I know there are several ways manufacturers have setup the various memories, where things are mounted, etc. I'm just wondering what to expect from LG's approach.
For example, my internal flash is /mnt/emmc, and my removable is /mnt/sdcard. Another approach is to mount the internal as /mnt/sdcard, and then the removable as something like /mnt/sdcard/sdcard-ext.
And also, what about the "mtd" block devices (system, boot, recovery, misc, cache, local)? A "common" problem for people with my phone (and others) is that the /data/data kept in the fast "mtd" memory, but it doesn't have enough room to hold 100+ apps worth of data... which leads to a lot of FCs when /data/data hits >90% used.
(Fixing these shortcomings isn't the prettiest thing to see.)
Related
Forgive me if this has been asked/answered before. I found similar threads related to the /system partition, but nothing related to the /data partition.
I'm running a custom ROM with A2SD (sd:ext)-- specifically, an ample 1GB partition on /system/sd. As you're probably aware, /data/app symlinks to /system/sd/app. Currently, I have 52MB free on /data, and 355MB free on /system/sd.
Here is my situation:
I have a large app (74MB) installed in .android_secure. Since I don't want apps in .android_secure (for my own personal irrelevant reasons), I would typically go into Settings->Applications (or TitaniumBackup) and actually move the app to the phone (which puts it into /data/app, hence /system/sd/app). The problem is that the system's move program that moves the app calculates the free space on the /data partition (52MB) instead of the free space in the finer destination, which is /system/sd/app (355MB), and ultimately rejects the move because it doesn't think there is enough free space (when there really is).
I was thinking of resizing the /data partition to "trick" the move program. But the only thing I can really steal space from is the /system partition, which isn't such a great idea. Seeing as my dalvik cache and app data takes up 350MB (or about 85%) of the /data partition, I'm further concerned I might eat up my /data partition, even without apps installed directly on it!!!
How have others dealt with this problem? I've seen some stuff about moving the dalvik cache to the sd card, though there are much better arguments AGAINST doing that.
Any help is much appreciated!
Related commands (FYI):
df -k - Shows the storage allocation and usage by partition
du -hs <path> - Calculates the free space (recursively) for given path. Note: it will not include any data within any symlinks.
Are there any roms or other easy ways to increase the size of the partition /data/data on the Droid Incredible? To this day, all I really find are ways to save space in there. That's been covered - everything from Cachemate to not using certain apps. I want to know if there are any roms out there that use space from internal or other areas and reroute them so that /data/data shows more space. Any help would be appreciated.
+1
I've run into this a lot lately. Even my Eris never had this problem.
enigmatl said:
Are there any roms or other easy ways to increase the size of the partition /data/data on the Droid Incredible? To this day, all I really find are ways to save space in there. That's been covered - everything from Cachemate to not using certain apps. I want to know if there are any roms out there that use space from internal or other areas and reroute them so that /data/data shows more space. Any help would be appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No roms do it currently. But its probably doable.
Sent from my ADR6300 using Tapatalk
There is an app on the market called Notenoughspace. I have never used it, but it is supposed to take stuff out of your data/data, and insert it somewhere else. I here it is tricky, so be careful if you use it. I really don't know much about it. The first couple of times I ran into this problem it drove me crazy. Have you read all of the threads for what causes this? Stay away from Facebook. If you sync contacts in Facebook it can cause this. I am a crackflasher, so I rarely run into the problem. I don't think that a Rom can fix this, but I am a newb myself. Really just wanted TP help since I saw your disgruntled post in the developers section....good luck
Thanks for the reply. But here's the thing. Please let's not go into the likes of notenoughspace and cachemate and whiping out facebook. This is what people say in EVERY thread on this from the beginning of the droid incredible.
I'm not looking for a solution that at best can let an extra app or 2 get installed on the droid incredible. I'm looking for a way to INCREASE the size of the /data/data partition by way of taking some unused space from other areas like system or cache or better yet, from that pointless internal storage (for all the SD card users).
