Android Gallery on Android 4.4 (KitKat) returns different URI for Intent.ACTION_GET_CONTENT

Question

Before KitKat (or before the new Gallery) the Intent.ACTION_GET_CONTENT returned a URI like this

content://media/external/images/media/3951.

Using the ContentResolver and quering for MediaStore.Images.Media.DATA returned the file URL.

In KitKat however the Gallery returns a URI (via "Last") like this:

content://com.android.providers.media.documents/document/image:3951

How do I handle this?

Solution 1

Try this:

if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT <19){
    Intent intent = new Intent(); 
    intent.setType("image/jpeg");
    intent.setAction(Intent.ACTION_GET_CONTENT);
    startActivityForResult(Intent.createChooser(intent, getResources().getString(R.string.select_picture)),GALLERY_INTENT_CALLED);
} else {
    Intent intent = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_OPEN_DOCUMENT);
    intent.addCategory(Intent.CATEGORY_OPENABLE);
    intent.setType("image/jpeg");
    startActivityForResult(intent, GALLERY_KITKAT_INTENT_CALLED);
}

@Override
public void onActivityResult(int requestCode, int resultCode, Intent data) {
    super.onActivityResult(requestCode, resultCode, data);
    if (resultCode != Activity.RESULT_OK) return;
    if (null == data) return;
    Uri originalUri = null;
    if (requestCode == GALLERY_INTENT_CALLED) {
        originalUri = data.getData();
    } else if (requestCode == GALLERY_KITKAT_INTENT_CALLED) {
        originalUri = data.getData();
        final int takeFlags = data.getFlags()
                & (Intent.FLAG_GRANT_READ_URI_PERMISSION
                | Intent.FLAG_GRANT_WRITE_URI_PERMISSION);
        // Check for the freshest data.
        getContentResolver().takePersistableUriPermission(originalUri, takeFlags);
    }

    loadSomeStreamAsynkTask(originalUri);

}

Probably need

@SuppressLint("NewApi")

for

takePersistableUriPermission

Solution 2

This requires no special permissions, and works with the Storage Access Framework, as well as the unofficial ContentProvider pattern (file path in _data field).

/**
 * Get a file path from a Uri. This will get the the path for Storage Access
 * Framework Documents, as well as the _data field for the MediaStore and
 * other file-based ContentProviders.
 *
 * @param context The context.
 * @param uri The Uri to query.
 * @author paulburke
 */
public static String getPath(final Context context, final Uri uri) {

    final boolean isKitKat = Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.KITKAT;

    // DocumentProvider
    if (isKitKat && DocumentsContract.isDocumentUri(context, uri)) {
        // ExternalStorageProvider
        if (isExternalStorageDocument(uri)) {
            final String docId = DocumentsContract.getDocumentId(uri);
            final String[] split = docId.split(":");
            final String type = split[0];

            if ("primary".equalsIgnoreCase(type)) {
                return Environment.getExternalStorageDirectory() + "/" + split[1];
            }

            // TODO handle non-primary volumes
        }
        // DownloadsProvider
        else if (isDownloadsDocument(uri)) {

            final String id = DocumentsContract.getDocumentId(uri);
            final Uri contentUri = ContentUris.withAppendedId(
                    Uri.parse("content://downloads/public_downloads"), Long.valueOf(id));

            return getDataColumn(context, contentUri, null, null);
        }
        // MediaProvider
        else if (isMediaDocument(uri)) {
            final String docId = DocumentsContract.getDocumentId(uri);
            final String[] split = docId.split(":");
            final String type = split[0];

            Uri contentUri = null;
            if ("image".equals(type)) {
                contentUri = MediaStore.Images.Media.EXTERNAL_CONTENT_URI;
            } else if ("video".equals(type)) {
                contentUri = MediaStore.Video.Media.EXTERNAL_CONTENT_URI;
            } else if ("audio".equals(type)) {
                contentUri = MediaStore.Audio.Media.EXTERNAL_CONTENT_URI;
            }

            final String selection = "_id=?";
            final String[] selectionArgs = new String[] {
                    split[1]
            };

            return getDataColumn(context, contentUri, selection, selectionArgs);
        }
    }
    // MediaStore (and general)
    else if ("content".equalsIgnoreCase(uri.getScheme())) {

