Until now, the Corona-Warn-App did not run on smartphones without GMS (Google Mobile Services), but now there is a version for these devices, too. Now, users of a Huawei smartphone can download and use the app for themselves.
No more detours
We don’t have the government to thank for the version for Huawei’s smartphones. Up to now, the app could only be run on Huawei cell phones via detours, but volunteer developers have taken up the cause. The developers are supporters of the non-profit association Free Software Fouundation Europe (FSFE). They have made it their business to make the Corona Warning App available to a wider audience. Thanks to the developers, a version for all mobile devices without GMS is now available. The Android version of the software is available in version 1.7.1.2 at Open Source Store F-Droid.
GMS and HMS
In order to use the Corona-Warn-App on an Android device, the Google Play Service is required as part of the GMS (Google Mobile Services). Without this service it simply does not work. Most manufacturers have the mentioned license. But there are also manufacturers who do not have it, like Huawei. Devices built in 2019 or later will only have the HMS, i.e. Huawei Mobile Services. So it is not so easy to install everything on the devices of the Chinese manufacturer. Until now, if a user wanted to use the Corona-Warn-App on his device, he had to make unauthorized interventions in the software.
Criticism to RKI and the government
Therefore, the developers of Free Software Fouundation Europe criticized the actions of the government and the Robert Koch Institute. In September of this year, developer Marvin Wißfeld already enabled the use of the Corona apps with microG, a free implementation of GMS. In cooperation with Christian Grigis, Fynn Godau and Marcus Hoffmann, he then achieved a breakthrough with the standalone version of the Corona-Warning-App. The required microG component was integrated into the fork. This eliminates the need to download the interface collection. The main developer Marvin Wißfeld is very disappointed about the actions of the government and the RKI. In his opinion, “the government and the RKI may have lost thousands of users of the Corona-Warn-App in the last months, because only Google and Apple users were targeted”. The new and independent app should now also run smoothly on all new Huawei devices.
