Hi everyone
Frist of all, Im very happy to form part of this great community, I have ordered my Nvidia Shield from Amazon UK and I have looking into every detail of this console since several months..., at the end, I could buy it (it will with me this week or next monday the latest)
Well I could check , my Shield from amazon uk will be in Jelly Bean (4.2).., and as you know, being in 4.2 does not allow you to play streaming with Nvidia GRID, besides, you dont have the option to copy/pass android games (heavy games, such as nova 3 , with 3.5 GB, I mean the folder "Obb") to the Micro SD, nor the controller mapper..., a disaster.
So, I would really like to UPDATE from 4.2 to 4.3, Is it possible????, Regarding KITKAT..., nowadays it is not so good option since being in kitkat offers problems when you want to pass an Android game to the Micro SD..., some of games wont work if you do it.., and the 16 GB of the internal memory is not enough..., if you install 4 or 5 android games such as asphalt 8, modern combat 4, nova 3 or Tegra 4 games (Blood Sword , for instance) you wont have any free space in your internal memory of your shield...
Moreover, emulators offers some problems in Kitkat..., if you pass the roms to the Micro SD , again, the save states wont work..., so that, you are forced to move the roms to the internal memory..., a disaster.
When I have the Shield with me and I proceed to update the consola from 4.2..., will the shileld offer me to update to 4.3 first???? or it will offer me directly and exclusively the Kitkat update???, Someone told me that when you go to options in the console, the shield will offer me the several updates from the begining, in my case, being in 4.2, the 4.3 as the next step to update..., Is it true???
PLEASE, confirm me this because I dont really want to update to 4.4.2... for the reasons previously comented. I need 4.3.
THANK YOU VERY VERY MUCH!!!
Bardok84 said:
Hi everyone
Frist of all, Im very happy to form part of this great community, I have ordered my Nvidia Shield from Amazon UK and I have looking into every detail of this console since several months..., at the end, I could buy it (it will with me this week or next monday the latest)
Well I could check , my Shield from amazon uk will be in Jelly Bean (4.2).., and as you know, being in 4.2 does not allow you to play streaming with Nvidia GRID, besides, you dont have the option to copy/pass android games (heavy games, such as nova 3 , with 3.5 GB, I mean the folder "Obb") to the Micro SD, nor the controller mapper..., a disaster.
So, I would really like to UPDATE from 4.2 to 4.3, Is it possible????, Regarding KITKAT..., nowadays it is not so good option since being in kitkat offers problems when you want to pass an Android game to the Micro SD..., some of games wont work if you do it.., and the 16 GB of the internal memory is not enough..., if you install 4 or 5 android games such as asphalt 8, modern combat 4, nova 3 or Tegra 4 games (Blood Sword , for instance) you wont have any free space in your internal memory of your shield...
Moreover, emulators offers some problems in Kitkat..., if you pass the roms to the Micro SD , again, the save states wont work..., so that, you are forced to move the roms to the internal memory..., a disaster.
When I have the Shield with me and I proceed to update the consola from 4.2..., will the shileld offer me to update to 4.3 first???? or it will offer me directly and exclusively the Kitkat update???, Someone told me that when you go to options in the console, the shield will offer me the several updates from the begining, in my case, being in 4.2, the 4.3 as the next step to update..., Is it true???
PLEASE, confirm me this because I dont really want to update to 4.4.2... for the reasons previously comented. I need 4.3.
THANK YOU VERY VERY MUCH!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same boat here since also on 4.2 out of box. My main focus for this great device is emulators and some Android games.
1. When you try to update, or if the OTA shows up on your device as downloaded, it is 4.4.2.
2. The only way you get 4.3 on is to unlock and root. Then you can manually install. Catch is you will have to start from scratch since unlocking clears storage.
3. Emulator games saves and settings do NOT work if you have your roms on the SD card, which is where most gamers would put them. Not exactly a lot of storage between roms and Android apps with internal. I have a 64GB card that has only 500mb free. It is loaded with roms for many systems.
Avoid 4.4 if your main focus is emulators, since it is fine with 4.2. The catch is I think you need 4.3 for some of the newer features like the game pad app. You can install the app with 4.2, but it does not show up for use.
The difference is significant in regards to 4.4. Most emulators stutter with 4.4, but are smooth with 4.2. I am guessing 4.3 is smooth, but I have not seen a Shield in direct action with emulators using 4.3. Only 4.2 and 4.4.
IMO, if Nvidia updates 4.4 to get rid of the game stutter, I would consider going through the process to unlock, root and then modify the write state to On for external storage. Google are pure rubes for changing the function for external storage and are not exactly sincere in their intent.
rushless said:
1. When you try to update, or if the OTA shows up on your device as downloaded, it is 4.4.2.
2. The only way you get 4.3 on is to unlock and root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well.., what a pity..., now... there is no hope.
