Develop Bugs

We Need Custom ROMs with Mass Storage Mode Resurrected

I am so sick of MTP instead of Mass Storage Mode. I run Linux Mint and it's simply painful to try to get MTP working properly like Mass Storage Mode did in GB. Please, ROM devs, answer my prayers.

when you can add a sd card to the phone, you will have your mass storage.

I realize people don't like change, and want to stick with UMS, but you would have to pretty much crush the awesome single partition storage of the GN to get UMS...

Just dont understand why most people are aways want SOME MORE STOREGE, how many stuff you gonna put in your device? A thousand songs or pics?

GoZhU said:
Just dont understand why most people are aways want SOME MORE STOREGE, how many stuff you gonna put in your device? A thousand songs or pics?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With UMS enabled, they'd theoretically have lower storage than sticking with MTP. There would have to be at least 2 partitions that would mean files couldn't span across them.

I use wifi file explorer pro. Real easy and just as effective as having mass storage. Was bummed as far as me not being able to connect and drag/drop but when i found this app its just as good.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA Premium App

I can't for the life of me understand this complaint. I have no issues using MTP either in Linux or Win7. Do partition the space up would only bring about all the issues with inadequate space the Nexus One encountered.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA App

I don't know if it's a MTP thing, but I'm having a hell of a time copying .mkv files to the phone. I can FTP to my Thinkpad Slate at 3MB/s via wifi, the GNex capps out at 400KB/s. I've tried to connect the phone via USB to my desktop and just drag and drop and the progress bar doesn't even move. This is driving me insane.
I'm using the latest GummyNex 0.6.6.
If I recall correctly, when I was using Android Revolution 2.1.2, it was copying at 2MB/s via wifi FTP. I guess I need to look into this.

mallinj said:
I am so sick of MTP instead of Mass Storage Mode. I run Linux Mint and it's simply painful to try to get MTP working properly like Mass Storage Mode did in GB. Please, ROM devs, answer my prayers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tried adbfs?
Looks like it solves your needs without introducing the troubles of mass storage mode.

I am using SAMBA...

airdroid also works well (ubuntu 10.04 and 11.10 on different machines, also better than mtp on vista for me)

it's been 8 hours and my music is still copying to my phone. MTP is completely unacceptable. it's already told me i had to skip like 30 songs before i hit "skip this message" 2 hours ago. i'm copying ~25 GB of music over and half of that is .ogg which is not natively recognized by MTP. I could have copied the 25GB onto my thunderbolt 10 times over already. I dont care what the reasoning, requirement, or intent was to remove mass storage, but it was not work it. watching my files copy at like 400 k/s to a phone plugged in with a USB 2.0 cable makes me want to return the phone.

somnambulator said:
it's been 8 hours and my music is still copying to my phone. MTP is completely unacceptable. it's already told me i had to skip like 30 songs before i hit "skip this message" 2 hours ago. i'm copying ~25 GB of music over and half of that is .ogg which is not natively recognized by MTP. I could have copied the 25GB onto my thunderbolt 10 times over already. I dont care what the reasoning, requirement, or intent was to remove mass storage, but it was not work it. watching my files copy at like 400 k/s to a phone plugged in with a USB 2.0 cable makes me want to return the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really? I use windows media player to sync my music and it flies. Way faster than my nexus one did. It takes about 1-3 seconds per track.
Sent from my Xoom using xda premium

Drag and drop the files onto the folder icon. Don't open the folder itself and then copy into it.

My problem with MTP is compatibility. Hardly anything recognizes MTP and knows what to do with it besides my PC. Things I used to connect to via USB to transfer files or backup while on the go just don't work with the nexus. So instead of having an all around portable storage device in my phone I now have to carry other devices to perform those tasks, might not sound like a big deal but its just nicer being able to have that ability in one device. MTP may be great for some but not for everyone.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA Premium App

dev/null/ said:
MTP may be great for some but not for everyone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed - my primary OS is linux, I can make mtp work kinda but it's poor and slow.
However enabling UMS would require repartitioning the GN and afaik no one's done it or said they plan on doing it.
Most people find wireless transfer much more satisfactory for this phone - I've only used airdroid but others have set up their own wireless ftp server. There are probably other apps that do it...

josteink said:
Tried adbfs?
Looks like it solves your needs without introducing the troubles of mass storage mode.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
is it an app on the phone or computer (windows/linux)?
thanks

USB Mass Storage

I was wondering if the HTC one X will (as the Galaxy Nexus) lack the support of USB Mass Storage for transferring files to and from the computer. If anybody knows any information about this please share it.

molecule_cc said:
I was wondering if the HTC one X will (as the Galaxy Nexus) lack the support of USB Mass Storage for transferring files to and from the computer. If anybody knows any information about this please share it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Galaxy Nexus lacks support for USB Mass Storage? I find that hard to believe.

