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[TUT] Lending space for games data (Installing App Data on extSdCard) – [requires roo

N.B. Try this at your own risk. No one will be responsible with anything right or wrong you do.
Everyone is searching for a way to install apps on External micro SD Card, but as of Android 4.1.2 of the Galaxy Core, this option is unavailable.
Apps like AppMgr III, ext2sd, etc nothing works.
But here, I’m gonna show you a way to do this easily. But this method needs your phone to be rooted.
Search the forum to find Farmaroot to root your phone.
This method will make your phone thinks that its using the sdcard0,
but there will be a fake door which will led all app data to be on extSdCard.​
Required Apps:
Lucky Patcher​
Steps:
Download and install Lucky Patcher 3.9.3 (developers' website)
(optional) (do this if you want to move your existing app data and obb too) Copy/move the existing “sdcard0/Android/” folder to “extSdCard/Android/”.
If you don’t copy/move your existing apps might not work.
I recommend to move as existing apps will take up some extra card space.
Create a folder named “Android” on extSdCard if you skipped 2, or the folder is missing.
Open Lucky Patcher and click on the “Toolbox” button on the bottom.
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Touch the “Directory Binder” option.
Select “Add new directory bind”.
On the first typer, browse to the “Android” folder on extSdCard; and on the second typer, browse to the “Android” folder on sdcard0.
Confirm with “Bind Directory”.
Now, all your existing apps’ data will be on extSdCard. And in future any apps which will be installed, will be installed on extSdCard too.
P.S.: You need internal storage space to install the APKs. This method will only give access to the app data to be on the extSdCard.
Thanks to ChelpuS for his amazing app.​

im just use directory bind, its simple.
or use GL to SD

NieeLz said:
im just use directory bind, its simple.
or use GL to SD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use folder mount.

What I love about this tut, is that, whenever you install apps, it automatically mount the apps from extsdcard.
Unlike foldermount or apps2sd, everytime you install new apps, you need to manually mount them.
Thanks qstar.inc :good:
:highfive:

icesilver18 said:
What I love about this tut, is that, whenever you install apps, it automatically mount the apps from extsdcard.
Unlike foldermount or apps2sd, everytime you install new apps, you need to manually mount them.
Thanks qstar.inc :good:
:highfive:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
though you need to be careful while starting the phone for the first time, open apps before patching done might replace all your data!

qstar.inc said:
though you need to be careful while starting the phone for the first time, open apps before patching done might replace all your data!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Damn, I lost all my installed apps and saves, then I have this "safe mode" in my left lower screen. http://www.svetandroida.cz/media/2013/05/safe-mode.gif
I guess I will go back and use my internal SD card.

icesilver18 said:
Damn, I lost all my installed apps and saves, then I have this "safe mode" in my left lower screen. http://www.svetandroida.cz/media/2013/05/safe-mode.gif
I guess I will go back and use my internal SD card.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
never happened with me! What have you done actually?

qstar.inc said:
never happened with me! What have you done actually?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think I messed up the settings of Lucky Patcher.
But its ok, I have all my apps backed up with TB.
Maybe I'll try folder mount instead.

icesilver18 said:
I think I messed up the settings of Lucky Patcher.
But its ok, I have all my apps backed up with TB.
Maybe I'll try folder mount instead.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you want, you can try again and see the problem and let me know! Maybe I can update the TUT according to your results!

How to backup large size apps for non rooted phones!!

