If you have an Oculus Quest and wish to install external.apk files (standard android extension) such as games and programs from Sidequest, you must first connect your PC to your Oculus Quest. To do so, you must first understand the Oculus Adb drivers and how you can install them.
Because the Oculus Quest is an Android device, the Android Debug Bridge (Adb) is included in the Android SDK (software development kit) and is the primary tool used to connect with an Android device for debugging. The drivers provide a link between your Oculus Quest and your PC, allowing you to install any games or programs that are available in.apk format.
In this article, I will show you how to install the Oculus ADB drivers on your PC and what it’s used for.
What Are Oculus Adb Drivers?
Oculus ADB (Android Debug Bridge) drivers are essential for using Oculus devices and other virtual reality devices. They allow you to connect your device to your computer so that you can download and install updates, manage files, and more.
When you launch an adb client, it first checks to see if an adb server process is already active. If there isn’t, the server procedure is started. When the server starts, it binds to local TCP port 5037 and listens for commands delivered by adb clients—all adb clients communicate with the adb server via port 5037.
The server then establishes connections to all active devices. It looks for emulators by scanning odd-numbered ports in the 5555 to 5585 range, which is used by the first 16 emulators. When the server discovers an adb daemon (adbd), it establishes a connection to that port.
Once the server has established connections to all devices, you can access them using adb commands. You can control any device from any client since the server manages device connections and handles commands from numerous adb clients (or from a script).
The adb command allows you to perform a range of device operations, including installing and debugging apps, and it gives you access to a Unix shell from which you can run a variety of commands on a device.
READ MORE! How Do You Factory Reset Your Meta Quest 2? (Solved!)
How To Install Oculus Adb Drivers?
To start, download and install the Oculus ADB drivers on your PC.
- Download the Oculus Adb Drivers from Oculus.com
- Extract the drivers to a folder on your computer
- Open the folder where the drivers are located
- Then, on the “Android_WinUSB.inf” file, right-click and select install.
- If prompted, click on “Allow” to allow Oculus to access your computer’s USB ports
- Click on “Start” to begin the installation
- Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation
Note that you need admin rights to install the drivers.
READ MORE! 18 Tips & Tricks For Oculus Quest 2 (You Need To Know!)
How To Uninstall Oculus ADB drivers
If you need to uninstall Oculus Adb drivers, there are a few different ways to do so. You can use the Windows Uninstaller, the Mac App Store, or the Oculus Adb Driver Removal Tool.
1. Open Device Manager by clicking on the Start button, typing “devmgmt.msc” in the search box, and pressing Enter.
2. In the Device Manager window, locate and click on the “Android ADB Interface” device.
3. Right-click on the Android ADB Interface device and select “Uninstall.“
4. Click on the “Yes” button when prompted to remove Android ADB Interface from your computer.
How To Use Oculus Adb Drivers?
To use adb with a USB-connected device, enable USB debugging in the device’s system settings, under Developer options.
The Developer options screen is disabled by default on Android 4.2 and higher. Go to Settings > About phone and touch Build number seven times to make it visible. Return to the previous screen and scroll down to see Developer settings.
The Developer choices panel may be located or called differently on particular devices.
Once installed, you’ll be able to access all of your device’s features, including downloading and installing games.
Make sure ADB is installed and type “adb help” to see a list of available commands and parameters.
Connect to a Device Using ADB
It is possible to connect to and communicate with an Android device from the OS shell, either directly through USB or via TCP/IP over a Wi-Fi connection.
To connect a device through USB, plug it into the PC using a USB cable that is compatible with the device. After connecting, launch an OS shell and type “adb devices” into it.
If the device is correctly connected, ADB will display a device id list, such as “List of devices attached,” along with the device’s parameters.
If no device is discovered, ADB cannot be used. If your device isn’t displayed, the most likely issue is that you didn’t install the proper USB driver (see Oculus ADB Drivers). Changing to a different USB cable and/or port can occasionally alleviate connectivity problems.
ADB Can Be Used To Install Applications
Connect to the target device and verify the connection using ADB devices, as explained previously, install an APK on your mobile device using ADB. Then, use the command “adb install apk-path>” to install the APK.
Overwrite an existing APK of the same name on the target device by using the -r option. “adb install -r C:DevAndroidMyProjectVrApp.apk” is an example.
See the Installing an Application part of Android’s Android Debug Bridge documentation for further details.
Troubleshooting The Connection
It should be noted that, depending on the device, detection can be finicky at times. Connecting when a VR app is active or ADB is waiting for a device, in particular, may prevent the device from being properly identified on some devices.
In those circumstances, use Ctrl-C to exit the app and terminate ADB before reconnecting the device.
Alternatively, the ADB service can be killed with the following command, after which it will be restarted automatically when the next command is executed: “adb kill-server”
FAQs about Oculus ADB Drivers & Installation
Q: What are Oculus ADB drivers?
Q: Why do I need to install Oculus ADB drivers?
Q: How do I install Oculus ADB drivers?
- Connect your Oculus device to your computer using a USB cable.
- Visit the official Oculus website and download the Oculus ADB drivers for your operating system.
- Extract the downloaded ZIP file to a convenient location on your computer.
- Open the extracted folder and run the installer executable file.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation process.
Q: Where can I download Oculus ADB drivers?
Q: Do I need to update Oculus ADB drivers?
Conclusion
The Oculus Quest is an Android device that includes the Android Debug Bridge (ADB) which is used to connect with a PC for debugging purposes. The drivers provide a link between the Oculus Quest and your PC, allowing you to install any games or programs that are available in apk format.
Espen
Espen is the Director of PursuitMeta and has written extensively about Virtual Reality and VR Headsets for years. He is a consumer product expert and has personally tested VR Headsets for the last decade.
Leave a Reply