Gmail using all internal memory

[ahendric]

Hey there all,

My gmail app is using 37MB of my internal memory.  Why and what can I do about it. 

If I clear data what all am I losing and will it propagate the deleted data back to my online gmail?

Thanks for any info you can give me.

Andrew

[M3lton]

That's odd that it is using so much memory.

Here's my recommendation. Download the app, TasKiller. Go into TasKiller's settings and turn on the option, Auto Kill When Screen OFF. Make sure you add apps like Alarm Clock to the ignore list, and certain things you would not like the program to kill when you go to bed, but it will kill g-mail everytime you lock your screen, as well as all other apps that are not in the ignore list.

I have been using this option for the last week and last night I went to bed wih 67% battery life. And I used my phone all day.

So, I hope this helps, and I don't know why your e-mail is taking up so much ram.

Also, auto kill when screen off will still allow your email to auto-sync if you have that turned on, and it doesn't kill any app that is still open on your screen when it shuts off.

Say you were messaging someone and your screen timed out, when you turn your screen back on and unlock, messaging will still be there, but all other apps not running on screen will be killed.

It's a life/battery-saving option.

[ahendric]

M3lton,

Thanks for the suggestions, I had early on used the App Task Killer, but it was causing some other issues.  I don't really have any issues with my battery, it is just with running out of internal memory.

I will give this a try.

Thanks,

Andrew

[M3lton]

You're welcome. Just make sure you download TasKiller. One word. Not Advanced Task Killer, or another one.

My friend with the Moto Droid uses Adv. Task Killer and it doesn't have the Auto Kill When Screen Off option.

I also paid 90 cents for the full version of TasKiller. No ads and it also allows you to add unlimited apps to the ignore list. Worth it.

Just open an app, go into TasKiller, touch and hold on the app you want to ignore and a menu will open up giving you multiple options. And if you need to remove an app from the ignore list, go into setting -->ignore list and touch and hold on the app you'd like to remove. Pretty simple.

Good luck.

[logicman]

I do not recommend installing and setting up task killer to kill Gmail every time you lock your phone. If Gmail was using that much memory it was probably a fluke and killing it once should suffice to clear up the issue. People should stop treating Android as if it was the resource hogging OS known as Windows.

[ahendric]

It is the gmail data that is taking the space.  The app itself runs fine.

I want to know why the email data is so large.

I don't want to have to keep killing the data to keep the size small.  Having access to historical email is the advantage of having a droid, at least I thought so.

Thanks,

Andrew

[M3lton]

Dear Logicman, Why so hostile? Android may not be a huge big, but it definitely does use a good amount of background memory. Why would you not recommend using an app killer while you are not using your phone? Would that just be too logical? If you're not using an app, Why not kill it? App killers don't stop you from ever using the app again. So, please explain why you wouldn't recommend ending apps when not using them.

[PJNC284]

There are plenty of articles out advising against using task killers as they usually end up causing more issues than they fix.  Android 2.0+ is usually pretty good about memory management.  How many days do you have the app set to sync?  I have mine set to auto sync 4 days and I'm only using about 600K.  

[M3lton]

Which app are you talking about? Gmail or TasKiller?

On my Droid Eris there's no option to set your Gmail to sync at a certain time. It just does every 5 minutes or so.

As for TasKiller, I have it set to kill all apps that aren't ignored every single time the screen turns off.

So far, I have not had one problem caused by TasKiller and I've used it for a month. I don't see what problems it would cause if used properly. Now, if you force close certain programs then yeah, it'll probably screw things up until a reboot, but just auto-killing has no effect on my phone. Other than making the battery last longer, and it also runs faster when I turn the screen on.

[#10]

I have the free version of Advanced Task Killer loaded on my Motorola Droid.  It is setup to kill all apps except email, gmail, and messaging.  I click it just about everytime I finish with an app.  I haven't had any problems with it.

