Owners of the popular budget smartphone often face a shortage of free space, and the question of how to view the memory of the phone shaomi redmi 9, becomes a priority for them. MIUI offers several built-in tools for detailed analysis of storage, which allow you not only to see the numbers, but also to understand the structure of the filling. Proper monitoring helps prevent critical overflow of the system, which directly affects the performance of the device.
Understanding how space is distributed enables you to manage content efficiently, and instead of chaotic file deletion, the user can purposefully clear the cache of heavy applications or transfer media files to an external medium, especially for models with a basic configuration, where every gigabyte counts.
In this article, we will look at all the diagnostic options available, from standard settings to hidden engineering menus, learn how to distinguish system files from user data and understand why the volume claimed by the manufacturer may differ from what is displayed in the interface.
Analysis through the standard settings menu
The easiest and most affordable way to find out the current state of the drive is to use the regular Settings menu, which is a generalized information divided into clear categories, which allows you to instantly assess the situation, just open the main menu and find the About phone section, where at the top of the screen will display busy and free memory.
To dive deeper, you need to follow the Settings → Memory path. In this section, the system visualizes the data as a color diagram, where each color corresponds to a specific type of file: applications, images, videos or system data. By clicking on any sector of the chart, you will be taken to a detailed cleaning menu.
⚠️ Note: Do not delete files from system folders unless you are sure of their purpose, as this can lead to unstable Android operation.
It is important to note that a standard analyzer does not always show the real size of the messenger cache, which can take up gigabytes. Therefore, for a complete revision, it is recommended to use additional cleaning tools or check the settings of specific applications, such as Telegram or WhatsApp, separately.
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The standard menu gives the big picture, but to find “heavy” files of messengers it is better to use their internal storage settings.
Use of the Security App
MIUI's firmware preinstalled a system-based Security app that includes a powerful Cleanup module that scans the device for junk files, duplicates and large videos that are rarely viewed. Launching a deep cleanup allows you to quickly free up several gigabytes of space without the risk of deleting important documents.
The app's functionality allows you to sort files by size, which is really good for finding forgotten downloads. You can see a list of the largest applications and immediately go to manage their data. This is more effective than manually combing through the explorer, because the system itself ranks objects by volume.
- 🗑️ Automatic deletion of browser cache and temporary system files.
- 📸 Search for similar photos and screenshots to remove duplicates.
- 📦 Analysis of large files that are larger than 100 MB.
- 🚀 Optimizing the phone after cleaning the registry.
Regular use of Cleanup helps keep the phone on top, but be careful with the Memory Acceleration (RAM) feature, which closes the background processes, as this can lead to faster battery discharge when applications are restarted.
Detailed analysis through the "Conductor"
For users who prefer full control of the file system, the built-in Explorer provides comprehensive information. Going to the category "Memory", you will see the exact allocation of space between the internal drive and the storage. SD-You can manually delete folders of remote applications that are often left behind by tails».
Special attention should be paid to the Download folder, which stores all files from the Internet by default, and the DCIM folder with photos. Often this is where unnecessary.apk installation files or low-quality videos that are forgotten by the user accumulate. The conductor allows you to sort files by date of change, which makes it easier to find old garbage.
Hidden system folders
Using the file search function inside the explorer helps you find specific types of data, such as all.log or.tmp files. This is a great way to find space hiders that are not visible in the gallery.
Engineering menus and hidden codes
For technical information about the state of memory, you can use the Android engineering menu, and by entering a special code in the Phone app, you are taken to the testing menu, which displays detailed statistics, which is useful for diagnosing possible read or write errors to the drive.
To open the menu, dial the combination ##6485##. In the window that opens, you are interested in parameters that begin with prefixes. MB_. For example, MB_03 I'll show you a memory. MB_05 — This data is updated in real time and is independent of visual interface bugs. MIUI.
| Parameter | Description | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| MB_03 | Available memory (Available) | Free seat |
| MB_04 | Total Memory (Total) | Full volume |
| MB_05 | Occupied with the system | System section |
| MB_06 | User-occupied | Data and applications |
It's safe to use engineering code if you don't change the settings, you just read the data, but if you go into other parts of the engineering menu without understanding the consequences, you can reset the sensors or the network.
Why is real memory less than claimed?
Many users are surprised to find that instead of the stated 64 or 128 GB available significantly less, this is due to the peculiarities of the binary number system used by computers and the decimal system used by drive manufacturers. manufacturers consider 1 GB equal to 1,000,000 bytes, while the system sees 1 GB as 1,073,741,824 bytes.
In addition to the mathematical error, some of the space is irrevocably occupied by the recovery partitions, the bootloader and the Android operating system itself with the MIUI shell. These files are critical to the launch of the phone and cannot be deleted by the user. On budget models such as Redmi 9, the system partition can take up to 15-20 GB.
⚠️ Warning: Attempts to reduce the size of the system partition through firmware can lead to “brickle” of the device and loss of warranty.
Also worth considering is file system formatting, which creates service tables for indexing files. The larger the storage capacity, the more space is reserved for the file system's service needs to ensure read and write speed.
Optimization and expansion of storage
If the internal memory is catastrophically lacking, the most effective solution will be to use a microSD memory card. Xiaomi Redmi 9 supports the installation of cards up to 512 GB. After installation, you can transfer photos, videos and music to it, freeing up the internal drive for the application to work.
In the camera settings, it is recommended to immediately change the default save path to SD-This will prevent the internal buffer from filling up quickly, especially if you like to shoot high-resolution video, and many apps also allow you to select an external storage for downloading content in your settings.
☑️ Checklist for vacancy
Regularly cleaning the gallery basket and the trash can in the file manager is another important step: Deleted files are often stored there for another 30 days, continuing to take up space. Remember to empty these folders after removing unnecessary content.
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Use cloud services (Google Photos, Mi Cloud) to automatically upload photos, and then safely delete their local copy from your phone.