How to Clean the ‘Other’ Partition in Xiaomi Memory

Xiaomi and Redmi smartphone owners often face the unpleasant situation of having their internal storage suddenly overcrowded. Android says memory is busy, but on detailed analysis it becomes clear that the lion's share of space is reserved for the mysterious "Other" section. This system drive can grow to tens of gigabytes, occupying space reserved for your photos, applications and important documents.

The emergence of a large amount of data in this category is not a mistake, but a feature of the MIUI and Android operating system. It accumulates temporary files, remnants of remote applications, messenger cache and system logs. Ignoring the problem leads to slowing down the device, lags in the interface and the inability to install new updates. Understanding the structure of this partition is the first step to optimize your gadget.

In this article, we will detail how to clean your hidden storage safely and efficiently, learn how to distinguish system debris from important data, use built-in tools and third-party utilities, and clean your device properly without having to reset to factory settings.

What is hidden in the category "Other"

Before we start taking radical action, we need to understand the nature of the extra files. The Other category is a collection of files where the system puts everything that can't be classified as images, videos, audio or installed applications. Often, cache files that are created to speed up programs, but eventually turn into digital ballast.

Telegram, WhatsApp and Viber store the media files you view into hidden folders that a standard memory analyzer doesn’t always see as separate objects, and it stores error logs, temporary browser files, and residues from failed app updates. The more you use your smartphone, the faster this partition grows.

• 📂 Application cache: temporary data that speeds up the loading of frequently used functions.
• 🗑️ Residual files: fragments of programs that have been deleted but left traces in the system.
• 📱 Logs and reports: System records of device performance and errors that are only useful to developers.
• 📦 Archives and downloads: forgotten installation packages APK and unpacked archives.

⚠️ Warning: Before deleting files from the Other section, make sure that they are not important documents or saved passwords. Blind cleaning of system folders can lead to malfunctions in applications.

This partition can range in size from a few hundred megabytes to 20-30 gigabytes on older devices. If you notice that the volume of Another is growing disproportionately fast, it may indicate that the application is not working properly, which creates redundant temporary files.

Basic cleaning with MIUI staff funds

The safest and first method to use is the built-in Cleanup tool, which is implemented in the MIUI shell in a deep enough way to remove a significant amount of debris without risking damage to the system. First, open the Security app and select Cleanup.

The system will do a quick analysis and suggest removing obvious debris. However, to work with the "Other" section, you need to go to the advanced mode. Click on the icon "Deep Clean" or "Storage Analysis" Here you will see a more detailed breakdown by file type, especially the tabs "Apps" and "Large files".

When you're working with an embedded analyzer, it's important to be selective, don't blindly delete everything you've suggested. Pay attention to the size of your social media cache, it can take gigabytes. Cleaning up the cache won't delete your correspondence or contacts, but it will force the apps to download images again the next time you open it.

• 🚀 Acceleration: Closing background processes frees up RAM, indirectly affecting the work with the storage.
• 🧹 Removing duplicates: the built-in algorithm finds the same photos and videos that took place twice.
• 📉 Analysis APK: Finding installation files that are no longer needed after installing programs.

Staff facilities are good for regular maintenance, but they don't always see all the hidden folders.If, after a full scan with the built-in scanner, the "Other" section still takes up suspiciously much space, deeper intervention will be needed.

Working with the cache of messengers and social networks

The main memory eaters in modern smartphones are messengers. Telegram, WhatsApp, Viber and social networks store every picture, video and voice message viewed in local storage, over time this data forms a huge array, which the system classifies as “Other”.

The most effective way to combat this is to use built-in cleaning functions inside the applications themselves. For example, on Telegram you can go to Settings → Data and Memory → Memory Use and Clear Cache. This action is safe for your data, because it is stored on the server, but it will instantly free up several gigabytes.

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Set a timer of “3 days” or “1 week”, and the application will delete old files, freeing up space automatically.

WhatsApp is a bit more complicated, because all media is stored locally, you have to manually manage your download folders, go to the storage management inside the app and sort the files by size, and it often turns out that most of the video is from group chats that you haven't even opened.

It’s important to understand the difference between cleaning up cache and cleaning up data. Cache cleanup removes temporary files without affecting your accounts. Data cleanup completely resets the app to the “just out of the store” state, removing logins, passwords and correspondence (if there is no backup).