Howdy, everyone
If you may have tried to backup an app with a higher size than 100 Megabytes, you may have noticed that you will get an .apk file that is lower than 100 Megabytes even if this app consumes 1 gigabyte of your device storage.
*The reason behind this is that Google Play doesn't allow developers to upload an .apk file that's larger than 100 Megabytes, so for the apps and games that is bigger in size, they have to put some additional files which takes an extension called .obb and it'd contain the rest of the app assets.
-Backing up these apps:
#Head to the following directory in your mobile: /sdcard/Android/obb
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#You will find a folder named as following in general: com."developer name"."app name" with no spaces.
#Locate the file of the chosen app then open it you will find an .obb files/file.
#Copy all the files inside there to your computer or any safe place, you may copy the whole folder.
#Get any app that could backup your installed apps into an .apk file, for example ES File Explorer from Google Play.
#Backup the required app and you're done.
#When you are ready to restore the app, just create a folder inside the folder "obb" with the same name then put the files you copied from there before, or simply copy the whole folder again.
#Install the .apk file you have created through the app installer normally, then open the app while you have an Internet connection just to verify the setup and the app will automatically link itself to the folder you created.
Now your app is ready again
Best Regards
Bannora

Very useful Tip
This is indeed very useful tip. You can easily backup your large game apps using this technique.
Abdelrahman.Kh.B said:
Howdy, everyone
*I think that you guys might have been trying to backup an app with a higher size than 50 Megabytes, you may have noticed that you will get an .apk file that is lower than 50 Megabytes even if this app consumes 1 gigabyte of your device storage!
*The reason of this concern is that the Google Play store doesn't allow developers to upload an .apk file >50 Megabytes, so for the apps that is higher they have to develop additional files with .obb extension to contain all of the remaining data in it then upload it to the store!
Let's get into the easy steps to backup the required app:
#Head to the following directory in your mobile: /sdcard/Android/obb
View attachment 2797782
#You will find a folder named as following in general: com."developer name"."app name" with no spaces.
View attachment 2797789
#Locate the file of the chosen app then open it you will find an .obb files/file.
#Copy all the files you can see to your computer or any safe place, you may copy the whole folder.
#Get any app that could backup your installed apps into an .apk file, for example ES File Explorer available on Google Play.
#Backup the required app and you're done. View attachment 2797780
#All you have to do now when you are ready to restore the app is to create a folder in obb folder with the same name format and put the files you copied from there before, or simply copy the whole folder again.
#Install the .apk file you have created ordinarily, and open the app while you have an Internet connection just to verify the setup.
Now your app is ready again to be used exactly like the old days!
Tell me if this was useful and if I have said something wrong.
Best Regards
Abdelrahman Khalid Bannora
Sent from Egypt!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Thanks for your feedback, you're greatly appreciated.

Mobogenie let's you download from your PC,move ALL apps to SD, download YouTube videos, backup data, and one click for root. Let me know how it works for you. Move KNOX to SD? I did.
Sent from my SCH-R970C using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

I don't use Mobegenie!
However backing up with it won't let you get an .apk file format with higher size than 50 Megabytes!!
Sent from my GT-I9082 using XDA Free mobile app

If you have a rooted phone just use titanium backup. Works awesome. If you have a stock phone... use this method.

You're right, this method is for non rooted users!

The topic has been modified!
Sent from my GT-I9082 using XDA Free mobile app

[APP] [5.0+] PAIRS - Your Wireless Backup, for WiFi & Bluetooth

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PAIRS Your Wireless Backup
A simple wireless backup solution, for WiFi & Bluetooth settings
Use this app to backup & restore your Bluetooth pairings, WiFi connections and WiFi Hotspot Settings
It's ideal to restore these when clean flashing between ROM updates etc.
Backup - Backup your WiFi & Bluetooth connection settings to your internal storage or sdcard.
Restore - Restores your WiFi & Bluetooth connection settings from your internal storage or sdcard.
Delete - Deletes the saved WiFi & Bluetooth connection settings from your internal storage or sdcard for privacy.
Note
- Default backup directory is /sdcard/.pairs
- This app needs root permission
- If using v1.0 you need to uninstall before installing a newer version
- Don't restore Bluetooth when updating from Android version 5.x to 6 or higher
- This is designed for backup/restore on the same device
- First version was posted here > http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost...
Changelog
v1.0
- Initial release
v1.1
- Added WiFi Hotspot options
- Added support for other SU binaries
- Added support for Android 5
v1.2
- Minor bugfix
v1.3
- Added external storage option
- Some minor changes
v1.4
- Reverted some minor changes
v1.5
- Removed external storage option
- Added custom directory option (see screenshot for example)
- WiFi & Bluetooth are now automatically disabled when restoring
- Added forum & donate links

Absolutely amazing, can't believe this isn't built into Android by default. Glad I suggested it...
/Self Plug

Thanks man!!
Sent from my Nexus 6P using XDA Labs

OP... Any plans to put this on the playstore?