To continue being in 4.2 for emulators is a good option..., notwithstanding, with 4.2 there is not Controller mapper, you CAN´T play to Nvidia GRID, neither you can PASS Android Games to the Micro SD CARD....
I dont have any idea to be root, its a very complex process for me (and my poor knowledge on this kind of modifications), so... what can I do??, to be waiting untilll Nvidia repairs these problems on Kitkat???? its a pity really...
The reasons why I NEED 4.3 are:
1) I need to have the original option (in the set up menu of the shield) in order to be able to pass apps and heavy Android games (such as modern combat 4) to the Micro SD, and in this way, to have more free space in the internal memory of the Shield. This option , at least I could undertand) is only available being in 4.3. In 4.2 there is not this option, and, in 4.4.2 this option to pass android games to the micro SD does not work well.., many users told that most games stop working if you use this option passing them to the Micro SD.
2) I need to have the roms in the Micro SD, some roms (Dreamcast or PSX) are so big, not enough for our 16GB internal storage of our Shields...
What a sad day..., Someone told me that , being in 4.2, in the moment I went to update my Shield , the console would show me the several updates from the beginning (so from 4.2 I would go to 4.3), NOW, as I told before, there is no hope.
What a bad day.
Thank you a lot for your answer, anyway.
Bardok84 said:
Well.., what a pity..., now... there is no hope.
To continue being in 4.2 for emulators is a good option..., notwithstanding, with 4.2 there is not Controller mapper, you CAN´T play to Nvidia GRID, neither you can PASS Android Games to the Micro SD CARD....
I dont have any idea to be root, its a very complex process for me (and my poor knowledge on this kind of modifications), so... what can I do??, to be waiting untilll Nvidia repairs these problems on Kitkat???? its a pity really...
The reasons why I NEED 4.3 are:
1) I need to have the original option (in the set up menu of the shield) in order to be able to pass apps and heavy Android games (such as modern combat 4) to the Micro SD, and in this way, to have more free space in the internal memory of the Shield. This option , at least I could undertand) is only available being in 4.3. In 4.2 there is not this option, and, in 4.4.2 this option to pass android games to the micro SD does not work well.., many users told that most games stop working if you use this option passing them to the Micro SD.
2) I need to have the roms in the Micro SD, some roms (Dreamcast or PSX) are so big, not enough for our 16GB internal storage of our Shields...
What a sad day..., Someone told me that , being in 4.2, in the moment I went to update my Shield , the console would show me the several updates from the beginning (so from 4.2 I would go to 4.3), NOW, as I told before, there is no hope.
What a bad day.
Thank you a lot for your answer, anyway.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know its not optimal but I stuck all my roms inside of retroarch's writable directory on the SD card to allow it to function as normal. I suppose you could do the same with the other emulators as well.
Thanks for your replys, thanks a lot
So, Im thinking of updating to kitkat and then, unlock the bootloader and be root. After that , using FolderMount to copy everything to the Micro SD without any problem.
Anyway, I have several doubts...
1) Being in 4.2 , Could I use Nvidia GRID and play Nvidia streaming games on my Shield?? or, GRID only works on 4.3 and Kitkat exclusively?
2) If I update to KITKAT, is true that if I pass android games from internal memory to the Micro SD, those games wont work?? I read that passing android games to the micro sd, the games will be corrupted and they will stop working.
3) Imagine I update my Shield to 4.4.2 kitkat, in order to be able to pass android games to the micro SD, What I need?? (There is an app , as I could read, called "microsdFIX" or similar name that makes you to do it), or being Root and having the app "Folder Mount" would be enough??
Thanks you very much for your answers and information!!!
Bardok84 said:
Thanks for your replys, thanks a lot
So, Im thinking of updating to kitkat and then, unlock the bootloader and be root. After that , using FolderMount to copy everything to the Micro SD without any problem.
Anyway, I have several doubts...
1) Being in 4.2 , Could I use Nvidia GRID and play Nvidia streaming games on my Shield?? or, GRID only works on 4.3 and Kitkat exclusively?
2) If I update to KITKAT, is true that if I pass android games from internal memory to the Micro SD, those games wont work?? I read that passing android games to the micro sd, the games will be corrupted and they will stop working.
3) Imagine I update my Shield to 4.4.2 kitkat, in order to be able to pass android games to the micro SD, What I need?? (There is an app , as I could read, called "microsdFIX" or similar name that makes you to do it), or being Root and having the app "Folder Mount" would be enough??
Thanks you very much for your answers and information!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. No idea sorry
2. Games will work just fine if you move them to the SD card, you don't need any other application to do it either. All you do is go into settings, Apps, select the app you want to move, and select Move to SD, that easy.
3. You have a small misunderstanding, Android 4.4 revoked SD permission for user apps, but the system (i.e. move to SD) can still write just fine.
