How to clean the phone Android Xiaomi so that you do not brake

Modern Xiaomi smartphones are famous for their excellent price-performance ratio, but even powerful processors face software limitations over time. Users often notice that the MIUI or HyperOS interface begins to twitch, and applications open with a noticeable delay. This is not always a sign of failure, most often the system is simply overloaded with accumulated digital debris.

The main reason for the slowdown is a crowded system partition and background processes that consume resources in vain. RAM is clogged with cache, and the constant storage of thousands of temporary files makes the disk controller work at its limit. In this guide, we will examine proven methods that will return the device to factory agility.

It's important to understand that cleaning isn't just about removing photos, it's about optimizing your settings in a comprehensive way. MIUI-based Android is prone to aggressively saving logs and error reports that can take up gigabytes of space unnoticed by the owner. Let's start with the most effective method that's often ignored.

Use of the built-in Security application

The first thing a Xiaomi owner needs to do is use a regular tool that is already deeply integrated into the shell.Security has access to critical parts of the file system that third-party clinchers cannot reach. Launch the app and click on the large green button to scan.

After the initial check, the system will suggest that you delete the files you don't want to stop at, but scroll down and find the Cleanup section, where the algorithms analyze the APK installer packages that are left over after the software update, and the remnants of the deleted applications, and using this feature regularly prevents data fragmentation.

Pay special attention to the Deep Clean section, which hides old backups of WhatsApp and Telegram, which often weigh several gigabytes. Messenger cache is the main enemy of free memory, and its deletion does not affect personal correspondence, unless you touch the databases.

💡

The built-in Xiaomi Cliner works at the core level of the system, so it is safer and more efficient than third-party analogues from the Play Market.

Remember that once cleaned, the system can run a little slower in the first few minutes, because it needs to re-engineer files, which is normal behavior that will pass quickly, and the main thing is to make room for temporary files, without which Android cannot function stably.

Managing Autoboot and Background Processes

Many users are unaware that even when the screen is off, their phone is still working hard. The culprits are apps that are registered for boot. They start with the system and hang in RAM, consuming CPU time and battery power. To turn off the extra, go to the Settings menu → Apps → Autoboot.

Here you'll see a list of programs that are free to run on their own. Leave only messengers if you care about notifications and system services. Social networks, games and marketplaces will start quietly when you open their icons. Turning off excess software significantly reduces the load on the CPU in the idle.

⚠️ Note: Do not disable system services such as MIUI Daemon, System Framework or Google Play services, which can cause the interface to malfunction or push notifications to disappear.

You can also check the energy saving settings for each heavy application. You can choose your strategy from the Battery and Performance menu. For rarely used programs, set “No Limits” mode only if you need background downloads, otherwise you’d better choose “Energy Savings”.

There is also a hidden memory extension feature that uses a portion of the built-in storage as virtual RAM. You can find it in Settings → Advanced Settings → Expanded Memory. If you have little physical memory (4-6 GB), turning on this option may help, but it slows down the drive a little.

Cleaning DNS cache and system services

When the phone starts to slow down when switching between Wi-Fi networks or when loading pages in the browser, the problem often lies in a crowded DNS cache. Resetting this data helps to speed up the network response and unload the network stack of the system.

First, activate the developer mode if it is hidden. Go to Settings → About Phone and quickly click 7 times on the MIUI Version. After you have become a developer, go back to the main settings menu and find a new option Additional → For developers.

Inside this menu, scroll down to Network. Find the option to Reset DNS settings or clear the DNS cache. It's also useful to disable animations if the phone is very old. Set the "Window animation scale," "Scale of transition animation" and "Animator duration" to 0.5x or Off. This will create the illusion of speeding up the interface.

Another important step is to clear the cache of the Google Play Store service. Go to Settings → Apps → All Apps → Google Play Store → Storage and click Clear Cache. This solves a lot of problems with hanging downloads and updates.

Analysis of space and removal of duplicates

The Android file system is designed so that deleting a file doesn't always free up space instantly, and finding duplicates manually takes hours. Modern versions of MIUI have a built-in analyzer that shows exactly what eats gigabytes. Go to Settings → Storage.

Here you'll see a color diagram of memory distribution, and it often turns out that half the space is occupied by Other Files or System Data, and it can be offline maps of the navigator, downloaded TV shows in streaming, or forgotten archives, and removing duplicate photos is another task that a built-in cleaning tool can do.

For more in-depth analysis, you can use free tools like Files by Google, but the standard file manager, Xiaomi Explorer, can sort files by size. Sort documents by size and delete anything that is more than 100 MB and is not important.

Don't ignore the MIUI folder in the internal storage. The gallery's subfolder often contains photos that have not been completely erased, and the soundrecorder folder can have tape recorders for years.

Specificity of cleaning messengers

Messengers are also worth noting, as they become the main resource eaters. Telegram, WhatsApp and Viber store every photo and video they see in cache. Over time, this folder grows to incredible sizes, causing the phone to slow down when opening chats.

Telegram has solved this problem conveniently by going to Settings → Data and Memory → Memory Use. You can clear the cache with a single button and, more importantly, set a timer of 3 days or 1 week, which means that files older than that will be deleted from the device automatically, remaining in the cloud.

WhatsApp is more complicated because it doesn't have smart cache management. You have to manually go to Settings → Data and Storage → Storage Management. You can pick the hardest chats and remove attachments from them. Often, a single chat with a workgroup can weigh more than the rest of the system.

💡

Enable the Save to the Gallery feature in WhatsApp settings only for selected contacts so that media files do not fill the shared feed and memory.

Also, you should disable autoplay of videos on social networks. In the settings of Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, find the item Media or Video Quality and select Wi-Fi only or turn off autoplay altogether, which will save not only space, but also traffic.

Radical measures: Resetting and updating

If the software clean didn't work, you may have accumulated critical registry errors or damaged system files, in which case the factory reset helps. Before you do that, make sure to create a full backup through Mi Cloud or on your computer using Mi PC Suite or simply copying folders.

To perform the reset, go to Settings → About Phone → Settings Reset → Erase all data. The phone will return to the “out of the box” state. This is guaranteed to remove all software brakes, unless they are caused by physical memory degradation.

Also check for system updates. Xiaomi regularly releases security and optimization patches. Go to Settings → About Phone and click on MIUI. If there is a new version, install it. Sometimes older versions of Android contain bugs that slow down specific applications.

⚠️ Warning: Before resetting, make sure that the battery is at least 50%, or better connect the charger.

Don't install all the apps at once after reset, just put the apps you need and watch the work, and often the brakes are caused by one conflict software you accidentally installed earlier.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)