# Configure `property-vault` properties

Properties (`property-vault`) store and share key-value pairs, stored as strings
across the system. Any software component can share any value for a particular key and any other process
can access the value by using the same key. `property-vault` allows you
to define persistent properties across reboots. Components can use
`property-vault` to share specific information, which might be
relevant to any other modules on the device. You can access these key-value pairs using the command-line interface (CLI).

Note

`property-vault` is supported only in `custom` variant.

## Configure properties using CLI on Qualcomm device

- To set a property using the CLI on the Qualcomm device, use the following command:

setprop "my-key" "my-value"
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- To access a property using the CLI, use the following command:

getprop "my-key"
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    Output of the previous command:

my-value
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- To set a property using the CLI and make it persistent across reboots on the device, use the following command:

setprop "persist.my-key" "my-value"
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Note

For a property to persist across reboots, the property key must start with `persist`.

## Use properties in Qualcomm Linux C and C++ source files

To use the properties in C and C++ source code modules, do the following:

1. To use properties in a program,
for example, in `example-recipe.bb`, add a dependency on
`property-vault`:

DEPENDS += "glib-2.0 property-vault"
        RDEPENDS:${PN} += "property-vault"
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2. Change build configuration files, depending on if you’re using `autotools` or `cmake`.

    - If you are using `autotools`:

> 
> 
> `configure.ac`
> 
> 
> ...
>             
>             PKG_CHECK_MODULES(GLIB, glib-2.0 >= 2.16, dummy=yes, AC_MSG_ERROR(GLib >= 2.16 is required))
>             GLIB_CFLAGS="$GLIB_CFLAGS"
>             GLIB_LIBS="$GLIB_LIBS"
>             AC_SUBST(GLIB_CFLAGS)
>             AC_SUBST(GLIB_LIBS)
>             
>             AC_CONFIG_FILES([Makefile])
>             ...
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> 
> 
> `Makefile.am`
> 
> 
> root_sbindir       = "/sbin"
>             root_sbin_PROGRAMS = property-test
>             
>             property_test_SOURCES  = source.c
>             property_test_CFLAGS = @GLIB_CFLAGS@
>             property_test_LDFLAGS = @GLIB_LIBS@ -lpropertyvault
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    - If you are using `cmake`:

> 
> 
> `CMakeList.txt`
> 
> 
> set(CMAKE_C_FLAGS "${CMAKE_C_FLAGS} -std=c99 -lpthread -lrt -lm -lglib-2.0 -ldl -latomic")
>             target_link_libraries (your-lib-name propertyvault)
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3. Modify the source code files to `get` and `set` properties:

    `source.c`

#include "properties.h"
        
        int main() {
              // set a property
              property_set("my-key", "my-value");
        
              // get a property
              char paramstr[PROP_VALUE_MAX];
              // value gets stored in paramstr
              property_get("my-key", paramstr, "default-val");

              // set a property which has to persist across reboots
              property_set("persist.my-key", "my-value");
        
              // get a persisted property
              property_get("my-key", paramstr, "default-val");
        
              return 0;
        }
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Note

The property key name can be up to 64 characters long, and the property value can be up to 92 characters long, as defined by `PROP_NAME_MAX` and `PROP_VALUE_MAX` in `properties.h`.
4. Build the recipe on the host computer and include it in the image that you will flash onto the device.

Last Published: Jun 23, 2026

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