Content Providers in Android with Example (original) (raw)

Last Updated : 15 Jul, 2025

In Android , Content Providers are a very important component that serves the purpose of a relational database to store the data of applications. The role of the content provider in the android system is like a central repository in which data of the applications are stored, and it facilitates other applications to securely access and modifies that data based on the user requirements. Android system allows the content provider to store the application data in several ways. Users can manage to store the application data like images, audio, videos, and personal contact information by storing them in SQLite Database , in files , or even on a network . In order to share the data, content providers have certain permissions that are used to grant or restrict the rights to other applications to interfere with the data.

Content Provider

Content URI

Content URI(Uniform Resource Identifier) is the key concept of Content providers. To access the data from a content provider, URI is used as a query string.

Structure of a Content URI: content://authority/optionalPath/optionalID

Details of different parts of Content URI:

content:// - Mandatory part of the URI as it represents that the given URI is a Content URI.
authority - Signifies the name of the content provider like contacts, browser, etc. This part must be unique for every content provider.
optionalPath - Specifies the type of data provided by the content provider. It is essential as this part helps content providers to support different types of data that are not related to each other like audio and video files.
optionalID - It is a numeric value that is used when there is a need to access a particular record.

If an ID is mentioned in a URI then it is an id-based URI otherwise a directory-based URI.

Operations in Content Provider

Four fundamental operations are possible in Content Provider namely Create , Read , Update , and Delete . These operations are often termed as CRUD operations .

Create: Operation to create data in a content provider.
Read: Used to fetch data from a content provider.
Update: To modify existing data.
Delete: To remove existing data from the storage.

Working of the Content Provider

UI components of android applications like Activity and Fragments use an object CursorLoader to send query requests to ContentResolver. The ContentResolver object sends requests (like create, read, update, and delete) to the ContentProvider as a client. After receiving a request, ContentProvider process it and returns the desired result. Below is a diagram to represent these processes in pictorial form.

Working of content provider

Creating a Content Provider

Following are the steps which are essential to follow in order to create a Content Provider:

Create a class in the same directory where the that MainActivity file resides and this class must extend the ContentProvider base class.
To access the content, define a content provider URI address.
Create a database to store the application data.
Implement the six abstract methods of ContentProvider class.
Register the content provider in AndroidManifest.xml file using tag .

Following are the six abstract methods and their description which are essential to override as the part of ContenProvider class:

Abstract Method	Description
query()	A method that accepts arguments and fetches the data from the desired table. Data is retired as a cursor object.
insert()	To insert a new row in the database of the content provider. It returns the content URI of the inserted row.
update()	This method is used to update the fields of an existing row. It returns the number of rows updated.
delete()	This method is used to delete the existing rows. It returns the number of rows deleted.
getType()	This method returns the Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension(MIME) type of data to the given Content URI.
onCreate()	As the content provider is created, the android system calls this method immediately to initialise the provider.

Example

The prime purpose of a content provider is to serve as a central repository of data where users can store and can fetch the data. The access of this repository is given to other applications also but in a safe manner in order to serve the different requirements of the user. The following are the steps involved in implementing a content provider. In this content provider, the user can store the name of persons and can fetch the stored data. Moreover, another application can also access the stored data and can display the data.

Note: Following steps are performed on Android Studio version 4.0

Creating a Content Provider:

Step 1: Create a new project

Click on File, then New => New Project.
Select language as Java/Kotlin.
Choose empty activity as a template
Select the minimum SDK as per your need.

Step 2: Modify the strings.xml file

All the strings used in the activity are stored here.

XML `

Content_Provider_In_Android Enter User Name Content Provider In Android Insert Data Load Data

Step 3: Creating the Content Provider class

Click on File, then New => Other => ContentProvider.
Name the ContentProvider
Define authority (it can be anything for example "com.demo.user.provider" )
Select Exported and Enabled option
Choose the language as Java/Kotlin

This class extends the ContentProvider base class and override the six abstract methods. Below is the complete code to define a content provider.

