I noticed a very troublesome problem in Android. First to say that my phone is Galaxy S6 (6.0.1), but the problem is the same for all devices I'm sure.
It's about memory usage, and the problem is that every time when you upload larger files to your phone they occupy almost double space, becouse filling so called by the built-in Smart Manager "Other" files.
This "Оther" takes a significant area of free user memory and unfortunately the system is not possible to trace where and what are these files.
Does someone know where this mystical "Оther" files are stored, because I want to delete them?
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Hey everyone. I have searched around and can't find an answer to this, so here goes;
I have a Verizon Galaxy S4 and while I love the phone and all the ROM's out for it, I HATE that due to it's limited 16GB internal memory, I am CONSTANTLY running out of space on the phone. I have moved everything I can to my SD card but still can't get it down. When I open my phone on my PC and look at the internal memory, I see a ton of folders that I don't know what the hell they are. I would love to just go through arbitrarily and delete them all but obviously that's not a great idea. Can anyone tell me and/or compile a list of files and folders that commonly end up on our phones from bloat and whatnot?
Here's a screenshot of what I see in mine, just as a for instance...
Do you have a lot of photos?
They would be in the DCIM folder
joshuabg said:
Do you have a lot of photos?
They would be in the DCIM folder
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply. There are a lot in there. Can I not move that folder to the SD card?
I only got the S4 last Saturday, and today UPS brought my 32G SD card. When I went to the camera app to see if there were any way to change the target location, a popup said (about), "You now have an SD card, so all single shots will now go there. Multi-shots will still go to the internal storage." There is indeed a setting for that though, Internal or SD. I plan to leave the DCIM folder on the Internal, but let it be empty
I Hate Import Cars said:
Hey everyone. I have searched around and can't find an answer to this, so here goes;
I have a Verizon Galaxy S4 and while I love the phone and all the ROM's out for it, I HATE that due to it's limited 16GB internal memory, I am CONSTANTLY running out of space on the phone. I have moved everything I can to my SD card but still can't get it down. When I open my phone on my PC and look at the internal memory, I see a ton of folders that I don't know what the hell they are. I would love to just go through arbitrarily and delete them all but obviously that's not a great idea. Can anyone tell me and/or compile a list of files and folders that commonly end up on our phones from bloat and whatnot?
Here's a screenshot of what I see in mine, just as a for instance...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You probably already know this...but here goes:
-By all means invest in an external sdcard. Use the sdcard to store all your pictures, video, music and any other documents you may be storing on your phone.
-There are two apps in the Play Store that enable you to "sort of" move apps to sdcard. Aparted will allow you to partition your sdcard. You create a partition that will be reserved for app data, cache and other "stuff". Link2SD is the app that will use that partition to "link" your apps to the data etc being stored on the sdcard partition. I saved about 1gb by using these two apps. This only works on your downloaded apps, not on system apps. Your apps will update and run as normal, but their associated data etc will be stored on the sdcard partition you create.
-Consider the type ROM you're running, if you have an option. Generally speaking, TW ROMs are more "heavy" than AOSP ROMS. You have to pick your poison. If you like and use all the unique features Samsung has put on the S4 (hand gestures, smart screen etc) then a AOSP ROM may not be what you want as your daily driver. Yes, it will use less resources in terms of RAM and internal storage, but some of those unique features that you like will not be available because most of the supporting firmware has been removed in an AOSP ROM. If you're forced to use SafeStrap to flash ROMs then your options are even fewer.
-There are a number of "safe to remove or freeze" list floating around on the web or in this forum. Like most things, one man's passion is another man's poison. Just because some guy says "xxxx.apk" is safe to remove or freeze doesn't mean it won't have an undesirable effect for you. Besides, you really don't save a lot of storage space by deleting most of those things. Unless it is truely "bloat" like NFL Football or Blockbuster I just freeze those things associated with functions or apps that I know I will never use. On a TW ROM that usually means most of the Samsung "stuff".
Hope this helps.
Remove Stuff
Removing all of the Samsung stuff that you dont use dose free up some space. Even with that I have found on the TW roms I can only hold 2 of them on my internal storage. Usually I have my Daily driver rom on there and any new roms that I want to try I just have to keep deleing those when I want to put a new one on.
Greetings.
I've had the pleasure to deal with many android devices, ranging from the very first EVO 4G to a rooted nook and KFire, galaxy tab, and my current GAlaxy S4. Nonetheless I've noted a pattern that hopefully one or several of you can help with...
I usually have SD cards that are larger than the native storage of most of my devices however.... I always run out of room for apps. I wouldn't say I install everything I See but I do install apps I need for work (medical apps) which for the most part don't exactly take much space but some are known to take 300-1Gb at most. Anyway, my devices always seem to fill the native storage while the SD Card remains fairly unused. Here is an example of my phone.