UrInsan3 said:
The Galaxy Nexus lacks support for USB Mass Storage? I find that hard to believe.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's true
http://www.theverge.com/android/2011/11/22/2579691/galaxy-nexus-usb-mass-storage-mtp

Although it says it lacks it on the Nexus it doesn't, I have always been able to transfer files to and from my Gnex. I think it is just another way of doing it when I plug my Gnex into the PC it appears in my computer and doesn't require me to press mount like it used to on gingerbread this isn't ideal but it works
Sent from my aokp_tenderloin using Tapatalk

They dont use USB Mass Storage they use Media Transfer Protocol to deal with USB connection. This change was introduced in Honeycomb and has continued into Ice Cream Sandwich.
You can still transfer files to and from the devices its just a diffrent way of doing it.
Forum user Gogol posed these questions:
- Why Google is using MTP instead of USB file transfer on Honeycomb?”
He received the following response from a Google developer:
“MTP is a big improvement over USB mass storage — for devices with lots of internal memory, a manufacturer no longer needs to come up with some hard partition between the USB mass storage and internal storage. Instead, they are all in one partition, with MTP providing access to the directory of media files that would normally be available through USB mass storage. This means there is no longer a need for apps on SD card for such devices, because what used to be the ‘internal SD card’ is in the same partition as where applications are stored. The storage on your device can be used for either applications or media, depending on what you want to put on it. You aren’t stuck with how much space the manufacturer decided to leave for the two areas.
Oh also this means that the media storage doesn’t need to be unmounted from Android when it is being access through the PC.“
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Source: http://glasskeys.com/2011/02/28/why-google-uses-mtp-instead-of-usb-file-transfer-on-android-3/
A main reason for using MTP rather than for example the USB mass-storage device class (MSC) is that the latter operates at the granularity of a mass storage device block (usually in practice, a FAT block), rather than at the logical file level. In other words, the USB mass storage class is designed to give a host computer undifferentiated access to bulk mass storage, such as compact flash, rather than to a file system, which might be safely shared with the target device (except for specific files which the host might be modifying/accessing). In practice, therefore, when a USB host computer has mounted an MSC partition, it assumes absolute control of the storage, which then may not be safely modified by the device without risk of data corruption until the host computer has severed the connection. Furthermore, because the host computer has full control over the connected storage device, there is a risk that the host computer may corrupt the file system, reformat it to a file system not supported by the USB device, or otherwise modify it in such a way that the USB device cannot completely understand it.
MTP and PTP specifically overcome this issue by making the unit of managed storage a local file rather than an entire (possibly very large) unit of mass storage at the block level. In this way, MTP works like a transactional file system - either the entire file is written/read or nothing. The storage media is not affected by failed transfers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_Transfer_Protocol

having one unified partition would cause problems when we want to flash custom roms..

I owned a Sensation XL that had internal storage as the One X
When you connect, it just shows up like an SDcard, and transfering files is no problem at all.
It's a better solution then I have on my Samsung Gtab.
Only thing to remember is, with my 16Gig Sensation XL internal storage, I only had 8Gig of free space to use, the rest is taken for/by the system.
So if you NEED space buy the 32Gig, and I hear you'll have 29Gig of free space.(This has not been confimed)

but your Sensation XL was running gingerbread right? and the change to MTP came with Honeycomb and was continued with ICS. So on the HTC One X it will be the same as your Samsung Gtab.
With the One X internal memory 26GB is user-available.

