[Q] putting apps in /system/app, good or bad? - Motorola Droid and Milestone General

Hi, I've been putting some of my apps apks in /system/app, so that I have more free space in /data.
Mostly I just put apps there that I know I will never need to uninstall, like TiBackup, LauncherPro etc. When those apps update, I just manually move the newer apk into /system/app.
Question: Is it wrong to fill up /system to almost-full?
I know it's mounted read-only during normal use, so nothing else can write to it anyway.

Yup, I'd like to know tha answer to this question too!

I have heard of it being done quite abit. So it can't be that bad.

Yeah, it can't be that bad. But what if you filled it to 100%, is that bad?
Cache and data are housed in separate partitions as far as I know. So, I believe it's ok to fill it up completely, since most other things don't need write access to /system partition anyway. If it's not being written to during normal operation, then any free space on /system is basically wasted.
But I'd still like to hear from someone more knowledgeable if it is indeed fine to fill up the /system partition. Or if it's better to leave a certain amount of space, and how much space is recommended.

It depends on the ROM. If you're using CM, apps in the /system partition stores it's dalvik-cache in the /cache partition. So, if I am correct, more apps in the /system means less /cache space.

I tried putting LauncherPro in /system/apps and then removing it from /data/apps, but with no luck - it kept force closing on launch not ideal for a launcher! I haven't yet figured out why it wouldn't work, but I'm sure I'll get there in the end.
SF

geevee11 said:
It depends on the ROM. If you're using CM, apps in the /system partition stores it's dalvik-cache in the /cache partition. So, if I am correct, more apps in the /system means less /cache space.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On CM6, /cache is a different partition than /system, so it shouldn't affect cache space.
I'll observe the free space for a few days without adding additional apps on /system. Right now, I have 15MB free on /system, and 39MB free on /cache. I'll report back in a while.

r8dhex said:
On CM6, /cache is a different partition than /system, so it shouldn't affect cache space.
I'll observe the free space for a few days without adding additional apps on /system. Right now, I have 15MB free on /system, and 39MB free on /cache. I'll report back in a while.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was talking about the dalvik-cache. Even if you install apps in the /system partition, it'll still have the dex files. So the more apps you put in your /system partition, the more your /cache will fill up = less ram.

I found out that apps in /system couldn't be updated through the market.
For instance: the facebook app that comes installed with google apps package of CM6 is installed in the /system dir of the phone. When I tried to update it through market it would fail every time. Once I deleted the app from /system and rebooted the phone, updating (installing) the app from market went fine.

Related

[Q] How to use /cache for apps

Some of you suggested using the cache partition for app cache - but when I use 'df' in Terminal Emulator it states that only 13604K of my 108544K cache partition are free.
When 'ls'-ing the /cache partition it lists files named "downloadfile.apk" to "downloadfile-34.apk".
Is this some OTA update?
That'd be strange, since the last (2.2.1) update came via PC only and i wiped everything that could be wiped via the recovery menu.
Furthermore the the creation dates of the .apks range from may to a few days ago.
But when I try to open them using Root Explorer it says "Error parsing package" and opening them via "View" gives me a blank screen.
Please enlighten me.
Thanks in advance
Those are temporary downloads from the market. Updates etc.
Does it only remove them on demand?
So I can remove them savely to make room for my appcache?
Once they're installed you can safely remove the apks in /cache
I was able to gain some space by wiping the dalvik cache so I'm gonna delay trying to use /cache
But I have one more question: several sources claim that using /cache for app-cache incompatible with App2SD - is that true?
I'm afraid I need some more clarification so I'm gonna push this thread...
I checked the sizes of my dalvik cache folder and /cache partition
df states that /cache has a total size of 108544K, 93793K used by .apk files I cannot open with Root Explorer and 13364K free
In my /data/dalvik-cache folder theres files summing up to 100956K
So they would barely fit in /cache if I delete all the .apks
I'm not sure if that would be a good idea...
Any suggestions?

