature called Smart Lock, you will be able to set any Bluetooth device, NFC tag, or even your face as a way to automatically unlock your device so you won’t have to constantly enter your PIN code or swipe a pattern over 100 times per day.

In this guide, I will show you how to use Smart Lock to bypass the security lock screen when your phone or tablet is safe and in your possession. If you prefer to watch instead of reading, I included a video at the bottom of this post. Note: If you don’t have Android Lollipop, you can still get the same features, and then some, using Delayed Lock. Check out that guide here.

Bluetooth devices are probably the best to setup because you know your phone is safe when it’s connected to them. For example, if you own an Android Wear smartwatch (or any other Bluetooth smartwatch that works with your phone), it’s always on your wrist. If it’s set as a trusted device, you won’t have to unlock your phone as long as it’s connected. However, if you leave your phone in a restaurant and walk away, your phone will lose the connection with your smartwatch and your security lock screen will go back into effect. So as you go about your normal day, you will probably never have to enter your security code. But you can rest easily knowing that if your phone is stolen or you leave it somewhere, nobody will be able to get into it. Not everyone has a smartwatch so that’s why you can also set your car’s Bluetooth hands free / stereo system or even another Bluetooth headset.

You also have the option to temporarily lock you phone even when it’s connected to one of your trusted Bluetooth devices by tapping the padlock icon on the lock screen. Your device will remain locked until you enter your code.

NFC tags is other option that is probably not going to be all that helpful for most of you. First, you have to own an NFC tag, and second, it only works when your phone or tablet is resting on the tag itself, so you can’t pick it up before turning it on.

Trusted Face is another option that Google threw in. If you remember, Face Unlock was launched with Ice Cream Sandwich as one of the security lock options, but not with Lollipop. Instead, you will only find Trusted Face in Smart Lock. The procedure for recording your face is the same as Face Unlock, but they also added an option to capture more images in different lighting environments giving you better reliability. Trusted Face isn’t really unlocking your phone, it’s a means to bypass the lock screen. So say you have enabled a PIN code for your security lock. When you turn on the phone’s display, it immediately looks for your face, but you won’t see yourself on the display like you did with Face Unlock. It does it all in the background, and if your face is recognized before you swipe, the security lock will be bypassed. If it doesn’t recognize your face, you will then have to enter your security lock. It actually works pretty well, but I couldn’t really show you on the video.

The only item that is missing in Smart Lock is WiFi. I would liked to have seen the option of adding any saved WiFi network such as your home or a friend’s house. For whatever reason, Google omitted it, and we can only hope it will be added at a later date.

To set a Trusted Device or a Trusted Face, just head into your Settings, and find Security by scrolling down. For some phones, you might have to tab over to a category. For example, Samsung phones have Security under the General tab. Tap on Security and you will see Smart Lock. After tapping Smart Lock you will have to enter your security code and then you will see two options: Trusted Devices and Trusted Face. Note: Smart Lock won’t be an option unless you have a security lock such as PIN or pattern enabled.

Trusted Devices allows you to set as many Bluetooth devices or NFC tags as you want. Bluetooth devices must already be paired to your device, but it’s also very easy to add a device that you just paired. Upon pairing a device for the first time, you will get a notification asking you if you want to set it as a Trusted Device. Just tap “Add as Trusted Device,” enter your security code, and you’re all set. If for whatever reason you swiped away the notification card, you can still add it by going to Trusted Devices through the Settings.

For NFC tags, you will only need to touch your device to any NFC tag. After it’s paired, you will then enter a name for it such as Nightstand, My Car, or whatever. Now whenever your phone or tablet is touching the NFC tag (device has to be turned on and unlocked to initiate), the security lock screen will be bypassed. It’s not the greatest implementation since most people don’t have NFC tags lying around, not to mention having to keep the tag connected to the phone at all times.

The Trusted Face option will simply walk you through the process of capturing your face.

I put together a video showing you how it all works……..

I hope this guide helped you out. If I missed something, please let me know in the comments. Also be sure to check out our other Android Lollipop guides here

Robert lives in upstate New York where he was born and raised. Technology was always his passion. His first computer was a Radio Shack TRS80 Color that used a cassette tape to save programs, and his first laptop was a Toshiba T1200FB that sported a CGA greyscale screen and two 720kb floppy drives (no hardrive). From the early 90’s through late 2011, he only owned Motorola phones starting with the MircroTAC all the way through to the Droid X. He broke that streak when he bought the Galaxy Nexus. Now he’s sporting a Galaxy Note 4, and absolutely loves it. He has a wonderful wife and a 6 year old son. In his free time he enjoys sports, movies, TV, working out, and trying to keep up with the rapid fast world of technology.

