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If all the apps are installed on FAT32 SD partition, what happens when the SD card is mounted as mass storage? Do all apps become inaccessible? just like WinMo? Can some Froyo users share your experience? Thanks in advance!
victorinoxs said:
If all the apps are installed on FAT32 SD partition, what happens when the SD card is mounted as mass storage? Do all apps become inaccessible? just like WinMo? Can some Froyo users share your experience? Thanks in advance!
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What's mounted in Windows is the FAT32 partition on the sdcard. Apps2SD is on another partition, I believe a ext4 (linux only) - I don't use this myself by I remember some threads about ext2 -> ext3 -> ext4 conversion needed.
Android actually does not partition the SDcard and encrypts the apps onto the FAT32 partition. Apps that are on the SDcard will not be able to be run while the phone is mounted via USB. This is why applications can decide to not be able to be placed on the sdcard.
Ooglez said:
Android actually does not partition the SDcard and encrypts the apps onto the FAT32 partition. Apps that are on the SDcard will not be able to be run while the phone is mounted via USB. This is why applications can decide to not be able to be placed on the sdcard.
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Thanks, that answers my question. I kind of prefer the old app2sd method then.....
victorinoxs said:
Thanks, that answers my question. I kind of prefer the old app2sd method then.....
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+100
10char
Ooglez said:
Android actually does not partition the SDcard and encrypts the apps onto the FAT32 partition. Apps that are on the SDcard will not be able to be run while the phone is mounted via USB. This is why applications can decide to not be able to be placed on the sdcard.
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From their (Google) perspective I guess they didn't want to get in the business of walking people through the process of carving out another partition and/or messing with existing sdcard contents. The "old" method was better, I don't think I'll be using the sdcard for apps, once I uninstall raging thunder 2 I'll have more than enough space
Why is it that mounting the sdcard for USB access makes it unavailable to the phone? That seems unnecessary. I can mount drives on my Linux box from my Windows computer and access them from both computers at the same time. Why does Android have this limitation?
wmm said:
Why is it that mounting the sdcard for USB access makes it unavailable to the phone? That seems unnecessary. I can mount drives on my Linux box from my Windows computer and access them from both computers at the same time. Why does Android have this limitation?
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You're using a network connection to share the drive, not mounting the drive locally.
attn1 said:
You're using a network connection to share the drive, not mounting the drive locally.
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Sure, but the point is that since multiple processes can share access to a drive, why can't the USB access be just another process that plays nice with all the user processes instead of requiring exclusive access?
Why not use the dual mount sd widget it mounts the sdcard for mass storage and leaves it accessible to android for use
garringm said:
Why not use the dual mount sd widget it mounts the sdcard for mass storage and leaves it accessible to android for use
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Nice, just given it a try and it works. thanks for the suggestion!
garringm said:
Why not use the dual mount sd widget it mounts the sdcard for mass storage and leaves it accessible to android for use
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Now that is Awesome!
When I have installed games like Sniper vs Sniper, Homerun Battle 3d and Asphalt. They all have me to download more files but they are always installed on the internal SD instead of the External SD. Is there a way to prevent this?
anyone have any ideas?
Any reason why you would NOT want them on the near 2 gigs allocated?
I want the installations to go on the External Card and they are all installing on the internal card. Maybe the thread topic is misleading....
No, just curious why 2 gigs is not enough. Especially when faster than external. Doesn't make sense...
Its the way the SDs are mounted. Sdcard/sd is the external. The app just looks for sdcard/ which is the internal.
He's taking about the internal sd not the /data apps dir.
Sent from my SGH-T959
tissimo said:
Its the way the SDs are mounted. Sdcard/sd is the external. The app just looks for sdcard/ which is the internal.
He's taking about the internal sd not the /data apps dir.
Sent from my SGH-T959
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Yes thats what im referring to. I want everything to be on the external. On other phones like the Evo, the games "extra" files are installed on the Ext SD Card.
correct me if I'm wrong. My understanding is there are 3 storage options:
1. Phone's 2GB internal memory: this is where apps are installed
2. Phone's 12GB internal memory: internal memory you can mount to PC and move files back and forth
3. External SD card slot: can use up to 32GB of microSD card here.
OP, what exactly are you looking to do? Put the apps installed on the 2GB internal ROM on the external SD card? I don't think this is doable w/o rooting, maybe 2.2 Froyo will have it.
jkcheng122 said:
correct me if I'm wrong. My understanding is there are 3 storage options:
1. Phone's 2GB internal memory: this is where apps are installed
2. Phone's 12GB internal memory: internal memory you can mount to PC and move files back and forth
3. External SD card slot: can use up to 32GB of microSD card here.
OP, what exactly are you looking to do? Put the apps installed on the 2GB internal ROM on the external SD card? I don't think this is doable w/o rooting, maybe 2.2 Froyo will have it.
