Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones often face mysterious memory filling of the device. In the standard application “Cleanup” or “Files” appears a section that is called “Other”, “System” or simply takes up a significant amount of space without the possibility of simple deletion. This folder accumulates the cache of applications, remnants of remote programs, system logs and temporary files that were not automatically deleted.
To make matters worse, standard cleaning methods are often inefficient, and users can delete all photos and videos, but the amount of space they occupy in the Other category will remain the same or even grow, because of the way the MIUI shell works and the Android file system hides system debris from normal deletion, and understanding the structure of this data is the first step to successful optimization.
In this article, we will discuss safe and advanced ways to free up space, we will look at both built-in developer tools and third-party solutions for managing the file system. Removing folders inside the system partition Android/data or Android/obb It can lead to malfunctioning of applications and loss of progress in games.
Analysis of the contents of the section Other
Before we start taking any drastic measures, we need to understand what exactly takes up precious gigabytes. The Other section is not a single file, but a collection of disparate data, including messenger archives, card cache, offline navigation, temporary update files and remnants of remote applications, and the system marks them as “unknown” if it can’t accurately classify the type of content.
For detailed analysis, we recommend using the built-in Explorer app or more advanced snails like Total Commander. Going to the root directory, you will see folders that often inflate to giant sizes. Android/data and Android/obb, It's also worth checking the folder. MIUI, where error logs and crash reports can accumulate.
⚠️ Note: Do not delete files that you do not know the purpose of. Deleting system libraries can lead to a cyclic reboot of the smartphone (bootloop).
Telegram and WhatsApp store all the media they receive in their hidden caches, which the system classifies as “Other.” Even if you cleared the chat in the app itself, physical files can stay in memory for months, taking up space.
Use of built-in MIUI cleaning tools
The first and safest step is to use the standard HyperOS or MIUI tools. The Security app has a built-in Cleanup tool that allows you to remove visible debris, but often leaves a deep cache.
Go to the storage settings via the Settings → Memory menu. Here the system will suggest analyzing files. Click on Files or Other to see the details. The system may suggest clearing the application cache or removing duplicates. This method is safe, but its effectiveness is limited by the access rights that the system utility has.
☑️ Verification by built-in means
There is a hidden method of cleaning through the engineering menu, but it requires caution. In some versions of firmware, cleaning the cache through Recovery Mode helps. To do this, you need to turn off your smartphone and pinch the combination of the Volume Up + Power buttons. In the menu that appears, select Wipe Cache (don't confuse with Wipe Data!).
Cleaning through developer mode and debugging via USB
For users who are ready for a deeper intervention, a method is available using debugging over USB, which allows you to access files that are hidden from the average user. You will need a computer and an installed set of ADB drivers (Android Debug Bridge), a powerful tool that allows you to manage the file system of a smartphone from a PC.
First, activate the developer mode. Go to Settings → About Phone and quickly click on the build number (MIUI Version) seven times. In the Developer menu that appears, turn on "Debugging on USB." Connect the phone to your computer and start the command line. Enter the command to log in to the shell:
adb shellOnce connected, you can move on to clearing the Dalvik cache, which also often takes up space in the Other section. However, be extremely careful. Incorrect use of ADB commands can lead to data loss. It is recommended to make a full backup of important data to the cloud server or external media beforehand.
Commands for safe cleaning of cache
Removing the cache of messengers and social networks
The main memory eaters in the Other category are social networks. Telegram, VK, Instagram and WhatsApp create huge arrays of temporary files. On Telegram, for example, the cache settings are deep in the menu. Go to Settings → Data and memory → Memory Use and click Clear Cache. This will not delete correspondence, but remove downloaded photos and videos from the device’s memory.
For WhatsApp, the situation is more complicated. The app stores backups locally. Go to the Android/media/com.whatsapp/WhatsApp/Databases folder. It stores daily backups for the last week. You can safely delete old files with dates in the title, leaving only the latest. This can free up a significant amount of storage.
- 📱 Telegram: Settings → Data and memory → Use of memory → Clear the cache.
- 💬 WhatsApp: Settings → chat → Backup of chats → Remove old local copies.
- 📸 Instagram: Settings → Account. → Use of data → Clear the cache (or reinstallation).
- 🎵 TikTok: Settings and privacy → Make room → Clear the cache.
If the built-in cleaning functions in the applications don't work, reinstallation remains an effective method. Deleting the application completely erases its data folder, including a "heavy" cache that can't be deleted otherwise. Once installed again, you get a "clean" application that will occupy the smallest possible volume.
Application of specialized applications-analyzers
When embedded tools are powerless, third-party disk space analyzers come to the rescue. Applications like Storage Analyzer or DiskUsage visualize the file system by showing which folders occupy the most space, and they plot a rectangle graph where the block size corresponds to the file size.
Using these gates, you can find the forgotten files: old downloads, remnants of deleted games, error logs. If you find a large file in the Other category, you can pinpoint its identity. For example, a file with a.tmp or.log extension can often be safely deleted.
| Annex | Functional | Demands a Root. | Security |
|---|---|---|---|
| Files by Google | Basic cleaning, search for duplicates | No. | Tall. |
| SD Maid | Deep cleaning of system debris | Preferably. | Tall. |
| DiskUsage | Visualization of the occupied place | No. | Medium |
| Clean Master | Aggressive cache cleaning | No. | Low (lots of advertising) |
When using third-party software, it is important to be careful. Some cleaners may be too aggressive and delete the files needed to run the system. Always check what the program is going to delete before confirming the operation. The best choice is time-tested open source utilities or from known developers.
Radical methods: resetting and flashing
If no methods help and the Other continues to grow, occupying a critical volume, the last option is a complete reset, which is guaranteed to clear all memory partitions, including file table system errors that could lead to incorrect display of memory.
Before you do this, make sure to save all the important data. Reset will delete everything: contacts, photos, apps and settings. Go to Settings → About Phone → Reset → Erase all the data. After rebooting, you will get the device in the “out of the box” state, where the “Other” partition will be minimal.
⚠️ Warning: Before resetting, make sure the battery is at least 60%. interruption of the reset process can cause the phone's software to break down.
In rare cases, even after a reset, the problem may persist, indicating a physical memory degradation or a serious bug in the firmware version, in which case flashing the device through the computer using the Mi Flash Tool utility and completely clearing all partitions (Clean All) can help.
Prevention of memory overflow
To keep the problem from returning, you need to develop a regular digital hygiene habit: Don't let the memory fill up to the end. Leave 10-15% free space for the system and caching mechanisms to work properly. When the memory is filled by 95-99%, the smartphone speed drops, and the wear of the drive increases.
Set up automatic cleaning in messengers. Telegram can set autodelete the cache in 3 days or a week. WhatsApp disable autosave to the gallery so that media files do not duplicate in the system folder. Check Downloads regularly, as forgotten APK installation files often get there.
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Use cloud storage for photos and videos. Set up automatic upload to Google Photos or Yandex.Disk with the Free Space feature, which deletes local copies of already uploaded files.
Keep an eye out for system updates. Xiaomi engineers regularly release patches that fix memory management errors. If you use custom firmware, make sure it's stable and has no known file system bugs. Using the current version of the software is the best software error prevention.
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Regularly cleaning the messenger cache and using cloud storage are the most effective ways to prevent the Other partition from growing in the future.
Remember that smartphone memory is a resource that requires management. Understanding how Android and the MIUI shell work with files will allow you to keep the device clean without the need for constant resets. Control what gets into your phone and it will respond to you with fast work.