Unable to reinstall split APKs with adb

Question

I currently cannot manage to reinstall any Android app that is using AABs/Split APKs by executing adb install-multiple -r *.apk . This has been working before, but now always gives me Failure [INSTALL_FAILED_ALREADY_EXISTS: Attempt to re-install com.reddit.frontpage without first uninstalling.] .

Manually uninstalling and using adb to newly install the app is working. However, this is annoying as I might also lose quite some app data. This problem concerns two of my Android devices (Tablet with 7.1 and Phone with 6.0) and also a wide range of apps. Also installation and reinstallation of standalone APKs is working flawlessly.

Is there a current issue with install-multiple -r or does anyone know a workaround?

Answer 1

So, I managed to figure out a temporary workaround.

1. Manually uninstall the concerned app with adb shell pm uninstall -k <package-name> . The -k flag makes sure that the app's data is being kept.
2. Install app again with adb install-multiple *.apk .