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Ive been researching how to increase the availible space on my device by moving the /data/data/ directory to my sd-ext and also the possible downsides, after reading up on it i decided to give it a bash a heres how you do it.
put your device in recovery and connect it to your pc (you can also do it on your device in a terminal i assume).
open a command prompt and navigate to the tools folder inside the android sdk.
type in the prompt.
*Tutorial removed due to issues, will be back up when they are resolved*
this will move the contents of cache from internal memory to the Ext partition of the SD Card, and then creates a symlink between them, so that it's transparent to the OS. if you decide to try this please do a nandroid before trying as it may lead to system instablilites. i got alot of fc's on my apps, but after i unistalled them and reinstalled them they all seem to work good, it also takes alot longer for your device to start up and that. but as you can see from the screenshot it free's up alot of space and moves it to the sd-ext
This is fairly dangerous when you unmount your SD card... no?
martino2k6 said:
This is fairly dangerous when you unmount your SD card... no?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No. Unmounting the sdcard leaves sd-ext mounted.
This is generally a bad idea. That's why A2SD implementations don't do it.
teppic74 said:
This is generally a bad idea. That's why A2SD implementations don't do it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
teppic, ive noticed, the symlink is removed on boot up :confused isit because we have to add somthing to /system/ect/init.d/ like apps2sd?
Why is it seen to be such a bad idea to do this?
I have A2SD enabled and I am now down to 20mb free space!
Would love to create some more space... that horrible message is going to pop up soon!
Phil
philje123 said:
Why is it seen to be such a bad idea to do this?
I have A2SD enabled and I am now down to 20mb free space!
Would love to create some more space... that horrible message is going to pop up soon!
Phil
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
its seen as a bad idea because, the system needs quick r/w access /data/data/, even the higest class of sd card cant do this as fast as the nand chip, it leads to alot of problems with fc's and other issues, it also slows your device down alot
Fair enough.
Is there any other way to clear some more internal storage with A2SD enabled? I have a 750mb EXT3 partition with loads of free space but not enough internal memory to install many more apps. Bit frustrating really.
Phil
philje123 said:
Fair enough.
Is there any other way to clear some more internal storage with A2SD enabled? I have a 750mb EXT3 partition with loads of free space but not enough internal memory to install many more apps. Bit frustrating really.
Phil
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you could give this a go but like a said theres a problem and the symlink is removed on reboot, i think we have to add a script to the /system/ect/init.d/ directory but im not sure...... to free up space you could try cache cleaner from the market and also clear the data for unused apps
AndroHero said:
its seen as a bad idea because, the system needs quick r/w access /data/data/, even the higest class of sd card cant do this as fast as the nand chip, it leads to alot of problems with fc's and other issues, it also slows your device down alot
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not just that, it also increases the chance of an unbootable phone (at least not without going into recovery to sort things out manually).
Hey guys,what's up?
So...I am running AuraxTSense 8.0 on my phone and have made an ext4 about 600Mb partition for Apps2SD.Recently I installed Pocket Legends on my phone along with some other games and all was ok.However,yesterday I tried to update Pocket Legends from the Market and it said that there is limited space on my phone and it cannot update.I then checked in my settings and I had 23 Mb free on my phone.I tried moving all apps to SD with Titanium Backup(excluding Launchers and widgets) and it persists that I only have that much space.What is going on?
Also,when choosing to install apps on external storage in Spare Parts,does it mean Apps2SD+ partition or froyo Apps2SD?
C'mon,no one yet?
tolis626 said:
C'mon,no one yet?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i dont have this problem anymore, i have lots of apps installed and still have 1.6GB of internal storage lol
AndroHero said:
i dont have this problem anymore, i have lots of apps installed and still have 1.6GB of internal storage lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah,I know.You're using the data2SD thing.I've seen you in that thread.Bastard!
I however am using the good old apps2ext,with an ext4 partition.What about that?
Thanks for the reply btw!
I've been having much the same problem.
It would seem that no matter how many apps I move to the SD card, I don't actually get all that more free space on the phone.
A 'df' in the terminal shows me that I've got plenty of space in /system, but /data is nearly full. Nearly half of that is in /data/dalvik-cache.
So I wiped the dalvik cache from recovery and now it's okay again.. for the time being.
