- Kodi Android Usb Drive Not Working
- Kodi Android Usb Drive For Samsung
- Android Usb Tether
- Kodi Android Usb Drive Adapter
- Kodi Android Usb Driver
Fire OS 5, the latest version of the Fire TV operating system, ships on the 2nd-gen Fire TV and is coming to the 1st-gen Fire TV and Fire TV Stick soon. As you probably know, Fire OS 5 is based on Android 5.1 Lollipop. With the upgrade comes Androids new tighter restrictions on app permissions. One of those new restrictions in Android forces apps to explicitly ask for your permission before they’re allowed to modify files on external storage devices. Some apps, including Kodi, have not yet been updated to request these new permissions, so are unable to modify files on a microSD card or USB drive connected to a Fire TV running Fire OS 5. This is why you cannot currently fully move Kodi to external storage on Fire OS 5.
Kodi, and all other apps, have no problem reading files from external storage. This means you can play media files, stored on a USB drive or a microSD card, with Kodi without any issues on the 2nd-gen Fire TV. Where you run into issues is if you change Kodi’s advanced settings to use external storage for other purposes, like storing your database or thumbnails. Read and write access on internal storage for all apps is unrestricted in Fire OS 5 and Android Lollipop.
This guide has been updated to work for both 1st-gen and 2nd-gen Fire TVs, as well as for transferring files to either a USB drive or a microSD card. Just be sure to use the commands for your specific device and external storage method. 3/5/2016 If your Kodi settings reset after updating your 1st-gen Fire TV to software version 5.0.5 or greater, follow this guide to restore. Quit Kodi by using the quit option or shutdown menu from within Kodi. 2 In the root directory of the internal storage of your device, usually just mnt/sdcard (not mnt/sdcard/root) create a plain text file called: xbmcenv.properties. Note: You must use 'xbmc' when noted above for the text and file name, even when using Kodi. The USB drivers help us to connect our phone to the computer and perform tasks like transferring data, syncing your device with a PC. They help us to connect our Android devices to tools like Odin, Sony Flash tool, and SuperOneClick. 5 Useful Android TV Box Tips Saturday, 17 February 2018, 23:56 Using FTMC to Replicate Kodi 17 on Older Android Versions Friday, 21 July 2017, 11:46 Kodi 17.1 Now Available on Gostreamer G5+ Friday, 19 May 2017, 13:43.
Some apps, like ES File Explorer, are already updated to properly ask for permision and can have full write access to external storage. Kodi’s developers need to implement Android Lollipop’s new external storage access API before some of its advanced functionality will work with Fire OS 5 and any other Lollipop based device. Once that’s done, I’ll update my guide for partially or fully moving Kodi to external storage. These stricter permissions in Android do not affect moving apps to external storage within the Fire TV’s application management settings.
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jimsays:October 8, 2015 at 11:47 amI think that I must be missing out on a lot of things that Kodi is capable of. I mainly just watch movies, and download (to where I have no idea) one here or there to watch without buffering on N***.
But when you say “This means you can play media files, stored on a USB drive or a microSD card, with Kodi”. Or “use external storage for other purposes, like storing your database or thumbnails”. I am totally lost.
Kodi Android Usb Drive Not Working
Replynatebetweensays:October 9, 2015 at 4:43 amYou’re probably not as lost as you think. Basically you can play media files that you have on a USB or micro SD card just by inserting them, and telling KODI where to find those movies (through the files option). Then, when KODI scans your movies to produce artwork, thumbnails, .XML files etc., this can take some time as KODI is downloading and creating these files. Now that KODI has all of this info, you have the option to export that BACK to the storage where the movies are. Also, if you make any edits to description of a movie, thumbnail, etc., it will edit the .XML file…basically the file that tells KODI what pictures, description, rating, actors, etc. to display.
This means that if you move your storage from, say your AFTV in the master bedroom to you AFTV in the living room, the box doesn’t have to re-scan and re-download all of that info. This can save you a LOT of time if you have a big movie collection.
ReplySharonsays:October 4, 2017 at 6:23 amI have the same issue. It downloads, but then is not there. Help!!