HTC-Gunge said:
but your Sensation XL was running gingerbread right? and the change to MTP came with Honeycomb and was continued with ICS. So on the HTC One X it will be the same as your Samsung Gtab.
With the One X internal memory 26GB is user-available.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It was on GB... Did not know of the Change to MTP.. tought it was a Samsung thing.
Tnx for the info

fi3ry_icy said:
having one unified partition would cause problems when we want to flash custom roms..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm sure it's like the prime with an sd card partition that won't be wiped on factory wipe.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using XDA

HTC-Gunge said:
but your Sensation XL was running gingerbread right? and the change to MTP came with Honeycomb and was continued with ICS. So on the HTC One X it will be the same as your Samsung Gtab.
With the One X internal memory 26GB is user-available.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
These manufacturers really shouldn't be able to get away with marketing a product as 32gb storage when only 26 is actually available to the user. And if the sensation was only 8 out of an advertised 16 then that's even more of a bump. It's not so much an issue if there is an SD card but when it cannot be expanded it is important consumers are aware of exactly how much they can actually use.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium

narcoustic said:
These manufacturers really shouldn't be able to get away with marketing a product as 32gb storage when only 26 is actually available to the user. And if the sensation was only 8 out of an advertised 16 then that's even more of a bump. It's not so much an issue if there is an SD card but when it cannot be expanded it is important consumers are aware of exactly how much they can actually use.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
quite agree with this..
i sure hope they dun come out and release a 64gb version a few months from now.. i would be REALLY PISSED off..

The MTP or PTP modes are safer for the phone, because you can cold disconnect your phone without any risk, the phone is still controlling bulk read/write to the sdcard. On the other side the operating system can prevent or disable access to any files it wants, like hidden/system files and so on. Thus, this is not intended for making backups in the Nandroid style.
Also, there is less control over the data than in USB Mass Storage Mode. With the Mass Storage Device Class (MSC) you directly access the partition in hardware mode. You can see all the files within the sdcard, and you can use filesystem tools like partition editors (Easeus Partition Master) or recover deleted or corrupted files at block level (Recuva) which is not possible with MTP or PTP, where you only can use phone-side software that usually is much more limited.
More information here:
[GUIDE] MTP and PTP (Media Transfer Protocol) vs UMC (Mass Storage Class)

[Q] HELP: any way to enable the mass storage mode on the galaxy note 2 ?

can any one help me and suggest a method to enable the mass storage mode in my note 2 , when connected to my laptop ?

Firstly why? MTP is better when you get it working as you don' t need to unmount anything from the phone first!
Secondly, it is likely to be possible yes probably very similar to how it was hacked to work on the s3, however it only worked for external sd and caused lots of corruptions to sd cards... so it is far from perfect.
My advice would be to get used to MTP.

i was need it to let my stereo car read mp3 files i solved by installing an s3 hack that can make the extsd a mass storage unit take a look here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1711009 it worked for me i'm with omega v4 rom

Lennyuk said:
Firstly why? MTP is better when you get it working as you don' t need to unmount anything from the phone first!
Secondly, it is likely to be possible yes probably very similar to how it was hacked to work on the s3, however it only worked for external sd and caused lots of corruptions to sd cards... so it is far from perfect.
My advice would be to get used to MTP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand what you mean but. ..it becomes virtually impossible and frustrating to transfer stuff to internal memory or even external memory because it is slow. ..Very slow
External memory I can manage by taking out my card and using an adapter to plug it into my laptop card slot..
Is there a way to mount internal memory as usb mass storage? I don't mind if I have to turn my phone off or something
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium

Did you try Airdroid?
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda app-developers app

try Kies over wifi...
it transfer data using local connection and transfers GBs of files in some minutes definitely MUCH faster than MTP and prefer it to AirDroid, but it hasnt been working lately (last time i checked was a week or two back)

This is a problem for those like me using Ubuntu. I never managed to make MTP work on it.
Wi-Fi transfer of files can be done with X-Link, but the lack of mass storage is a nuisance.
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium

Yes, MTP is a big problem on Ubuntu. I have tried 3 implementations of MTP protocol on 12.04 and 12.10, no dice.

i'm searching for an answer. worst thing with mtp is the fact that it hides directories from you! so you can't backup everything properly. annoying

bump! MTP is too/painfully slow. Reminds me of 1995. We need an alternative. Whoever put up this technology without due consideration and testing, before deploying it on these popular devices needs to be consider a different job.