Maybe PocketLegends requires a lot of space in /data? Or something was wrong with the update?
ok guys heres the deal, when you use apps2sd what is does is create a symlink between /data/app/, the dalvik-cache and the ext partition on your sd card. the downside of this method is, /data/data/ remains on your phone, /data/data. holds all your settings, app data and other things, and this is where your space is going, one great way for s-off users to improve there situations, is to change the MTD Partitions on there device, basically taking space from /system and /cache and adding this to /data, you can reclaim and extra 50mb+ using this method
Thanks for explaining, AndroHero.
Right now, I have it set with 250 MB /system, 147 MB /data and 40 MB /cache.
I suppose if I'm running out of space on /data but not on /system, then I could repartition again.
martijn_bakker said:
Thanks for explaining, AndroHero.
Right now, I have it set with 250 MB /system, 147 MB /data and 40 MB /cache.
I suppose if I'm running out of space on /data but not on /system, then I could repartition again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if your really stingy with /system and remove all the htc apps and widgets you dont use, you can get /system down to 170-180mb that would give you 70-80mb of space back, heres another good tip, there is no point having flash player in /system as its always going to be updated, if you remove installflashplayer.apk from /system/app/ and the associated libflashplayer.so in /system/lib/, that gives you and extra 15mb straight away
AndroHero said:
if your really stingy with /system and remove all the htc apps and widgets you dont use, you can get /system down to 170-180mb that would give you 70-80mb of space back, heres another good tip, there is no point having flash player in /system as its always going to be updated, if you remove installflashplayer.apk from /system/app/ and the associated libflashplayer.so in /system/lib/, that gives you and extra 15mb straight away
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd say it's easier to use the data2sd trick
Absolutely..
WTB 16GB Class 10 SD
martijn_bakker said:
Absolutely..
WTB 16GB Class 10 SD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should refrain from making a partition bigger than 2GB for DATA2SD. Issues have been reported, specially with market.
Read thoroughly the DATA2SD thread to gather all informations
Hey
I'm running CMod 6.0.1 on my rooted HTC Desire (Telus).
All of my apps, with the exception of some few are installed on my 16GB SD card, yet I only have 11MB of internal space remaining? As far as my calculation go, I've only used around 100MB. Does anybody know where my other 400MB went? Why is only so little left?
Thanks in advance
Check the applications for how much data they have (Settings>Applications) I recently had this problem then went to the Browser and found out that it had well over 70mbs data there, which instantly got deleted.
Swyped from my Oxygenated HTC Desire
HTC Desire has a specified internal storage space of 512mb. But only about 146MB is available for installing apps. You can search around the forum for more info.
There are ways to increase your internal storage. The simplest is to create an EXT partition using ROM Mananger or gparted. You will also need to use a rom that has A2SD built in.
So the next time you download apps, your apps will be installed on your ext partition. Well most of it. Some apps will still take up internal space.
friedkimchi said:
There are ways to increase your internal storage. The simplest is to create an EXT partition using ROM Mananger or gparted. You will also need to use a rom that has A2SD built in.
So the next time you download apps, your apps will be installed on your ext partition. Well most of it. Some apps will still take up internal space.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This ^
Or modify the rom before flashing. Remove unwanted apps and replace them with apps that take huge amounts of user-space and rarely is updated (ie google maps and such).
In most roms ive tried its a simple process of delete/drag-drop into the rar-file...and then flash without sign verification.
Got about 100mb free with programs i use installed, and still have ~120mb left on the system-part if i find any new must-have-by-default-app.
But do a nandroid backup before starting if you choose this way, to be able to restore a messup and to see how much space your system.img(?) takes. This to know how much space you have left to put apps on.
Ok, i have just finished re-installing all my apps after flashing AceSMod007-3D, the first A2SD+ ROM i have used, and i am already running out of space. I have noticed that any "phone only" apps i download seem to be placed on the internal memory whilst anything movable seems to be placed on the EXT partition and doesn't decrease internal space at all. Is this how A2SD+ is supposed to work? Is my only option to free up more space to delete some of my phone only apps?
I've just rooted and installed AceSMod007 (v33) and im also confused by what goes to SD-Ext4 vs Internal... so far it is hitting Internal, although one app does have the SEND 2 SD option but not sure if that means to the FAT32 or Ext4 partition.
so well confused so far... im holding off customising the phone until i have a better idea.
