How to extend storage using SD card space

[danibus]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TAKE NOTE I don't have this phone anymore, I can't help you as you deserve, I'm sorry.
Don't use this tutorial with last firmware, as Huawei changed some things and it's not working.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Hi folks, this is a small tutorial to extend storage using SD space for P8 lite 2017.

It's more or less the same tutorial you can read for any Nougat phone.

As you know, P8 lite 2017 has only 7 GB free space at 1st, and after install all your favourite programs and restore your photos, music, etc you find 1-2GB free only.

To avoid this we will configure Android to use ALL SD to install programs and data.
This will ERASE ALL SD content, so backup any data there..

What we are doing?
We will configure Android to use SD as adoptable storage.
Making this, SD will be encrypted and will be part of phone storage.
That means you CAN'T remove. If you remove SD, your phone will not work (well, only programs installed there). Also that means SD will not work as external storage = portable SD, so you can't connect phone to any PC and transfer music, photos, etc. In this case you need a program to do it (I suggest AIRDROID from PlayStore).

Internal phone storage will be use for system apps.
SD storage will be use for install user programs and data. Whatsapp will be here

Others like Motorola or Samsung enable this option in stock rom, Huawei not.

What I need?
First of all, fast SD. At least UHS-I class.
Second you need to know how to use ADB console (not in this tutorial).
Third enable developer options (not in this tutorial). Read here.

Let's rock
* Connect your phone to PC

* Be sure to enable developer options, enable debug mode and accept message from phone:

* Format SD using phone menu.

* Start ADB console. Write:

>> sm list-disks
We will read something like: disk:179,64

>> sm set-force-adoptable true
>> sm partition disk:179,64 private

Remember disk:179,64 it's just an example, we have to write down what our phone shows.
Can be 179,64 also can be 179:192 also can be 179_32
All are correct. Exit adb now.

Last pass, migrate data
You must also migrate apps and data. This can be done through the storage section of your Android settings menu. Tap the MicroSD card, then move to the top right of the menu and click on Move data. You could not select this menu item before partitioning.

Check everything works
At this moment storage section in your android menu will show non-sense data (i.e. shows me -1.66GB free space, yes, minus 1.66GB).
Also your SD total storage can be wrong, mine shows 64GB but it's a 32GB SD card.

Install a 3rd party file app, like this one,and check storage:

Now all it's ok!!!



NOW DON'T FORGET THIS
* You can't simply remove your SD.
* If you want to replace SD for another one, maybe a bigger one, you CAN'T. You have to backup your data, un-make this tutorial (just down), make all steps with new SD.
* If HUAWEI updates ROM, I don't know what will happen, hope nothing breaks.


HOW TO "UNDO" THIS TUTORIAL

First of all backup all your info using google account, AIR DROID, etc.

* Start ADB console. Write:

>> sm list-disks
We will read something like: disk:179,64

>> sm partition disk:179,64 public

Now SD it's available for portable use, I think it has been formatted (don't know, never made this).

 

[kinkiyo]

thx work perfectly for me

 

[AlexL84]

after

>> sm list-disks

it says:

/system/bin/sh: can't create sm: Read-only file system

Tried with

mount -o rw,remount,rw /system

It says:

mount: '/dev/block/dm-0' not user mountable in fstab

Any idea?

Thank You

 

[danibus]

after

>> sm list-disks

it says:

/system/bin/sh: can't create sm: Read-only file system

Tried with

mount -o rw,remount,rw /system

It says:

mount: '/dev/block/dm-0' not user mountable in fstab

Any idea?

Thank You

??

Pls explain how you make adb shell
Are you using windows?

 

[AlexL84]

??

Pls explain how you make adb shell
Are you using windows?

windows 10. cmd as admin
than I opened adb shell from the sdk\platform-tools directory

 

[danibus]

windows 10. cmd as admin
than I opened adb shell from the sdk\platform-tools directory

Pls try this mini-adb this instead using sdk

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-kjfIFQdc9tUnl4c3NwejBXNTQ/view

If you have same error, no idea

 

[Dragoboss]

after

>> sm list-disks

it says:

/system/bin/sh: can't create sm: Read-only file system

Tried with

mount -o rw,remount,rw /system

It says:

mount: '/dev/block/dm-0' not user mountable in fstab

Any idea?

Thank You

Seems like the way your phone's filesystem is configured you are unable to remount a certain part of your partitions.
Is your phone rooted? If so you could try through the phone itself with an console/terminal emulator.

Honestly, I think su is a necessity to begin with either way even with adb.

Hi folks, this is a small tutorial to extend storage using SD space for P8 lite 2017.

-snip-

Heya danibus, I was wondering.
You say in your tutorial that doing this would cease the usage of the SD card as external storage.
Makes me wonder, have you tried doing this through the use of partitions, dividing the sd card for example in two halves, 32gb each, then adopting one of the partitions with the internal, leave the other one mounted to the external mount point?