I'd like to note again just how great this app is. Saved me a TON of time after my recent clean flash.

Why does Pairs have a process and service active? I just noticed under Settings / Developer / Running Services that Pairs is listed there. Its been literally days since it was used...

This is a really good app..... saves a lot of time on clean flashes. :good:

Mesmurized said:
Why does Pairs have a process and service active? I just noticed under Settings / Developer / Running Services that Pairs is listed there. Its been literally days since it was used...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Update: Even after stopping, the process and service later appeared. Clearing auto-boot and keep-awake AppOps had zero lasting effect.
Pairs is now uninstalled. When needed I might install to make a backup or restore, but it will immediately be uninstalled after.
This user cares about giving apps free and unrestricted access to my phone.

Mesmurized said:
Update: Even after stopping, the process and service later appeared. Clearing auto-boot and keep-awake AppOps had zero lasting effect.
Pairs is now uninstalled. When needed I might install to make a backup or restore, but it will immediately be uninstalled after.
This user cares about giving apps free and unrestricted access to my phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I fixed background process sometimes starting with v1.2, it shouldn't run at all in the background when exiting with the back button.

where is this info being stored on the phone? i'd like to back it up to my drive if possible in case i need to do a full storage wipe. a cloud backup option would also be amazing.

hochoch said:
where is this info being stored on the phone? i'd like to back it up to my drive if possible in case i need to do a full storage wipe. a cloud backup option would also be amazing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In the directory ".pairs"

Mesmurized said:
In the directory ".pairs"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks - it wasn't showing up in solid explorer, but root explorer shows the folder now.

It is not installing at all. Either version 1 or 2. It gives an error message, "can't open file".

NWNJ said:
It is not installing at all. Either version 1 or 2. It gives an error message, "can't open file".
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you be more specific? Maybe bad download..
Works with Android 5.0+
Pairs-v1.2.apk md5sum : 72c922d0cae6fd48d4483e58b6d78baf

I am on Android 7.1 Nitrogen rom. Someone in that forum recommended this but it won't install for me. It just says can't open file when I try to install.
hinxnz said:
Can you be more specific? Maybe bad download..
Works with Android 5.0+
Pairs-v1.2.apk md5sum : 72c922d0cae6fd48d4483e58b6d78baf
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

NWNJ said:
I am on Android 7.1 Nitrogen rom. Someone in that forum recommended this but it won't install for me. It just says can't open file when I try to install.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try installing apk by launching it with a third party file explorer instead of the notification or the stock download manager.

That worked. I went and found the file in ES File Explorer and then when I tried to install it from there it worked. Strange. Thank you.
hinxnz said:
Try installing apk by launching it with a third party file explorer instead of the notification or the stock download manager.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

does anyone know a similar app for android 5.0< ? I have android 4.3 Jelly Bean and want an app like this.

Still love this app, I'd pay for it. Moving to Nugat was easy peasy.

Wow long time needed. Never found without complications. Pls keep it as simple as it is!

Swift Backup - best app to backup apps, sms, call logs on android.

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Swift Backup can backup your important data in minutes! Its quick, efficient and boasts an elegant design for a refreshing backup experience.
- Google Play.

I tried for Call backups and it works great....... Now thinking to make my apps backup too.

I am using this backup app since long time and it is really a very good reliable app.

Hi... can anyone tell me how to restore if i have backup from Poco F3 and want to restore on K30 Pro Zoom ?
and the devices already rooted.
Because last time, i cant restore even already copy the backup folder to new device.,.. Swift backup app cannot found my backup. (offcourse with same google account)

On LineageOS 18.1 with Magisk I'm not able to backup and restore any App data
The Backup process says "Complete", but when I look at the SwiftLogger I see the following error
ApkReader: Output for file /storage/emulated/0/SwiftbBackup/... [ERROR: dump failed because assets could not be loaded]
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is probably the reason why it won't restore.
Any idea what to do or where to look?
Ps: I'm just using the local version for now.

Hi everybody,
I switched to Swift Backup from Titanium Backup, and I got lost in the labyrinth of Swift's interface. I took a backup of all my apps, then a nandroid backup with TWRP and then I switched to a different rom.
In this operation, I forgot to back up Swift's password (I wish it could be disabled), so now I'm wondering: is there a way to recover the password for Swift from the nandroid backup? Can it be found in /data/data for example?

How do I change the backup location on this Swift app ?
How do I pick a specific folder ?

LucasBS1 said:
How do I change the backup location on this Swift app ?
How do I pick a specific folder ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Anyone ?

LucasBS1 said:
Anyone ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you don't know the answer, read the FAQ.
Can I use a custom folder location for my backups on the device or in cloud?

kubalav said:
If you don't know the answer, read the FAQ.
Can I use a custom folder location for my backups on the device or in cloud?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh... There is a FAQ
Wasn't even finding an official forum
Thanks
A terrible directive for an advanced app. They certainly won't see my money

I'm on the Pixel 7 Pro and finally had the occasion of needing to restore my wallpaper; and it confirmed what I had feared when initially looking at it from the app -- while it was the correct picture/image, it ended up being off-center and zoomed without being able to correct it.
Anyone else having this issue? Know of a workaround or explanation?

simplepinoi177 said:
while it was the correct picture/image, it ended up being off-center and zoomed without being able to correct it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The explanation is simple: backup apps are unreliable. They only have different limitations. Swift is no exception, as I'm finding many.
This is how you may investigate:
[Root]/data/system/users/0/wallpaper_info.xml
This file carries the wallpaper settings.
I would compare this file before and after customizing the wallpaper to memorize the differences.
Then I would back it up and immediately restore it using Swift
If there is a difference between before and after the backup, you found the cause.
Since I grew tired of relying on these backup apps, I make manual copies of these files you will see around these folders, the folders beying /data/system/, and /data/system/users/0

LucasBS1 said:
A terrible directive for an advanced app. They certainly won't see my money
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Besides the inability to specify the backup dir, I found another problem: Swift encrypts everything.
On titanium, one can extract the app and the data from the ZIPs. Here, I can't.
Moreover, by using apps like Solid Explorer I can make a copy of other apps, with it's clear name, icon, and ready to install (and on a more organized manner).
The only advantage over Titanium is the backup of permissions, but being that the only one, I'd remove the "best app to backup" from the title of this thread.

Question How to make full pixel 7 backup to image ?

I would like to make a full backup of the system before I update so that I can restore the full system with all applications and their settings in case the update fails.

You'll need TWRP afaik for a full nandroid backup. Which doesn't exist for the P7P I guess.
But Google backup does a pretty good job, excluding the settings. You could also try Migrate or Swift backup, but I don't think full images are possible like in the older days.

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m3ath said:
View attachment 5811723
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does this take a full image backup?

krakout said:
Does this take a full image backup?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didn't try it

m3ath said:
I didn't try it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As far as I know this just applies to regular file transfer to a PC via USB, it does nothing special and nothing of the sort that OP asked...

I would like to use TWRP but it doesn't seem to work on Pixel 7 yet, I'm looking for something that does just that.

daveyyy said:
I would like to use TWRP but it doesn't seem to work on Pixel 7 yet, I'm looking for something that does just that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your best bet is to use Swift Backup for your apps/data, backed up to Drive or some other cloud Storage and then after the reset, let Google restore your G-Apps and Phone/Messages/WiFi points, etc while you restore your apps from Swift

krakout said:
Does this take a full image backup?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its for an adb backup, which is pretty similar to what gooble backs up, and respects application manifest flags specifying if an application's data should be backed up or not.

96carboard said:
Its for an adb backup, which is pretty similar to what gooble backs up, and respects application manifest flags specifying if an application's data should be backed up or not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cheers, googling for it actually gave me results for mtp transfers. Gotta Google me some adb then...

Use DD

Lossyx said:
Use DD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What is DD ?

IIRC (this is a normal Linux command, but the method for obtaining an Android backup is pretty old) it is used to get a binary image of your selected partition. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

@krakout: that's correct, dd is used to create 1:1 bit per bit copies of partitions. When the device is encrypted the issue is that the 1:1 copy contains the encryption. When you do a new clean setup of your phone the encryption key is reset, which will result in the backups not being usable ... this means it should work on non-encrypted devices, but restoring full partitions has always been a risky business.
I do change phones quite often (oder reflash the existing ones ), my process for backup and restore is (you need to be rooted for #1):
Backup/Restore apps and app data using Swift Backup (or free tools like OAndXBackup) - sadly this does not work for all apps (mainly security critical ones like banking apps), but still for most
Backup and restore internal storage using ADB, either with Total/Double Commander and a plugin or using a python tool - connecting the phone via USB. Transfer speed is quite high (depending on phone and PC ~30-150Mbps). Positive here is that you automatically have a full backup of your phone on a PC
use Android native backup/restore for settings

@s3axel thanks for the confirmation and the write up! Seems like indeed these days Swift is probably the best option.
Damn I got excited when you mentioned the TC plugin, thought it was something for the Android version! Not using it on my PC (love my Directory Opus setup!) but I think I'm gonna try this

While it is technically possible to do a "dd" style backup by stopping the zygote service and dd'ing it to something like a USB stick, it won't be useful because the cryptographic keys tied to the data will not be accessible.
Despite being recommended by some people, I would caution against "swift" backup software. This is something you are giving an unprecedented level of access to (for example, it could access the internet, even without internet permission!) and therefore needs to comply with the highest level of trust and security, none of which can be guaranteed by closed source software written by someone you can't even hold accountable.
Instead, I would suggest Neo Backup: https://github.com/NeoApplications/Neo-Backup (also available on F-Droid). This is OPEN SOURCE software, and you are therefore able to read every single line of code to verify that it is actually safe to use.
Others I see have suggested a TWRP backup. Believe it or not, this kind of a backup would actually be very similar to what you would achieve with Neo-Backup. However, the old "nandroid" backup is basically a historical relic -- like a "dd" backup, and didn't last much beyond the very very early solutions since it requires just so much storage space, and because its technically impossible without an external storage device (like an SD card) that is LARGER than the device's total internal storage. Even the name "nandroid" = "nand" + "android". Well direct usage of nand memory is not something you see any more, that was replaced by eMMC, which also was replaced by UFS!

Many thanks for your reply, indeed it is all about trust and I agree with you on that you never know what a software will or can do. However this also applies to the so-called open source software because you (or, more aptly: I as a user) never know whether the distributed binary is really using only the published code parts or something on top....

s3axel said:
Many thanks for your reply, indeed it is all about trust and I agree with you on that you never know what a software will or can do. However this also applies to the so-called open source software because you (or, more aptly: I as a user) never know whether the distributed binary is really using only the published code parts or something on top....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
F-Droid is a repository for open source software, and they build the open source software themselves (as in the repository, not the software developer), and signed with F-Droid keys. They provide the exact source code archive used to produce the binary, so you know *exactly* what source code was used to build it.
Alternatively, you have the option to build from source yourself. Its not as complicated of a task as it seems as first.

Many thanks and no offense intended ... I'll have a closer look at Neo Backup for the future...

@s3axel wow, how come I missed this solution! From a cursory look, it seems awesome!
Pity it doesn't support backup services, but at least I can use MiXplorer as a document provider to pick up my NAS as a destination...