So my main gripe/issue is: My SD cards are always fairly empty and only have contents I've actively copied over to them from my desktop or notebook. I am under the impression that most programs do not install the data to SD Card and use the native storage instead. Is there anyway this can change? Any tips to get more space (besides backing up pictures and deleting those, 700+ mb!).
Thank you in advance!
good question.
theartofbone said:
Greetings.
I've had the pleasure to deal with many android devices, ranging from the very first EVO 4G to a rooted nook and KFire, galaxy tab, and my current GAlaxy S4. Nonetheless I've noted a pattern that hopefully one or several of you can help with...
I usually have SD cards that are larger than the native storage of most of my devices however.... I always run out of room for apps. I wouldn't say I install everything I See but I do install apps I need for work (medical apps) which for the most part don't exactly take much space but some are known to take 300-1Gb at most. Anyway, my devices always seem to fill the native storage while the SD Card remains fairly unused. Here is an example of my phone.
So my main gripe/issue is: My SD cards are always fairly empty and only have contents I've actively copied over to them from my desktop or notebook. I am under the impression that most programs do not install the data to SD Card and use the native storage instead. Is there anyway this can change? Any tips to get more space (besides backing up pictures and deleting those, 700+ mb!).
Thank you in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am in agreement with you, as I have progressed thru numerous phones too. After going the route of the first moto linux phone and then jumping aboard the Android system when the first G1 came out from HTC and have always had similiar problems.
There original solution was special purpose apps that would allow you to backup your apps to SD card, then other apps came along to allow you to actually run apps from SD Card but seems that not all apps can actually be accessed from SD card. I havent kept up with it all like I first did and have become rather lazy and carefree or even sloppy with how I maintain my devices files and apps organized. Much now to an overwhelming large mess of old devices and storage media not to mention profiles tied to email google accounts. Its difficult to even start over as every device wants to have a profile to sync to. It could entirely be possible to top out the memory on a brand new device after snyc to one or two profiles.
Also it seems for the average consumer that has a unrooted device it is impossible to thoroughly clean or interrogate the internal device memory . seems like the revisions of the android operating system makes file management of internal memory even more difficult to manage.
I didnt want to get too carried away but I totally feel frustrated as you do, sorry I dont have a solid technical answer to resolve your problem. I am asked all the time to fix my girlfriends tablet and I cant explain it to her where all her memory has disapeared to after a few factory resets. Doesnt seem to matter, if you load alot of apps to just give them a spin for a test ride. Even if you delete or move them to store on sd card . It seems alot of junk files still seem to reside in the internal storage and eventually will eat away at the memory until it gets to the point of inoperability. App managers can make the situatin worse by creating even more orphaned files and junk too. All this stuff is not accessible to view and review and manage.
The only answer is to have a rooted device and the expertise to properly manage this inaccessible memory?
Is there a decent file management that a nonpower consumer can rely upon?
The desire x is my business mobile, so i dont want to mess with it in case any problems and i get charged for the phone. to be honest i struggle, its terrible device compared to my personal phone.
I need maps to navigate around, the connection in London drops when im close to destination, i blame this on the tall buildings blocking signal but not sure if 100% the reason. i was told may help to download a map program and use this way, but there is no storage free, and i have only 2 small apps required for work.
Is there a way to delete apps like chrome and facebook / twitter which came pre-installed but i cant remove them.
I tried adding a sd card but it wont allow me to move apsp to sd card. ( so failing the deletion of apps, can i roll back the rom to a older version?
pretty weird that the data partition is full, when there are only 2 apps installed.
are you storing all your company-mail on your phone or something like that??
whatever, as first step you can try to locate the storage-hog by using a storage analyser like https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mobile_infographics_tools.mydrive&hl=de
i have downlaoded the program but not sure what i am lookign for?
can i remove the android APK files? surely once program isntalled i no longer need these?
A takes 591mb
O takes 127mb
App storage is taking 2.51Gb of 2.91 available.
Apps = 704Mb
other = 1.82Mb
Available - 408Mb but when i download the map program it requires me to download a large file for offline maps. plus i have this space as i deleted a few photos which were for work but old. so when i take photos this space decreases further.
the only apps i can uninstall are the two apps (about 40Mb each for work, plus i have pocket locker and now this analyser which have small footprints).
Hi guys
Can someone make an app or suggest that can monitor the activity done by apps, etc. ( such as copy, paste etc.) Would be useful if it had ability to block,prompt,allow these activities
The problem is I have a rooted device and my system partition has 140-200 MB free space. But replacing those system apps by editing their icons wont increase their size. But still the empty spaces are used up even if I replace them. Within one or 2 days the free space there gets low to 2 MB.