Java `

package com.example.contentprovidersinandroid;

import android.content.ContentProvider; import android.content.ContentUris; import android.content.ContentValues; import android.content.Context; import android.content.UriMatcher; import android.database.Cursor; import android.database.sqlite.SQLiteDatabase; import android.database.sqlite.SQLiteException; import android.database.sqlite.SQLiteOpenHelper; import android.database.sqlite.SQLiteQueryBuilder; import android.net.Uri; import java.util.HashMap;

public class MyContentProvider extends ContentProvider { public MyContentProvider() { }

// defining authority so that other application can access it
static final String PROVIDER_NAME = "com.demo.user.provider";

// defining content URI
static final String URL = "content://" + PROVIDER_NAME + "/users";

// parsing the content URI
static final Uri CONTENT_URI = Uri.parse(URL);

static final String id = "id";
static final String name = "name";
static final int uriCode = 1;
static final UriMatcher uriMatcher;
private static HashMap<String, String> values;

static {

    // to match the content URI
    // every time user access table under content provider
    uriMatcher = new UriMatcher(UriMatcher.NO_MATCH);

    // to access whole table
    uriMatcher.addURI(PROVIDER_NAME, "users", uriCode);

    // to access a particular row
    // of the table
    uriMatcher.addURI(PROVIDER_NAME, "users/*", uriCode);
}
@Override
public String getType(Uri uri) {
    switch (uriMatcher.match(uri)) {
        case uriCode:
            return "vnd.android.cursor.dir/users";
        default:
            throw new IllegalArgumentException("Unsupported URI: " + uri);
    }
}
  // creating the database
@Override
public boolean onCreate() {
    Context context = getContext();
    DatabaseHelper dbHelper = new DatabaseHelper(context);
    db = dbHelper.getWritableDatabase();
    if (db != null) {
        return true;
    }
    return false;
}
@Override
public Cursor query(Uri uri, String[] projection, String selection,
                    String[] selectionArgs, String sortOrder) {
    SQLiteQueryBuilder qb = new SQLiteQueryBuilder();
    qb.setTables(TABLE_NAME);
    switch (uriMatcher.match(uri)) {
        case uriCode:
            qb.setProjectionMap(values);
            break;
        default:
            throw new IllegalArgumentException("Unknown URI " + uri);
    }
    if (sortOrder == null || sortOrder == "") {
        sortOrder = id;
    }
    Cursor c = qb.query(db, projection, selection, selectionArgs, null,
            null, sortOrder);
    c.setNotificationUri(getContext().getContentResolver(), uri);
    return c;
}

// adding data to the database
@Override    
public Uri insert(Uri uri, ContentValues values) {
    long rowID = db.insert(TABLE_NAME, "", values);
    if (rowID > 0) {
        Uri _uri = ContentUris.withAppendedId(CONTENT_URI, rowID);
        getContext().getContentResolver().notifyChange(_uri, null);
        return _uri;
    }
    throw new SQLiteException("Failed to add a record into " + uri);
}

@Override
public int update(Uri uri, ContentValues values, String selection,
                  String[] selectionArgs) {
    int count = 0;
    switch (uriMatcher.match(uri)) {
        case uriCode:
            count = db.update(TABLE_NAME, values, selection, selectionArgs);
            break;
        default:
            throw new IllegalArgumentException("Unknown URI " + uri);
    }
    getContext().getContentResolver().notifyChange(uri, null);
    return count;
}

@Override
public int delete(Uri uri, String selection, String[] selectionArgs) {
    int count = 0;
    switch (uriMatcher.match(uri)) {
        case uriCode:
            count = db.delete(TABLE_NAME, selection, selectionArgs);
            break;
        default:
            throw new IllegalArgumentException("Unknown URI " + uri);
    }
    getContext().getContentResolver().notifyChange(uri, null);
    return count;
}

// creating object of database
// to perform query
private SQLiteDatabase db;

// declaring name of the database
static final String DATABASE_NAME = "UserDB";

// declaring table name of the database
static final String TABLE_NAME = "Users";

