How to look at memory Xiaomi Mi 9: a complete analysis of storage

Modern smartphones like the Xiaomi Mi 9 offer impressive specs, but over time, even a powerful device can face a lack of space. This often leads to slowdowns, problems installing updates or inability to take a new picture. It is critical for owners of gadgets to understand how to effectively manage internal resources to extend the life of the device.

In this article, we'll take a look at all the memory checks available on your device, not only showing you the numbers, but also explaining what they mean, what makes RAM different from embedded memory, and which system processes take up the most space, and a good analysis is the first step to optimizing.

Many users confuse RAM and ROM, although the difference is fundamental: RAM is responsible for multitasking right now, and built-in memory stores your photos, apps and system. Understanding this difference will help you make the right decisions when cleaning your phone.

The main types of memory in Xiaomi Mi 9

Before proceeding to specific cleaning actions, it is necessary to clearly distinguish between the types of memory available in the Xiaomi Mi 9. The technical passport of the device usually indicates the amount of internal storage (for example, 128 GB) and the amount of RAM (6, 8 or 12 GB).

Internal Storage is where the MIUI operating system, all the apps, photos, videos and music files that are installed are physically stored, and that's where the most crowded part of the system is, and when people say "memory is over," what they usually mean is that there's not enough space on the internal drive.

By contrast, RAM only works when the phone is on, it stores data from running applications for quick access, the more RAM is free, the faster programs switch, and it's important to note that it's impossible and unnecessary to clean RAM completely, because the system itself manages that resource.

⚠️ Note: Do not try to use third-party accelerators" RAM, They force the background processes to close. In modern versions of Android and MIUI This only leads to increased battery consumption, since the system has to restart applications.

For clarity, compare the characteristics of different modifications Xiaomi Mi 9, which can be found on the market:

Checking through the standard settings menu

The easiest and safest way to know how much space is occupied on your Xiaomi Mi 9 is to use the built-in tools of the system.

To access this information, go to Settings on the home screen or in the notification curtain. Next, scroll down and select About Phone. In the menu that opens, you will see the "Storage" bar, which will display the total capacity and amount of free space.

More detailed statistics are available via Settings → Memory (or Advanced Settings → Memory in some versions of MIUI), where the system visualizes data by showing how much of the application, image, video and system files are taking up, and this allows you to instantly identify the "eaters" of space.

The MIUI interface also offers a Cleanup feature that automatically finds garbage, large files and rarely used applications. By clicking on the Cleanup button, you can safely delete temporary files without affecting important user data.

Use of the Security app

Each Xiaomi smartphone has a Security system app preinstalled, which is not just an antivirus, but a powerful combine to manage the device’s resources, including memory monitoring, and is preferable because it has deep access rights to the system.

Run the Security app and select the Cleanup icon. The system will scan and give you a list of files that can be deleted. Unlike the standard Explorer, here the files are already sorted by type: application cache, remnants of remote programs, advertising files.

Special attention should be paid to the section "Deep cleaning".

• 📸 Duplicate photos and screenshots that are often forgotten to be deleted.
• 📦 APK-Installation files left over after application updates.
• 💬 Large files from messengers (WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber), which take up gigabytes.
• 🎵 Music tracks and videos downloaded from streaming services.

The app also allows you to control the autoload of applications, which indirectly affects the consumption of RAM, and by disabling unnecessary programs, you free up resources for more important tasks.

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Use the Deep Cleanup feature in the Security app once a week to prevent the accumulation of system debris and keep the Xiaomi Mi 9 performance at a high level.

Analysis of storage through engineering menu and conductor

For advanced users who don’t have enough standard reports, there are deeper methods of analysis: the system partition on the Xiaomi Mi 9 takes a fixed volume of about 10-12 GB, which can not be used for personal files, and understanding this fact will help to avoid the illusion of “missing” gigabytes.

You can use the File Manager, go to the Analyzer category, or manually sort files by size, and it often turns out that the DCIM/Camera folder has grown to tens of gigabytes because of 4K video.

There is also a hidden debugging menu, but for normal memory viewing, it is redundant. However, if you want to see the exact distribution by folder, you can connect the phone to your PC in file transfer mode (MTP) and use third-party disk analysis snails such as WinDirStat or TreeSize, although this requires a computer.

It's important to remember the "Other" section of the vault, which may be hiding:

• 📂 Temporary system update files.
• 💾 Cash maps and navigation.
• 📄 Error logs and crash reports.
• 🎮 Heavy game cache files (OBB-file).

⚠️ Note: Be extremely careful when manually deleting files through Explorer. Deleting system folders prefixed with Android or data may cause applications or the entire system to fail.

What to do if your memory is constantly filling up

When the free space on the Xiaomi Mi 9 ends immediately after cleaning, it is a common problem. Most often the reason lies in messengers, which by default store all received media files. Telegram and WhatsApp can stealthily “eat” several gigabytes per month.

To solve the problem, you need to go to the settings of each messenger separately. On Telegram, these are Settings → Data and memory → Memory Use → Clear cache. Similar actions are available on WhatsApp. It is recommended to configure autodeletion of media files.

It's also worth checking your cloud settings. If you have photos synced in Google Photos or Xiaomi Cloud enabled, make sure you have the "Free Space" option, which removes copies of photos from your device that are already securely stored in the cloud.

Another reason could be that the system is not working properly, and then it helps to reboot the device, and if that doesn't work, you might need to reset to factory settings, but make sure to back up the data before you do that.

Expanding Memory with Memory Cards and Cloud

Xiaomi Mi 9, unfortunately, does not support the installation of microSD cards, as it uses a hybrid slot or its absence depending on the regional version.

The most effective solution is the use of cloud storage. Google Drive, Yandex.Disk or the proprietary Mi Cloud allows you to transfer photos, videos and documents to the Internet, which frees up precious gigabytes on the device itself.

You can also use OTG (On-The-Go) technology. By buying a special USB-C to USB adapter, you can connect regular flash drives or external hard drives to your smartphone to transfer large files, watch videos or back up.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

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Regularly checking the storage and cleaning the messenger cache is the key to a long and fast work of your Xiaomi Mi 9 without the need to buy a new device.