Android folder on SD card not showing files. Is this normal?

[barth2]

I notice I have an Android folder on the SD card that I leave in the slot. It appears to mirror the Android folder in the internal memory, with data and obb sub folders and com.companyname.appname folders inside them. Except there are no files. All folders, zero files, zero bytes total. Is this normal? Why are they there?

It's not a big deal, I guess. I'm just curious.

Running CM11 4.4.4 on nook HD+

 

[raptir]

Short answer: Yes, it's normal.

Long answer: Apps can save their data to the protected internal storage (/data/, which is not user accessible), the internal user storage (/sdcard/, typically) or the external sdcard (/sdext/, or however your phone is partitioned). In Android 4.4, apps can only write to their folder on the external sdcard (/sdext/Android/data/[appname]) so that folder is created for them by the system automatically in case they need to use it. Most apps just default to the internal storage, but some that have larger caches like music apps will have a setting that you can toggle in the app itself.