looks like I wont be getting this phone until mass storage mode is added

harishdhandev said:
can any one help me and suggest a method to enable the mass storage mode in my note 2 , when connected to my laptop ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately, there is no way to enable UMS mode without rooting the phone.
I had to find a solution for my car stereo be able to read mp3 files.
I just rooted the phone and install SGS3 easy UMS ( PlayStore ). Yes its working just perfect on NoteII.
I'm using Ubuntu at work and it works like a charm as well.
Don't forget to unmount the drive in Ubuntu before unplug, and stop the service on Windows.
Also, on the UMS app, switch back to MTP before unplug, to avoid files errors ( no problem if u are just reading, ie: car stereo)

fmpmuld said:
Unfortunately, there is no way to enable UMS mode without rooting the phone.
I had to find a solution for my car stereo be able to read mp3 files.
I just rooted the phone and install SGS3 easy UMS ( PlayStore ). Yes its working just perfect on NoteII.
I'm using Ubuntu at work and it works like a charm as well.
Don't forget to unmount the drive in Ubuntu before unplug, and stop the service on Windows.
Also, on the UMS app, switch back to MTP before unplug, to avoid files errors ( no problem if u are just reading, ie: car stereo)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello,
one question - how to make two-way sync folders between my laptop and SGN2?
I always did it with GoodSync, but now it is impossible...
thx

Haha isn't this a cool icon? ---->
Gah.... I was hoping there was a way to USB mass storage on this phone. I guess I should have done more research on the phone before I bought it. I'm still in my 2 week return it period, but that's not THAT much of a deal breaker. Just really stupid... Why can't I have it all?? I mean we finally got USB host (OTG or whatever; same same) from a stock phone, only to lose USB Mass Storage! Oh the frustrations!
Dramatics aside, will a custom ROM allow something different? I'm not clear on what layer this MTP mode is operating at. I did think it was funny that it popped up as a camera type device in Windows. Right now I'm only using internal flash. Usually I want to browse pics on the phone from the PC, and in this case, if I use IrfanView to open one on the device, it copies it local and then opens it, so I can't scroll through them. Silly, and mildly frustrating. :-/
I'm going to look into some networking options to see if those work (Kies, AirDroid, maybe FTP). Actually, Dropbox might solve this particular problem for me now that I think of it.
I saw the thread for mounting external SD as USB mass storage. I take it there's no way to co-mount the internal storage as a USB mass storage device?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1711009

AllanonMage said:
Gah.... I was hoping there was a way to USB mass storage on this phone. I guess I should have done more research on the phone before I bought it. I'm still in my 2 week return it period, but that's not THAT much of a deal breaker. Just really stupid... Why can't I have it all?? I mean we finally got USB host (OTG or whatever; same same) from a stock phone, only to lose USB Mass Storage! Oh the frustrations!
Dramatics aside, will a custom ROM allow something different? I'm not clear on what layer this MTP mode is operating at. I did think it was funny that it popped up as a camera type device in Windows. Right now I'm only using internal flash. Usually I want to browse pics on the phone from the PC, and in this case, if I use IrfanView to open one on the device, it copies it local and then opens it, so I can't scroll through them. Silly, and mildly frustrating. :-/
I'm going to look into some networking options to see if those work (Kies, AirDroid, maybe FTP). Actually, Dropbox might solve this particular problem for me now that I think of it.
I saw the thread for mounting external SD as USB mass storage. I take it there's no way to co-mount the internal storage as a USB mass storage device?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1711009
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, Samsung turned off the USB Mass Storage for obvious reasons. But anyway, I can access both memories from my computers, using MS Windows.
On windows, there's no problem at all as you can manage all the files directly from explorer.
On Other systems, the problem is different. For some reasons, like with all other systems (ie car stereo or media player...), the galaxy will not be recognized because MTP needs drivers. Then, you have to use UMS and the only way to install and use it is to root the phone. But keep in mind UMS will only permit access to external memory card.
Well, if I have to transfer files from internal memory through UMS, I copy the files I need to external memory before using it..... That's not a big problem , is it ? And because your phone is rooted, you can even find a script to copy some folders automatically.
Hope I'm clear enough and it helps.

[Q] i9195 USB mass storage - gone?

As the title says, just got the phone today and I fail to find the option to connect the phone as mass storage.
Am I an idiot or are Samsung the idiots? I can't conceive of this being so
How am I supposed to copy for example music to and from the device?
PS: don't say in MTP mode

No usb mass storage on this device. mtp mode only
We are all sorry.

Samsung didn't add an option for Mass Storage mode

You can try the SG USB mass storage enabler (as has already been discussed here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2396135 ).
However, the MTP mode should be just fine for copying files to the device. Do you have any problems with it?

