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Hi xda,
I'm not a typical android user and this was one of my firsts in messing around with my Tab 10.1. I have GTP7500 which I recently loaded up with CM10 and it's working fine except for the camera. Leave that and what I was going to say is that I'd like to remove my entire Internal Storage ( all the downloads, music, videos ) and stuff, i.e, like formatting the sd card. I'd like to know a way to format the internal storage of my Tab without affecting the system files as I don't want to create any troubles here. So, my questions are:-
1. Whether I can delete all the stuff shown inside the internal storage from my PC directly and would it affect the system? I cannot see any format option when I connect my tab to my PC so, I was hoping if I could manually delete all the files inside the storage and then doing a factory reset from cwm and installing the rom once again?
2. Or is there any app to do this?
3. Or if it is quite simple to do it the hard way, well, entering the fastboot and wiping the whole system (Read it somewhere before) and installing all the stuff again, then please do tell me that too. Otherwise, I'd go with the easy method, i.e, just format the internal storage.
Also, what about the format /sdcard option in the mounts and storages menu in CWM? I'm using CWM 5.5.0.4.
I think doing the "format /sdcard" in CWM should do what you are looking for as I have done that in the past. I would also temporarily back up the /sdcard contents onto your computer as a precaution in case an app was depending on any folders there, but I think it should be fine.
Thanks but still...
astrojo3 said:
I think doing the "format /sdcard" in CWM should do what you are looking for as I have done that in the past. I would also temporarily back up the /sdcard contents onto your computer as a precaution in case an app was depending on any folders there, but I think it should be fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the quick reply. But would it remove other stuff including the boot files and other core files of Android? I've somewhere seen similar posts and whom did the format /sdcard but they proclaimed they lost whole files and had to do bootloader and install cwm and other stuff all over again to gain access. I've already managed to do format the sd card while installing the ICS official ROM for my tab but I did that via Samsung's recovery menu, i.e, one you get when installing their official ROMs and did a factory reset which erased all my internal storage files. But the same option won't remove internal storage in cwm. So, is format /sdcard the option to do this? I'd be glad to get a clear answer.
sangeeth96 said:
Thanks for the quick reply. But would it remove other stuff including the boot files and other core files of Android? I've somewhere seen similar posts and whom did the format /sdcard but they proclaimed they lost whole files and had to do bootloader and install cwm and other stuff all over again to gain access. I've already managed to do format the sd card while installing the ICS official ROM for my tab but I did that via Samsung's recovery menu, i.e, one you get when installing their official ROMs and did a factory reset which erased all my internal storage files. But the same option won't remove internal storage in cwm. So, is format /sdcard the option to do this? I'd be glad to get a clear answer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, format sdcard in CWM. It will only wipe the data stored there. Your bootloaders and ROM will remain unaffected, however I would still backup the sdcard to your computer before doing this just in case.
bkress said:
Yep, format sdcard in CWM. It will only wipe the data stored there. Your bootloaders and ROM will remain unaffected, however I would still backup the sdcard to your computer before doing this just in case.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was wondering about this, too. Thanks for helping!
Sent from my GT-P7500 using XDA Premium HD app
The method above does work. However, if you really want to wipe the whole device completely clean, using Odin to flash stock firmware will blow it all out and make you factory-fresh in one operation.
Long story short bought a galaxy note off craigslist met up at best buy to swap phones check numbers and so on and reset phones
Went home wiped again rooted and flashed cm10 just noticed all his pics are still on here (some with sensitive info drivers license checks vin numbers).
Rather then call the guy and get him paranoid what would be the best way to wipe this completely clear
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using xda app-developers app
format of the SD card, and the internal EMMC partition...
Format the External card to FAT32 on your PC with the adapter....unless it's yours and you know it's clean....otherwise...scrub it..
Once the external is clean or replaced...(your call) then move any files you wish to keep from the internal card to the fresh external..
Then boot into your recovery, under advanced options, and format the EMMC partition..(note, not all recoveries will do this, but the latest CWM or TWRP will work)
Once the EMMC is clean, reboot the device, and the rom will populate only the files it needs to run, and all of his internal garbage will be gone..