// declaring version of the database
static final int DATABASE_VERSION = 1;

// sql query to create the table
static final String CREATE_DB_TABLE = " CREATE TABLE " + TABLE_NAME
        + " (id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT, "
        + " name TEXT NOT NULL);";

// creating a database
private static class DatabaseHelper extends SQLiteOpenHelper {

    // defining a constructor
    DatabaseHelper(Context context) {
        super(context, DATABASE_NAME, null, DATABASE_VERSION);
    }

     // creating a table in the database
    @Override
    public void onCreate(SQLiteDatabase db) {

        db.execSQL(CREATE_DB_TABLE);
    }

    @Override
    public void onUpgrade(SQLiteDatabase db, int oldVersion, int newVersion) {

        // sql query to drop a table
        // having similar name
        db.execSQL("DROP TABLE IF EXISTS " + TABLE_NAME);
        onCreate(db);
    }
}

}

Kotlin

package com.example.contentprovidersinandroid

import android.content.* import android.database.Cursor import android.database.sqlite.SQLiteDatabase import android.database.sqlite.SQLiteException import android.database.sqlite.SQLiteOpenHelper import android.database.sqlite.SQLiteQueryBuilder import android.net.Uri

class MyContentProvider : ContentProvider() { companion object { // defining authority so that other application can access it const val PROVIDER_NAME = "com.demo.user.provider"

    // defining content URI
    const val URL = "content://$PROVIDER_NAME/users"

    // parsing the content URI
    val CONTENT_URI = Uri.parse(URL)
    const val id = "id"
    const val name = "name"
    const val uriCode = 1
    var uriMatcher: UriMatcher? = null
    private val values: HashMap<String, String>? = null

    // declaring name of the database
    const val DATABASE_NAME = "UserDB"

    // declaring table name of the database
    const val TABLE_NAME = "Users"

    // declaring version of the database
    const val DATABASE_VERSION = 1

    // sql query to create the table
    const val CREATE_DB_TABLE =
        (" CREATE TABLE " + TABLE_NAME
                + " (id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT, "
                + " name TEXT NOT NULL);")

    init {

        // to match the content URI
        // every time user access table under content provider
        uriMatcher = UriMatcher(UriMatcher.NO_MATCH)

        // to access whole table
        uriMatcher!!.addURI(
            PROVIDER_NAME,
            "users",
            uriCode
        )

        // to access a particular row
        // of the table
        uriMatcher!!.addURI(
            PROVIDER_NAME,
            "users/*",
            uriCode
        )
    }
}

override fun getType(uri: Uri): String? {
    return when (uriMatcher!!.match(uri)) {
        uriCode -> "vnd.android.cursor.dir/users"
        else -> throw IllegalArgumentException("Unsupported URI: $uri")
    }
}

// creating the database
override fun onCreate(): Boolean {
    val context = context
    val dbHelper =
        DatabaseHelper(context)
    db = dbHelper.writableDatabase
    return if (db != null) {
        true
    } else false
}

override fun query(
    uri: Uri, projection: Array<String>?, selection: String?,
    selectionArgs: Array<String>?, sortOrder: String?
): Cursor? {
    var sortOrder = sortOrder
    val qb = SQLiteQueryBuilder()
    qb.tables = TABLE_NAME
    when (uriMatcher!!.match(uri)) {
        uriCode -> qb.projectionMap = values
        else -> throw IllegalArgumentException("Unknown URI $uri")
    }
    if (sortOrder == null || sortOrder === "") {
        sortOrder = id
    }
    val c = qb.query(
        db, projection, selection, selectionArgs, null,
        null, sortOrder
    )
    c.setNotificationUri(context!!.contentResolver, uri)
    return c
}

