I use MIUI ROM, model G7. After a lot of effort, I finally partitioned my 16GB card and turned it into App2SD+. Now it is inserted in my G7, enjoying the great pleasure brought by App2SD+.
This post belongs to an old technical post, just sharing it, not a masterpiece, of course, I made some modifications based on my own experience.
Many people may have the misconception that App2SD is just about installing applications on the card. This can be achieved by using Wandoujia to forcefully install applications on the SD card! In fact, App2SD and App2SD+ are actually App2Ext, which means allocating a partition on the storage card for Android to use, tightly integrating the storage card with the Android system. Unlike the built-in App2SD in Android versions 2.0 and above, which only installs applications in the .android_source folder on the storage card, the application's data and cache are still stored in the internal storage of the phone. So what are the benefits of App2SD+? I believe those who have read the above post understand.
I. Why use App2SD+
To use App2SD+, first understand the relevant knowledge of App2SD+.
II. Partition your storage card
There are two methods to achieve this:
Method 1: Use partitioning tools on your PC to partition the storage card!
(It is recommended to first try method 2 below, but it is necessary to read about the partitioning mentioned in method 1.)
Common partitioning tools such as Acronis Disk Director and DiskGenius can partition the storage card into both Ext and FAT formats.
(PS. When I used DiskGenius to partition, I could only partition it into Ext2 format, but Ext3 format is more suitable for Android, especially MIUI, which seems to only support Ext3.)
Partition the storage card into 3 partitions. The first partition is the normal phone storage space: FAT32, the second partition is the partition used by App2SD+: EXT3, and the third partition is the Linux swap partition used by the Android system.
Method 2: Use the Recovery in the Android system to partition!
This method is the simplest and does not require any hassle. Since the operation menus of different Recovery versions on different models may vary, but most of them provide the Partitions Menu option. Enter this menu, select Partitions sdcard, and follow the prompts to partition.
Specific process:
- Taking G7 as an example, press the volume down key once while the phone is turned off, do not release the volume down key until you enter the FASTBOOT interface, use the scroll wheel to select Recovery, and press the power button to confirm.
- The phone will restart into Recovery, select Partitions Menu, then select Partitions sdcard, and select Partitions SD.
- It will ask if you want to partition. Press the scroll wheel to confirm, and then the Swap-size and Ext3-size options will appear. Use the scroll wheel to adjust the space size up and down, and finally confirm to start partitioning. The unallocated space is the FAT32 storage space.
- Wait patiently while your screen is showing "...............", the duration depends on the situation, usually it can be partitioned within 5 minutes. If it keeps showing "........" for more than 10 minutes, then congratulations, you have encountered a mysterious problem, give up this method!
III. Enable App2SD+ in the Android system
First, I want to clarify that there is only a slight difference between App2SD+ and App2SD. App2SD+ stores both the application cache and application data in the Ext3 partition, while App2SD only installs the application in the Ext3 partition, and the application's data and cache are still stored in the internal storage of the phone. This is somewhat similar to the built-in App2SD mentioned at the beginning of the article in Android versions 2.0 and above. Whether you want App2SD or App2SD+, it depends on your choice, let's get started:
First, make sure your phone has Super Terminal, enter the following command:
# su
Press enter, if prompted for authorization, please authorize!
# a2sd reinstall
Press enter, the phone will automatically restart. This step is to reload the a2sd function and move the software you have already installed to the Ext partition.
OK, now App2SD has been successful. If you want App2SD+, continue below:
After restarting, continue to enter the Super Terminal emulator and run the following commands:
# su
Press enter
# a2sd zipalign
Press enter
# a2sd cachesd
Press enter, the phone will automatically restart. App2SD+ is now successful. If your phone has not installed any applications yet, install a few first.
Now, open Root Explorer (if you don't have it on your phone yet, install it first) and see if there is a "sd-ext" folder in the root directory of your phone. Enter this folder and see if there are folders like app, app-private, and dalvik-cache. If there are, congratulations, you have already enabled App2SD+.
If you have partitioned your storage card into an EXT partition but don't know how to enable A2SD+, please use this tool: Plus Toolbox CM Special Edition, it can be used on CM-based systems, such as MIUI.
CM_PlusToolbox2.00_lessicon_build110411_2.apk
After reading some replies, I will reply to some common questions:
- When entering the command # a2sd reinstall, it does not work and does not restart.
Possibility 1: The partition is incorrect and cannot be recognized by the system as an EXT partition;
Possibility 2: You did not enter # su to obtain the highest permission;
Possibility 3: The system does not support A2SD+, this possibility only applies to non-MIUI systems or systems not based on CM. - How do I know if the partition is correct?
Answer: Check if your EXT partition is recognized by the system. For MIUI, refer to: Settings> System> SD Card> -A2SD+. Check if there is total capacity and available space. (MIUI will automatically recognize the correct EXT partition and enable A2SD function, but A2SD+ will not be enabled by default, which means that the application cache and data are still stored in the internal storage of the phone.) If the total capacity is displayed, it means that the partition is correct, just execute the third step mentioned above to enable A2SD+. (Of course, you can also choose to use the tool in the attachment.) - After I have enabled A2SD+, if I flash the ROM again, will A2SD+ still be retained? Do I have to do it again? After flashing the ROM, as long as the storage card partition has not changed, the A2SD function is still available for MIUI. You only need to execute the command in the third step mentioned above to enable A2SD+.
If you have any questions, please reply to this post, and I will reply periodically.#
Experience supplement after using it for two months:
- If during use, A2SD+ encounters any unknown problems that cause it to fail (such as the programs in the EXT partition cannot be opened), it is recommended to try:
# a2sd repair
This is a repair command, harmless and helpful.
- The commands provided above only move the program cache (cache) to the EXT partition. If you also want to move the program data (data) to the EXT partition, execute:
# a2sd datasd
(Command to regret moving data into EXT: #a2sd nodata)
- Don't want to use A2SD anymore?
Execute: #a2sd remove