How to replace sd card on android. Android: An easy way to link an external SD card and internal memory to free up space

The capabilities of the device can be seriously expanded if you replace the internal Android memory with a memory card. This will allow you to install many more applications on your tablet or other gadget, but the main requirement for performing this update is to have root rights on the device. Let's look at ways to use an SD card as the device's system memory, as well as the conditions associated with this.

Risks and conditions for replacing the gadget’s internal memory with an SD card

Before repeating the steps below, the user should consider several important points:

1. The lifespan of the SD card will be greatly reduced due to frequent read/write cycles when running applications.
2. The speed of the gadget may drop noticeably if you use a low-end MicroSD card.
3. If you make a mistake when editing a system file, the phone may not boot next time - you will have to reflash it.

In general, the procedure (especially for inexperienced users) is quite risky, so it makes sense to carry it out exclusively for old gadgets with a small amount of their own memory.

Using the Root Browser utility and editing the vold.fstab file

To swap memory, you will need to install Root Browser from Google Play.

Let us repeat that you can only fully work with it on rooted devices. After running the above application:

In Android, sdcard stands for internal memory, and extsd stands for external memory, i.e. SD card. By replacing these lines, we actually swapped these types of memory. On some systems these pieces of code may look different, for example like this:

They need to be replaced as follows:

After completing the described procedure, reboot the gadget. Before doing this, be sure to check that there are no errors in the modified code, so that there is no need for reflashing in the future.

The second way to increase memory using Link2SD

The application is available on the Play Market and only works on devices with root rights. This file manager does not physically replace the device’s internal memory with an external drive, but it is capable of transferring any utilities to an SD card, significantly saving the gadget’s resources.

The peculiarity of the application in question is that the MicroSD itself will have to be split and properly formatted. Therefore, copy everything valuable from your card to your computer and start dividing the drive into sections.

Dividing the device card into sections if there is a custom Recovery

Every Android device has a recovery mode, but the method described below is only suitable for devices with . If you've never heard of CWM, move on to the second drive partitioning option. Next, we’ll tell you how to solve the problem if your device recovery mode has the Partition SD Card item:

Partitioning a MicroSD card via a computer

Connect the card to your laptop or PC. To do this, you can use a card reader or other equipment, the main thing is that it should be defined as a drive and not an MTP media device. Further:

Some Android devices have memory card slots (usually microSD format). If your device supports SD cards, you can:

• increase memory capacity;
• use the card for some functions and applications.

To find out if your device has an SD card slot, visit the manufacturer's website.

Note. Some of these steps can only be performed on devices running Android 6.0 and later.

How to install an SD card

Step 1: Insert the SD card.

1. Check where the SD card slot is located.
2. Turn off your phone.
3. Remove the SD card tray or remove the back cover of the device (depending on the model). If necessary, lift the tab that holds the card.
4. Place the SD card in the slot. If you raised the retaining tab, lower it.
5. Reinstall the SD card tray or back cover of the device.

Step 2: Turn on the SD card.

1. Wait for the SD card notification to appear.
2. Click Tune.
3. Select the desired storage type.
   • Removable storage:
     You can transfer the card to another device along with all your files (such as photos and music). Applications cannot be moved to a removable drive.
   • Inner memory:
     The card can store apps and data only for that device. If you move it to another device, all data on it will be deleted.
4. Follow the onscreen instructions to set up your SD card.
5. When finished, click Ready.

How to use an SD card

How to move apps to SD card

If you have connected the card as internal storage, you can transfer applications to it.

Note. Not all applications can be transferred to an SD card.

How to move files to SD card

If you have installed an SD card as a removable storage device, you can transfer various files to it, such as music and photos. After that, they can be deleted from the device’s internal memory.

Step 1: Copy files to SD card.

Step 2: Delete files from your internal storage.

You can view the contents of the SD card and see how much space is left.

When the SD card is used as internal storage

When the SD card is used as a removable storage device

1. Swipe down from the top of the screen to open the notification panel.
2. Under the SD card notification, tap Open.

ATTENTION: starting with Android version 4.4 and higher, Google has disabled the built-in function to transfer data to a memory card, and only some manufacturers integrate it on their own and not all applications can be transferred - so if you don’t have a transfer button, you can go straight to the third section.

