How to Clean the Other folder on Xiaomi Redmi 5: Safe Ways to Free Your Memory

Why does the Other folder take up so much space on Xiaomi Redmi 5?

If you own a Xiaomi Redmi 5 and notice that the phone’s internal memory is running out, and the mysterious “Other” folder is taking up a huge amount of storage in the “Storage” section, you’re not alone. MIUI, Unlike obvious categories like Photos, Videos, or Applications, the Other folder collects everything the system cannot uniquely classify: Application cache, temporary files, remnants of remote programs, messenger data and even hidden system logs.

On the Redmi. 5 (released 2017 This problem is exacerbated by an outdated version of Android. 7.1 Nougat and the features of the work MIUI 9/10. The system does not always properly clean up garbage after updating or uninstalling applications, and some files (for example, dalvik-cache or thumbnails) can take up gigabytes, remaining invisible to the user. 5 The “Other” folder is often inflated due to a bug in the Google Play Services service, which creates duplicate cache to save traffic – this is a bug that Xiaomi never fixed in the firmware for this model.

Before you start cleaning, it's important to understand that not everything in the Other folder can be safely deleted, such as deleting files from the Other folder. /data/dalvik-cache without root rights can cause malfunctions in applications, and cleaning the folder /data/system — So we're going to go through only proven ways that don't require unlocking the bootloader or getting root rights.

What exactly is stored in the folder “Other” on Xiaomi Redmi 5?

The “Other” folder is a kind of “black box» MIUI, Where do files that don't fall into the standard categories fall? On Redmi 5, its content can be divided into 4 groups:

• 🗑️ App cache and system debris: temporary files from Google Play Services, remnants of deleted APK, Browser cache (Chrome, Mi Browser), data from Facebook and Instagram that is not cleared in a standard cleaning.
• 📁 Hidden Android folders: Android/data (play-off), Android/obb (Additional application files), thumbnails (image miniatures), DCIM/.thumbnails (gallery-cash).
• 🔄 Logs and dumps of the system: files last_kmsg, Tomstones (disruption reports), journals MIUI (/data/anr), which are created by hanging or errors.
• 🔒 Secure data: files DRM (/data/misc/drm), encryption keys, Mi Account settings and other system data, the removal of which may disrupt the operation of the phone.

Feature of Redmi 5 Due to limited memory (especially in the version of the 16 GB) the system actively uses data compression and caching to save space, which leads to the fact that even after deleting the application, its data can remain in folders. /data/app-lib or /data/data It's like dead files, like if you delete a game. PUBG Mobile, her cache in. Android/obb Maybe stay and borrow until 2 GB!

Another “pitfall” – updates MIUI. When you download a new firmware through Settings → The phone. → Updating the firmware file system (update.zip) stored in the folder /cache, And when you install it, it doesn't always automatically delete it. 5 These files can weigh up to 1.5 GB and lay dead for years.

How to Safely Clean the Other folder Without Root Rights

If you don’t have a superuser (root) right, cleaning the Other folder on Redmi 5 is only partially possible, but even that’s enough to free up 1-3 GB of memory.

1.Cleaning App Cache and Google Play Services

Start with the safest way to do this, manually cleaning the cache. On Redmi 5, this is how you do it.

1. Open the Settings → Applications.
2. Slip on three dots in the upper right corner and select Show All Apps.
3. Find Google Play Services, open it and click Storage → Clear the cache.
4. Repeat the same for Google Play Store, Google Play Services, Mi Browser and Gallery.

On Redmi 5, Google Play Services can take up to 500MB of cache, and after cleaning it will only partially recover. Important: do not click Clear Data for Google Play Services - this will cause a malfunction of your Google account!

2. Delete unnecessary files through the “Cleanup” in MIUI

V MIUI There's a built-in garbage disposal tool, but it doesn't always show all the files in the Other folder to use effectively:

1. Go to Settings. → Warehouse.
2. Slip on Cleanup (or Free up space in new versions of MIUI).
3. Wait for the scan and tick all items except Download (there may be important files).
4. Press Clear.

This method will remove temporary files, thumbnails and residues. APK. However, it does not touch the system logs and cache of some applications (such as Facebook or WhatsApp) that store data in secure folders.

3. Manual folder cleaning DCIM download

Many files in the Other folder are actually in open directories, but MIUI It doesn't classify them correctly:

• 📂 Open Explorer (or any file application, such as Mi File Manager).
• 🔍 Go to the Inner Memory → DCIM →.thumbnails and delete all files in this folder (this is the thumbnails gallery cache).
• 📥 Check the Download folder – old ones often accumulate there. APK, archives and unnecessary documents.
• 🎮 If you have played games, look at the Android/obb and Android/data — There may be gigabytes of cache from remote games.

On the Redmi. 5 folder Android/obb often contains files of weight 1–2 GB from games like Call of Duty Mobile or Genshin Impact, even if the game itself is long removed. Delete these folders without fear - they will only recover when you re-install the game.

4.Removing old MIUI updates

As mentioned earlier, firmware files can remain in memory after updating, to delete them:

1. Open the Explorer and go to the Inner Memory → cache.
2. Find files with names like this update.zip, miui_HM5Global_*.zip or bluetooth.zip.
3. Remove them – they are not needed after installing the update.