One of the top reason to set up lock in your phone is to keep strangers and friends away from checking private messages, galleries and private pictures. Furthermore, we put security passwords in our phone so that even it get stolen then they won’t be able to open our phone and misuse it. But one of the disastrous moment comes in our life when we forget our own Android phone’s lock pattern or password or Pin code. This may happen to any of us if we change our phone security too often and forget the new one or if some friend of yours plays a prank on you to make you struggle with it.

In any situation, you do not need to panic or take your phone to any service center or to any expert who will take piles of money just to fix this issue for you. Here there are three ways for you to unlock Android screen lock passcode.

Part 1: Bypass Android’s Lock Screen Pattern, PIN or Password Using ADM
Part 2: Factory Reset to Unlock Android Lock Screen Password
Part 3: Bypass Android’s Lock Screen Using Android Lock Screen Removal

Part 1: Unlock Android’s Lock Screen Pattern, PIN or Password Using ADM

Only thing you need in this situation is to have Android Device Manager enabled in your phone. If you are using any Samsung phone then you can even achieve this step using your own Samsung account. ADM simply stands for Android Device Manager. Now this method only applies if you have your ADM enabled in your phone before you locked out. Simply process the following steps and you will be able to unlock your phone.

Step 1. Open from your other phone or desktop computer or laptop.

Step 2. Sign in with the Google account which you used in your previous phone which is currently locked.

Step 3. Simply choose the device you wish to unlock in the Android Device Manager Interface. Choose “Lock”.

Step 4. Enter a password in the screen which is appearing and click on “Lock” option. You don’t have to put anything in the recovery message. It is just an optional step.

Step 5. You will see a confirmation message underneath the box with the buttons which says Ring, Lock and Erase if it is done successfully.

Step 6. Now pick your phone which is currently locked and you should a password field where you will have to type the new password which you just set in above steps.

Step 7. Voila! This should unlock your phone. As easy as that.

If you’re Samsung user, see this tutorial to unlock Samsung galaxy lock screen passcode.

Part 2: Factory Reset to Bypass Android Lock Screen Password

If Android Device Manager won’t work at all for you, you may need to continue the more drastic methods, just try to make a factory reset on your Android device. But you must be aware that this will erase everything like app, settings and other personal data on your device, the good thing is that you can access to your phone without password lock. Nearly all manufacturers offer a way to factory reset Android when it boots into OS, the factory reset process may be a little different according to your device type, for most devices, you need to first turn off the device to start the process.В

Step 1. Hold the power button and volume down at the same time, the Bootloader menu will open.

Step 2. Press volume down button two times to select “Recovery Mode” and choose it by pressing “Power” button.

Step 3. Hold down the power button and tap “Volume Up” once, enter “recovery” mode.

Step 4. In the menu, there is a option “Wipe Data/Factory Reset”, choose it by pressing Power button.

Step 5. Select “Reboot System Now” once the process is done.

But the thing is not so bad, if you’ve synced your data Google previously, the factory reset will not affect the data that you syncs with your Google, you can re-sync the data to your phone again.

Part 2: Bypass Android’s Lock Screen Using Android Lock Screen Removal

Now if you are still struggling and was unable to unlock your phone using above steps then you this is one of the easiest solution to unlock your phone without any trouble. You just need to use an external software called Android Lock Screen Removal. If you are using this software, then it should not take you more than 5 minutes to unlock your phone.

1 Download software on your computer, then install the software in your computer. This step is pretty self-explanatory. Just follow the steps in your screen and it will be installed. You should see there are two modes to choose.

2 Connect your phone with your computer using a USB data cable and your phone should appear in your desktop screen. After that, you should select one option based on your situation.

3 If you’re using Samsung device, then you can select “Remove without Data Loss”, then simply click on “Start” and it will automatically download the recovery packages for you. This step will take some time depending on your internet speed.

4 Make sure your device is connected the entire time while this process gets completed. When it downloads successfully, click Next.

5 After the downloading is finished, it will completely remove the password from your phone. And you will see a screen like this.

Please keep your phone connected while removing the lock, then your device will be restarted and the screen lock on your device has been removed successfully.

That’s it. Now you will be able to see your phone completely unlocked and there will no requirement to put password again.

Conclusion

You must set a new pattern lock, PIN or password for your phone after you successfully unlock your phone. If you forget your passwords often then you it is easier to write down the password in a notebook or a piece of paper to avoid any kind of trouble next time. Hopefully you were able to unlock your phone using the mentioned methods.

Vicky is a professional Windows technology author with many experience, focusing on computer technology. She’s very much enjoy helping people find solutions to their problems. Her knowledge and passion always drive her to discover everything about technology.

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Introduction
Material Design
Optimized Battery Settings
Enhanced Notifications
Sharing & Security

Page contents

Release Date: November 12, 2014
Note: Lollipop version isn’t currently available on all devices.