// adding data to the database
override fun insert(uri: Uri, values: ContentValues?): Uri? {
    val rowID = db!!.insert(TABLE_NAME, "", values)
    if (rowID > 0) {
        val _uri =
            ContentUris.withAppendedId(CONTENT_URI, rowID)
        context!!.contentResolver.notifyChange(_uri, null)
        return _uri
    }
    throw SQLiteException("Failed to add a record into $uri")
}

override fun update(
    uri: Uri, values: ContentValues?, selection: String?,
    selectionArgs: Array<String>?
): Int {
    var count = 0
    count = when (uriMatcher!!.match(uri)) {
        uriCode -> db!!.update(TABLE_NAME, values, selection, selectionArgs)
        else -> throw IllegalArgumentException("Unknown URI $uri")
    }
    context!!.contentResolver.notifyChange(uri, null)
    return count
}

override fun delete(
    uri: Uri,
    selection: String?,
    selectionArgs: Array<String>?
): Int {
    var count = 0
    count = when (uriMatcher!!.match(uri)) {
        uriCode -> db!!.delete(TABLE_NAME, selection, selectionArgs)
        else -> throw IllegalArgumentException("Unknown URI $uri")
    }
    context!!.contentResolver.notifyChange(uri, null)
    return count
}

// creating object of database
// to perform query
private var db: SQLiteDatabase? = null

// creating a database
private class DatabaseHelper  // defining a constructor
internal constructor(context: Context?) : SQLiteOpenHelper(
    context,
    DATABASE_NAME,
    null,
    DATABASE_VERSION
) {
    // creating a table in the database
    override fun onCreate(db: SQLiteDatabase) {
        db.execSQL(CREATE_DB_TABLE)
    }

    override fun onUpgrade(
        db: SQLiteDatabase,
        oldVersion: Int,
        newVersion: Int
    ) {

        // sql query to drop a table
        // having similar name
        db.execSQL("DROP TABLE IF EXISTS $TABLE_NAME")
        onCreate(db)
    }
}

}

Step 4: Design the activity_main.xml layout

One Textview , EditText field, two Buttons , and a Textview to display the stored data will be added in the activity using the below code.

XML `

<androidx.constraintlayout.widget.ConstraintLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android" xmlns:app="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res-auto" xmlns:tools="http://schemas.android.com/tools" android:layout_width="match_parent" android:layout_height="match_parent" android:background="#168BC34A" tools:context=".MainActivity">

<LinearLayout
    android:id="@+id/linearLayout"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="wrap_content"
    android:layout_centerVertical="true"
    android:orientation="vertical"
    app:layout_constraintBottom_toTopOf="@+id/imageView"
    app:layout_constraintEnd_toEndOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintTop_toTopOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintVertical_bias="0.13"
    tools:ignore="MissingConstraints">

    <TextView
        android:id="@+id/textView1"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_marginTop="40dp"
        android:layout_marginBottom="70dp"
        android:fontFamily="@font/roboto"
        android:text="@string/heading"
        android:textAlignment="center"
        android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.AppCompat.Large"
        android:textColor="@android:color/holo_green_dark"
        android:textSize="36sp"
        android:textStyle="bold" />

    <EditText
        android:id="@+id/textName"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_marginStart="20dp"
        android:layout_marginEnd="20dp"
        android:layout_marginBottom="40dp"
        android:fontFamily="@font/roboto"
        android:hint="@string/hintText" />

    <Button
        android:id="@+id/insertButton"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="match_parent"
        android:layout_marginStart="20dp"
        android:layout_marginTop="10dp"
        android:layout_marginEnd="20dp"
        android:layout_marginBottom="20dp"
        android:background="#4CAF50"
        android:fontFamily="@font/roboto"
        android:onClick="onClickAddDetails"
        android:text="@string/insertButtontext"
        android:textAlignment="center"
        android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.AppCompat.Display1"
        android:textColor="#FFFFFF"
        android:textStyle="bold" />

    <Button
        android:id="@+id/loadButton"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="match_parent"
        android:layout_marginStart="20dp"
        android:layout_marginTop="10dp"
        android:layout_marginEnd="20dp"
        android:layout_marginBottom="20dp"
        android:background="#4CAF50"
        android:fontFamily="@font/roboto"
        android:onClick="onClickShowDetails"
        android:text="@string/loadButtonText"
        android:textAlignment="center"
        android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.AppCompat.Display1"
        android:textColor="#FFFFFF"
        android:textStyle="bold" />

