Aug 31, 2020 Tap one of the apps. Tap “Clear Storage” or “Clear Cache.” Be aware that selecting “Clear Storage” will reset the app, signing you out, and clearing all data. Alternatively, each section will have a more generic “Files” option under the apps list. Delete some apps (duh) This is probably very obvious to most of you, but the first step you should.

Summary :

What should you when Android phone shows with “Insufficient Storage Available” or has limited space available? internal storage space of android? Now, there are 7 methods to help you increase internal storage space of android.

Quick Navigation :

Do you know how to increase Android internal space?

Recently, I always received a warning 'insufficient storage available' on my android phone when trying to install a new app on it. I was extremely confused because I had plenty of storage left. And I knew that android only limits the installation of new app when we have less than 15 MB of storage remaining.

In this case, what should we do? Can we fix the 'insufficient storage available' error message on android?

Now, today, we are going to show 7 ways to help you increase phone storage.

Method 1. Use Memory Card to Increase Internal Storage Space of Android (Works Quickly)

Here, I think you will agree with me when I say:

'It’s REALLY hard to spare some space of our memory card for the internal memory?'

Well, it turns out, you can perfectly use memory card to increase storage space by turning to a professional partitioning tool as well as Link 2SD.

And, in today’s post, I am going to show how you can easily and effectively increase android storage space by borrowing free space from memory card.

In general, people who successfully increase android storage space via using memory card do 3 things very well.

First, they prepare some necessary tools as follows:

  • Android phone must be rooted.
  • 2 GB or above memory card with class 4 or higher. (More details information about SD Card price, you could view at Amazon.
  • Memory card reader.
  • Excellent partition software.
  • Link2SD app installed on the phone. This app allows Android phone to use a part of the memory card as internal memory, so users can move some data and apps to the memory card.

Second, they partition SD card.

Finally, they use the SD card to get more free space.

Now, you might be wondering:

1. Why need to partition SD card and how?

2. How to increase internal storage space with SD card?

Next, we’ll show you all the answers in order.

System

Step 1: Partition Memory Card

Look:

To use a memory card as an internal memory, you have to partition this card since the Link2SD app requires a second partition on memory card. And, it's not working 'out-of-the-box' as native app2sd, you need to root your device and create a second partition on memory card.

See! MiniTool Partition Wizard is a good choice for users to partition memory card/SD.

The steps are:

Download and install MiniTool Partition Wizard on computer.

Remove memory card from phone, insert it in card reader, and connect it to computer.

Launch the partition management tool.

Right-click the memory card and select'Delete All Partitions.'

This will delete all data saved on this card, so please back up everything before doing this step. Here, you might be interested in this post Clone SD Card to PC for Transferring Data or Making a Backup.

Click memory card again and select'Create Partition' from the left action panel.

Select the partition as primary and specify its file system and size.

Then select the unallocated space and click'Create' to create an Ext2/3/4 primary partition.

Now, you can preview 2 partitions (a FAT 32 as well as an Ext2 partition), and click'Apply' to perform all changes.

In fact, there is an alternate method to make a partition on memory card. However, this method requires ClockwordMod. Therefore, if you don’t have CWM installed, you using the method provided above is a great choice. This method works for both Stock ROM and Custom ROM.

Procedure:

  • Backup all files on memory card.
  • Go into the recovery mode of phone.
  • Select'Advanced,' and then choose'Partition SD Card.'
  • Choose SD-ext size (if users have a 2GB Memory Card, choose 512 MB; if users have a 4 GB Memory card, choose 1024 MB).
  • Select'0 Swap.'
  • Wait for the process to finish, and then reboot the phone.

Step 2: Increase Internal Memory by Link2SD

After partitioned memory card, you are able to use its second Ext2/3/4 partition to increase the internal storage of android to store more data and apps. To be honest, this is the easiest part of this whole work, as you are going to need a few steps to get the whole stuff completed and placed on automation.

The steps are:

Insert memory card back to the Android.

Download and install the Link2SD app. This app needs root access, so this trick would only work if you have rooted phone.

Open Link2SD. Then it will ask for.ext partition that you created earlier. Select the Ex2 or Ex3 or Ex4 (users used during partition), and then click OK.

