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Vendor Implementation Guide: SmartDock DFC

This guide provides exhaustive documentation for Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and AOSP integrators to integrate and pre-configure SmartDock DFC.

1. Integration Instructions

Source Placement

Extract your licensed SmartDock DFC distribution tarball into your AOSP source tree at the following location: vendor/agp-apps/smartdock

Inclusion in Product Build

To include SmartDock DFC, its associated system overlays, and permission whitelists in your build, add the following line to your main product makefile (e.g., device/vendor/model/product.mk):

$(call inherit-product, vendor/agp-apps/smartdock/SmartDock.mk)

Overriding Default Configuration

SmartDock DFC is designed to be highly flexible. While SmartDock.mk provides a set of sensible defaults in PRODUCT_PROPERTY_OVERRIDES, you can override any of these flags in your target device's specific makefile or build.prop to achieve the desired combination of features for your hardware.

Boot-time Secure Settings (init.rc)

For critical system integrations, such as enabling accessibility services and notification listeners from boot, configuring settings via an init.rc script is the most robust method in AOSP. This ensures settings are applied at a high privilege level during the early boot sequence, before the application starts.

SmartDock ships smartdock_dfc_init.rc and smartdock_grant_permissions.sh under aosp/. SmartDock.mk installs them to:

  • /vendor/etc/init/smartdock_dfc_init.rc
  • /vendor/bin/smartdock_grant_permissions.sh

On sys.boot_completed, smartdock_dfc_init.rc only enables overlay settings (safe before unlock).

On sys.user.0.ce_available=1, init enables the accessibility service, starts DockService, and runs smartdock_grant_permissions. Both DockService and NotificationService defer CE-dependent initialization (SharedPreferences, dock UI) until credential storage is unlocked.

The oneshot service smartdock_grant_permissions waits for CE storage (sys.user.0.ce_available or cmd user is-unlocked), then applies:

  • pm grant and appops set (overlay, usage stats, secure settings, etc.)
  • Notification Listener (enabled_notification_listeners + cmd notification allow_listener)
  • Device Administrator via dpm set-active-admin

sys.user.0.ce_available=1 starts the grant script and enables accessibility / DockService. After grants complete, the script restarts SmartDock so the notification listener binds without a stale crashed state.

Note on Placement & SELinux:

  • Files are copied via SmartDock.mk PRODUCT_COPY_FILES (see above paths).
  • You will almost certainly need to adjust your SELinux policies to permit init (or other relevant domains like system_server) to write to Settings.Secure. This usually involves adding rules to .te files in your device's sepolicy directory.

2. Comprehensive Property Directory

Core Shell Behavior

Property Valid Values Description
persist.bass.sd.layout phone, tablet, desktop Sets the initial UI density and layout rules.
persist.bass.sd.docked docked, hidden Sets whether the dock is pinned (visible) or hidden by default on first boot.
persist.bass.sd.activation_method nav, swipe, handle nav: Uses the navigation handle area. swipe: Edge-based trigger. handle: Visible button.
persist.bass.sd.reserve_space true, false If true, the system reserves screen real estate at the bottom so apps do not overlap the dock.

Visuals & Theming

Property Valid Values Description
persist.bass.sd.theme system, dark, light, black, transparent, material, fallback, expressive Sets the default theme. expressive enables Material 3 Expressive dynamic coloring.
persist.bass.sd.icon_bg_style none, circles, islands Sets how app icons are presented in the dock and menu.
persist.bass.sd.dynamic_wallpaper_contrast true, false Icons automatically flip contrast based on the wallpaper pixels beneath them.
persist.bass.sd.rounded_corners true, false Enables/Disables heavily rounded corners for the dock container.
persist.bass.sd.dock_height 50 to 70 The base height of the dock in DP.
persist.bass.sd.dock_scale 0.5 to 1.5 Universal UI scale multiplier for all dock elements.
persist.bass.sd.enable_blur true, false Enables background blur for the Apps Menu and QS drawer (Android 12+).
persist.bass.sd.enable_dock_blur true, false Enables background blur for the main dock bar (Android 12+).
persist.bass.sd.override_panel_alpha true, false Enables manual transparency override for major panels and islands.
persist.bass.sd.panel_alpha 0 to 255 Default transparency for panels when override is enabled.
persist.bass.sd.qs_height_ratio 0.33, 0.66, 0.99 Sets the maximum vertical height ratio for the Notification Panel.
persist.bass.sd.qs_panel_width 100 to 200 Sets the default relative width percentage for the Notification/QS Panel.
persist.bass.sd.qs_panel_scale 50 to 150 Sets the default UI scale percentage for the Notification/QS Panel.

