Owners of the popular Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 S model often face an unpleasant situation: the internal storage of the smartphone is rapidly filling up, and standard cleaning tools cease to help. Of particular concern is the “Other” category (or “System Files”), which can take up tens of gigabytes, blocking the installation of new applications and saving photos. MIUI and is related to the peculiarities of the accumulation of temporary data.
It is difficult to figure out what exactly is hidden under this mysterious label without special knowledge. Usually, there are cache of messengers, remnants of deleted programs, error logs and temporary update files. Proper cleaning requires a comprehensive approach, since simple deleting files through the file manager often does not give visible results due to system limitations.
In this guide, we will take a closer look at how to securely free up space on your device, how to find hidden files, whether to use third-party utilities, and why the Redmi Note 10 S is so active in accumulating system debris.
⚠️ Warning: Before performing any deep cleaning operations, be sure to back up important data in the cloud or on your computer. Mistakeful deletion of system files can lead to unstable operation of the device.
Analysis of occupied space in the storage
The first step is to make a precise diagnosis. Xiaomi's standard settings menu provides basic information, but for deep analysis, it's better to use built-in tools or specialized applications. Go to Settings → Memory to see the visualization of the data distribution. Here you'll notice that system processes occupy a significant part of the workload.
Many users mistakenly believe that deleting photos will solve the problem, but the category “Other” will not decrease from this. It stores data that the system considers important for its work, but which is actually garbage.
For a more detailed look, you can use the Explorer app to enable the display of hidden files in the settings, which will allow you to see the real size of folders with the cache of social networks and browsers, often they inflate the amount of space occupied to obscene values.
It's important to understand the difference between user data and system cache. If you create the first, the second is automatically generated in the background. Android's MIUI-based operating system tends to aggressively caching to speed up work, but over time it starts to slow down the device.
Cleaning the cache of applications and system services
The most effective way to reduce the size of the Other category is to manually clear the cache of heavy apps. Social networks such as Telegram, WhatsApp and Viber, as well as video services like YouTube, save huge amounts of temporary files. → Annexes → All applications.
Select the largest app from the list and click on Memory, and you'll see the "Clear Cache" button here, and don't confuse it with "Clear Everything" because the last action will delete your correspondence and authorization.-5 The most severe applications can be released 2 before 10 GB space.
Special attention should be paid to the system application “Gallery” and “Google Play Services”, which also accumulate data for quick access to media files and updates, cleaning their cache is safe and often leads to an instant reduction in the size of the “Other” partition.
☑️ Cache cleanup plan
There's also a hidden menu of engineering tests, but it's best for ordinary users not to go in there unless absolutely necessary, and standard tools are enough to keep the system clean, and the main thing is to do this regularly, not just when the memory is full.
Working with Android folder and hidden files
At the bottom of the Redmi Note 10 S file system is the Android/data folder, which is often the main garbage storage, where apps store their work data, including downloaded files, offline maps and temporary archives. Access to this folder in new versions of Android is limited, but file managers allow you to work with its content.
Inside the data folder, you'll find directories with application package names (e.g., com.whatsapp or com.tencent.mm) removing the contents of the cache folders inside these directories is safe. However, deleting the application name folders themselves is not recommended, as this can reset the program settings.
It's also worth checking the MIUI and Gallery root folder in the internal storage, which may contain tails from long-deleted photos and videos that are no longer formally visible in the gallery, but occupy space, and can be easily deleted through the file manager.
| Location of the file | Type of data | Security of removal | Recommended action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Android/data/[app]/cache | Temporary cache | Safe. | Delete the contents |
| DCIM/.thumbnails | Miniatures photo | Safe. | Clear the file. |
| MIUI/debug_log | Logs of debugging | Safe. | Delete files |
| Android/data/[app]/files | Working files | Dangerous. | Don't touch without knowing. |
Use of built-in cleaner and third-party utilities
The MIUI shell preinstalled the Security app, which includes the Cleanup feature, and despite criticism from advanced users, it is quite effective in removing obvious debris: advertising files, remnants of APK installers and temporary logs, and it is worth running it at least once a week.
But embedded tools don't always see deep system deposits, and for a more serious fight, you can use proven third-party utilities like Files by Google or SD Maid, which are softer and can find the "sincere" files left over after you delete applications.
When installing a third-party cleaner, be sure to give it all the permissions you ask for, otherwise it won’t be able to scan the protected memory areas.
⚠️ Warning: Avoid installing “accelerators” and “battery coolers” from unknown developers. Often they themselves are a source of garbage and intrusive advertising, consuming the resources of your Redmi Note 10 S.
Don't just rely on automatic modes. Go to the cleaner's settings periodically and check what it's planning to remove. Sometimes the algorithm may make a mistake and tag important documents to delete.
Resetting settings as a radical solution method
If none of the softer methods worked, and the Other category continues to occupy a critical volume, the last option is a full factory reset. This action is guaranteed to remove all accumulated system debris, registry errors and fragmented files. Factory Reset returns the device to the "out of the box" state.
Before you do this, you need to copy all your important contacts, photos and documents to an external medium or to the Mi Cloud / Google Drive cloud. After the reset, you can recover the data, but the process will take time. Charge the battery of your smartphone to at least 60%.
To perform the reset, go to Settings → About Phone → Settings Reset → Erase all data. The system will request confirmation and unlock password. Once you reboot, you will get a clean system where the Other category will occupy the smallest possible volume.
It's worth noting that once all applications are first launched and updated, the amount of memory occupied will start to grow again, which is normal for the operating system, but starting from scratch gives you a significant increase in performance and free space.
Preventing memory overflow in the future
To prevent memory problems on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 S from returning too quickly, change your smartphone usage habits. In the messaging settings (Telegram, WhatsApp), disable auto-save media files to the gallery. This will prevent data duplication: files will remain in the chat, but will not take up space in the system gallery.
Check Downloads regularly, often downloading documents, installation files, and images from browsers you no longer need, and setting up an automatic cleaning of this folder once a month will be a good habit.
Use cloud-based services to store photos and videos. The Free Space feature in Google Photos allows you to delete files that are already stored in the cloud from your device, one of the most effective ways to keep your internal memory free.