BUG: Android 6.0.1 reboots after enabling VPN apps

[Jecht_Sin]

I have installed via USB and tested Block This (open source) and Adguard (not together. One per time) on my KD49XD8099 with Android 6.0.1 and they simply worked great! No more annoying ads (yes, I know. Companies don't like it, especially Google, but they are perfectly legal. Also we are allowed by Android itself to install whatever we like).

The only problem is that after turning the TV off (standby) few hours, when I turn it on the television starts rebooting. Uninstalling them the television (and rebooting just in case) Android becomes "stable" again (quoted because I've got reboots even without tampering with special apps). The apps were set to enable the VPN at boot. Not that it should matter, since the reboot happens just putting the tv in standby.

Now, I do understand that an external app, not made specifically for Android TV may not work (but as I wrote they actually do the job they are made for), but if the television/Android reboots there is a (very critical) issue with the OS, not the app. To test the issue the developers just need to install the apps mentioned (again, enabling the VPN at boot).

[robmello]

Make it simple, factory reset is the only option that I have found. Good to know that Express VPN are looking into.

As for Sony? Sort yourselves out. Lack of response is very poor. I haven't bought another brand of TV in over 20 years but this is severely testing that.

[rapraprap]

My post got deleted somehow, but I had most of it in my clipboard:

@makeitsimple 

I don't get a boot loop, just a single reboot. Tested with OpenVPN and the official pia app.

I suspect you are getting bootloops because you have set the app to connect to VPN on boot, causing a vicious circle. If you have time before the TV loops, go into the VPN app's settings and change this. Or if you have time to send an adb command (to disable or uninstall the app). You should not need to factory reset the TV everytime you forget to disconnect the VPN before putting the TV to sleep...

Perhaps try to boot the TV with no network, so the VPN app can't connect (either by pulling out the ethernet cable, or temporarily turning off your router or blocking the TV's internet access through the router settings, etc). Then you can to go into the app settings.

Anyone using a local VPN as an ad-blocker (like netguard or whatever it's called) and having it set to connect on boot might be out of luck as it might manage to connect even if you're not online (but hopefully that's not the case).

As for the TCP connection, I started using this after I kept getting disconnects while using Netflix. It won't make a difference to the reboot situation though. Neither will changing any per-app settings for VPN access.

[rapraprap]

@robmello 

rapraprap, end of your second paragraph is precisely the scenario unfortunately. It should not happen but it does.

Right, but not unless you have the app set to connect on boot, right?

[robmello]

I don't believe it was an option in settings. Have already looked.

[Luigi_R]

I am also using ExpressVPN. It keeps rebooting because when the tv crashes the app automatically reconnects on boot even though the "start on boot" is set to off.

This behavior has been introduced with the latest/redisigned version of app.

In my case, I usually manage to open quickly the app and disconnect the vpn before the next crash but it is really a race against time.

At the end, I was ***** off and I have decided to turn a raspberry pi to a VPN server and I manage the vpn connection from there.

If someone is already in touch with the support team from ExpressVPN, he should ask if it might be feasible for them to implement something that would turn off the VPN connection as soon as the screen goes off.

[rapraprap]

Oh I see. Maybe import your expressvpn profiles into OpenVPN? It doesn't reconnect on boot unless the option is checked.

[robmello]

Exactly this.

Sent from my Huawei Mobile

[Luigi_R]

I was using OpenVPN for Android TV in the past. Yes it is an option....but it does not solve the issue anyhow.

ExpressVPN has now the option to specify which app should go through the vpn tunnel and I have been trying to reserve it to Kodi only hoping the os would not detect it but unfortunately it did not work 😞

[rapraprap]

@Luigi_R 

I have decided to turn a raspberry pi to a VPN server and I manage the vpn connection from there.

ExpressVPN has now the option to specify which app should go through the vpn tunnel and I have been trying to reserve it to Kodi only hoping the os would not detect it but unfortunately it did not work 😞

Yes I do this as well (from the router, but yeah), but I like the per-app settings in the VPN apps because then I can switch between e.g. Netflix and my local public broadcaster app. Much more convenient. These Sony android TVs have introduced me to types of bugs and limitations I had never even imagined. Ugh imagine if we had root to fix this stuff, and load kernel modules for usb-lan adapters to plug into the USB3 port... what's the status on sony releasing source code for these sets? There seems to be many-ish of us who would benefit from unlocking the bootloader and getting root, maybe we could pool together and put up a bounty for a developer with some time and skills? We already put a lot of money into these TVs, maybe a few € more would get us across the finish line.

edit:

also, what is the situation with the USB on these sets? The USB3 is separate and a proper USB3 controller, right? So if we could get a gigabit LAN adapter to work we could get close to gigabit speeds from it?