adb-shell

Start a remote interactive shell on the emulator or device

$ adb shell

$ adb shell getprop

$ adb shell pm reset-permissions

$ adb shell pm revoke [package] [permission]

$ adb shell input keyevent [keycode]

$ adb shell pm clear [package]

$ adb shell am start -n [package]/[activity]

$ adb shell am start -W -c android.intent.category.HOME -a android.intent.action.MAIN

adb shell [options] [shellCommand]

-s
    Target specific device by serial number

-d
    Use USB-connected device only

-e
    Use TCP/IP-connected device only

-t
    Target specific transport ID


    Command to execute remotely (interactive shell if omitted)

The adb shell command is part of the Android Debug Bridge (ADB) toolset, allowing users to execute shell commands on a connected Android device or emulator from a host computer. ADB facilitates communication between a development machine and Android devices over USB or TCP/IP.

When invoked without arguments, adb shell launches an interactive shell session on the device, similar to a remote terminal. This enables navigation of the device's filesystem, running commands like ls, ps, or top, and performing administrative tasks.

Specifying a command after adb shell, such as adb shell ls /sdcard, executes that single command remotely and returns the output to the host. This is ideal for scripting and automation.

Key prerequisites include enabling USB debugging on the device (via Developer Options), installing ADB from the Android SDK Platform-Tools, and authorizing the host computer. Multiple devices are supported via the -s option. Security features like root access restrictions apply on production devices; custom recoveries like TWRP may offer elevated privileges.

Common use cases span debugging apps, inspecting logs, file management, and system diagnostics. Output mirrors the device's shell environment, typically based on Toybox or BusyBox.