• After 15+ years, we've made a big change: Android Forums is now Early Bird Club. Learn more here.

How to move apps to sd card on an unrooted device: A noobs guide. **Updated 09/02/11**

Status
Not open for further replies.
williamj1 said:
Also, if you are asking how you move over game data (saves etc) from the old phone, you would need to be rooted.
Click to expand...

Could temproot with visionary+ and backup / restore with titanium.

Visionary+ givers superuser until reboot so no warranty issue.
 
williamj1 said:
Why can't you just go onto the market on the new phone and download again? Even it doesn't say installed in the market, if you click buy again in the market, it won't charge you if you all ready bought it.

Also, if you are asking how you move over game data (saves etc) from the old phone, you would need to be rooted.
Click to expand...

Hi William and thanks for answering. The problem is the app does not appear in the market anymore. I can't find it at all. I found and downloaded the paid upgrade but it needs the original app to work ( stupid me I was hoping it would come complete) now the upgrade doesn't appear in the market for me either.
It's so weird

AndroLib says it's been removed from the android market. If I can't get it off my old phone I think I'm skunked.
I thhink I figured out why it's gone. The name was trademarked my another game (sucky one too) and they filed a complaint. Too bad game was great.
 
wonderful walk through. quick question through, tried looking through the thread but didnt quite find the answer i was looking for. i did this to unlock the ability to move more apps to sd. i have no problem moving the app to the sd afterword and would almost prefer it so i can monitor storage and avoid widget complications. would changing the default to (1) to prefer internal set the phone up in this manner, where it unlocks the ability to move to sd apps like handcent that couldnt before but still default to the internal memory or is there no real difference between internal and auto ( option of 1 or 0)? thanks for your help
 
bryandrummer said:
wonderful walk through. quick question through, tried looking through the thread but didnt quite find the answer i was looking for. i did this to unlock the ability to move more apps to sd. i have no problem moving the app to the sd afterword and would almost prefer it so i can monitor storage and avoid widget complications. would changing the default to (1) to prefer internal set the phone up in this manner, where it unlocks the ability to move to sd apps like handcent that couldnt before but still default to the internal memory or is there no real difference between internal and auto ( option of 1 or 0)? thanks for your help
Click to expand...

No. Its already set to 1 and many apps cannot be moved when set this way. This means the default location is the phone and then app developers need to code in the ability to move.

Setting it to 2 automates it to SD and unlocks the ability to move stuff already installed there to what is the new default install location.

0 - Auto means it will go wherever the app is coded to go by default.
 
SUroot... im having trouble withyour step 3... my phone would not sync with HTC sync... the phone cant find the program...

IDEAS?
Thanks


NVRMND..i got it...
 
I dont even think you need to put it in HTC sync mode. I just left that in as I wasnt sure, but it probably works in Charge only mode too.
 
Hey Guys,
Would this work for a non HTC phone? If I just left out the HTC sync portion, put the phone in disk mode, and proceeded as you laid out?
 
Should do, yes. Its an android 2.2 thing. Dont even think you need to do the HTC sync part.


BUT, you will need to ensure you have drivers for your device on your computer and that bit, we cant help with.
 
SUroot said:
I dont even think you need to put it in HTC sync mode. I just left that in as I wasnt sure, but it probably works in Charge only mode too.
Click to expand...

the sync was NOT established but the processed still worked... at first i wrote "S"etInstallLocation... that didnt work... tried again with "s"etInstallLocation and with success...
 
I thought that it wasn't a good idea to have your keyboard on the SD card? No idea why but I'm sure I read it somewhere.
 
Pinmac1 said:
I thought that it wasn't a good idea to have your keyboard on the SD card? No idea why but I'm sure I read it somewhere.
Click to expand...


I'd have to agree with that, like widgets. If you mount the SD card, you would be unable to type anything.
 
Does that mean that the phone would revert to the stock keyboard or that you couldn't type at all? If the former then a "keyboard junkie" (like me!) could presumably copy all their keyboards over to the SD card and use the stock one when necessary? If the latter than that plan wouldn't be a good one.......
 
Thats not the only reason though. I doubt keyboards will run well from SD. But yes may revert to stock.
 
SUroot said:
Thats not the only reason though. I doubt keyboards will run well from SD. But yes may revert to stock.
Click to expand...


My swype is running fine of the SD. no troubles.
Only downside is that, when you reboot, keyboard goes back to stock and you have to press a few buttons to set it back to swype... no hazzle at all...
 
Yes, cause the SD mounting is the last thing to happen when the phone boots. the keyboard is alreadey loaded at that point but the SD is not available.
 
except possible performance issues.

Obviously you do what you want, but I'm still not going to agree with you ;)
 
I have read this thread (well, most of it...there's an awful lot of it) with interest as I was struggling with my Desire's lack of memory, and I've only had the phone a month!

Although it's tempting to have a go at this (in fact, I've already downloaded all the tools) I'm worried that it might cause more problems and waste more time than I have right now. So I've just deleted a whole load of apps instead.

If things get worse, I'll have a go.

Quick Q: will 2.3 solve any of these issues?

Thanks for all the hard work.
 
Simonz I too was very worried about doing this procedure and I had only had me phone about 2 months. The process was a lot easier than I thought and the guys on here are very helpful!
 
I got successfully through all the steps of the guide, but still cant install on SD.

I tried nearly all of my installed apps but when I try to move them I get "Failed to move application"

Also installed App2SD, but no change.

(I do clear data on most of them and I force close if they are open)

Also tried to uninstall and reinstall some apps, but they get on internal memory still.
 
Today I ran this prescription again just to check if I overlooked any errors. It does in fact say "adb server is out of date. But everything seems perfectly fine. But still no change: I cannot move any of my apps and re-installed apps end up in internal mem.

I checked to see if the setting was actually done and it was:

$ pm getInstallLocation
pm getInstallLocation
2[external]
$

My card seems to work fine. I can read and write to it both from phone and via usb to and from PC.
I guess if something was wrong with my card, I would get an error when trying to install a new app. But I dont.

What should I check?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom