From Symbian Developer Community

There are several ways to get an application to the phone. In our technology tutorials and elsewhere in documentation, we often say "transfer to phone" or "install on the phone" but the process is usually not described in detail. Most developers know how to do it (because after the first time it's easy!) but if you are new to the platform here is a bit of help. Even if you have done it before you might learn something new from this page.

You only need one of the methods listed on this page but it's useful to know about the others in case your circumstances change - e.g. desktop operating system (Windows/Linux/OSX), availability of USB cable, memory card reader, bluetooth or network connection.

Each method requires that a file or files be copied onto the phone from your PC so in each case a transfer mechanism must be available.

Contents 1 PC connectivity software 2 Memory card 3 USB 4 Bluetooth 4.1 Install bluetooth drivers 4.2 Search for devices 4.3 Pairing 4.4 Transferring a single file 4.5 Browsing your phone's file systems via OBEX 4.6 Using PC suite over Bluetooth 5 Email 6 Installing from the Web 6.1 QR Codes

PC connectivity software

All Symbian phones come with a "connectivity suite" (PC suite) - typically native a PC application that provides an easy user interface for copying files to and from the phone, backing up your data and installing applications. When you use PC suite to install and application it does all of the copying and installation automatically. The other methods require separate copy and installation stages.

You first need to install PC suite from either the CD that was provided with the phone or the manufacturer's web site.

Once the connectivity software is installed:

• Connect your phone via USB.
• Select "PC Suite" on your phone (Figure 1)
• On your PC, click the Install Applications icon (Figure 2) and follow the on-screen instructions

You may also be able to use PC suite over Bluetooth. Follow the instructions for Bluetooth pairing below.

Memory card

For this method you require a memory card and a suitable card reader for your PC. It is very straightforward, however, and does not require special configuration or extra software. You simply copy the your file(s) onto the memory card and physically transfer it between the PC and the phone.

Remove the memory card from the phone and connect it to your computer. The card appears as an extra drive on the PC. Copy the file(s) onto the memory card, making sure you copy into the '"Others"' folder. Finally, safely disconnect the card using the mechanism provided by your operating system.

You can now plug the card into your phone and proceed with the installation as follows:

1. On your phone, open File Manager
   1. File Manager can be found in the Applications menu on most phones.
   2. On business phones (e.g. E series), File Manager is usually in the Office menu
2. Open mass media, usually E drive on your phone, then open the Other folder.
3. Find the file you just transferred and open it. This will start the installation process.

File manager

'Other' directory on mass media

Open the file to start installation

For troubleshooting installation issues, see Troubleshooting Installation Errors.

USB

This is a fairly straightforward way of transferring files. The phone appears as an external disk when connected to your computer via USB.

Here are the steps:

1. On your PC right click on the file you want to upload (typically SIS, SISx, JAR or WGZ file) and select Copy
2. Connect your phone to the computer using a USB cable. Your phone will display a dialog (Figure 1). Select Mass media.
3. The phone's mass media should appear as a removable disk in your file manager (Figure 2). In this example, the OS has assigned drive letter H: to the phone.
4. Right click on H:\Others in your file manager, and select Paste
5. Safely disconnect the phone - see Figure 3.

Figure 1 USB Connection menu

Figure 2 Phone appears as a removable drive

Figure 3 Safely disconnect the phone

You can now proceed with installation as follows:

1. On your phone, open File Manager
   1. File Manager can be found in the Applications menu on most phones.
   2. On business phones (e.g. E series), File Manager is usually in the Office menu
2. Open mass media, usually E drive on your phone, then open the Other folder.
3. Find the file you just transferred and open it. This starts the installation process.

Figure 4. File manager

Figure 5. 'Other' directory on mass media

Figure 6. Open the file to start installation

For troubleshooting installation issues, see Troubleshooting Installation Errors.

Bluetooth

Install bluetooth drivers

You must have a Bluetooth device installed on your PC. Bluetooth devices from different manufacturers have considerably different user interfaces so please refer to manufacturer's web site if you need help setting it up.

Search for devices

You must establish a Bluetooth connection between your PC and your phone. Make sure that your phone is visible using the Bluetooth application on the phone (normally under Connectivit on the main menu). Use your PC's Bluetooth application to search for devices. The search may take a few minutes. Your phone should appear on the list of devices.

Pairing

Whilst you can complete the transfer without pairing your PC and your phone, pairing allows you to transfer files without having to enter a password every time.

Pairing is a very common function and should be easy to find in the menus. For example, in the HP bluetooth (WIDCOMM) drivers, you can right click on a device in the device list and select 'Pair device'.

Transferring a single file

Once your desktop and phone are paired you can drag-and-drop files onto the OBEX File Transfer on <phone-name> icon or send them to your phone by right-clicking and selecting Send To.

Files uploaded this way arrive on the phone as messages in the Messaging application. When you open the message the installation starts.

Browsing your phone's file systems via OBEX

You can access the phone file systems and copy multiple files or whole directory hierarchies by using OBEX file transfer. In our HP client software (WIDCOMM driver) we simply double click on the OBEX File Transfer.

Using PC suite over Bluetooth

You can use the install functionality of PC suite over Bluetooth. Follow the instructions in your PC suite to connect to your phone. Use the Install Applications icon to install your application.

Email

If you have email configured on your phone, sending the file via email is very simple way to get the files over to the phone. Once the email is received on the phone, open the email and then open the file attachment to start the installation.

Installing from the Web

Installation can also be done from the phone's web browser. Before starting, however, check that your web server MIME type list is up to date. Ensure the following MIME types are correctly sent:

File type	Extension	Content type
Symbian Installation System file	sis	application/vnd.symbian.install
Symbian Installation System file	sisx	application/octet-stream
Java archive	jar	application/java-archive
Java Application Descriptor	jad	text/vnd.sun.j2me.app-descriptor
Web Runtime Widget archive	wgz	application/x-nokia-widget

To install a file from a web server, follow these steps:

1. If you are installing your own app, upload the file to your web server (e.g. so that it is accessible via http://www.myhost.com/apps/test.sis)
2. Open the Web browser on the phone and select "Go to web address" (this option is sometimes in the "Navigation options" sub-menu).
3. Type in the URL and select OK. This will start the download.
   1. If you have previously downloaded from the same address, the file may be cached by your browser. You can either clear cache before downloading or modify the URL slightly, for example http://www.myhost.com/apps/test.sis?nocache=123.
   2. You can save the address as a bookmark to avoid having to type URL every time
4. Once app is downloaded, follow the on-screen prompts.

QR Codes

QR Codes are similar to barcods and can be used to avoid entering URLs into phones. Many phones have built-in barcode readers which use the camera. You can use a QR code generator to encode information, such as a URL for a download, into a QR code. Here is one for geotagging.

This QR code generator was used to create this QR code which provides a URL to download a widget. To read it, use Nokia's barcode reader which is built into the device software.

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