The problem of overcrowded storage is familiar to every smartphone owner, especially users of the Xiaomi ecosystem. You open the settings and you see that the lion's share of space is occupied by the "Other" or "Other" section, which is a mysterious category that often takes up tens of gigabytes, slows down the system and prevents new applications from being installed.
Unlike photos or videos, the contents of this folder are not so easy to remove using standard methods. System debris accumulates over months, consisting of messenger cache, temporary update files and residual data from remote programs. Understanding the nature of these files is the first step to successfully clean the device.
Next, we'll look at safe and efficient ways to free up space, and you'll learn to distinguish between useful system data and digital junk that can be safely removed, and using the right tools, you'll be able to recover gigabytes of free memory without losing personal data.
What’s Hiding in the “Other” Category on Xiaomi
The MIUI or HyperOS “Other” category is a collective image for all files that the system cannot uniquely classify as images, music or videos, including archives, documents,.apk installation packages and application data, often hiding heavy databases of messengers that do not appear in the overall scope of the application.
Logs and error reports are a significant part of the volume, and if you've been using your phone for a long time and rarely reset, these files can grow into obscene sizes, and temporary browser and streaming files that are not automatically deleted after a session is over.
- 📂 Social network cache and instant messengers (Telegram, WhatsApp, Viber).
- 📂 Residual files after deleting apps and games.
- 📂 System logs and emergency termination reports.
- 📂 Downloaded offline maps and music from streaming services.
⚠️ Note: Do not attempt to delete files from system folders through the file manager manually unless you know exactly what they are intended for.
It's important to understand that not all of the content in The Other is garbage, that it can store important documents or game data, so it's always worth analyzing the content with built-in tools or third-party utilities before radical action.
Using Xiaomi's built-in cleaner
The safest and easiest way to start the fight for space is to use the regular Security app. Xiaomi engineers have implemented a powerful algorithm that can find duplicates, large files and cache of applications. Launch the application and click on the Cleanup button.
The system will analyze the storage and suggest that temporary files be deleted. However, standard cleaning is often superficial. For a deeper analysis, click on the garbage icon and wait until the scan is completed. The app will show you what data is taking up space.
☑️ Cleaning plan through standard application
The big files section is worth paying special attention to, and users often forget about downloaded videos or archives that are dead weight, and removing them is the fastest way to free up gigabytes of memory.
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Run a full cache cleanup in the Security app periodically, especially after you upgrade or install heavy games, and this will prevent the accumulation of system debris.
Cleaning the cache of messengers and social networks
The leaders in the consumption of space in the “Other” section are traditionally messengers. Telegram and WhatsApp tend to save all viewed photos, videos and documents in memory of the device. Even if you delete the chat, media files can remain in the cache of the system.
To clean up Telegram, go to the app's settings, select "Data and Memory" and click "Memory Use." Here you can safely clear the cache without deleting correspondence. WhatsApp's procedure is similar to "Data and Storage" → "Storage Management."
| Annex | The path to cleanup | Safe to remove | Impact on data |
|---|---|---|---|
| Telegram | Settings → Data and memory | Yes (Cash) | Correspondences persist |
| Settings → Data and Storage | Yeah (All files) | Media removed from gallery | |
| Viber | More. → Settings → Memory. | Yeah (Cash media) | Chat photos may disappear |
| Phone settings → Applications | Careful. | Re-entry required |
Once the messenger cache is cleared, the “Other” partition can shrink by a few gigabytes instantly, which is a normal system reaction, since temporary files no longer take up space on the disk.
⚠️ Note: When cleaning WhatsApp storage through your phone settings (not inside the app), you can delete the correspondence database.
Delete residual files and folders through Explorer
If the automatic tools didn't work, you'll have to use a manual method, open the standard Explorer and go to the root folder of internal memory, look for folders with the names of previously deleted applications or games.
Often, after deleting a game, a folder with the developer's name (such as Gameloft, Asphalt or com.roblox.client) remains. Inside, heavy resource files may lie. Once the application is removed, feel free to erase the corresponding directory.
What folders can be manually deleted?
Also worth checking is the Android/data folder, which stores app data, and if you delete the game but the folder is still there, you can delete it, but be careful: deleting the active data of the running application will cause it to reset or lose progress.
- 🗑️ Folders with names of remote applications.
- 🗑️ Files with.log extension at the root of memory.
- 🗑️ folder MIUI/debug_log (unless you're a developer).
- 🗑️ Duplicate downloads in the Download folder.
Reset application settings and clean up via ADB
For advanced users who want to clean the Other as efficiently as possible, there is a method of resetting specific application settings or using USB debugging.This allows you to remove hidden cache that is not visible to the average user.
To clear the data of a particular heavy application, go to Settings → Apps → All Apps. Choose the right one, click Clean and select Clean All, which will return the application to the “just installed” state by removing all accumulated debris.
adb shell pm clear com.android.chromeThe command above (executed via a computer and ADB) cleans the Chrome browser data completely, and you can do the same with other packages knowing their name, which is a powerful tool, but it requires caution.
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Using ADB or resetting app data is a radical but most effective way to deal with bloated cache that is not removed by standard cleaning.
Cardinal measures: complete reset or flashing
When the software debris is critical and the methods above do not help, the last option is a complete reset to factory settings, which is guaranteed to clear the Other section, as the phone will return to its original state.
Before the procedure, be sure to save all the important data to the cloud or to the computer. Go to Settings → About Phone → Reset → Erase all the data. The process will take time, but the result will be perfect: the system will work quickly and memory is free.
⚠️ Warning: Full reset deletes ALL data, including contacts, photos and installed apps. Make sure you have an up-to-date backup in your Mi Cloud or Google account.
An alternative to a full reset would be to flash the device through the Mi Flash Tool with a choice of “Clean All” option, which would reinstall the system cleanly, removing all user data and system debris.