Android memory management and rooting (still using a Nexus 7 2012 and it's 2017)

[drossall]

So, broken out from this thread.

Like others, I'm still using a Nexus 7 2012. Physically it's fine, and I know it can run everything I need, but sometimes it won't.

In particular, and especially if left for a day or two, it takes a lot of patience to get it going again. I touch the power button and the screen flashes on and off. A few more attempts get progressively more response. After a number of attempts, the screen may stay on long enough for the security lock to come on. After a minute or two (seems longer), I may actually be able to unlock it. Then it will be unresponsive for a bit. Finally, it will settle down, wake up, and let me get on. This is not useful if I just wanted to make a quick note...

The impression is very much that, if woken up for a while with a known network connection, it gets so busy catching up on a load of system management stuff that it doesn't have time to talk to me. Used more often or (I think, but I'm not sure) away from a network connection, it's fine.

Anyway, I was interested by Plug1n's report of replacing the ROM. I've never brought myself to root an Android device, although I've done more complex stuff than that in the past (I once patched CP/M WordStar to run on an Amstrad PCW!) And I'm not sure what the CyanogenMOD meltdown mentioned by Plug1n was. Does it sound likely that a new ROM would help me?

And I wish I understood Android memory management. I know it's not like Windows, and I know that keeping apps in memory is generally seen as good. I can see how this would help to make swapping into them faster. I can't see why it would help if you use 10, 20 or 30 apps regularly, however, as you'd be forever clearing out something else to make way.

I've tried various memory/performance managers and so on to try to get some insight into the start-up behaviour I've described, but nothing useful has resulted.

Thoughts, suggestions and links to useful sites welcome!

[rusky]

I have a Nexus 7 2012 too & it's really slow. I had read that it was due to Android 5 so rooted it & installed a custom ROM but that didn't help. I then flashed it back to the factory (4.something) ROM & that didn't make any difference.

One last time, I flashed it to CM12 & it's still unusable so I've given up with it which is a shame as it's not got a mark on it.

[Kim]

Similarly, I put a very lean (I forget which) 4.something ROM on mine, as the least worst option, but it's so chronically short of memory that it isn't really usable as much more than an eBook reader.

[drossall]

Funnily enough, ebook reading is quite a bit of what I do with mine. I'd just like to stop it doing other stuff when I want to read!

[Plug1n]

Seriously, in Settings|Memory my Nougat device is showing average memory use of 515MB by 30 apps over the last 1 day.  Total installed memory 0.95GB.  I think I rebooted this morning as I couldn't get the pattern unlock to work - seems to need a longer throw to display the pattern.

The recent apps hot button shows - Settings, Firefox, ES File Explorer Pro, VLC and TTRSS Reader.

Among other apps installed, I have Amazon Underground, Kindle, Amazon Music, Amazon Prime Video, Skype and Google Now.

Social media is banned on all my devices

I just watched an episode and half of Narcos in 720p on VLC while plodding away on the turbo trainer  (sad but true).

A while back on the CM ROMs (Lolipop?), I had to set my wireless router to WPA Auto rather than WPA2-PSK[AES] or the Wifi was constantly reconnecting.

And all the previous ROMs, I had to reboot more or less every time I wanted to use it.

[frankly frankie]

My Nexus 7 is just as good as when I bought it.  It's on v4.4.3 - I know this because, for the last 4 years it's had a notification in the top left corner saying "v4.4.4 ready to install" 

[Kim]

My Nexus 7 is just as good as when I bought it.

Does that mean none of the apps have been updated either?

[drossall]

However, I installed a LineageOS Nougat "unofficial" build (read unsupported) from XDA (https://forum.xda-developers.com/nexus-7/development/rom-lineageos-14-1-nexus-7-2012-t3530261).

Like magic the Nexus 7 has become responsive and usable again.  Probably the first time since Google upgraded it from KitKat.  Obviously a 5 year old device is not going to be as fast as the latest and greatest but more than adequate for my needs.

What install options did you take e.g. stock apps?

[bryn]

I have done a factory reset on mine a couple of times. (Everything can be backed up first and reinstals automatically - all except for the wifi password). This gets the speed back to what it was when it was new.  After a while it goes back to being very sluggish again and another reset is required.

I have seen a suggestion that early versions of the 7 had RAM which degraded with time, but don't know if that is true.

Right now it is working perfectly on the new special deal  Eurosport £19.99 one year subscription, which was just in time for the World Cyclocross championships.

Bryn

[Plug1n]

What install options did you take e.g. stock apps?

