Xiaomi and Redmi smartphone owners often face a nasty situation: internal storage is crowded, even though the number of photos and apps is minimal. When you analyze the disk space in detail, it turns out that the lion’s share of space is occupied by a mysterious section called “The Other”; this system container can grow to tens of gigabytes, causing the interface to slow down and the inability to install new applications.
In a panic, users start deleting important files or even doing a complete reset, which doesn't always solve the problem dramatically. In fact, the system partition "Other" is not a bug, but the logical structure of the MIUI or HyperOS file system, where temporary files, application cache and remnants of remote programs are stored. Understanding the nature of this data is the first step to freeing up gigabytes of usable space without drastic measures.
In this article, we will take a closer look at what exactly is behind this designation, why partition volume is constantly growing, and what proven methods exist to clean it, and how to use the engineer’s built-in tools and third-party utilities to safely remove debris that has been accumulating deep in the file structure of your smartphone for years.
The Anatomy of the Other Section: What It Is Consisted of
When the Android operating system can’t uniquely classify a file as an image, video, audio or document, it sends it to the “Other” category. In the Xiaomi ecosystem, this section becomes a real “black box” where messenger caches, offline navigator maps and temporary update files flock. Often users do not even suspect that listened to music on the streaming service or watched stories on the social network occupy gigabytes of space here.
Social networks and messengers like Telegram or WhatsApp store every image and video viewed in local memory for quick download, and over time, this data turns into digital garbage, which the system labels as “Other”, and it can store error logs, remnants of deleted games and temporary files created during the operation of various services.
Another reason for the partition bloat is system logs and reports. If a device ever crashed, Android could create detailed diagnostic reports that take up a significant amount of time, and files left over from a failed system update or interrupted data download fall into this category. Without deep cleaning, these files can remain in memory for years.
⚠️ Note: Do not attempt to manually delete files from system folders through root-righted file managers unless you know the exact purpose of each file.
Xiaomi’s built-in cleaning tools
The first thing you need to do before using third-party software is to use the regular capabilities of the MIUI shell. Xiaomi smartphones preinstalled the application “Security”, which contains a powerful tool for analyzing disk space, it allows you not only to see the amount of memory occupied, but also to detail which applications contribute the most to the “Other” section.
To access the advanced cleaning functions, you need to go to the app menu and select Clean up. The system will scan and suggest removing obvious debris. However, working with the Other section often requires a deeper analysis. In the Memory menu, you will see a distribution chart where you can click on the Other category and get a list of the hidden space consumption leading applications.
Using the built-in cleaner is safe, as Xiaomi algorithms know which files are critical to the system and which can be deleted without consequences. Regular use of this feature helps keep the volume of the Other partition within reasonable limits.
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Use the Deep Clean feature in the Security app once a week to prevent temporary files from accumulating before they take up gigabytes.
If a standard cleaning didn’t work, it’s worth checking the settings of specific applications. Often, there are memory management features inside messengers or social networks that allow you to selectively remove the cache without affecting important chats or correspondence, a more effective way to combat the growth of the “Other” partition than a general cleanup of the system.
Manual cleaning through application settings
The most effective way to deal with the bloated “Other” section is by hand with the cache of heavy applications. Automatic cleaners are often afraid to touch the data of popular messengers, so the user has to take the initiative in their own hands, this process takes time, but gives the best result in freeing up space.
To start, you need to go to Settings → Apps → All apps. Here you need to sort the list by place, usually social networks, browsers and video services are at the top. Once you enter the properties of such an application, you will see a button "Clean" or "Clean up data." It is important not to confuse "Cache clean" with "Clean up all data", since the second action will completely reset the application to the state after installation.
Pay special attention to multimedia files in messengers. In Telegram, for example, you can set up automatic cache cleaning in the settings of the application itself. Set a limit, for example, 1 GB, and old media files will be deleted automatically, which will prevent future growth of the “Other” section and eliminate the need to manually clean every couple of months.
☑️ Manual cleaning algorithm
Once the cache is cleared, it is recommended to restart the device, so that the file system can recalculate the indexes and correctly display the space that has been vacant, sometimes the system does not immediately update the statistics, and the user may feel that nothing has changed, although gigabytes are already freed.
