Can't organize photos on Android Marshmallow


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Old 01-20-17, 12:43 PM
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Can't organize photos on Android Marshmallow

With the previous version of Android I could plug my phone into my computer to organize the photos into folders. Since upgrading to Marshmallow I cannot. I have selected MTP mode and I can see all the files on my computer and create a new folder. When I drag photos into that newly created folder I get a popup window that says "moving" but the window never closes or finishes and it never actually moves any files. When checking in my phone the newly created folder also does not appear. For some reason I can view everything on my phone but seem unable to make changes. Does anyone know if there is a setting on my phone I need to change?
 
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Old 01-20-17, 04:25 PM
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I'm not a smart phone guy so I did a quick search. Apparently, marshmallow has about 8 bugs. As far as pics go, the closest thing to a solution was a possible corrupt pic on the phone. Another possibility was an incomplete upgrade. It's still too early for a decent patch.
 
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Old 01-23-17, 06:39 AM
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I'm not a phone guy so I'm only posting because you haven't received an answer after 3 days. Marshmallow has USB options in Settings\General\Developer options\USB configuration

If "Charging" is ticked it might limit your ability to do anything else via USB connection.

Hopefully someone with more knowledge will chime in. Consider this a "bump" of your question--although this forum frowns on bumps.
 
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Old 01-23-17, 08:44 AM
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You don't need to go through all the menus. When you plug into a USB you should have a notification. Opening that notification takes you directly to the screen to choose what mode for the USB connection.

Yes, that is the MTP that I had selected. The phone defaults to charging only mode every time it's plugged into a USB so you have to manually switch the mode. What is odd is that my computer can see all the files on the phone but for some reason the phone is not letting my computer make changes.
 
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Old 01-23-17, 11:27 AM
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Old 01-23-17, 11:49 AM
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I wonder if Marshmallow does not allow writing back to the phone? In the "use USB for" screen the description for MTP is "Transfer files to Windows or Mac" It makes no mention about bi-directional transfer.

The photos I am trying to organize are stored on the phone's internal memory, not a SD card. When I select properties for any folder on my phone I do not get the tools option as mentioned in the link.
 
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Old 01-23-17, 12:56 PM
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This time I googled marshmallow write permissions. The sites below show ways to give apps write permissions. On any device that stores data, write permissions must be given by the system or sysadmin, to make changes or run programs. In Unix or Linux, it's shown as rwx. Linux is under the hood, in android.

http://www.phonearena.com/news/How-t...t-reqd_id77432

How to manage app permissions in Android Marshmallow? - Android Guides
 
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Old 01-24-17, 09:58 AM
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Would app permissions even apply to the file organizing I'm attempting since I'm not using an app on the phone? I'm plugging my phone into my PC and using File Explorer to view the files on my phone. In previous versions I've been able to organize them just like a hard drive.
 
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Old 01-24-17, 10:13 AM
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PD-

I don’t have a Smart Phone, but it seems like this implementation of the MTP protocol between the PC and the phones is pretty buggy. It sounds like you certainly should be able to create a new folder under Windows Explorer and move files into that folder. But it really sounds like the MTP stuff has a lot of bugs.

Just for testing could you create the new folder on your phone and then see if it shows up in Windows Explorer and then see if you can transfer files into that folder using Windows Explorer? Maybe if that doesn’t work you could try the same thing again but this time place one file in that folder on the phone before you try using MTP and Windows Explorer again.

That wouldn’t solve the problem but it might shed a little light on the problem.
 
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Old 01-24-17, 02:33 PM
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Would app permissions even apply to the file organizing I'm attempting since I'm not using an app on the phone?
Isn't MTP considered an app?
 
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Old 01-24-17, 04:05 PM
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I have not tried creating a new file on my phone but I have tried using my computer to move files. I just get the pop-up window that it's working on it... but it never completes the task.
 
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Old 01-24-17, 05:30 PM
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If you can see your phones files on the computer but can’t make any changes, it sure would seem like a good guess would be some kind of restriction or locking setting for the files done on the phone. Sort of like a read-only as I think you guys were thinking about – and your initial question about phone setting I bet is in the right direction. But that’s no help is it – LOL.

Can you look at the phone file “Attributes” on your computer via Properties? (assuming Windows)

Isn't MTP considered an app?
I think it’s a protocol on the stack supported by TCP/IP in some cases and Bluetooth in other cases. So I don’t think it would fall under the category “Application”. It’s down lower than ISO 7 (Application Layer) in the protocol stack.
 
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Old 01-24-17, 08:08 PM
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So I don’t think it would fall under the category “Application”.
My final guess is that it still could be a write permissions problem. Google set file permissions on Android. One of the results is below.

How to Fix File Permissions on Android Devices
 
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Old 01-25-17, 05:13 AM
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With my PC I checked the properties of my phone's folders. All have the properties grayed out.

My phone is not rooted. It looks like I can not change my file's attributes/permissions unless I root the phone.
 