Regularly checking these settings should become a habit, and if you are actively communicating in work chats where you send a lot of documents and photos, it is necessary to clear the cache once a week, this will prevent the Other section from growing to critical values.

Use of Third-Party File Managers

The standard Explorer in MIUI often hides the real folder structure. For deep cleaning, it is recommended to use advanced file managers such as Total Commander, FX File Explorer or Files by Google. These applications allow you to see hidden folders starting from a dot and analyze the size of each directory.

With these tools, you can find folders with names like.thumbnails, MIUI, Android/data, and that's where most of the trash is hidden, like the.thumbnails folder, which stores thumbnails of every image you've ever viewed, and can weigh a few gigabytes.

When working with a file manager, be extremely careful with the Android/data folder, which stores application data, including game cache and offline maps of navigators, and deleting the contents of this folder can lead to games having to be downloaded again, and the navigator loses downloaded maps.

• 🔍 Search for duplicates: Many managers have built-in scanners for the same files.
• 📊 Visualization: Displaying memory as a diagram helps you quickly find the heaviest folders.
• 🗑️ Secure Deletion: The ability to send files to the Recycle Bin before final deletion.

Use size sorting, which allows you to instantly identify giant files that may have been left behind after watching videos or downloading movies, and users often forget about a downloaded 4K series that is deadweight and takes 5-10 GB.

Cleaning through Developer Mode and ADB

For advanced users who are not afraid of technical terms, there is a method of cleaning through debugging over USB and ADB commands (Android Debug Bridge), which allows you to delete the system cache and files that are not available through the usual interface, this will require a computer and installed ADB drivers.

First, activate Developer Mode. Go to Settings → About Phone and quickly click on MIUI seven times. After that, the menu will appear “Additional” or “Extended Settings”, where you need to turn on “Debugging by USB”.

adb shell pm trim-caches 999999999

This command forces the system to delete all available cache, and the numbers indicate the limit in bytes that we set to the minimum to free up maximum space, and you need to execute the command at the computer's command line by connecting the smartphone with a cable.

⚠️ Attention: Use of teams ADB A syntax error or deletion of system files can lead to a bootloop (cyclic reboot) of the device.

ADB can also safely remove system applications you don’t use (bloatware), often preinstalled software that generates unnecessary logs and temporary files, and removing such packets will not only clean up memory, but also reduce the load on the processor.

This method is most effective for older models, where internal memory is limited and the system has already become overgrown with many errors and temporary files over the years, and allows the device to return to a second life.

Radical measures: Resetting to factory settings

If none of the above methods worked and the Other continues to take up an unrealistically large volume (e.g., 40-50GB of 64GB of storage), it is possible that the file system is corrupted or there has been a critical indexing error, in which case the only solution is a complete reset.

Reset to factory settings (Wipe & Reset) completely deletes all user data and returns the phone to the "out of the box" state.This guarantees 100% cleaning of the "Other" partition, as a new, clean file system is created.

The procedure is done via the Settings menu → About Phone → Settings reset → Erase all data. The process takes 5 to 15 minutes. Once turned on, the phone will be like new, without your garbage, errors and bloated cache.

• 🔄 Complete cleanup: Guaranteed to delete all hidden and system files.
• ⚡ Acceleration: The system works faster because it eliminates fragmentation.
• 🛡️ Security: Removes possible traces of malware if it was the cause of memory bloat.

After a reset, don't rush to restore all the apps from the backup. Try using a clean phone for a couple of days. Often, it turns out that the problem was created by one particular application that you don't even actively use.

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A complete reset is a last resort, but often the only way to fix file system errors when software-based cleaning methods are powerless.

Prevention of memory overflow

To keep the Other problem from coming back, it's important to maintain digital hygiene. Don't store files on your phone that you don't need right now. You'd better transfer the videos and photos straight to the cloud or to your computer. Check the Downloads folder regularly, where you're accumulating a lot of unnecessary stuff.

Use Cleanup once a week, which takes a minute, but prevents a critical mass of debris from accumulating, and keep an eye out for MIUI updates, as newer versions often fix errors related to poor memory management.

Disable auto-save media files in group chat messengers, which will prevent thousands of unnecessary pictures and postcards that you haven’t even seen, but which will take up space in the “Other” section.