Where is the Thumbnails folder on Xiaomi: search and cleanup

Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones often face situations where internal storage suddenly overflows. One of the main “eaters” of space that is not always obvious to the average user is the thumbnails system folder. It is responsible for storing thumbnails of images and videos, speeding up their display in the gallery, but over time can grow to gigabytes.

Finding this directory can be tricky, as a standard file manager sometimes hides system folders or requires a special display mode to be enabled. In this article, we will detail where this cache is located on the device, why it takes up so much space, and how to safely delete it without damaging personal photos.

Understanding the structure of the Android file system on the MIUI or HyperOS shell will allow you to effectively manage memory. We will look at several methods for accessing hidden files, ranging from built-in tools to advanced ways through the computer.

What is Thumbnails folder and why you need it

The thumbnails folder is a system cache in which the operating system stores reduced copies of your photos and videos. When you open a gallery or explorer, the system does not download the original files in high resolution each time, which would require significant processor resources and time. Instead, Android instantly displays light thumbnails from this folder.

The mechanism is simple: the first time you scan media files, you create a low-resolution copy..thumbnails can weigh between 500 MB and 10 GB or more if you actively take pictures and shoot videos in 4K. The problem is that the system rarely automatically removes old thumbnails, even if the originals have long been erased.

This leads to a paradoxical situation: you deleted thousands of photos to make room, but the memory of the smartphone was not cleaned up. The culprit is often the bloated cache of thumbnails, which continues to store the “ghosts” of deleted images, and regular checking of this section is necessary to maintain the speed of the device.

⚠️ Attention: Deleting the thumbnails folder is safe for your personal data. DCIM Pictures will not be affected by this procedure.

Location of folder on different versions of Android and MIUI

The path to the system cache may vary slightly depending on the operating system version and the specific model of your Xiaomi. In modern versions of Android (11, 12, 13, 14) and the shells of MIUI 12/13/14, the directory structure has become more stringent for security reasons.

The main path where the object is most often hidden is: Internal memory → DCIM →.thumbnails. Notice the point at the beginning of the folder name, which indicates the hidden status of the file. Without the option in the file manager, you simply won't see it.

In some cases, especially on older versions of firmware or when using third-party galleries, the path can lead to the root of internal memory or to the Pictures folder. It is also worth considering that on smartphones with an SD card installed, a copy of the cache can be duplicated there, taking up space on the drive.

For clarity, consider the table with the most likely ways of location depending on the use scenario:

How to enable the display of hidden files in the Explorer

Before you start cleaning, you need to make hidden directories visible. Xiaomi's standard Explorer app has this feature, but it's disabled by default. It's done to protect inexperienced users from accidentally deleting important system files.

To activate visibility mode, run a standard file manager. At the top of the screen, next to the search bar or in a three-dot (or three-band) menu, find the settings icon. In the menu that opens, you need to find a switch called Show Hidden Files and activate it.

Once this option is enabled, all folders and files starting from a dot will become visible and will be displayed semi-transparent. Now you can go on the path of Internal Shared Drive → DCIM and see the.thumbnails folder. If the standard Explorer does not show the folder size or does not give access, you can use third-party solutions.

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Use a Total Commander or Solid Explorer file manager – they often have a more user-friendly interface for working with hidden system folders than the standard Xiaomi app.

Instructions for cleaning the cache of thumbnails manually

The cleaning process is simple enough, but it requires care. We will only delete the contents of the thumbnail folder without touching the originals. Before starting any manipulation of the file system, it is recommended to back up important data, although the risk of losing photos when working with.thumbnails is minimal.

Follow the step-by-step algorithm of actions to make room:

• 📂 Open the file manager and go to the folder DCIM.
• 👁️ Make sure that hidden files are displayed (see previous section).
• 🗑️ Find the.thumbnails folder, hold it with your finger to highlight it.
• ❌ Click the Remove button (basket icon) and confirm the action.

If the folder weighs a few gigabytes, it can take a while to delete. Don't interrupt. It takes a few minutes to reset the indexes after the system is complete. The next time you open the gallery, you'll notice that the photos load a little slower -- that's OK, the system caches again.

Using the Cleanup Application for Automation

Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones have a Security system app that includes a powerful Cleanup tool, less accurate than manual removal, but safer for beginners because the algorithms themselves determine what is trash.

Run the Safety app and select Clean up. The system will scan and prompt you to remove the Garbage. However, standard cleaning often misses deep cleaning of thumbnails. To do this, after the initial scan, click on the Clean up garbage button, and then, if this option appears, select Deep Clean up.

In the deep cleaning section, you can often find the category Photo Albums or Gallery Cache, which will list thumbnail files. Be careful: sometimes the system flags as trash the photos you recently deleted from the cart, so always check the contents before final confirmation.

⚠️ Warning: Automatic cleaners can be aggressive.Always check what you're going to delete so you don't lose saved WhatsApp statuses or thumbnails of important documents.

What to do if the thumbnails folder is not deleted

Sometimes users are faced with a situation where the system gives an error "failed to delete" or "file is busy", which is because the process of the gallery or media scanner is currently actively using cache files.

The first solution is to reboot the device to safe mode or simply shut down. After restarting, without opening the gallery, go straight to the file manager and try to delete the folder again. If that doesn't work, you can use the connection to the computer.

Connect your smartphone to your PC through USB-cable, select file transfer mode (MTP). The computer has higher file system access rights and can often delete a "locked" file that cannot be deleted from the phone itself. ADB (Android Debug Bridge, but it requires a computer and minimal technical skills.

Prevention of the growth of systemic debris

You can't completely turn off thumbnails without losing the functionality of the gallery, but you can minimize the impact on memory. Regular file system hygiene is the best way to avoid problems. Once a month, take 5 minutes to check the DCIM folder.

Use cloud storage, such as Google Photos or Yandex.Disk, with the “Free Space” function. They automatically delete the originals from the device after downloading to the cloud, which indirectly reduces the amount of thumbnail cache required, since fewer files require fewer previews.

Also worth keeping an eye out for installed apps: Many instant messengers and social media sites create their own folders with thumbnails of images that don't belong to the thumbnails system stick, but also take up space. Regularly cleaning up a Telegram or WhatsApp cache can free up even more space than cleaning a gallery.

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Regular manual cleaning of the folder.thumbnails every 2-3 months is the most effective way to maintain free space on Xiaomi smartphones without installing third-party software.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)