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Old 01-25-17, 08:00 AM
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I’m wondering now if it really has anything to do with permissions. Since all the files are seen by the PC, that means that Android has actually decided that these files are accessible by the PC and the PC should also be able to upload new files. It seems like everything would be past the stages of any kind of security checks.

Did you try to access the phone files on another PC? I don’t know anything about the phones but are you supposed to somehow ensure that you have the latest or some special USB-MTP driver on the PC to support the new Marshmallow OS?
 
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Old 01-25-17, 02:10 PM
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"It looks like I can not change my file's attributes/permissions unless I root the phone. "

That's what I was thinking. However, you might be better off talking to the store where you bought the phone
 
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Old 01-26-17, 06:14 AM
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So far I have been using the same computer and USB cable I previously used and did work. The only thing that has changed has been the update to Marshmallow.
 
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Old 01-26-17, 11:24 AM
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PD-

If you can get a newer driver for the phone ,if one exists, there is at least a possibility I believe - that might help. Can you get one from the phone manufacturers’ web site? Or when you connect the phone to the PC can you tell windows to look for an updated driver?

I guess you could have done the Marshmallow update via phone or via PC. I would think via PC the correct driver would have been installed on the PC. But I don’t know about via phone. I don’t really know how the update process works.

As you say, your HW seems OK – it worked before Marshmallow.
 
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Old 01-26-17, 04:40 PM
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PD -

I think there may be a menu option to turn ON USB debug on the phone - at least on some phones. I think if that is turned ON - that can be a problem, although you seem to be getting pretty far down the pike if the PC can see your phone storage. I think a lot has to work right to get that far.

May not even be possible to get as far as you do with USB debug ON.
 
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Old 01-26-17, 04:46 PM
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How about you dial 611 & ask them who can help you solve the problem?
 
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Old 01-27-17, 05:44 AM
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It looks like I have to first figure out how to turn on "developer options" before I can gain access to USB debugging.
 
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Old 01-27-17, 06:05 AM
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OK, I got developer options enabled and have tried moving files with USB debugging on and off and still cannot move files. By the description I found it really looked like USB debugging might have been the trick.
 
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Old 01-27-17, 06:11 AM
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Google implemented crazy security on their Marshmallow release and I think that's the problem you're running into, especially if you're trying to move data around within the phones internal memory and not an SD card. Do you have an SD card? Can you configure the camera to save to the SD card? If so, snap a few pics and try to create folders and move them around.

Also, you can create folders within the phones built-in Gallery app, and honestly my prefered method for organizing my files within the gallery. In my phone I can go to the menu (vertical triple periods looking icon on the top right of the gallery) and select New Album, give it a name and select Add Files (I only have Cancel and Add Files), then you can select the pictures you want to move to it and then select Move located at the bottom of the screen.

I know all Androids are different based on the phone model and carrier, but they somewhat function differently.

Hope this helps.
 
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Old 01-27-17, 08:02 AM
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ceez97-

That would explain things -but it seems like a pretty severe defect in the Marshmallow upgrade – like the feature really doesn’t work anymore. But you certainly could be correct. One thing that caught my attention is what PD said about looking at the phone folder properties on the PC:

With my PC I checked the properties of my phone's folders. All have the properties grayed out.
Does that sound correct? In other words, does that tell you right away that something is wrong with the phone storage exposure to the PC? I don’t have a smart phone so I’ve never connected a phone to a PC. But I know if you connect a USB stick to the PC you certainly see the files and folders as normal files/folders under File Explorer and you can look at Properties permissions, etc.

So the fact that Properties for the phone folders are grayed out in the PC under File Explorer seems wrong to me, since a file is an Object under the MTP spec and should have normal Properties associated with it. Even though the PC doesn’t see the phone file system it’s supposed to be passed information about the files and folders from the phone.

I think the MTP spec defines folders as “Generic Folders” which do have Properties. So it would seem to me that you should be able to see phone Folder Properties on the PC – or something is wrong? But I could be wrong – LOL.
 
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Old 01-27-17, 08:12 AM
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I have Motorola Droid Turbo (the original not the MKII) on Verizon. There is no SD card slot.
 
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Old 01-27-17, 11:50 AM
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I wouldn't try messing with permissions or digging into it any further in your phone, you'll probably just throw it at the wall. If you just happen to change a permission or something you might break something else and you'll end up with a door stopper. Just accept this flaw or fix and find a way to work around it. Curious if you can create folders and move pictures within the gallery, again that would be your best bet. Or you could copy them to your computer in order to clean up space on your phone, then copy onto two external usb drive for double backup locations and then erase from your phone.
 
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Old 01-27-17, 01:26 PM
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PD –

I agree I wouldn’t mess with security settings on the phone right now. It really seems like the update was not done properly for some reason. If the function you are trying to perform was some kind of scarcely use function that they were just going to drop out on Marshmallow, then I would think there would be a more orderly handling and rejection of the function via the HMI.

I think these are the right links to check for the right pc software for your phone. But whether you want to use it is another story. I guess in one sense it can’t hurt since your PC is of no help now.


https://motorola-global-portal.custh...p/30,6720,9277

https://motorola-global-portal.custh...ail/a_id/88481
 
 

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