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This article provides a comprehensive guide on decompiling Android DEX files into Java source code, focusing on the dex2jar and JD-GUI toolchain while comparing modern alternatives like jadx. Starting with DEX file structure analysis, it systematically covers decompilation principles, tool configuration, practical procedures, and common issue resolution for Android reverse engineering.

This paper systematically explores the core technologies and toolchains for decompiling APK and DEX files on the Android platform. It begins by elucidating the packaging structure of Android applications and the characteristics of DEX bytecode, then provides detailed analysis of three mainstream tools—Dex2jar, ApkTool, and JD-GUI—including their working principles and usage methods, supplemented by modern tools like jadx. Through complete operational examples demonstrating the decompilation workflow, it discusses code recovery quality and limitations, and finally examines the application value of decompilation technology in security auditing and malware detection.