• How to return the VKontakte update. How to remove the latest VK update on Android

    Updates from the developers of the most popular social network VKontakte very often turned out to be very controversial and did not find support among users. This could be explained by the reluctance of many to move away from the already familiar, beloved interface. However, the latest, recently released update to VKontakte - 3.0, caused negative reviews even among loyal supporters of the developers.

    Cons of the update

    Users of the VKontakte mobile application on iPhone felt the negative consequences of the update the most. Last year, iOS removed the ability to cache music, and in update 3.0, the developers left free listening to music only within their added audio recordings.

    The practically paid music section is not the only innovation that has caused a storm of negative emotions. The completely updated interface immediately raised the question for most people about how to return the old version of VK to the iPhone. There are several methods available at the moment.

    Let's look at how to return the old version of VK to an iPhone

    The PP Assistant program is a Chinese development that needs to be downloaded to your device, installed, and launched. Next, connect your iPhone to your computer via USB and confirm that you allow access to the application on your phone. In the search bar you need to enter VK, after which all that remains is to download the old version. In a few seconds it will appear on the device, and you can enjoy using your usual application.

    Another way, on an iPhone, is to use the “Purchases” section in the App Store. To use this method, you must uninstall the updated VKontakte application and disable auto-update in the settings. Next, you need to go to the App Store and go to the “Updates” section. There you can find the VK APP application and install it on your device. The old version will be installed. However, many say that with the release of the new VKontakte update, this solution to the problem will most likely no longer work. These are the two main ways to install the old version of VK on an iPhone.

    What should you expect?

    Despite the negative reviews, the developers are purposefully pursuing a policy of moving away from the democratic old versions, introducing new restrictions in the music section, in order to earn as much money as possible from users. Therefore, we should expect that in the near future all loopholes regarding how to return the old version of VK to an iPhone will be closed, and it will not be possible to roll back to previous versions of the VKontakte application on your gadget.

    For a long time, the design of VKontakte changed in small ways, delighting users with the addition of new functions or frustrating them with the removal of old ones. Suffice it to recall the moment when the local “currency”—votes—suddenly ceased to exist. But all these changes were minor compared to the recent update.

    Since August 17, 2016, the social networking site “Vkontakte” has forcibly and irrevocably switched to a new design. Until this point, users were offered to switch between the new and old designs in test mode, and some users still have this function, but most do not have the coveted “switch to old design” link in the settings. Of course, for some, the new design is more convenient; it is more optimized for browsing through mobile devices, which makes it easier for the average person to use, but in many ways it turns out to be less practical for specialists. The greater the irritation of forced switching to it, with the lack of choice. Therefore, users are looking for ways to switch to the old design, and some are even creating their own extension modules. A much simpler way that allows anyone to return the old VKontakte design is to install a standard browser extension that allows you to change the display style of the necessary pages.

    A simple and reliable way to return the old VKontakte design

    This method requires the user to perform several simple operations, which boil down to downloading and setting up the appropriate extension, modifications of which exist for Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and other browsers. One such extension is Stylish. We will consider the option with Google Chrome as the most common browser:

    Regarding simpler methods of returning the old version of VKontakte

    Unfortunately, there are no simpler methods to “return the old VKontakte design.” The “switch to old design” link, which used to be safely hidden in the new design, is now missing as a class. Writing scripts yourself, even for an experienced programmer, will take more time than installing an extension + style. Thus, any simple solution to the problem will be a variation on the theme of the method described above.

    Stylish is one of many extensions that allow you to use custom scripts to change the visual design of websites. For the extension to work, Javascript must be enabled in the browser. Scripts for Stylish are written by people, so in some cases the result obtained this way will be far from ideal. However, if the style is updated in a timely manner, the moment will eventually come when its author will specify all the necessary parameters. Also, among the available styles, you can choose intermediate versions of the design, which will have the advantages of the old and the new.

    It will not be possible to fully return the old VK design, but you can get as close as possible to the old style of visual design. If the script options offered by Stylish are not to your liking, the closest alternative is the Tampermonkey extension. Despite the fact (or rather due to the fact...) that both extensions serve the same purpose, they may not work correctly in parallel. Therefore, it is better to remove or deactivate the first before installing the second one, and vice versa.

    1. Disable auto-update of the VKontakte application on Google Play;
    2. Delete new version of VK;
    3. Restore the old VKontakte client.

    Disabling VK auto-update on Google Play:

    1. Launch the Play Store, go to “Options” by clicking on the corresponding icon (Alternatively, the icon with three horizontal stripes next to the inscription “Google Play”);
    2. Select "Settings" and uncheck "Auto-update apps" (in some versions of the application you need to check the box "Never").


    After these steps, the VK application installed from Google Play will no longer be able to update automatically, and you will be able to use the familiar old version of VK for Android without worrying that the client interface may change at any time due to next program update.

