Cache Clearing on Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro: A Complete Guide to Accelerating Your Smartphone

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro is still a popular smartphone years after its release thanks to the powerful Mediatek Helio G90T processor and 6 GB of RAM. However, over time, any Android device begins to “slow down”: apps open longer, the system hangs, and free space on the disk mysteriously disappears. 90% of cases are to blame for clogged cache — temporary files that accumulate for years and eat up to 10-15 GB of memory.

This article is not about the banal deletion of data through Settings → Storage. We will analyze deep cleaning, from the cache of individual applications to hidden system files Dalvik and ART, which are not visible to the user without root rights. You will also learn which files can be deleted without risk, and which cannot be touched categorically so as not to turn the phone into a brick.

Why is Redmi Note 8 Pro slowing down due to cache?

Cache is not just junk; it's buffer files that speed up applications by storing commonly used data (like thumbnails of photos in a gallery or login data on social media).

• 📱 Apps don’t automatically clear cache — many programs (especially instant messengers and games) accumulate gigabytes of unnecessary data.
• 🔄 System cache becomes obsolete - after updates MIUI Old Dalvik files remain and conflict with new ones.
• 🗑️ Memory fragmentation – thousands of small cache files are scattered across the disk, which is why the system spends time searching for them.

On the Redmi Note 8 Pro with its 64/128GB of storage, the problem is compounded by MIUI aggressively cacheing data in the background even when the app is closed.TikTok, for example, can "eat" up to 2GB of cache in a month of active use, and Google Play Services up to 500MB weekly.

⚠️ Warning: Don't confuse cache with application data! Cache removal is safe and data cleanup (c Settings) → Annexes → Warehouse → Clear the data) will lead to logging out of accounts and resetting settings.

Method 1: Clearing the cache of individual applications

The easiest and safest method is to remove the cache for specific programs, which will not affect their operation, but will free up from 100 MB to 2-3 GB of memory.

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Slip on the three dots in the upper right corner and select Sort by size.
3. Click on an app (such as Facebook or YouTube) → Storage.
4. Click Clear Cache (not to be confused with Clear Data!).

Top.-5 «The “Green” Apps on Redmi Note 8 Pro:

Close the application in the multitasking menu

Connect your phone to charge (if battery level < 30%)

Check that you have a backup of important data (for example, saved passwords in the browser)

Do not clear the cache of system applications (e.g. MIUI Security or Google Services Framework)

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Method 2: Clean the system cache through Recovery

If the phone is slowing down a lot and a regular cleaning doesn't work, it's time to remove the system cache (aka cache partition), which will reset temporary MIUI files but won't affect your data.

Instructions for Redmi Note 8 Pro:

1. Turn off the phone.
2. Press the Power button + Volume up for 5-10 seconds until the Mi logo appears.
3. In the Recovery menu, select the language and tap Wipe & Reset.
4. Select Wipe Cache (not Wipe All Data!)
5. Confirm the action and wait for the completion (it will take 1-2 minutes).
6. Reboot your phone with Reboot → Reboot to System.

⚠️ If after cleaning the cache, the phone is stuck on the boot for more than 10 minutes, do not panic - this is normal. MIUI Just wait (30 minutes maximum) if the screen is out, press the power button for 15 seconds to force the reboot.

Method 3: Automatically clean the cache with MIUI Optimizer

Xiaomi has built an automatic optimization tool in MIUI, the MIUI Optimizer, which removes unnecessary cache, closes background processes, and can even freeze rarely used applications.

How to turn on:

1. Go to Settings. → The phone.
2. Tap 7 times on the MIUI version line to activate Developer Mode.
3. Back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers.
4. Find the MIUI Optimization option and turn it on.
5. Return to Settings → Battery and Performance → Optimization
6. Start a Deep Cleanup (can take 5-10 minutes).

MIUI Optimizer removes:

• 🗃️ Cache of unused applications (over 30 days).
• 📂 Temporary download files (folder) /Download/.temp).
• 🔍 System Logs and Error Dumps (Folders) /data/anr and /data/tombstones).

💡

If your phone starts to run faster after optimization, turn off Auto Optimization in the battery settings. MIUI sometimes overly aggressively closes the background processes, which causes applications to reboot more often, spending additional energy.

Method 4: Manually clean the cache through the file manager

Some cache files are not visible through standard settings, but can be manually deleted, and any file manager with access to system folders (such as Mi File Explorer or Solid Explorer) will do.

What folders to clean:

How to clean:

1. Open the Mi File Explorer.
2. Enable the display of hidden files (three dots → Settings → Show hidden files).
3. Go to the folder (for example /sdcard/Android/data).
4. Select the cache folder inside the app and click Delete.

⚠️ Note: Do not delete files in folders /data/app, /system or /vendor — It's going to crash the system, and don't touch files with the.odex or.apk extension.

Method 5: Cleaning the cache with ADB (for advanced)

If standard methods don’t work, you can use Android Debug Bridge (ADB), a low-level phone management tool that will delete all cached data, including hidden system files.

Instructions:

1. Download ADB Tools on PC.
2. Turn on USB debugging on your phone (Settings → About Phone → MIUI Version → 7 taps → For developers → USB debugging).
3. Connect the Redmi Note 8 Pro to your PC and confirm your trust in your computer.
4. Open the command line in the ADB folder and type:

adb shell


su




rm -rf /data/dalvik-cache/*




rm -rf /cache/*




reboot

This team:

• 🔧 Delete the Dalvik cache (reassembles when restarting).
• 🗑️ Clear the system folder. /cache.
• 🔄 Reboot the phone.

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Use ADB only if other methods have not worked. Wrong commands can damage the system. Always back up before working with ADB!

What if after cleaning the cache problems remain?

If even after a deep cleaning, the Redmi Note 8 Pro continues to brake, check:

• 🔋 Battery condition: under wear >50% of the phone is forced to limit performance. → Battery → Battery status.
• 🛠️ Memory fragmentation: If less than 10% of the total volume is free, the system begins to “choke.
• 🐞 Viruses: Some malvare masquerades as cache and consume resources.Scan your phone through Malwarebytes or Dr.Web.
• 🔄 Version MIUI: old firmware (below) MIUI 12.5) have memory management bugs. Update via Settings → The phone. → Updating the system.

If nothing works, the last option is a factory reset (but it will delete all the data!). Before doing so, back up through Settings → Additional → Backup and Reset.

FAQ: Frequent questions about cleaning up the cache on the Redmi Note 8 Pro