Windows Phone 8.1 Denim - can no longer switch maps storage to SD card

Anonymous
2015-02-23T09:54:05+00:00

We run a number of Windows Phones (all Lumia) in our organisation.

Now we have a big problem with a new Lumia 735 which runs Windows 8.1 Denim.  It used to be possible to store maps data on an SD Card by using Lumia Storage Check Beta to direct map downloads there.  Now Lumia Storage Check Beta seems no longer to be available in the UK.  I read somewhere that Lumia Storage Check Beta does not work with the Denim update to Windows Phone 8..

Is there any alternative way of storing maps on the SD card?  If there isn't, it's crazy.  There is 8GB phone memory on the Lumia 735, of which 5GB is already used up by the OS and applications that can't be moved to the SD card.  All that will be moved, have been moved.   That leaves only 3GB on a new phone, without any downloaded maps.   Downloaded maps can total several Gigabytes if you need to put several European countries on.  Not being able to move them to the SD card means Here Maps and Here Drives are effectively useless.

Please advise if there is an alternative way of putting maps on the SD card. This is a serious flaw. Many thanks.

Windows for home | Other | Devices and drivers

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Anonymous
2015-07-01T09:38:32+00:00

Can anybody comment on this? I found this on a Dutch forum and it could be an explanation why Microsoft is not reacting or changing the feature to store maps on SD card with "storage control"

Nokia HERE is no longer standard in Windows Phone 10. The new Bing Maps also have the ability to store maps offline and also has voice navigation, This is the default maps app for all Windows 10 devices, including the telephone.

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Anonymous
2015-02-23T14:43:23+00:00

To supplement, the issue of offline maps only installing in phone memory remains unsolved in the current build of Windows 10 Technical Preview for Windows Phone. Just tested out of curiosity, since this is also a shortcoming on my Lumia 630 currently enrolled in the preview.

Offline maps are shared with the Bing maps application, which cannot be moved to SD memory.

This may be a challenge for the developers to sort out, and the root cause this is unsolved?

(Applications and data is better protected when stored in phone memory).

It's a feature request since 2012:

https://windowsphone.uservoice.com/forums/101801-feature-suggestions/suggestions/3444340-save-maps-to-memory-card

Roaming costs for data in EU are capped at €0.20 + VAT per Megabyte since July 2014 and may be more affordable with some operators and specific plans for travelling.

http://ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/en/roaming-tariffs

This is not an excuse for Microsoft to not sort this out, just me trying to figure out a workaround.

If possible, please try and escalate through your organisation and their contacts with Microsoft?

This forum is mainly user-to-user and even if escalated it could be a long wait.

--

Hans

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  1. Anonymous
    2015-06-21T01:53:46+00:00

    I recently was able to move Here maps to the SD card on my son's new Lumia 530 (running Cyan, version 8.10.12400.899)without using Lumia Storage Check Beta. I couldn't use Lumia Storage Check Beta, because Microsoft has removed it. Here is the procedure as a remember it; unfortunately, I didn't write it down. This procedure may only work on Windows Cyan. I haven't been able to get it to work on Denim, see below.

    1. Download Storage Sense if you don't have it.
    2. In Storage Sense, I set everything to be stored on the SD card. However, you may only need to set "store new apps on my SD card" and "Store new downloads on my SD card."
    3. In believe I went through Storage Sense and tapped on the "phone" memory, scrolled down and tapped on "maps."
    4. In maps, I tapped on "manage" and tapped on "delete history" and then tapped on "download maps."
    5. Hit the "..." in the bottom right hand corner and tapped on "delete all maps."
    6. Got out and then uninstalled both Here Maps & Here Drive. I would also suggest deleting other Here apps that use maps.
    7. In Storage Sense, I tapped on the "phone" memory and scrolled down to "maps." It indicated that 0 bytes are stored in maps. I think this is key. I don't think this will work if you can't get this down to 0 bytes. Try deleting all maps again and the history. I think if the program used to download and install the maps cannot find any maps on the Phone memory and you have set "apps" and "new downloads" to the SD card it will put the new maps on the SD card.
    8. I may have restarted the phone at this point, but I don't remember
    9. Downloaded Here Maps and Here Drive. These will be stored on SD card.
    10. In Storage Sense, tap on "SD Card", scroll down and tap on "maps." and then tap on "manage."
    11. Download one map and use Storage Sense to check that the map is stored on the SD card and not in the phone memory.
    12. If it works, then download the other maps.

    I have successfully downloaded all of the USA, Canada, and Mexico (5.9GB) to the SD card on my son's Lumia 530, which only has 4GB of phone memory.

    However, I have not been able to do the same thing on my dad's new Lumia 640 XL (running Denim I think). I have tried multiple times. The main difference other than the Windows version is that after I delete Here Maps and Here Drive and all the maps and history, Storage Sense indicates that there is anywhere between ~60 kbytes and ~5.5 Mbytes of maps stored in the phone memory. When I download any maps it puts them in the phone memory; even though, Here Maps and Here Drive are stored on the SD card. 

    This is very frustrating. I wish Microsoft or whoever is developing the Here map programs will fix this issue. It makes downloading maps almost useless. Also since this method seems to be broken in newer versions of Windows, I have disabled automatic updates. I don't want to lose this feature.

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  2. Anonymous
    2015-05-31T20:26:45+00:00

    With the ability to have apps and media files on SD card by default the need to have maps there has really become trivial. Maps do not take up that much space and unless you, for some obscure reason, want all available maps on the phone the point is moot. 

    If you buy a Windows Phone with 8GB internal storage this is a very serious problem! Don't know how anybody could call this moot. I've got an old ATIV S with 16GB internal storage. Because most of my apps are shifted to SD card it's not really a problem, because there is enough space left. But I have never paid attention to this problem.

    Now I have bought my girlfriend a Lumia 640 and a 64GB SD card. I thought everything would be fine, but even with SD card you run into a storage problem. I have moved EVERY app to SD card that you can move, because some apps are forbidden to be moved to SD card and some Microsoft apps don't even provide the option. After I've moved all apps:

    Apps + games - 420MB

    E-Mails and Messaging- 140MB

    Maps - 944MB

    System - 3,23GB

    Other - 2,16GB (whatever "others" means)

    Everything else is almost 0MB

    Used: ~6,86GB

    Remaining: 430MB

    I am just using a map for Germany, nothing more. If i hadn't moved every single possible app, I couldn't download the map. If I want to travel to other European countries I have to delete the map and download the new ones. But wait... if I want to travel from Germany to France and have a stay in Swiss (I already did), I would need at least maps for two countries (France and Swiss). But wait... I could certainly waste my time and plan and prepare everything for my vacations that I only have to download the needed regions that I want to travel... because Microsoft is to lazy/ignorant/incompetent to fix a problem. And if I would want to travel other regions in France (because it's totally absurd if I am already in France), I simply would have no luck.

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  3. Anonymous
    2015-02-23T12:08:47+00:00

    Hi Sam Henry ,

    The Storage Check beta was a 'dirty hack' to enable map offline data download to SD memory cards, I'm surprised it has worked this long. Further development of the HERE apps for Windows Phone was signed over to Microsoft a while back, so it is up to Microsoft to solve the problem. The HERE applications need an update to behave properly on phones with SD storage.

    --

    Hans

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