Using PC and debugging over USB
For advanced users who are not afraid to work with a computer, USB debugging will be a great tool. Connecting a smartphone to a PC, you can access the file system and visually assess which folders take up the most space. Often, at the root of internal memory, you can find forgotten folders from remote games or programs that take up hundreds of megabytes.
To enable this mode, you need to activate the developer menu. To do this, go to Settings → About phone and quickly click on the MIUI build number seven times. After that, the “Developers For” option will appear in the advanced settings, where you need to activate the “Debug by USB” slider. When you connect to your computer, select the file transfer mode (MTP).
On your computer, use a Explorer or dedicated disk analysis utilities to find the heaviest folders. Look for folders called Android/data and Android/obb, which often store game and application caches. Also check the Download folder and root directories for forgotten archives or APK installation files.
| folder | Description of the contents | Security of removal | Type of data |
|---|---|---|---|
| DCIM | Photo and video from the camera | Low (important data) | Media |
| Download | Uploaded files from the browser | High (if files are not needed) | Documents |
| Android/obb | Game data cache | Medium (the games may not start) | Other |
| MIUI/debug_log | Logs of system debugging | High (can be removed) | Systemic |
When working with files via PC, be extremely careful with system folders. Only delete the one you are 100% sure of, and it is better to copy suspicious files to your computer before deleting so that you can restore them if necessary.
Third-party utilities for memory analysis
If the built-in tools don’t seem informative enough, Google Play Store apps will come to the rescue, like DiskUsage or Storage Analyzer, which allows you to visualize the file system in a diagram where the size of each block corresponds to the amount of space occupied, which helps you instantly identify the “hidden eaters” of memory.
These tools scan the device and build a memory card, showing the nesting of folders. You will immediately see that, for example, a folder with a browser cache takes 5 GB, even though you thought you had closed all tabs long ago, this is the most visual way to understand the structure of the “Other” partition and find specific culprits.
However, you should be careful when using third-party software: give applications only the necessary access rights; some cleaners may be overloaded with advertising themselves or, conversely, delete the desired files; choose proven solutions with high ratings and a lot of reviews.
Why is the place not immediately vacated after cleaning?
Using such analyzers is especially useful for finding duplicate files that can also masquerade as the “Other” section, often users download the same document or save the image several times without noticing it, which adds up to a significant amount of volume.
Cardinal measures: resetting and flashing
When none of the sparing methods helps and the Other continues to grow, occupying a critical volume, the last option is a complete factory reset, which will completely clear the internal memory by removing all user data, applications and, most importantly, accumulated system debris and file system errors.
Before you do this, make sure to back up all your important data, save your photos, contacts, correspondence and documents to the cloud or to your computer. Once reset, your phone will look like you just bought it from a store, and the Other section will take up as much as possible.
To perform the reset, go to Settings → About Phone → Reset. Select “Erase All Data.” The process will take a few minutes, after which the device will restart, and this is guaranteed to solve the problem if it is not caused by physical memory damage.
⚠️ Warning: Full reset is irreversible. Make sure you remember the password from your Mi Account and Google account, otherwise the phone may be locked after the reset due to the theft protection feature.
In rare cases, the problem may lie in the corruption of the file table due to the incorrect operation of previous versions of the firmware, in which case it can help to flash the device through the computer using the Mi Flash Tool utility, but this is a procedure for experienced users.
Prevention of memory overflow
To avoid the problem of crowded “Other” in the future, you should develop useful habits of using your smartphone. Regular cleaning of the cache, removing unnecessary applications and controlling the autoload of files will help keep the memory in order. Do not allow filling the memory “to be retired”, this negatively affects the speed of the drive.
Use cloud storage for photos and videos. Set up your media files to Google Photos or Mi Cloud automatically and delete them from your device, freeing up gigabytes of space and making the Other section more transparent and manageable.
It is also recommended to periodically check the settings of messengers and limit the auto-save media files. The less garbage accumulates automatically, the less you will have to resort to radical cleaning methods. MIUI HyperOS and memory algorithms are often optimized.
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Regular prevention and control of auto-save settings in applications are more effective at preventing the growth of the Other section than periodic deep cleanings.
Compliance with these simple rules will allow your Xiaomi to work quickly and consistently throughout its life, and the mysterious “Other” section will cease to be a source of headaches and take its rightful place in the statistics.