Well, I usually plug the phone to USB (as mass storage) when I get to work, and listen to my music from Winamp.
Hence the issue with MTP.
There are other quirks, but that's all secondary.
My main gripe was Winamp.
As far as I know the SG USB needs the device to be rooted, won't that void my warranty?
Pity we're even having this conversation though, can't see why anyone on their dev team would see this as a good ideea.
PS: I remember laughing at Windows phone devices some time ago for not having mass storage mode, now ain't this a bit ironic.

MTP still better than needing some third software to "sync" your music.

btnetro said:
MTP still better than needing some third software to "sync" your music.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So how do you listen to music on your computer, if you phone only knows MTP?
Name one legit advantage of MTP, that users care about?
Since I bumped into this issue I've searched the web extensively, and I was not able to find a single user happy about this crap MTP.

I miss mass storage because I used to listen music/charge my phone on my car on the same cable
Enviado desde mi GT-I9192 usando Tapatalk 4

I have to agree it seems like a bad choice on Samsung's part. But I'm sure they have their reasons.
You could just copy over the music files for your WinAmp to play then

Whosat said:
I have to agree it seems like a bad choice on Samsung's part. But I'm sure they have their reasons.
You could just copy over the music files for your WinAmp to play then
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well that beats the purpose if keeping my music on my phone

turbare said:
So how do you listen to music on your computer, if you phone only knows MTP?
Name one legit advantage of MTP, that users care about?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Users care about not having corrupted data. I think it's safe to assume that many users are too ignorant/incompetent/forgetful to properly eject their phone that's mounted as a USB mass storage device. As less ignorant users know, the result can be data corruption on the SD card. Corruption is less likely to occur when you mount as a MTP device.

Well, less ignorant user's also know that the default Windows (7) policy for removable drives is to "optimise for quick removal", and it doesn't require you to safely unmount.
On the other hand, the decision on how to proceed should be the user's, not to be taken for them.

turbare said:
Well, less ignorant user's also know that the default Windows (7) policy for removable drives is to "optimise for quick removal", and it doesn't require you to safely unmount.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's beside the point. You might wanna read the Wikipedia entry on MTP.
MTP works like a transactional file system, MSC does not. Hence, file system corruption due to a failed transfer cannot occur when using MTP.

fistpump said:
That's beside the point. You might wanna read the Wikipedia entry on MTP.
MTP works like a transactional file system, MSC does not. Hence, file system corruption due to a failed transfer cannot occur when using MTP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Beside the point is this argument that I'm having with you.
The fact that you believe MTP is a good thing doesn't change the fact that it's not, at least for me and for all the other users complaining about it.
Now lets get back to the topic on ways to circumvent the lack of UMS

It's all Google's fault. They also don't support external sdcards anymore, or physical navigation buttons amongst other things.

apple style crap.

turbare said:
Beside the point is this argument that I'm having with you.
The fact that you believe MTP is a good thing doesn't change the fact that it's not, at least for me and for all the other users complaining about it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's easy to see through this. You don't have arguments left, and try to force an end to the discussion this way.
You suggested in #7 that MTP has *no* legit advantage. That is flat-out wrong. MTP much reduces the risk of file-system corruption, which seems to be a common problem on SD cards (just browse the forums). Moreover, MTP has the advantage that your PC can access it without requiring an exclusive lock on the file system. Thus, applications on the SD card can continue to run.

fistpump said:
It's easy to see through this. You don't have arguments left, and try to force an end to the discussion this way.
You suggested in #7 that MTP has *no* legit advantage. That is flat-out wrong. MTP much reduces the risk of file-system corruption, which seems to be a common problem on SD cards (just browse the forums). Moreover, MTP has the advantage that your PC can access it without requiring an exclusive lock on the file system. Thus, applications on the SD card can continue to run.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dear fistpump,
Those are not "advantages", they are just marketing BS.
I've never had a corrupted card or data ever since the first Galaxy S came out. To bring that as an argument is utter bs.
The lock on the file system again, is irrelevant, if you are looking to connect as mass storage you already know the implications that would bring.
If Google or Samsung worry so much about the user's data integrity, I can understand them putting MTP as the default mode, BUT leaving the option to use mass storage even if they bury it in the most hidden corner of the Settings menu.

[Q] USB Mass Storage

Has anybody been able to get USB Mass Storage working ?