        // Return the remote address
        if (isGooglePhotosUri(uri))
            return uri.getLastPathSegment();

        return getDataColumn(context, uri, null, null);
    }
    // File
    else if ("file".equalsIgnoreCase(uri.getScheme())) {
        return uri.getPath();
    }

    return null;
}

/**
 * Get the value of the data column for this Uri. This is useful for
 * MediaStore Uris, and other file-based ContentProviders.
 *
 * @param context The context.
 * @param uri The Uri to query.
 * @param selection (Optional) Filter used in the query.
 * @param selectionArgs (Optional) Selection arguments used in the query.
 * @return The value of the _data column, which is typically a file path.
 */
public static String getDataColumn(Context context, Uri uri, String selection,
        String[] selectionArgs) {

    Cursor cursor = null;
    final String column = "_data";
    final String[] projection = {
            column
    };

    try {
        cursor = context.getContentResolver().query(uri, projection, selection, selectionArgs,
                null);
        if (cursor != null && cursor.moveToFirst()) {
            final int index = cursor.getColumnIndexOrThrow(column);
            return cursor.getString(index);
        }
    } finally {
        if (cursor != null)
            cursor.close();
    }
    return null;
}


/**
 * @param uri The Uri to check.
 * @return Whether the Uri authority is ExternalStorageProvider.
 */
public static boolean isExternalStorageDocument(Uri uri) {
    return "com.android.externalstorage.documents".equals(uri.getAuthority());
}

/**
 * @param uri The Uri to check.
 * @return Whether the Uri authority is DownloadsProvider.
 */
public static boolean isDownloadsDocument(Uri uri) {
    return "com.android.providers.downloads.documents".equals(uri.getAuthority());
}

/**
 * @param uri The Uri to check.
 * @return Whether the Uri authority is MediaProvider.
 */
public static boolean isMediaDocument(Uri uri) {
    return "com.android.providers.media.documents".equals(uri.getAuthority());
}

/**
 * @param uri The Uri to check.
 * @return Whether the Uri authority is Google Photos.
 */
public static boolean isGooglePhotosUri(Uri uri) {
    return "com.google.android.apps.photos.content".equals(uri.getAuthority());
}

See an up-to-date version of this method here.

Solution 3

Had the same problem, tried the solution above but though it worked generally, for some reason I was getting permission denial on Uri content provider for some images although I had the android.permission.MANAGE_DOCUMENTS permission added properly.

Anyway found other solution which is to force opening image gallery instead of KITKAT documents view with :

// KITKAT

i = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_PICK,android.provider.MediaStore.Images.Media.EXTERNAL_CONTENT_URI);
    startActivityForResult(i, CHOOSE_IMAGE_REQUEST);

and then load the image:

Uri selectedImageURI = data.getData();
input = c.getContentResolver().openInputStream(selectedImageURI);
                BitmapFactory.decodeStream(input , null, opts);

EDIT

ACTION_OPEN_DOCUMENT might require you to persist permissions flags etc and generally often results in Security Exceptions...

Other solution is to use the ACTION_GET_CONTENT combined with c.getContentResolver().openInputStream(selectedImageURI) which will work both on pre-KK and KK. Kitkat will use new documents view then and this solution will work with all apps like Photos, Gallery, File Explorer, Dropbox, Google Drive etc...) but remember that when using this solution you have to create image in your onActivityResult() and store it on SD Card for example. Recreating this image from saved uri on next app launch would throw Security Exception on content resolver even when you add permission flags as described in Google API docs (that's what happened when I did some testing)

Additionally the Android Developer API Guidelines suggest:

ACTION_OPEN_DOCUMENT is not intended to be a replacement for ACTION_GET_CONTENT. The one you should use depends on the needs of your app:

Use ACTION_GET_CONTENT if you want your app to simply read/import data. With this approach, the app imports a copy of the data, such as an image file.

Use ACTION_OPEN_DOCUMENT if you want your app to have long term, persistent access to documents owned by a document provider. An example would be a photo-editing app that lets users edit images stored in a document provider.

Solution 4

Just as Commonsware mentioned, you shouldn't assume, that the stream you get via ContentResolver is convertable into file.

What you really should do is to open the InputStream from the ContentProvider, then create a Bitmap out of it. And it works on 4.4 and earlier versions as well, no need for reflection.

    //cxt -> current context

    InputStream input;
    Bitmap bmp;
    try {
        input = cxt.getContentResolver().openInputStream(fileUri);
        bmp = BitmapFactory.decodeStream(input);
    } catch (FileNotFoundException e1) {

    }

Of course if you handle big images, you should load them with appropriate inSampleSize: http://developer.android.com/training/displaying-bitmaps/load-bitmap.html. But that's another topic.

Solution 5

I believe the responses already posted should get people going in the right direction. However here is what I did that made sense for the legacy code I was updating. The legacy code was using the URI from the gallery to change and then save the images.