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Games like Homerun Battle 3d. When you install it, it tells you that it has to download more information to store on your SD Card. On the HTC Evo, the downloaded information stores on the external SD Card in the /com2us folder. On the Vibrant, the extra information that is downloaded stores on the internal SD card in the same folder. I would rather have all the extra info store on the EXT SD Card.
acjames said:
Yes thats what im referring to. I want everything to be on the external. On other phones like the Evo, the games "extra" files are installed on the Ext SD Card.
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Sorry I wasn't really clear on my on my post. Most phones don't have an internal SD card, so the standard mount for the external SD card is the sdcard/ partition, so the app automatically mounts the data there. You'll have to reprogram the app to see the SGS external SD card mounting directory of sdcard/sd
Sent from my SGH-T959
Hey everybody, the Atrix is my first Android device and I havent stopped playing with it since I got it. Im curious to what the difference is between the "Media Area" (manage applications>move to "media area") and the internal phone storage? from what i see, anything i move to the "media area" goes to the internal phone storage.
Also while using Root Explorer i saw 2 folders "/sdcard" and "/sdcard-ext" where ext is my external sd. i checked this after noticing that my ADW launcher backup files were NOT on my sd card. and with root explorer the files were in the "sdcard" folder, which is different from my "sdcard-ext" folder.
Can anyone please explain how or why the files that claim to be saved to my sdcard are actually saved to the other "sdcard" file setup by Android? and the difference between the media area and phone storage, why are applications set to "move to media area" rather than "move to sd card".
There is a storage location option under sd card settings. I haven't played with it yet though.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA Premium App
Your phone has an "internal sd card" due to the way the OS is configured. sdcard-ext, as you already know, is your external SD card. Your "internal card" is divided as follows: 2GB for Android OS and webtop software, 2GB dedicated for app installation, and 11GB for media storage. This 11GB partition is called /sdcard/ in addition to media storage.
edgeicator said:
Your phone has an "internal sd card" due to the way the OS is configured. sdcard-ext, as you already know, is your external SD card. Your "internal card" is divided as follows: 2GB for Android OS and webtop software, 2GB dedicated for app installation, and 11GB for media storage. This 11GB partition is called /sdcard/ in addition to media storage.
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So out of curiosity how do you mount the External SD card when you plug your phone into your computer? In my cappy it would just show both SD cards as different drives but it seems when I plug in my Atrix it only wants to show me my internal SD card.
It shows both for me, but sometimes it bugs out and doesn't properly mount the internal storage. A quick reboot fixes it for me.
edgeicator said:
It shows both for me, but sometimes it bugs out and doesn't properly mount the internal storage. A quick reboot fixes it for me.
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Thanks for that explanation..but yeah I've never seen both when plugged via usb ...good to know tho. Is there a way to set apps or back ups to the external SD card ?
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
if you go to sd card & phone storage settings and change the windows media sync storage location to the external sd card both will show if you mount the phone as mass storage.
if you mount it as windows media sync whichever is shown will be the one that shows on the media sync window that comes up on the pc
another thread
jzaslice said:
Thanks for that explanation..but yeah I've never seen both when plugged via usb ...good to know tho. Is there a way to set apps or back ups to the external SD card ?
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
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http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=973768
according to a couple of users this partition of SD/memory and the external card, cannot be remedied for apps and such to backup or save on the external? Why would Motorola do this..
Hello Guys
I would like to know that if my SD Card 16GB has partition into 2 primary drive - FAT32, EXT3; and my android system is running on FAT32 partition, can I run the Link2SD to put all apps into EXT3 partition?
I try it and it shows the manual of the mounting partition. However, it shows the error message of mounting /dev/block/vold/179:2 on /data/sdext2 failed. I would like to use it even it is in SD version of Android so that I can minimize the usage of internal ROM. I use the traditional App2SD and the memory is gradually reduced when I install new apps.
Thanks
Wilson Fung said:
Hello Guys
I would like to know that if my SD Card 16GB has partition into 2 primary drive - FAT32, EXT3; and my android system is running on FAT32 partition, can I run the Link2SD to put all apps into EXT3 partition?
