What is the “Other” in memory Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 and how to clean it without harming your phone

Have you ever looked into the storage settings of your Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 and seen the mysterious “Other” section, which takes up gigabytes of memory? It’s not a system bug or a virus — these are real files that Android and MIUI hide from the user under a common name. The problem is that over time this partition grows to 5-15 GB, eating up precious space, especially relevant for a model with 64 GB of memory.

In this article, we’ll look at what’s hidden under the Other in Redmi Note 7 memory, why standard cleaning methods (like MIUI’s garbage cleanup) don’t work, and how to safely shrink that partition without risking system damage, and learn about hidden folders, app cache, logs, and temporary files that have been accumulating for years, as well as the specific “chips” of MIUI firmware that exacerbate the problem.

Important: Cleaning methods for Redmi Note 7 (codename lavender) may differ from other Xiaomi models due to the hardware platform (Snapdragon 660 processor) and the MIUI version. If your phone was updated “over the air” to the latest versions, some folder paths may have changed – we took this into account in the instructions.

What is the Other in the memory of the Redmi Note 7?

The “Other” section is a dump of files that the system cannot categorize as standard (photos, videos, apps, etc.) and includes:

• 📁 Application and system cache: temporary files that should be automatically deleted but often remain due to crashes or features MIUI.
• 📜 Logs and dumps: debugging files created by the system when applications are crashed or updated (for example, a folder) /data/tombstones).
• 🔄 Remnants of Remote Applications: Folders and Settings of Programs You Uninstalled Long Ago, But Their Tails Are Left In The System.
• 📱 Files. MIUI: themes, wallpaper, fonts and other customization elements that are downloaded in the background.
• 🔒 Encrypted data: files that are restricted even to the file manager (e.g., encrypted application data).

On the Redmi Note. 7 Dalvik-cache files, which are optimized versions of applications that are created every time you update a system or install programs, play a special role. 1–2 GB and rarely clear automatically, and "Other" also gets archives of updates. MIUI, which remain in the folder /data/ota_package Even after successfully installing a new firmware.

Fun fact: On the Redmi Note 7 with MIUI 12+, the Other section can be artificially inflated by a bug in the service com.miui.analytics, which collects data about your phone’s use and stores it in encrypted form.

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

Before you clean it, you need to understand which files are eating up memory, and you need tools with superuser rights (root) or alternative methods of analysis.

If you do not have root rights, use these methods:

1. Open Settings → About Phone → MIUI version and tap 7 times on this item to activate the developer mode.
2. Return to Settings → Additional → For developers and enable USB debugging.
3. Connect your phone to your PC and use the Android Debug Bridge (ADB) utility to execute the command:

adb shell du -sh /data/* | sort -rh | head -n 20

This team will show the top-20 file /data, And you can see the most space, and you can see the folders. /data/dalvik-cache, /data/log or /data/system — They are often the culprits of the bloated "Other».

If you have root rights, install DiskUsage or SD Maid (Root Explorer mode) and they visualize the space you're occupied and show you hidden folders, like in SD Maid, go to CorpseFinder, and it will find the remnants of the remote applications.

⚠️ Attention: Do not delete folders /data/app, /data/data or /data/system It's going to crash the system, and you're only going to work with the specific files inside them.

Safe Ways to Clean the Other Without Root

If you're not ready to get root rights, try these methods. They're less effective, but they don't require a lot of technical knowledge.

1. Clearing the cache of all applications

This method will delete temporary files but will not affect personal data:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Slip on the three dots in the upper right corner and select Sort by size.
3. Open each app from the top of the list and click Clear cache.

Pay special attention to system applications like MIUI Security, Gallery or Browser – their cache can take up hundreds of megabytes.

2. Delete downloads and temporary files

The Download folder and the DCIM/.thumbnails folder often contain unnecessary files:

• 📂 Open Files (Standard Application) MIUI) and go into the internal memory. → Download, remove all unnecessary.
• 🖼️ In a file. DCIM Find the hidden folder.thumbnails - here are stored miniatures of photos and videos that can be safely deleted (they will be restored automatically).

3. Resetting MIUI settings

This is a radical method, but it helps if the Other is inflated due to firmware bugs:

1. Make a backup of the data through Settings → Additional → Backup and Reset.
2. Go to Settings → About the phone → Reset settings.
3. Select Reset MIUI (not a full reset!) This will remove themes, wallpaper and settings, but save apps and files.

Backup of important data |

Check the vacant space (should be ≥1 GB)|

Charge your phone ≥50%|

Disable automatic update of applications-->

Deep Cleanup with Root Rights

If you're willing to take a risk and get root, you can delete up to 80 percent of the files from The Other, but remember, doing the wrong thing can cause your phone to crash. Follow the instructions carefully.

1. Install Magisk and File Manager with root

Get root first through Magisk (the instructions for the Redmi Note 7 are available on the XDA Developers forum). Then install Root Explorer or FX File Explorer and turn on superuser mode.

2. Cleaning Dalvik-cache

This folder contains optimized versions of all applications, and it can be safely cleaned, and the system will restore files the next time it runs:

1. Open Root Explorer and go to /data/dalvik-cache.
2. Delete all files with the.dex or.oat extension.
3. Restart the phone. The first run will take longer -- that's fine.

3. Removal of logs and dumps

System logs take hundreds of megabytes, and you can delete them without any consequences.

Folders for cleaning (via Root Explorer):


/data/tombstones - error dumps




/data/log - logs of the system




/data/anr - Tracking of the hangings




/data/system/dropbox – crash reports

Delete the contents of these folders, but not the folders themselves!

4. Cleaning up MIUI cache

MIUI creates a cache of themes, wallpapers and animations in the /data/system/theme folder. Delete everything except the current theme (its name matches the active theme in the settings).

⚠️ Note: Do not delete files in folders /data/data/com.android.* — These are system applications. Also avoid folders called lib, app-lib, or app-asec.

How can we prevent the “Other” from growing again?

To prevent the “Other” section from filling in again, follow these tips:

• 🔄 Turn off automatic updates MIUI: Go to Settings. → The phone. → Update the system and disable the option Auto download over Wi-Fi.
• 📱 Limit background activity MIUI: In Settings → Battery and productivity → Battery Management Select Energy Saving Mode for System Applications.
• 🗑️ Clean the cache regularly: use the CCleaner app or the built-in Cleanup utility in the MIUI (But don’t trust it completely – it doesn’t clean deep system files).
• 🚫 Avoid "heavy" topics MIUI: Animated themes and wallpaper create an additional cache in /data/system/theme.

It is also useful to disable the collection of analytics in MIUI:

1. Go to Settings → Further → Privacy.
2. Turn off the options of Send Usage Data and Improve MIUI.
3. In the same section, disable Personalized Recommendations – this will reduce the number of logs created.

💡

If you install and uninstall applications frequently, use App Cloner to create a sandbox that allows you to test programs without clogging the main system.

What should I do when cleaning the “other”?

Some actions can permanently break your Redmi Note 7. Here's a taboo list:

Also avoid the “miracle utility” from Google Play, which promises to “free 10GB per 1 click.” Most of them are either useless or contain malicious code. For example, apps like Clean Master or DU Speed Booster often create more garbage than they clean.

💡

If the space is rapidly reduced after cleaning the Other, check the phone for viruses using Malwarebytes or the built-in MIUI scanner. Some Trojans create hidden files in /data/local/tmp.

FAQ: Frequent questions about the “Other” in the memory of the Redmi Note 7