Since you receive continuous error messages related to the operation of Google Play Services on an old Android device, now looking for a solution to uninstall the service. We at Teknologya have decided to create a tutorial in which we will specifically indicate how to uninstall Google Play Services.
Premise
Before discovering the steps to follow to proceed with the uninstallation of the Big G app, maybe you would like to understand specifically how it works. Google Play Services is responsible for managing updates to the features of the applications and services created by the Mountain View giant on its Android mobile operating system.
In the first releases of the OS, Google applications and services were updated only with each release of major operating system updates. Thanks to the implementation of Google Play Services, however, this no longer happens, so the various standard software receive updates without depending on the version of the operating system installed on the device.
In addition to this, Play Services offers features that allow you to manage access to Google services, the location with low power consumption, the management of privacy settings and the installation and update of all applications from the Play Store. As you can guess from the information given so far, Google Play Services is a key component of Android and without it the apps and services may not work properly. On older devices, however, it may generate some error messages related to its abnormal or forced closure.
So, before proceeding to uninstall the service, you can try two alternative ways to try to solve the problem: clear the Google services cache.
To do this, follow the steps below:
- Open the Android Settings by pressing the gear you find in the home screen, in the drawer or by pulling down the notification drop-down and locate the Applications menu.
- At this point, click on the 3 dots on the top right and choose the Show system app option from the menu that appears.
- In the next step, scroll the screen and click on Google Play Services. To proceed with clearing the cache, locate Storage space and press the Clear cache button.
- After doing this, restart your smartphone or Android tablet and see if any error messages still appear.
If you still see them, then, before you see how to uninstall Google Play Services, you can clear the Service Framework cache. For those who do not know, it is a part of Android that has the task of exchanging data between Google’s services and servers.
To proceed, take the following steps as a reference:
- Access the Applications menu as noted earlier, scroll the screen and tap on Google Service Framework.
- Once this is done, press the Forced Stop button (or Stop or Force Stop ) to temporarily stop the service.
- In the next step, press on Storage and press the Clear cache button to clear the cache.
- End the operation restart the Android device and check if the error messages related to Play Services still appear.
How to uninstall Google Play Services
In case you did not solve the information provided a little while ago, you can consider uninstalling the service. In the next lines we will provide two procedures to follow depending on whether or not you have a device with root. In both cases, we recommend that you first make a full backup of your Android device in order to restore it in case of problems. You can refer to our dedicated guides.
Without root
The method in question can be done very simply using a computer with Windows, MacOS or Linux. In the event that it was the first connection of the device to your computer, you will first need to install the drivers. These can be found on the manufacturer’s website or on the appropriate page of the Android Developer website.
After that, download and install the ADB software depending on whether you have Windows, MacOS or Linux. Then, extract the contents of the zip archive downloaded using a special software (eg WinRAR ) in an easily accessible folder.
The next thing to do is to activate the developer options from the Settings of Android on your terminal. In this case, we suggest you read our guide dedicated to the topic. Once enabled, enter the appropriate menu and activate the USB debugging option by pressing the switch next to the item. Confirm by tapping OK.
Now you are ready to see how to uninstall Google Play Services without root. Here are the steps to follow:
- Connect the smartphone to the computer using the supplied USB cable (taking care to activate the MTP protocol ) and open the folder where you have extracted ADB.
- Once this is done, open a Command Prompt window by holding down the Shift key on the keyboard and right clicking on an empty spot on the screen and choosing Open Command Prompt here.
- From the window that opens, type the adb devices command and press the Enter button on the keyboard. At this point, a window should appear on the smartphone that will ask you to give consent to the PC to access. Press OK to continue.
- If all went well, the Command Prompt window will show you the code of your terminal next to the device item. If successful, type the command adb shell and press Enter.
- At this point, use the command pm list packages | grep ‘google’ and enter Enter to view system applications (in this case Google).
- From the list that appears, find the package with the name com.google.android.gms (corresponding to Google Play Services ), use the command pm uninstall -k -user 0 com.google.android.gms and press Enter to proceed with the uninstalling the app.
- If Success appears, the application has been successfully uninstalled.
If you have a Mac, you will need to use Terminal instead of Command Prompt. This can be found in the Applications folder in the Dock or search for it through Spotlight.
With root
If, on the other hand, you own an Android device with root permissions or want to get it, you can take advantage of a completely free application called Deleter Root App which can be downloaded for free from the Google Play Store.
Let’s see how to use it:
- Once you have downloaded and installed the software on your device with root, give it permission by clicking on Authorize and then plug it into System apps.
- After pressing on the entry Pro, you find Google Play Services in the list that appears (easily recognizable in red because it is a system app that should not be touched in any way).
- To proceed with the uninstallation, press on its name, press the Uninstall button on the next screen and confirm by pressing OK from the warning that appears.
If you change your mind, you can reinstall the Google Play Services app by locating it on the Play Store. Alternatively, if the Big G market does not work, we suggest you to use the excellent APKMirror website which is among the most reliable from where you can download APK files.
Of course, since this is an installation outside of the Play Store, you need to enable the Unknown sources option.
Once enabled, connect to the page reserved for Google Play Services of the APKMirror site, identify the Download section and press the number of the latest version available (eg 14.8.47 (000300-228741232) of 12 January 2019 ). After clicking on the link, wait for the countdown to end, press the Download APK button and continue with the installation by pressing Open, Install and Finish.
How to disable Google Play Services
If you do not want to proceed with the uninstallation, then you can use a less “aggressive” solution and disable it from the Settings.
Let’s see the steps to follow:
- Open the Settings of Android as mentioned just now, and navigate the menu reserved for applications (Applications, App or App and notifications ).
- In the new screen that opens, press the 3 dots on the top right and choose the Show system app option from the menu that appears.
- Now, locate Google Play Services and press on to access your page.
- To proceed with deactivation, first tap on Deactivate and then on Deactivate app. If you change your mind, you can reactivate it by choosing Activate.
In the event that the button does not appear, then, always from the page of Play Services, press the 3 dots at the top right and choose Uninstall updates, confirming by pressing OK.