(note: this will not remove app data stored within any apps, but the standard data wipe should handle that)
DISCLAIMER: this method "WILL" wipe all data from the internal space of the device.....proceed at your own risk....(low)
the rom will remain the same....So "SAVE" anything you want to keep before doing this..
After the EMMC format, you can move back anything you saved prior to wiping/formatting of the EMMC space....g
gregsarg said:
format of the SD card, and the internal EMMC partition...
Format the External card to FAT32 on your PC with the adapter....unless it's yours and you know it's clean....otherwise...scrub it..
Once the external is clean or replaced...(your call) then move any files you wish to keep from the internal card to the fresh external..
Then boot into your recovery, under advanced options, and format the EMMC partition..(note, not all recoveries will do this, but the latest CWM or TWRP will work)
Once the EMMC is clean, reboot the device, and the rom will populate only the files it needs to run, and all of his internal garbage will be gone..
(note: this will not remove app data stored within any apps, but the standard data wipe should handle that)
DISCLAIMER: this method "WILL" wipe all data from the internal space of the device.....proceed at your own risk....(low)
the rom will remain the same....So "SAVE" anything you want to keep before doing this..
After the EMMC format, you can move back anything you saved prior to wiping/formatting of the EMMC space....g
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Everything is on the internal memory
Understood ....
Format the internal storage and your good ....g
I'd keep all that info in case you want to fake your death one day
johnrippa said:
I'd keep all that info in case you want to fake your death one day
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Noted.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using xda app-developers app
Currently the older version of clockwork mod doesnt support this feature 5.8.4.8 and TWRP doesnt work for the note any other suggestion??
Can you not format the sd card and internal memory using a menu in the settings for CM10? I am not familiar with CM10 but there should be no need to use recovery to do this. The stock ToucWiz ROM can.
Agoattamer said:
Can you not format the sd card and internal memory using a menu in the settings for CM10? I am not familiar with CM10 but there should be no need to use recovery to do this. The stock ToucWiz ROM can.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually CM10 was all buggy just went back to ICS not fimiliar with Touchwiz will try to look through the menus of touchwiz and see what i find
Go menu button/settings/storage. There you can format both. Simple as that.
After some 2+ years of constantly changing ROMs, I've noticed that my i9100 shows more often than not the message of "your storage is getting full" or whatever it says. It does not work by clearing apps' data or even removing some of them because it ends up showing the warning soon. Also, factory reset has proved not to do much, since it just does a data wipe.
So I have decided to proceed with a format by entering Recovery > Mounts & storage > Format sdcard.
I just want to check first wether I will be able, after the format has finished, to flash CyanogenMod back from the same recovery (having placed it in the external SD card, which I understand is not formatted together with the internal storage) and have it working all ok, or the format will disable me from doing something else.
So my questions are:
That 'format sdcard' option in the Recovery means the internal storage, right?
The external SD card (the actual physical one) is not affected by the format, right?
Will I be able to flash CyanogenMod back again from the same Recovery after the format?
In case yes, any reboot in between the format and the flashing would brick my phone?
Help is much appreciated! :laugh:
jago84 said:
After some 2+ years of constantly changing ROMs, I've noticed that my i9100 shows more often than not the message of "your storage is getting full" or whatever it says. It does not work by clearing apps' data or even removing some of them because it ends up showing the warning soon. Also, factory reset has proved not to do much, since it just does a data wipe.
So I have decided to proceed with a format by entering Recovery > Mounts & storage > Format sdcard.
I just want to check first wether I will be able, after the format has finished, to flash CyanogenMod back from the same recovery (having placed it in the external SD card, which I understand is not formatted together with the internal storage) and have it working all ok, or the format will disable me from doing something else.
So my questions are:
That 'format sdcard' option in the Recovery means the internal storage, right?
The external SD card (the actual physical one) is not affected by the format, right?
Will I be able to flash CyanogenMod back again from the same Recovery after the format?
In case yes, any reboot in between the format and the flashing would brick my phone?