There is a lot of extra space on these phones. Thus it is nonsensical to have a measly 150mb to use in that area.
AS this phone is for a friend (and I generally do the upgrading or fixing), I do not experience this on my photon nor do I experience it on my Iconia tab. There was a limit for /data/data on my evo but it was about twice the Droid Incredible I believe.
So this most likely has to be a partition issue. Is there really no fix for it? Since it's not a hardware limit, I'm surprised as I've seen some out of this world ROMs for the device (like Skyraider's which I hoped would make it to the Evo when I had that).
enigmatl said:
Thanks for the reply. But here's the thing. Please let's not go into the likes of notenoughspace and cachemate and whiping out facebook. This is what people say in EVERY thread on this from the beginning of the droid incredible.
I'm not looking for a solution that at best can let an extra app or 2 get installed on the droid incredible. I'm looking for a way to INCREASE the size of the /data/data partition by way of taking some unused space from other areas like system or cache or better yet, from that pointless internal storage (for all the SD card users).
There is a lot of extra space on these phones. Thus it is nonsensical to have a measly 150mb to use in that area.
AS this phone is for a friend (and I generally do the upgrading or fixing), I do not experience this on my photon nor do I experience it on my Iconia tab. There was a limit for /data/data on my evo but it was about twice the Droid Incredible I believe.
So this most likely has to be a partition issue. Is there really no fix for it? Since it's not a hardware limit, I'm surprised as I've seen some out of this world ROMs for the device (like Skyraider's which I hoped would make it to the Evo when I had that).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have had the same problem, and I haven't seen any roms that come close to solving it. And there is no quick and easy solution.
The best work around I could find was to mod the stock rom and add Dark Tremor's APP2SD, and use notenoughspace.
With dtapps2sd you have to partiton the SD card so that you have a ext3 partition on it that can be mounted and apps can be ran from it. It does this for /data/app and a couple of other folders.
Notenoughspace will let you move folders in /data/data to the sd partition that dtapps2sd has mounted, and that survive through a reboot. The extra partition option is what you would use, not the NES partition.
Using this work around I have about 300 apps on my phone, and about 70mb free in /data/data.
My Android version is GB 2.3.4 (build 4.06.605.3).
enigmatl said:
Are there any roms or other easy ways to increase the size of the partition /data/data on the Droid Incredible? To this day, all I really find are ways to save space in there. That's been covered - everything from Cachemate to not using certain apps. I want to know if there are any roms out there that use space from internal or other areas and reroute them so that /data/data shows more space. Any help would be appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bootmanager will install the whole rom on /sdcard or emmc storage and as an added bonus, /data and /data/data are all in one image so you have shared space. By default you have 950 MB to share for apps and app data. As an added bonus you have the ability to boot multiple roms and have them all loaded at once. It's available on the market and the devs who made it are awesome. However it costs a few dollars.
If you don't want to go that route then it's possible to create an image on the sdcard or emmc and symlink it to /data/data and you could set the size of the file. Then the ramdisk would need to be modified and maybe a couple of things done on the rom. You asked for an easy way and this is one but not easy though. Bootmanager is pretty easy though and no coding changes need to be done to the roms and it will leave your original rom intact.
I've been wondering about this as well.
I've tried a couple different approaches, and ended up sticking with one: it takes some setup overhead for every ROM I install, but it helps a lot.
I ended up deleting the datadata mount from init.inc.rc in boot.img (get ROM, unpack, edit init.inc.rc, repack, flash), and booting in recovery mode to move the data from ([email protected])/ over to (mmcblk0p1)/data (which is now just a subdir on the 768MB /data partition.)
Initial tests repartitioning mmcblk0 (houses /data, /cache, and /emmc) to make /data larger for this purpose didn't work out well: the bootloader rewrites the MBR/partition table when it finds that they don't match metrics it likes. /emmc can not really be reformatted because the bootloader updates some bits that it expects to be FAT32 on boot time as well, corrupting other filesystems.