    <TextView
        android:id="@+id/res"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_marginStart="20dp"
        android:layout_marginEnd="20dp"
        android:clickable="false"
        android:ems="10"
        android:fontFamily="@font/roboto"
        android:textColor="@android:color/holo_green_dark"
        android:textSize="18sp"
        android:textStyle="bold" />

</LinearLayout>

<ImageView
    android:id="@+id/imageView"
    android:layout_width="wrap_content"
    android:layout_height="wrap_content"
    app:layout_constraintBottom_toBottomOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintEnd_toEndOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf="parent"
    app:srcCompat="@drawable/banner" />

</androidx.constraintlayout.widget.ConstraintLayout>

Step 5: Modify the MainActivity file

Button functionalities will be defined in this file. Moreover, the query to be performed while inserting and fetching the data is mentioned here. Below is the complete code.

Java `

package com.example.contentprovidersinandroid;

import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity;

import android.content.ContentValues; import android.content.Context; import android.database.Cursor; import android.net.Uri; import android.os.Bundle; import android.view.MotionEvent; import android.view.View; import android.view.inputmethod.InputMethodManager; import android.widget.EditText; import android.widget.TextView; import android.widget.Toast;

public class MainActivity extends AppCompatActivity {

@Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
    super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
    setContentView(R.layout.activity_main);
}

@Override
public boolean onTouchEvent(MotionEvent event) {
    InputMethodManager imm = (InputMethodManager)getSystemService(Context.INPUT_METHOD_SERVICE);
    imm.hideSoftInputFromWindow(getCurrentFocus().getWindowToken(), 0);
    return true;
}
public void onClickAddDetails(View view) {

    // class to add values in the database
    ContentValues values = new ContentValues();

    // fetching text from user
    values.put(MyContentProvider.name, ((EditText) findViewById(R.id.textName)).getText().toString());

    // inserting into database through content URI
    getContentResolver().insert(MyContentProvider.CONTENT_URI, values);

    // displaying a toast message
    Toast.makeText(getBaseContext(), "New Record Inserted", Toast.LENGTH_LONG).show();
}

public void onClickShowDetails(View view) {
    // inserting complete table details in this text field
    TextView resultView= (TextView) findViewById(R.id.res);

    // creating a cursor object of the
    // content URI
    Cursor cursor = getContentResolver().query(Uri.parse("content://com.demo.user.provider/users"), null, null, null, null);

    // iteration of the cursor
    // to print whole table
    if(cursor.moveToFirst()) {
        StringBuilder strBuild=new StringBuilder();
        while (!cursor.isAfterLast()) {
            strBuild.append("\n"+cursor.getString(cursor.getColumnIndex("id"))+ "-"+ cursor.getString(cursor.getColumnIndex("name")));
            cursor.moveToNext();
        }
        resultView.setText(strBuild);
    }
    else {
        resultView.setText("No Records Found");
    }
}

}

Kotlin

package com.example.content_provider_in_android

import android.content.ContentValues import android.content.Context import android.net.Uri import android.os.Bundle import android.view.MotionEvent import android.view.View import android.view.inputmethod.InputMethodManager import android.widget.EditText import android.widget.TextView import android.widget.Toast import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity import com.example.contentprovidersinandroid.MyContentProvider

class MainActivity : AppCompatActivity() { override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) { super.onCreate(savedInstanceState) setContentView(R.layout.activity_main) }

override fun onTouchEvent(event: MotionEvent?): Boolean {
    val imm = getSystemService(Context.INPUT_METHOD_SERVICE) as InputMethodManager
    imm.hideSoftInputFromWindow(currentFocus!!.windowToken, 0)
    return true
}

fun onClickAddDetails(view: View?) {

    // class to add values in the database
    val values = ContentValues()

    // fetching text from user
    values.put(MyContentProvider.name, (findViewById<View>(R.id.textName) as EditText).text.toString())

