New storage requirements

On Android, Cubasis stores its files in an app-specific directory, which is only accessible by Cubasis and certain file manager apps from the Play Store. It cannot be accessed by the Android Files app.

This new storage location was introduced with Cubasis 3.3.2 to comply with Google’s mandatory new storage requirements. When updating from an earlier Cubasis version to Cubasis 3.3.2 or later, a dialog guides you through the process of copying the MediaBay data from the old to the new storage location, i.e. from the legacy Cubasis 3 folder to the new app-specific directory.

After this process is completed successfully and you see all your files in the MediaBay, we recommend that you delete the old Cubasis 3 folder using a file manager app, unless you want to keep it as a backup. The legacy “Cubasis 3” folder is no longer accessed by Cubasis 3, which means that placing a file inside it will no longer make it appear in the MediaBay. Instead, use the Import button to copy files from an external location into the MediaBay. To delete the Cubasis 3 folder using the Android Files app, scroll down to “Internal storage”, tap the dots next to “Cubasis 3”, then tap Delete. The exact wording and layout may vary depending on the device manufacturer. The following sequence of screenshots illustrates the process in the Files app on an Android 11 Google device:

If the process of copying your Cubasis data to the new location fails, insufficient free disk space is the most probable cause. Cubasis requires as much additional disk space as the legacy Cubasis 3 folder takes up (at least until copying succeeds and you delete it manually). To free additional disk space, open the Android Settings app and go to Storage. The exact wording and layout of this Settings page may vary depending on the device manufacturer. The “Manage storage” button offers several options to clean up and make more space. Tapping “Other apps” shows you a list of apps and the amount of storage they require, helping you to decide if there are any memory hungry apps that you no longer need. Likewise, the other categories allow you to view and delete files that take up a considerable amount of disk space. Once you’re done, launch Cubasis 3 again to restart the process of copying from the old to the new storage location.

Should the process of copying your Cubasis data fail multiple times, an additional option appears which is called: “Abort - I am aware of the consequences and will import the existing data through the MediaBay”. If you enable it, Cubasis will no longer show the “Cubasis Data Location Change” dialog at launch, which means that you can continue to work with Cubasis, but your MediaBay might be empty. There are two ways to manually copy your old Cubasis 3 data into the MediaBay now. Either use the Import button in the MediaBay to import individual files, or use a file manager app to copy the / Android/Cubasis 3 directory to the new location /Android/data/com.steinberg.cubasis3/files/Cubasis 3.

Direct access to the Cubasis directory

Instead of using the MediaBay’s Import and Share button, files can be copied to and from the MediaBay by copying them to and from the Cubasis 3 directory directly. This can be handy for backup purposes (e.g. to copy the whole Cubasis 3 directory to a thumb drive), or for importing or exporting a large number of files or whole directories. The MediaBay in Cubasis is a 1:1 representation of the Cubasis 3 directory. The procedure is a bit different on iOS and Android, but it works on both platforms.

Note: Any file that you place directly in the Cubasis 3 directory will be processed and sorted into the right sub folder automatically, provided that the file format is supported by Cubasis. For example, if you place a zip file that contains a project in the Cubasis 3 directory, Cubasis will (at the next launch or after a few seconds) unzip the file and place the project in the Projects sub folder.

Note: Be careful when deleting files from the Cubasis 3 directory from a file manager app, they cannot be retrieved anymore. Only files deleted via the MediaBay’s Delete button in Cubasis will go to the Trash first.

Important: If you delete Cubasis from your device, iOS and Android will also delete all the files in the MediaBay (your projects, audio and MIDI files, instruments etc.), so don’t forget to back up your Cubasis data regularly. On Android 10 and later, a pop-up will give you the option to “Keep app data” (recommended).

Access through an Android file manager

Android’s native Files app cannot access the Cubasis 3 directory, but most file manager apps from the Play Store can (many of them are free apps). The location of the directory can vary slightly depending on the device manufacturer, but it’s basically:

/Android/data/com.steinberg.cubasis3/files/Cubasis 3

In some apps, the base Android folder is located in a “Main storage” or “Internal shared storage” folder, or in “storage/emulated/0” in others. When you access the data folder for the first time, the file manager will probably ask your permission to access this protected system folder.

The following series of screenshots illustrates the process using the File Manager Plus app: