What is Android System WebView and can I delete it

Users of devices based on Android OS, looking through the list of installed software, find among the familiar software and system applications that they do not know about. One of these programs is Android System WebView. It can be found in the number of running applications or by receiving an update notification. Sometimes during manual cleaning in order to free up space in the device’s memory, inexperienced users demolish everything that comes handy, and it’s better not to touch some system components in order to avoid damage to the system. Of course, such applications without root-rights can not be removed, but even stopping their work can lead to unpleasant consequences. So, undesirable is the removal of software Android System WebView.

Appointment of the Android system application webview.

What it is

The logical desire of the user who discovered the software for the first time will be to find out what Android System WebView is and what tasks this software performs, and whether it can be deleted. The Chrome-based program is preinstalled and is a system component of the Android OS, it is used to process web content within different applications, with the result that there is no need to go to browsers. That is, thanks to WebView content sites can be displayed directly in the programs. If you take the example of a social network application, then when viewing a news feed and following links, you will not be redirected to the browser, but you will see the content without leaving the messenger. This is the essence of the operation of this tool, and now you have an idea of ​​what Android System WebView is. System software is installed by default on devices with Android 4.2.2 and higher. If it is not on the device, for example, you deleted it using root-access, not knowing what kind of program it is, then you can install the application from the Play Market, and updates are downloaded from here. It is better to use WebView, starting with version Android 5.0 due to the use of a large number of resources, which loads the device with multiple processes (memory consumption, etc., depends on the number of running programs and games). In addition, product support for early versions of the operating system has been discontinued.

What applications use Android System WebView

Considering why you need software to make it more visual, let's take as an example several software products that use System WebView as a means to view Internet content in their environment:

  • Google press
  • ICQ Messenger.
  • GPS Status.
  • Asus Weather.
  • Mikuni Browser, Puffin Browser and some other browsers.
  • Vkontakte, Odnoklassniki, Facebook, etc.

This is just a small list of software using WebView. Applications of weather, social networks, instant messengers and many others have this built-in option. Software developers can add browser functionality to their product, for which you need to embed the WebView library into it, install the component in the layout and initialize it in the code. You must also enable JavaScript support so that the pages where it is implemented work correctly and add permissions to access the Internet. To allow users to open links right inside the software, a WebViewClient installation will be required.

How to enable Android System WebView

On Android 7 version and above, the service is inactive by default. These tasks are assigned to Google Chrome tools and built-in software tools. That is, there is no special need to activate the software in question, but if you want it not for Chrome, but for WebView, the first service is turned off and Android System WebView is turned on, because they do not function together. You can activate using various methods.

Method one:

  • In the "Applications" section we find Google Chrome and disable it by pressing the corresponding button.
  • Install or update the Android System WebView from the Play Market.
  • Now it remains to run any software that uses WebView, and the service will be started in automatic mode. Suppose we move from the device settings to the section “About the device” - “Legal information” and select “Legal information of Google”, then open any link.
  • The WebView app will be activated, but when you turn on Chrome, it will turn off again.

Method two:

It is a little more difficult to execute the procedure, and it is not always possible, but if the first method failed to connect the service, we do the following:

  • Go to the settings and in the section "About the phone" select "Build number".
  • A few clicks activate the developer mode (click until you receive the relevant notification).
  • In the section “For Developers” we find “WebView Service”.
  • Here you can choose a tool for processing web links within applications.

Possible problems and solutions

As a rule, the service is working properly, but sometimes it is still possible the occurrence of errors. Since WebView for Android versions before the fifth version is no longer supported, this has caused the appearance of vulnerabilities in the software. Failure notifications can appear when running some programs, playing games, or when using a browser. The bug fix is ​​to clear the application data. To do this, perform the following:

  • Go to the settings of the device, select "Applications".
  • In the list of software we find the Android System WebView (ASW), click.
  • Here we press the button "Clear data" and "Clear cache".

In some cases, the method does not work. You can also try stopping the service and removing updates, and then download the complete System WebView update. In addition, it will not be superfluous to check whether there is enough memory on the device; sometimes an application transfer to an SD card can help. Often users are bored with a pop-up notification about the need to update the software. The problem is fixed simply:

  • Go to the Google Play Market app store and update the ASW component.
  • If you repeat the error, which is likely on devices with Android 7 and higher, you should update Google Chrome.

If all methods for correcting service failures were powerless, it remains to perform a reset to the factory settings, after making a backup copy of the data. But this is an extreme measure and most often resort to such actions is not necessary.

How to remove the Android System WebView application

The ability to remove any software is always present, even if not explicit, as is the case with system components. Having seen the gluttony of the Android System WebView in the processes, many users are wondering if it is possible to delete this application. In standard mode, the system software cannot be deleted, so if the goal is to completely get rid of the service, you will have to tinker with getting root-rights, allowing you to do everything with your OS. At the same time, root-access is not the only solution with the help of which the program can be stopped.

Delete System WebView is highly not recommended if you have Android below the seventh version, as this will entail a number of errors and failures. The service is used by many applications, so you should not count on the correctness of their work after removing or disabling the tool. In addition to the lack of the possibility of opening embedded links within programs, you will get other system failures, and the problem may take a rather serious form, for example, putting it in the form of a cyclic reboot of the device. We now turn to the question whether it is possible to disable the Android System WebView service, if there is still no root-rights, you have an operating system of the seventh version or higher, and you did not find the application useful. In this case, the software can only be stopped. To do this, perform the following actions, applicable to stop any Android software:

  • Go to the device settings.
  • Go here to the "Applications".
  • Choose from the list of Android System
  • We press the buttons “Stop”, “Delete updates”, then “Clear data”.
  • These actions will stop the program.

We do not recommend deleting system applications. Ruth-rights in inept hands can harm the device, although even without them, some user actions are even more destructive than viruses and can cause considerable damage to the system.

As for WebView specifically, if alternative software is supported on your smartphone, and you decide to use another tool that performs the same tasks, the service will simply be inactive, so worrying about using its resources is not worth it.