ReplyGhislainsays:October 8, 2015 at 11:56 amThe problem is also true for the new fire tablet. 3rd party apps can’t write on sd card. Unfortunately as ES explorer! I hope a progress on this in a short delay.
Congrats for your website
Cheers from France.
ReplyAFTVnewssays:October 8, 2015 at 12:08 pmES File Explorer does correctly ask for write permissions and can write to both a microSD card and a USB drive connected to the 2nd-gen Fire TV running Fire OS 5.
ReplyGhislainsays:October 8, 2015 at 12:21 pmBut that’s not the case on the fire tablet :(
ReplyGhislainsays:October 8, 2015 at 12:23 pmES explorer is not the only app : OfficeSuite 8 for example can write but not save on sd card.
ReplyGrindersays:October 8, 2015 at 12:55 pmUpgrade to Jarvis. Solved.
ReplyIan Sutherlandsays:October 9, 2015 at 4:37 amWhat version of jarvis are you using
ReplyNicksays:February 29, 2016 at 3:52 pmI’m on jarvis and still can’t save to external usb! What did you have to do to make it work?
ReplyAshsays:October 8, 2015 at 1:14 pmWhat would the benefits be to put kodi on a storage device? I mean, would it help stop buffering etc if I used like a 128GB USB as apposed to the small fire tv storage memory.
ReplyAFTVnewssays:October 8, 2015 at 2:39 pmKodi performance is better on internal storage. The benefit of moving it to external storage is mainly just freeing up internal storage usage. Some people have huge libraries that take up a large chunk of internal storage.
ReplyZekesays:October 11, 2015 at 12:03 pmAgreed, Kodi database is very fast to access from onboard. Only time I ever moved it to an external device was so I could put GTA San Andreas on the internal storage since without root on my AFTV (too new a version from out of the box) it couldn’t run from USB – the app to move it there requires root. The database was on an external USB3 HDD and it was noticeably slow to buffer… I wouldn’t recommend it although a flash memory based USB stick would probably work fine.
ReplyBarusch Benitezsays:October 8, 2015 at 2:17 pmI used a USB stick and two different mSD cards and Kodi never recognized them. They weren’t shown on Kodi file browser. I had to dig in to .root/storage/sd1 to move files from my mSD card to Kodi.
ReplyAxecastersays:October 8, 2015 at 3:12 pmI know the gen1 FTV box is jellybean, but why when I mount an external usb HFS+ drive, only ES File Explorer is seeing and able to play back the contents? What would make Kodi, VLC or MX Player not see the drive or accept handoffs from the file explorer?
ReplyDansays:October 8, 2015 at 4:42 pmShould a networked mycloud work?
ReplyJocalasays:October 9, 2015 at 5:47 pmIt turns out that Kodi 15x can write to both /storage/sdcard1 and /storage/usbotg. You have to set up a sandboxed area: mkdir -p /storage/sdcard1/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi/ — now Kodi can write to any directory below the org.xbmc.kodi sandbox. It works fine for relocating via the xbmc_env.properties method. Credit to mark7201@xda for the discovery.
ReplyPhillip kingsays:March 15, 2016 at 2:23 amWorked well for me just created the folder below that level and the backup worked fine on kodi on my fire tv thanks
ReplyAlansays:October 10, 2015 at 12:50 pmThanks for all the information and effort you put into the site.
I’ve blocked the updates for my AFTV 1 as I’ve got Kodi using an external USB to store thumbnails.
Blocking guide:
http://www.aftvnews.com/how-to-block-software-updates-on-the-amazon-fire-tv-or-fire-tv-stick/
I got the perfect setup at the moment and don’t want it to be messed around, unless there’s some worthwhile features coming with the upgrade.
