Confused with Android memory management

[Mantees]

So guys, I have found this StackExchange thread that in short explains what I saw with my Samsung Galaxy 3:

• App executables must stay in the main device memory
• There is a "virtual" SD Card mounted as /mnt/sdcard, which is also made of internal device memory
• The external sdcard is mounted instead as /mnt/extSdCard

This must be basic information for you experts but I am quite new of the Android world.

By the way, I have a problem with this setup.
In fact I have apps with large data which are storing this data into /mnt/sdcard , believing that that's where the external memory is, and reducing the available space for apps.
In the end, my main device memory is always full of stuff that could be on the external sdcard, the external sdcard is almost empty, and I have never enough space for installing applications.

Is there anything that I can do to convince apps not to use /mnt/sdcard but instead /mnt/extSdCard for their data?

 

[GSDer]

Is there anything that I can do to convince apps not to use /mnt/sdcard but instead /mnt/extSdCard for their data?

You can root your phone and then use various apps to move app installations to the real SD card (/mnt/extSdCard).

Certain apps (The Bard's Tale: https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...details?id=com.inxile.BardTale&token=XyflYIk- being a prime example) allow you to install the data/resources to the real SD card.

And in the 4.3 update Samsung has apparently added a workaround to Google's code to allow apps to be installed on the real SD card without needing to be rooted.

Sent from my rooted, debloated, deodexed Sinclair ZX-80 running CM 10.2 using Tapatalk 4

 

[Mantees]

Thanks for your reply!

And in the 4.3 update Samsung has apparently added a workaround to Google's code to allow apps to be installed on the real SD card without needing to be rooted.

How do you do this?

 

[meyerweb#CB]

Or you can complain to the app developers. Android has been this way since at least 4.0. It's time for devs to get with the program and check for an external SD.

 

[AxlMyk]

There is a "virtual" SD Card mounted as /mnt/sdcard, which is also made of internal device memory

Not really virtual, since Samsung apparently doesn't know the difference between device memory,(internal would be a better description) and a real SD card.
But, yeah, you can call it virtual. Works as good as any other description.

 

[GSDer]

How do you do this?

The 4.3 release is carrier-specific - it's been released for some carriers but not others. And for the ones where it has been released, there have been some issues (particularly for the International version) where the update has been put on hold by Samsung.

I can't tell you offhand HOW you move an app to the external storage on 4.3 because it hasn't been released for my carrier (Verizon) yet. (And I may not accept the update when it comes out anyway - that is yet to be determined.)

Sent from my rooted, debloated, deodexed Sinclair ZX-80 running CM 10.2 using Tapatalk 4