There are no devices that use mass storage anymore since like 4.1.2. Everything has switched to MTP. This is everywhere on the internet and id bet on XDA.
Sent from my GT-N5110 using XDA Premium HD app

trialsrider1 said:
There are no devices that use mass storage anymore since like 4.1.2. Everything has switched to MTP. This is everywhere on the internet and id bet on XDA.
Sent from my GT-N5110 using XDA Premium HD app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, my Galaxy S2 has Android 4.1.2 and both USB mass storage and MTP
Sent from Galaxy Note 8.0 GT–N5100

I use one of these http://www.2leef.com/store/product/bridge/
Works fine on The Galaxy note 8 and Galaxy note 3 with Astro File Manager.

stevejau said:
I use one of these http://www.2leef.com/store/product/bridge/
Works fine on The Galaxy note 8 and Galaxy note 3 with Astro File Manager.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It seems to be just an usb pen with 2 connectors
Sent from Galaxy Note 8.0 GT–N5100

I've found the USB Mass Storage handy for specific items and recently I was trying to recover some files (Via Android Restore program) that only worked if there was a USB Storage option, MTP wouldn't work. I have tried some apps on the app store, but none of them work to activate USB Storage. Was hoping their was a work around

gabripranzo said:
It seems to be just an usb pen with 2 connectors
Sent from Galaxy Note 8.0 GT–N5100
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, that is all it is..and as i said it works fine with Astro File manager..I have not tried it with Root Explorer or any other file manager as yet, but Astro does the job well.
Their website does say it is compatible with Galaxy note 2 amongst others and I can vouch that it works great with Galaxy Note 8 and Note 3.
Cheers
Steve

USB
Maybe I'm missing something here.
My USB 128GB stick works fine with my OTG cable.
I've just ordered a micro USB reader for micro SD cards from meenova.
Will let you know how it works when it arrives.

Shofar1 said:
Maybe I'm missing something here.
My USB 128GB stick works fine with my OTG cable.
I've just ordered a micro USB reader for micro SD cards from meenova.
Will let you know how it works when it arrives.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We're talking about connecting an android device using mass storage and not MTP protocol. USB otg has nothing to do with this.
Inviato dal mio GT-I9100 utilizzando Tapatalk

