Xiaomi’s Other folder: What it is, why it grows, and how to clean your phone without risk

Why Xiaomi has a mysterious folder called “Other” and should you be afraid of it?

You open your storage settings on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 or POCO X5 Pro, and there are tens of gigabytes occupied by the incomprehensible category “Other.” The system stubbornly refuses to show what exactly is behind this item, and standard cache cleaning does not help. Sounds familiar? This problem has plagued MIUI users for many years, but few people know that “Other” is not a bug, but a feature of the Xiaomi file system architecture associated with the operation of Android and proprietary services of the company.

Unlike the junk in the app or download cache, the Other folder contains system files, logs, MIUI temporary data, and even fragments of remote applications that Android doesn’t always clean correctly. For example, after updating the firmware or resetting to factory settings, there may be tails from older versions of the software. But the main catch is that MIUI doesn’t provide the user with tools to analyze this partition in detail, leaving only radical methods like a complete reset.

In this article, we will not only explain what is “Other” in Xiaomi memory, but also show 5 proven ways to reduce its size – from safe (clean through hidden menus) to extreme (manual deletion of files via ADB).

What is the “Other” in Xiaomi’s memory?

MIUI’s Other category is a dump for files that the system cannot categorize as standard (Applications, Images, Videos, etc.) and includes:

• 📁 System Logs and Dumps – Error Report Files (/data/tombstones, /data/anr), which are created when the Android application or kernel crashes.
• 🗑️ Remnants of Remote Applications – Folders /data/data and /data/app-lib, Sometimes they are left behind after the installation of the program.
• 🔄 Cash updates. MIUI — firmware (/cache), which are not automatically cleaned.
• 📊 System Services Databases –.db and.db-journal files from Google Play Services, Mi Account and other background processes.
• 🎭 Hidden themes and design files – resources MIUI Themes that load in the background.

Xiaomi is particularly sensitive to proprietary services such as Mi Push Service or Mi Cloud Sync, which generate their own logs and cache, which often fall outside the standard storage categories and therefore end up in Other, and some files are encrypted, and cannot be viewed without root rights.

Interestingly, on devices with MIUI 14+, the Other can account for 20 to 30 percent of the total memory, while on pure Android (like Pixel), the figure rarely exceeds 5 to 10 percent, due to Xiaomi’s aggressive policy of collecting diagnostic data and optimizing shell performance.

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

Unfortunately, MIUI does not provide built-in tools for detailed analysis of the Other folder, but there are workarounds:

1. Use a root-access file manager (like Root Explorer or FX File Explorer) and go to /data and sort files by size, so you'll see the heaviest folders. Careful: Deleting system files without knowledge can cause MIUI to crash!
2. Connect to your PC via ADB and execute the command:

adb shell du -h -d 1 /data | sort -h

This command will show the size of folders in /data, sorted by volume.

• /data/log – system logs
• /data/system – settings and cache of services;
• /data/misc is a temporary file.

For users without root rights, Storage Analyzer (available on Google Play) will not show hidden system files, but will help identify large folders in the user section that could be attributed to the Other.

⚠️ Attention: Do not delete folders /data/dalvik-cache or /data/app This will cause applications to fail and may require reflashing the device.

Top.-5 How to Clean Up “Other” in Xiaomi Memory

So we're going to practice. Below are the methods from the safest to the most radical. Start with the first and move on to the next, only if the last one didn't work.

1. Cleaning the cache of system applications

Many MIUI services (such as Mi Security or Mi Cloud) accumulate cache that goes to "Other" to clear it:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Click on the three dots in the upper right corner and select Show System Processes.
3. Find apps called com.miui., com.xiaomi. or com.android.
4. For each, click Warehouse. → Clear the cache.

com.miui.securitycenter|com.xiaomi.cloud|com.android.providers.media|com.miui.gallery|com.miui.cleanmaster-->

2. Delete logs through the engineering menu

Xiaomi hides a log cleaner tool in the engineering menu to open it:

1. Enter the dialer code ##4636##.
2. Go to the Storage tab.
3. Press Collect log files → Clear logs.

This method removes up to 1-2 GB of unnecessary files, but it does not work on all models (on Redmi Note 11 and later can be blocked).

3. Resetting the "Security and Privacy" settings

MIUI services store application resolution, virus scanning, and locking data in a separate database, sometimes freeing up 500MB-1GB of data:

1. Go to Settings → Memory → Cleanup.
2. Click on the gear in the top corner and select Deep Clean.
3. Activate the option to Reset security settings and confirm.

4. Cleaning through ADB (no root)

If previous methods didn’t help, connect your phone to your PC and follow the commands:

adb shell pm trim-caches 1000G


adb shell cmd package bg-dexopt-job

The first command clears the cache of all applications, the second - optimizes DEX-files (reduces the size of the Dalvik cache) This can free up to 3-5 GB, but requires an installed ADB and debugging USB.

5. Complete reset to factory settings

The last method that is guaranteed to clear the Other, but delete all user data.

• 📱 Make a backup copy through Settings → Additionally. → Backup and reset.
• 🔐 Make sure you know the username/password from Mi Account (required to unlock after resetting).
• 📶 Connect to Wi-Fi – After the reset, the phone will download updates.

Reset itself: Settings → About phone → Reset. Choose Delete all data.

⚠️ Attention: On devices with MIUI 13+ You may need to link to your Xiaomi account after reset, even if you didn't have one before. If you forget your password, your phone will become a brick»!

💡

The most effective method without data loss is a combination of cleaning the cache of system applications + deleting logs through the engineering menu. This is safe and frees up to 3-4 GB of memory.

Why does the “Other” reappear after cleaning?

Even after a successful cleanup, the Other folder grows back over time.

The most radical way to prevent the growth of The Other is to disable all unnecessary MIUI services:

• 🚫 Mi Cloud Sync (unless you use the cloud);
• 🚫 Auto-optimization in Settings → Battery;
• 🚫 Statistics collection in Settings → The phone. → User feedback.

💡

If you install/remove apps frequently, use SD Maid (from Google Play) to automatically clean your tails into /data/data.

What to do if the “Other” takes more than 10 GB?

If the Other folder is larger than 10 GB, it’s a sign of serious problems:

1. The file system is damaged, for example, by the phone being disabled incorrectly while recording data, and only by flashing through Fastboot will help.
2. A virus or malware masquerading as system files. Check your phone through Malwarebytes or Dr.Web.
3. Mistake in MIUI when the system duplicates files, often occurs after an over-the-air update (OTA).

For diagnosis:

1. Install DiskUsage from Google Play and check which folders take up the most space.
2. If you see folders with names like com.sec.android or android.secure, it’s a sign of a virus.
3. Try flashing your phone through the Mi Flash Tool with the clean all option (delete everything, including /data).

⚠️ Note: On some devices (e.g. Xiaomi) 12T) The “Other” folder may be inflated due to a bug in MIUI 14, when the system doesn't clear the Google Play Games cache.The solution is to remove updates for that app manually.

FAQ: Frequent questions about the “Other” in the memory of Xiaomi