I try it and it shows the manual of the mounting partition. However, it shows the error message of mounting /dev/block/vold/179:2 on /data/sdext2 failed. I would like to use it even it is in SD version of Android so that I can minimize the usage of internal ROM. I use the traditional App2SD and the memory is gradually reduced when I install new apps.
Thanks
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SD Android uses no ROM. The applications are stored on what is read by the system as 'internal storage' but is actually a data.img file which is normally 1gb, therefore you already have 1gb of your SD card dedicated to storage of apps. I don't know if you still would like A2SD despite this, but I thought this would probably influence your decision.
Nigeldg said:
SD Android uses no ROM. The applications are stored on what is read by the system as 'internal storage' but is actually a data.img file which is normally 1gb, therefore you already have 1gb of your SD card dedicated to storage of apps. I don't know if you still would like A2SD despite this, but I thought this would probably influence your decision.
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Thanks for your reply. When downloading apps, Android will treat it storage at the internal storage, that is, the memory reduces very fast. Using App2SD will help to show higher memory storage, which is similar to NAndroid. However, the memory is still lowered as it seems to move the apps only to outside, keeping data internally. Therefore, it can download up to 60-70 apps, but it is impossible to store like 200apps. Link2SD could solve it, but I cannot link to EXT3 after using it. Any suggestion on it?
I'm using a 400GB SD card. I saw a comment about creating 2 different partitions on it as I want to use part of it for app storage and the other part for file storage, The second partition would be exFAT so I can remove the card and transfer my books, music, etc. to it by attaching the SD card to my laptop as I understand that Windows would not be able to recognize the partition that would be formatted as internal storage. I did format the SD card using my laptop as two separate partitions. My Samsung Galaxy Tab A saw both partitions. I selected the 96GB partition as I wanted to use that for app storage and selected the option to use it as internal storage. Unfortunately when I did that, it appears that the system set the whole CD card up for internal storage. Does anyone have any insight on how to accomplish this - use part of the SD card for internal storage and part of it for storage that would be recognizable by Windows? Thank you very much.
I have not tried, so take the advice as a suggestion, perhaps android can be "fooled", which I doubt.
After creating a bulk partition in android, move the SD to Windows and resize that partition, and create a second partition on the remaining capacity and hide it.
Now move the SD back to android and see what happens.
If android will reformat the partitions again then I can't advise anything else.
However, if android accepts the memory, then the next step is to discover the partition in Windows and recheck the SD in android.
ze7zez said:
I have not tried, so take the advice as a suggestion, perhaps android can be "fooled", which I doubt.
After creating a bulk partition in android, move the SD to Windows and resize that partition, and create a second partition on the remaining capacity and hide it.
Now move the SD back to android and see what happens.
If android will reformat the partitions again then I can't advise anything else.
However, if android accepts the memory, then the next step is to discover the partition in Windows and recheck the SD in android.
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Well, I was trying to work on that and now the Android Storage module (in Settings) keeps crashing when I open it. IDK what happened here. I've reformatted the SD card, I've removed the SD card, I've rebooted the table multiple times. I'm almost to the point of having to restore the tablet from scratch ... again.
Try this:
Link2SD - Apps on Google Play
Complete app management, move to SD, clear cache, remove bloatware and more
play.google.com
JR1979 said:
I'm using a 400GB SD card. I saw a comment about creating 2 different partitions on it as I want to use part of it for app storage and the other part for file storage, The second partition would be exFAT so I can remove the card and transfer my books, music, etc. to it by attaching the SD card to my laptop as I understand that Windows would not be able to recognize the partition that would be formatted as internal storage. I did format the SD card using my laptop as two separate partitions. My Samsung Galaxy Tab A saw both partitions. I selected the 96GB partition as I wanted to use that for app storage and selected the option to use it as internal storage. Unfortunately when I did that, it appears that the system set the whole CD card up for internal storage. Does anyone have any insight on how to accomplish this - use part of the SD card for internal storage and part of it for storage that would be recognizable by Windows? Thank you very much.
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You're trying to convert a partition in sd card as internal storage and leave the rest as an external storage. Not possible as far as I know.
TheMystic said:
You're trying to convert a partition in sd card as internal storage and leave the rest as an external storage. Not possible as far as I know.