Lollipop (Android™ 5.0 release) brings a bright, colorful overhaul to the look and feel of the platform. Through a design language called Material Design, the user interface now follows a series of physics and rules for the way things look, act and relate to each other. Lollipop also adds notification access from the lock screen, improved performance and optimized battery settings.

The steps to find the current OS version vary by device. Below are general instructions that work for most Android devices. For detailed instructions about a specific device, please check the device’s user guide.

To check your current Android OS version:

Open your device’s settings.
Tap the About Phone or About Device option.
Tap Android Version to display your version information.

You’ve successfully found your version information.

Steve Larner Steve Larner carries over ten years of content management, editing, and writing experience in a wide variety of industries. As a tech enthusiast, Steve also enjoys exploring new products and devices and helping others solve their technological problems. Read more April 9, 2020

Windows 10 has many features, but it doesn’t always offer what a user needs, such as pinning windows on top of others. Sure, Windows 10 offers “Pin to taskbar” and “Pin to Start” from the start menu app list, as well as “Pin to Desktop” when using Edge, but those features incorporate a different type of pinning. Whenever you want to pin a window so that it stays on top of other windows, the OS does not have an option. To have windows that stay on top, you need a third-party application.

Why would you want to “pin” windows on top of other windows?

There can be many reasons to place a window on the top layer of the desktop over other windows.

You could be doing calculations and need the calculator to remain on top.
You may be attending a visual meeting and need a notetaker on top.
You may require an active messaging window to remain open (in a small state) while using other windows.
You may require your browser to layer over top of all other pinned or unpinned windows and then minimize it or close it when done, while still maintaining the other pins.
You may require a specific window to always show on top when you click its taskbar icon. You can also minimize and maximize windows as needed while maintaining their “on top” status.

No matter what windows you need to remain on top, here’s what you can use to pin your calendar, notes, or any other application window.

DeskPins in Windows 10

DeskPins is a Windows app that has been around for a long time. However, it has not been updated since 2017. Regardless, it still functions great and works seamlessly to pin windows so that they stay on top, no matter what windows are currently open. It was chosen by tech-junkie due to it’s simplistic yet powerful functionality. The program readily provides an icon in the system tray for all actions and options.

The app’s official download page (after clicking a file to download) gets blocked as suspicious when using some lightweight security protection programs or certain browser extensions such as Malwarebytes. Still, the scan and many real-time security apps find no risks when you download from Softpedia. Just be sure to scan the “unzipped folder” no matter where you download the application.

DeskPins is easy to use and not intrusive at all! The app also provides several custom options, including “Autopin,” “Hotkeys,” “Pin Icon Color,” and more.

How to pin a window, so it stays on top.

Click the DeskPins icon in the System Tray, located in the bottom-right corner of your desktop.
The cursor becomes a pin (red by default or based on the color you selected in the options).
Move the pin cursor (like the regular cursor) to a window you want to pin to top.
Left-click to pin the window. A pin icon will display in the window’s title bar.

Note: Many apps and installed programs used in Windows 10 (Sticky Notes, Calculator, Netflix, Discord, etc.) have unique windows, unlike the original explorer windows found in Windows 7 and earlier. For pinning those items, you’ll get a popup error, and a pin icon will not appear in the title bar, but the window will still move to the top layer without problems.

Yeah, we know. The little icon to the right of “Standard” in the image above is an option to “Keep on top.” We just wanted an example to use for DeskPins.

How to unpin windows, so they don’t stay on top of all others.

Unpinning Individual Windows:

Move the mouse cursor over the pin icon in the title bar of the window you want to “un-top.” A red “X” appears next to the icon.
Click the icon to remove the pin function.

Note: For windows that do not show the pin icon, you can either close the window to remove pinned status or use the option below to unpin all windows. You can also minimize the window and call it a day, but it will still hold its “on-top” status when maximized.

Unpinning All Windows:

Right-click the DeskPins icon found in your system tray (bottom-right).
Select “Remove all pins.”

Don’t be afraid to add pins to multiple windows. If you have pinned more than one window, none of them have priority, meaning that they all show over other windows but can be moved over each other when selected. In other words, you can easily click one pinned window, and it will layer over the other pinned windows.

As you can see from this article, DeskPins is an easy-to-use application that works in Windows 10 without any issues. Just don’t forget to scan the download for security threats to ensure safe and effective operation, no matter where you obtained it. As we mentioned above, the official site’s download page gets blocked by some security extensions or programs. Therefore, it is best to get the application from another source, like the one we listed. Although you can install third-party script software and create a custom script that does the same thing, using an app is much quicker and easier.

STEP 1. GETTING STARTED

STEP 2. DISABLING LOCK SCREEN PASSWORD

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