Help is much appreciated! :laugh:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well as i had flashed a lot of Roms too, maybe i can help you...i'll try!
after formatting sdcard, u wont lose ROM. u will just format your sdcard(12 gb i think).
1) i think the "format sdcard" option is supposed to mean the internal storage. but in some roms that i flashed, sometimes the sdcard mean the external sdcard and EMMC means the internal sdcard...so first take a look. go to install zip and select install from internal sdcard or external sdcard and look up in the screen, if it shows that u are in /sdcard or in /emmc, so u can know what sdcard are u really going to format
2) if u select to format the internal sdcard, it will only format the internal sdcard. nothing else.
3)well, as i said in the beginning, you won't lose rom in the format...u just formated sdcard, the rom and its stuff are still there, in the device storage(not sdcard or external sdcard, but in a card that is only for system/phone stuff(its like the phone has 2 cards. one u can use and send stuff(12gb) and the other one is for system files(2gb))
4) i think it would not brick it, since u just formated the sdcard, the rom is still on your phone but in the device storage, like i said above.
the ROM files arent stored in internal sdcard or external sdcard(those u can send files by usb), they are stored in the storage of the device that is only for system files. so if u do a format it wont affect Rom or Recovery.
hope it helped a little...cheers
Short notice from my side: I doubt formatting your sdcard will help to solve your original problem (low memory). This message appears if the /data space (those 2GB where all the system settings and application data are stored) is almost used completely. The easiest way to clean up this data is a system reset (which will make you loose all your data) or you need to look whether there are applications occupying much data there and remove these apps / tell them to store their data on /sdcard (if this is possible) or to selectively remove some log files / temp data. But in this you should be very careful, because removing the wrong data might cause strange system behaviour.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda app-developers app
AndDiSa said:
Short notice from my side: I doubt formatting your sdcard will help to solve your original problem (low memory). This message appears if the /data space (those 2GB where all the system settings and application data are stored) is almost used completely. The easiest way to clean up this data is a system reset (which will make you loose all your data) or you need to look whether there are applications occupying much data there and remove these apps / tell them to store their data on /sdcard (if this is possible) or to selectively remove some log files / temp data. But in this you should be very careful, because removing the wrong data might cause strange system behaviour.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think that is not quite the problem I am faceing now. I explain myself: when I get that "storage almost full" message, if I check on Settings > Storage, the Internal Storage section (1,97 GB in total) shows an availability of only 205 MB and the bar is half full (see attached). First incoherence. I try to update any small app such as, for example, Bitcoin Wallet (1.3 MB) and it says it can't be updated because there is not enough space. Incoherent with the bar shown. Also, if I navigate to /data, it shows there is an amount of 2.31 GB inside that directory (incoherent with the amount shown by the Storage Manager. Other data folders, such as the one in /sdcard/data or the one in /data/data, are always smaller (3 MB and 425 MB respectively, also don't match any of the figures shown by the Storage Manager).
Some ROM installs ago, I remember I was able to install around 190 apps and no problem at all, and now I'm 160 and have to keep removing apps when I want to install more.
That's why I think my problem is not related to data, or fixed by a data wipe or factory reset. I understand there are too many files inside that are just lost from ROM to ROM, and not even the system know where do they belong to. It is running everything but fluent. I don't even remember what Project Butter is :silly:
RonDelonge182 said:
well as i had flashed a lot of Roms too, maybe i can help you...i'll try!
after formatting sdcard, u wont lose ROM. u will just format your sdcard(12 gb i think).
1) i think the "format sdcard" option is supposed to mean the internal storage. but in some roms that i flashed, sometimes the sdcard mean the external sdcard and EMMC means the internal sdcard...so first take a look. go to install zip and select install from internal sdcard or external sdcard and look up in the screen, if it shows that u are in /sdcard or in /emmc, so u can know what sdcard are u really going to format
2) if u select to format the internal sdcard, it will only format the internal sdcard. nothing else.