So for example, you can move an app to the SD just fine in 4.4, but if you try to download something to the SD card, or move something over with an app you got from the play store, it will fail. But there's a way around this, and it's SDFix: KitKat Writable MicroSD I'll explain what it does.
The two apps you talked about do pretty different things.
SDFix: KitKat Writable MicroSD
All this app does is restore SD functions to how they were before 4.4, i.e full SD write access for all apps. This is essential for 4.4.2 on a rooted Shield.
FolderMount [ROOT]
Is a lot like what I explained in 2. (moving apps to SD) But it's actually nicer because it lets you move apps that the system normally would not, and it lets you choose where you want the linked data to be on the SD card. That's nice because the default system just makes countless files on the root of the SD card, with FolderMount you can choose to have all the files in just one folder, it's tidier. I would recommend sticking with the default system way of moving apps to the SD though, at least until you get familiar with things, this isn't exactly essential, so maybe hold off until you start running lower on space.
If you just want 4.3, you can use the Shield RAM tool to update/revert. It's a very simple process, and it's probably what you would use to unlock/root the device anyway.
If you need help with that, or anything else don't hesitate to ask! :highfive:
CDeviant...
ASTONISHING answer, really..., thanks a lot for your help, I feel so glad to be here.
Well, anyway..., in both cases: sdFIX and Folder Mount... I would need to be root, wouldn´t I??
.., Imagine. I have my Shield updated to 4.4.2 (not rooted) , I have bought Modern Combat 4 and I have it in the internal memory of my Shield. I dont have enough space so I decide to move this game to the Micro SD, (apk and Obb folder), So, Would I be able to to this ?? Im not rooted, I am just in kitkat..., if I go to set up options (aplications) I choose the game app, Could I move all the game to the Micro SD?? I dont think so...
There is a link, where you have a full article about what happen if you try to move an android game from internal memory to micro SD card..., they wont work..., I understood that at least.
Because of that, as you told me before, in this link they suggest to root the Shield and use the sdfix app. Or , as you told me, use foldermount which offers even more posibilities moving games and apps totally.
.... What would you recommend to me?, I thought to update to kitkat...and then, to try to be root..., I think that, nowadays, being kitkat without doing root does not make any sense.
Thank you very very much again, I am very grateful to you:good:
Bardok84 said:
CDeviant...
ASTONISHING answer, really..., thanks a lot for your help, I feel so glad to be here.
Well, anyway..., in both cases: sdFIX and Folder Mount... I would need to be root, wouldn´t I??
.., Imagine. I have my Shield updated to 4.4.2 (not rooted) , I have bought Modern Combat 4 and I have it in the internal memory of my Shield. I dont have enough space so I decide to move this game to the Micro SD, (apk and Obb folder), So, Would I be able to to this ?? Im not rooted, I am just in kitkat..., if I go to set up options (aplications) I choose the game app, Could I move all the game to the Micro SD?? I dont think so...
There is a link, where you have a full article about what happen if you try to move an android game from internal memory to micro SD card..., they wont work..., I understood that at least.
Because of that, as you told me before, in this link they suggest to root the Shield and use the sdfix app. Or , as you told me, use foldermount which offers even more posibilities moving games and apps totally.
.... What would you recommend to me?, I thought to update to kitkat...and then, to try to be root..., I think that, nowadays, being kitkat without doing root does not make any sense.
Thank you very very much again, I am very grateful to you:good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, you need to be rooted to use FolderMount, and SDFix.
.., Imagine. I have my Shield updated to 4.4.2 (not rooted) , I have bought Modern Combat 4 and I have it in the internal memory of my Shield. I dont have enough space so I decide to move this game to the Micro SD, (apk and Obb folder), So, Would I be able to to this ?? Im not rooted, I am just in kitkat..., if I go to set up options (aplications) I choose the game app, Could I move all the game to the Micro SD?? I dont think so...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not all games can be moved over, (it's up to the developer of the app) but yes you can. No root, or other apps needed.
Let me point out the 2 things that are separate, but I think you're confusing them together.
Moving apps to SD = Working and playable, Without root
Saving/creating a file on SD = Not working without SDFix - No SD Write access
So basically the only problems you're going to have is when you try to copy/create something (like music, movies, text files etc.) on the SD card, that's because android 4.4.2 KitKat can not write to SD. The only way around this is by rooting, and easily installing the SDFix app.
This does not effect the move to SD function in any way! That's because it's built into the Android system.
I would probably recommend updating to Android 4.4, and unlocking/rooting to gain back the SD write functions. This is the fastest and easiest solution to updating and keeping SD function.
Otherwise, I would actually recommend unlocking/rooting your Shield now, while it's on 4.2, and then use the Shield RAM tool to update to 4.3
That would take longer, you'll lose all your data, and be more complicated, but still a straightforward process. The reason I would recommend 4.3, is because of the better emulator performance, battery life, and no need to worry about the SD card.
CDeviant said:
Yes, you need to be rooted to use FolderMount, and SDFix.