Prior to 4.4 (and google drive), the URIs would look like this: content://media/external/images/media/41

As stated in the question, they more often look like this: content://com.android.providers.media.documents/document/image:3951

Since I needed the ability to save images and not disturb the already existing code, I just copied the URI from the gallery into the data folder of the app. Then originated a new URI from the saved image file in the data folder.

Here's the idea:

Intent intent = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_GET_CONTENT);
intent.setType("image/*");
startActivityForResult(intent), CHOOSE_IMAGE_REQUEST);

public void onActivityResult(int requestCode, int resultCode, Intent data) {

    super.onActivityResult(requestCode, resultCode, data);

    File tempFile = new File(this.getFilesDir().getAbsolutePath(), "temp_image");

    //Copy URI contents into temporary file.
    try {
        tempFile.createNewFile();
        copyAndClose(this.getContentResolver().openInputStream(data.getData()),new FileOutputStream(tempFile));
    }
    catch (IOException e) {
        //Log Error
    }

    //Now fetch the new URI
    Uri newUri = Uri.fromFile(tempFile);

    /* Use new URI object just like you used to */
 }

Note - copyAndClose() just does file I/O to copy InputStream into a FileOutputStream. The code is not posted.

View more solutions

Comments

[CommonsWare]

Off the cuff, I would find ways of using the content that does not require direct access to the file. For example, that Uri should be openable as a stream via ContentResolver. I have long been nervous about apps that assume that a content:// Uri that represents a file can always be converted into a File.

[Michael Greifeneder]

I think a valid answer is to change to the ContentResolver and work with Uri instead of File-URLs. I will do that. It also enables better handling of non-Gallery Uris.

[Snake]

@CommonsWare,If I want to save an image path in sqlite db so I can open it later, should I save the URI or absolute file path?

[darrenp]

@CommonsWare I agree with your nervousness. :-) However, I need to be able to pass a filename (for an image) to native code. A solution is to copy the data obtained using an InputStream on the ContentResolver to a pre-designated place so it has a known filename. However, this sounds wasteful to me. Any other suggestions?

[CommonsWare]

@darrenp: Ummm..., rewrite the native code to work with an InputStream over JNI? There aren't all that many options for you, unfortunately.

[darrenp]

That's useful to know. Thanks for your response. I've since found out that we are now passing the image to C++ in memory rather than via a file so it we can now use an InputStream instead of a file (which is great). Only EXIF tag reading is slightly tricky and requires Drew Noakes' library. Many thanks for your comments.

[Spry Techies]

@Exception there is a bug reported in cordova over this issue so try finder answer it is working

[Exception]

@SpryTechies But that works only for images, what about other media types.

[Spry Techies]

@Exception Which media you wants please specify

[Exception]

@SpryTechies I mean to say video file.

[DeltaCap019]

tagasks.com/…

[surhidamatya]

better answer is here stackoverflow.com/questions/20067508/… from Paul Burke

[aslamhossin]

MediaStore.Images.Media.DATA is depricated now and MediaStore.Images.Media._ID with contentWrapperUri always return relative uri not absolute Uri. That is the main problem for getting valid Uri and this Uri not return a valid file path and occurred FileNotFoundException.

[Michael Greifeneder]

Would you mind to elaborate what the KitKat code is doing? Does this require any new permission? The pre KitKat code works for me on KitKat, too. So why would I choose to use a different code for KitKat? Thanks.

[finder]

My old code refused to work on KitKat. I had to read the manual. Well, that new permissions are not required.

[user65721]

it seems we can't get path from new sdks uri. Also it is a shame google made this kind of change without proper documantation and announcement.

[Álvaro]

Could you explain how to get the file URL? I would like to obtain the real path in sdcard. For example, if it is a picture, I would like to obtain this path /storage/sdcard0/DCIM/Camera/IMG_20131118_153817_119.jpg instead of the document Uri.

[fattire]

To reply to myself with an even crazier thought-- if your app is already handling file:// intents from an external file picker, you could also check the authority, as in the example above to make sure it's from your custom provider, and if so you could also use the path to "forge" a new file:// intent using the path you extracted, then StartActivity() and let your app pick it up. I know, terrible.

[Colin M.]

Based on KitKat docs (developer.android.com/about/versions/…) this may not be what the OP needs unless he does intent to use/edit documents that are owned by the other application(s). If the OP wants a copy or to do things in a way consistent with older versions, the answer by @voytez would be more appropriate.

[Colin M.]

This answer contained the right information for my purposes. Conditionally using the ACTION_PICK and EXTERNAL_CONTENT_URI on KitKat provided the same ability to get meta-data about Images in the gallery via ContentResolver like is possible on older versions using simply ACTION_GET_CONTENT.