Open titanium backup, it should show u system memory, internal memory, sd-ext memory and sd card memory..If the app2sd is working u should see that sd-ext is not empty
Leave away the SEND 2 SD option..this is the android stock move to sd, not the app2sd
Its definitely sending apps that were already movable to the EXT partition, but i was under the impression that A2SD+ meant that apps that previously weren't movable would now be able to be spread over the EXT partition as well. If all it does is send the movable apps there automatically then its basically the same as stock A2SD, just without the need to move them yourself
Paratax said:
Its definitely sending apps that were already movable to the EXT partition, but i was under the impression that A2SD+ meant that apps that previously weren't movable would now be able to be spread over the EXT partition as well. If all it does is send the movable apps there automatically then its basically the same as stock A2SD, just without the need to move them yourself
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NO, that is the stock move to sd: mean a part of the app can be moved on the sd card fat32 partition, it doesn't allow every app to be moved, and the app is partially on the sd card
The a2sd move every app u install on the ext partition, is not in ur sdcard fat32 partition..it move completely the apk on the ext partition..so the space saved is enough (u will STILL see that the app can be moved on the sd card..but u HAVE to leave it on the internal memory to make the a2sd/a2sd+ fully work)
ok .. but why does the Internal Memory indicate decrease (by megs) if it is installing on EXT. I can see my game is on SD-EXT/APP but Internal went down by 3megs.
kazgor said:
ok .. but why does the Internal Memory indicate decrease (by megs) if it is installing on EXT. I can see my game is on SD-EXT/APP but Internal went down by 3megs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The data saved from each app (settings, preferences) is still on the internal memory /data/data so that probably is normal if the games need to save a lot of things
Btw how much is ur free internal memory?
its now 108MB of 148MB, with only Mini Info and HyperJump Installed
Its definitely not just the data. one of the apps i install is 7.5mb and 450kb of data. it decreases the internal space by 7.95mb in total after an install, NONE of the app what so ever is going to the EXT partition, and i suspect there are several other apps doing the same thing
quick system info will show the a2sd size
kazgor said:
its now 108MB of 148MB, with only Mini Info and HyperJump Installed
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
then? even if u uninstall hyperjump and mini info, u will see that u will never have 148 mb free!
try installing all of ur apps...u will see that it does't decrease too much
Paratax said:
Its definitely not just the data. one of the apps i install is 7.5mb and 450kb of data. it decreases the internal space by 7.95mb in total after an install, NONE of the app what so ever is going to the EXT partition, and i suspect there are several other apps doing the same thing
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if u install from the market an application, it will be downloaded on ur internal memory..that the space that u see probably
restore all ur apps, and stop looking for a mb more or less..u will have lots of space available..if this is not the case then u did something wrong.
andQlimax said:
then? even if u uninstall hyperjump and mini info, u will see that u will never have 148 mb free!
try installing all of ur apps...u will see that it does't decrease too much
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes.. from a fresh install of the ROM it started with around 111mb free, so yeah you are correct never will get the 148mb back.. but then the Stock Rom DID have 148mb free so that like 37mb lost from the get go.
Its all new to me this apsd+ stuff so i'll start install Apps and see how far i get, on stock i HAD to use Froyo "Send to SD" to get everything installed.
thanks.
kazgor said:
yes.. from a fresh install of the ROM it started with around 111mb free, so yeah you are correct never will get the 148mb back.. but then the Stock Rom DID have 148mb free so that like 37mb lost from the get go.
Its all new to me this apsd+ stuff so i'll start install Apps and see how far i get, on stock i HAD to use Froyo "Send to SD" to get everything installed.
thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
could it be you have a few extra bits thrown in (app wise) with your rom that is taking up extra space?
afaik apps2sd+ you should leave everything on internal
ok this was a good read.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=7458565&postcount=8
it kind of implies that because there a symbolic link from NAND/Apps to sd-ext/apps, the phone thinks apps are still internal so will reduce the freespace indicated in Settings --> SD & Phone Storage
andQlimax said:
if u install from the market an application, it will be downloaded on ur internal memory..that the space that u see probably
restore all ur apps, and stop looking for a mb more or less..u will have lots of space available..if this is not the case then u did something wrong.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well obviously something is wrong, as i have installed around 30 apps and i'm already out of internal memory.