Now I am stuck while I tried one incompatible port of incallUI, cant paste the stock one though I have deleted the incompatible one.
I am using some root apps and wants to know if they are doing it.
Please help
I have 256gb on my phone.
Each time I download a file it doubles the overall size on the phone because it is in the downloads folder and also allocated to 'media storage'.
How can I free up this space? It's definitely doubling the same files, I've tested deleting a game's ROM and seen the media storage also go down straight away.
Does this mean I actually have 128gb and not 256gb then?
I have the same problem in my 9RT, 128 Gb. After the extended search I have done on the internet, I have no good news for you.... The conclusion I have come to is that -
1) No, you do have a 256GB storage, but effectively this Media Storage bug is bringing it down.
2) Chinese Mobile makers ignoring this issue since last year and it seems there is no way they are going to solve this. Also, many of the mobile owners with 256GB never use that much space, so may be they will not even notice the difference ever.
3) Some experienced/old user say that it is a sort of 'virtual' problem, that the Phone is mistakenly calculating the space twice and it is just a number. But, it is not. I have firsthand experience that when the space reaches its top limit ( in my case it went up to around 110-115 GB with over 50GB 'Media Storage", Play Store will not let you install any big size app/games
4) The only solution is to ditch android and go for an iPhone which my broke ass can't do now..... I first noticed this in Android 11 and now even with Android 12 the Bug continues. I have no hope that One Plus (in effect, Oppo, Realme etc etc) will ever solve it even with Android 13...
Sorry for the bad news, but I am really down now and have no hope of it ever getting solved! Do let me know please, if you ever get any reply from Realme Support though!
markryan44 said:
I have 256gb on my phone.
Each time I download a file it doubles the overall size on the phone because it is in the downloads folder and also allocated to 'media storage'.
How can I free up this space? It's definitely doubling the same files, I've tested deleting a game's ROM and seen the media storage also go down straight away.
Does this mean I actually have 128gb and not 256gb then?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Media storage counts up whatever stuff you put in the /storage/emulated/0, that is not associated with any category like DCIM/Download/Music etc.
Your screenshot shows 78GB in media storage, and the custom "Game rom" folder is around that. You didn't say what the game rom files are. My guess is that installing these games allocates game files in other directory while source file remains intact so it appears that there is double space used. Game installers often have APK and OBB, where the OBB is the data file for the game, and APK is the game launcher installer.
You should use some app like DiskUsage/SDMaid etc. that shows a breakdown of file structure and what occupies space.
Hey thanks for your reply, to clarify I use dolphin and aethersx to emulate GameCube and PS2 games. Should I put those iso files into another folder to fix the issue maybe?
markryan44 said:
Hey thanks for your reply, to clarify I use dolphin and aethersx to emulate GameCube and PS2 games. Should I put those iso files into another folder to fix the issue maybe?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
These emulators read right off the ROM iso files. In any case, I dont think there is an issue. Go to "About Device" -> Storage. I am pretty sure you will see the ROMs counted up under "Other" category.
But again, you said that
markryan44 said:
Each time I download a file it doubles the overall size on the phone because it is in the downloads folder and also allocated to 'media storage'.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think your statement is wrong, because the Download folder is 4GB.
My other section takes up just 19gb but my ROMS folder is almost 80gb. Just to test if the media storage was referring to my ROMS I deleted a random game (Mario kart) and found the extract size was then missing in media storage straight after. So is there another folder perhaps I should be putting these files into? Maybe /android/data perhaps? Would make any changes?
Quake94 said:
These emulators read right off the ROM iso files. In any case, I dont think there is an issue. Go to "About Device" -> Storage. I am pretty sure you will see the ROMs counted up under "Other" category.
But again, you said that
I think your statement is wrong, because the Download folder is 4GB.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Media storage isn't a location, it is a system service that returns size of all user data including the game ROMS.
It does not duplicate the data.
Do the below and send screenshot. The external storage analyzer apps may be miscalculating the actual space used by counting up the "Media storage" as an app.
Quake94 said:
Go to "About Device" -> Storage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On my phone the storage counts up correctly.
Quake94 said:
Media storage isn't a location, it is a system service that returns size of all user data including the game ROMS.
It does not duplicate the data.
Do the below and send screenshot. The external storage analyzer apps may be miscalculating the actual space used by counting up the "Media storage" as an app.
On my phone the storage counts up correctly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Numbers seem to check out. In the first post the App count is 78gb in Media Storage (Game ROMs folder and others) and close to 40gb in other games + Spotify, that's already 120gb, plus whatever other apps you have.
In this screenshot it shows 133gb in apps.