Why on earth HTC would ship a phone in this day and age with such a crippled storage layout is beyond me.
DHowett said:
I've been wondering about this as well.
I've tried a couple different approaches, and ended up sticking with one: it takes some setup overhead for every ROM I install, but it helps a lot.
I ended up deleting the datadata mount from init.inc.rc in boot.img (get ROM, unpack, edit init.inc.rc, repack, flash), and booting in recovery mode to move the data from ([email protected])/ over to (mmcblk0p1)/data (which is now just a subdir on the 768MB /data partition.)
Initial tests repartitioning mmcblk0 (houses /data, /cache, and /emmc) to make /data larger for this purpose didn't work out well: the bootloader rewrites the MBR/partition table when it finds that they don't match metrics it likes. /emmc can not really be reformatted because the bootloader updates some bits that it expects to be FAT32 on boot time as well, corrupting other filesystems.
Why on earth HTC would ship a phone in this day and age with such a crippled storage layout is beyond me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That doesn't sound too difficult (i moved CM7 from emmc img to the actual phone partitions so that should be pretty simple). The only downside is you do lose space for apps (easily solved with apps2sd). I haven't seen you around since you posted your idea for multiboot. Been busy?
Well, the emmc method would be a loopback image which would not touch the fat32 filesystem.
Or if you're doing nightlies for instance once you mod the boot.img just add it to each new nightly.
Would Conap's dual boot work the same way? I am comfortable with this, and all the coding is intimidating for this newb. Would one of you smarter members put out a small guide as to exactly how to do this. I know it is time consuming, but it would really be worth it to us low lifes. Thanks
How can you do this?
DHowett said:
I've been wondering about this as well.
I've tried a couple different approaches, and ended up sticking with one: it takes some setup overhead for every ROM I install, but it helps a lot.
I ended up deleting the datadata mount from init.inc.rc in boot.img (get ROM, unpack, edit init.inc.rc, repack, flash), and booting in recovery mode to move the data from ([email protected])/ over to (mmcblk0p1)/data (which is now just a subdir on the 768MB /data partition.)
Initial tests repartitioning mmcblk0 (houses /data, /cache, and /emmc) to make /data larger for this purpose didn't work out well: the bootloader rewrites the MBR/partition table when it finds that they don't match metrics it likes. /emmc can not really be reformatted because the bootloader updates some bits that it expects to be FAT32 on boot time as well, corrupting other filesystems.
Why on earth HTC would ship a phone in this day and age with such a crippled storage layout is beyond me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, that sounds like a great idea. Like the above poster, can I also ask if someone who knows how would write up some instructions on how to to this? It certainly would be appreciated by many! With Gingerbread, there's not much Incredible users can do about the tiny /data size. Thanks!
I'm encountering this issue with 384MB of phone storage free and nearly 4GB of SD free. When I checked, I only had 14.5MB free in /data/data. 150MB for this is ridiculous! I would appreciate any fix, preferably one I can set and forget (don't want to have to constantly move or create symlinks for ever new app I install).
possible fix
You should check out jermaine151's Stock+ version 2.1. http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1260994. I can't personally vouch for it as he just released it and it's a little late to start reinstalling everything, but it looks promising.
Perhaps I don't understand the purpose of sd-ext/4ext/a2sd etc [I'm sure this is the case!]
I'm running the Aurora v3 rom - basically a sense2.1 with an ext partition. I cannot understand why I've 128mb free in /data after installing pretty much all my apps yet I'm getting insufficient storage errors; I can't install anything despite having a lot of /data free- it seems if my sd-ext if nearly full I can't use my /data?
1. The rom's files flash to /system, and a few to /data. As it's large, we partition the sd card with a 4ext part of say 342mb for overspill of the system/data files.
2. If we change the hboot (to cm7) such that the /system is smaller - overflowing into sd-ext - we get a larger /data partition for apps on the internal memory. (I've done this for for Oxygen/Redux roms and had over 340mb /data with no sd-ext.) Thus alpharev say's we'd get 287mb /data.
