Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco smartphone owners often face a situation where built-in storage is overcrowded and notifications of space shortages in the Mi Cloud become intrusive.The Chinese manufacturer's ecosystem is designed so that by default the system tends to synchronize contacts, gallery and notes with the server, which is convenient for backups, but critical when quotas are overflowing.
Users often confuse local files on a device with data stored on a remote server. Deleting photos from a phone gallery does not always mean they disappear from the cloud, and vice versa. Digital hygiene requires a clear understanding of exactly where your data is before starting mass deletion.
In this article, we will look at all the ways to clean storage, from manual removal through smartphone settings to a full account reset, and learn how to safely vacate space and not lose important documents in the process.
Difference Between Local Storage and Mi Cloud
Before we start taking drastic measures, we need to clearly distinguish between local memory and cloud storage. Mi Cloud is a remote server where MIUI or HyperOS uploads copies of your data for security. Local storage is the physical memory of your smartphone.
Many users mistakenly believe that deleting a photo from a gallery automatically clears the cloud. In fact, if synchronization is enabled, deleting a file from a phone can also cause it to be deleted from the cloud, but only with certain display settings. It is important to understand the mechanism of synchronization to avoid accidental data loss.
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Deleting a file from your device when you actively sync it may result in it being deleted from the cloud if the Clean Remote Elements option is enabled.
There are several levels of data access, from the Gallery app, from system settings, and from the web interface, each of which has its own characteristics and affects different types of data, for example, contacts and notes often take up less space, but their loss can be more critical than removing duplicate photos.
⚠️ Warning: Before mass deletion, make sure you have an up-to-date backup of important data on an external hard drive or computer.
Preparation for cleaning: inspection of the occupied place
The first step in cleaning up is to audit what exactly is taking up space. Xiaomi provides a convenient tool for analyzing the content of the Mi Cloud. Without this step, you risk deleting the files you want, thinking they're not important.
Go to your account settings and select the cloud storage section, and you'll see a space distribution diagram, and typically the lion's share is in the Gallery and Recorder if you're actively using these features.
Notice the Recycle Bin folder. Deleted files often stay there for 30 days, continuing to take up space. Cleaning the Recycle Bin is the first and most secure step to freeing up space.
- 📸 Check the Gallery section to estimate the volume of photos.
- 📱 Make sure that backups of system settings do not take too much.
- 🗑️ Clean the cart in cloud storage before the main removal.
Delete data through smartphone settings
The fastest way to manage cloud content is to use the interface of the smartphone itself, which is convenient because it does not require a computer connection and works even in unstable Internet environments, as it is managed through the system’s API.
To start, open Settings and go to Mi Account, where all services are managed. Select Mi Cloud to see a list of data sync applications.
☑️ Cleaning algorithm through settings
In the list, you'll see apps like Contacts, Messages, Gallery, Recorder, and more. When you click on a particular application, you'll be taken to its data management menu. There's a Delete Data button that will erase information from the cloud but leave it on the device (if sync has stopped) or delete it everywhere (depending on the MIUI version).
If you remove gallery data from the cloud, you can choose between removing it from the cloud or removing it from the cloud, and select "Delete it from the cloud" if you want to save your photo on your phone.
⚠️ Warning: Delete Everywhere wipes data irrevocably from all attached devices, only use it if you are sure you don't need copies anywhere.
Complete cleaning through the i.mi.com web interface
A computer and a web browser are best suited for deep and detailed cleaning. i.mi.com provides more file management functionality than a mobile application, which is especially convenient for large arrays of photos.
Sign in to your Mi Account via your browser. The web interface allows you to select files by group, date or album, which greatly speeds up the process. You can select a year of photos and delete them with a single click.
What to do if the web interface is not loaded?
In the Gallery section of the web interface, you can not only delete, but also download the original files before deleting. This is an important step to create a local backup. After allocating files, click the delete button and confirm the action.
Don't forget to check the Settings section in the web interface, which can store information about lost devices or old SMS backups that you haven't used in a long time, and deleting them will help make room for more important data.
- 💻 Use a PC to mass allocate files by date.
- 📥 Download important archives before deleting through the browser.
- 🔄 Check the “Find the Device” section for old data.
Comparison of data deletion methods
The choice of cleaning method depends on your goals and the type of data you have, the mobile application is easy to check, and the web interface is easy to clean, and the table below is a guide to how to determine the method.
| Method | Convenience | Speed. | Risk of error |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phone settings | High. | Medium | Medium. |
| Web interface | Average. | Tall. | Low. |
| Shutting down synchronization | High. | Instant. | Low. |
| Deletion of account | Low. | Tall. | critical |
As you can see from the chart, deleting an account is the most radical method, and it only works if you sell a phone or completely abandon the Xiaomi ecosystem, and otherwise, it's better to use selective cleaning.
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If you plan to sell your phone, it’s not enough to simply delete files, but you need to perform a full reset (Wipe Data) after you unbundle your Mi Account so that the new owner does not get access to your data.
Disconnecting synchronization as an alternative to deleting
Sometimes the problem is not the accumulated debris, but the system's constant attempt to upload new photos to the cloud, so if the space is over and you don't want to delete anything, you can just turn off the sync, and that will stop the traffic and space consumption on the server.
To do this, go to Settings -> Mi Cloud -> Sync. Here you can selectively turn off applications. For example, leave sync for Contacts (this is critical), but turn off for Gallery and Recorder.
Once you shut down the sync, the old data will stay in the cloud, but the new data will stop coming in, and it's a temporary solution that doesn't free up space, but prevents it from filling up again, and you'll still need to manually delete it to make it completely free.
- 🚫 Disabling sync does not delete files that have already been downloaded.
- ✅ This is the best way to stop overflows without losing data.
- ⚙️ You can configure synchronization only over Wi-Fi so as not to waste mobile traffic.
Radical method: deletion of Mi Account
The best way to remove everything from the cloud is to delete the Mi Account itself, which cancels all services: Mi Cloud, Mi Pay, Mi Store purchase history and linking to smart home devices.
The procedure is performed through account.xiaomi.com. The security section has the option to delete the account, the system will warn you of the consequences several times, and after confirmation, you will have a waiting period (usually several days) during which you can cancel the decision.
⚠️ Warning: Deleting your Mi Account will make it impossible to unlock your device if Find Device is enabled. Be sure to untie your phone from your account before deleting it, otherwise your smartphone will turn into a brick».
Once the account is deleted, all data on Xiaomi servers will be destroyed in accordance with the privacy policy, which will be impossible to recover by any means, this step should be done only knowingly.
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Deleting an account is a point of no return, and make sure you remember passwords from other services (Google, social media) that may have been linked to that device.