Reduce /cache partition under CM7

Just a quick question:
What happens to system-dalvik-cache under /cache, if I resize this partition to e.g. 5 MB?
I've read somewhere that CM7 moves it to /data. true? Are there any other disadvantages of such a small cache-partition?
many thanks!
Someone?
10chars
Yes, on CM7, if the cache partition is too small, it will move it to the /data partition. I think it is /data/local/cache
Dalvik-cache never resides on /cache anyway. /cache is for Market and OS OTA downloads. If you make it too small - your Market downloads might fail.
I didn't even realize he was talking about dalvik cache. The dalvik cache resides on the /data partition by default for both system and data apps.
As Jack_R1 said, the cache is only used for temporary files, like OS upgrades and market downloads. If the cache partition gets below a certain point (I think it is 5MB), CM7 will automatically change the cache directory to the /data partition.
On my device the market download folder has already a symlink to my /data partition. Other then my system dalvik. At least it seems so.
Thanks for your help. So i can go ahead and resize with blackrose

[Q] Do i have to resize for medroid just like texaice ?

Do i have to resize for medroid just like TexaIce ?
ofcourse yes. but look into the OP for the exact partition values. i think there is a slight difference between them.
Sent from my Nexus One using Tapatalk
I believe it's the old texasice size. 220m system instead of the 210 it uses now. It has a bit more stuff/options builtin to the ROMs.
For most users: if you're playing with multiple ROMs, pick the largest suggested partition sizes for system and cache partitions and let data be whatever is left over. It might suck for user apps, but the better a2sd scripts fix that.
Reasoning:
When repartitioning internal memory with blackrose, your concerns are:
/system must be big enough to hold the ROM. ROMs with more extra tools or built in gapps need more.
/cache will limit *some* ROM's when you try to download from the market. You will not be able to download any apps larger than /cache size. Cyanogen based roms should not have this problem, but may bootloop when they try to put the dalvik cache for system apks in /cache. It's possible there's other issues from regular apps, but none of my apps seem to care after my work around.
/data is what we're always running out of when you install apps, but nobody really runs into an issue installing a ROM because /data is too small.
I don't recommend it for everyone, but personally, I make a tiny 2MB cache and use the biggest /system suggested out of the roms I play with (220, but some might be higher). The cache issues can be solved with symlinks to elsewhere (I like /cache/download > /sdcard/download and /cache/dalvik-cache > /data/dalvik-cache), but you need to be prepared to troubleshoot and fix stuff up from an adb shell in recovery. Some ROM install scripts like to format /cache and ia2sd has really hosed me up in the past. For the oversized system, I just use TI backup to move stuff from /data to use whatever space is left over.
For medroid mod rom 210 partition layout of texasice, its so small medroidmod system use 207 mb and probably more in new release for the mods and extra apps, so I recommend 220 partition layout
Enviado desde mi A500 usando Tapatalk
my experience is that with the partition layout of texasice not everything goes correctly.
WLAN problems, Titanium backup did not get root and so on...
With 220, 16,... works all right!

How to increase /data partition?

There is 1.35GB free space in /system partition but only 40MB free space in /data partition on my phone.
Is there a way to repartition the internal storage so as to make use of the large free space in /system partition?
Using CM10 20120820 nightly build
getmore2012 said:
There is 1.35GB free space in /system partition but only 40MB free space in /data partition on my phone.
Is there a way to repartition the internal storage so as to make use of the large free space in /system partition?
Using CM10 20120820 nightly build
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've got the answer. The /data and /system partition is swapped in CM10 20120820 nightly build.
May be I should use CM10 20120814 version to get the bigger /data partition back.
That would slow down your apps and you wouldn't be able to make use of new features and fixes. Move some of your apps to sdcard and remove unused ones and there shouldn't be a problem.
You could, by that defeats the purpose of what pawitp just did. Move apps to sd.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using xda premium
If you need the extra space create an ext4 partition of around 1gb on your external sdcard and install Link2sd from the play store. That's a universal solution for all phones with limited storage.
Someone has also created a script that does practically the same thing, except it uses the internal movinand where /system is stored instead. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=30568246
Use Datafix app from market, it makes /data/data directory, where all app cache can be stored.
zmagas1 said:
Use Datafix app from market, it makes /data/data directory, where all app cache can be stored.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That doesn't work with JB anymore because of the partition change. Hopefully they update it to make it work.