App Menu Configuration

Property Valid Values Description
persist.bass.sd.center_app_menu true, false Centers the Apps Menu panel on the screen instead of aligning to the button.
persist.bass.sd.center_apps_menu_button true, false Places the Apps Menu trigger button in the center of the taskbar.
persist.bass.sd.enable_continue_left_off true, false Enables "Continue where you left off" (Recent Docs/Webpages) in the menu.
persist.bass.sd.enable_recent_apps_menu true, false Shows a row of recently used apps at the top of the Apps Menu.

System Overlays (Visual Modification)

Property Default Description
persist.bass.sd.hide_status_bar false Enables the overlay to set system status bar height to 0.
persist.bass.sd.hide_nav_bar false Enables the overlay to hide the AOSP navigation bar.
persist.bass.sd.hide_taskbar false Disables the AOSP 12L+ Taskbar on large screens via overlay.
persist.bass.sd.use_custom_qs true Replaces the system notification shade with the Material Design QS drawer.
persist.bass.sd.enable_blur_overlay false Enables system-wide background blur support via overlay.

Advanced Window Type Overrides

These properties allow for direct control over the WindowManager.LayoutParams.type value used for SmartDock's windows. This is an advanced configuration option primarily for AOSP integrators to fine-tune layering behavior or resolve conflicts with other system UI components. Values are integers corresponding to WindowManager.LayoutParams.TYPE_ constants.

Property Default (Auto-detected) Description
persist.smartdock.window_type_override 2032 (A14-), 2019 (A15+) Overrides the WindowManager.LayoutParams.TYPE_ for the main dock on the primary display.
persist.smartdock.window_type_override_handle 2032 (A14-), 2024 (A15+) Overrides the WindowManager.LayoutParams.TYPE_ for the dock handle on the primary display.
persist.smartdock.window_type_override_secondary 2024 Overrides the WindowManager.LayoutParams.TYPE_ for the main dock on secondary displays.
persist.smartdock.window_type_override_handle_secondary 2024 Overrides the WindowManager.LayoutParams.TYPE_ for the dock handle on secondary displays.

Common Window Types for Overlays:

Value WindowManager.LayoutParams.TYPE_ Constant (SDK 34) Description
2000 TYPE_PHONE Application window that is not a full-screen activity. Often used for pop-ups and overlays.
2003 TYPE_STATUS_BAR The status bar itself. Highly restricted.
2011 TYPE_TOAST A transient, non-interactive overlay like a toast message.
2019 TYPE_NAVIGATION_BAR The system navigation bar. Highly restricted on modern Android.
2024 TYPE_NAVIGATION_BAR_PANEL A panel on top of the navigation bar. Less restricted than TYPE_NAVIGATION_BAR.
2032 TYPE_ACCESSIBILITY_OVERLAY An overlay window for accessibility services. Generally well-suited for system-level overlays.
2038 TYPE_APPLICATION_OVERLAY Standard application overlay window. Requires SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW permission.

Functional Restrictions & Production Lock-down

Property Default Description
persist.bass.sd.disable_statusbar_dpm false Functionally disables the status bar and notification shade expansion via DevicePolicyManager.
persist.bass.sd.disable_navbar_dpm false Functionally disables the system navigation buttons at the framework level.
persist.bass.sd.skip_onboarding false Automatically marks the onboarding wizard as complete on first boot.
persist.bass.sd.disable_customization false Hides shell and visual customization options in the Settings activity for production devices.

Navigation & Display

Property Valid Values Description
persist.bass.sd.nav_mode system, gesture, 2button, 3button Overrides the system navigation mode for the SmartDock handle.
persist.bass.sd.nav_btn_justification left, center, right Horizontal alignment of navigation buttons within the dock.
persist.bass.sd.multi_display true, false Enables independent dock instances on all connected displays.
persist.bass.sd.supported_displays primary, external, all Filter for which display types should initialize a SmartDock instance.

Input & Advanced Interaction

Property Default Description
persist.bass.sd.enable_touchpad false Enables the Virtual Touchpad dock button by default.
persist.bass.sd.auto_show_touchpad false Automatically show the touchpad on the primary display when a secondary screen is detected.
persist.bass.sd.enable_routing false Enables the Physical Pointer Routing dock button by default.

3. Deployment Check-list

  1. Priv-App Status: Ensure SmartDock is in /product/priv-app/.
  2. Permissions: Verify privapp-permissions-smartdock.xml is in /product/etc/permissions/.
  3. Stability: Verify sysconfig-smartdock.xml is in /product/etc/sysconfig/.
  4. Boot-time Settings: Ensure smartdock_dfc_init.rc is correctly placed and configured as per the "Boot-time Secure Settings" section to grant critical permissions early in the boot process.
  5. Other Properties: Add any other desired defaults to build.prop using the tables above.