How to completely clean the internal memory of the Xiaomi phone: from cache to system garbage

Xiaomi's internal memory is one of the most vulnerable areas for users. even on the new Redmi Note 13 Pro models+ or POCO F6 After a few months of active use, the space is melting away, and the system begins to issue warnings about memory shortages, and the reasons are not only in the accumulation of photos and videos, but also in the features of the shell. MIUI, It aggressively caches data, creates duplicate files, and leaves behind digital junk after updates.

In this article, we will discuss 7 proven methods of memory cleaning – from basic (removing cache and unnecessary applications) to advanced (working with system folders through the system) ADB and hidden functions MIUI). Special attention will be paid to the unique “chips” Xiaomi, which are not found on other Android devices: for example, how to clean the folder correctly. MIUI without the risk of damage to the system or why the standard "cleaner" in the settings does not remove everything. MIUI 14/15 (Android 13/14) It is suitable for most of the brand’s models, including Redmi. 12, Xiaomi 14 and POCO X6 Pro.

Before you start cleaning, check how much memory is actually occupied by garbage. → The phone. → Memory. If the graph shows that "System" or "Other" is more occupied 15-20 GB is a direct signal to action. 90% This situation arises from the fact that:

• 🗑️ Cache of applications (especially messengers, social networks and games)
• 📁 Duplicate files created by MIUI backup
• 🔄 Remains after updates (folders) download_rom and MIUI)
• 🤖 System logs that are not automatically deleted

It's important to understand that simply deleting files through a Explorer often doesn't solve the problem. Android/obb It can weigh a few gigabytes, but its contents are not displayed in the standard file manager, and the cache of some applications (for example, TikTok or Telegram) is restored within a few hours after cleaning. 5 before 30 GB of memory depending on the model and degree of "clutter" of the device.

1. Standard cleaning through MIUI settings

Let’s start with the obvious: built-in tools. MIUI. Although they don’t remove all the garbage, they are not worth neglecting: this is the safest way to free the trash. 1-3 GB memory without risk of damaging the system.

Go to Settings. → Memory. → Cleanup. Here you'll see three tabs:

• 🧹 Garbage: temporary files, cache and unused application data that can be deleted without consequences.
• 📱 Large files - video, APK, archive. MIUI automatically sorts them by size, which is convenient for quick search of "eaters" of memory.
• 🔍 Duplicate – the function appeared in MIUI 14 and looking for repetitive photos/videos. It doesn't work perfectly, but it can find a few hundred megabytes of extra data.

Notice the Deep Clean button at the bottom of the screen, and it's been analyzing the system for longer (up to) 5 minutes, but finds a 20-30% There's more trash than the standard mode:

⚠️ Warning: Deep Cleanup can remove data from some games (such as cache textures in Genshin Impact or Call of Duty Mobile), which will lead to their re-download on the next launch.

After cleaning, restart the phone to help the system correctly recalculate the free space, and if the memory is less than 500 MB free after the procedure, proceed to the following methods.

2. Manual cleaning of the app cache

Standard "cleaner" in MIUI It doesn't delete the entire cache, for example, it doesn't touch the data of system applications (Mi Video, Mi Music, GetApps), which can take up to a few hours. 1-2 GB. To clean them by hand:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Click on the three dots in the upper right corner and select "Sort by size."
3. Open each application from the top of the list (usually messengers, social networks, games) and click “Clear cache”.
4. For system applications (such as MiuiDaemon or SecurityCenter), click Clear Data, but be careful – this will reset the application settings.

Pay special attention to the following applications, which most often "clog" memory:

If you use WhatsApp, pay attention to the folder. WhatsApp/Media. By default, all media files sent and received are saved here, even if you haven't downloaded them explicitly:

1. Open WhatsApp. → ⋮ → Settings → Warehouse.
2. Turn off the Automatic Media Download option for mobile data and Wi-Fi.
3. Manually delete unnecessary files from the folder WhatsApp/Media through any file manager.