Nook Color CM10 emmc Data Partition Size

Loving the CM10 ROMs. Everything has been snappy on my nook since beta 2.
I thought I had the newer (revision 1.2+) nook partition layout (5gb data(apps)/1gb media). But now with CM10 I am getting an out of space error when trying to install new apps. I have moved all apps to my sd card and still get the error about not enough space. If I try and look at the partiton size it looks like it is maybe only 1gb now. Did installing a CM10 ROM change my partition size? Am I missing something else? Perhaps I am just wrong about my original partition sizes.
I searched some threads and the web and saw some discussion on my issue, particularly mention of a 'new CM10 partition layout', but this was confusing at best. It may not have even been nook related, but pertained to some phones.
dcahoe said:
Loving the CM10 ROMs. Everything has been snappy on my nook since beta 2.
I thought I had the newer (revision 1.2+) nook partition layout (5gb data(apps)/1gb media). But now with CM10 I am getting an out of space error when trying to install new apps. I have moved all apps to my sd card and still get the error about not enough space. If I try and look at the partiton size it looks like it is maybe only 1gb now. Did installing a CM10 ROM change my partition size? Am I missing something else? Perhaps I am just wrong about my original partition sizes.
I searched some threads and the web and saw some discussion on my issue, particularly mention of a 'new CM10 partition layout', but this was confusing at best. It may not have even been nook related, but pertained to some phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can tell by looking in settings and storage. It will tell you the size of your media storage. If you truly have the 1Gb /data, you might want to look at Dean Gibson's repartitioning thread. He has a 2gb/4gb version.
And no, there is no repartitioning that cm10 does. That was for a phone you saw.
Sent from my Nook HD+ running Tapatalk
Well, I think I do have the 5gb data/1gb media partition layout afterall.
In Setting->Apps->Downloaded it shows at the bottom 'Internal Storage, 753Mb used, 4.2Gb free'.
If I launch a terminal window:
$ df /data
/data Size=4G Used=643M Free=4G Blksize=4096
$ df /emmc
/emmc Size=1G Used=83M Free=942M Blksize=4096
$ df /mnt/sdcard
/mnt/sdcard Size=15G Used=10G Free=4G Blksize=8192
I guess the only app that is giving me the out of space is Titanium Backup. I can't get it to install from either the appstore or from .apk that I downloaded. Both methods start installing and then say 'out of space'. I have been installing and removing other apps along the way with no similar problem.
I did wipe cache/dalvik cache when installing ROM. I also tried CWM Fix Permissions. I also tried CWM Backup -> Wipe Data/Factory Reset -> Restore.
Anyone know why Titanium Backup won't install?
dcahoe said:
Well, I think I do have the 5gb data/1gb media partition layout afterall.
In Setting->Apps->Downloaded it shows at the bottom 'Internal Storage, 753Mb used, 4.2Gb free'.
If I launch a terminal window:
$ df /data
/data Size=4G Used=643M Free=4G Blksize=4096
$ df /emmc
/emmc Size=1G Used=83M Free=942M Blksize=4096
$ df /mnt/sdcard
/mnt/sdcard Size=15G Used=10G Free=4G Blksize=8192
I guess the only app that is giving me the out of space is Titanium Backup. I can't get it to install from either the appstore or from .apk that I downloaded. Both methods start installing and then say 'out of space'. I have been installing and removing other apps along the way with no similar problem.
I did wipe cache/dalvik cache when installing ROM. I also tried CWM Fix Permissions. I also tried CWM Backup -> Wipe Data/Factory Reset -> Restore.
Anyone know why Titanium Backup won't install?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The only thing I can think of is some users are having read only problems on both SD card and /data, which is where apps get installed. Have you tried to install other apps since the TB install failed? A test you can try to see if you are one of the users with ro issues is to use a root file manager (there is one built into CM10 now) to create a test file somewhere on /data.
Sent from my Nook HD+ using Tapatalk

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