Upgrading micro SD card to another larger one breaks apps [SOLVED] - General Questions and Answers

I have swapped my older microSD card (64GB) for a larger newer one (256GB), both are formatted as external SD with the exFAT file system (so it can be read with a computer using a microSD card reader for faster and easier file transfers).
The swap initially appeared to be a success, with photos and videos taken with the Samsung stock camera app able to be stored on the new external card. A third party video recorder also worked the same on the new card as it did on the old one (able to select a specific folder and saves properly). Playing back and accessing content from the new card worked fine in a variety of applications (accessing file types: various videos, audio mp3 and FLACs, .PDF, .doc, .epub, .cbz, etc.)
Unfortunately some apps will simply not work, while others which needed to have save locations redirected returned surprising effects.
Titanium Backup v8.1.0 simply does not launch with the new card (returns error Unfortunately, Titanium Backup has stopped.) I have tried first clearing cache and then even uninstalling/re-installing the app - no dice. I swap back to the old card and all works fine. This is the failure that smarts the most as it breaks my phone's app backup plan.
Zedge v5.70.3 app launches and seems to work until I go to install anything to the phone (ringtone, notification sound or wallpaper), then I get a Download failed error and the chosen item is not added. There is no way to swap the download location for the new card. Again I have cleared cache, un-inistalled and re-installed without success. I have sent them a support ticket.
Call Recorder Pro v 1.9 (Tohsoft) required me to change the ''Location of recording'' folder to SD card (no choice of which folder) and this selection resulted in a totally different and complex directory structure used on the new card:
Code:
/storage/emulated/0/Android/data/com.tohsoft.call.autocallrecorder.pro/files/CallRecorders
while on the old card I was able to use a more sensibly located folder in the root of the microSD card as follows:
Code:
/storage/6958-0839/CallRecorders
As the app works and the files can be retrieved this is not a deal breaker, but it is an added hassle now to locate the recordings!
I checked both cards using ES File Explorer and in the folder
Code:
/storage
they each show up as different folder names
old card: 6958-0839
new card: 0102-1A79
A bit of poking around searching online and I determined these were the unique volume IDs and not the volume names. Apparently these can be changed on a PC but I am unsure if this would have other implications. I also looked around for symlinking (which I use on my PCs to map my NAS shares), to see if a virtual link could be made to fool the operating system into thinking the cards were the same one. There was some info about this but I am not sure where I would put the symlink if the file system allows me to create it (on FAT file systems such as the microSD card's one this is a no no apparently, but I do not know the file system of internal memory where the link to the external SD would need to be - I wonder, is it using one of the Linux Ext file systems that support symlinks?)
I was guessing that a symlink for the new card named 6958-0839 (to look like my first working microSD card) should be placed in the following folder (after selecting Device in ES File Explorer):
Code:
/mnt/media_rw/
My handset is a Samsung Galaxy Note 4 N910U Android 6.0.1 stock rooted
I have tried searching here about this issue without success. Apologies if I am asking something that has already been answered - please direct me accordingly in this case.
Any assistance will be greatly appreciated.

Ok so I have solved it I think (TitaniumBackup launches ok again).
I changed the exFAT Volume Serial Number on the new card to be the same as the old one.
I ended up using Krylack Volume Serial Number Editor. I tried first using SysInternals VolumeID v2.1 and I was able to run the command but I was receiving an "Unrecognised Drive Type" error and the documentation says NTFS and FAT support (no mention of exFAT so maybe the tool is too old).
After applying the fix mentioned above I noticed that I am also running an app called XInternalSD with "Custom path to internal SD" ticked and the path set to
Code:
/storage/6958-0839/
I have not tried, since everything works for me now on the new card that I edited the VSN on, but I assume that if I had changed the numbers in the path field in the XInternalSD app to the new VSN that would have worked also...

Related

[Q] Read-only SD card? Can't save wallpapers.

Hi all,
I have noticed for a while that when using apps for downloading wallpapers e.g. Flikie Wallpapers HD, Wedge, Mabilo, Backgrounds, etc. I get messages saying that is not possible to save on the SD card.
Strangely enough if I open Astro file manager almost all files and folders in my phone including those in the phone memory are marked with an -r-, are they then read-only files? If so, could it be the cause of some apps failing to save on the SD card?
If then I connect the phone to my laptop or pc I can then revert the read-only attribute of any file or folder but when I mount the card on the phone again the read-only attribute comes back again.
Here are some examples of apps that I have tried so far:
Wedge:
It seems to be OK being able to save and set those wallpapers and navigating to them with Astro doesn't seem to be a problem although they are still shown as -r-.
Backgrounds:
Saving: "Could not save the image. Please make sure the SD card is inserted and mounted"
Set wallpaper: works OK
Mabilo:
All working OK
I hope someone might be able to help. This is perhaps an easy problem to solve but I'm running out of ideas
I'm using HTC Hero 2.1, T-Mobile UK, original ROM. For the rest the phone works well, so I don't think this is a phone-specific issue...
Thanks for reading my first post

[Q] Can't access "My Photos" - via Gallery - on my microSD card anymore; HELP!

