How to clean up memory on the phone Android Xiaomi Redmi 5A

Owners of the popular budget smartphone Xiaomi Redmi 5A often face the unpleasant situation when internal storage is overflowing.The system starts to run slower, applications fly out, and new photos simply have nowhere to save. This is especially true for the model with 16 gigabytes of internal memory, of which only about 10-11 gigabytes are available to the user. Lack of free space is the main reason for the brakes in the Android operating system.

There are many ways to get your device back up and free up precious megabytes. Some methods are safe and suitable for daily use, others require more in-depth tweaking. In this article, we’ll look at all the effective cleaning methods, from standard tools to advanced system file management techniques.

Before you start taking any drastic measures, you need to do a basic diagnostics, you need to know exactly what is occupying space in the memory of your gadget, standard MIUI diagnostics allows you to see detailed statistics by file category, which will help you avoid removing important documents or system components.

Analysis of storage occupancy through settings

The first step is always to diagnose. The MIUI-based Android operating system has a built-in analyzer that groups files by type. To get into this section, go to Settings → Memory. Here you will see a color diagram showing the distribution of data. The blue color is usually for apps, yellow for images and videos, and gray for system files and so on.

Pay special attention to the Other section, which is often where gigabytes of forgotten files, messenger cache and residual data from remote programs are hidden, and memory analysis reveals the heaviest elements, and if you see applications taking up a disproportionate amount of space, it's a signal that their cache has grown into obscene size.

Don't ignore the Downloads section. Many users forget that all downloaded files are downloaded from the Internet, PDF-documents and installation packages APK They're left in the Download folder, and deleting them often frees up 500MB to 2GB of space without losing any important data.

⚠️ Before removing files from the Downloads folder, make sure that there are no important documents or installers you planned to use later.

Cleaning the cache and removing system debris

The easiest and safest way to free up space is to use the built-in Cleanup utility. On the Tools home screen, find the app with a broomstick. When it starts, it automatically scans the device for temporary files, installation residues and advertising debris. Click Clean to delete the objects found.

However, automatic cleaning doesn’t always remove the cache of heavy apps like YouTube, Telegram or Instagram. For deep cleaning, go to Settings → Apps → All Apps. Choose the right app, click Memory and then Clear Cache. App cache can take up a significant amount of memory, especially if you haven’t reinstalled social media in a long time.

It is important not to confuse cache cleaning with data cleaning. If you choose Clear Data, the app will return to the state immediately after installation: all accounts, saved passwords and local settings will go out, use this feature only if the program is completely reinstalled or if it does not work correctly.

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To quickly clear the cache of all applications, you can immediately use the command in the engineering menu, but the standard way through the settings is safer for inexperienced users.

Regular maintenance keeps the system in good shape. Don't wait until the memory is full. Do a cache cleaning procedure once a week to optimize the smartphone and avoid sudden interface freezes.

Working with Multimedia Files and Gallery

Photos and video are the main memory consumers on any modern smartphone. The Redmi 5A camera takes pictures in good resolution for its class, and a single video can weigh hundreds of megabytes. First of all, check the Gallery's "Recently Deleted" folder. The files are stored there for 30 days and continue to take up space even if you "delete them."

Use cloud storage to unload internal memory. Google Photos allows you to upload images to the cloud and automatically delete them from the device, leaving only thumbnails; You can also manually transfer archives to a computer or external hard drive. This freeing up space is the most effective in the long run.

Pay attention to messengers. WhatsApp and Viber automatically store all photos and videos you receive in your phone’s memory. Go to your chat settings or general media settings to disable autosave. There’s a Memory Use section in the apps themselves where you can massively delete heavy files.

Don't forget the music. If you store a high-quality collection of tracks right on your phone, it will quickly eat up the space. Consider using offline streaming services, where files are stored encrypted and managed smarter.

Removal and management of applications

Apps are not just the installation files themselves, they're also the data. Go to the application management menu and sort the list by size. You might be surprised to find games or programs that haven't been used in months but that take gigabytes. Deleting applications that you don't need is the first step to freedom.

There are applications that you can't remove in the normal way in MIUI, called bloatware, that require superuser rights or a USB debugging computer to remove, but many of them can be simply turned off in the settings, which will hide them from the menu and stop the background processes.

Replace heavy versions of apps with lighter ones, such as using the “Lite” versions instead of a full-fledged Facebook or VK, which consume less resources, take up less space, and run faster on entry-level processors, which are installed in the Redmi 5A.

Also worth checking is the App Updates section of Google Play. Sometimes old versions of programs stay on the system after an update. Clearing the Play Market store cache can help get rid of temporary files left over after installing updates.

Cleaning the “Other” section and hidden folders

The “Other” section of the repository is often a mystery to users, which may contain remote game files, temporary browser files, error logs and residues after unsuccessful updates. The best way to work with this section is to use a file manager, such as the built-in Explorer or Total Commander.

At the root of your internal memory, look at the folders with the app names. If you deleted the game but the folder with its name (e.g. com.gameloft.android) is still there and weighs a lot, remove it. Also check the Android/obb and Android/data folders. It stores game caches and app data. You should only delete the content carefully if you are sure that you no longer need the app.

Hidden folders often contain thumbnails (.thumbnails). This folder can grow to several gigabytes. It is located on the path of DCIM/.thumbnails. It is safe to clean, the system will create it again, but the memory will be freed instantly. To access hidden folders, turn on the display of hidden files in the Explorer settings.

⚠️ Note: Do not delete files that you do not know the purpose of, especially in system folders.This can lead to unstable Android operation.

Use of the SD-maps and formatting

Model Redmi 5A It supports microSD cards. It's a 16GB saver. You can transfer photos, videos, music and documents to an external card. In the storage settings, select a memory card and click "Use as portable storage." Then, in the settings of each application (if supported), specify the data saving on the SD-map.

If the memory card is already installed, but the system says there's no space, it may be full. Connect the phone to your computer in file transfer mode (MTP) and check the contents of the card. Often there are duplicate photos. Transferring files to the card is the best way to keep the main memory free for the system to work.

As a last resort, if the memory card is slow or has errors, you can format it. Note: formatting will destroy all the data on the card. Make sure to back up before that, format it in exFAT or FAT32 format for maximum compatibility.

There is also the possibility of formatting the card as an internal storage, in which case the system will combine the memory of the card and the phone, but on old and slow cards this can lead to a severe drop in the performance of the entire smartphone, use this method only with high-speed cards of the UHS-I class.

Radical measures: Resetting to factory settings

If no method works and the phone continues to signal a lack of space, the final argument is a full reset, which will return the smartphone to the state of “out of the box”, resetting deletes absolutely all user data, applications, accounts and files.

Before performing this procedure, be sure to back up your contacts, photos and important documents to your computer or Google cloud. Without a backup, you will lose all information irretrievably. To reset, go to Settings → Advanced Settings → Restore and Reset → Reset.

After a reset, take your time to install all the applications at once, install only the essentials and watch the memory fill up. Often, after a clean installation, the system works much faster, since it does not have accumulated software debris and conflicting residual files.

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A complete reset is a guaranteed way to get rid of any program errors and memory overflows, but it requires a mandatory backup of the data.

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