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ReteGet

File and APK downloader with its own TLS 1.3, for Android 2.3 and newer
New in version 0.6.0
New: Browse server folders over SFTP, FTP, FTPS and http(s) (WebDAV or an index page); check files and folders and download them, folders with their subfolders; Latest can look in SFTP and FTP folders. New: an https download redirected to plain http asks first. Better: the status line follows the newest download and says when storage permission was refused; GitHub rate limits are named; remaining English texts translated.
ReteGet downloads files and APKs straight onto old Android phones and tablets — Android 2.3 and newer — without a computer, ADB or an app store.

Old phones are cut off from most of the web. Android 2.3 has no TLS 1.2 at all, and Android 4.1 devices such as the Galaxy Note 2 fail against modern servers with "SSLv3 alert handshake failure". So ReteGet carries its own TLS client, written in plain Java: TLS 1.3 (X25519 or P-256, AES-128-GCM, ECDSA and RSA-PSS server signatures), and TLS 1.2 only for servers without TLS 1.3, with downgrade protection. Because Android 2.3 cannot verify ECDSA certificates such as GitHub's, the app also parses X.509 certificates and validates the chain itself, against the system and the bundled root certificates, and always checks the host name. The system TLS is tried first; the built-in engine takes over when it fails, or always, if you tick the option.

Features

* Download queue at the top of the screen: one download at a time, with the file name, state, URL and a progress bar for each entry. Failed downloads say why and can be retried; finished APKs can be installed from the list. Select all / Delete selected. The list survives closing the app.
* URL templates: a URL such as .../download/v{1}/app-{1}.apk shows a small field for {1}, so an update is just a new version number.
* Presets with names, including the rete series (ReteGet, ReteClock, ReteKey) with their expected checksums and signing keys filled in. Use, Edit, Up, Dn and Del on each preset.
* Latest: a preset can name an index page (a directory listing, or GitHub's releases API); Latest downloads the newest file there that fits the preset URL, in Windows Explorer order (0.3.10 after 0.3.9). The rete presets come with it.
* Checksum check: SHA-256, SHA-1, MD5 and SHA-512, pasted as a bare hash or a sha256sum line.
* APK signing-key check: warns when an APK is signed by a different key than the installed app or the last download of it.
* Installs APKs with the system installer; for an upgrade with the same signing key and a newer version it opens the installer right away, and you confirm there.
* HTTP, HTTPS, passive FTP, FTPS (ftpes://, ftps://) and SFTP.
* FTPS with its own TLS, reusing the TLS session on the data connection as servers require; a self-signed certificate is confirmed by fingerprint once and then pinned.
* SFTP with its own SSH-2 client (works on Android 2.3): the server's host key fingerprint is confirmed on first use and a changed key is refused; log in with a password or with a key generated on the phone or imported from OpenSSH (Ed25519, RSA), chosen per address or preset. Keys with a passphrase stay encrypted on the phone.
* Browse server folders over SFTP, FTP, FTPS and http(s) (WebDAV or an index page): check files and folders and download them, folders with their subfolders.
* An https download that the server redirects to plain http stops and asks first.
* Broken HTTP downloads continue where they stopped (Range with If-Range): automatically up to three times, and with Retry, also after the app was closed.
* Password-protected servers: http://user:password@host/path, answered with Digest (SHA-256, MD5) or Basic only when the server asks, and only to that address. Passwords are shown as *** and left out of settings exports.
* Settings export and import (presets, options, signing keys) as a plain text file in the subset of INI and TOML that both read the same way, or through the clipboard.
* Saves to the system Download folder; when shared storage is unavailable, to the app's own storage, from where APKs can still be installed.
* Paste and Clear buttons for the URL and the checksum.

Small and self-contained: plain Java and the Android framework, no third-party libraries, a single dex file, built without Gradle.

The option to allow unverified certificates exists for home servers with self-signed certificates; leave it off otherwise.

Versions

Although APK downloads are available below to give you the choice, you should be aware that by installing that way you will not receive update notifications and it's a less secure way to download. We recommend that you install the F-Droid client and use that.

Download F-Droid
  • Version 0.6.0 (12) suggested Added on Oct 25, 2026

    This version requires Android 2.3 or newer.

    It is built and signed by the original developer, and guaranteed to correspond to this source tarball.

    Permissions
    • have full network access
      Allows the app to create network sockets and use custom network protocols. The browser and other applications provide means to send data to the internet, so this permission is not required to send data to the internet.
    • read the contents of your shared storage
      Allows the app to read the contents of your shared storage.
    • request install packages
      Allows an application to request installation of packages.
    • modify or delete the contents of your shared storage
      Allows the app to write the contents of your shared storage.

    Download APK 268 KiB PGP Signature | Build Log