How to Clean Memory on Xiaomi: From Cache to System Files

Modern Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones have powerful hardware, but even flagship models are beginning to think over time, often due not to processor wear, but to a banal overflow of internal memory. The MIUI operating system (or the new HyperOS) requires free space for the correct operation of the cache of applications and temporary files.

When space becomes critically scarce, the device can start to spontaneously close applications, slow down menus or stop taking calls altogether. Memory shortage is the main enemy of system stability. In this guide, we will discuss proven cleaning methods that will help return the gadget to its previous speed without losing important data.

There are many ways to make space, from built-in tools to deep computer cleaning, and it's important to understand that system debris accumulates unnoticed, and regular maintenance prolongs the life of the device. Let's figure out where to start and what tools to use.

Use of the built-in "Security" application

The easiest and safest way to start cleaning up is to use the standard app that is pre-installed on every Xiaomi smartphone, called Security, and has a green shield icon, designed specifically for the MIUI shell and can find hidden temporary files.

Launch the app and click on the large green Cleanup button. The system will scan the device and suggest removing the "garbage" that is taking up space. Click the scan button again, or select "Dumpster Cleanup" from the menu to see the detail. Often, you can find forgotten installations there. APK-files or remnants of remote programs.

Deep Cleaning allows you to analyze large files and rarely used applications, which helps you identify heavyweights that you haven't run in a long time, but they continue to take up gigabytes, and regular use of this module supports system optimization at a basic level.

But remember, the built-in scanner doesn't always find everything, it works superficially and often ignores the messenger cache, which can grow to huge sizes, so you need to dig deeper to clean up your memory.

Analysis and removal of application cache

The bulk of data on a smartphone is not photos, but the cache of social networks and instant messengers. Telegram, Viber, TikTok and Instagram store every photo and video viewed into internal memory. Over time, the folder with the data of these applications can weigh 10, 20 and even 50 gigabytes.

To clear the cache selectively, go to Settings → Apps → All apps. Find a “heavy” app (like Telegram) in the list. Go inside, select Memory and click Clear Cache. Importantly, don’t confuse it with Clear All or Erase Data, which will delete your correspondence and logins, requiring re-authorization.

For instant messengers like Telegram, there is a more flexible way to clean up. Inside the app, go to Settings → Data and Memory → Memory Use. You can set up automatic deletion of media files, such as storing photos for 3 days and storing videos for 1 day, and this is automatic optimization that will prevent future overflow problems.

• 📱 Go to the settings of a specific application.
• 🗑️ Find the "Storage" or "Memory" section».
• 🧹 Click on “Clear Cache” avoiding the “Erase Data” button».
• ⚙️ Set up autodelete media inside messengers.

Regularly checking the cache of video services and browsers also gives great results. Browsers often save copies of pages you visited a month ago, and they are no longer relevant.

Working with folders and files through the Explorer

The Android file system allows you to manually remove unnecessary content that is often hidden in the back of directories. The standard Explorer (or File Manager) application on Xiaomi has a convenient feature of analyzing the space occupied. In the Storage Analysis section, the system will show which folders take up the most space.

Special attention should be paid to folders DCIM (photo and video from the camera; and MIUI/Gallery/cloud (Users often forget about the Download folder, where they can lie for years. PDF-documents, old presentations and installers, and removing the contents of this folder is the fastest way to get free space.

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Before you delete files from the Download folder, sort them by size. Often, one forgotten movie takes up more space than a thousand documents.

System folders are not recommended. Directories named Android/data or Android/obb contain game files and system services. If you remove the extra ones, games can stop running, and maps in the navigator can be a chasm. Manual cleaning requires care.

If you're not sure what the file is doing, you might want to use the extension search, search.apk to find installers, or.log to find error reports that you can safely delete, and this will help you do selective cleaning without risking the system.

Cleaning Gallery and Cloud Services

Media is the main consumer of space. High-resolution photos and 4K videos eat gigabytes quickly. Xiaomi owners are lucky: the gallery has a built-in feature to clean similar shots and screenshots. Open the gallery, go to the Albums section and scroll down to the item "Recent" or "Deleted".

