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Help Procedure for Recovering SDCard?

persistentone

Well-Known Member
I have a backup of an SDCard under Windows. After formatting a new SDCard what is the procedure to recover it from the Windows backup of the original SDCard? Apparently, you cannot just overwrite every file on the SDCard. Android complains that the restored card is "corrupt". Obviously it is a file being recovered that does this because if you reformat the card and use it as a new card Android never complains. The card I am recovering to is brand new. It also passes CHKDSK under Windows.
 
What is your Android version?

How the data is stored on that SD card previously?

Was the SD card encrypted?
 
What is your Android version?

How the data is stored on that SD card previously?

Was the SD card encrypted?

Android version is 5.0.1, kernel 3.4.0. Phone is NOT rooted.

The SDCard is not encrypted, and it was previously being maintained by Android on this phone. I never wrote data to that card from Windows or any other OS.

One day the phone hung in the middle of saving a photo, and I think it corrupted the SDCard. A CHKDSK under Windows did not change that outcome. Android at startup started to complain the card is corrupted. I think Android put some file on the card into a corrupted state. Now when I insert a factory-fresh SDCard that works, but as soon as I copy over the previous data, Android starts to see the SDCard as corrupt again.

When I format a new SDCard under Android, or when I insert a factory-fresh SDCard and Android writes files to the card to initialize it, I need to better understand which of those files and folders I should NOT overwrite when I do the file restore.
 
Did you try to do it the simple way by

1. Copy your files from the old SD card to your PC's hard drive as backup.

2. Format the SD card with your PC with FAT32 as selection.

3. Copy the files back to the SD card, don't copy everything, just your own files like photos, videos, music...
 
4. Insert the SD card into the phone.

That's how I usually do each time I change my phone.
 
Did you try to do it the simple way by

1. Copy your files from the old SD card to your PC's hard drive as backup.

2. Format the SD card with your PC with FAT32 as selection.

3. Copy the files back to the SD card, don't copy everything, just your own files like photos, videos, music...

Doesn't anyone have documentation more detailed than that? I have thousands of files and nested folders on that SDCard. I have no clue how I am supposed to figure out what is attributable to my applications and what is system. My guess is that there are only a few dozen files and folders that I need to explicitly deselect from the restore. No one has those documented?
 
Wait, what makes you think that there are app and system files on your SD card? Did you use your SD card as adoptive storage or something like that?
 
Wait, what makes you think that there are app and system files on your SD card? Did you use your SD card as adoptive storage or something like that?

I moved many applications over to the SDCard.... In the version of Android I am using, it appears that the application has discretion on what files it moves over, and most of those applications moved over from 20% to 60% of their total file space to the SDCard.

One of many questions I have now is what did the corruption of the original SDCard do to those applications. If I recover the SDCard, will the applications be able to sense the recovered files and use them?

When I formatted the new SDCard on Android, instantly there appeared many files on the SDCard that looked like they were placed there by the Android system. I am not saying the OS is running from the card. I am saying the OS placed files onto the card that have something to do with how it uses the card.
 
If Android places app files on your SD card, it should put it in a special folder. If you fail to copy that folder back to the SD card Android will certainly assume that the card is corrupted.
 
What I'm afraid is that sometimes Windows doesn't recognize that specific folder so you won't be able to see and copy it back to the SD card.

In your Windows machine make sure you checked the Folder View option to display all system and hidden files.
 
When you moved some of your apps to the microSD card, that means for those 'moved' apps parts of them were indeed moved to the card, but it's not a matter of the entire app gets moved, some parts of each of those apps remain on your phone's internal storage. So now without that card in its original state, some of your apps might be fully or at least partially 'broken'. You can hopefully fix that situation by going to the Play Store and just reinstalling those originally moved apps. And from now on, if you're going to do something with that microSD card, move the apps back to your phone's storage before pulling it out and re-purposing it.

As for chkdisk even though your card was formatted as FAT (or FAT32 or xFAT) it can only fix FAT and/or Windows related problems (if chkdisk can even do that thoroughly but that's a different argument). Things relative to Android and its different file system and different file hierarchy are outside chkdisk's capabilities.

When it's a matter of storing just files on your microSD card, the card itself is just storage media. Whether the card is in your phone or sitting on a table, your phone is still fine as is. But once you moved some apps to it, then the card became a de facto part of your phone and how it works. Because some apps require that card to be there, once you pull it out and alter its original state, that creates a problem. Windows doesn't use the same file permissions or file hierarchy so it's one thing to just use a card to transfer files and another when there a different operating systems involved.
 
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There are apps that can check and fix SD card, but I recommend using a PC for that.

For fixing structural problems with the FAT32 format I agree. But for fixing *file structures* on the SDCard, nothing is going to replace Android for that?
 
For fixing structural problems with the FAT32 format I agree. But for fixing *file structures* on the SDCard, nothing is going to replace Android for that?
I don't see why Android would do that while a simple factory reset can fix everything.
 
I don't see why Android would do that while a simple factory reset can fix everything.
A Factory Reset only wipes the user partition on the device's internal storage media. The system partitions are left as is, the microSD card is left as is.
 
A Factory Reset only wipes the user partition on the device's internal storage media. The system partitions are left as is, the microSD card is left as is.
I thought we are talking about user apps and files that could be stored on either internal memory or SD card. If the system partition is corrupted, unless your phone is rooted and you can boot into Recovery, buying another phone would be your only option.
 
I was only responding to your reference to a Factory Reset. I think that needs clarifying -- the act of doing a Factory Reset has nothing to do with a microSD card. If you're implying the OP should do a Factory Reset to solve their question about they're microSD card that's just something that needs some more explanation. Also the OP needs to be made aware a Factory Reset wipes off all personal data so backups are vital, and allow a good amount of time to fully restore their device.
 
I don't see why Android would do that while a simple factory reset can fix everything.

First, a factory reset nukes the entire phone while doing nothing to the SDCard. Worst advice you could give for this problem....

Did you read the original problem or this thread? Formatting the SDCard "fixes" it. Recovering the application data to the SDCard from a backup "breaks" it again and Android refuses to mount the card. The format of the card is fine. The problem is some file being recovered to the SDCard is making Android incorrectly believe the card is corrupted. Android should include some utility that would check the layout of files on the card looking for the defect file and then fix it.
 
I thought we are talking about user apps and files that could be stored on either internal memory or SD card. If the system partition is corrupted, unless your phone is rooted and you can boot into Recovery, buying another phone would be your only option.

Nothing is wrong on the system partition or the internal strorage. The problem is on the microSD card.
 
Basically, the only thing you can backup from the SD card are user media files. Documents, music, ebooks, pictures, videos. Anything out of those, like app data, should not be restored and instead redownloaded. Seems pretty simple to me.
 
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