The app will then ask to reboot device. So reboot.

After rebooting, launch the Link2SD app again. Now, click'Setting> Check the autolink' to automatically move apps upon installation.

If you already have some apps, select'Create link' (be sure to check the files: app, dalvic-cache, and library files).

Check the memory, select'Storage Info' to view the current status of the internal memory.

How To Clean Up System Storage On Android

Now, all work has been done, and you can install as many apps as they want.

See, with the help of MiniTool Partition Wizard as well as Link2SD, we can effectively use some space of SD card to increase internal storage space of android. However, what should we do if there is no SD card? Or what should we do if we don’t want use Link 2SD? More solutions are shown below.

Method 2. Delete Unwanted Apps and Clean All the History and Cache

Sometimes, users can uninstall some apps which they have no interest in using to increase internal storage Android. If they later find they need these apps, they can just download them again.

On the other hand, even some apps users keep in their devices will take up more space than they require. To be specific, as time goes by, every app on users’ phone fills space with cached files. Now, they can clean app ache to release more free space to store more data.

Now, following the below steps to increase phone memory:

Step 1. Click 'Settings > Storage.'

Step 2. View the total storage and other useful information related to Storage such as Used space, System memory, Cached data, and Available space, etc.

Step 2: Click 'Cached data.' Then, a pop up will show up saying 'This will clear cached data for all apps.' At this time, users just tap 'OK.'

If you accidentally cleared cache on SD card storage for smartphone, you can try using the Best Free Android Data Recovery Software - MiniTool Mobile Recovery for Android Free 1.0 to recover cache deleted cache files including photos and apps data.

Method 3. Use USB OTG Storage

Have you heard of USB OTG?

Technicians will know that they can plug in peripherals such as storage drives to add more space for their phone via the OTG cable.

USB On-The-Go, (USB OTG or OTG), allows USB devices such as tablets or smartphones to act as a host, allowing other USB devices, such as USB flash drives, digital cameras, mice or keyboards, to be attached to them.

See the demo of how to connect a USB storage drive to know more details about USB OTG.

Step 1. Connect a flash drive (or SD reader with card) to the full-size USB female end of the adapter.

Step 2. Connect OTG cable to phone.

Step 3. Swipe down from the top to show the notification drawer. (If your file manager automatically appears, you don't need to this.)

Step 4. Tap USB Drive.

Step 5. Now, you can copy files from the phone storage to the flash drive according to the following steps.

  • Tap Internal Storage to view the files on your phone.
  • Select the file you'd like to share.
  • Tap the three dots button.
  • Select Copy.
  • Navigate to USB drive, and then tap Done

Method 4. Turn to Cloud Storage

Cloud storage can help to fix the 'insufficient storage available' issue.

Well, it turns out more and more users like to use cloud storage to share their pictures, videos and other files to release more free space on Android.

Now, Cloud storage apps such as Dropbox and SkyDrive allow users to share files from their phone to the cloud and then access them from their computer. And, once files are shared in the cloud, you can free up space by deleting them from their phones.

The only disadvantage of using cloud storage is that you will be able to access those files only when they have an active internet connection.

In this situation, can we find a simpler and more useful way to increase android internal storage space?

Method 5. Use Terminal Emulator App

What should we do if we don't want to install Link2SD app? Can we still borrow free space from memory card to increase the internal storage space of android?

Of course, we can!

Terminal Emulator app can help us to add SD card’s free space to Android.

Requirements:

  • Memory card of class 4 or higher.
  • Terminal Emulator app installed on phone.

Now, how to increase internal storage?

Step 1.Partition memory card via using MiniTool Partition Wizard software.

Hit “Play” to learn how to partition SD card for Android:

Step 2. Download and install Terminal Emulator App on phone.

Step 3. Launch the app.

Clear

Step 4. Type'su' and press enter.

Step 5.Type'a2sd xdata' and press'Enter'.

Step 6. As soon as users type this command & press'Enter', the app will ask them whether to continue with the process or not. Here, type 'y' and press'Enter'.

Step 7. Now the app asks to reboot phone. Again type'y' to restart the phone.

