diff --git a/core/java/android/backup/BackupService.java b/core/java/android/backup/BackupService.java
index 879b544bd27fe..5a6886d64ccff 100644
--- a/core/java/android/backup/BackupService.java
+++ b/core/java/android/backup/BackupService.java
@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ import android.util.Log;
  *      <!-- Use the class "MyBackupService" to perform backups for my app -->
  *      <service android:name=".MyBackupService">
  *          <intent-filter>
- *              <action android:name="android.service.action.BACKUP" />
+ *              <action android:name="android.backup.BackupService.SERVICE" />
  *          </intent-filter>
  *      &lt;/service&gt;</pre>
  * 
@@ -54,19 +54,18 @@ public abstract class BackupService extends Service {
      * IntentFilter} that accepts this action. 
      */
     @SdkConstant(SdkConstantType.SERVICE_ACTION)
-    public static final String SERVICE_ACTION = "android.backup.BackupService";
+    public static final String SERVICE_ACTION = "android.backup.BackupService.SERVICE";
 
     /**
      * The application is being asked to write any data changed since the
      * last time it performed a backup operation.  The state data recorded
-     * during the last backup pass is provided in the oldStateFd file descriptor.
-     * If oldState.getStatSize() is zero or negative, no old state is available
-     * and the application should perform a full backup.  In both cases, a representation
-     * of the final backup state after this pass should be written to the file pointed
-     * to by the newStateFd file descriptor.
+     * during the last backup pass is provided in the oldState file descriptor.
+     * If oldState is null, no old state is available and the application should perform
+     * a full backup.  In both cases, a representation of the final backup state after
+     * this pass should be written to the file pointed to by the newStateFd file descriptor.
      *
      * @param oldState An open, read-only ParcelFileDescriptor pointing to the last backup
-     *                 state provided by the application.  May be empty or invalid, in which
+     *                 state provided by the application.  May be null, in which
      *                 case no prior state is being provided and the application should
      *                 perform a full backup.
      * @param data An open, read/write ParcelFileDescriptor pointing to the backup data
diff --git a/services/java/com/android/server/BackupManagerService.java b/services/java/com/android/server/BackupManagerService.java
index 64b7f91b67cf7..56caeeaadff2a 100644
--- a/services/java/com/android/server/BackupManagerService.java
+++ b/services/java/com/android/server/BackupManagerService.java
@@ -119,18 +119,15 @@ class BackupManagerService extends IBackupManager.Stub {
                                 // one backup service per package
                                 File savedStateName = new File(mStateDir,
                                         request.service.packageName);
-                                File dummyName = new File(mStateDir, "#####");
                                 File backupDataName = new File(mDataDir,
                                         request.service.packageName + ".data");
                                 File newStateName = new File(mStateDir,
                                         request.service.packageName + ".new");
                                 
-                                // In a full backup, we pass a file that is never writeable, hence
-                                // is always zero-sized, as a sentinel to the callee that they must
-                                // write all of their data.
-                                ParcelFileDescriptor savedState = 
-                                    ParcelFileDescriptor.open(
-                                            (request.fullBackup) ? savedStateName : dummyName,
+                                // In a full backup, we pass a null ParcelFileDescriptor as
+                                // the saved-state "file"
+                                ParcelFileDescriptor savedState = (request.fullBackup) ? null
+                                        : ParcelFileDescriptor.open(savedStateName,
                                             ParcelFileDescriptor.MODE_READ_ONLY |
                                             ParcelFileDescriptor.MODE_CREATE);