gabripranzo said:
We're talking about connecting an android device using mass storage and not MTP protocol. USB otg has nothing to do with this.
Inviato dal mio GT-I9100 utilizzando Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure how connecting a pendrive (otg or not, and btw it is very likely that the the microusb port on the pen-drive is also otg ) does not violate the above the same. When the note 8 acting as a Usb mass Storage Media is the main concern.
now back to topic,
Like it or not of companies have decided to do away with UMS. It basically boils down to architecture issues with their future plans.
UMS Gives exclusive access to the HOST (your computer or what ever you connect your device as Media to) and thus android/phone has to unmount the volume to prevent any locks or other potential issues (which are many including security).
Also the Host (your computer) has to be able to read/write the Files System format that you phone/ sd card is formatted to. (it's a dependency, because if the tablet where to use/ invent some new native file system, a lot of existing hosts might not be able to read them at all.
There are other reasons too like singular large ultra fast storage blocks to act as file systems as well RAM which can break if requiring unmounting,
Now MTP is not god send either and has it's own set of issues (read below)
however it's evolving.
with MTP most of the control is with your tablet or phone. and data is not written to the media directly by the host in for form for Blocks, but rather as files etc and thus the slowness as speed also depends a lot on your device not to mention it's biggest drawback that it's sequential/synchronous.
Personally, If i need to do large transfers etc, I just remove my microsd card in put that it into a tiny card reader, not ideal but works.
It is very unlikely that we are going to be getting UMS officially from those who are done with the standard on similar devices, . Maybe some better alternative in future than MTP, but who knows.
Here is little extract from the wiki : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_Transfer_Protocol
for who care about the how's and the why's
History
The main purpose of this protocol is to allow only the transfer of media files and associated metadata to and from portable devices, one transfer function, in or out, at a time. Productivity functions such as open, edit and modify require copying to the hosting system for these functions then copied back in their entirety to change the data.
The protocol was originally implemented for use across USB but extended for use across TCP/IP and Bluetooth. Windows Vista supports MTP over TCP/IP. Windows 7 and Windows Vista with the Platform Update for Windows Vista also support MTP over Bluetooth.[7] The host connecting to an MTP device is called an MTP Initiator whereas the device itself is an MTP Responder.[8]
A main reason for using MTP rather than, for example, the USB mass-storage device class (MSC) is that the latter operates at the granularity of a mass storage device block (usually in practice, a FAT block), rather than at the logical file level. In other words, the USB mass storage class is designed to give a host computer undifferentiated access to bulk mass storage, such as compact flash, rather than to a file system, which might be safely shared with the target device (except for specific files which the host might be modifying/accessing). In practice, therefore, when a USB host computer has mounted an MSC partition, it assumes absolute control of the storage, which then may not be safely modified by the device without risk of data corruption until the host computer has severed the connection. Furthermore, because the host computer has full control over the connected storage device, there is a risk that the host computer may corrupt the file system, reformat it to a file system not supported by the USB device, or otherwise modify it in such a way that the USB device cannot completely understand it.
MTP and PTP specifically overcome this issue by making the unit of managed storage a local file rather than an entire (possibly very large) unit of mass storage at the block level. In this way, MTP works like a transactional file system - either the entire file is written/read or nothing. The storage media is not affected by failed transfers.
In case the device maintains a database/index of the content of the disk, MTP saves the cost of re-scanning the entire disk every time the content is modified.
Additionally, the MTP allows MTP Initiators to identify the specific capabilities of device(s) with respect to file formats and functionality. In particular, MTP Initiators may have to provide passwords and other information to unlock files, or otherwise enable digital rights management. Nothing specific of this nature is in the core standard but the features are available via vendor extensions. MTPZ, the Zune Extension to MTP specifically denies access to files until authentication has been processed, which is only possible using Windows Media Player 10 or higher.
Drawbacks
No multitasking - Unlike USB mass storage, MTP has been built to only allow a single function at a time, e.g. read, write, delete, with no other function available until the first function is complete.
By design, MTP devices (like PTP devices) are not treated as a traditional removable drive. The actual file system is implemented by the device, not by the computer's operating system. In theory the operating system may hide this difference, but this is not the case on Windows or Mac OS.[clarification needed] This also means that file system recovery tools on the computer will be of no use if the drive is corrupted, or crashes.
As of 2013, MTP is much less widely-supported than USB Mass Storage (see support section).
The MTP and PTP standards do not support direct modification of objects. Modified objects must be copied out of the device and reuploaded in their entirety, which can take a long time for large objects.
Google's MTP implementation in Android includes extensions to deal with this limitation.[9][10]
Windows/PC MTP implementation:
When opening a file, the user must wait till the file has copied to the PC before it can be viewed. (Note: The file remains on the PC hard drive after viewing and the device is removed)
No creation of files on the device from the PC, files must be created on the PC and copied over.
No editing of files on the device, files must be copied off the device before edits can be saved and file copied back.
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As a workaround, for PC users at least, there is a Total Commander plugin which displays the MTP folders in normal file panel. It does not provide all the UMS features, like say binary directory sync (lack of which is one of my biggest griefs with MTP), but it's useful for simple file operations (browsing, copying etc.)
If anyone's interested I'll try to find the link/instructions.
Sent from my GT-N5100 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

Sorry.. Wrong thread

trialsrider1 said:
There are no devices that use mass storage anymore since like 4.1.2. Everything has switched to MTP. This is everywhere on the internet and id bet on XDA.
Sent from my GT-N5110 using XDA Premium HD app
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And I can tell you, my brother is SERIOUSLY pissed. He's all ready to go smack around a few people at Google for this (once he's done smacking a LOT of people at Microsoft, now that his new machine is saddled with MSWin8).
In truth, it seems very arrogant on Google's part to presume that no one would want/need to use USB storage mode. My brother would like to edit files on the Note8 while it's attached to teh computer (using LibreOffice on the computer to edit it), and he feels it's absolutely preposterous that he has to copy the file down, edit it, then copy it back up. Google, 1985 wants it's broken methodology back.

Drive Droid
Pda23 said:
Has anybody been able to get USB Mass Storage working ?
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DriveDroid on the play store at least.
I haven't yet had a reason to check if the Note will work, but does work on a Galaxy3 with Cyanogenmod. It goes and mangles the drivers to support the depreciated mass-storage proto. Expect it to be hit-and-miss when changing roms, requires root, requires kernel to no have completely disabled the old drivers. I now carry a recovery cdrom on my phone, it's worked most of the time.