[Q] Can't access "My Photos" - via Gallery - on my microSD card anymore; HELP!
I don't know WHAT I may have done, but a few weeks ago, I updated my Droid 1's ROM to one of Bugless Beast's variants... and in the process, must have forgotten how to reselect my Gallery settings to recognize My Photos directory on the SC Card. I only get one folder with a bunch of logos in it, and that's it.
I can access all files and folders on my SD Card, and can even open each desired image - one-at-a-time in most file managers, but - try as I can, I can't seem to recall how to get Gallery to "see" the others on the SD card.
I even moved everything from the SD Card to my computer's hard drive (some 9 GB of files...) and did a format of the card - thinking it needed a wicked cleaning. Moved everything back, and - business as before... as in: "no luck". Still can't access any of the photo or movie files within Gallery.
...any takers??
Try as I might, I can't seem to find ANY location of a cache or data reference to Gallery. I used to be able to simply view ALL file folders that contained images... and now, it seems to be limited to a select few that have nothing to do with the "My Photos" folder or its respective sub folders. I wiped the cache and data on the device a good half dozen times prior to installing the latest Bugless Beast ROM V0.5, and yet - I still can't get it to "see" any of the desired image files on the microSD card. I even wiped all data on the card, formating it, and reinstalled all of the files. Still, no luck.
As an added bit of frustration, I attempted other ROMS, and had similar issues. Wasn't like this before I installed the latest 2.2...!
UPDATE... What's more, I also used to be able to select one of my sound files on my MicroSD card, and make it my ringtone, as well as assign similar audio files as alerts, etc. Now - I can't.
As my kids often text... "WTFIGO...?!?"
Any help would be greatly appreciated! Feel free to comment here, in this venue - so it might assist others, as well as post me - directly, to: [email protected]
Thank you for your kind assistance with this matter.
UPDATE STATUS REPORT:
After many attempts at trying different ROMS (Miui... VERY buggy; ShadowROM, Liquid Frozen Yogurt) I STILL had the same results - where only a few images still showed up in my Gallery (when I knew that NOT to be the case) and none of my audio files would save as ringtones, regardless of what I tried... I opted to go to "plan B" and to remove all files, reformat and reinstall the data to the 16 GB MicroSD card, resulting in the very same as before. VERY upsetting as noted earlier.
As I happened to have an extra 2 GB microSD card kicking around, I figured it wouldn't hurt to try to copy from my desktop - a few images of various kinds, as well as some audio files, and copy them into similarly desired and titled folders on the 2 GB card... then install same directly into the Droid 1.
Well, problem SOLVED. It was the ol' 16 GB microSD card. For future reference, it is marked as follows: "MicroSD HC C2 16 GB C16G Japan". I got this for my Samsung Omnia... a few years ago. I guess they really DO wear out after a while! Shame that. At least it's figured out! Thanks for listening to my rant...

[HOW-TO] Write Data to Your External SD Card in KitKat Without Root (Many Apps)

I saw a question here in XDA where a person was asking how his torrent app could save downloads to the external SD card without root, in KitKat. This can actually be done, with many apps.
Surprisingly, there were no answers, except to tell him to root. That is not always the case! I've been saving and writing data to my external SD card since I got my KitKat device and, I am not rooted. I didn't know this was not a well known technique, or I would have posted this information a long time ago. I just did an internet search (to see if it was well known or not) and it came up empty! But, if this method is common knowledge and I just missed it (wrong search criteria, for example), I apologize!
With KitKat, you do not have to be rooted for many apps to be able to write to an external SD card, if you follow Google's guidelines!
Let me explain via an example:
One main requirement is that the app in question can actually see and use the external SD card - some cannot. Also, please be aware, depending upon your device manufacturer, the path examples given in this explanation may vary.
For the example, I am going to use a made-up app called MyTorrent. Let's say MyTorrent has a home-directory of '/storage/emulated/0/Android/data/com.company.mytorrent/files' where it stores its downloads, but you want it to save the downloads to the external SD card instead of internal memory. With many apps, this is easily and completely doable!
To have MyTorrent use the external SD card to save its downloads, you need to first make sure a home-directory was created for MyTorrent on the external SD card. There should be an Android directory on the external SD card, just like there is in internal memory. An app's external home-directory path will look a lot like its internal home-directory path, something like: '/storage/extSdCard/Android/data/com.company.mytorrent/files'. If the app you are setting up does not have a home-directory on the external SD card, just create one manually (use the internal home-directory path as a template).
Finally, just point MyTorrent's download location to its external SD card home-directory! As long as you can select the external home-directory path as the app's download destination, it should work. If this technique doe not work, it is usually because of how the app is written or, you got the external SD card home-directory wrong. Google set KitKat up so that any app has write permission to its own external SD card home-directory.
This is not a perfect answer and does not open up the external SD card for KitKat's use carte blanche, but it will help free up a lot of wasted, limited internal memory.
This method also works for file managers. Unfortunately, only their external home-directory will be available to them, but it is a good place for manual copy-type backups and zips.
Gonna check it out with my torrent. I saw this thing in Snap Camera app, when I wanted to save videos in SD card, but it saved in its directory, not anywhere else.(but I didn't understood that it can only save in its dir)
DarkLTU said:
Gonna check it out with my torrent. I saw this thing in Snap Camera app, when I wanted to save videos in SD card, but it saved in its directory, not anywhere else.(but I didn't understood that it can only save in its dir)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use Flud, and it works fine for me. But, like you reiterated, it must use its own home directory.
BTW, it works (in most cases) the same way with Lollipop, too.