Space is limited. (at least the space in our phones)
so I always read about apps2sd, data2sd, link2sd. I'm confused about how all they work, which ist best way to go. the information to read is very diffuse so don't blame me if I open a thread to understand the backgrounds.
So, I installed an app called App2SD (https://market.android.com/details?id=com.a0soft.gphone.app2sd&hl=de) and moved supported apps to SD.
Now there I have root, I want to get to know about alternatives. So what are the methods out there, what to stick to best?
thanks for your help in advance.
theq86 said:
Space is limited. (at least the space in our phones)
so I always read about apps2sd, data2sd, link2sd. I'm confused about how all they work, which ist best way to go. the information to read is very diffuse so don't blame me if I open a thread to understand the backgrounds.
So, I installed an app called App2SD (https://market.android.com/details?id=com.a0soft.gphone.app2sd&hl=de) and moved supported apps to SD.
Now there I have root, I want to get to know about alternatives. So what are the methods out there, what to stick to best?
thanks for your help in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I prefer link2sd based on practical experience with all three methods.
I find it the most customizable and fastest although unlike the other two it's not a set it and forget it solution it allows for some definite benefits in terms of file placement and speed.
data2sd and data2whatever tend to bog down over time for some reason where as link2sd keeps up to speed. Lot's of nice features and a great user interface as well.
It's also easily reversible if you don't like it. I can't say the same for the other two.
Here's a link to the original developer's thread and a little tutorial.
Same, Link2sd never worked for me haha
just installed link2sd, after a lengthy process getting stock rom back from a bad CM7 experience....now have a happy healthy stock rom, perm rootedm with link2sd and virtually all apps on the 2nd sd partition. i've basically gone through the "my apps" list on my market account and "linked" everything that's on the market, and kept the rest (pre-installed/not available on the market?) on the internal memory.
internal mem is reporting 108mb free, and i have a little under 1gb on my sd's 2nd partition.
so far so good...touch wood....fingers crossed
so yeh, i'd vote for link2sd.....it also does seem fairly "automated" to me....whenever i download a new app, it automatically links it and moves it to the 2nd partition (although you can manually move it back to internal if you get roblems with a specific app).
Installed Link2SD now. I like it. thx +1 for you 2
I'd like to know how Data2SD handles over time. Using a single file seems a little monolithic but if it works you can't argue with results.
Haven't anyone tried S2E? It's completely automatic and you don't need to set up anything.
Enviado desde mi HTC Wildfire S usando Tapatalk
Hey Dan,
I've never heard of the app, but a quick google search suggests it's made primarily for CM7. Link2SD does work well for the most part so I think it would be foolish to jump into something else. I've not seen the battery drain that some people have complained about too. The only real alternative for those trying to avoid custom ROM's is Data2SD, which I've heard mixed reviews about.
theq86 said:
Installed Link2SD now. I like it. thx +1 for you 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Huh? I thought your phone was bricked.
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9
Another +1 for link2SD
Sent from my HTC Flyer P512 using Xparent Purple Tapatalk
Link2SD works fine except for the fact that some apps like maps and gmail cause problems when moved..
And when I start up my phone (no fastboot) it always says low internal memory and then Link2SD starts to link all apps which gives me about 60MB free space
mattio,
gmail causes problems? ive not observed a problem with gmail as of yet, what kind of problems?
Gloris said:
just installed link2sd, after a lengthy process getting stock rom back from a bad CM7 experience....now have a happy healthy stock rom, perm rootedm with link2sd and virtually all apps on the 2nd sd partition. i've basically gone through the "my apps" list on my market account and "linked" everything that's on the market, and kept the rest (pre-installed/not available on the market?) on the internal memory.
internal mem is reporting 108mb free, and i have a little under 1gb on my sd's 2nd partition.
so far so good...touch wood....fingers crossed
so yeh, i'd vote for link2sd.....it also does seem fairly "automated" to me....whenever i download a new app, it automatically links it and moves it to the 2nd partition (although you can manually move it back to internal if you get roblems with a specific app).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
what is the ext that you have on the 2nd partition?
I have ext4 and the Link2SD don't recognize the 2nd partition.