3)well, as i said in the beginning, you won't lose rom in the format...u just formated sdcard, the rom and its stuff are still there, in the device storage(not sdcard or external sdcard, but in a card that is only for system/phone stuff(its like the phone has 2 cards. one u can use and send stuff(12gb) and the other one is for system files(2gb))
4) i think it would not brick it, since u just formated the sdcard, the rom is still on your phone but in the device storage, like i said above.
the ROM files arent stored in internal sdcard or external sdcard(those u can send files by usb), they are stored in the storage of the device that is only for system files. so if u do a format it wont affect Rom or Recovery.
hope it helped a little...cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your help, dude! Much appreciated.
Anyway, I feel that, if formatting sdcard does not wipe everything, maybe then what I need is to go Recovery > Mounts and storage > format /system, format /data, etc. All of them except for the actual physical sdcard (wether it is /emmc or /sdcard) and the directory in which the recovery "lives".
So I have new questions now:
If I formatted /system, would the phone be bricked or the Recovery would still allow me to install a CM ROM stored in the sd card?
Is there any of the directories shown in Recovery > Mounts and Storage that represents the actual Recovery partition/space?
There's no recovery partition you can format.
You can format system, preload, and data partition.
But flash a ROM right after.
There are flashable scripts (ROM wipe or ROM nuke) you can use. It does all the formats and wipes, and even back up some of your folders.
Envoyé depuis mon Nexus 10 avec Tapatalk
jago84 said:
I think that is not quite the problem I am faceing now. I explain myself: when I get that "storage almost full" message, if I check on Settings > Storage, the Internal Storage section (1,97 GB in total) shows an availability of only 205 MB and the bar is half full (see attached).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a known bug, that Android's performance is decreasing very much as soon as there is less than 10% free on /data. Additionally I wouldn't trust the graphics you see, because especially if you have man small files, the space occupied on "disk" is much higher than the file size. If they are only adding the file size of the files stored there this will be misleading. As far as I know the block size is 4kb, so each file takes at least 4kb of the memory. You can try to move some apps to /sdcard, but this works only to an external one, so you can free some space. Otherwise have a look on /data/system/dropbox or /data/system/usagestats if you can find some files which can be removed.
jago84 said:
Thanks for your help, dude! Much appreciated.
Anyway, I feel that, if formatting sdcard does not wipe everything, maybe then what I need is to go Recovery > Mounts and storage > format /system, format /data, etc. All of them except for the actual physical sdcard (wether it is /emmc or /sdcard) and the directory in which the recovery "lives".
So I have new questions now:
If I formatted /system, would the phone be bricked or the Recovery would still allow me to install a CM ROM stored in the sd card?
Is there any of the directories shown in Recovery > Mounts and Storage that represents the actual Recovery partition/space?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well, as Sergeileduc said, u can't format Recovery. so answering your questions:
1) yes, you would still be able to flash any other Rom, since formatting /system does not affect recovery. Wiping this partition will remove Android from the device without rendering it unbootable, and you will still be able to put the phone into recovery or bootloader mode to install a new ROM.
2) i dont think so...u can't format recovery...
hope it helped you...cheers!
well the 4rth question is no it wouldent brick your phone it will just hang at the galaxy s logo p.s thanks for helpin me on the other fourm
Just to add my own experience.....
Some months ago, my phone was suffering from poor performance (I was running CM10.1 at the time)
I decided to do a full format to totally "pristine" wipe my phone and start fresh. I copied a fresh version of the rom and gapps to my removable micro SD card and rebooted into CWM. I formatted cache, dalvic, preload, emmc and sd.....then just to be certain, I factory reset too.....
After that and while still in CWM, I flashed the rom and gapps and rebooted without issue......I believe this is what you want to do, so to answer your question. ...yes it is safe and possible to do this.....my phone is proof of that.....
Sent from my Rooted, De bloated Stock JB powered S2 via PhilZ kernel and Tapatalk 2....
keithross39 said:
Just to add my own experience.....
Some months ago, my phone was suffering from poor performance (I was running CM10.1 at the time)
I decided to do a full format to totally "pristine" wipe my phone and start fresh. I copied a fresh version of the rom and gapps to my removable micro SD card and rebooted into CWM. I formatted cache, dalvic, preload, emmc and sd.....then just to be certain, I factory reset too.....