I would try myself right now but my phone doesn't arrive for another week.

Cheers:good:

 

[danibus]

Heya danibus, I was wondering.
You say in your tutorial that doing this would cease the usage of the SD card as external storage.
Makes me wonder, have you tried doing this through the use of partitions, dividing the sd card for example in two halves, 32gb each, then adopting one of the partitions with the internal, leave the other one mounted to the external mount point?

I would try myself right now but my phone doesn't arrive for another week.

Cheers:good:

No, as my SD is only 32GB, if I make i.e. 50% for internal storage and 50% for external, I will have only 16GB for install programs+data (internal storage), I prefer 32GB for them

But you can try and post here result!

 

[nonosann]

I did this manipulation and it worked fine (once I found the correct and last version of adb...).

It took maybe 5 or 6 minutes max.

BUT, if I tried this it is because the phone showed en out of space message and I couldn't download an update. Then after the extension of the storage, I still was unable to down load and apply this update.

The phone showed 80 Go of memory (64+16) with the third party app, and the setting menu still considered the internal memory as full. So, it worked but it was not a solution to my issue.

Do you have any tip to tell in order to solve this problem ?

thank you very much !

 

[mike.nascimento]

I did this manipulation and it worked fine (once I found the correct and last version of adb...).

It took maybe 5 or 6 minutes max.

BUT, if I tried this it is because the phone showed en out of space message and I couldn't download an update. Then after the extension of the storage, I still was unable to down load and apply this update.

The phone showed 80 Go of memory (64+16) with the third party app, and the setting menu still considered the internal memory as full. So, it worked but it was not a solution to my issue.

Do you have any tip to tell in order to solve this problem ?

thank you very much !

Hello

What ADB version did you get?

Did you restart your phone and tried to download/install update?

---------- Post added at 11:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:33 PM ----------

I really like this post.
I am only relutant because there is still no feedback.
I have the Huawei P8 lite 2017 for only a week, it is still in its warranty and I don't want to void that.
I have a 32gb sd card, I have it as the predefined storage, still I have installed some apps and the internal storage has been decreasing, I have read that, once an app is updated it goes to internal storage.
I really like to keep the original Huawei software/firmware updated and looks like that this is no great solution...
Another thing that I have read is that is possible to format sd card as internal, but not under EMUI 5.0...

Thanks guys

 

[sonic_ear]

Is this work on Nova lite?

 

[hellda]

Its dosent works! all looks OK but I dont have the space of my sdcard. its Total: 128Go dispo : -4,33.
I dont hunderstand why i have no room....

 

[metabolito]

Its dosent works! all looks OK but I dont have the space of my sdcard. its Total: 128Go dispo : -4,33.
I dont hunderstand why i have no room....

In the OP it says to install a third party app to see the actual free space like a file manager, try that.

Enviado desde mi PRA-LX1 mediante Tapatalk

 

[jenda701]

Thanks works magic, got some trouble to get it works on first time, problem seemed to be in external sd setting. Once set to use as external memory and formating all went just as explained. Thanks again Jan

 

[rider27]

Hi everyone, i've got issues with my P8 lite 2017 since I've done this trick.
Everything works great but when I wanna download something, my phone tell me it can't download because of there's no SD card.

 

[valkata1212]

So I got myself an SD card and i did the tutorial with adb and made the sd card as internal memory. But now when I try to update my apps from the Google Play store I get the Insufficient storage... :thinking:

 

[shweeney]

had to redo this after receiving an OTA update. After the update it appeared that the adoptable storage was still there, but apps were writing to the internal storage only and the phone quickly ran out of space.

Even after redoing the ADB changes I had some trouble with Spotify which claimed there was no storage available and refused to launch. So I ejected the SD card, reinstall Spotify and then remounted the card - this seems to have fixed the issue.

 

[thlobato]

Help @ mixed 60

After doing this command "adb....... mixed 60" it worked fine, but now my huaweii p8 lite 2017 only recognizes the 40% and can't read the 60% part of the disk. looks like it´s not mounted.
How can I mount this 60% of the disk? thanks

No, as my SD is only 32GB, if I make i.e. 50% for internal storage and 50% for external, I will have only 16GB for install programs+data (internal storage), I prefer 32GB for them

But you can try and post here result!

 

[barz13]

Hello,
What happens if I remove the SD when the phone is turned off?
Or if i want to completely restore my phone?

Thanks for your help

 

[Cassa1990]

Hi all,
First of all thank danibus very much for your tutorial, your help is really precious. I have applied your method at my P8 lite 2017 and I am currently using a third party app to check my storage. It seems to me that the only internal storage considered by the system is the sd card, and is not really considering the initial internal storage as a place to store data.
Is still possible to access the original internal storage to save/move/change files?
If yes how?
If not, since my internal storage has still 7 GB of free space, should I undo the procedure, wait until the internal storage is almost filled and then redo the procedure again?

Thanks a lot!