[Dan2552]

This isn't working for me with a Nexus 4 running Kitkat but it is with a Galaxy S3 running 4.1.2

[Josh]

This worked fantastically on a 4.4 Nexus 5 Documents UI and some other pref KitKat devices using the standard gallery apps, thanks Paul!

[RuAware]

Thanks for this, it's taken me ages to get this far with sdk 19!! My problem is that my device is using Google drive as file browser. If the file is on the device image path is got fine but if the file is on the drive it does not open. Maybe I just need to look at dealing with opening images from google drive. Thing is my app is written to use file path and get image using insampling...

[Michał Klimczak]

@Dan2552 which part is not working? Do you get any exception?

[Dan2552]

Turned out I was using the wrong intent call to the gallery. I was using one that was for any kind of documents, but with a file extension filter.

[Paul Burke]

@RuAware When you select a Drive file, it gives back Authority: com.google.android.apps.docs.storage and Segments: [document, acc=1;doc=667]. I'm not sure, but assume that the doc value is the Uri ID that you can query against. You'll likely need permissions to be set up as detailed in "Authorize your app on Android" here: developers.google.com/drive/integrate-android-ui. Please update here if you figure it out.

[RuAware]

Thanks, I thought if they chose to use the Drive it would do all the downloading etc. and just give me the file. As I wan't using it to upload. Seems a but odd to have to program for it. Thanks again

[Snake]

@voytez, Can this URI returned through your message converted to the full real path of the image?

[voytez]

I believe so, it should work just like before KitKat as this code forces opening image gallery instead of KK documents view. But if you intend to use it to create image then this solution is better as converting to real path is an extra unneccessary step.

[MBillau]

Hey, this so far has been working really well, thanks a lot! Did the Google Drive issue ever get sorted out?

[nagoya0]

This is not an answer to new Gallery app (strictly "Media Documents Provider" app) on KitKat.

[nagoya0]

The app that questioner calls "Gallery" is probably new file picker on kitkat. FYI: addictivetips.com/android/…

[Russell Stewart]

This isn't working for me. I get the following exception (on stock 4.4.2): E/AndroidRuntime(29204): Caused by: java.lang.SecurityException: Requested flags 0x1, but only 0x0 are allowed

[Abou-Emish]

i'm facing the same problem using File plugin the value is the id not the actual path, can i use the same solution? and tell me please how to call this method from file plugin class, it's urgent matter for me :(

[greaterKing]

pretty clever. i too needed the actual file uri

[treejanitor]

I like that your code is checkstyle compliant other than missing @return in the initial method javadoc (and a few other minor tidbits). Kudos, sir! Note that it appeared to require 4.4 also, so I marked it with the annotation @TargetApi(Build.VERSION_CODES.KITKAT) - oh and lastly, it is pleasing to note that someone other than myself uses "final" heavily. :-)

[lorenzo-s]

Worked for me too, instead of Intent.ACTION_GET_CONTENT. Anyway I kept the Intent.createChooser() wrapper on the new Intent, to let user choose the app for browsing, and worked as expected. Can someone see drawbacks for this solution?

[Dennis Anderson]

This solution works wonderfull ! thanks for that. @RuAware i'm wondering if the Google Drive problem has been fixed! I needed myself too :)

[j__m]

this is absolutely horrible! you should not continue to propagate code that "cheats" like this. it only supports the source apps that you know the pattern for, and the whole point of the document provider model is to support arbitrary sources

[Skywalker]

if data.getData() is null, use: bitmap = (Bitmap)data.getExtras().get("data");

[thomasforth]

What a beautifully simple answer, thank you! For others following this answer 'cxt' refers to the current context and will usually be 'this'.

[Michał Klimczak]

Thanks, I'll edit my answer so it's clear what cxt is

[Quantum_VC]

Where are you displaying the image in second case?

[saranya]

sorry i failed to add this line of code in else if mImgCropping.startCropImage(photoFile,AppConstants.REQUEST_I‌​MAGE_CROP); again need to call the imagecropping function as per my project need

[izac89]

By using if (isKitKat && DocumentsContract.isDocumentUri(context, uri)) are you assuming that if isKitKatis false, than DocumentsContract.isDocumentUri(context, uri) won't be checked (reasonable thinking) ? if so, then how can you be sure about that? if not, then shouldn't the if (isKitKat) be checked first, then if (DocumentsContract.isDocumentUri(context, uri)) ? @Paul Burke

[weiy]

Could you clarify if the ACTION_PICK / EXTERNAL_CONTENT_URI intent call works in pre-KitKat, such as 4.3 (API 18)?

