“Other” in the storage Xiaomi Redmi 9T: full analysis + how to free up space

Mysterious “Other” in the memory of the smartphone: why it takes gigabytes?

Have you ever looked into the storage settings of your Xiaomi Redmi 9T and wondered where the free gigabytes went? Among the usual categories — Apps, Photos, Video — flaunts a mysterious item called "Other" that can take up from 5 to 20 GB. What is this data? Why is the system not showing it in detail? And most importantly, can it be safely deleted?

In this article, we’ll go into detail about what the Other partition in Redmi 9T memory is made of, why it grows over time, and how to reduce it without risking your smartphone, and learn about hidden system files, application cache, logs, and temporary data that MIUI doesn’t classify as standard, and get a step-by-step cleaning instruction tailored to your device’s firmware.

Spoiler: Up to 60 percent of the volume of The Other can be freed manually, but 10 to 15 percent are critical system files that will cause failures. How do you tell garbage from important data? Read on.

What is the Other category on Xiaomi Redmi 9T?

The manufacturer does not disclose the full content of this section, but MIUI firmware analysis and user experience allow us to identify 5 main types of files that fall into the Other:

• 📁 System cache and Dalvik-cache: temporary files that speed up application launches, cleared without consequences, but recovered over time.
• 📜 Logs and error reports:.log,.dump,.tomstone files that are created when crashes occur. You can delete them, but they can help diagnose problems.
• 🗑️ Residual data from remote applications: fragments of programs that have not been completely erased (for example, settings or cache).
• 🔄 Temporary download files: under-quality updates, interrupted installations APK, browser-cache.
• 🛠️ Hidden System Files: Configurations MIUI, Application databases, backups of settings.

Interesting fact: Redmi 9T with MIUI 12.5+ firmware also includes ARCore files (for augmented reality) and Google Play Services cache, which can weigh up to 1-2 GB. This data is not visible in the standard file manager, but it can be found through Settings → Applications → Application Management → Three points → Show system.

⚠️ Note: If the volume of the “Other” exceeds 15 GB on Redmi 9T With 64 GB of memory, this may indicate file system damage or viral activity, in which case it is recommended to check the device with an antivirus (for example, Malwarebytes) and perform a reset to factory settings.

How do you check what is in the “Other”?

The standard MIUI file manager doesn’t show the detailed composition of the Other, but there are a few ways to get more information:

1. Through Settings. → Memory. → Another: click on the graph - the system will show the distribution by subcategories (cache, logs, etc).
2. Using Files by Google: The app analyzes the storage and highlights “Junk Files” (some of which refers to “Other”).
3. Storage Analyzer (from Google Play): Shows folder sizes, including hidden system folders (/data/log, /cache).
4. Through ADB-commands (for advanced users): connect your smartphone to your PC and execute: adb shell du -sh /data/* | sort -rh This will put the folder list in /data, size-sorted.

On Redmi 9T, pay special attention to the folders:

• /data/log – system logs (can be cleared)
• /data/dalvik-cache – Dalvik cache (cleared when rebooted)
• /data/app-lib – Residual application data.

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If you are not sure of the folder name, back it up on your PC before you delete it. Connect your smartphone in file transfer (MTP) mode and copy the folder manually.

Step-by-step: how to clean the “Other” on Redmi 9T

Before you start, back up your important data (photos, contacts, messages). Go to Settings → About Phone → Backup and select Mi Cloud or Local Saving.

Make a backup of data | Check battery power (minimum 50%) | Connect to Wi-Fi | Close all applications-->

Now we're going to clean up.

1. Clean App Cache: Go to Settings → Apps → App Management, select the All tab and sort by size. Click on each major app (like Facebook, YouTube) and select Clear Cache. For system applications (like Google Play Services), click Storage → Clear Cache.
2. Delete temporary files: Open the Files by Google app (or the standard Files), go to Cleanup and select Garbage Files. Delete all found items.
3. Clean Logs and Dumps: With a file manager (like Solid Explorer), go to /data/log and delete all files with the.log,.dump,.tomstone extensions.
4. Dalvik cache reset (reboot requires): Enter Recovery mode (turn off the phone, then press Power + Volume up). Select Wipe & Reset → Wipe Cache and confirm. Once rebooted, the cache will be recreated.
5. Delete residual application data: In Settings → Memory → Another, click on the Residual Files subcategory and delete everything the system offers.

⚠️ Note: Do not manually delete files from folders /system, /vendor or /data/system — This will lead to the inoperability of the smartphone and require flashing.

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Cleaning the Other through standard means MIUI (rootless) allows you to release up to 3-5 GB. For deep cleaning (7 GB)+) root rights will be required or ADB-team.

Table: What can and cannot be removed in the "Other"

What if the other one is growing again?

Even after cleaning, the Other section may increase over time.This is normal, but if growth is too rapid (over 1 GB per week), check out the following:

• 🔄 Auto-Update Apps: Turn it off in Google Play or limit updates to Wi-Fi only.
• 📱 Background activity of applications: in Settings → Battery → Select the mode of energy saving, turn on the mode "Energy saving».
• 🗑️ Browser cache: in Chrome or Mi Browser, clear history and cache every 2-3 days.
• 🛠️ File system errors: perform a check through Settings → Memory. → Three points. → Verification and correction.

If the problem persists, consider the following drastic measures:

1. Flashing through the Mi Flash Tool (requires unlocking the bootloader).
2. Replace firmware with custom (for example, LineageOS), where memory management is optimized better.

Myths and Truths About Xiaomi’s “Other”

There are a lot of tips on cleaning up The Other online, but not all of them are safe.

• 🚫 Myth 2: “Cleaning through CCleaner is safer than manually” Truth: CCleaner and similar utilities often delete useful files, such as Google Play Services cache, which leads to sync errors.

If you are faced with the advice to “delete /data/data folder”, ignore it – this will lead to a complete reset of the smartphone with the loss of all data.

FAQ: Frequent Questions About The Other in Redmi 9T