[lug] Problems cloning SD card from Android

[Matt Bidwell]

On 05/03/2018 05:08 PM, Jed S. Baer wrote:
> On Thu, 3 May 2018 18:56:18 -0400
> Internet Privacy Advocate wrote:
> 
>> I really don't know, but feel Google has jacked around with auxiliary
>> memory cards on Android in a way that makes them useless on other
>> devices.  If you are able to connect the entire phone to your computer
>> and copy the data off that way, you might have more luck.
> 
> I don't know what Google does, but the card is FAT32. I've read that on
> newer phones, it'd be exFAT, which is supposedly 'low overhead' and
> better for SD cards. But it's propietary to Microsoft, so the phone mfrs
> license it from them, and there's no Linux driver available.
> 
> One of the symptoms that had me suspecting the SD card was nearing EOL
> was that when plugged into the computer, using MTP, it'd "go away",
> meaning the device descriptor vanished. This
> 
> I'm mostly not concerned about user data. Other than my contacts list,
> photos I've already copied off, and a couple memos, it's all stuff that
> came from my computer to start with. What I am concerned about is the .apk
> files, and whatever settings etc. for the apps are on there. I have every
> app that can "moved to SD card" whatever that is. So, I'm trying to avoid
> needing to reinstall all that stuff, if I start over with a blank card.
> _______________________________________________

I recently ran in to the same issue. Couldn't copy media files over to 
the microSD card on my Shield. Reformatted it from the Shield, still no 
go. Put it in a laptop I still had booted into Windows for TurboTax, and 
realized it was formatted Fat32. After reformatting it from Windows, I 
was able to use it. Kind of a pain Android a) wouldn't format fat32, b) 
why the copy failed, and c) what the card was formatted as. -Matt