[mishkin]

you are my hero, this is exactly what I needed! works great for Google Drive files as well

[rocknow]

Workaround for new Google Photos app gist.github.com/alexzaitsev/75c9b36dfcffd545c676

[Philip Herbert]

What file type is photoFile and mImgCropping?

[Carlo Moretti]

what if I need to pick an audio file?

[Anand Savjani]

@PaulBurke : How to get pdf or text file from google drive using this code ?Please help me as soon as possible

[Rafa]

forget the dumpImageMetaData(uri); it is unnecessary

[Alex Black]

This doesn't work for me, I get FileNotFoundException calling openInputStream on a LG Nexus 5 with Android 4.4.4 on a uri like this: content://com.android.providers.downloads.documents/document‌​/532

[Michał Klimczak]

This probably means that the file just isn't there. The URI seems OK.

[Neerkoli]

Think out of the box, right? :D This code works exactly like I was expecting.

[Code]

For a few of my users I am getting the path as null if the uri.getScheme() is content using this code. Any idea how to fix this @PaulBurke as it is a major bug in app?

[Yaroslav Mytkalyk]

@user2162550 consider if (a() && b()). In this case, if a is false, b will not be checked by JVM since there is no point checking for b -- result is already false.

[Lumii]

Hi, if I use the above code, together with a 3rd party file explorer, null will returned eventually. I was wondering, is this is shortcoming of the above code, or incorrect implementation of 3rd party file explorer app? Thanks - stackoverflow.com/q/34465905/72437

[YoungDinosaur]

I receive java.lang.IllegalArgumentException: None of the requested columns can be provided when selecting a Google Doc image

[Henry]

@dirkoneill I am getting the same Exception. Did you find a fix?

[jcromanu]

May 2016 and still working on marshmallow with a min target of api 15 .Great job

[Shruti]

Thank you so much, its working, you just made my day .

[Sudhir Singh Khanger]

>Get the value of the data column for this Uri. This is useful for MediaStore Uris, and other file-based ContentProviders. What is the purpose of getDataColumn? What does it do?

[Sudhir Singh Khanger]

>// TODO handle non-primary volumes. Does it work with external storage like external sd cards?

[Sudhir Singh Khanger]

Bitmap bitmap = MediaStore.Images.Media.getBitmap(getActivity().getContentRe‌​solver(), uri). What is wrong with this?

[jacksonakj]

Thank you. Using the Uri and ContentResolver this way simplified my application significantly when dealing with files.

[Osify]

I do similar and got IndexOutOfBound on Nexus 5X, Android 6 on this line: cursor.getString(idx);

[soshial]

The _data wouldn't work when ContentProvider doesn't support it. It is recommended to follow @CommonsWare instructions and not use full file path anymore, because it could be a file in Dropbox cloud instead of a real file.

[FaisalAhmed]

i was facing issue .... uri.getPath() was returning uri with /external and it was not returning path. i added this else if ("content".equalsIgnoreCase(uri.getScheme())) block and this works good now .. can u explain what does it do

[Marian Klühspies]

I had this in my app and now it breaks on Android 7+ nougat devices

[Thracian]

How can use this input to write EXIF data to image versions before Android 7.1. ? In Android 7.1 ExifInterface can use inputStream but in versions before that ExifInterface only takes String as an argument

[murt]

I got on Samsung s7, nougat. SecurityException: No persistable permission grants found for UID 10206 and Uri 0 @ content://com.android.providers.media.documents/document/ima‌​ge:958

[snark]

For anyone who's wondering the quote comes from developer.android.com/guide/topics/providers/…

[mikemike396]

Works perfect! Thank You

[karanatwal.github.io]

For those who are getting Error Unknown URI: content://downloads/public_downloads stackoverflow.com/a/53021624/5996106

[Bhavesh Moradiya]

filePath is getting null.. In uri: content://com.android.externalstorage.documents/document/799‌​B-1419%3AScreenshot%‌​2FScreenshot_2018111‌​7_162826.png

[Harvi Sirja]

I just want a working code of kotlin. It's work for me. thanks

[Bartek Pacia]

post the code for copyAndClose, the answer is not complete

[Ravi Vaniya]

Perfecto, Thx @Bringoff

[jagadishlakkurcom jagadishlakk]

Perefect Working

[KJEjava48]

@RuAware did u find any way to pick file from drive and upload it to server??

[KJEjava48]

@Paul Burke did u find any way to pick file from drive and upload it to server??

[KJEjava48]

@Dennis Anderson did u find any way to pick file from drive and upload it to server??