The situation when the Xiaomi Redmi smartphone suddenly starts to slow down, and notifications about the lack of space appear at the most inopportune moment, is familiar to every Android owner. Internal memory is overflowing imperceptibly: you take new pictures, install applications or just download files, and after a month there is no free space. MIUI or HyperOS system can work unstable if less than 10% of the free space is left on the disk.
It's not always easy to remove a couple of apps, and often there are gigabytes of cache that are technically garbage, but they take up valuable resources, and understanding where the extra files are hiding can help you avoid hasty decisions like resetting your settings completely.
In this article, we will explore proven cleaning methods that are suitable for both older models like the Redmi Note 9 and the latest flagships, learn how to safely delete temporary files, work with messengers and use the hidden capabilities of the system for optimization.
Storage analysis: search for hidden volumes
The first step should always be diagnostics, with many users removing applications that take up minimal space while ignoring real-world space eaters, and Xiaomi’s standard storage analyzer allows visual evaluation of data distribution.
To start the analysis, go to Settings → Memory. Here you will see a diagram where the system files are in blue and the user data is in gray. Notice the "Other" section: often this is where the cached streaming services and the remnants of remote programs are hidden.
Sometimes the system can't properly classify files by labeling them as "Unknown." In such cases, manually checking folders through the file manager helps, and pay special attention to folders with the names of social networks and browsers, where auto-saved videos and pictures can lie.
Don't ignore the gallery cart. Deleted photos often stay there for 30 days, continuing to take up space. Cleaning the cart is an instant way to get back a few gigabytes if you've recently done a review of your photo archive.
Working with the standard application "Security"
The MIUI shell preloads a powerful tool called Security, which is not just an antivirus, but also the primary tool for quick garbage cleanup, and it scans the system for temporary files, ad cache, and application install residues.
Launch the app and click the "Clean" button, and the system will prompt you to delete files that it considers safe to delete, but don't rush to agree to all the changes proposed.
Inside the app, there's a Deep Clean section, where you can find duplicate files, large files, and rarely used apps, and it's a great way to find heavyweights that you might have forgotten about, like the old.apk installation packages after you upgraded.
⚠️ Attention: The "Accelerate" feature in the security app forcibly closes the background processes. On modern versions of Android, this can cause notifications from messengers to arrive with a delay.
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Set up an automatic cleanup in the Security app so that your phone deletes temporary files once a week without you.
Cleaning messengers: Telegram, WhatsApp and Viber
The most voracious apps on any Xiaomi Redmi are messengers. Telegram, WhatsApp and Viber store all received media files in the memory of the device by default. During a year of active correspondence, these applications can “inflate” up to 10-20 gigabytes.
In Telegram, cleaning is done most efficiently through the built-in settings. Go to Settings → Data and memory → Memory Use. Here you will see the "Clear Cache" button. This action will not delete your correspondence or photos, they will remain in the cloud and re-upload if necessary.
WhatsApp stores data locally, so the approach is different. Inside the chat, click on the person's name, select "Media, Links and Documents" and delete the unnecessary. It's also useful to turn off auto-save media to the gallery so that the phone doesn't duplicate files.
- 🗑️ In Telegram, use the “Auto-Deleting” function for cache setting a period of 3 days or 1 week.
- 📂 On WhatsApp, check your folder regularly. WhatsApp/Media/WhatsApp Images/Sent, Where are the photos you sent stored.
- 🚫 Turn off autoloading video in mobile networks in the settings of each messenger.
Remember, voice messages take up space, too. Telegram can delete them massively through the memory management menu, and WhatsApp will have to delete them manually or through the file manager, finding files with the.opus or.ogg extension in the application folders.
Delete applications and work with the system cache
Standard desktop removal of applications does not always clean all data; configuration files and folders with remote program names may remain in the system; and application management menus are better for complete cleanup.
Go to Settings → Apps → All apps. Select a heavy app (like YouTube or Instagram) and click Memory. Here you will see two buttons: Clear cache and Clear everything. The first deletes temporary files, the second resets the app to a state immediately after installation (including logging out).
Special attention should be paid to Google apps. Google Play and Google Photos services often accumulate a huge cache. Clearing the Google Play cache can solve problems with downloading updates and free up space.
☑️ Check before deleting the application
There's also a hidden "Storage" section in the developer menu, but it's better for ordinary users to stay out of it. The standard MIUI is enough to keep the system in order.
Transfer data to memory card and cloud
If internal memory is physically limited (for example, 32 or 64 GB), the only way out is to transfer data.Modern Xiaomi smartphones support microSD cards that can expand storage up to 1 TB.
To transfer files, use the file manager. Move the folders with photos, videos and music to the map. Note that you can not transfer the applications themselves to the memory card in new versions of Android, you can only transfer their data (and then not all).
Cloud storage is a great alternative. Google Photos allows you to free up space on your device in one click. After uploading all your images to the cloud, select the "Free space" option, and the app will delete local copies, leaving only thumbnails.
| Type of data | Recommended storage location | Advantage |
|---|---|---|
| Photos and videos | Google Photos/Mi Cloud | Access from any device, protection from loss |
| Music and Films | Memory card (SD) | It does not take up internal memory, works without the Internet |
| Documents | Google Drive / Mi Cloud | Autosynchronization, file versioning |
| Records of correspondence | Locally on a PC or external drive | Total privacy, saving cloud space |
Using the Mi Cloud is also effective, especially if you’re using the Xiaomi ecosystem. 5GB of free space may not be enough, but for contacts, notes and settings, it’s quite enough.
Radical methods: resetting and formatting
If no methods help and the memory fills up on its own, it may be that the system has accumulated a critical amount of errors or file tails, in which case a complete reset to factory settings helps.
Before this procedure, make sure to back up. Go to Settings → About Phone → Reset → Erase all data. The phone will return to the “out of the box” state, which is guaranteed to free up all available memory.
There's also formatting the memory card as an internal storage, which allows the system to write application data to the computer. SD-However, when the map is retrieved, the data will become unreadable on other devices without re-formatting.
⚠️ Warning: When you reset your settings, ALL information from your phone is deleted, including contacts (if not synced), photos and files. Make sure the copy is made on external media or in the cloud.
What is a “misc” section and why is it growing?
Prevention of memory overflow
To avoid going back to cleaning every two weeks, implement simple smartphone habits: Regular storage checks take a couple of minutes a month, but saves you from sudden crashes.
Turn off autoloading videos on social networks (TikTok, Instagram, YouTube). Watching high-quality tape without saving to cache significantly reduces memory filling speed, and it also saves mobile Internet traffic.
- 📅 Check Downloads once a month and delete old files.
- 📵 Turn off WhatsApp and Instagram Stories auto-save statuses in the gallery.
- 🔄 Update your applications and system regularly, as newer versions often include memory optimization.
Following these simple rules will allow your Xiaomi Redmi to run fast and stable throughout its lifespan.Memory is a resource that requires management, not just storage.
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The main secret of free memory is not to store on the phone what can be easily recovered from the cloud, and regularly clean the cache of messengers.