How to discover all installed applications

Article Metadata

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Tested with

Devices(s): Nokia 5800

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Article

Created: symbianyucca (20 Mar 2007)

Last edited: hamishwillee (11 Jan 2012)

RApaLsSession can be used to get all currently installed applications from the device. The following code sample shows how to get an array containing names of the installed applications:

Headers:

#include <APGCLI.H>
#include <BADESCA.H>

Link against:

LIBRARY apgrfx.lib
LIBRARY bafl.lib

CDesCArray* CMyClass::GetApplicationsLC()
{
    const TInt KArrGranularity = 10;
    CDesCArrayFlat* MyArray = new(ELeave) CDesCArrayFlat(KArrGranularity);
    CleanupStack::PushL(MyArray);
 
    RApaLsSession ls;
    User::LeaveIfError(ls.Connect());
    CleanupClosePushL(ls);
 
    User::LeaveIfError(ls.GetAllApps());
 
    TInt ErrnoNo(KErrNone);
    TApaAppInfo AppInfo;
 
    do
    {
        ErrnoNo = ls.GetNextApp(AppInfo);
        if(ErrnoNo == KErrNone && AppInfo.iCaption.Length())
            MyArray->AppendL(AppInfo.iCaption);
    } while(ErrnoNo == KErrNone);
 
    CleanupStack::PopAndDestroy(); // ls
    return MyArray;
}

If you are interrested only in not hidden applications you may want to add some code like:

        //Get app capabilities
	TApaAppCapabilityBuf capability;
	User::LeaveIfError(ls.GetAppCapability(capability, AppInfo.iUid));
	if (capability().iAppIsHidden)
	   {
	   //Don't show hidden apps
	   continue;
	   }

To get application list change notifications take a look at CApaAppListNotifier from apgnotif.h.

TApaAppInfo also has many other information items of the application that can be utilized when airing application information, for example Get application icon shows how to get the application icon using the application UID that van be retrieved using the code sample shown above.