SD as Internal Storage Confusion - How do I see the files?

[Android Central Question]

Bought phone with only 16gb internal, regretted it as soon as I found out they'd stopped us from being able to move apps to SD. Struggling ever since to keep app sizes down.

My SD card died so I replaced it and saw an option I'd not seen before when I put it in - basically to use the SD card as internal storage. I'm not sure what this is called.

This is working in the respect that some apps are now on that card, and app size isn't a problem.

However, I can't find out how to look at the contents of the card. The phone seems to treat it as there just isn't an SD card, so I can't see anything through folder management apps.

I have MyCloud app to download files from my home network. I used to have to download then move to SD card. I then had Rocket Player pointed to the SD card folder.

I moved MyCloud to the SD card so expecting I could just download and point Rocket Player... but I can't see the folder.

Please someone tell me it's just hidden somewhere in the internal folder structure?!!

 

[Mooncatt]

This is "adoptable storage," where the phone now treats both the internal storage and sd card as a single storage source. From my understanding, there is no accessing one or the other, and the phone decides where to put the files. Adoptable storage isn't a recommended feature, though. It puts a lot more stress on the SD card than they are designed to handle, risking premature failure and data loss. It also prevents you from removing the card to use in other devices.

To revert it, you need to first backup all data and reformat the card as portable storage. I say "all data" because you don't know what is on the card or be lost during the formatting. I know this means not being able to move apps to the SD card, but that poses similar risks as adoptable storage and not recommended anyway.

To be blunt, your only realistic long term solution would be to upgrade to a better phone with more storage. 64 GB of storage is getting to be the new bare minimum if it has an sd card slot. Apps only grow larger over time, and new features require more resources.

 

[mustang7757]

'll leave a Link to register so you can communicate here as a guest account you can only post questions but can't reply.

https://forums.androidcentral.com/showthread.php?t=409154

 

[B. Diddy]

Welcome to Android Central! Using a file manager app, just look for the folder you moved. It should still be present where you moved it. But don't try removing the card and looking at it in another device -- no other device can read it since formatting it as Internal Storage encrypts the card to that device only.

 

[Rukbat]

I moved MyCloud to the SD card

You can't know whether it moved to stoage/sdcard or /storage/extSdCard (those are internal storage and SD card - IF you formatted the SD card as portable storage - because, as far as the phone is concerned, there's no SD card. there's only /storage/sdcard which is internal storage, and the physical card is just logically appended to it. As Mooncatt explained.

so expecting I could just download and point Rocket Player

You don't point it anywhere - it defaults to internal storage, which is all you have now.

but I can't see the folder.

Because that was on the SD card before you formatted it as adoptable storage (and formatting wipes everything).

Please someone tell me it's just hidden somewhere in the internal folder structure?!!

Nope, it's non-existent. If you want a folder named Rocket Player, use a file manager to create a folder, and name it Rocket Player. Or run Rocket Player and look for a file and it may recreate the folder. (Or you may have to uninstall Rocket Player, then install it again, to create the folder. (And any music you had on the SD card before isn't on the phone now - you wiped it when you formatted the card. You'll have to download the files from your home network again.)

But, as Mooncatt said, this is all a bad idea. Get a phone with at least 64GB internal storage (I'd suggest 256GB in 2020) and set everything up again - apps in internal storage, music (and videos and pics and documents and any other files) on an SD card.

 

[distinctmass]

Hey all - I wrote the original post. Thanks mustang7757!

So, there seems to be further confusion generally than just mine. This is not the first time I've seen it suggested that I can't see if the files are on the SD card or not, but I can - Settings > apps > *app* > storage > Storage used (either SanDisk SD card or internal shared). Most have no option. I can move apps between them in the same way as used to be possible on earlier Android versions.

Rukbat - you're stressing the IF I formatted as adoptable - as far as I'm aware I did - no card shows, everything seems to fit with yes I have! Am I missing something? Also, the pointing that I mean is within Rocket Player, adding a folder to the library.

I get that it's not the best option, but seemed worth a shot. As far as getting a new phone goes....I know. I was gutted when I found out they'd stopped allowing moving to SD. Just trying to avoid outlay whilst being less than a week from redundancy...

 

[B. Diddy]

The ability to choose Internal Storage vs SD card for an individual app's data storage location is different from the old "Move to SD" feature which actually moved a portion of the app itself to the SD (and which I believe is no longer possible on newer phones), and it's also different from Adoptable Storage (i.e, formatting a card as Internal Storage.

Show us a screenshot of the Settings>Storage menu -- that can tell us pretty easily if the card has been formatted as Internal or Portable Storage. http://forums.androidcentral.com/ge...ide-how-post-screenshots-android-central.html

 

[mustang7757]

Hey all - I wrote the original post. Thanks mustang7757!

So, there seems to be further confusion generally than just mine. This is not the first time I've seen it suggested that I can't see if the files are on the SD card or not, but I can - Settings > apps > *app* > storage > Storage used (either SanDisk SD card or internal shared). Most have no option. I can move apps between them in the same way as used to be possible on earlier Android versions.

Rukbat - you're stressing the IF I formatted as adoptable - as far as I'm aware I did - no card shows, everything seems to fit with yes I have! Am I missing something? Also, the pointing that I mean is within Rocket Player, adding a folder to the library.

I get that it's not the best option, but seemed worth a shot. As far as getting a new phone goes....I know. I was gutted when I found out they'd stopped allowing moving to SD. Just trying to avoid outlay whilst being less than a week from redundancy...

Hi, welcome to AC forums!