Be sure to check the cart. On Xiaomi smartphones, deleted photos are stored for another 30 days. If you deleted 5GB of photos a month ago, they still take up space in the system, waiting for final removal.

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The basket in the gallery and the “Recent” folder in the conductor are hidden tanks that are often forgotten to clean, losing precious gigabytes.

If you're using Google Photos or Mi Cloud, turn on the "Free Space" feature, which automatically deletes photos that have already been successfully uploaded to the cloud from your device, allowing you to store the originals safely without taking up the phone's internal memory.

Screenshots, interfaces, correspondence, and errors often don't have long-term value. Do a review: If the screenshot is more than a week old and you don't need it to work, delete it.

Removal of duplicates and system debris

When using a smartphone, duplicate files are often created, which can occur when saving fails, messengers work, or after a system update. Xiaomi has a built-in tool for finding duplicates, but you can use third-party solutions for deeper analysis if the built-in ones fail.

There's a "Clean Up" section in the Security app where "Duplicates" is often found, and the system compares checksums of files and suggests that you delete copies. It's safe and efficient, and it's also worth checking the Bluetooth folder, which often automatically saves files from friends.

System garbage is not just cache, but also error logs, temporary update files, and residual files from remote applications. Deleting them sometimes requires a more advanced approach. ADB-Teams, but for most of them, standard means are sufficient. MIUI.

Don't forget the folder. MIUI/debug_log. It stores the system's debugging logs, and if you're not a developer and you don't debug a specific bug on an engineer's instructions, this folder can be cleaned, and it can grow to a few gigabytes if the system fails.

Using a computer for deep cleaning

The most radical and effective method is to connect your smartphone to your PC, and through a USB cable, you can access the entire file system in file transfer mode, and on a large monitor, it's easier to analyze folder structure and delete huge archives that are difficult to find through your phone.

Connect your phone, select file transfer mode, and open the internal storage on your computer. Sort files by size. You'll immediately see heavyweights. Often forgotten movies, TV shows, or WhatsApp backups that take up tens of gigabytes. Direct deletion through your PC is faster and more stable.

You can also use specialized disk space analysis software (such as WinDirStat or TreeSize) to connect your phone as a network drive or copy the content for analysis, which will allow you to see the visual memory card and understand what is stopping the system.

After cleaning your computer, make sure to reboot your smartphone, which will allow Android to recalculate the file index and correctly display the space in the settings. Without rebooting, the memory indicator can show incorrect data.

Table: What can and cannot be removed

To avoid making critical mistakes and turning your smartphone into a brick, check out the security table, which lists the main directories and their purpose.

Be very careful when working with system partitions. Deleting system files can make it impossible to boot the operating system. If you don't know exactly what the file is responsible for, you better leave it alone.

⚠️ Attention: Before manually cleaning folders, it is strongly recommended to back up important data to your computer or the cloud.

Prevention of memory overflow

To avoid going back to the question of how to clean up your memory every week, make sure you keep up with your regular maintenance routine: install automatic cleaning in your messengers, set up your photos to sync with the cloud, and delete unwanted apps immediately after you use them.

Use microSD cards if your Xiaomi model supports installation.Transferring photos, videos and music to an external card will significantly reduce the internal storage where the system is installed, which will improve the overall performance of the interface.

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Install the Memory Cleanup widget on your desktop, and one tap on it will run a garbage scan, and you don't have to search for the app on the menu.

Keep an eye out for system updates. With newer versions of MIUI and HyperOS, Xiaomi often improves memory algorithms by introducing more aggressive compression and cleaning.

⚠️ Attention: Do not fill the internal memory "to the end." For normal operation of flash memory and mechanism of leveling of wear (wear leveling) must always be free minimum 10-15% Otherwise, the phone will start to slow down very hard.

Regularly reviewing installed apps does wonders. Go to the settings and sort programs by size. If a game weighs 5GB and you haven't run it in six months, delete it. Modern app stores allow you to quickly retrieve everything when you need it.