Thus, you have successfully increased internal storage space on Android, and you can click 'Menu>Settings>Storage' to check it.

If you want to undo the process and revert the phone back the way it was before, please type 'su > a2sd noxdata >y' commands (each type ends with pressing on 'Enter' key).

Method 6. Use INT2EXT

In fact, in addition to Link2SD and Terminal Emulator, people also can use part of space of memory card to increase internal storage space of Android by using INT2EXT. Steps are shown below:

Prepare:

  • INT2EXT4+ (for new ROMs).
  • INT2EXT+ (for older ROMs).

Procedure:

Step 1. Download the INT2EXT4+ zip file on computer to a specific folder, and remember not to extract it.

Step 2. Power off phone completely until it vibrates. Enter into CWM recovery mode. In recovery mode, you can use volume keys for navigation and power/home button for selection.

Step 3. In the Advanced Menu window, select the 'partition sdcard' option.

Step 4. Select the'ext size.' This size should be less than memory card size. And, Select 'swap size as Zero'.

Step 5. The partitioning SD card process will begin. Wait for a few minutes to complete it.

Step 6. Select '++++go back++++ then' to enter the Mounts and Storage Menu window, and select the'mount USB storage' option.

Step 7. Now connect phone to PC and copy the downloaded INT2EXT4+ zip file as it is without extracting on SD card.

Step 8. Again go back and navigate to the Mounts and Storage Menu window, and select the'mount/system' option.

Step 9. Return back to the main menu and select the'install zip' from 'sdcard' option, then select'choose from sdcard.' This will show all the contents present on the memory card. Just navigate to the INT2EXT4+ zip file and select it to start the installation process.

Now, restart their phone by navigating to the'reboot system now' option located on the recovery mode itself, and view phone internal memory storage via clicking 'Menu>Settings>Storage.'

Method 7. Use Mounts2SD App

Last but not least, here, we also want to share another effective method to increase android internal storage.

How

Step 1.Download and install Mounts2SD app on phone.

Step 2. Launch the app and grant Superuser permissions.

Step 3. Click the'Configure Busybox.'

Step 4. Be patient until it completes. A green colored tick mark will confirm the completion. Then, click the'Install Script' option to get the following window.

Step 5. Click'Configure' and tick all these options: Applications, Data, Dalvik Cache, and Cache.

Step 6. Scroll further down and click the'Disable Safe-mode' option.

Step 7. Now exit the app and restart phone.

Note: If you see any kind of error or warning in their notifications due to this app, don’t panic as it is caused by swap. You just need to reboot it again, and all errors will disappear.

Conclusion

I hoped you enjoyed the above 7 ways to increase internal storage space of Android.

Now I want to hear from you:

Which method from this post are most excited to try?

If you have other good suggestions about how to increase Android storage space, please share it with us by leaving a quick comment.

Summary :

As an important system process on your Android device, Media Storage should be enabled all the time. Disabling it may make your Android device malfunction and cause data loss. This MiniTool post will show you how to deal with these issues.

Quick Navigation :

What Is Media Storage on Android?

Media Storage is a system process on your Android device. It is a necessary process since you need to use it view, download, play, and stream images, videos, audio files, as well as other media files on your Android device.

Since it is a system service, you can’t see it on your Android phone desktop. Then, where is Android Media Storage? How can you access it?

Next, we will show you how to access Media Storage on your Android device:

1. Unlock your Android device.

2. Go to Settings > Apps > Apps.

3. Tap the three-dot menu on the screen and then select Show system processes (you may see a similar option on a different Android device).

4. Search for Media Storage using the search box. Then, Android will only show you Media Storage.

5. Tap Media Storage to access it and you will see the following interface.

On this interface, you can see a lot of options including DISABLE, FORCE STOP, Notifications management, Permissions, Data usage, Storage, Power usage details, Open by default, and Write system settings. You can use these options to modify the settings according to your requirements.

In this post, we will mainly talk about these options: DISABLE, FORCE STOP, and Storage.

DISABLE in Media Storage on Android

When you access Media Storage on your Android device, you can discover that the DISABLE button is greyed out. However, even when it is available, you should not tap it to disable Media Storage because it is a necessary process for you to download, play, or stream media like videos and audio files.

