How to Clean the Other Partition on Xiaomi Redmi 8T

Redmi 8T owners often face a mysterious situation: the device’s internal memory is full, although photos and apps seem to be few. Visualization of the storage shows that the lion’s share of space is occupied by a section called “The Other” This system bay accumulates data unobtrusively to the user, eventually turning into a “black hole” that eats up gigabytes of usable space.

Cleaning this partition on the MIUI shell requires not just standard deletion of files, but understanding what is stored there. Often it is error logs, remnants of deleted programs, social network cache and temporary update files that the system does not consider important for quick cleaning with a single click, ignoring this problem leads to a significant slowdown in the interface and the inability to install new applications.

In this article, we will discuss in detail the safe methods of freeing up space on your Xiaomi Redmi 8T. You will learn how to use hidden system capabilities, third-party utilities for disk analysis and manual garbage removal methods without risking losing personal data or disrupting the Android operating system.

What's Hiding in the Other Category on MIUI

The Other section is a collective term that MIUI file manager uses to classify files that don’t fall into standard categories like Photos, Music or Apps, primarily the cache data of messengers like Telegram and Viber. These apps store the images and videos viewed in hidden folders to speed up their re-upload, but do not label them as media files of the user.

The second big group of files is system logs and error reports. The Android operating system constantly records information about the operation of processes, and if there are failures in the code of the application or the firmware itself, these text files can grow to several gigabytes.

• 📂 Temporary system and application update files left over after installation.
• 📂 Hidden browser cache including saved pages and thumbnails.
• 📂 Backups of data created by Google or Mi Cloud system services.
• 📂 Remote applications that have not been properly uninstalled.

Understanding the structure of this data is critical, as blindly removing all content can result in app resets or loss of progress in games. System junk is safe to delete, while user application data requires a selective approach. On Redmi 8T, with its not-so-large base memory, this balance is especially important.

⚠️ Warning: Before you start deep cleaning, make sure to back up important contacts and documents. Some files in the Other section may be active application configuration files.

Using Xiaomi's built-in cleaner

The first and most secure step is to use the regular Cleanup tool, which is pre-installed on all Xiaomi devices. Although many users ignore it as too simple, it is able to find specific deceptive files that masquerade as system. To access advanced features, you need to run the Security app and select the appropriate menu item.

Once scanned, the system will suggest removing the obvious debris, but to work with the "Other" section, you need to be careful. At the bottom of the screen, there is often a "Deeply Clean" or similar button that allows access to large files and duplicates, and this is where you can find the bulky archives that occupy the "Unknown" category.

It's important to note that a standard cleaner doesn't always see the messenger cache because it thinks it's important data. APK-Regular use of this tool prevents the accumulation of a critical mass of debris.

Manual cleaning through application management

The most effective way to reduce the size of the "Other" partition is to work with the cache of specific applications. In the settings of Redmi 8T along the way of Settings → Apps → All applications, you can see a list of all installed software. Size sorting allows you to instantly identify "eaters" of memory. Most often, social networks and instant messengers become the leaders.

When you go into information about an app like YouTube or Instagram, you'll see a "Clean" button, and it's important not to confuse cache cleaning and data cleaning. Cache cleaning is safe and only deletes temporary files, freeing up space in the "Other" section. Cleaning up all data will reset the app to a post-installing state by removing logins and settings.

Special attention should be paid to applications that you haven’t used in a long time, but you haven’t deleted them. They can continue to generate background processes and logs. Deleting such programs is a sure way to return gigabytes of memory. It’s also worth checking the auto-update settings on Google Play, as temporary download files can get stuck in the system.

Analysis of storage using third-party utilities

If the MIUI built-in tools don't give you the full picture, specialized analytics apps come to the rescue, and programs like DiskUsage or Files by Google build a visual memory card, showing which folders occupy the most space, and this allows you to find hidden directories that the standard conductor doesn't display or hides in the depths of the file structure.

While using these slits on Redmi 8T, you should be careful with access rights. Modern versions of Android restrict access to system folders, so some analyzers can not show all data without special permissions. However, even the visible part of the information is often extremely useful for finding forgotten downloads.

One effective strategy is to search for large files with the.log or.tmp extension. These files often weigh hundreds of megabytes and do not provide any benefit to the user. ADB-The team allows you to radically reduce the amount of space occupied.

Clean Thumbnails folder and hidden directories

One of the most famous holes in Android memory is the.thumbnails folder located in the DCIM directory, which stores thumbnails of all the photos and videos viewed. Over time, this file can grow to 5-10 GB, which is a critical amount for the Redmi 8T with its 64 or 128 GB of memory.

To clean up, you need to go to hidden folders through the file manager. The path usually looks like Internal Memory → DCIM →.thumbnails. The file inside can be safely deleted. However, the system will recreate it once you open the gallery. To prevent this, some users create a text file called.thumbnails (without extension), blocking the creation of a new folder, but this can slow down the gallery.

Also worth checking is the Android/data and Android/obb folder. It stores game and app cache files. Deleting the contents of specific game folders will reset their cache (such as maps in the navigator or levels in the game), which may be necessary to free up space. Be careful: delete only the folders of remote applications or the cache of programs that you are ready to configure again.

⚠️ Note: Do not delete the entire data and obb folders if there are active application folders inside, this will cause the applications to stop running or require re-loading resources.

Using ADB for Advanced Cleaning

For experienced users who are not afraid of the command line, there is a method of cleaning through the ADB (Android Debug Bridge: This method allows you to delete the system cache and logs without superuser rights, which are usually not available for removal through the interface, USB-cable and on-line debugging USB In the "Developers" menu on Redmi 8T.

Connecting your smartphone to your PC can lead you to clear the Dalvik cache or logs. For example, the log cleanup command looks like an adb shell logcat -c, although it clears the buffer in real time. To delete files, you need to use the adb shell rm command indicating the path, but this requires caution. A safer option is to use ADB to remove the cache of specific packets.

This method is most effective when the Other section is bloated due to system errors that prevent you from deleting files by regular means. However, before executing any commands through ADB, it is strongly recommended to review the documentation so as not to delete the critical system libraries necessary to download MIUI.

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If you use ADB, always check the path twice. rm -rf / without specifying a specific path will delete all data on the device without the possibility of recovery.

Prevention of memory overflow

To prevent the problem from returning regularly, you should change your smartphone usage habits. First of all, set up automatic cache cleaning in messengers. In Telegram settings, for example, you can set a restriction on the storage of media files: "3 days", "1 week" or "1 month", this will automatically delete old files from the device's memory, leaving them available in the cloud.

It’s also useful to reboot your smartphone regularly. When you reboot, Android clears some temporary files and completes the hanging processes that might have started generating erroneous logs. Xiaomi can set up an automatic reboot on a schedule, such as once every three days at night.

Remember to keep an eye out for system updates. Xiaomi periodically releases patches that fix memory optimization errors. If you notice a sharp increase in the Other section after the update, it may be a well-known bug that will be fixed in the next security patch.

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Regular auto-cleaning setup in messengers and weekly phone reboot prevent 90% of overflow problems in the “Other” section.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)