Free RAM on Xiaomi Redmi 9: from basic settings to hidden MIUI features

Xiaomi Redmi 9 with its 2-4 GB of RAM often faces lags and forced closure of applications — especially if you actively use messengers, social networks or games. The reason lies not only in the small amount of RAM, but also in the features of optimization MIUI, which aggressively caches background processes. In this article, we will discuss 10 proven ways to free RAM, from standard system tools to little-known tricks for experienced users.

It's important to understand that cleaning up RAM doesn't always equal speeding up a smartphone. Android specifically keeps frequently used apps in memory so they open faster. But if there's less than 200-300 MB of RAM left, the system starts to slow down. Our challenge is to find a balance between performance and functionality.

All methods in the article are tested on Redmi 9 (models M2003J15SC, M2004J19G) with MIUI 12-14 firmware based on Android 10-12. If you have another version, check the relevance of menu items.

1. Manually release RAM through "Safety"

The fastest way is to use the built-in MIUI tool, which does not require root rights and works even on loaded systems:

1. Open the Security app (the shield icon).
2. Go to Accelerate (or Optimize in New Versions)
3. Click Clear Memory – the system will show a list of background processes.
4. Choose Clean All or manually mark unnecessary apps.

⚠️ Note: Do not clean up your system processes called com.android., miui. or android.process, which can cause your phone to crash. Also avoid shutting down Google Play services (e.g. com.google.android.gms) or the push notifications will stop working.

This method has a temporary effect: in 10-15 minutes, the memory will be refilled. For a permanent result, clean the RAM every 2-3 hours or use automation (more on this below).

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If the "Clear Memory" button is inactive, then critical processes are running in the background. Try repeating the action in 5-10 minutes.

2. Set up autocleaning RAM in MIUI

MIUI allows you to set up automatic memory cleanup when you lock your screen, which is useful if you often forget to do it manually:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Autorun.
2. Activate the option to clean up memory when you lock.
3. Turn on the System Optimization switch (if any).

You can also set up the process pre-ritet:

• 📱 For games: B Settings → Special facilities → Optimize games, choose Performance instead of Balance.
• 🔄 For multitasking: In Settings → Screen. → Windows animation install No animation – this will reduce the load on RAM when switching between applications.

🔹 Important: Autocleaning may conflict with some applications (e.g. music players or navigators).If the background music is interrupted after the screen is locked, disable this feature.

3. Limitation of background processes through the “Developer”

Android's hidden settings allow you to severely limit the number of background processes, which is a radical method, but it significantly reduces the load on RAM:

1. Activate Developer Mode: Go to Settings → About Phone and click on MIUI Version 7 times.
2. Back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers.
3. Find Process Limits (or Background Process Limits).
4. Select a Maximum 2 process (for 2 GB of RAM) or a Maximum 3 process (for 3-4 GB).

⚠️ Note: After applying this parameter:

• 🚫 Widgets (weather, exchange rates) will cease to be updated).
• 🔔 Push notifications can be delayed (especially on Telegram, VK).
• 🔄 Applications will be rebooted more often when they are returned to them.

🔹 Recommendation: Use this method only if other methods have not helped. To return to the standard settings, select the Standard Limit.

4. Disable Autostart and Application Background Activity

Many programs run automatically when you turn on your phone or connect to the Internet — even if you're not using them — and this is one of the main reasons for RAM overload.

How to turn off autostart:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Select an app (like Facebook or AliExpress).
3. Press Autostart and deactivate the switch.
4. In the same menu, turn off Background Activity and Push Notifications (if not needed).

List of applications that can be safely disabled:

• 🛒 AliExpress, Wildberries, Ozon – they aggressively cache data.
• 🎮 Game Launchers (Xiaomi Game Center, Google Play Games).
• 📺 Applications for streaming (KinoPoisk, IVI), If you don’t use them daily.
• 📱 Duplicate services (Mi Browser and Google Chrome, Mi Music and YouTube Music).