ReplyIan Sutherlandsays:October 10, 2015 at 7:03 pmThanks To Jocala and mark7201
mkdir -p /storage/sdcard1/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi/
cp -r /sdcard/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi/files/.kodi /storage/sdcard1/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi/files/.kodi
touch /sdcard/xbmc_env.properties
echo xbmc.data=/storage/sdcard1/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi/files/.kodi > /sdcard/xbmc_env.properties
Then Run Kodi and repeat
cp -r /sdcard/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi/files/.kodi /storage/sdcard1/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi/files/.kodi
ReplyUkie Mansays:October 11, 2015 at 8:57 pmecho xbmc.data=/storage/sdcard1/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi/files/ > /sdcard/xbmc_env.properties
Without.kodi just org.xbmc.kodi/files/
ReplyUkie Mansays:October 12, 2015 at 3:24 pmAfter Fire TV 2 update to 5.0.2.2 and reboot your KODI wont open just Copy and past folder .smb from /sdcard1/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi/files/ to /sdcard/Android/data/org.xbmc.kodi/files/ and add new folder .kodi if you don’t have one and you back in business. I don’t know if it makes any difference but my KODI is installed on Internal Storage in Fire TV Applications but all the files are on sdcard1. P.S. Fire TV 2 5.0.2.2 KODI 15.3 and 16.A4 no /usbotg
Replydirksays:March 22, 2016 at 1:51 amCan you explain how to do tjis in plain englisch please .
Looks only for advanced users
I sure hope Kodi Krypton for Android allows writing to external storage without having to jump through hoops. Is it really that hard for Kodi developers to manage fixing the permissions.
Replynludiansays:July 16, 2017 at 7:35 pm@Ian Sutherland –
Your post was about as helpful as a screen door on a submarine. At least for us non-coders who came here looking for help. Would it really be so much to ask for plain English walk-through instructions on how to do whatever you were saying in your post. Don’t get me wrong I appreciate that you made an attempt when @Jocala, the person who presented the idea originally, couldn’t be bothered, but what I got from it might as well have been written in hieroglyphs because that’s how much sense it made to me. Still thank you for trying
ReplyJohnnysays:October 7, 2017 at 1:44 pmAny word on when, or if this might get fixed? Any work around at all for the write permission problem?
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Most Android smartphones come with 64 GB of storage. But if you have an old smartphone, chances are you’ll have either 16 or 32 GB variant. Thankfully, you can easily expand the memory by using external storage, like a pen drive or a hard drive. This comes in handy when you are traveling and want to watch your favorite movies on the go.
Related: How to Use USB Flash Drive on Android and iOS
Now connecting a pen drive to an Android is simple. Simply buy a cheap OTG cable, then use it to connect your Android and Pendrive. Next, open any file manager such as Solid Explorer, look under the device menu, you will find your Pendrive. That’s it.
Kodi Android Usb Drive For Samsung
But what about connecting an external HDD to Android?
For instance, I want to use my 2 TB hard drive with my Android. Will, that work?
Well, Yes and NO.
Usually, external hard drives don’t work right out of the box with Android devices. Though in my testing, I found this to be a gray area. Since every Android runs a different version of OS and has a different manufacturer, it’s not possible to say anything for sure. For instance —
#1 Some low-end devices (like my dad’s moto e) do not support OTG. And there is nothing we can do here. To find out, if your device supports OTG or not, you can use USB OTG Helper. The app is free on Google play and does not need ROOT.
#2 Mid-range devices (like moto g) support OTG with pen drive but don’t detect external HDD formatted with NTFS and HFS+. We can fix this.
#3 And finally some high-end devices (like my Nexus6) support both FAT32 and NTFS volume without using any software. But, it can not read other formats like HFS or exFAT. We will see how to fix that.
Why my External HDD Don’t Work With Android?
When you connect an external hard drive to Android, you may face 2 problems.
#1 Hard Drive is not detected
You will either hear a clicking noise or the lights on your hard drive will not blink, this means the disk inside your drive is not spinning properly.
Reason: Unlike pen drives, External HDDs needs a lot more power. And if they are not externally powered then it will take power from the device itself. So, if your smartphone is not powerful enough to power an external HDD, then it will not work.
For instance, my WD 2TB hard drive works fine with Nexus 6 but doesn’t work on my raspberry pi without external power.
Solution: Use a powered USB hub or externally powered OTG cable.
#2 Hard drive is detected but not Opening
Reason: File system error. There are many file system out there and every O.S prefer one of their own. For instance, Android supports FAT32 by default and since pen drives are also in FAT32 format, we don’t face any problem with pen drives.