    // inserting into database through content URI
    contentResolver.insert(MyContentProvider.CONTENT_URI, values)

    // displaying a toast message
    Toast.makeText(baseContext, "New Record Inserted", Toast.LENGTH_LONG).show()
}

fun onClickShowDetails(view: View?) {
    // inserting complete table details in this text field
    val resultView = findViewById<View>(R.id.res) as TextView

    // creating a cursor object of the
    // content URI
    val cursor = contentResolver.query(Uri.parse("content://com.demo.user.provider/users"), null, null, null, null)

    // iteration of the cursor
    // to print whole table
    if (cursor!!.moveToFirst()) {
        val strBuild = StringBuilder()
        while (!cursor.isAfterLast) {
            strBuild.append("""

<span class="katex"><span class="katex-mathml"><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><semantics><mrow><mrow><mi>c</mi><mi>u</mi><mi>r</mi><mi>s</mi><mi>o</mi><mi>r</mi><mi mathvariant="normal">.</mi><mi>g</mi><mi>e</mi><mi>t</mi><mi>S</mi><mi>t</mi><mi>r</mi><mi>i</mi><mi>n</mi><mi>g</mi><mo stretchy="false">(</mo><mi>c</mi><mi>u</mi><mi>r</mi><mi>s</mi><mi>o</mi><mi>r</mi><mi mathvariant="normal">.</mi><mi>g</mi><mi>e</mi><mi>t</mi><mi>C</mi><mi>o</mi><mi>l</mi><mi>u</mi><mi>m</mi><mi>n</mi><mi>I</mi><mi>n</mi><mi>d</mi><mi>e</mi><mi>x</mi><mo stretchy="false">(</mo><mi mathvariant="normal">&quot;</mi><mi>i</mi><mi>d</mi><mi mathvariant="normal">&quot;</mi><mo stretchy="false">)</mo><mo stretchy="false">)</mo></mrow><mo>−</mo></mrow><annotation encoding="application/x-tex">{cursor.getString(cursor.getColumnIndex(&quot;id&quot;))}-</annotation></semantics></math></span><span class="katex-html" aria-hidden="true"><span class="base"><span class="strut" style="height:1em;vertical-align:-0.25em;"></span><span class="mord"><span class="mord mathnormal">c</span><span class="mord mathnormal">u</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.02778em;">rsor</span><span class="mord">.</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.03588em;">g</span><span class="mord mathnormal">e</span><span class="mord mathnormal">tSt</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.02778em;">r</span><span class="mord mathnormal">in</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.03588em;">g</span><span class="mopen">(</span><span class="mord mathnormal">c</span><span class="mord mathnormal">u</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.02778em;">rsor</span><span class="mord">.</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.03588em;">g</span><span class="mord mathnormal">e</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.07153em;">tC</span><span class="mord mathnormal">o</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.01968em;">l</span><span class="mord mathnormal">u</span><span class="mord mathnormal">mn</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.07847em;">I</span><span class="mord mathnormal">n</span><span class="mord mathnormal">d</span><span class="mord mathnormal">e</span><span class="mord mathnormal">x</span><span class="mopen">(</span><span class="mord">&quot;</span><span class="mord mathnormal">i</span><span class="mord mathnormal">d</span><span class="mord">&quot;</span><span class="mclose">))</span></span><span class="mord">−</span></span></span></span>{cursor.getString(cursor.getColumnIndex("name"))}
""".trimIndent())
            cursor.moveToNext()
        }
        resultView.text = strBuild
    } else {
        resultView.text = "No Records Found"
    }
}

}

Step 6: Modify the AndroidManifest file

The AndroidManifest file must contain the content provider name, authorities, and permissions which enable the content provider to be accessed by other applications.

