this post was submitted on 25 Sep 2025
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Privacy
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That's how my GrapheneOS phone is zero proprietary apps in the main profile and then my own separate Google profile. Essentially get to carry two cell phones with one device.
I nave ho learn how ho do these two profile things. How do u switch between them, and IS it on the fly?
Pull down your notification bar twice. In other words expand it all the way. There is a small person Inside of a circle icon. That is how you can select the other profile. It's super fast and easy.
Then when you are done inside the profile. Hold the power button and select "Lock Out" and this will completely close down the second profile and put you back in the Main profile with the other completely shut down.
Downside is you wont get notifications in one area or the other from the opposing profile when it's not in use.
An alternative that is pretty secure too instead of profiles is to do the same thing in Private Space. This is found in the settings under the Security tab. This WILL get notifications to your main profile and when you shut down Private Space all apps stop completely including Play Services. But it's not as isolated as profiles
Wow, this is impressive. I had heard about profiles but never got into the detail and never really understood the benefit. So, a cool way of using this it to have a FOSS only space under the main admin profile and the build up a second "big brother" profile where I stack some annoying apps that in a way or another I'm forced to use like banking app and what's app. When the "big brother" profile is shut down, nobody tracks you. Would that be correct? If this is true I'm here asking myself why on earth people are not harnessing this more.
Yes, when you google profile is shut down.... It is completely isolated. You could install an application that is 100℅ malware and it would be completely closed down the moment you lock down that profile.
If you need what's app, I would either check your side profile a few times a day for messages OR you can stick What's App on the Private Space area of your FOSS profile so that it's Super easy to check. Private space works the same way in that when it's shut down..... The apps are 100℅ turned off including Play Services.
What does maintaining a separate profile for Google stuff buy you? I'm familiar with GrapheneOS, but haven't internalized the separate profile thing yet.
It keeps Google 100℅ seperate or vice versa.
Then when it's locked down it shuts down play services and apps to complete non functionality.
Go into system and create a new user. Set up that user exactly like you would a standard smart phone. And any apps you have on your main profile completely open source. That way it's 100℅ Google free
Got that part, but what throws me is, in order to install a Google app on that secondary "google" profile, don't you have to first install the Google app on the main profile so that you can then push it to the secondary profile?
No.... You just install the play store and play services on profile #2 via the Graphene app store.
Oh, I see. I must've misread a tutorial at some point then. I did not realize one could install an app directly into profile #2, I thought root had all the apps and then specific apps had to be pushed to the other profiles. Thanks for clarifying that.
There is a guy in YouTube who does this. Side of Burritos? He has Google play on his main profile and then has a degoogled account for the second profile and transfers all the play store apps to the second profile. (Essentially making it his main).
I don't do that for battery purposes.