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Thats a bummer but that is what I was feeling was going to be the outcome. I guess I'll just go with it as internal storage then and be rlefated to wireless transfer of my books, etc. To the tablet. Any thoughts on why my Storage module keeps crashing now? Something definitely went nuts somewhere along the way here. It was running fine.. until I start poking around with this. I'll probably just do a rebuild again tonight.. if I can find my steps notes.
I also don't think it's possible to do what you have in mind. It's also important to remember that Windows will only mount the first partition of an SD card. It won't see any other partitions without 3rd party software installed.
JR1979 said:
Thats a bummer but that is what I was feeling was going to be the outcome. I guess I'll just go with it as internal storage then and be rlefated to wireless transfer of my books, etc. To the tablet. Any thoughts on why my Storage module keeps crashing now? Something definitely went nuts somewhere along the way here. It was running fine.. until I start poking around with this. I'll probably just do a rebuild again tonight.. if I can find my steps notes.
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The reason people want a micro SD card is to be able to move it around between devices, so it is not a good idea to convert it into 'internal storage' for two reasons:
1. You can no longer move the card around (not without reformatting it again).
2. This process would significantly slow down the system if the OS starts saving apps, data and files on the micro SD card because it sees this space as internal storage.
Because of how you partitioned the SD card and tried converting only a part of it as internal storage, my guess is the process caused corruption somewhere, and the system is crashing because of that. I'm afraid you'll have to do a factory reset and start from scratch. I hope your files are safe.
JR1979 said:
I'm using a 400GB SD card. I saw a comment about creating 2 different partitions on it as I want to use part of it for app storage and the other part for file storage, The second partition would be exFAT so I can remove the card and transfer my books, music, etc. to it by attaching the SD card to my laptop as I understand that Windows would not be able to recognize the partition that would be formatted as internal storage. I did format the SD card using my laptop as two separate partitions. My Samsung Galaxy Tab A saw both partitions. I selected the 96GB partition as I wanted to use that for app storage and selected the option to use it as internal storage. Unfortunately when I did that, it appears that the system set the whole CD card up for internal storage. Does anyone have any insight on how to accomplish this - use part of the SD card for internal storage and part of it for storage that would be recognizable by Windows? Thank you very much.
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Click to collapse
You should NEVER use an SD card for internal storage. They are MUCH to slow for that purpose. Today's SoC have RAM chips mounted directly on top and are several times faster than the fastest SD card bus. And low end tablets, which includes ALL Tab A devices, use a USB bus with limited bandwidth. So using faster SD cards is pointless as they will still only be as fast as the bus. SD cards are fine for storing video, audio, text and downloaded files, but NOT for running apps. Doing so will cause the device to be laggy at best, and cause crashes at worst.
blaacksheep said:
I also don't think it's possible to do what you have in mind. It's also important to remember that Windows will only mount the first partition of an SD card. It won't see any other partitions without 3rd party software installed.
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The two partitions on the USB flash drive can be seen* in Windows without third-party software.
*I don't have an English Windows interface.
ze7zez said:
The two partitions on the USB flash drive can be seen* in Windows without third-party software.
*I don't have an English Windows interface.
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I meant that it won't mount the second partition, although you can see it in Disk Manager.
blaacksheep said:
I meant that it won't mount the second partition, although you can see it in Disk Manager.
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Windows 10 mounts both of these partitions, assigns them letters and you can use them (read and write).
ze7zez said:
Windows 10 mounts both of these partitions, assigns them letters and you can use them (read and write).
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I stand corrected! Previous versions of Windows could not do that.
ze7zez said:
The two partitions on the USB flash drive can be seen* in Windows without third-party software.
*I don't have an English Windows interface.
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Something strange in that attachment. Since when do Android SD cards have NTFS partitions? As far as I know, the internal storage partitions that Windows couldn't read were formated as Ext3 or Ext4 and the external as either FAT32 or exFAT.
lewmur said:
Something strange in that attachment. Since when do Android SD cards have NTFS partitions? As far as I know, the internal storage partitions that Windows couldn't read were formated as Ext3 or Ext4 and the external as either FAT32 or exFAT.
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Don't suggest the volume label. Partition K: is FAT. The example shows that Windows can show two partitions on a USB stick.
ze7zez said:
Don't suggest the volume label. Partition K: is FAT. The example shows that Windows can show two partitions on a USB stick.
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Of course it can. It can show several. But NOT the two partitions created on an Android SD card because one of then is formated in a file system Windows doesn't recognize and that is what the poster was talking about.
edit: Disk Manager will actually show the partition but it won't be assigned a drive letter because Windows can't mount it.