Users of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones often face a chilling situation: the storage is crowded, but analysis shows that the lion's share is occupied by the mysterious category "Other." The system can show 64 GB of 128 GB occupied by this section, even though you did not download terabytes of movies. It is not a counting error or a virus, but a specific feature of the MIUI and HyperOS shell.
The Other system partition accumulates all the data that a standard analyzer cannot uniquely classify, including cached application files, remnants of deleted programs, error logs, clipboards and temporary update files, and ignoring this problem leads to a serious slowdown in the interface, freezes and the inability to install new applications.
In this article, we will explore the nature of junk files and offer a step-by-step cleaning algorithm. You will learn how to safely remove excess without risking losing personal photos or important documents. Understanding the structure of the Android file system on Xiaomi devices will help you keep your phone in optimal condition.
What is hidden behind the label "Other"
The Other section is a kind of file system black box, and when Android can't assign a file a standard tag (like Photos, Videos, or Music), it puts it right here, most often an app cache that grows to giant sizes, like messengers like Telegram or WhatsApp can store gigabytes of media that they've viewed.
In addition to cache, it often stores debugging logs and error reports that the system automatically generates, developers use them for diagnostics, but the average user does not need them, and the Other hides offline navigation map data, cache of streaming services like YouTube or Spotify, and temporary files after a firmware update.
⚠️ Note: Do not attempt to delete files from system folders through root-right file managers without understanding their purpose).
It's important to note that this category is dynamic, it can increase during a day of active operation and decrease after rebooting or cleaning, but without manual intervention, the Other has the ability to grow, occupying up to 30-40% of the total available memory of the device.
Analysis of the storage by built-in means
Before we go to radical measures, we need to do a good diagnostics, and the MIUI shell and the new HyperOS have a built-in memory management tool, go to Settings, then select About Phone and press Storage, and here you'll see a color memory distribution diagram.
Click on the "Other" section to try to detail the data. Often, you can find large files that you forgot to delete. If the standard analyzer doesn't give details, use the built-in Security app (green zipper icon). Run the scan and select "Clean up".
- 📱 Open the Security app on the home screen.
- 🧹 Click on the Cleanup button to remove obvious debris.
- 📊 Go to the Deep Cleanup section to analyze large files.
- 🗑️ Carefully review the list and remove unnecessary documents.
Standard tools are good for rapid prevention, but they often don't see the hidden cache of system applications. So deep cleaning will have to use more advanced methods, which will be discussed below. Regular analysis helps keep things under control.
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Use the Deep Clean mode in the Security app once a week to prevent hidden cache from accumulating.
Manual cleaning through the file manager
To do more detail, you'll need Explorer built-in. We'll need to look into hidden folders where the most common hiding place is junk. Turn on the hidden files in the Explorer settings (usually three dots in the menu corner). We're interested in folders with the names of applications you haven't used in a long time.
Pay special attention to the Android/data and Android/obb folder. It stores game and heavy app data. If you deleted the game but the folder with its name (e.g. com.tencent.ig for PUBG) is still there, take it easy. It will make room safely.
The way to check: Internal storage → Android → dataAlso check social folders. In Telegram, for example, the cache can lie in a separate directory unless autocleaning is enabled. Deleting the contents of cache folders inside app directories is usually safe, but don't touch files with the.db or.sqlite extension unless you're sure they're cache databases.
☑️ Checking garbage folders
Use of Developer Mode and ADB
For advanced users who want to clear Other, there is a method through USB debugging. This allows you to remove the cache of system applications that is not available to the average user. First, you need to activate the developer mode: go to Settings → About Phone and quickly click on the MIUI Version (or OS Version) 7 times.
Then, in the menu, additionally enable USB Debugging. Connect your phone to your computer and use the ADB (Android Debug Bridge) utility. The command to clear the cache of a particular application is as follows:
adb shell pm trim-caches 999999999This command forcibly trims the cache of all applications to the lowest possible value, a powerful tool that can instantly free up a few gigabytes, but once executed, some applications can load a little longer on their first run, as they will have to recreate the necessary temporary files.
⚠️ Attention: Use ADB-Incorrect command entry can lead to the deletion of critical system data.
Table: File types in the "Other" section
To better understand what to delete and what not to touch, check out the chart below, which will help classify the data that takes up space on your Xiaomi.
| Type of data | Location. | Can I remove it? | Effects of consequences |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cash app. | Android/data, cache | Yes. | Applications will download data again |
| Logs of error | /data/tombstones | Yes. | No, these are crash reports. |
| Offline maps | Navigator folders | Yes (if you don't need to) | Maps will become unavailable without the Internet |
| Messenger databases | Android/data/.../databases | No. | Loss of correspondence history |
| Cash miniprograms | SuperApp/Mini folders | Yes. | Mini-applications will open longer |
Analysis of this table shows that most of the Other is secure data, and regular cleaning of cache and logs is the best way to combat memory overload, and don't be afraid to delete files from folders called cache.
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The main volume of the "Other" section is cached data and logs, the removal of which is safe for the system to work.
Cardinal measures: Resetting settings
If neither method worked, and the Other section continues to grow, there may have been some logical errors in the file system, in this case a complete factory reset, which will put the phone back out of the box by removing all the accumulated digital debris.
Before the procedure, be sure to back up all important data to the Mi Cloud cloud service or computer. Go to Settings → About Phone → Reset. Select “Delete All Data.” The process will take 10-15 minutes.
Once reset, the system will be clean and the Other partition will take up the smallest possible volume (usually 2-4 GB), which is guaranteed to solve the problem if it is not related to a physical malfunction of the memory module.
Why is the memory filled immediately after resetting?
Prevention of memory overflow
To prevent the Other problem from coming back too often, set up automatic cleanup. The Security app has an Acceleration feature that you can set to start when you reach a certain memory occupancy threshold. It's also useful to reboot your smartphone regularly - this clears RAM and some temporary files.
Keep an eye out for MIUI/HyperOS updates. In newer firmware versions, developers often optimize their file system and fix errors that lead to memory leaks. Store heavy files on a memory card or in the cloud so that internal storage is not overloaded.
- 🔄 Set up autocleaning cache in the Security app.
- ☁️ Use cloud storage for photos and videos.
- 📵 Turn off auto-save media in messengers.
- 📲 Regularly remove unused applications.
Compliance with these simple rules will allow your Xiaomi to work quickly and consistently throughout its life. Memory is a valuable resource, and competent management of it directly affects the user experience.