XML `

<application
    android:allowBackup="true"
    android:icon="@mipmap/ic_launcher"
    android:label="@string/app_name"
    android:roundIcon="@mipmap/ic_launcher_round"
    android:supportsRtl="true"
    android:theme="@style/AppTheme">
    <provider
        android:name="com.example.contentprovidersinandroid.MyContentProvider"
        android:authorities="com.demo.user.provider"
        android:enabled="true"
        android:exported="true"></provider>

    <activity android:name=".MainActivity">
        <intent-filter>
            <action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />

            <category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
        </intent-filter>
    </activity>
    <meta-data
        android:name="preloaded_fonts"
        android:resource="@array/preloaded_fonts" />
</application>

Creating another application to access the Content Provider:

Step 1: Create a new Project

Click on File, then New => New Project.
Select language as Java/Kotlin.
Choose empty activity as a template
Select the minimum SDK as per your need.

Step 2: Modify strings.xml file

All the strings used in the activity are stored in this file.

XML `

Accessing_Content_Provider Accessing data of Content Provider Load Data

Step 3: Designing the activity_main.xml layout

Two TextView are added in the activity, one for heading and one to display the stored data in a content provider. One Button is also added to receive the command to display data. Below is the code to implement this design.

XML `

<LinearLayout
    android:id="@+id/linearLayout"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="wrap_content"
    android:layout_centerVertical="true"
    android:orientation="vertical"
    app:layout_constraintBottom_toTopOf="@+id/imageView"
    app:layout_constraintEnd_toEndOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintTop_toTopOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintVertical_bias="0.13"
    tools:ignore="MissingConstraints">

    <TextView
        android:id="@+id/textView1"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_marginTop="40dp"
        android:layout_marginBottom="70dp"
        android:fontFamily="@font/roboto"
        android:text="@string/heading"
        android:textAlignment="center"
        android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.AppCompat.Large"
        android:textColor="@android:color/holo_green_dark"
        android:textSize="36sp"
        android:textStyle="bold" />


    <Button
        android:id="@+id/loadButton"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="match_parent"
        android:layout_marginStart="20dp"
        android:layout_marginTop="10dp"
        android:layout_marginEnd="20dp"
        android:layout_marginBottom="20dp"
        android:background="#4CAF50"
        android:fontFamily="@font/roboto"
        android:onClick="onClickShowDetails"
        android:text="@string/loadButtonText"
        android:textAlignment="center"
        android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.AppCompat.Display1"
        android:textColor="#FFFFFF"
        android:textStyle="bold" />

    <TextView
        android:id="@+id/res"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_marginStart="20dp"
        android:layout_marginEnd="20dp"
        android:clickable="false"
        android:ems="10"
        android:fontFamily="@font/roboto"
        android:textColor="@android:color/holo_green_dark"
        android:textSize="18sp"
        android:textStyle="bold" />

</LinearLayout>

<ImageView
    android:id="@+id/imageView"
    android:layout_width="wrap_content"
    android:layout_height="wrap_content"
    app:layout_constraintBottom_toBottomOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintEnd_toEndOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf="parent"
    app:srcCompat="@drawable/banner" />

</androidx.constraintlayout.widget.ConstraintLayout>

Step 4: Modify the MainActivity file

The ContentURI of the previous application is mentioned here and the same functions which were used in the previous app to display the records will also be used here. Below is the complete code:

Java `

package com.example.accessingcontentprovider;

import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity; import android.database.Cursor; import android.net.Uri; import android.os.Bundle; import android.view.View; import android.widget.TextView;

public class MainActivity extends AppCompatActivity {

Uri CONTENT_URI = Uri.parse("content://com.demo.user.provider/users");


@Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
    super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
    setContentView(R.layout.activity_main);
}

public void onClickShowDetails(View view) {
    // inserting complete table details in this text field
    TextView resultView= (TextView) findViewById(R.id.res);

    // creating a cursor object of the
    // content URI
    Cursor cursor = getContentResolver().query(Uri.parse("content://com.demo.user.provider/users"), null, null, null, null);

    // iteration of the cursor
    // to print whole table
    if(cursor.moveToFirst()) {
        StringBuilder strBuild=new StringBuilder();
        while (!cursor.isAfterLast()) {
            strBuild.append("\n"+cursor.getString(cursor.getColumnIndex("id"))+ "-"+ cursor.getString(cursor.getColumnIndex("name")));
            cursor.moveToNext();
        }
        resultView.setText(strBuild);
    }
    else {
        resultView.setText("No Records Found");
    }
}