All applications that we install on our smartphone (Samsung Galaxy, Lenovo, Xiaomi, Alcatel, Meizu, Asus Zenfon, Nokia, Huawei, Sony Xperia, Prestige, Irbis tablet and so on) go to non-removable internal memory.

Unfortunately, with an increase in the number of installed applications, photos, music, videos, and programs, our device begins to suffer from a lack of free space for additional files - especially cheap models.

To do this, Android has a very useful function to transfer data from individual applications to external storage - a micro SD card.

If your smartphone or tablet has a memory card slot, then you can easily transfer most of your applications, photos, music, videos to a memory card and in this way free up space in the phone’s memory.

To do this, you can use one of the three methods provided below: built-in tools, through a computer (laptop) or using a third-party program not included in the built-in set.

The method using the program is the most effective, since the built-in function is increasingly being removed by equipment manufacturers xiaomi, redmi, lg, zte, redmi 4x, htc, asus, huawei, samsung, meizu, lenovo, lg, samsung, fly, alcatel, redmi, sony xperia , prestigio and you won’t find it on most of even the best modern smartphones.

NOTE: depending on the version of Android, for example, Android 6.0, Android 7, Android 5.1, Android 4.4 and so on, there are also some nuances when moving files from the phone to the SD memory card.

The first way to transfer data from the internal memory of an Android phone to an SD card is the built-in tools

Android has a feature that allows you to move an application to a map. Just go to Settings > Application Manager.

Here it should immediately be noted that, for example, in my Samsung Galaxy with Android 6 there was an “Application Manager” function, but when it was updated to Android 7.0, it disappeared. Instead, a good optimization appeared.

If you have an application manager, you can see the games and programs installed on the SD memory card, as well as those that can be transferred.

Therefore, then tap the application that interests you, and then in the new window find the item “Move to SD card” - click on the button.

After some time the application will be moved.

The second way to transfer data from the internal memory of an Android phone to an SD card is through a computer

This method works well for moving multimedia files such as photos, movies, songs, images (and more).

Using a computer, you have the ability to quickly transfer music, videos and other data to an SD card using a USB cable (set it as a USB drive).

When viewing the contents of your smartphone, you can see two separate media: internal memory and external memory card.

For convenience, you can use the Apowersoft Phone Manager program. If you don’t have a computer, you can use the File Manager program, which you must first install yourself on your Android phone.

The third way to transfer data from the internal memory of an Android phone to an SD card is using applications

If you want to transfer applications and games to a memory card, you can find programs in the Google Play store that will quickly complete this process. I recommend using AppMgr III (known as App 2 SD).

Download it. But not all applications installed in the smartphone’s memory can be transferred to a memory card. Those preinstalled in the system usually cannot be moved.

After launching AppMgr III you will see which can be transferred. With AppMgr III you can quickly transfer everything to a memory card at once, rather than one at a time.

To do this, press and hold your finger a little so that it appears in a red wrapper, and then select “Move All”. You can also check the list of installed applications and files that you want to transfer to the memory card.

Which applications can be transferred to a memory card and which cannot or are not recommended

Is it possible to transfer all applications to a memory card? No, everything is impossible. Why can't everything be transferred? Because this is not provided by the Android system, the phone manufacturer or the author of the application.

You cannot transfer whatsapp (whatsapp), facebook - if it was built-in initially, updates, play market, youtube, firmware and others that were originally built-in to an SD memory card.

Some smartphone owners want to transfer cache, especially from games - this is available using the program - “FolderMount”.

You can also easily transfer maps: from Yandex navigator, Navitel (from navitel is even recommended), garmin, cityguide, Google maps.

Sometimes people ask me how to transfer viber and the VK application to a flash SD card. It depends on the smartphone and the Android version. Sometimes the system allows it, sometimes it doesn't.

Much information that cannot be transferred through programs and the built-in tools of a smartphone can be moved using a computer, for example, a folder, a song, pictures, downloads, arch, various audio, SMS messages, a gallery - or rather its contents, Viber photos, and so on. Good luck.

Starting with version Android 6.0, it became possible to use a flash card as internal storage device data. Now the device, after certain actions, can use the memory available on the SD as freely as the internal one. The article will tell you how to connect an SD card in this quality and what restrictions are imposed on it.

How to connect a flash drive as internal memory

Before connecting the drive, you must transfer from it all important information. During the setup process, it will be completely cleared and the data will not be returned.

First of all, you need to go to Settings, and then go to the section " Storage and drive", where you should click on the SD card.