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Once the Google Play Services cache is cleared, access to Google services may temporarily disappear (e.g., no apps will be updated in the Play Market). → Google accounts → Delete your account and add it again. Data will not be lost, but services will work correctly.

3. Removal of system debris and update residues

Xiaomi is known for its updates MIUI It leaves behind its tails, which are old firmware versions, log files and temporary folders, and can be safely removed by freeing up the files. 3-5 GB memory.

To do this, connect the phone to the PC through USB (in file transfer mode) and go to the following folders:

• 📂 MIUI → Delete folders with names like backup, debug_log, extra.
• 📂 download_rom — This is where you store the downloaded firmware. If you're not planning to roll back on the old version, feel free to delete all the contents.
• 📂 MIUI/camera — Camera cache that can weigh up to 1 GB.
• 📂 Android/data → Find folders for remote applications (e.g. com.tencent.ig for PUBG Mobile, if the game has been deleted long ago).

If you can’t see these folders through a standard conductor MIUI, Use a third-party file manager, such as Solid Explorer or FX File Explorer (they show hidden files). An alternative way is to connect via ADB:

adb shell


su




rm -rf /sdcard/MIUI/debug_log/*




rm -rf /sdcard/download_rom/*




rm -rf /sdcard/MIUI/extra/*

⚠️ Attention: Do not delete folders MIUI/stable or MIUI/OTA — They contain the current firmware files, and they can be damaged to make it impossible to update the system.

Another source of debris is the system's log files, which are automatically generated and can take up to 500 MB to clean up.

1. Install Logcat Reader from the Play Market.
2. Run it and press Clear Logs.
3. Go to Settings. → The phone. → Version. MIUI Click on it 5 times to activate the developer mode.
4. Back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers and disable the option "Maintaining an error log".

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folder MIUI/debug_log — The main garbage box after the updates, and the contents can be removed completely, but only if you don't debug the device through the updates. ADB Or not participating in beta testing of firmware.

4. Transfer data to a memory card or to the cloud

If internal memory is filled with media files (photos, videos, music), they can be transferred to microSD or cloud storage, but Xiaomi has some nuances with the memory cards:

• 📱 Starting with MIUI 12, Xiaomi has dropped the "Adaptable Storage" feature (where the memory card is formatted as an internal one).Now the microSD is used only for storing files, but not for installing applications.
• 🔄 Not all apps support mapping, such as WhatsApp and Telegram, which do not allow you to save media files directly to the map. SD.
• ☁️ Cloud services (Mi Cloud, Google Photos) save space, but require a stable Internet to access files.

To transfer files to the memory card:

1. Open Explorer (or Google Files).
2. Select the folders DCIM, Pictures, Music.
3. Click "Move" and select a memory card (SD card).
4. Confirm the transfer. Please note that some files (such as screenshots) may not be transferred, they will have to be moved manually.

For automatic synchronization with the cloud:

• 📸 Google Photos: Enable "Backup and Sync" in the app settings. Select "High (Free)" quality to avoid wasting space in your Google account.
• ☁️ Mi Cloud: Go to Settings → Accounts. → Mi Cloud → Backup and choose which data to sync. note that only 5GB is available for free.

⚠️ Note: If you use Mi Cloud to back up photos, disable the option "Save originals on your device" in the Gallery app settings. Otherwise, the files will be duplicated, taking up memory twice.

For users who do not have a memory card, a good alternative is to use it. NAS-A drive (e.g. Xiaomi Mi Router with a connected hard drive) connect to it via Samba and set up automatic backup using the FolderSync app.

5.Clean through Recovery Mode and Reset to Factory Settings

If previous methods didn’t work and the phone still shows that the memory is 90%+ — Now, it's time for radical action, and factory resets will delete all the data, but they will restore the device to its "primordial purity." But before that, you should try cleaning with Recovery, which is less aggressive and does not affect user files.

To get into Recovery:

1. Turn off the phone.
2. Press the Volume Up + Power buttons and hold for 10-15 seconds until the Mi logo appears.
3. In the recovery menu, select the language (if there is one), then "Wipe & Reset".
4. Select "Wipe Cache" (this will clear the system cache without affecting user data).
5. Confirm the action and wait until it's done. The phone will reboot automatically.