}

Kotlin

package com.example.accessing_content_provider

import android.net.Uri import android.os.Bundle import android.view.View import android.widget.TextView import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity

class MainActivity : AppCompatActivity() { var CONTENT_URI = Uri.parse("content://com.demo.user.provider/users")

override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {
    super.onCreate(savedInstanceState)
    setContentView(R.layout.activity_main)
}

fun onClickShowDetails(view: View?) {
    // inserting complete table details in this text field
    val resultView = findViewById<View>(R.id.res) as TextView

    // creating a cursor object of the
    // content URI
    val cursor = contentResolver.query(Uri.parse("content://com.demo.user.provider/users"), null, null, null, null)

    // iteration of the cursor
    // to print whole table
    if (cursor!!.moveToFirst()) {
        val strBuild = StringBuilder()
        while (!cursor.isAfterLast) {
            strBuild.append("""

<span class="katex"><span class="katex-mathml"><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><semantics><mrow><mrow><mi>c</mi><mi>u</mi><mi>r</mi><mi>s</mi><mi>o</mi><mi>r</mi><mi mathvariant="normal">.</mi><mi>g</mi><mi>e</mi><mi>t</mi><mi>S</mi><mi>t</mi><mi>r</mi><mi>i</mi><mi>n</mi><mi>g</mi><mo stretchy="false">(</mo><mi>c</mi><mi>u</mi><mi>r</mi><mi>s</mi><mi>o</mi><mi>r</mi><mi mathvariant="normal">.</mi><mi>g</mi><mi>e</mi><mi>t</mi><mi>C</mi><mi>o</mi><mi>l</mi><mi>u</mi><mi>m</mi><mi>n</mi><mi>I</mi><mi>n</mi><mi>d</mi><mi>e</mi><mi>x</mi><mo stretchy="false">(</mo><mi mathvariant="normal">&quot;</mi><mi>i</mi><mi>d</mi><mi mathvariant="normal">&quot;</mi><mo stretchy="false">)</mo><mo stretchy="false">)</mo></mrow><mo>−</mo></mrow><annotation encoding="application/x-tex">{cursor.getString(cursor.getColumnIndex(&quot;id&quot;))}-</annotation></semantics></math></span><span class="katex-html" aria-hidden="true"><span class="base"><span class="strut" style="height:1em;vertical-align:-0.25em;"></span><span class="mord"><span class="mord mathnormal">c</span><span class="mord mathnormal">u</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.02778em;">rsor</span><span class="mord">.</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.03588em;">g</span><span class="mord mathnormal">e</span><span class="mord mathnormal">tSt</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.02778em;">r</span><span class="mord mathnormal">in</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.03588em;">g</span><span class="mopen">(</span><span class="mord mathnormal">c</span><span class="mord mathnormal">u</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.02778em;">rsor</span><span class="mord">.</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.03588em;">g</span><span class="mord mathnormal">e</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.07153em;">tC</span><span class="mord mathnormal">o</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.01968em;">l</span><span class="mord mathnormal">u</span><span class="mord mathnormal">mn</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.07847em;">I</span><span class="mord mathnormal">n</span><span class="mord mathnormal">d</span><span class="mord mathnormal">e</span><span class="mord mathnormal">x</span><span class="mopen">(</span><span class="mord">&quot;</span><span class="mord mathnormal">i</span><span class="mord mathnormal">d</span><span class="mord">&quot;</span><span class="mclose">))</span></span><span class="mord">−</span></span></span></span>{cursor.getString(cursor.getColumnIndex("name"))}
""".trimIndent())
            cursor.moveToNext()
        }
        resultView.text = strBuild
    } else {
        resultView.text = "No Records Found"
    }
}

}

Output: Run on Emulator

Step 5: Modify the AndroidManifest.xml file

Don't forget to add permission (API 30 and above).

For more details refer here .

XML `

. . .