Media picker

The Mainline module that indexes photos, videos and music and controls how apps reach shared files. Keep it: Media picker is needed for the phone, its updates or its security.

What it does

This package, labeled Media picker in Settings on recent versions and Media Storage on older ones, is Google's build of the MediaProvider Mainline module, used since Android 11. It indexes the photos, videos, audio and downloads in shared storage and on SD cards and USB drives, serves that index to apps through Android's MediaStore interface, and enforces scoped storage, the rules that limit which files each app can see. It also provides the system photo picker.

Also shown as Media Storage, MediaProvider.

If you disable it

Gallery, camera, music and file apps lose access to shared files, downloads can fail and the photo picker stops working. Community lists rate removal as expert-only.

How to disable it

On most phones Settings greys out Disable for this package, so ADB is the way to turn it off. The commands below work without root and can be undone.

adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.google.android.providers.media.module

adb shell pm enable com.google.android.providers.media.module

The stronger option removes it for your user only; the original copy stays on the phone and a factory reset brings it back. Prefer disabling: it is easier to undo.

adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.google.android.providers.media.module

adb shell cmd package install-existing com.google.android.providers.media.module

New to ADB? Set it up in about ten minutes.

Data and battery

Indexes file names, sizes, dates and media details such as location tags on the device, and shares them only with apps you have allowed.

Rescanning a large media library after an update or a new SD card can briefly raise battery use.

Where it appears

• Made by Google LLC.
• Android versions: 11 and later.