That is, if you disable Media Storage by mistake, you will be unable to do something like watching videos, view images, playing music, and taking photos & videos.

How to Enable Media Storage on Android?

If you disable Media Storage on Android, your Android device will be in trouble. To make it go back to normal, you need to enable Media Storage on Android.

You can use the same method that is mentioned above to access Media Storage. Then, you will see the Enable button instead. You need to click it to enable Media Storage. After that, you still need to reboot your Android device to make everything revert to its normal state.

FORCE STOP in Media Storage on Android

When you can use the FORCE STOP option? Here is a suitable situation.

If you receive the unfortunately app has stopped error, you can tap the FORCE STOP button to force stop it. You can also refer to this article to solve the problem: Fixed - Unfortunately, The Process com.android.phone Has Stopped.

You can also use other options to modify the settings according to your requirements.

Storage in Media Storage on Android

After taping the Storage option, you will access the following interface with two available buttons: CLEAR DATA and CLEAR CACHE.

At times, you may want to clear Media Storage data and caches to free up some space on your Android. Is it safe and reliable to do this?

Tip: If you want to increase internal space on your Android device, this MiniTool article is helpful: 7 Methods to Increase Internal Storage Space of Android.

After tapping CLEAR DATA, all the app data like the files produced during the use of the service, settings, accounts, database, as well as other related information will be removed from your Android device permanently.

After taping CLEAR CACHE, the temporary files generated by your Android app will be deleted.

While, these files will not be influenced: the media files stored on your Android device like photos, videos, and audio files.

However, if you find your media files are gone after clearing Media Storage data & cache on Android, it should not be a result caused by the above-mentioned operation. You may delete them by mistake or they are gone because you disable Media Storage accidentally.

Then, you may want to recover these missing files if they are important to you. In the following part, we will show you how to restore your lost files using different methods.

How to Retrieve Lost Android Files That Are Deleted by Mistake?

We will show you some methods to get your lost Android files back. You can select a suitable one based on your actual situation.

Method 1: Restore Your Android Data from Google Account

If you have backed up your Android data using your Google Account, you can choose to restore the lost files from the backup.

  • If you want to restore the lost photos and video, you can open the Google Photo app on your Android phone and then sign in your Google Account > tap the Photos icon, and then you can restore the backed up photos and videos.
  • If you want to recover the lost files and folders, you need to tap the Google Drive app on your Android phone. Then, you can see the backed up files and folders including documents, images, audios, and videos. Next, you can restore your needed files and folders.

You can also read this article to get more information on how to restore Android data from Google Account: How to Restore Backup from Google Account on Android Phone?

Method 2: Retrieve Your Lost Files from the LOST.DIR Folder

The LOST.DIR folder is an Android folder that is specially created to save the files that get lost by accident. If you haven’t backed up your Android data using your Google Account, you can open this folder to see whether you can find your needed files there.

Tip: You can read this article to get more information on the Android LOST.DIR folder: What Is LOST.DIR and How to Recover LOST.DIR Files Easily?

Method 3: Recover Your Missing Data Using MiniTool Software

If all of the above two methods don’t work for you, you can consider using professional data recovery software to get your lost data back.

There are two situations: recover data from Android SD card and restore files from Android internal storage.

Note: A data recovery program can only recover the lost and deleted files that are not overwritten by new data. So, you’d better stop using your Android device as soon as possible after you find your data is missing to avoid data from being overwritten.

Recover Data from Android SD Card

If you lost the files on your Android SD card, you can use MiniTool Power Data Recovery, a free file recovery tool, to get these files back. This software is specially designed to recover data from different kinds of data storage drives like hard drives, SD cards, memory cards, and more.

How To Clear Up System Memory On Android

It has a trial edition and you can use it to check whether the software can find the data you want to recover. If you want to use this software to recover your needed data without limits, you need to update it to a full edition.

You can press the following button to download this data recovery software and then install it on your computer.

