Tasker Api 29 · Trusted
Embrace the Document Tree. Learn to love the Tasker folder. Use intents like a poet. And when all else fails, remember the ADB hack exists.
The good news is that Tasker is still the most powerful automation app on Android. You just have to work with the new rules, not against them.
API 29 was a wake-up call. But Tasker survived. And so will your automations.
When Tasker (or any app) targets API 29, it must obey all the new privacy and security rules of Android 10. If an app still targets an older API (like 28), it can use the old, permissive file system. tasker api 29
If you’ve been a Tasker user for more than a year, you’ve probably seen the dreaded phrase pop up in forums, Reddit threads, and error logs: API 29 .
The red errors in the Tasker log feel personal. They feel like Google telling you that you don't own your phone.
But fear not. We are going to break down exactly what API 29 means, why it happened, how it affects Tasker, and—most importantly—how to fix your broken tasks for good. Embrace the Document Tree
Instead of using raw file paths ( /sdcard/Folder/file.txt ), you can use . You grant Tasker permission to a specific folder (like a tree), and Tasker can then read/write anywhere inside that tree.
A Tasker user since 2012, owner of over 200 profiles, and survivor of the great API 29 migration of 2020.
Have a specific API 29 issue I didn't cover? Drop a comment below or head to the official Tasker Google Groups. João reads every post. And when all else fails, remember the ADB hack exists
So why did this become a Tasker nightmare? Because . João Dias (Tasker’s developer) had no choice. He had to update Tasker to target Android 10, and with that came Scoped Storage . Part 2: The Villain – Scoped Storage Before Android 10, Tasker had free rein over your storage. It could read, write, delete, and modify any file in /sdcard/ (your internal storage). Want to delete a stray MP3 in your Music folder? Easy. Want to modify a JSON file in a game's data directory? No problem.
Google heavily discourages this for store-distributed apps. It works, but you must do it manually every time you reinstall Tasker.
Hard crash. You cannot write to WhatsApp's private directory. 3. The Bulk File Lister You used List Files on /sdcard/Android/data/ to see what game savedata you had.
Permission denied if the destination wasn't a Tasker-owned folder. 2. The Cross-App Data Mover You used Tasker to move a downloaded PDF from Download/ into a specific app's folder (e.g., /sdcard/WhatsApp/Media/WhatsApp Documents/ ).
Partial success at best, constant permission popups at worst. Part 4: The Good News – Tasker’s Workarounds João is a wizard. Within weeks of the API 29 requirement, he implemented several powerful workarounds. You don't have to abandon Tasker; you just have to adapt your methods . Workaround #1: The "Use Document Tree" Mode (SAF) The most important feature you need to know: Storage Access Framework (SAF) .