Google Brings App Auto-Archive to Android

Google today announced an app auto-archive feature for developers that, when adopted, will help users save disk space without having to uninstall an app. This follows an archiving feature that Google introduced one year ago that was a more manual process.

“Auto-archive is a new feature that allows users to free up space on their device without the need to completely uninstall an app,” a new post to the Android Developers Blog explains. “Once the user opts in, infrequently used apps will be partly removed from the device to save space, while the app icon and the user’s personal app data will be preserved. When the user wants to start using the app again, they can simply tap to re-download it and pick up where they left off (as long as the app is still available on Google Play).”

Users will be prompted to use this feature when their device is running low on storage and they’re trying to install a new app.

“Your device is out of storage, and you won’t be able to install this app,” the prompt reads. “With app archiving turned on, your device will detect when you don’t have enough storage and automatically archive apps that you don’t use often. Your personal data will be saved in case you download the app again.”

Today, Android offers an Unused apps interface in Settings where users can see which apps haven’t been used in three months or more. Non-system apps can be deleted from this interface, though certain permissions and temporary files are removed automatically regardless.