scrcpy/README.md
Romain Vimont 8c8649cfcd Remove "turn device screen on" feature
Only keep "turn device screen off" and POWER button.

After we turn the device screen off (with Ctrl+o), turning it back on
does not always work, and leaves the device in a weird state, where even
the power button may not be sufficient:
<https://github.com/Genymobile/scrcpy/issues/175#issuecomment-497946596>

This is not an acceptable behavior, so disable the shortcut to turn the
physical device screen on. We can use the POWER button (or Ctrl+p)
instead.
2019-06-03 11:44:39 +02:00

9.5 KiB
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scrcpy (v1.8)

This application provides display and control of Android devices connected on USB (or over TCP/IP). It does not require any root access. It works on GNU/Linux, Windows and MacOS.

screenshot

Requirements

The Android part requires at least API 21 (Android 5.0).

Make sure you enabled adb debugging on your device(s).

On some devices, you also need to enable an additional option to control it using keyboard and mouse.

Get the app

Linux

On Linux, you typically need to build the app manually. Don't worry, it's not that hard.

For Arch Linux, an AUR package is available: scrcpy.

For Gentoo, an Ebuild is available: scrcpy/.

Windows

For Windows, for simplicity, prebuilt archives with all the dependencies (including adb) are available:

You can also build the app manually.

Mac OS

The application is available in Homebrew. Just install it:

brew install scrcpy

You need adb, accessible from your PATH. If you don't have it yet:

brew cask install android-platform-tools

You can also build the app manually.

Run

Plug an Android device, and execute:

scrcpy

It accepts command-line arguments, listed by:

scrcpy --help

Features

Reduce size

Sometimes, it is useful to mirror an Android device at a lower definition to increase performances.

To limit both width and height to some value (e.g. 1024):

scrcpy --max-size 1024
scrcpy -m 1024  # short version

The other dimension is computed to that the device aspect-ratio is preserved. That way, a device in 1920×1080 will be mirrored at 1024×576.

Change bit-rate

The default bit-rate is 8Mbps. To change the video bitrate (e.g. to 2Mbps):

scrcpy --bit-rate 2M
scrcpy -b 2M  # short version

Crop

The device screen may be cropped to mirror only part of the screen.

This is useful for example to mirror only 1 eye of the Oculus Go:

scrcpy --crop 1224:1440:0:0   # 1224x1440 at offset (0,0)
scrcpy -c 1224:1440:0:0       # short version

If --max-size is also specified, resizing is applied after cropping.

Wireless

Scrcpy uses adb to communicate with the device, and adb can connect to a device over TCP/IP:

  1. Connect the device to the same Wi-Fi as your computer.
  2. Get your device IP address (in Settings → About phone → Status).
  3. Enable adb over TCP/IP on your device: adb tcpip 5555.
  4. Unplug your device.
  5. Connect to your device: adb connect DEVICE_IP:5555 (replace DEVICE_IP).
  6. Run scrcpy as usual.

It may be useful to decrease the bit-rate and the definition:

scrcpy --bit-rate 2M --max-size 800
scrcpy -b2M -m800  # short version

Record screen

It is possible to record the screen while mirroring:

scrcpy --record file.mp4
scrcpy -r file.mkv

To disable mirroring while recording:

scrcpy --no-display --record file.mp4
scrcpy -Nr file.mkv
# interrupt recording with Ctrl+C
# Ctrl+C does not terminate properly on Windows, so disconnect the device

"Skipped frames" are recorded, even if they are not displayed in real time (for performance reasons). Frames are timestamped on the device, so packet delay variation does not impact the recorded file.

Multi-devices

If several devices are listed in adb devices, you must specify the serial:

scrcpy --serial 0123456789abcdef
scrcpy -s 0123456789abcdef  # short version

You can start several instances of scrcpy for several devices.

Fullscreen

The app may be started directly in fullscreen:

scrcpy --fullscreen
scrcpy -f  # short version

Fullscreen can then be toggled dynamically with Ctrl+f.

Always on top

The window of app can always be above others by:

scrcpy --always-on-top
scrcpy -T  # short version

Show touches

For presentations, it may be useful to show physical touches (on the physical device).

Android provides this feature in Developers options.

Scrcpy provides an option to enable this feature on start and disable on exit:

scrcpy --show-touches
scrcpy -t

Note that it only shows physical touches (with the finger on the device).

Install APK

To install an APK, drag & drop an APK file (ending with .apk) to the scrcpy window.

There is no visual feedback, a log is printed to the console.

Push file to device

To push a file to /sdcard/ on the device, drag & drop a (non-APK) file to the scrcpy window.

There is no visual feedback, a log is printed to the console.

Read-only

To disable controls (everything which can interact with the device: input keys, mouse events, drag&drop files):

scrcpy --no-control
scrcpy -n

Forward audio

Audio is not forwarded by scrcpy.

There is a limited solution using AOA, implemented in the audio branch. If you are interested, see issue 14.

Shortcuts

Action Shortcut
switch fullscreen mode Ctrl+f
resize window to 1:1 (pixel-perfect) Ctrl+g
resize window to remove black borders Ctrl+x | Double-click¹
click on HOME Ctrl+h | Middle-click
click on BACK Ctrl+b | Right-click²
click on APP_SWITCH Ctrl+s
click on MENU Ctrl+m
click on VOLUME_UP Ctrl+ (up) (Cmd+ on MacOS)
click on VOLUME_DOWN Ctrl+ (down) (Cmd+ on MacOS)
click on POWER Ctrl+p
power on Right-click²
turn device screen off (keep mirroring) Ctrl+o
expand notification panel Ctrl+n
collapse notification panel Ctrl+Shift+n
copy device clipboard to computer Ctrl+c
paste computer clipboard to device Ctrl+v
copy computer clipboard to device Ctrl+Shift+v`
enable/disable FPS counter (on stdout) Ctrl+i

¹Double-click on black borders to remove them.
²Right-click turns the screen on if it was off, presses BACK otherwise.

Custom paths

To use a specific adb binary, configure its path in the environment variable ADB:

ADB=/path/to/adb scrcpy

To override the path of the scrcpy-server.jar file (it can be useful on Windows), configure its path in SCRCPY_SERVER_PATH.

Why scrcpy?

A colleague challenged me to find a name as unpronounceable as gnirehtet.

strcpy copies a string; scrcpy copies a screen.

How to build?

See BUILD.

Common issues

See the FAQ.

Developers

Read the developers page.

Licence

Copyright (C) 2018 Genymobile

Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
You may obtain a copy of the License at

    http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0

Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
limitations under the License.

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