How to Clean Xiaomi Phone of Garbage: A Complete Guide to Accelerating

Xiaomi and Redmi smartphone owners often face a situation where the device starts to run slower and notifications of memory shortages appear at the most inopportune moment.It is a natural process of accumulating temporary files, residual data from remote applications and system logs. Cleaning up the phone is not just freeing up space, but also a way to extend the life of the battery and increase the responsiveness of the interface.

Android’s MIUI-enclosed or new HyperOS operating system has powerful built-in tools that are as good as third-party software, but many users ignore them by downloading questionable “cleaners” that consume resources themselves. In this article, we’ll look at safe and effective methods for removing digital debris without risking damaging important data.

Before you start a deep cleaning, it is important to understand what exactly takes up space, usually the cache of applications, downloads from messengers and duplicate photos, and regular maintenance of the gadget avoids critical overflow of storage, which can lead to a system freeze.

Use of the built-in Security application

The easiest and safest way to start cleaning is to use the standard Security app, which is preinstalled on every Xiaomi device. It has access to system partitions that third-party programs often cannot reach without root rights. Launch the app and click on the large green Cleanup button.

The system will analyze the device and suggest that you delete temporary files, but don't stop there. There's a Cleanup section inside the app where you can get a deeper analysis, and you'll find the categories "Cache," "Residual Files," and "APK Packets."

⚠️ Warning: When cleaning the Residual Files section, look carefully at the paths to the folders. Sometimes there may be saved documents from office applications or drafts that you plan to use.

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Periodically run the function "Accelerate" in the notification curtain - this frees up RAM, closing the background processes, which is useful before starting heavy games.

It is important to note that the built-in tool does not delete your personal photos or contacts, it is focused solely on technical debris. Auto cleaning can be configured in the settings of the Security app itself, so that the phone will service itself when a certain occupancy threshold is reached.

Deep cleaning of the cache of applications and messengers

The main consumers of space in modern smartphones are social networks and instant messengers. Telegram, WhatsApp and Viber store every picture and video viewed in cache. To clean them, you need to go to Settings → Apps → All applications.

Select the app you want from the list. You'll see two buttons: "Clean" and "Delete." Click on "Clean" and in the menu that appears, select "Clean Cache." This action is safe and will not delete your correspondence or account. The "Clean All" or "Reset" button will delete the app completely along with the data, which is only required when reinstalled.

• 📱 Telegram: has a built-in auto-delete cache function. Go to Settings → Data and memory → Use of memory → Clear Telegram cache.
• 💬 WhatsApp: Stores media files in a folder Android/media. Better to clean through Settings → Warehouse and data → Managing storage within the application itself.
• 🎵 Spotify/YouTube: Streaming cache can grow to several gigabytes. Check their storage settings regularly.

Some apps, such as navigators or streaming services, allow you to download content for offline use. If you stop using downloaded maps or playlists, be sure to manually delete them through the program interface. Browser cache is also worth cleaning if you haven't done this in a long time, especially if pages load with errors.

Storage analysis and search for hidden files

Often the memory is not occupied by system debris, but by the files that users have forgotten. MIUI has a great built-in analyzer. Open the Explorer app and select the Analysis tab (or "Folder"). The system will show a visual map of what takes up space: large files, similar images, old screenshots.

Note the Download folder. Browsers and apps often download.apk installation files that are no longer needed after installing programs. Also check the DCIM →.thumbnails folder. This is a hidden folder that stores thumbnails of your gallery. It can weigh gigabytes.

Search by file size in the explorer, sorting files from large to small. Often, 10 GB of space is taken up by one forgotten movie or series downloaded six months ago, and removing such heavyweights gives instant results.

Removing duplicate photos and screenshots

Over time, the gallery accumulates serial shots, screenshots of correspondence and duplicates taken during editing. Xiaomi Gallery is able to find similar images. Go to Albums → Screenshots or in the "Similar" section to select the best options and delete the rest.

Special attention should be paid to the folder of the basket in the gallery. Deleted photos do not disappear forever immediately, but are stored there for 30 days, continuing to occupy space. If you are sure that you have deleted the extra, go to the Albums → Cart → Clean everything.

• 🗑️ Check it once a month to make room for the rest of the day.
• 📸 Serial shooting: in the gallery, these photos are marked with a pile icon. Open the series and leave only the lucky shots.
• ☁️ Cloud: If you have Google Photos or Mi Cloud enabled, make sure that the Free Place feature doesn’t delete the originals if you need them locally.

For advanced users, there is the option of using third-party duplicate search apps like Files by Google.They use checksum comparison algorithms, finding even renamed copies of files that a standard gallery might skip.

Disabling and removing system applications

MIUI and HyperOS have a lot of pre-installed software that you don't use. Some apps can be removed completely, some can only be disabled. Go to Settings → Apps → All apps.

Find unnecessary services, such as Mi Video, Mi Music, Travel, Maps (if you use a navigator from Yandex or Google). If the "Delete" button is inactive, click Disable. This will hide the application and prevent it from working in the background, saving the CPU resources.

⚠️ Note: Do not disable system components with the names "Services", "Framework", "System" UI" It can lead to unstable phone operation or endless restart (bootloop).

Also worth checking is Getting Recommendations in Password and Security Settings, disable all items related to ad personalization and recommendations, which won’t clear memory directly, but will remove background load on the network and processor, which indirectly affects speed.

Reset network settings and Wi-Fi

The accumulation of errors in network settings may not take many megabytes, but significantly affect the speed of the Internet and the feeling of the "laying" phone, resetting network settings returns the connection parameters to the factory.

To do this, go to Settings → Connection and Sharing → Reset Wi-Fi, mobile networks and Bluetooth. Click Reset. You will have to re-enter passwords from Wi-Fi networks, but this often solves problems with persistent connection breaks.

This procedure is useful if you frequently move between different access points or change providers. DNS, static IP-Addresses and cache of Bluetooth devices that are no longer in use.

Radical measures: Resetting to factory settings

If the phone is slow even after all the cleaning, it may be that deep errors have accumulated in the system or that fragmentation of the file system has become critical, in which case a full reset helps, which will put the phone back into a store-like state.

Before the procedure, make sure to make a full backup. Go to Settings → About Phone → Reset → Erase all data. The phone will restart and begin the long process of cleaning and reinstallation of the system.

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Full reset is the most effective tool against software “brakes”, but it takes time to configure and install applications again.

After reset, you don’t have to restore the full copy from the backup immediately, as you can return old errors, you can set the phone as new, and pull contacts and photos from the cloud, which will ensure the cleanest and fastest Xiaomi for a long time.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)