Owners of the popular Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro often encounter a mysterious partition in storage that is labeled “Other” and can grow to tens of gigabytes, taking up the precious space needed to install apps or save photos. Understanding the nature of this phenomenon is the first step to successfully clean the device.
The MIUI system installed on your smartphone classifies files that do not fall into the standard categories of images, video or audio, specifically as “Other” — often messenger cache, remnants of remote programs or system logs. Cleaning this section requires careful attention so as not to damage the operating system.
In this article, we will look at proven ways to safely free up space, learn which tools are built into the shell of MIUI 12 or newer versions, and when to resort to third-party methods.
Memory Analysis: What is Hidden in the Section
Before we start taking any drastic measures, we need to understand what exactly is taking up space. The Other section on the Redmi Note 8 Pro is a collection of data, including archives, documents, APK installation files and, most importantly, social media cache.
Many users mistakenly believe that this is system debris that can be removed with a single click, but the Android file system is more complex. Often, a large amount of "Other" is created by WhatsApp or Telegram, storing the videos and images viewed in hidden folders that a standard analyzer does not see as media files.
⚠️ Note: Do not attempt to manually delete files from Android system folders through a file manager without understanding their purpose. MIUI or complete rejection of certain applications.
For detailed analysis, we recommend using built-in diagnostics to visualize the distribution of data, and if a partition has grown to an unimaginable size, such as more than 20 GB, it is a signal that a digital cleaning is needed.
Use of the built-in "Security" application
The safest and first method to use for a Xiaomi owner is to use the software, which is deeply integrated into the system and knows which files can be touched and which ones should not be touched.
Launch the app and select Clean up. The system will scan and suggest removing obvious debris. However, to work with the Other section, you need to go to deeper settings. Click on the basket icon or select Deep Clean up.
☑️ Standard cleaning algorithm
It's important to look at the Big Files section, which is often where forgotten videos or archives are hidden, which the system has classified as "Other" and analyzes large files, allowing you to manually select and delete objects larger than 100 MB.
If a standard cleanup doesn't work, don't despair, which means that the data is protected from being quickly deleted or classified by the system as important to the operation of the applications, so we'll move on to a more detailed analysis of the storage.
Manual cleaning of messenger cache
The main memory eater in the Other section of the Redmi Note 8 Pro are messengers. WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber and others store their correspondence and media history in their directories. Standard cache clearing through Android settings may not affect all temporary files.
Consider the example of Telegram. Inside the app itself, there's a powerful cleaning tool. Go to Settings → Data and Memory → Memory Use. Here you can clear the cache, and set up automatic deletion of downloaded files after a certain period.
For WhatsApp, the situation is similar, but files are often shared. Go to Settings → Apps → All apps, find WhatsApp and select Memory. Click Clear Cache. This action is secure and won't delete your correspondence, only temporary files.
Why is the cache taking up space again?
Remember that data cleanup (not to be confused with cache) will completely delete the app and all your correspondence if you do not make a backup.
Working with Android folder and hidden files
The advanced memory management layer on Xiaomi involves working with the file system directly. The Other section is often formed by the Android/data and Android/obb folder.
Using a file manager (such as the built-in Explorer or a third-party MIXplorer), you can find remnants of deleted games. If you deleted a game but the folder with its name remained in Android/obb, it can be safely removed manually.
| Type of folder | Location. | Can I remove it? | Effects of consequences |
|---|---|---|---|
| cache | Inside the app folders | Yes. | The application will download the data again |
| obb | Android/obb | Only from remote games | The remaining games will stop working. |
| thumbnails | DCIM/.thumbnails | Yes. | The gallery will take longer to form previews |
| log | In the root or application folders | Yes. | No, it's just error logs. |
Pay special attention to the.thumbnails folder in the DCIM directory, which is a hidden folder where you store thumbnails of your photos and videos, and over time, it can grow to several gigabytes, and the system will classify it as "Other." Deletion of files inside it is safe.
⚠️ Note: When removing the contents of the folder Android/data Make sure that the application that owns the data is no longer needed or you are ready to log in again.
Resetting settings as a radical method
If none of the above methods helped to free up space and the Other section continues to occupy a critical volume, the last resort remains: a full reset to factory settings (Factory Reset) is guaranteed to clear all user data and return the partition structure to its original state.
Before you do this on the Redmi Note 8 Pro, it's critical to create a full backup. Use the Mi Cloud cloud service or make a local backup on your computer. Once reset, the phone will look like new.
💡
Before resetting, remove the MicroSD card, if installed, which will protect your personal files on the card from random formatting if you make the wrong choice of the drive to clean.
To perform the reset, go to Settings → About Phone → Settings Reset → Clear all data. The system will warn you to delete all files. This process takes 10 to 30 minutes depending on the storage capacity.
Once turned on, take your time to restore all applications from the backup at once. Watch the Other section on a clean system. If it is empty or takes up minimal space, then the problem was the accumulated garbage of the particular application that you install later.
Preventing overcrowding of storage
To prevent the problem with the “Other” partition on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro from returning regularly, you need to introduce the habit of periodic maintenance.
Set up automatic cache cleanup in the Security app. It is also recommended to check the Download folder once a month, where files that are no longer needed are often accumulated. Regularity is the key to free memory.
💡
The best overflow prevention is to avoid storing unnecessary files in your phone’s memory and use cloud storage to archive old photos and documents.
Use memory optimization features if available in your version of MIUI. Some versions of the shell allow you to automatically delete old screenshots or duplicate photos, which also positively affects the total amount of space occupied.