If cleaning the cache doesn't work, do a "Wipe All Data in Recovery" reset.

After discharge:

• 🔄 Do not restore data from backup MIUI — It may contain the same garbage that was before the dump, so you better selectively copy the files you want from your PC.
• 📱 Don't install all the apps at once. Start with the essentials and keep an eye out for the free space.
• ⚙️ Turn off automatic app updates in the Play Market to avoid cache memory filling.

⚠️ Note: On some models (Redmi Note 10 Pro, POCO X3 Pro) after reset, the internal memory partition may disappear if the Adoptable Storage was previously used, in which case only flashing through the Fastboot will help.

Advanced methods: ADB and hidden functions MIUI

For advanced users who are not afraid of the command line, there are several ways to clean up memory that are not available through the standard interface. ADB (Android Debug Bridge).

First, turn on the USB debugging:

1. Go to Settings → About Phone → The MIUI version and tap it 7 times to activate the developer mode.
2. Return to Settings → Additional → For developers and enable “Debugging by USB”.
3. Connect the phone to the PC, confirm the debugging permission on the smartphone screen.

Now we can use it. ADB Here are some useful commands for cleaning:

# Clearing the cache of all applications


adb shell pm trim-caches -1




Deletion of temporary system files



adb shell rm -rf /data/local/tmp/*




Cleaning Dalvik cache (can speed up the system)



adb shell su -c "rm -r /data/dalvik-cache/*"




List of the “heaviest” packages (applications)



adb shell pm list packages -s | awk -F: '{print $2}' | xargs -n1 adb shell dumpsys package | grep "codePath=" | sort -k2 -r

Another hidden function MIUI — Safe Cleaning mode, which is available through the engineering menu, to activate it:

1. Open the Phone app and enter the code: ##4636##.
2. Go to the vault.
3. Click Clear Data – this will delete temporary files that are not visible in a standard cleaner.

For models with MIUI 15 (based on Android 14) has a new feature called "Storage Optimization," which analyzes unused files and suggests that they be deleted or archived:

1. Go to Settings. → Memory.
2. Click on the three dots in the upper right corner.
3. Select “Storage Optimization” and follow the instructions.

7.Prevention: How to prevent memory filling

To avoid having to clean your memory regularly, follow these guidelines:

• 📵 Limit the background activity of the applications. Go to Settings → Battery. → Power management applications and select "Limit background activity" for unnecessary programs.
• 🔄 Set up automatic cleaning. In Settings → Memory. → Autoclean: Enable the option and select the frequency (e.g. once a week).
• 📥 Turn off automatic download of media in instant messengers (WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber).
• 🗑️ Check the Download folder regularly. Remove unnecessary ones. APK, archives.
• 📊 Use lighter versions of apps, like Facebook Lite, Messenger Lite, Twitter Lite, and others. 2-3 lesser.

For models with small memory (Redmi) 9A, POCO C50) It is useful to disable the animation of the system, which will reduce the load on the cache:

1. Activate the Developer Mode (as described above).
2. Go to Settings → Additional → For developers.
3. Find the options "Scale of window animation", "Scale of transition animation" and "Duration of animator".
4. Set the value of "No animation" for all three items.

Another useful trick is to transfer the app cache to the memory card (not all models work).

1. Install. App2SD or Link2SD Play Market.
2. Give the app root rights (if the phone is rooted) or use the "Create a second partition" function on the memory card.
3. Select the applications you want to transfer the cache and confirm the action.

⚠️ Attention: Cache transfer to SD-The card can slow down applications, especially if the memory card is Class 4 or Class 6. UHS-I Class 10 or A2.

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Regularly cleansing memory through ADB (Adb shell pm trim caches -1) It helps you avoid garbage accumulation, and you can add it to your PC task scheduler to run it once a month automatically.

FAQ: Frequent questions about Xiaomi memory cleanup