After that and while still in CWM, I flashed the rom and gapps and rebooted without issue......I believe this is what you want to do, so to answer your question. ...yes it is safe and possible to do this.....my phone is proof of that.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks! Great feedback.
Just to complete my question, did you notice a significant performance improvement after the wipe-and-reinstall process?
It seemed to help a bit, but not as much as I'd anticipated. ..
Sent from my Rooted, De bloated Stock JB powered S2 via PhilZ kernel and Tapatalk 2....
Hi
Guess the question is relevant to all devices Anroaid.
I searched and read in many places but I still did not fully understand how is the internal sd card is devided, what each part contains and how to "clean up" things that are not relevant to more
My Galaxy S1 device internal card size is 8G.
Checking system -> storage indicates it is devided to two: 1.48 Internal storage and a 5.64 USB storage.
The first question is where is a almost 1G to complete to the total of 8G?
I understand that the internal storage contains the operating system and applications installations.
however,I can see the the usb storage also contains folders of past and current installed applications, of course in addition to music, pictures etc.
Now I want to install a new ROM and clean everything that is not nessacary.
I understand that when installing a new rom the internal storage actually completely cleared and re-installed. Is it true?
What about usb storage? Whether and how to re-format it? Is it necessary at all to do that?
Thanks
OJNSim said:
Hi
Guess the question is relevant to all devices Anroaid.
I searched and read in many places but I still did not fully understand how is the internal sd card is devided, what each part contains and how to "clean up" things that are not relevant to more
My Galaxy S1 device internal card size is 8G.
Checking system -> storage indicates it is devided to two: 1.48 Internal storage and a 5.64 USB storage.
The first question is where is a almost 1G to complete to the total of 8G?
I understand that the internal storage contains the operating system and applications installations.
however,I can see the the usb storage also contains folders of past and current installed applications, of course in addition to music, pictures etc.
Now I want to install a new ROM and clean everything that is not nessacary.
I understand that when installing a new rom the internal storage actually completely cleared and re-installed. Is it true?
What about usb storage? Whether and how to re-format it? Is it necessary at all to do that?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Installing a new ROM won't clear all the internal storage. You have to do it manually. In stock, it is recommended to do a factory reset after the first boot. While in custom ROM you have to wipe data, wipe cache and wipe dalvic cache before the installation.
It is not necessary to clear the data in USB storage.
jabrif said:
Installing a new ROM won't clear all the internal storage. You have to do it manually. In stock, it is recommended to do a factory reset after the first boot. While in custom ROM you have to wipe data, wipe cache and wipe dalvic cache before the installation.
It is not necessary to clear the data in USB storage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lately the device has strange behavior every once in a while - and I would like to clean it as much as possible
I am using custom rom, hopefully wiping everything will do the job.
Yet, I do want to clean the internal storage as well.
What can be done regarding that? can I format it?
If yes - how, and how to recreate the standard folders tree?
If not - what can be done?
tx
OJNSim said:
Lately the device has strange behavior every once in a while - and I would like to clean it as much as possible
I am using custom rom, hopefully wiping everything will do the job.
Yet, I do want to clean the internal storage as well.
What can be done regarding that? can I format it?
If yes - how, and how to recreate the standard folders tree?
If not - what can be done?
tx
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
wiping data will clear your system memory, ie app data
If you want to go deep, there are options available in CWM recovery under Mounts and storage menu to format /system, /Data, /Cache, /sdcard and even External sdcard,
OJNSim said:
Lately the device has strange behavior every once in a while - and I would like to clean it as much as possible
I am using custom rom, hopefully wiping everything will do the job.
Yet, I do want to clean the internal storage as well.
What can be done regarding that? can I format it?
If yes - how, and how to recreate the standard folders tree?
If not - what can be done?
tx
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
jabrif said:
wiping data will clear your system memory, ie app data
If you want to go deep, there are options available in CWM recovery under Mounts and storage menu to format /system, /Data, /Cache, /sdcard and even External sdcard,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is the thing...