Titanium Backup & Internal Storage: Does Not Display Apps Which Exist on SD

Hey Guys -
I've looked everywhere for a solution to this issue and even submitted a request to Titanium's developers, but have yet to find a solution or get a response. In fact, I can't find an issue matching mine online. Posting here hoping someone can help...
The Issue
When launching Titanium Backup on my Shield (6.01 / Rooted), it lists only 289 apps. The problem is that I have a total of 310 user / system ones installed therefore roughly 20 apps aren't listed. I'm wanting to upgrade my tablet to 4.2 and want to backup first, but many of the apps I frequently use are installed to the sd physically.
Why I Think It's Happening
Apps not listed seem to be all of the ones whose files are physically stored on the SD by the OS - I don't think it's related to permissions at all. When upgrading to Marshmallow, I formatted my 64gb SD as "Internal Storage" as doing so makes space management so much easier. No more having to use 3rd party apps to manage and create symlinks for apps I manually copy to the SD. Android seems to dynamically moves / copies things to the SD as needed which works well. If wanting to install a large (1gb+) app, sometimes I must go to an app's properties in Settings and choose to have it's files physically stored on the SD, but that's rare and still using an OEM toolset.
Attempted Workarounds
Most topics I've found when looking for a resolution dealt with not being able to restore apps involving an SD which isn't my issue. Still, I did try the following:
- Tried different storage Providers when setting backup folder location
- Looked all over for potential settings that may have an effect
- Ensured everything's up to date (all is except minor version behind on OS)
- Created new Data Profile in TB
- Tried default settings in TB
Example
Attached are a couple of screenshots for my installation of "Borderlands 2" which is one of the apps affected. As installed it's just shy of 4gb, it must exist on an SD or be the only thing installed, yet it does not appear in TB. To note, when using a file explorer such as FX, the OBB & Data folders / files for applications existing physically on the SD still appear when browsing to Android\Obb or Android\Data from internal storage. In fact, they aren't even listed as symlinks.
Tablet Specs
- Nvidia Shield Tablet (Not K1, but was replaced after battery callback)
- Android 6.0.1
- Rooted /w SuperSU (binary 2.78) All prompts set to "Grant"
- Titanium Backup Pro 7.5.0
- 64gb microsd formatted as Internal Storage (Fastest write and best rated I could find as of 6 months ago)
- Storage (as reported by OS in Settings)
- 70.28gb total
- 63.96gb used
- Internal Storage: 8.31gb of 11.61gb used
- Samsung SD Card: 55.65gb or 58.67gb used
Any suggestions? Thanks!
Hi, in the meantime could you try another software to make your app's backup, helium is my current choice (slide down in first page and select full backup instead of data only).
regards

SSH server on Android N (no root) with write access to the SD card

I want to mount all of my phone's storage read/write with ssfs, but I haven't yet found an SSH server able to do that properly. SimpleSSHD came closest, but it doesn't get write access to /storage/148C-40DE, which is my removable SD card. Also, it doesn't support setting the file attributes and date/time, which is annoying (all files I copy to the phone will have the current date/time).
It's not the protocol, because I've also tried the open source Primitive FTPD app, and it had the same problem. So back to SSH, I've tried a bunch of other free and paid apps from Play, and all had the same problem with the external SD Card, except for WiFi FTP Server, which was able to write on folders in the external SD card, but the connection kept breaking to the point of being unusable, but it did show that it's possible for a server app to offer write access to the SD card without root.
So is there a current solution to run an SSH server on Android Nougat with write access to the external SD card? The guides I've found were very old (2011).
Nothing?
I'm looking for the same thing, since I really want wireless file syncing with my microSD card, but NFS/SMB is out due to not being rooted.
This is the best one I've seen so far -- https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/apps-games/app-ssh-sftp-server-terminal-interface-t3740091 -- https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.xnano.android.sshserver
It can write to the SD card. But it does have some odd issues -- file modification times aren't kept, and mounting from windows causes an error if you have more than one root per user (workaround: I just created a user for the internal memory root and one for the SD card). But the modification time is a big problem. I haven't found any SSH server on Android that keeps modification times, where openSSH out the box does it on Linux.
In the reviews for this app someone mentioned a better app that's not on the playstore, but I couldn't find one like that.
I'm surprised no one has really gotten wireless sharing on Android working well yet (and frankly, I'm surprised it just isn't support by Android directly on the correct port numbers.

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