    Uninstalling a new version of VK:

    • Go to "Settings", then to "Applications", then select the new VKontakte application that disappointed you and delete it from your Android device.

    Restoring the old VK client for Android:

    Download and install the previous version of the official client of the VK social network for Android (you can find it by going to).


    All. You have returned to your smartphone or tablet the familiar version of the VK application with an interface convenient for you, and it will not go anywhere again without your consent. There is no need to be afraid of automatic updates of the VKontakte social network client - you have blocked this opportunity.

    The new version of the VKontakte application allowed us to once again verify that not all changes intended to improve and increase the usability of the application lead to these improvements. The tastes, habits and needs of users are purely individual. Fortunately, you can almost always find a way to return to the old, proven version of the program and continue communicating on a social network (in this case) under familiar conditions.

    Information from 10/04/2017 : As a result of a change in VKontakte's audio recording policy in older versions of the client no longer available. Official response from VKontakte technical support on this matter.

    After VK developers made large-scale changes in 2017, and installed VK applications for a phone or tablet stopped playing music from the cache, many users began to wonder how to return the old version of Android. In this article, you will learn how to roll back an application to a previous version of Android, and at the same time make sure that the software stops updating automatically.

    How to return the required software version: recovery instructions on Android

    Many users are interested in the question of how to roll back VK to older versions. To do this, you do not need to create 2 accounts or change the firmware to the previous version of Android. You can return the old version of the application using the standard settings menu only in the case of pre-installed applications, for example, from the Play Market. But with the VKontakte social network for Android, returning the previous version will not be so easy. The simplest solution on the path to recovery is to delete the current version of the social network, and then download from a third-party resource the version that suits you best. After downloading, we simply install it on the device and restore access (enter the password and email in the program again).

    This can lead to viruses appearing on Android. Users who downloaded the old VKontakte application, although they regain the desired software, complain that important data was deleted or their pages were hacked, so download the old version of VK on Android only from those resources that inspire your trust . And the advice “Install an antivirus”, naturally, should be followed before downloading a file with unknown software begins.

    You can roll back not only to the previous version, but also to an older version of VK. Both specialized sites where you can download the necessary software and VKontakte public pages, which appeared in the wake of users’ requests to download the old version of VK on Android, will help you with this. They allow you to return the old application to your device for free and enjoy the previous version. All sites, public pages and other resources independently publish instructions describing how to download and install the old version of VKontakte, and such instructions may differ for each resource.

    Remember that the new design of a social network from a computer cannot be replaced with the old one. The latest version for PC was introduced forcibly for all users, and unfortunately, there is no answer to the question of how to roll back the system for PC and return to the old design.

    How to cancel automatic updates

    To stop your smartphone or tablet from automatically downloading updates, you need to follow these steps:

    1. Launch Play Market.
    2. Call the main menu from the left sidebar, and then select “Settings”.
    3. Click on the “Auto-update” sub-item.
    4. In the window that appears, you need to select the “Never” line.
    5. The same steps can be repeated for two or more devices, for example, if you use both a smartphone and a tablet running Android OS.

    After you have learned how to return the old version of VK Android and were able to restore the application to the form in which it was before the update, you should make sure that your efforts are not in vain. To do this, you need to disable the “Auto-update applications” function in the settings.

    Thanks to the Google Play service, developers of applications for Android phones and tablets have the opportunity to efficiently distribute updates for their products. As soon as they update the application in the Google Play service, it is automatically updated on all Android devices where it is installed. In most cases, this is very convenient. For both developers and users.

    But updates are not always successful. Sometimes after updating the application is not stable or contains errors. In such situations, the problem arises of how to remove an application update on Android and return its old version.

    Uninstalling updates for Android applications

    Fortunately, the Android operating system provides a mechanism using which you can remove an update that was installed on your phone using the Google Play service. To do this, you need to open the Android settings and go to the “ Application Manager" or simply " Applications"if you have a standard shell.

    After this, you will see a list of all installed applications on your Android smartphone. Here you need to find the application whose update you want to remove.

    Once you open the desired application, you will see a screen with information. Here you need to click on the “Uninstall updates” button, which will be located immediately below the name of your application.

    After this, a warning will appear indicating that the system is about to remove updates and restore the original application. Click on the “Yes” button to continue.

    After this update, the applications will be removed and the application information screen will appear in front of you again. Here you can see which version you have rolled back to.

    How to disable app updates in the future

    To prevent this application from being updated again, it needs to be in the Google Play service. To do this, go to the Google Play application on your Android phone and use the search to find the page for the application you need. After opening the application page, click on the button with three dots. It should be at the very top of the screen.

    After clicking on this button, a small pop-up menu will appear in which you can disable the update for this application.

    Once app updates are disabled, only your grandchild can update the app.