But, most external HDDs uses the NTFS file system (Windows default FS) and sometimes in HFS (MAC default FS). So this mismatch in file system results in the error.
Related: Why External HDD Do Not Work with All Operating System
So let’s see how to fix it. Well, we have two option here.
#1 Format your Hard drive
Android Usb Tether
You can format your Hard drive to FAT32 using your computer and then use it on your Android. Since FAT32 is compatible with all OS, it will work right away with your Android, in fact, after this, you will never face compatibility issues with any platform.
Related How to format Hard drive on Windows, Mac, Linux, and Android
However, I don’t recommend formatting HDD to FAT32. Why? Well, because FAT is an old file system and lacks important features like journaling (prevent data loss), encryption. And the maximum single file size is limited to 4GB.
#2 Use 3rd Party Apps
With this method, you can retain your original File System of your HDD. Simply use a free app like Paragon NTFS or Stick Mount to use it on your Android. I have been using this for months and never had any problem. So let’s see how it works
External HDD on Android
Kodi Android Usb Drive Adapter
1. USB Media Importer (Paid)
This app is designed for Nexus devices, but based on its play store reviews, it also works with non-nexus devices like moto-x and many others. Though, before you spend money, make sure you try the USB Photo Viewer. It’s from the same dev but free.
Once you install this app, it will auto-detected an external drive and you can start using it right away. However, this is read-only i.e. you cannot copy data from your Android to external HDD. Moreover, it also does not support HFS formatted drives.
Bottom line: First, try other free alternatives and if they don’t work, go for it.
2. Total commander with USB – plugin
This is the most popular (and also a free) way to use NTFS formatted HDD on Android. Here you need to install two free apps from Google Play.
First, install the total commander app – it’s a file browser that will help us to browse the content of our drive.
Next, install USB plugin for Total Commander— it’s an extension for the file browser that will do the actual job i.e. mounting the external Hard drive.
Once done, connect your hard drive to your Android using OTG cable. Again the app will recognize your volume and you will see a notification at the bottom saying, open the drive with Paragon UMS. However, if you don’t see the notification, then simply open the app and refresh it. It should work.
There is also an option to get write access. However, since this app is still in beta, the write feature didn’t work for me. But the good part is, along with NTFS, it can also read HFS formatted drives.
3. Stick Mount (Root)
This app is made by chainfire (the developer of SuperSU). Basically, stick mount helps you to mount an NTFS partition on Android. So, you will still need to have a file manager to browse the content of your drive.
Install Stick mount from Google play and then insert your external drive and it will automatically mount it. Usually, it mounts the drive under Sdcard > USB storage, but you can find the mount location by opening the app and tap on mount option.
Bottom line: It’s free and works well. However, it still does not let you write data on your drive, neither does it support HFS drive. So better try the next option.
Kodi Android Usb Driver
4. Paragon HFS, NTFS, and exFAT (Root)
Paragon is popularly known for its software to access HFS drive on Windows and NTFS drive on MAC. And guess what, they have an android app as well but this time it’s free.
This app is similar to all the other app. Install the app, connect your external HDD and it will automatically mount it and show you the path. There is also an option to format your drive, but it’s hidden under settings.
Bottom line: This is the best way. It’s free and lets you both read and write, support both NTFS drive and HFS. However, even though it’s in the name, it actually does not support exFAT (since its Microsoft propriety format) but you can use stick mount for that.
If nothing works?
Usually, an external HDD require you to plug in a cable to your computer (or in this case to your Android). But thanks to modern technology, we now have Wireless Hard drives. And it does what it says, i.e. it when you press a button on this HDD, it’ll create a Hotspot, which you can connect from your smartphone and then browse all the content of the drive using a File manager app.
You can stream your HDD from multiple devices (usually not more than 3 devices). And it also has a built-in battery, so you can use it while traveling in a car or train. However, on the flip side. It’ll cost twice as much for the same storage. For instance, a typical Seagate 1 TB external HDD cost you around $60, while a Seagate Wireless Plus 1TB will cost around $140. The HDD supports NTFS by default. So, you can not use on iOS devices.