Turn on Location Providers Programmatically in Android

Question

Is it possible to turn on LocationProviders(GPS Provider/Network Providers) on Device programatically, if it is turned off?

Answer 1

No, it is not, but you can open the Location services settings window:

context.startActivity(new Intent(Settings.ACTION_LOCATION_SOURCE_SETTINGS));

Answer 2

Use the following code to start GPS

locationManager = ( LocationManager ) getSystemService ( Context.LOCATION_SERVICE );
locationListener = new LocationListener();
locationManager.requestLocationUpdates ( LocationManager.GPS_PROVIDER, 0, 0, locationListener );

and the following code to stop GPS

locationManager.removeUpdates( locationListener );

For further details see the documentations for LocationManager and for LocationListener.

Answer 3

private void turnGPSOn(){
String provider = Settings.Secure.getString(getContentResolver(), Settings.Secure.LOCATION_PROVIDERS_ALLOWED);

if(!provider.contains("gps")){ //if gps is disabled
    final Intent poke = new Intent();
    poke.setClassName("com.android.settings", "com.android.settings.widget.SettingsAppWidgetProvider"); 
    poke.addCategory(Intent.CATEGORY_ALTERNATIVE);
    poke.setData(Uri.parse("3")); 
    sendBroadcast(poke);
}
}

But this code support only upto APK 8.

Answer 4

With recent Marshmallow update, even when the Location setting is turned on, your app will require to explicitly ask for permission. The recommended way to do this is to show the Permissions section of your app wherein the user can toggle the permission as required. The code snippet for doing this is as below:

if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.M) {
    
    if (this.checkSelfPermission(Manifest.permission.ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION) != PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED) {
    
        final AlertDialog.Builder builder = new AlertDialog.Builder(this);
        builder.setTitle("Location Permission");
        builder.setMessage("The app needs location permissions. Please grant this permission to continue using the features of the app.");
        builder.setPositiveButton(android.R.string.yes, new DialogInterface.OnClickListener() {
            @Override
            public void onClick(DialogInterface dialogInterface, int i) {
                requestPermissions(new String[]{Manifest.permission.ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION}, PERMISSION_REQUEST_COARSE_LOCATION);
    
            }
        });
        builder.setNegativeButton(android.R.string.no, null);
        builder.show();
    }
} else {
    LocationManager locationManager = (LocationManager) getSystemService(Context.LOCATION_SERVICE);
    boolean isGpsProviderEnabled, isNetworkProviderEnabled;
    isGpsProviderEnabled = locationManager.isProviderEnabled(LocationManager.GPS_PROVIDER);
    isNetworkProviderEnabled = locationManager.isProviderEnabled(LocationManager.NETWORK_PROVIDER);

    if(!isGpsProviderEnabled && !isNetworkProviderEnabled) {
        final AlertDialog.Builder builder = new AlertDialog.Builder(this);
        builder.setTitle("Location Permission");
        builder.setMessage("The app needs location permissions. Please grant this permission to continue using the features of the app.");
        builder.setPositiveButton(android.R.string.yes, new DialogInterface.OnClickListener() {
            @Override
            public void onClick(DialogInterface dialogInterface, int i) {
                Intent intent = new Intent(Settings.ACTION_LOCATION_SOURCE_SETTINGS);
                startActivity(intent);
            }
        });
        builder.setNegativeButton(android.R.string.no, null);
        builder.show();
    }
}

And override the onRequestPermissionsResult method as below:

@Override
public void onRequestPermissionsResult(int requestCode, String permissions[], int[] grantResults) {
    switch (requestCode) {
        case PERMISSION_REQUEST_COARSE_LOCATION: {
            if (grantResults[0] == PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED) {
                Log.d(TAG, "coarse location permission granted");
            } else {
                Intent intent = new Intent();
                intent.setAction(Settings.ACTION_APPLICATION_DETAILS_SETTINGS);
                Uri uri = Uri.fromParts("package", getPackageName(), null);
                intent.setData(uri);
                startActivity(intent);
            }
        }
    }
}

Another approach is you can also use the SettingsApi to inquire which location provider(s) are enabled. If none is enabled, you can prompt a dialog to change the setting from within the app.

Answer 5

Yes but you have to be a Super User (sudo), Your device must be rooted.

Answer 6

Enabling Location with mode High Accuracy or Battery saving without user needing to visit Settings

https://android-developers.googleblog.com/2015/03/google-play-services-70-places-everyone.html