3. This rom installs apps to /sd-ext, and/or /data[?]; in Android's App usage I'm reporting 152mb used, 135mb free (the 287mb /data?); and 128mb free storage.
4. 4ext recovery reports 1.7mb free of 342mb for sd-ext - it's full. Which makes sense if apps install to /sd-ext, but why not fill the internal /data first? adb shell df -h gives:
Code:
Filesystem Size Used Available Use% Mounted on
/dev/block/mtdblock4 5.0M 796.0K 4.2M 16% /cache
/dev/block/mmcblk0p1 7.1G 4.5G 2.6G 63% /sdcard
/dev/block/mtdblock5 287.6M 159.3M 128.3M 55% /data
/dev/block/mmcblk0p2 331.3M 329.6M 1.7M 99% /sd-ext
/dev/block/mtdblock3 145.0M 122.8M 22.2M 85% /system
5. To me this means /data has 128mb free for apps; sd-ext is full with system files and apps - seeming to me that apps take space up on both /data and /sd-ext, duplicating space usage. Obviously I'm wrong on this but that's how I see my space disappearing lol Yet I cannot install any apps as I've insufficient storage.
6. Clearly I'm misunderstanding things after installing just 150mb apps and thinking I'd have 287mb of apps /data, not just /sd-ext: why shrink hboot's /system to make a large /data if the apps go to sd-ext?
7. I've not moved dalvik cache to sd as I thought I'd not need to given the seemingly large /data, and it's free amount. Clearly I can do so but why isn't my /data space available?
Sorry for long post and sounding dumb, I'm really trying not to be!
These Roms use sdext for both Rom and part of the apps and possibly dalvik too. Traditionally it would just be apps and maybe dalvik.
With these bigger roms, you need bigger ext to get the same. Yes when ext is full, you can't install anything. Maybe you need a bigger ext partition
Sent from my HTC Desire using XDA App
Thanks for the reply.
That's what I thought - I just cannot understand why I cannot use the free /data though; what's the point of changing to the CM7 hboot when your /data is limited to that of the sd-ext? Isn't it doubling up on storage use by apps, placing them in sd-ext and /data, and when one is full you can't utilise the other?
Sorry for sounding stupid, it just makes no sense to me.
btw I checked out your dGB, looks great. I do love miinimalist roms but also prize my Sense-720p'd camera!
No its not doubling up. The point is that /data/app and /data/dalvik-cache are symlinked to /sd-ext/app and /sd-ext/dalvik-cache.
However, /data/data where the libs, preferences and databases are, remain on /data/data
So when you install an .apk, it installs the app to /sd-ext/app, the dalvik is created on /sd-ext/dalvik-cache and the libs & db's etc will install to /data/data
If sd-ext is full, there is no where for the apk to go.
Thanks for clearing that up for me, I feel kinda stupid - I just couldn't get my head around it: why the nand wasn't being used for apk placement but I see they are split up and components spread over the combined sd-ext and /data. Thanks!
No probs. Not seen you on AF for a while?
OT
Android Forum? = xda? I've been offline a lot recently as this Indian Summer has made for some prime ultrarunning weather, but also takes a ton of time (by definition) although I've been rocking Redux/Aurora roms recently. Just been perusing the Desire forum today and there's been a ton of awesome rom progress since my last visit. I remember your help and work on Redux/thread/pm, great stuff. Still a beginner but it's very interesting learning this stuff, just also takes a lot of time for a non programmer!
Of potential note, 'found' a bug in gnu parted trying to partition out a 512mb 4ext sd-ext via 4EXTRecovery (madmaxx82 located it, I merely experienced it!) Always feels good to in a tiny way contribute
Hi everyone!
I currently am running Glazed ICS 6-16-2012 Rom and I am attempting to understand the file folder structure within my Kindle Fire.
This comes about after playing around with different roms, and after running the TB restore, a few games I play not having the data, requiring me to start over. In an attempt to try and manually recover the data from a twrp recovery I did, I realized didn't have a good idea of the folder structure within Android. Thus I am hoping to get some clarification with the following questions. Thank you in advance for any advice.
1- what folders, if any are required on my sdcard if say I were to start with a fresh rom, with no apps installed other then what is included in the Rom? Using ES File Manager now, it looks to me like an completely unorganized folder ".estrongs, burstlyImageCache, game_cache" etc.
2- Could I copy my TB backup folder off the Kindle Fire then wipe the whole SD card, copy the TB backup back and restore to clean up excess junk folders?
3- Do apps/games put their save data wherever they chose, or is it kept in the program folder in the internal memory, /mnt/sdcard/...?
Thank you again for reading my ramble, cheers.
Silverbrain
1.: Usually Application you installed in SD card partition is under /mnt/sdcard/android/data/<application folder> . now this contains all the information and other data of the games, i think you can back-up this portion aside from using titanium back-up.
For application specific folder, they are usually located in /mnt/sdcard/.<appname> but this folder usually contains caches and can be deleted, since the app will just create them once run again.
2. I do not suggest to wipe your SD partition since technically this is not a standard SD card but partition part of the whole system.
Note: I'm not expert on this, but after playing around with a couple of android devices already, the structure is basically the same.
I think (if it is a unix derivative) the /sdcard is the partition location and /mnt/sdcard is where the system finds what is there. kindle fire does it this way because there is no removable memory card, so it creates an artificial one with a partition. So, for us human types, the locations refer to the same thing. /sdcard is the partition and /mnt/sdcard is where the system mounts it.
Thank you for the replies.
Ixthusdan- I get what you mean regarding the unix and the mnt folder, I technically cannot wipe that is it is just a spot on the internal memory.
vertcam9- I started looking around where you mentioned, and I am starting to understand a little better
The actual name of the partition is "media" and that's how it's identified to the system.
Where the media partition gets mounted is dependent on what gets booted. For example, TWRP will mount the media partition on /sdcard while CM7 will mount it on /mnt/sdcard and create a /sdcard symbolic link that points back to /mnt/sdcard. Most people generically will refer to the media partition as the /sdcard partition because that's what's visible on the system.
I believe the /sdcard thing is an android convention. Because many apps expect the /sdcard to be the primary "large" storage area easily accessible by the user, apps that expect to find large files... music or video files for example... will look there.
Most apps will store settings and small databases in the /data partition. I don't play many games, but someone decided to install Angry Birds on my KF. That game stores most of its files in /data/data/com.rovio.angrybirds. On the other hand, Titanium Backup will put most of its files on /sdcard/TitaniumBackup because it needs more space for backup files and because the /data partition is much more likely to get deleted when you switch ROMs, etc.
For the most part, even if you completely reformat the /sdcard partition, most of your android and app settings will remain intact because that is stored on /data.
kinfauns - Thank you for the extended explanation! I see what I think I need in the /data/data folder
what are the differences and which one is the best?
they're just different ways of moving bits of apps and associated around between various partitions. each thread should give some kind of detail as to how they work. you can browse your partitions using something like 'diskusage' to see.
basically you have system and user apps, app data and dalvik cache. the scripts move different bits around and share them between internal memory /data and sd-ext. i've read that generally app data is better on nand, and needs a faster sd card if you want data on sd-ext. the sd-card also needs to be correctly partitioned regardless of script. ext4 should also in theory be a little faster than ext2 or ext3.
some scripts will appear to 'extend' your internal memory giving the impression of a larger data partition, but in reality it's no different as long as the partition is actually in use.
ultimately each script will give you more space for apps, some more than others. which is 'best' is dependent on a number of factors, sd-card class, rom, hboot, and how many apps you really need . you need to try a few to see any real difference for your setup. nandroid backup, delete the script from system/etc/init.d before flashing a new one.
personally, they're all the 'best' as long as i have 'enough' space for apps, and they aren't crashing or being really slow :good: