Computer: Android 4.4 KitKat External SD Card not Writable – Flashing Android

dkracht

Gehört zu: Android
Siehe auch: Speicher, Root, SmartPhone

Android 4.4 KitKat: External SD Card not writable

One reason why a love Android is because you easily can expand memory by a large external SD Card (and by USB devices….).

With Android 4.4 “KitKat” Google has (tacitly) decided to de-value this feature by making the “external” SD card only readable by all applications, but writable only in a very restrictive way i.e. temporarily for single applications but not for multiple apps to share storage between them. Google thinks this kind of “sharing” should only be done by cloud services and thus requires permanent internet access, whereever you are in this world…

Test: Use “Ghost Commander” and try to copy files from “/storage/sdcard” (internal storage) to “/storage/sdcard1” (external SD card)……

The easy way: Android 5 Lollipop

I decided to upgrade my Android 4.4 to Android 5 (Lollipop).

In Lollipop Google has opened again write acces to the external SD card, but you must in some way “allow” each App, what directories of the SD card should be writable for this application.

  • Ghost Commander:  not successful on first attempt
  • File Commender:      successful with Lollipop
  • ES Datei Explorer:     successfull with lollipop (after authorizing SD card root)
  • X-plore:                   successfull with lollipop (after authorizing SD card root)

Possible Fixes

There a some Apps around that could fix this “Google Feature”, but they need a rooted Android.

So I am an now looking how to root my Sony Xperia Z1 Compact.

My Build No. is  14.4.A.0.157   (the “Kernel”, the “ROM”)

Rooting is possible only with Build 14.4.A.0.108   -> Have to flash the kernel first (with “FlashTool”)

First Steps

Developper Mode: Settings -> About -> Build Number  —- Tap 7 times on “Build Number” —> Now you are a “Developer”

USB Debugging: Once you are “Developer” you can see the item “Developer Options” under “Settings -> System”. Check “USB Debugging” and authorize it….

FlashTool for Sony Xperia

Für mein SmartPhone Sony Xperia gibt es: http://www.chip.de/downloads/Xperia-Flash-Tool_65533558.html

Install the FlashTool on the Windows PC.

Connect the Sony Xperia via USB to the Windows PC   —- with “USB Debugging ON”

FlashTool for Samsung Galaxy S3 mini

Das gute alte S3 mini hat Android 4.1.2 und sollte modernisiert werden…

Als erstes benötigt man die Odin-Software, die für das flashen von Samsung-Geräten erforderlichist: https://odindownload.com/download/

Voraussetzung:

  1. Enable USB Debugging on your Android device. Navigate to Settings > Developers options
  2. Odin installieren auf dem Windows-Computer
  3. Ggf. Samsung USB-Treiber auf dem Windows-Computer installieren
  4. Das gewünschte Anmdroid-Image (“ROM”) für das SmartPhone auf dem Windows-Computer herunter laden.
  5. Das Android-Image mit Odin im Download-Modus des Smatphones aufspielen

Was macht Odin

MIt dem Odin-Tool von Samsung kann man Firmware, alternative Betriebssysteme oder Apps auf das Smartphone aufspielen.

Odin kann verschiedene Bereiche bearbeiten:

  • CSC = Consumer Software Custumization
  • AP = Anwendungsprozessor (=PDA)
  • PIT = Partition Information Table
  • CP = Core Prozessor (=Modem)
  • BL = Boot Loader

Bei einem alternativen System-Image muss man alle diese Optionen zusammen auswählen.

Das SmartPhone selber muss dabei in einem von zwei besonderen zuständen sein:

  • Download Mode: Power off the device then press and hold “Power button, Home button and Volume down button” together for about 6 – 10 seconds
  • Recovery Mode: Power off the device then press and hold “Power button, Home button and Volume down button” together

Flashen mit Odin

  1. Odin starten als Admin
  2. Smartphone ausschalten, USB-Kabel ggf. entfernen
  3. Samsung Smartphone anschalten im “Download Mode” Power off the device then press and hold “Power button, Home button and Volume down button” together for about 6 – 10 seconds

Google Apps

Die normalerweise vorinstallierten Google Appsherunterladen: http://opengapps.org

Das Samsung S3 mini benötigt:

  • ARM (nicht ARM64)
  • Android 5.1
  • Variante: pico

Was ihr braucht:

-Recovery (Am besten eignet sich die TWRP-Recovery) novafusion.pl/downloads/
-Gapps (Das sind die Google Apps zB. Play Store, Gmail…) opengapps.org/
-Samsung Driver oder Samsung Kies (Am besten eignet sich der Samsung Driver)