Not all games can be moved over, (it's up to the developer of the app) but yes you can. No root, or other apps needed.
Let me point out the 2 things that are separate, but I think you're confusing them together.
Moving apps to SD = Working and playable, Without root
Saving/creating a file on SD = Not working without SDFix - No SD Write access
So basically the only problems you're going to have is when you try to copy/create something (like music, movies, text files etc.) on the SD card, that's because android 4.4.2 KitKat can not write to SD. The only way around this is by rooting, and easily installing the SDFix app.
This does not effect the move to SD function in any way! That's because it's built into the Android system.
I would probably recommend updating to Android 4.4, and unlocking/rooting to gain back the SD write functions. This is the fastest and easiest solution to updating and keeping SD function.
Otherwise, I would actually recommend unlocking/rooting your Shield now, while it's on 4.2, and then use the Shield RAM tool to update to 4.3
That would take longer, you'll lose all your data, and be more complicated, but still a straightforward process. The reason I would recommend 4.3, is because of the better emulator performance, battery life, and no need to worry about the SD card.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Where can we get the 4.3 update to flash to the Shield?
As far as data, in either case you would lose your data, since the unlock process has to be done in order to root. Unlock process clears all data.
I would like 4.3, but have no need for 4.4. 90% of my focus is emulators and 10% Android games. IF there is an update that fixes the 4.4 issues pointed out by some devs (and alerted to Nvidia), I would
update to 4.4, root and then apply the sd fix. I still do not see the lure of playing PC games on a 5" display. I find Android games like MC4 and NOVA 3 too small on a 5" display. Can not enjoy the hi res effect visuals on the small display and also miss NPCs shooting at me. Display is too small IMO for PC gaming. JMO of course. Heck, I have a VP11 and find it sometime too small for playing Unreal Tournament and Quake games. That has a 1080p 10.6" display.
Thanks
rushless said:
Where can we get the 4.3 update to flash to the Shield?
As far as data, in either case you would lose your data, since the unlock process has to be done in order to root. Unlock process clears all data.
I would like 4.3, but have no need for 4.4. 90% of my focus is emulators and 10% Android games. IF there is an update that fixes the 4.4 issues pointed out by some devs (and alerted to Nvidia), I would
update to 4.4, root and then apply the sd fix. I still do not see the lure of playing PC games on a 5" display. I find Android games like MC4 and NOVA 3 too small on a 5" display. Can not enjoy the hi res effect visuals on the small display and also miss NPCs shooting at me. Display is too small IMO for PC gaming. JMO of course. Heck, I have a VP11 and find it sometime too small for playing Unreal Tournament and Quake games. That has a 1080p 10.6" display.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The easiest way to install/flash 4.3 is with the Shield RAM tool. The files are inside the toolkit, and can be flashed manually from the bootloader if you wanted.
CDeviant said:
The easiest way to install/flash 4.3 is with the Shield RAM tool. The files are inside the toolkit, and can be flashed manually from the bootloader if you wanted.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It would be cool if we could update that way without having to unlock and start from scratch. Since an official rom for the device, seems you should be able to go from 4.2 to 4.3 and be a normal process.
Take a look at this
Here we have the OFFICIAL DONWLOAD CENTER of NVIDIA, it offers all the updates:
Regarding the List, the UPDATE 63 is the Firmware 4.3 for shield (click of "read more" to see all the informacion of each update)
"Upgrade to latest Android 4.3 Jelly Bean OS"
You can download all you need for windows and linux as well. Reading the information of how to install it , because of my english level, I could not understand perfectly if you have to unock your shield or not..., I have doubts...
In my case, being in 4.2, Could I be able to install this firmware from this link without opening the bootloader of my shield??. Buf , im not sure about the process.
Reading the instructions..., it seems that there are 2 methods..., "SW Method" (shorter), and "HW method" (which implies to open the booloader)...., would I need to complete both methods?? which one is the best? using SW method without unlocking the booloader is enough????
PD: Shield battery life in Kitkat is worst than 4.3?? besides , if I update to 4.4.2 and Im Root, playing emulators continue worst experience than being in 4.3?..., WHAT A DISASTER KITKAT on Shiel really..., the only thing I need is just 4.3..., and, how many walls to break down to gain it....
Thanks you very much!!!!
Bardok84 said:
PD: Shield battery life in Kitkat is worst than 4.3?? besides , if I update to 4.4.2 and Im Root, playing emulators continue worst experience than being in 4.3?..., WHAT A DISASTER KITKAT on Shiel really..., the only thing I need is just 4.3..., and, how many walls to break down to gain it....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have my Shield rooted on 4.4.2, and I haven't noticed any lag in emulators although I only use My Boy! and Drastic. I also haven't seen any noticeable difference in battery life, but it varies from person to person. If you need help rooting, this guide is very in depth.
Bootloader - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Am5WYRojMs&hd=1&list=PLwCVKEYxr_z6zJpj1g1N0tpDLKTWJynSd
Root - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4-C0CzKoFs&list=PLwCVKEYxr_z6zJpj1g1N0tpDLKTWJynSd
Files - http://www.xda-developers.com/andro...er-unlock-the-nvidia-shield-xda-developer-tv/
http://developer.android.com/sdk/index.html?hl=sk
Good luck to you if you take the rooting route!
When I got my Shield it had to do several updates before I was ready to go. Is this the same now or does the KitKat update install regardless of what other updates you had before?
I did get my Shield a month before KitKat came out so maybe it's different now.
Sent using radio waves of some sort
Devhux said:
When I got my Shield it had to do several updates before I was ready to go. Is this the same now or does the KitKat update install regardless of what other updates you had before?
I did get my Shield a month before KitKat came out so maybe it's different now.
Sent using radio waves of some sort
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The newest update is usually what you get, regardless of current version. I have 4.2 and the newest 77 version of 4.4 is what would be loaded on mine. I stopped it and will stay with 4.2. Would like 4.3, but can not be bothered with starting from scratch again (currently set up juuust right). The reality is this device is an emulator station for me, so no real point in the effort.
I find games like MC4 and NOVA 3 too small on the 5" display, but PSP and PSX shooters are fine, since designed for a smaller display. I still do not see how folks find playing PC games on a 5" display appealing. Too tiny for me.
My internal storage is maxed out. I have already moved everything I possibly can to my SD card.
I am thinking about merging the internal and SD storage, but have read that will cause tablet efficiency to drop. I am not sure how much. I am on the last update from Samsung which is 5.0.2 but am willing to root and try another ROM. Open to suggestions.
Thanks.
*Comixology is a digital comic book reader and store. They only allow comics to be downloaded to internal storage. If the comics get moved, the app will not read them.
Most comics are getting HD upgrades which is compounding the issue. I can use the browser site, but comics load slow, and flipping through pages too fast seem to break the site and the comic page will hang up and not load. The app is much faster and has a better page preview system. Plus I travel a lot so the app is the best course for me. I am in the comic industry and need access to the comics quickly and efficiently. I also live abroad (not in the US where most of the comics are from) and move quite often so purchasing paper versions is often not an option.
Some comics can be downloaded as a PDF (I think all image and quite a few inidies). I have already downloaded them and moved them to the SD and deleted them from the internal, but still am maxed out on space.
Digital Dark Horse allows comics to be downloaded to external storage. But their app is not as nice to use as Comixology, so I would prefer to buy DH titles on comixology as well.
That is one of the problems with Android tablets and phones. Since some programs insist on loading their stuff on internal memory, when it gets full you are out of luck. They do that to keep you from copying their stuff and selling or giving it away.
treetopsranch said:
That is one of the problems with Android tablets and phones. Since some programs insist on loading their stuff on internal memory, when it gets full you are out of luck. They do that to keep you from copying their stuff and selling or giving it away.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks Treetopsranch. And yes, I am aware of the issue and the reasons for some time now. Unfortunately the consequences are just now catching up to me. Several messages a year to comixology always gets the same response. We are not implementing it at this time but will pass this on to the developers so they are aware of the issue.
Have you tried folder mount? I used it for making my music player think that my music is in the internal storage.
fvig2001 said:
Have you tried folder mount? I used it for making my music player think that my music is in the internal storage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have not tried folder mount. You mean like this one?
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.devasque.fmount&hl=en
Sounds promising. I am rooted so I can give this a try. Thanks for the suggestion and I will post my results.
edit: Can't add the app. Out of space....Gonna have to get to this after work today ?
Yes that one
fvig2001 said:
Yes that one
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oogely Moogely! I transferred 13 gigs of comics to my external SD and they all open no problem at all. No lag or anything from what I can tell. I am now downloading the other 120 comics I had to remove to make space for new comics. (Some of those are single issue and some are graphic novels)
This is soooo helpful cause I am in the middle of making a comic and being able to access old "30 Days of Night" comics I had deleted is what I need when I get stuck or not sure how to go about something. Ahhh the access. And not using the horribly slow browser interface.
For anyone else: The data does not show on your internal storage when you check storage from your devices settings menu. It does show if you use something like DiskUsage. Diskusage also says it scanned %178 of my internal storage, so I guess it just adds what is not really there in the scan % but also says I have no free space, which I do. About %50 free space now.
EDIT: Just realized that comixology does not download comics in the background when the tablet goes to sleep. So you have to keep the screen on I guess. I couldn't find a setting for this in the app. Not sure if there is something under tablet settings.
If I find any drawback from this app I will post them here.
