Many Xiaomi smartphone users are faced with a mysterious situation: the device warns of a shortage of space, but a detailed analysis of the storage reveals that photos and applications occupy only a small part. The main “eater” of gigabytes becomes a section designated as “Other” or “System Data.” This category often inflates to tens of gigabytes, causing panic among Mi and Redmi owners. Understanding the nature of these files is the first step to freeing up space.
Unlike the obvious categories like "Gallery" or "Applications", the system partition does not have a clear structure for the average user, which accumulates temporary files, remnants of deleted programs and logs of the MIUI or HyperOS system. Ignoring this problem leads to slowdown of the interface and the inability to install new security updates.
In this article, we will take a closer look at what the Other section is made of, why it grows, and what safe methods exist to clean it, learn how to distinguish system cache from personal data, and use the hidden tools of Xiaomi engineers.
The Nature of the Other Section: What It Is Made of
The Android system that powers Xiaomi smartphones classifies files by type, but many data don’t fall under standard labels. The Other category automatically sends files that the system can’t uniquely identify as APK media, documents, or installation packages.
The bulk of this section is cached data from messengers and social networks, such as Telegram or Viber, which can store gigabytes of watched videos and images in hidden folders that a standard memory analyzer perceives as system debris, and also includes error logs, temporary browser files and residues after unsuccessful application updates.
- 🗑️ Application cache: temporary files that speed up programs, but take up a lot of space.
- 📦 Remains of Remote Games: Cache Files (OBB-files that are not deleted with the application itself.
- 📱 System Logs: Records of Work MIUI, They are designed for debugging, but rarely needed by the average user.
- 🎵 Downloaded media files: music from streaming services and offline maps of navigators.
⚠️ Note: Do not attempt to manually delete files from system folders through root-right file managers without understanding their purpose).
It’s important to understand that partition volume is dynamic, and it can grow dramatically after watching a high-resolution online stream or downloading a large number of files in the background, and Xiaomi’s cleaning algorithms don’t always have time to respond to such changes instantly.
Analysis of storage built-in MIUI and HyperOS
Before radical measures are taken, we need to make a good diagnosis, and Xiaomi has a powerful analysis tool built into its shells that users often ignore, which allows us to see not only the total volume, but also the detail of the applications that consume the most resources.
To get started, open the Security app and select Clean. After scanning, click on the basket icon or go to Memory. Here you will see a color diagram where the Other section is usually highlighted in gray or purple.
The system will prompt you to delete "unnecessary files," but be careful: automatic selection can capture important data. Manually check the Downloads and Documents section inside the analyzer, often with forgotten app installers or old presentations.
The Deep Clean feature is also worth noting, and in newer versions of HyperOS, it’s smarter, finding similar photos, screenshots, and even large files scattered across different directories, and it’s safe to use it and recommended to use it regularly.
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Use the Deep Cleanup mode once a week to prevent the Other section from growing to critical values.
Manual cleaning through File Manager
If the automatic tools didn't help to free up space, you'll have to do it manually, and that requires a built-in File Manager application, which requires care, because you'll be working with the file system directly.
First of all, look at the Android/data folder. This is where messengers and social media stores their media files. Inside the com.whatsapp or com.viber.voip folder, you can find gigabytes of videos that have already been viewed but are stored in memory.
☑️ Checking hand folders
It is also worth checking the MIUI directory, which often accumulates gallery cache in the gallery/cloud/cache folder. Deleting the contents of this folder is safe - it will simply be recreated, but will free up space that the system erroneously refers to as the "Other" section.
Don't forget the.thumbnails folder inside the DCIM directory. It's a hidden folder (to display it, you need to include "Show Hidden Files" in the Explorer settings), where you store thumbnails of your photos and videos. With a large amount of media, this folder can grow to several gigabytes.
Use of Developer Mode and ADB
For advanced users who aren’t afraid of technical terms, there is a more powerful tool, USB debugging and ADB (Android Debug Bridge) commands, which allows you to clear the cache of system applications that are not available through the usual interface.
To start, activate Developer Mode. Go to Settings → About Phone and quickly click on MIUI or HyperOS seven times. Once the "You're a Developer" notification appears, go to Advanced Settings → Developer Settings and enable USB Debugging.
By connecting the phone to a computer, you can use a command to clear the cache of a particular application that has inflated memory, for example, if the culprit is Google Play:
adb shell pm clear com.android.vendingA more radical but effective way is to clean the Dalvik cache, which requires you to switch to Recovery mode, which will be discussed later, but using ADB allows you to do this without rebooting, simply by removing temporary files from system partitions that are usually hidden from the user.
⚠️ Attention: Teams ADB Entering pm clear for system applications (except cache) can reset them to factory settings or disrupt services.
Recovery Mode (Wipe Cache Partition)
The safest and most effective way to clear the Other section without affecting personal data (photos, contacts) is to use the Recovery Mode menu, which deletes temporary system files that may have accumulated as a result of errors or crashes.
To enter this mode on most Xiaomi smartphones, you need to turn off the device and then press the Volume Up and Power buttons simultaneously. Hold them until the Mi logo appears. When the Recovery menu appears (usually in English or Chinese), use the volume buttons for navigation and the power button for selection.
What to do if the Recovery menu is in Chinese?
Select Wipe Data from the menu (some versions of Wipe Cache at once). Importantly, new versions of MIUI/HyperOS may not have Wipe Cache, and only Wipe All Data will remain. Attention: choosing Wipe All Data will completely delete all your files, as when you buy a phone! If you have only this option, make a backup beforehand.
If you have Wipe Cache, you can choose it. It takes a few seconds. Once you're done, select Reboot → Reboot to System. Once you download it, you'll be surprised how much space you have in the Other section.
Table: Comparison of cleaning methods
To make it easier for you to choose the right method, we have prepared a comparative table of cleaning methods for the Other section on Xiaomi devices.
| Method | Security | Efficiency | Risk of data loss |
|---|---|---|---|
| Built-in cleaning | Tall. | Low/Mediocre | No. |
| Manual removal (Conductor) | Medium | Medium | Medium (can be removed extra) |
| ADB team | Low (requires knowledge) | Tall. | High (in case of errors) |
| Recovery (Wipe Cache) | Tall. | Maximum | Not (unless you choose Wipe All) |
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The safest and deepest cleaning method is Wipe Cache Partition via Recovery, but it requires careful selection of menu items.
Prevention: How to prevent the growth of garbage
After a successful cleanup, it is important to minimize the rate of refilling the Other section, the main reason for the rapid growth is the background activity of applications and the lack of limits on auto-save.
Configure messengers. On Telegram, go to Settings → Data and memory → Memory Use and set a cache autodeletion timer (e.g., 3 days). On WhatsApp, turn off autosave to the gallery so that media files do not duplicate in the system folders.
Regularly check application rights. Some programs require access to the file system to work, but begin to behave aggressively, creating many temporary files. Limit background activity for rarely used applications through Settings → Apps → All applications.
Use Xiaomi Cloud or Google Photos cloud services with the “Free Space” function, which will remove from the device copies of photos and videos that are already uploaded to the cloud, significantly reducing the size of the “Other” and “Gallery” partitions.