Next you need to select “ Tune" and click " Inner memory" Immediately after this, the device will warn the user that all information will be deleted and it will become impossible to read it on other devices without full formatting.

Here you need to select “ Clear and Format" and wait for the memory clearing process to complete. You may then receive a message indicating that the media is running slowly. As a rule, this means that the flash drive used is not of very good quality and its use as device storage may also affect the performance of the smartphone itself. For good and fast work recommended to use UHS Speed ​​Class 3 (U3) drives.

After formatting is completed, the smartphone will ask you to transfer information, you should agree with this and wait until the work is completed. After the transfer, the work of turning the flash drive into internal memory will be almost complete; all that remains is to reboot the device.

Features and limitations of using an SD card

There are a few things you should be aware of before you start using a flash drive in this way.

1. After conversion, all data, except for some applications and system updates, will be placed on the SD drive.
2. When connected to a computer, only this part of the memory will be available for interaction.

In fact, all actions are performed only with a flash drive, the real internal storage of the phone not available for interaction and is practically not used at all. Firstly, this means that when you remove the drive, almost all your data, photos and applications will be lost. Secondly, if the volume of the flash drive is less than the actual storage capacity of the smartphone, then the amount of available memory will decrease, not increase.

Format the card using ADB for use as internal storage

The function is not available on some devices, but it is possible to connect a flash drive as storage in another way. However, it is worth noting that this method is very labor-intensive and can cause damage to the device Therefore, if you are not confident in your abilities, then it is better not to do this on your own.

To use this method, you will need to perform many steps. You need to download from the site and install Android SDK, then download and install from the official website device drivers, and also, you need to enable “ debug modeUSB» on the device.

• adb shell
• sm list-disks (after execution, an id will be issued in the form disk:ХХХ,ХХ should be written down and entered in the next line)
• sm partition disk:ХХХ,ХХ private

Then you will need turn off the phone, go to settings and click on sd, select menu and click “ Transfer data" That's it, the actions are finished.

How to set a memory card to standard mode

To return the flash drive to standard mode, you just need to go to its settings, as in the first option, and select “ Portable media" Before doing this, all important information should be transferred to another location, because the drive will be formatted during the process.

Many smartphone models have a built-in function for saving photos to a memory card by default. However, there are devices in which this parameter must be set manually or is absent altogether, and the captured images are saved to the internal memory of the phone. How to make sure that photos are saved to the memory card of an Android device - this will be discussed in the article.

For different models of Android smartphones, there are different ways to solve the problem of saving images in memory. Despite the fact that a specific phone model has its own characteristics for configuring storage parameters. In a certain line of devices, the location of the function for saving photos to a memory card is usually the same. We will look at the location of this function, which is typical for any smartphone configuration, and various ways to solve the problem.

Method 1 - Changing the Storage Partition in Camera Settings

In most smartphones, the folder for saving photos can be set in the camera settings. To do this, you need to launch it and find the “settings” tab, in which the item regarding image storage will be specified. It might be called something like this:

“Save to memory card” item in the “Camera settings” section

Here you need to move the slider of the “Save to memory card” item to the right position, thereby activating saving the photo to the memory card. As a rule, this method solves the problem in most cases. If it doesn't help, move on to the next one.

Method 2 - changing the save folder in the smartphone settings

Often, image storage settings can be changed directly in the “Settings” section of your device. The method is implemented in several steps:

If this solution does not help you, move on to the third.

Method 3 - Restore Camera Default Settings

Some intentional or accidental changes to the camera parameters can also affect the operation of the smartphone, resulting in the SD card failing. In this case, it is recommended to restore the camera to factory settings. In our smartphone model this is done like this:

Method 4 - hardware solution to the problem of saving photos to a memory card

If the previous methods did not help save images to a memory card, then perhaps the problem lies in the phone itself, since the memory module is the weak point of the device and its operation can easily be disrupted, for example, if the smartphone is dropped. It would be a good idea to check this by doing the following:

1. Turn off the phone and remove the memory card;
2. Turn it on and take a test shot;
3. Turn off the device again, insert a memory card and start it;
4. Try to photograph something again.

After completing these steps, the failure is usually eliminated and subsequent images are saved to the SD card.

We looked at the main reasons for the problem of saving photos to a memory card and ways to resolve it on Android gadgets. I hope the article helped you in troubleshooting this problem.