Cump,s
I've been using Link2SD ever since I started using CM. It has been working well for me. No issues with Gmail or Maps. Even my home screen app and keyboard are on the external partition. I just set CM to always keep the home screen in memory. The SD partition is formatted as ext2 because I don't see the need for a journaling filesystem (ext4).
Edit - to contribute to the original question.
I'm not so sure about the other options but I can explain a bit about Link2SD.
Basically what it does is move your application files to the external partition and then create symlinks where those files originally were. Symlinks are tiny files that arejust pointers to where the actual files are. The good part is that the OS does not care. It just sees the symlinks as the actual files. Seeing that it is the actual files that are symlinked, means that you can fine tune it to your needs... as opposed to linking whole directories or mounting a partition to something like/data/app/.
Sent from my HTC Wildfire S using XDA App
skezza said:
mattio,
gmail causes problems? ive not observed a problem with gmail as of yet, what kind of problems?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When I move Gmail to 2nd partition (EXT2).
After reboot the app renames itself to com.google.android.gmail in the appdrawer
Gloris said:
just installed link2sd, after a lengthy process getting stock rom back from a bad CM7 experience....now have a happy healthy stock rom, perm rootedm with link2sd and virtually all apps on the 2nd sd partition. i've basically gone through the "my apps" list on my market account and "linked" everything that's on the market, and kept the rest (pre-installed/not available on the market?) on the internal memory.
internal mem is reporting 108mb free, and i have a little under 1gb on my sd's 2nd partition.
so far so good...touch wood....fingers crossed
so yeh, i'd vote for link2sd.....it also does seem fairly "automated" to me....whenever i download a new app, it automatically links it and moves it to the 2nd partition (although you can manually move it back to internal if you get problems with a specific app).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Whenever I link a app to 2nd Partition it also reduces some of my internal memory. My Internal memory is now showing 81MB free. Can someone please guide what to do for increasing internal memory (i am a noob with rooted WFS)
ibne101 said:
Whenever I link a app to 2nd Partition it also reduces some of my internal memory. My Internal memory is now showing 81MB free. Can someone please guide what to do for increasing internal memory (i am a noob with rooted WFS)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's normal, some apps don't tell the internal memory that they were linked to the SD card.
Simply turn your phone off (hibernate) and turn it on again , this should give you the additional free memory
Link2SD
I've tinkered with Data2SD and A2SD also but just don't understand how they work. Wasted time restoring my SD card after wiping it out. Link2SD works perfectly but I see some ROM photos showing a ton of free internal space and can't seem to figure out a way to get that little bit of extra space.
ibne101 said:
Whenever I link a app to 2nd Partition it also reduces some of my internal memory. My Internal memory is now showing 81MB free. Can someone please guide what to do for increasing internal memory (i am a noob with rooted WFS)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try these steps:
1) Using Link2SD uninstall all the stock htc application that you dont like and dont need ( Most of them can be removed without any problem -> All widgets, google search, twitter, facebook , facebook for htc sense, plurk, htc likes, htc hub, xms ebuddy, stocks and many more, i forgot the names ).
You can always backup these using titanium backup if you are apprehensive.
2) Backup every application , contact and sms on your phone because we will cleanout our phone.
3) Now when you are ready boot into recovery and clean Data, Cache and Dalvik Cache. If possible also backup your sd card and format both fat32 and ext2 partitions .
4) Reboot and install Link2Sd, Mount ext2 partition and setup to link your files ( from settings ) then reboot and freshly install everything. You will find a hugh difference in internal memory
---------------------------------------------------------
I had 80mb internal memory free with 52 application installed, I did the above things and now i have 110mb free space with 60 apps installed which also includes updates of the remaining stock applications. However after doing all this dont move anything to sd card using your a2sd or applications will get corrupted
cyclonus00210 said:
I've tinkered with Data2SD and A2SD also but just don't understand how they work. Wasted time restoring my SD card after wiping it out. Link2SD works perfectly but I see some ROM photos showing a ton of free internal space and can't seem to figure out a way to get that little bit of extra space.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Please follow my above tutorial, I am sure you will unleash true power of Link2SD
always lags when I use data2sd, it's very very slow. I use link2sd, no lags anymore
Sent from my HTC Wildfire S A510e