Here is a guide on how to recover your Android SD card data using MiniTool Power Data Recovery:

1. Remove your Android SD card from the device.

2. Insert it to a card reader and then connect the card reader to your computer.

3. Open MiniTool Power Data Recovery and you will directly access the This PC interface.

4. To recover data from an SD card, you need to switch to the Removable Disk Drive module. Then, you can find that your SD card is displayed on the software interface. Here, we suggest scanning the whole card at a time. So, you need to select the SD card under the Removable Disk section and then click the Scan button to start the scanning process.

5. It will take some minutes to finish the whole scanning process. You need to wait until the whole process ends. Then, this software will show you the scan results.

By default, the scan results are listed by path. You can unfold each path to check the items in it and then select the files you want to recover.

If you find it is difficult to find the target files, you can then use the Type feature to find your files by type easily.

Besides, if you still remember the names of the files you want to recover, you can also use the Find feature to locate these files one by one. Here, you need to note that if the file’s name is damaged after deletion, you will not use this method to find that file.

6. If this software can find your needed Android data on the SD card, you can then upgrade this trial edition to an advanced edition. If you are a personal user, the Personal Ultimate edition can fully meet your needs.

After registering this software, you can select your needed files, click the Recover button, and then select a suitable location to save these files.

Note: You should not save these files to the original Android SD card. Otherwise, the lost files on it may be overwritten by these recovered files and become unrecoverable.

You can use these recovered files immediately.

Recover Data from Android Internal Storage

If you want to recover your lost data from Android internal storage, you can use this free Android data recovery software, MiniTool Mobile Recovery for Android, to get your lost Android data back.

With the free edition of this software, you can recover 10 files of one type each time. Now, you can press the following button to get this freeware.

The Recover from Phone module of this software is specially designed to restore your Android data from the device directly. However, to make software read and scan your Android device, you need to root your Android device in advance.

If you don’t know how to root an Android device, you can search for the method on the internet or you can just read this MiniTool article to select a preferred Android root tool to do the job: How to Root Your Android Device | Ultimate & Easy to Follow Guide.

Then, you can connect your Android device to your computer and open the software to start recovering your Android data.

1. When you see the software main interface, you need to select the Recover from Phone module to continue.

2. Follow the on-screen wizard to enable and allow the USB debugging on your Android device. However, if these two options have been enabled, you will enter the following interface directly. Then, you can select a suitable scan method and then click Next to start the scanning process.

3. When the scanning process ends, the software will show you the scan results. You can find your needed Android file and then select them to recover.

If you want to use this software to recover your needed Android files without limits, you need to update it to a full edition.

Besides, the Recover from SD-Card module of this software is designed to recover data from Android SD card. You can read this article to see what can it do for you: [SOLVED] How To Recover Files from Formatted SD Card on Android?

Bottom Line

After reading this article, you know what Android Media Storage is and how to access it on your phone. You can clear data and cache in Media Storage on Android. But, you should not disable Android Media Storage because it may cause data loss.

Besides, this article also shows you how to recover your missing Android data with special data recovery software. We hope these two programs can help you get your lost data back.

How To Clear System Storage On Android

Should you have any related questions, you can send an email to [email protected] or let us know in the comment. You can also share your suggestions with us here.

How To Clear Up System Storage On Android

Android Media Storage FAQ

Media Storage is a system process on the Android device. With it, you are allowed to view, download, play, and stream images, videos, audio files, as well as other media files on your Android device.
You can go to Settings > Apps > Apps > 3-dot menu > Show system process > search for Media Storage > tap Media Storage from the search result to access it.
? How do I recover deleted media storage on Android?
  1. You can use MiniTool Power Data Recovery to get your lost data back from your Android SD card. You can get the detailed steps from this post: SD Card Recovery - Recover Files from SD Card in Multiple Cases.
  2. You can use MiniTool Mobile Recovery for Android to recover your missing files from the Android internal storage. You can get the detailed steps from this post: Do You Want to Restore Deleted Files Android? Try MiniTool.

Clean Storage On Android Phones

You have saved a lot of files on your phone. On the other hand, the cache files created by the apps, services, databases, and more can also occupy some space on the device. You can refer to this post to free up space on your Android device: [SOLVED] How To Fix Insufficient Storage Available (Android)?