Well, how comes that you need them all at the same time? Why not download and delete them separately?
macmobile said:
Well, how comes that you need them all at the same time? Why not download and delete them separately?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I'm a comic artist and I often need reference or ideas from my peers. It helps me keep my art fresh and less stagnant. So when I remember how Tocchini colored an underwater scene in LOW, or how Samnee used a cool panel layout in Blackwidow, I can quickly reference what I need. The browser sucks for this because it is super slow and the page index is not as nice. Also, my tablet is my 2nd monitor so that is where the comics are the most useful.
Ah, I see, very interesting, but this seems to be a very specific use case most consumers don't depend on.
macmobile said:
Ah, I see, very interesting, but this seems to be a very specific use case most consumers don't depend on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. But, re-downloading every time you want to read something, even for a consumer, is still ****ty. I am not sure what your point is though.
michaelsammler said:
I agree. But, re-downloading every time you want to read something, even for a consumer, is still ****ty. I am not sure what your point is though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Of course it would be better if you can choose yourself where to save your comics. But a normal use case looks like this: download on demand, read, delete, next.
TL;DR Ramexpander set at 4gb swap file makes all the difference for this tablet
A little background: I've been modifying my phones since the galaxy nexus. I've tried greenify, amplify, debloating, kernels, overclocking, cleaning, l-speed, etc. I like to run a lot of apps, and all of my phones and devices, including the Nexus 6p (until the Pixel XL) lagged. RamExpander has been the solution every time, and the fire hd is no different. This one: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.swapit.expander.de&hl=en .
Use the free version here to check if your device is compatible: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.roehsoft.meminfo&hl=en but I know a rooted 2017 Hd 10 running 5.6 is compatible.
Maybe your device runs perfectly already and/or you're using less apps. That's great! But I have seen a few threads about trying to optimize performance. IF your device lags, this app will make an immediate night and day difference.
I'll give it a try
I have L Speed and Greenify installed on all of my rooted Android devices. Could you please explain to us how RAMEXPANDER is better than L Speed/Greenify? I'm curious. I'll do anything to optimize these Fire HDs even more. I rooted them and installed Google everything on them so my parents don't have to deal with the Fire OS.
Is Ram Expander really worth $10? I wanted to try it and found an APK. The damned thing was contaminated with neverending ads appearing every 10 seconds... I had to uninstall and run Malwarebytes to get the tablet working fine again. I assume the "real" paid version has no crappy ads?
---------- Post added at 01:09 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:08 AM ----------
bakshi said:
I have L Speed and Greenify installed on all of my rooted Android devices. Could you please explain to us how RAMEXPANDER is better than L Speed/Greenify? I'm curious. I'll do anything to optimize these Fire HDs even more. I rooted them and installed Google everything on them so my parents don't have to deal with the Fire OS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know Greenify already and use it on my tablets and cell phones. But it's the 1st time ever I hear about L Speed. Is it complicated to set up?
The 2GB memory is pretty limited, and disabling some Amazon services and avoiding apps that remain persistent in memory is highly recommended. I installed the official Google app to get Google Assistant, but found that it used too much ram. I recommended installing system monitor and monitoring the active processes, sorted by ram usage, to identify bloated user apps.
bakshi said:
I have L Speed and Greenify installed on all of my rooted Android devices. Could you please explain to us how RAMEXPANDER is better than L Speed/Greenify? I'm curious. I'll do anything to optimize these Fire HDs even more. I rooted them and installed Google everything on them so my parents don't have to deal with the Fire OS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so what ram expander does is it's just a super easy way to setup a swap file (space on the internal sd card that will be used as RAM). Why is it better than all the other stuff I've tried? It's empirical, not logical. That is to say, every phone that's lagged, if RAMEXPANDER is compatible, I've installed and it's made a huge difference in performance, every single time. I've messed around with a lot of optimization tools beforehand and results have been mixed. I can improve battery life usually, but the phone will still lag, with those tools and with all the apps i run. Also, each tool is just more strain on the system.
metaleloi666 said:
Is Ram Expander really worth $10? I wanted to try it and found an APK. The damned thing was contaminated with neverending ads appearing every 10 seconds... I had to uninstall and run Malwarebytes to get the tablet working fine again. I assume the "real" paid version has no crappy ads?
---------- Post added at 01:09 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:08 AM ----------
I know Greenify already and use it on my tablets and cell phones. But it's the 1st time ever I hear about L Speed. Is it complicated to set up?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've never seen an add in the app. You got a bad APK.
An alternative, I've found, though less intuitive is an app called apps2sd. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=in.co.pricealert.apps2sd&hl=en
It's a little less intuitive, but basically when you open the app, you get a bunch of tools to choose from. If you choose the SWAP menu, you can create a SWAP Partition on the /data partition. 4gb has been working amazingly for me. Then go to settings and check the "apply swap on boot" (after you test it for a while, and you're happy and everything's stable).
L-speed has a lot of options. It's got a few profiles, but I'm not sure that they actually work. With some messing around you can get a little improvement here and there (or maybe it's placebo). Sometimes an update of L-speed will bootloop your device, but I only use it on devices I have an nandroid ready to go on.
