Use you android phone as todo-list dashboard

Published on 2/3/2024

In this article, we will set up an old Android device to be an always-on to-do list dashboard. If you have multiple devices, you can set them all up to create a synchronized to-do list dashboard network.

prerequisite

To make this work, you will need the following software:

Server

  • Nextcloud: A self-hosted cloud service. I will run this on an Openmediavault box using Docker. This article will not cover the setup of Nextcloud.
  • Nextcloud Tasks: A to-do list app for Nextcloud, where we will store all our to-do lists.

Android

Android version 6.0+ is required for the following apps:

  • F-Droid: An app store for downloading the other required apps on Android.
  • DAVx5: The software that syncs the to-do list from Nextcloud.
  • Task.org: We will use the widget from this app to display the to-do list.

That’s all we need

Before You Start

Please do not use a device that contains important information. If you must use such a device, make sure to back up all important data and wipe the device before setting this up. Now, let’s get started.

Nextcloud app password

After setting up Nextcloud and Nextcloud Tasks, create a to-do list in the Tasks app. Then, we need to generate an app password:

  • Go to Settings -> Security.
  • Scroll down to Devices & sessions.
  • In the App name field, type the name you want for the Android client (e.g., Android Todo).
  • The app password and a QR code will be generated. Do not hit the Done button yet, as we need this information for the next step.

Configure DAVx5

  • Open DAVx5 and tap the plus (+) button.
  • Select the URL and username option.
  • In the URL field, type the URL of your Nextcloud instance followed by /remote.php/dav. For example, if your Nextcloud instance is https://nextcloud.example.com, the URL should be https://nextcloud.example.com/remote.php/dav.
  • Enter your Nextcloud account username and the app password you just generated.
  • If everything is correct, you should log in successfully. In the CalDAV section, enable the to-do list you created in Nextcloud Tasks.
  • Grant DAVx5 permission to access Task.org so that updates fetched from Nextcloud Tasks can be pushed to Task.org.
  • Once this is done, you can click Done on the Nextcloud security page.

Tasks.org widget

Next, add a widget to the home screen:

  • Drag the Task.org widget to the home screen.
  • In the settings that appear, go to the Filter option.
  • Select the item that matches the name of your to-do list in Nextcloud Tasks.
  • Keep the rest of the settings at their default values.

Some android settings

To make our Android device always on:

  • Go to Settings -> About phone.
  • Tap Build number multiple times until Developer Options are enabled.
  • Go to Developer options and turn on Stay Awake.
  • Additionally, disable the screen lock:
    • Go to Settings -> Security.
    • In Screen lock, select None.

And that’s it! You can repeat this process on your other devices to create a synchronized to-do list dashboard network.

Tags:
DAVx5
Nextcloud
Android