I installed the Gapps Pico package form Arm 7.1 from opengapps.prg with the configuration file mentioned in the XDA thread, i.e. play store but not much else.  Once Play Store is installed then the bloat in Gmail and Chrome can be installed separately.

A strange thing happened on the upgrade I ran (which reinstalled Gapps).  A couple of apps that I had installed through the Amazon Underground store were adopted by the Google Play store (Amazon Music and Tunein).  Not a big deal. I'd used Amazon as they pay for some paid apps, so I thought I would try this on Tunein to see if it reduced the advertising.

[drossall]

I'm trying it now. I've rooted and downloaded the package. Now to see if I can install the ROM...

[Plug1n]

I'm trying it now. I've rooted and downloaded the package. Now to see if I can install the ROM...

Good luck.  Once TWRP is installed,  it should be plain sailing.....

[drossall]

I think I'm making silly mistakes, like forgetting about the TWRP Manager app. So, I tried literally booting into TWRP via the bootloader, and couldn't figure out how to start it. And every restart of Android proper optimises the apps, which takes ages. I'll get there

Currently waiting for apps to optimise again so that I can try the Manager.

[Plug1n]

The optimising apps routine seems to have been dropped in. Nougat.  I think it now happens in the background later on..

[drossall]

It's a bit weird at present. I'm running TWRP and ending up dropping back into Android 5.1.1, which was where I started. Not sure I'm doing it right.

It's asking what recovery version to install. I'm not sure how to answer. I think that I am installing a custom recovery? But there's loads in the list.

[Plug1n]

Have you flashed twrp 3.0.2.0 from fastboot? i.e.

>fastboot flash recovery twrp.img

see https://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2562633

[drossall]

I think I'm getting a bit lost. There are various instructions but not that many pages that set out clearly what packages are involved (TWRP, Busybox - I think I understand what that does - and all the rest).

Mostly though I'm just losing loads of time because, every time I fail, I have to wait for 100 apps to optimise again.

Edit: OK, I think I missed the need to download a TWRP image. I was expecting the TWRP Manager app to handle all that. The odd thing is that I had TWRP running at one point.

[drossall]

OK I've managed it

However, now I need to install apps. There's no Play Store. I can do it from the PC of course, but they aren't installing when queued. Obviously the minimal Android doesn't have support for automated app installation?

Edit: OK found this.

[Plug1n]

Just download the opengapps pico version from opengapps.org onto a PC.  Connect the Nexus7 via MTP and transfer the zip into the Downloads folder along with the  gapps-config-grouper.txt from the XDA thread.

"Optionally add opengapps-pico.

    With default settings it will give an error about insufficient space. To avoid that, first copy this gapps-config-grouper.txt file, perhaps edit it to your taste (instructions here), then copy to the device in the same directory as the opengapps zip. The opengapps updater-script will look for it there when you install opengapps."

Then reboot into recovery and install the opengapps zip (just like you did for the ROM's zip).

You will then have the Google Play store (but not much else).

[frankly frankie]

My Nexus 7 is just as good as when I bought it.

Does that mean none of the apps have been updated either?

Not unless I've chosen to update them manually, which would be maybe six of them.

[drossall]

You will then have the Google Play store (but not much else).

Got there in the end, thanks.

[Kim]

My Nexus 7 is just as good as when I bought it.

Does that mean none of the apps have been updated either?

Not unless I've chosen to update them manually, which would be maybe six of them.

That would explain things then.  You've sacrificed security/compatibility/features/bugfixes for consistent performance, which is a perfectly reasonable thing to do.  On an air-gapped computer.

But that aside, it's not something that can practically be reproduced.  You can't blow a Nexus back to factory firmware and then download circa 2012 versions of all your apps

[drossall]

So far, mine is running nice and fast on 7.1.1 Nougat. I'm hoping it's because the standard bloatware is gone. However, I haven't reconfigured all the apps yet, so...

[frankly frankie]

My Nexus 7 is just as good as when I bought it.

Does that mean none of the apps have been updated either?

Not unless I've chosen to update them manually, which would be maybe six of them.

That would explain things then.  You've sacrificed security/compatibility/features/bugfixes for consistent performance, which is a perfectly reasonable thing to do.  On an air-gapped computer.
But that aside, it's not something that can practically be reproduced.  You can't blow a Nexus back to factory firmware and then download circa 2012 versions of all your apps

All the more reason to resist the 'auto-update everything' route in the first place.  Assuming I'm happy with the 'sacrifices' that brings.

[drossall]

Still looking like a very successful upgrade, though I still think that the removal of Google bloatware has probably made the difference, more than the new Android version

Edit: and my infrared virtual keyboard works