SWAP, through ram expander or apps2sd, makes a night and day difference compared to any other tool I've tried.
Does Ram Expander starts automatically at each reboot or it has to be started manually each time?
mistermojorizin said:
so what ram expander does is it's just a super easy way to setup a swap file (space on the internal sd card that will be used as RAM). Why is it better than all the other stuff I've tried? It's empirical, not logical. That is to say, every phone that's lagged, if RAMEXPANDER is compatible, I've installed and it's made a huge difference in performance, every single time. I've messed around with a lot of optimization tools beforehand and results have been mixed. I can improve battery life usually, but the phone will still lag, with those tools and with all the apps i run. Also, each tool is just more strain on the system.
I've never seen an add in the app. You got a bad APK.
An alternative, I've found, though less intuitive is an app called apps2sd. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=in.co.pricealert.apps2sd&hl=en
It's a little less intuitive, but basically when you open the app, you get a bunch of tools to choose from. If you choose the SWAP menu, you can create a SWAP Partition on the /data partition. 4gb has been working amazingly for me. Then go to settings and check the "apply swap on boot" (after you test it for a while, and you're happy and everything's stable).
L-speed has a lot of options. It's got a few profiles, but I'm not sure that they actually work. With some messing around you can get a little improvement here and there (or maybe it's placebo). Sometimes an update of L-speed will bootloop your device, but I only use it on devices I have an nandroid ready to go on.
SWAP, through ram expander or apps2sd, makes a night and day difference compared to any other tool I've tried.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for this. Just did this with app2sd and working great!
metaleloi666 said:
Does Ram Expander starts automatically at each reboot or it has to be started manually each time?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It has an auto start feature
metaleloi666 said:
Is Ram Expander really worth $10? I wanted to try it and found an APK. The damned thing was contaminated with neverending ads appearing every 10 seconds... I had to uninstall and run Malwarebytes to get the tablet working fine again. I assume the "real" paid version has no crappy ads?
Here is a link for the premium: https://uplod.cc/4ogqacud4av9
If that doesn't work, check this link out: https://apk4free.net/roehsoft-ram-expander/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I keep trying to install this (the Google Play store version of ROEHSOFT RAM Expander) on a Fire HD10 with root via Kingoroot. I'm trying to install the swap disk on the SD card, and I'm getting an error message:
You have a Limited Kernel
Kernel Swapspace Limit detected! please reduce the Swapfile Size lower 1GB! and try again!
This happens no matter what size I pick for the swap file on the SD card.
If I try to use the same company's "test" app (MemoryInfo-SwapCheck), I get this error message:
Path Error
This Path is not usable for Swap!
I can verify that both apps are successfully creating the swap file on the SD card (swapfile.swp or swaptestf.swp, depending on which app I'm using).
I've tried both systems 5.5.0.0 and 5.6.0.1 and I get the same error message on either. I've tried installing it on a completely fresh install of both, with only Kingoroot, SuperSU, Google Play, and RAM Expander installed (in that order). I've also tried swapping out SD cards, and get the same error on both.
This software does work properly if I install the swap file on internal memory, but I'd prefer not to do that, since I can't replace the internal memory if I wear it out.
The weird thing is, I could swear it was working properly before (a couple of weeks ago), but nothing is getting this to work now. It's possible I was mistaken and had accidentally chosen the internal memory, but I don't think so.
Anyone have any clue about what's going on?
GamerOfRassilon said:
I keep trying to install this (the Google Play store version of ROEHSOFT RAM Expander) on a Fire HD10 with root via Kingoroot. I'm trying to install the swap disk on the SD card, and I'm getting an error message...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To respond to myself (in case anyone else has this problem in the future):
For some reason, this software doesn't work if you set the path to /storage/sdcard1 (It will create the swap file, but then it gives the error message I described).
Instead, you have to use:
/mnt/media_rw/sdcard1
Then it works totally fine.
Also, if it's useful (and saves anyone else time), here are the values that each option of this software generates on the HD10:
multitasking
SwpFile = 3000MB
Swappiness = 100
MinFreeKB = 54MB
DriveCache(KB) = 4096
balanced
SwpFile = 3000MB
Swappiness = 100
MinFreeKB = 62MB
DriveCache(KB) = 8192
gamers
SwpFile = 3000MB
Swappiness = 100
MinFreeKB = 62MB
DriveCache(KB) = 16384
net gamers
SwpFile = 3000MB
Swappiness = 100
MinFreeKB = 4MB
DriveCache(KB) = 1024
I have no idea what those options mean or do, but I went with "balanced" (since it seemed pretty middle of the road) but with SwpFile set to 4000MB instead of 3000MB.
Ramexpander etc.