🔹 Exceptions: Do not disable auto-start for:

• 📱 Google Play Services (Google account will be affected).
• 🔔 Mi Push Service (Notifications from Xiaomi).
• 🔒 Two-factor authentication applications (Google Authenticator, Microsoft Authenticator).

Disable auto-start from 5+ unnecessary apps|

Check background activity in "Settings → Battery → Battery use" |

Leave notifications only for critical applications |

Reboot your phone after the changes-->

5. Use of third-party optimizers (with caution!)

Google Play has hundreds of RAM cleaning apps, but most of them are either useless or harmful. We tested 15 popular utilities and selected 3 relatively safe options:

⚠️ Attention: None of these apps replace manual system setup. Optimizers often display false warnings about the "critical state" of RAM to make you pay for the Pro version. DU Speed Boosters are known for using more resources than they free up.

🔹 How to Use Optimizers Properly:

• 🛡️ Refuse the offer to speed up the phone by 200%".
• 🔍 Check the reviews on 4PDA or Reddit before installation.
• 🔄 Clean RAM no more than 1 time per hour – frequent cleaning only worsens performance.

6.Cache reset and Dalvik-cache (for power users)

If standard methods don’t work, you can clear Dalvik-cache, a special cache that Android uses to speed up the launch of applications, which requires an unlocked bootloader or root rights, but gives a noticeable increase in free memory.

Instructions via TWRP:

1. Turn off the phone and press Volume Up + Power to enter Recovery.
2. Select Advanced → Dalvik Cache.
3. Confirm the swipe.
4. Reboot the device (Reboot System).

⚠️ Attention: After cleaning Dalvik-cache:

• 🐢 The first phone launch will be longer than usual (up to 5-10 minutes).
• 🔄 Apps will open more slowly throughout the day (until the cache recovers).
• 🚨 Do not interrupt the cleaning process – this can lead to bootloop (a looped boot).

🔹 Rootless Alternative: Clearing the cache of individual applications through Settings → Annexes → Warehouse → Clear the cache. It's less effective, but it's safe.

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Cleaning Dalvik-cache gives you +15-20% free RAM, but requires technical skills.

7. MIUI Optimization: Hidden Features and Chips

MIUI contains some non-obvious memory management tools, and here are the most useful ones:

• 🔄 "Easy mode": "In Settings → Special facilities → Light mode activate this option. It turns off animations and simplifies the interface, saving up to 100-150 MB of RAM.
• 📊 Memory Monitor: In Settings → The phone. → You can see the memory with detailed statistics of how RAM is used by application. Click on any application to force it to stop.
• 🔋 Battery mode "Maximum performance": In Settings → Battery → Battery mode, select this option. It limits background activity, but increases the load on the processor.

🔹 Secret diagnostic code: Dial in the phone app ##4636##, then select Battery Information. This shows the actual use of RAM without rounding (unlike the standard settings menu).

⚠️ Warning: Do not change the parameters in the engineering menu (#36446337##) unless you know what they are intended for. Incorrect settings can lead to overheating or rapid battery discharge.

8 Radical measures: resetting to factory settings

If all of these methods fail, then you have a hard reset, which will completely clean up RAM and storage, and return the phone to a clean state, and only use this as a last resort!

How to reset:

1. Save important data (photos, contacts, messages) to Google Drive or your computer.
2. Go to Settings → About the phone → Reset settings.
3. Choose to erase all data and confirm the action.
4. After restarting, set your phone as new.

🔹 What does the reset give:

• ✅ Frees up 500MB-1GB of RAM (by removing background processes from old applications).
• ✅ Eliminates the “garbage” in the system that has accumulated after the updates.
• ✅ Returns the factory firmware (useful if you have put customized ones) ROM).

⚠️ Attention: After discharge:

• 🔑 You will need to log in to all accounts (Google, Mi Account, social networks).
• 📱 Google Play apps will automatically recover, but their data (save games, settings) will be lost.
• 🔧 Some system applications (Mi Video, Mi Music) can be updated to current versions – this is normal.

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Factory reset is a "nuclear bomb" for optimization, and only use it if the phone is no longer usable.

FAQ: Frequent questions about RAM on Xiaomi Redmi 9