If the cache folder is empty, check it out. /data/ota_package (Root rights required or use command ADB:

adb shell rm -rf /cache/update.zip

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If you are not sure about the name of the firmware file, look it up in Settings → The phone. → Version. MIUI. For example, for MIUI 10.2.2.0 The file will be called miui_HM5Global_10.2.2.0_*.zip.

5. reset of the partition cache (wipe cache partition)

This is a more radical method that clears the system cache without affecting user data. On Redmi 5, this is done via the recovery mode:

1. Turn off the phone.
2. Press the Power button + Volume up until the Mi logo appears.
3. From the Recovery menu, select Wipe & Reset → Wipe Cache (use volume buttons for navigation, power button for selection).
4. Confirm the action and restart the phone.

This method will delete temporary kernel files, dalvik cache and other system data that the user cannot see. After a reboot, the phone can run a little slower for the first 5-10 minutes, which is normal, since the system recovers the cache.

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Resetting the partition cache does not delete photos, apps, or settings, but can solve the problem with the “bloated” folder “Other” if it is caused by system errors.

What if the “Other” folder still takes up a lot of space?

If after all the manipulations, the folder "Other" still takes 3+ GB, the problem may be in:

• 🔄 File system errors: on Redmi 5 Over time (especially after frequent reboots) the partition may be damaged. /data, This results in the loss of files that the system sees as occupied space but cannot classify.
• 📦 Hidden backups MIUI: The system can automatically create backups in /MIUI/backup or /data/com.miui.backup.
• 🔒 Encrypted data: If you used memory encryption, some files may appear as “Other».

In such cases, it will help:

1. Checking the file system through Recovery (Mount) → Check FS).
2. Reset to factory settings (but it will delete all data!).
3. Use of the ADB for manual cleaning (requires PC and USB-debugging).

For diagnosis through ADB Connect Redmi 5 to your computer and execute the command:

adb shell df -h

It shows the actual memory usage by section. /data more than is displayed in the MIUI, This is a sign of file system damage.

Dangerous cleaning methods: what you should not do on the Redmi 5

In an attempt to free up memory, many users are resorting to drastic measures that could permanently disable their phone, something that is strictly forbidden to do on Redmi 5:

• ❌ Delete files from /system or /vendor — This will lead to a brick (the phone will not turn on).
• ❌ Format a section /data manually through Recovery without backup – lose all data including photos and contacts.
• ❌ Use cleaners like Clean Master or CCleaner – they often delete important files MIUI, resulting in failure.
• ❌ Delete the folder /data/dalvik-cache without root – this will cause errors when running applications.

⚠️ Attention: Redmi 5 is especially dangerous to delete files with the.odex or.oat extension, which are responsible for optimizing applications, and their loss will lead to constant errors such as “The application has stopped».

Also not worth it:

• 🔧 Unlocking the bootloader for memory cleaning – this will void the warranty and can lead to problems with the Mi Account.
• 📉 Disabling system applications (such as Mi Security or Mi Cloud) will disrupt your work. MIUI.
• 🔄 Resetting settings via fastboot without knowing commands - the risk of turning your phone into a "brick».

If you still want root access for deep cleaning, use only official methods from Xiaomi (via Mi Unlock Tool) and backup through the company. TWRP before any manipulation.

How to prevent the “Other” folder from being refilled?

To prevent the “Other” folder from growing again, follow these recommendations:

1. Turn off automatic app updates in Google Play – this will reduce the number of temporary files.
2. Clean the cache regularly in Settings → Warehouse → Cleaning (once every 2 weeks is enough).
3. Use cloud services to store photos/video (e.g. Google Photos or Mi Cloud).
4. Remove unnecessary accounts from Settings → Accounts – each account (such as Facebook or Twitter) creates a cache.
5. Do not install applications on SD-Map – on Redmi 5, this often leads to errors and duplicate files.

Also useful:

• 📵 Limit background activity for applications in Settings → Battery → Choice of applications.
• 📊 Disable the collection of diagnostic data in Settings → Additionally. → Confidentiality → Diagnostics.
• 🔄 Regularly reboot the phone (every 3-4 days) – this clears RAM and temporary files.

If you install/remove games frequently, consider using a memory card (up to 128GB) as your primary storage.

1. Put it in. SD-class-file (UHS-I).
2. Go to Settings → Storage → SD card.
3. Choose Format as internal memory (Warning: After that, the card will only work on this phone!).

⚠️ Note: Redmi 5 for formatting SD-Some applications can run slower. Don't use cheap cards, they fail quickly.

Alternative ways to free up memory on Redmi 5

If cleaning the Other folder didn’t give enough results, try these methods:

To remove pre-installed applications without root, use ADB-For example, to remove the Mi Browser:

adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.android.browser


adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.mi.browser

The complete list of safe to remove packets on Redmi 5:

• com.android.browser – the standard browser
• com.mi.browser — Mi Browser
• com.xiaomi.scanner – Document scanner
• com.miui.videoplayer - standard video player
• com.miui.miservice - Mi Service Framework (caution!)

⚠️ Note: Do not delete packages with the names com.android. or com.google. - this can disrupt the system.

FAQ: Frequent questions about cleaning the folder “Other” on Xiaomi Redmi 5