I've paid for and been using RAMExpander for awhile now. It's a good app, and worth the money. That being said, App2SD is also an incredibly useful app, Pro or no. L-Speed is great as well. One thing to note, from what I've researched, editing your zram is also helpful as it compresses items in memory to free up space, and it is prioritized over Swap. Using the two in conjunction (having a zram file (250-500 MB seems to do the trick but you could probably go lower) and a decent sized swap file(mine is 8GB but I suspect this is massive overkill and 4 would work)) has left me with little to no lag, especially when paired with L-Speed's other exceptional tweaks. Jade Empire and Kotor run with 0 lag at top graphical settings.
Hope this helped clear up any questions.
Edit: If you use App2SD's partition manager you can set yourself up with a partition dedicated exclusively to Swap, then in Ramexpander change swap location to this partition in the settings. Ramexpander tops you out at 4GB, doing this is a good way to increase that threshold.
mistermojorizin said:
so what ram expander does is it's just a super easy way to setup a swap file (space on the internal sd card that will be used as RAM). Why is it better than all the other stuff I've tried? It's empirical, not logical. That is to say, every phone that's lagged, if RAMEXPANDER is compatible, I've installed and it's made a huge difference in performance, every single time. I've messed around with a lot of optimization tools beforehand and results have been mixed. I can improve battery life usually, but the phone will still lag, with those tools and with all the apps i run. Also, each tool is just more strain on the system.
I've never seen an add in the app. You got a bad APK.
An alternative, I've found, though less intuitive is an app called apps2sd. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=in.co.pricealert.apps2sd&hl=en
It's a little less intuitive, but basically when you open the app, you get a bunch of tools to choose from. If you choose the SWAP menu, you can create a SWAP Partition on the /data partition. 4gb has been working amazingly for me. Then go to settings and check the "apply swap on boot" (after you test it for a while, and you're happy and everything's stable).
L-speed has a lot of options. It's got a few profiles, but I'm not sure that they actually work. With some messing around you can get a little improvement here and there (or maybe it's placebo). Sometimes an update of L-speed will bootloop your device, but I only use it on devices I have an nandroid ready to go on.
SWAP, through ram expander or apps2sd, makes a night and day difference compared to any other tool I've tried.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Blaiser47 said:
Thanks for this. Just did this with app2sd and working great!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How did you set it up?
I swaped it on Sd card on my j7 & it became to freeze & became super slow...
What about using BK Disabler?
ThisCrimsonDiscordia said:
I've paid for and been using RAMExpander for awhile now. It's a good app, and worth the money. That being said, App2SD is also an incredibly useful app, Pro or no. L-Speed is great as well. One thing to note, from what I've researched, editing your zram is also helpful as it compresses items in memory to free up space, and it is prioritized over Swap. Using the two in conjunction (having a zram file (250-500 MB seems to do the trick but you could probably go lower) and a decent sized swap file(mine is 8GB but I suspect this is massive overkill and 4 would work)) has left me with little to no lag, especially when paired with L-Speed's other exceptional tweaks. Jade Empire and Kotor run with 0 lag at top graphical settings.
Hope this helped clear up any questions.
Edit: If you use App2SD's partition manager you can set yourself up with a partition dedicated exclusively to Swap, then in Ramexpander change swap location to this partition in the settings. Ramexpander tops you out at 4GB, doing this is a good way to increase that threshold.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just out of curiosity, what are your L Speed settings?
I went with App2SD and L-Speed after reading this thread, and wow, it's practically a different experience, a different tablet. If you aren't doing something similar you're purposefully using a tablet that is gimped.
Here are the settings I went with:
App2SD swap is set to 4GB and placed in /data.
L-Speed has everything turned on as it would when first installed.
RAM Manager is set to balanced, seems like more than enough and I don't want to be plugged in frequently.
zRAM Optimization is set to on.
I then went back to swap settings and set the zRAM to priority 0 and /data set to 1.
Turned improved scrolling on.
Everything else was left as is, for now.
I can't believe this is the same tablet I was using a week ago.
No need for Greenify with this combination.
What size should i set the swap partition to?
Since the swap will be on the sd card, should I go with the Samsung MicroSDXC EVO Plus which has 100/60 read/write rates or the Samsung PRO Endurance which has better reliability (designed for continuous writes) in the long run but only 100/30 read/write?
lanbladez said:
What size should i set the swap partition to?
Since the swap will be on the sd card, should I go with the Samsung MicroSDXC EVO Plus which has 100/60 read/write rates or the Samsung PRO Endurance which has better reliability (designed for continuous writes) in the long run but only 100/30 read/write?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You could probably get away with 2GB, honestly. In which case, I'd really suggest putting it on internal in /data.
Just one less I/O delay (even if seemingly trivial, will cause lag) to deal with.
If you're going with putting the swap on an SD rather than internal, definitely the fastest SD you can use. :fingers-crossed:
If you must put it on the SD, at the least create a zram "swap" on internal, it only has to be ~150-300MB.