I am trying to understand what the purpose of each option - and eventually what are the steps the order, to achieve the cleanest possible device with the rom I want to flash
I actually just noticed that in the previous post I wrote Internal storage rather than USB storage. Anyway..I need please some more accurate information.
Is that possible to format only the USB storage?
Or is there a way to safely remove / clean / wipe old stuff, like applications' folders that are not in used anymore, and other things I am not aware off?
tx
I have tried the Rom Beanstalk 4.4.2 KITKAT the LG Optimus 4x HD from here -->http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2585844 . Stable with good use of the phone and battery and quick. After 10 days , some applications of the Google Play Store as other outside , could not do the installation by displaying the message Error - There is not enough storage space .
By checking the internal storage of the phone and the external memory microsd realized that I have enough free space - > internal storage : 9,11 gb of 12.26gb card and external sd: 29,69 gb of 31,24 gb.
I searched on Google and found a related link --> http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1665742 so that I can find a solution but nothing happened .
I tried factory data reset the phone and again and flashing the Rom Beanstalk 4.4.2 KITKAT but still not corrected the problem . After some time I again presented .
What could be wrong do you know ;
To you presented this problem ...!
If so did you find a solution ... ;
I recommend backing up your internal storage to a PC and then formatting your storage in recovery and putting everything back on. This should clear this up. Often times, CM based stuff will be installed in /data/media/0 and just doubles up with that and the stuff you already have one /data/media and fills up available app space.
es0tericcha0s said:
I recommend backing up your internal storage to a PC and then formatting your storage in recovery and putting everything back on. This should clear this up. Often times, CM based stuff will be installed in /data/media/0 and just doubles up with that and the stuff you already have one /data/media and fills up available app space.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you about your informations but I tried factory data reset the phone and again and flashing the Rom Beanstalk 4.4.2 KITKAT but still not corrected the problem . After some time I again presented .
Agotel said:
Thank you about your informations but I tried factory data reset the phone and again and flashing the Rom Beanstalk 4.4.2 KITKAT but still not corrected the problem . After some time I again presented .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was not talking about doing a factory reset. I suggested to wipe your internal storage. This is what your phone sees as /sdcard. You must transfer your stuff from the phone to PC if you wish to keep the files as wiping your internal storage will delete whatever is on /sdcard.
es0tericcha0s said:
I was not talking about doing a factory reset. I suggested to wipe your internal storage. This is what your phone sees as /sdcard. You must transfer your stuff from the phone to PC if you wish to keep the files as wiping your internal storage will delete whatever is on /sdcard.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you, I will try it but in recovery mode there are two choices, 1 wipe data/factory reset and 2 wipe cache partition. Which one? And I must take out the external sd card before do the wipe my internal storage? There is a problem?
Agotel said:
Thank you, I will try it but in recovery mode there are two choices, 1 wipe data/factory reset and 2 wipe cache partition. Which one? And I must take out the external sd card before do the wipe my internal storage? There is a problem?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds like you must be using some form of CWM recovery. If that is so, then you will find the option under Mounts and Storage - Format /sdcard.
You do not need to take out the external, and wouldn't hurt to have a backup of your rom to restore from there, if necessary. Just remember that if you don't back up your internal storage and you format /sdcard - everything will be gone. This means media, pictures, app data that is saved there, etc.
es0tericcha0s said:
Sounds like you must be using some form of CWM recovery. If that is so, then you will find the option under Mounts and Storage - Format /sdcard.
You do not need to take out the external, and wouldn't hurt to have a backup of your rom to restore from there, if necessary. Just remember that if you don't back up your internal storage and you format /sdcard - everything will be gone. This means media, pictures, app data that is saved there, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
:laugh:
Thank you very much my friend!
You are flawless ...!
I made the whole process as you told me on the phone and works all very nice..
Being well...!
:good:
Agotel said:
:laugh:
Thank you very much my friend!
You are flawless ...!
I made the whole process as you told me on the phone and works all very nice..
Being well...!
:good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Awesome! Glad all is well. Enjoy your phone.