How to Clean Up the Other on Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 Pro: A Complete Guide with Proven Methods

Owners of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 Pro often encounter a mysterious “Other” partition in memory settings that takes up gigabytes of space for no apparent reason.This section includes system app cache, temporary MIUI files, remnants of deleted programs and even hidden messenger data. Unlike the obvious categories (Photos, Videos, Apps), cleaning the “Other” requires a comprehensive approach, from manual cleaning to using hidden firmware functions.

Compounding the problem, Xiaomi’s standard tools (like Cleanup) often fail to handle deep system files. In this article, we’ll look at 5 proven methods, including working with ADBs, hidden folders, and third-party utilities. Importantly, some methods require root rights or USB debugging, which we’ll highlight separately with risk warnings.

Before you start, check your current memory status: go to Settings → About Phone → Memory. If the Other partition takes up more than 5-10 GB, it’s a signal to action. On the Redmi Note 9 Pro with 64/128 GB of memory, such “garbage” can lead to slowdowns, application installation errors, and even occasional reboots.

1.What is the “Other” in Xiaomi’s memory and why it grows

The Other section of MIUI is a container for files that the system cannot categorize as standard.

• 📁 Cache of system applications (e.g. com.miui.home, com.android.systemui)
• 🗑️ Temporary files from messengers (Telegram, WhatsApp) and social networks
• 🔄 Remnants of Remote Applications (Folders) /data/data/ and /data/app-lib/)
• 📱 Logs and dumps of the system (created when failures or debugging)
• 🔒 Hidden firmware files (for example, backups) MIUI)

On the Redmi Note 9 Pro with MIUI 12-14 firmware, this section is often sprawled by the way MediaProvider works, the service responsible for indexing media. For example, when you delete a photo through a gallery, files can remain in the thumbnails database, taking up hundreds of megabytes. Another culprit is Google Play Services, which caches data to speed up work, but does not always clean it.

A critical feature of the Redmi Note 9 Pro: On this device, the Other section can include files from the /mnt/expand/ folder, which is used to expand memory through a microSD. Even if you don't use a memory card, the system can reserve data there.

⚠️ Note: Do not confuse “Other” with the System (system files) or Reserved (reserved space for updates.

2. Method 1: Clear cache and temporary files through settings

The safest method is to use the built-in MIUI tools, which do not require super-user rights and is suitable for beginners.

Steps for Redmi Note 9 Pro:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Slip on three dots in the upper right corner and select “Show System Processes”.
3. Sort applications by cache size (click on "Cache size").
4. Select apps with a cache >100MB (e.g. Google Play Services, Mi Video, Gallery) and click Clear Cache.

For deep cleaning:

1. Go to Settings → Memory → Cleanup.
2. Click on “Deep Clean” and wait for analysis.
3. Delete all files found except the logs (they are needed for diagnostics).

Close all applications in multitasking

Connect your phone to charge (the process can take 5-10 minutes)

Check the vacant space (should be ≥1 GB)

Backup of important data-->

This method will free up 1-3 GB of space, but will not affect deep system files, for example, Telegram or WhatsApp cache can take up to 1 GB, but is cleared only through the applications themselves (in their settings).

⚠️ Warning: Do not clear the cache of com.android.phone and com.miui.securitycenter applications.This can cause mobile network failures or device lockdown.

3. Method 2: Delete unnecessary files through Explorer

You can manually delete temporary files that are not visible through standard settings, and any file manager with access to root folders (such as Mi File Manager or Solid Explorer) will do this.

The cleaning folders on Redmi Note 9 Pro:

Instructions:

1. Open Explorer and enable the display of hidden files (in settings).
2. Click on these paths and delete unnecessary files, for example, in /Android/data/com.tencent.ig/files you can delete the UE4Game folder (PUBG Mobile cache) freeing up to 2 GB.
3. For Thumbnails folder, it is enough to clean its contents - thumbnails will be restored automatically.

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If the folder is not deleted, check if it is used by the application. Close all programs through Settings → Applications → Executables and try again.

Pay special attention to /MIUI/Backup. This is where you store backups created through Settings → Additional → Backup..mbk files can be deleted if they are old.

Method 3: Using ADB for deep cleaning (without root)

If standard methods don't work, you can use ADB (Android Debug Bridge), a debugging tool that allows you to remove the system cache without superuser permissions, which is suitable for users willing to work with the command line.

Preparation:

1. Download ADB Tools for Windows/macOS/Linux.
2. Turn on "Debugging by" USB» on the phone: Settings → The phone. → Version. MIUI (Tap 7 times to activate the developer mode, then Settings → Additionally. → For developers → Debugging by USB.
3. Connect the Redmi Note 9 Pro to your PC and confirm your trusted device.

Cleanup commands:

adb shell pm clear com.miui.gallery #Cache cleaning Gallery


adb shell pm clear com.android.providers.media # Reset MediaProvider




adb shell pm clear com.google.android.gms # Google Play Services Cleanup




adb shell rm -rf /data/local/tmp/* # Delete temporary files




adb shell rm -rf /cache/* # Clearing the cache partition (requires a reboot)

Once you have completed the commands, restart your phone, and this method will free up up to 500MB-1GB of space by removing system debris that is not visible through the MIUI interface.

⚠️ Attention: Adb shell rm command -rf /cache/* clears the cache partition that is used for system updates. MIUI Soon, skip this step.

5. Method 4: Cleaning through Safe Mode

Some files in the Other section are blocked by working applications, and to delete them, you need to download the phone to Safe Mode, where all third-party programs are disabled.

How to Sign In to Safe Mode on Redmi Note 9 Pro:

1. Press the power button before the off menu appears.
2. Press and hold the “Switch off” (or “Switch off power”) until a request to go to Safe Mode appears.
3. Confirm the action. The phone will reboot with the words "Safe Mode" at the bottom of the screen.

In safe mode:

• 🔍 Check the folders. /Android/data and /Android/obb — Remove files from remote applications.
• 🗑️ Clear the cache of system applications through Settings → Applications (in Safe Mode, some applications become available for cleaning).
• 📱 Delete. APK-file /Download, which may have been left behind after installing applications.

Once cleaned, restart the phone as normal.Safe Mode does not delete user data, but lets you get rid of files blocked by background processes.

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Safe Mode is the only way to delete files that are occupied by system processes (such as Mi Share cache or Mi Cloud) without using root rights.

6. Method 5: Reset to factory settings (last resort)

If all previous methods failed, and the Other section takes up more than 10 GB, the last option is hard reset, which will remove all data from the phone, including system debris, but requires pre-preparedness.

How to reset the Redmi Note 9 Pro:

1. Back up important data through Settings → Additional → Backup or manually copy files to your PC.
2. Go to Settings → About the phone → Reset settings.
3. Select “Erase all data” and confirm the action.
4. After the reboot, the phone will be like new — without the extra files in the “Other” section.

What will be removed:

• 📱 All installed applications and their data.
• 📷 Photos, videos and music (if not on the list) SD-map).
• 🔑 Google and Xiaomi accounts (re-entry required).
• ⚙️ All system settings (Wi-Fi, wallpaper, sounds).

⚠️ Attention: On the Redmi Note 9 Pro reset does not affect the folder /sdcard/MIUI/Backup/ — If you have made backup copies through MIUI, Remove them manually after resetting if they are not needed.

Once reset, the Other section will take up to 1-2 GB, which is the norm for a clean system. To prevent it from proliferation in the future, keep an eye on the application cache and regularly clean temporary files (every 1-2 months).

7 How to prevent the “Other” from being refilled

To prevent the “Other” section from growing again, follow these recommendations:

• 📵 Limit the cache for messengers: in Telegram go to Settings → Data and memory → Cache size and set a limit of 500 MB.
• 🔄 Clean Google Play Services and Mi Video cache regularly – they are the most voracious».
• 🚫 Avoid installation APK Unknown sources – they often leave garbage in the ground. /Android/obb.
• 📁 Use cloud services (Google Photos, Mi Cloud) to store photos / videos, so as not to clog internal memory.
• 🔄 Update. MIUI to the latest version - in the new firmware optimized work with cache.

To clean up automatically, install Files by Google from Play Market.It offers a Cleanup feature with notifications of unnecessary files.It is also useful to disable automatic backups in Settings → Accounts → Mi Cloud → Backup if you do not use this feature.

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If you install/remove games frequently, use the SD-The card is like internal memory. Go to Settings for that. → Memory. → SD-You can select "Format as internal storage." This will transfer the game cache to the memory card.

FAQ: Frequent questions about cleaning up the Other on the Redmi Note 9 Pro