[PJNC284]

Maybe it's a feature of the Desire SenseUI port that I'm running on the droid but if you go into Settings and Applications, choose Gmail, there is a Manage Space button.  Mine is set to sync 4 days worth of messages in the inbox.  I changed that setting to ALL and noticed that the size for Gmail Storage quickly went over 5MB after previously being at only 500K.  As for task killers, the link below explains Android's memory management pretty well and a quick google search brings up a lot more.  

http://geekfor.me/faq/you-shouldnt-be-using-a-task-killer-with-android/

[#12]

You can save your gmail in three different places, phone, internet, or computer.  If I want to save gmail or email, I save it on my computer and delete it from my phone and the internet.

[logicman]

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M3lton wrote:
Dear Logicman, Why so hostile? Android may not be a huge big, but it definitely does use a good amount of background memory. Why would you not recommend using an app killer while you are not using your phone? Would that just be too logical? If you're not using an app, Why not kill it? App killers don't stop you from ever using the app again. So, please explain why you wouldn't recommend ending apps when not using them.

---

Hostile? All I did was disagree with your notion that killing tasks is a cure all for phone problems. There are certainly occasions when an app misbehaves and needs to be killed. The reason I don't recommend using task killers as a matter of course is based on information in the Android developer's guide. The article FAQ: Why You Shouldn’t Be Using a Task Killer with Android summarizes relevant information from the developer's guide. 

Your claims of battery life improvement and better performance are subjective. Unless you perform tests that run exactly the same set of applications for the same period of time, turning the phone on and off the same number of times with and without TasKiller active, there is no way to arrive at a definitive answer. If you think TasKiller helps then by all means keep running it. I'm just providing an opposing view based on solid technical information.

[M3lton]

Ok. And I appreciate another view/opinion.

But answer me this, do you think apps running when not using them kills battery?

Also, answer me this, do you think it makes sense to end a task when not using it?

And this is the last question.

Does a device running on a battery, not plugged into the wall, use battery life when memory is being used?

See, TasKiller closes, or "kills", all unnecessary apps running so as to save battery life.

Kind of like a computer, if you're done surfing the internet, you close the browser. If you're done playing a game, you exit and end, "kill", the game. Android OS doesn't often, or ever for me, close apps automatically. So the browser on my Eris, which has no close option, runs even when I go back to my home screen. And that uses memory, which takes battery life.

So, no test is needed. It's logic. And that's included in your name. So I thought you might agree.

[ahendric]

Okay,

I am on the Droid and I don't really care for the argument about task killers, it doesn't really address my question about why I am having so much data with my gmail account.  I don't/can't find the settings for how many days I have synced up.  I assume that it is all, and I do have some areas where I receive 100's of email a day.  My need is to be able to keep them where I can search for specific ones. 

Where are the settings for the number of days to sync on the droid?

Thanks for the help.

Andrew

[Iceman1906]

Hey ahendric,

1. Go into your Settings.

2. Application Setting.

3. Manage Application.

4. Scroll down to Gmail.

5. Once you open Gmail click on Manage Space.

This will allow you manage the number of sync days.

[logicman]

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M3lton wrote:

Ok. And I appreciate another view/opinion.

But answer me this, do you think apps running when not using them kills battery?

Not if they are designed correctly.

Also, answer me this, do you think it makes sense to end a task when not using it?

Just let Android do what it was designed to do - efficiently manage memory and CPU resources.

And this is the last question.

Does a device running on a battery, not plugged into the wall, use battery life when memory is being used?

Unless you power the phone off certain processes (email, SMS, etc.) are always running and therefore using memory.

See, TasKiller closes, or "kills", all unnecessary apps running so as to save battery life.

As stated above if apps are designed correctly they will not use battery power when they are not active.

Kind of like a computer, if you're done surfing the internet, you close the browser. If you're done playing a game, you exit and end, "kill", the game. Android OS doesn't often, or ever for me, close apps automatically. So the browser on my Eris, which has no close option, runs even when I go back to my home screen. And that uses memory, which takes battery life.

Comparing Android running on a smart phone to an OS running on a desktop PC is an apples to oranges comparison.

So, no test is needed. It's logic. And that's included in your name. So I thought you might agree.

No I don't.

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Nothing I say is going to change your mind because you want to apply your experiences with desktop operating systems to your smart phone. As I said, if it makes you happy...