On kitkat and superior each application have only one place where you don't need root permissions to write on an external storage, the app-private folder assigned by the system "/Android/data/ /files". Method 1: Bypass KitKat (Android 4.4) external SD write restrictions without root
They made this move to stops apps from dumping files everywhere on the card. A problem with going down this route though is that all data written to these private folders will be deleted as soon as the app is uninstalled.įor security reason, Google removed the write access to the external SD card by apps. Third-party developers can get round the issue by creating a dedicated private folder on the SD card which the app can write to. Only first party apps are able to write to the SD card, which is why the My Files app will still work on Samsung Mobile Devices running KitKat.
Another example is that you currently cannot use the TomTom app to download your maps to the Micro SD card if you are on KitKat. What this means in practice is that, for example, you will not be able to use a third-party file manager app to copy files onto your Micro SD card over a network.
If you install too many apps, your mobile device’s internal storage might fall short as all app data will be stored to it. It simply means that KitKat does not allow apps to write/move data on the Micro SD cards on devices that support expandable storage.
In basic terms, when you upgrade to KitKat, third-party apps will no longer be able to write to Micro SD card. 4.3 allowed apps to write to the Micro SD card, as did prior versions. This change represents a removal of functionality compared with Jelly Bean (Android 4.3). When KitKat is installed on such devices, apps are limited to only being able to manipulate files on the internal storage, with write-access to the Micro SD card being restricted. Samsung Galaxy and Note devices) have the ability to expand their storage space by installing a Micro SD card. Some devices (like Google Nexus devices) only have internal storage, and are unaffected. Apps can still write to internal flash storage. When Google released KitKat (Android 4.4), they specified that applications you download can no longer write to user-installed Micro SD card (external storage). Kitkat (Android 4.4) Issue: Can't Write to External SD Card and Solution