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In the 'settings' command (i.e. which invokes cmd command) there are 3 namespaces

  • system
  • secure
  • global

What are these and why are some features on one rather than another?

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    I assume that "system" and "secure" refer to the sections in the Android settings UI that existed at the time the settings command was introduced. The third namespace "global" is may be just a nice name for the "everything else" category.
    – Robert
    Jul 24, 2019 at 14:46

1 Answer 1

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The Android developers pages give the answers to both your questions.

  • System

    System settings, containing miscellaneous system preferences.

  • Secure

    Secure system settings, containing system preferences that applications can read but are not allowed to write. These are for preferences that the user must explicitly modify through the system UI or specialized APIs for those values, not modified directly by applications.

  • Global

    Global system settings, containing preferences that always apply identically to all defined users. Applications can read these but are not allowed to write; like the "Secure" settings, these are for preferences that the user must explicitly modify through the system UI or specialized APIs for those values.

Each link also states when the settings were first introduced and provides a list of variables, functions that can be accessed programmatically (not just through adb), if they are deprecated, etc.

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