Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco smartphones sooner or later face a mysterious “Others” section in the storage settings. This item can occupy huge volumes, sometimes reaching tens of gigabytes, which causes confusion and irritation of users. Where did free memory disappear and why does the system not give a detailed report on the contents of this section?
In fact, the Others category is not a MIUI or HyperOS firmware bug, but a feature of Android that accumulates app cache, temporary files, streaming data, offline maps and remnants of remote programs, and understanding the nature of this data is the first step to effectively clean a device without losing important information.
In this article, we will take a closer look at the structure of system files, explain what is behind the tag, and offer proven methods for safely freeing up space, learn how to distinguish system debris from important data, and return your gadget to speed.
What is hidden in the “Others” section
The Others section is a collection of data that the Android operating system cannot uniquely classify as photos, videos, music or documents, a kind of “gray area” of the file system where office records and temporary data are stored.
The bulk of the volume is the app cache, social networks, messengers and browsers save the images and videos viewed to speed up their re-loading, and over time these files grow to giant sizes, occupying up to 70% of the partition volume.
And this includes offline maps of navigators downloaded to work without the Internet, and data from streaming platforms, and if you listened to music or watched TV shows online, the players stored buffer data, which is now listed as "Others."
- 📱 Temporary files and cache of Android system services.
- 📱 Firmware update data and installer residual files.
- 📱 Error logs and application usage reports.
- 📱 Archives and unpacked data from messengers.
It is important to understand that some files in this category are necessary for the stable operation of the system. Blind removal of system libraries can lead to errors, so the approach to cleaning should be conscious.
Why does memory fill up so quickly?
The rate of filling the “Others” section depends on the intensity of smartphone use, and active social media users notice memory growth faster, as news feeds generate a huge stream of temporary files.
One of the main reasons is the unoptimized operation of applications, and some programs, such as TikTok or Telegram, are set to automatically save media files to hidden caches, which the system perceives as “Others”.
⚠️ Warning: A sharp jump in the volume of the Others section immediately after the system update is normal.The system creates backups and update logs that will be automatically deleted over time.
Another factor is file system fragmentation: When you install and delete games or heavy applications frequently, you have tails in your memory — empty blocks or incomplete files that continue to count for the total amount.
Memory analysis with built-in tools
Before we start taking any drastic measures, we need to do diagnostics, and the MIUI and HyperOS shells have built-in tools that allow us to study the structure of the storage in detail.
To start, go to Settings → About Phone → Storage. Here you will see a color diagram of the data distribution. Click on the Others section, the system will offer a basic cleanup, but it is often superficial.
More in-depth analysis is available through the Security app. The built-in Cleanup tool is able to find large files and duplicates that are hidden from the standard Explorer. Use the Deep Cleanup feature to scan Android/data folders.
For advanced users, a developer mode is available, where you can see processes consuming memory in real time, which helps to identify a “gluttonous” application that generates junk files in the background.
☑️ Memory diagnostics
Instructions for safe cleaning through settings
The safest way to free up space is to manually clear the cache of heavy applications. Don't delete the application data completely, unless you want to lose correspondence or authorization, choose the "Clear Cache" option.
Go to Settings → Applications → All apps. Sort the list by memory size. The first ones on the list are usually messengers, browsers and video services.
Select the app, click on "Storage" and then "Clear cache." Repeat the procedure for top-10 This action is secure and does not affect your personal files.
| Type of application | What to clean | Risk of data loss | Recommended frequency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Messengers | Cash media. | Low (texts retained) | Once a month |
| Social media. | Cash images. | Low. | Once every 2 weeks |
| browsers | Cash and Cookies | Medium (exit accounts) | Once a week. |
| Streaming | Downloads and cache | High (offline tracks will disappear) | If necessary, |
After cleaning the cache, it is recommended to restart the device, which will allow the system to re-index the files and correctly display the freed space.
Use of a conductor for manual removal
For fine-tuning, you can use the built-in MIUI Explorer or third-party file managers, such as Total Commander or Files by Google. manual deletion requires care.
First, look at the Download folder, which often accumulates APK installation files that have already been used and documents that you no longer need.
It's also worth checking the folder. MIUI → debug_log. Some firmware versions can add up debugging logs that take up gigabytes of space, and if you're not a developer, you can delete those files.
Should I delete the folder.thumbnails?
Be careful with folders that you don't know the names of. Deleting system configs can cause some smartphone functions to malfunction.
⚠️ Note: Never delete files inside the folder Android/obb and Android/data manually, if you are not sure of 100% This can lead to the disappearance of data in games and applications.
Radical methods: Resetting and flashing
If the software methods don't work and the Others section continues to bloat, there may be some errors in the file system, in which case a complete reset becomes an effective solution.
Before you run Wipe Data, make sure to back up all your important data in the Mi Cloud or on your computer, a process that will completely destroy all the information on your device.
To perform the reset, go to Settings → About Phone → Settings Reset → Erase all data. Once you reboot, you will get a clean system where the Others section will take up the minimum amount.
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Before resetting, try simply restarting your phone to Safe Mode, and if you release your memory in this mode, it means that one of the apps you have installed is causing the problem.
In extreme cases, when even a reset does not help (which is rare), you need to flash the device through the computer using the Mi Flash Tool utility.
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A complete factory reset is the only way to ensure that system debris is cleaned up, which is not removed by standard methods but requires a complete backup of data.
Prevention of memory overflow
To keep the problem from returning, change your smartphone usage habits. Check your messaging settings regularly: Telegram and WhatsApp can limit auto-save media to the gallery.
Use cloud services to store photos and videos. Synchronization with Google Photos or Yandex.Disk with the “free space” function will help keep local memory clean.
Once a month, you should review your installed applications, if you haven't used the program for more than six months, you should delete it, and residual files from remote applications should also be checked through the file manager.
- 🚀 Turn off auto-save stickers in messengers.
- 🚀 Clean the basket regularly in the gallery and conductor.
- 🚀 Use Lite versions of social networks if memory is critically low.
Compliance with these simple rules will allow your Xiaomi to work quickly and consistently throughout its life, and the mysterious “Others” section will no longer be a cause for concern.