Smartphone Xiaomi Redmi 8T is a popular device, which, despite its advantages, over time begins to experience a lack of free space. MIUI operating system has the ability to accumulate temporary files, remnants of remote applications and messenger cache, which significantly slows down the work of the gadget. When the built-in drive is filled, the user faces interface brakes, a long start of programs and the inability to take new pictures.
Freeing up internal storage isn't just about removing a couple of photos, it's a complex process that requires careful attention. In this article, we'll look at proven methods to help get the device back to speed and free up gigabytes of usable volume. It's important to understand that cleaning properly extends the life of the device and improves its responsiveness.
Analysis of vault occupancy
Before we take action to remove data, we need to know exactly what is taking up the precious space. Often, it turns out that the main burden is not the installed applications, but media files or hidden social network cache. The system provides convenient tools for visualizing the occupied space, allowing you to see the heavyweights in the list of programs.
To start the diagnosis, you should go to the settings menu and select the memory management section, and here you will see a color diagram where each sector corresponds to a specific data type, and look at the Other section, which often hides a significant amount of system debris and residual files.
Modern messaging apps like WhatsApp or Telegram can steal tens of gigabytes of content from the web, store all of your photos and videos in local storage even if you’ve already deleted them from chat rooms, and check your download folders and app media files regularly to keep things under control and avoid sudden space shortages.
⚠️ Before removing system folders with unknown names, make sure they are not required for operating system or important services to work.
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Use the built-in Occupancy Chart to determine which type of files (photos, apps, or documents) takes up the most space.
Use of the built-in "Cleaning" tool
The MIUI shell preinstalled a powerful Security app that includes a quick-cleaning feature that automatically scans the device for temporary files, APK install residues and advertising debris, and runs a standard procedure in just a few seconds and often frees up 500MB to 2GB of disk space.
But automatic mode doesn't always find everything that's superfluous. There are additional tabs on the cleaner menu, such as "Deep Clean" that can find large files, duplicate photos and rarely used apps, and it's recommended that you run a deep scan periodically to better maintain your smartphone.
The system acceleration feature, available in the same menu, helps not only free up RAM, but also close the background processes that can slow down the device, and regular use of these built-in tools is the safest way to maintain order in the file system without risking damaging important data.
☑️ Weekly cleaning of the smartphone
It is worth noting that after the system update, the list of temporary files may increase, which is normal, since when you install a new version of Android or MIUI, you create backups and installation logs, and a few days after the update, you can safely delete this data through a standard cleaner.
Manual deletion of cache and application data
The most effective way to free up space is to manually clean the cache of heavy apps. Social networks and instant messengers accumulate a huge amount of temporary data. To do this, you need to go to the settings, select "Apps" and find the desired program in the list. Inside the app menu, you will see two buttons: "Clear cache" and "Clear data."
Clearing the cache is safe and only deletes temporary files, speeding up the program. However, clearing the data will return the application to state immediately after installation, removing all logins, correspondence and settings. So before using the Clear Data function, make sure that important information is stored or synchronized with the cloud.
Pay special attention to multimedia applications such as YouTube, Spotify or Netflix. They often save videos and music for offline viewing, taking up gigabytes of space. Check the download settings within these apps and remove unnecessary content that you have already watched or listened to.
| Type of data | What's removed | Safe. | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cash. | Temporary files, thumbnails | Yes. | Frees up space, can slow down the first launch |
| Application data | Logins, settings, correspondence | No (no backup) | Complete reset of the application to factory settings |
| APK files | Installation packages | Yes. | Safe removal after installation of software |
| Downloads. | Downloaded documents and pictures | Depends on the file. | Deletion of the user's personal files |
Why does the cache take up so much space?
Working with multimedia and gallery
High-resolution photos and videos are the main consumers of space on Redmi 8T. The camera takes high-quality pictures that take a lot of megabytes. Check the album "Recently Deleted" regularly in the gallery, as the files are stored there for another 30 days and continue to take up space, even if you think you deleted them.
Use cloud services like Google Photos or Yandex.Disk to automatically upload media files. Once synchronized successfully, you can use the Free Space feature, which will remove from your device those images that are already stored in the cloud, allowing you to access the entire archive without downloading the phone's internal memory.
Pay attention to the DCIM/.thumbnails folder, which stores thumbnails of all your photos. If you have thousands of snapshots, this hidden file can weigh several gigabytes. It can be safely deleted through the file manager, the system will recreate it the next time you open the gallery, but the space will temporarily vacate.
⚠️ Note: Deleting the thumbnails folder (.thumbnails) will cause the next time you log in to the gallery, scrolling will be slow until the system recreates the preview.
Videos take up even more space than photos. If you're shooting a lot of 4K or 1080p videos at 60 frames, try to transfer them to your computer or external hard drive right after you shoot them. Built-in storage is not designed to archive heavy video content for long-term.
Removal of system debris and residual files
When you delete applications, you often have tails — folders with settings, error logs, or temporary data — that are best found using advanced file managers like Total Commander or Files by Google, which allow you to see folder structure and find directories with remote program names.
The Android/obb and Android/data folder deserve special attention, which stores the cache files of games and heavy apps. If you delete the game but the folder with its name remains, you can erase it. However, you can not delete files from the active application folders - this will lead to their incorrect operation.
It's also worth checking the folder. MIUI/debug_log. It can accumulate system debugging logs that the average user doesn't need. 100 MB to 1 GB space, especially if the system has recently crashed.
For deep cleaning, you can take advantage of the developer mode by disabling log saving, but this requires caution: Standard cleaning through the file manager is usually safer and gives a comparable result for the average user.
Optimization of the work of messengers
Messengers are a separate category of apps that require a customized cleaning approach. WhatsApp and Telegram have built-in memory management tools. In each chat setting, you can see how much space media files occupy and delete them selectively without losing text.
Telegram is a very special place, where the app stores the cache in the cloud, but actively caches it on the device for quick access. Go to Settings → Data and memory → Memory Use. You can set up automatic cache cleanup, like deleting files you haven't accessed in 3 days. This is the most efficient way to keep Telegram in check without losing access to your message history.
On WhatsApp, it's important to turn off auto-save media to the gallery. If this feature is active, all images from group chats are duplicated into the main gallery of the phone, taking up space twice, disabling this option in the chat settings will significantly reduce the memory filling speed.
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Setup autodelete cache in Telegram allows you to forget about manual cleaning and saves up to 5 GB of space monthly.
And remember Viber and other less popular messengers, they also accumulate data, and if you rarely use a call app, it's easier to remove it and reinstall it than to try to clean up the garbage you've been collecting over the years.
Transferring data to memory card and cloud
Redmi 8T supports microSD cards, which are ideal for storing photos, videos and music, and can be used to store new images directly to the card, and you can also migrate some applications if the system allows, although current versions of Android limit this option.
Use the built-in file manager to transfer files. Select the folders you want (such as Download or Movies) and select Move or Copy, indicating the path to the file. SD-After transfer, make sure to check that files are opened from a new media before deleting the originals.
Cloud storage is an alternative to physical maps, Google Drive, OneDrive or specialized services allow you to store files remotely, and with a stable Internet, it is a convenient way to unload your phone, leaving access to data anywhere in the world.