Owners of budget and mid-budget smartphones Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco often face a lack of built-in storage. Modern mobile games weigh gigabytes, and system files take up more space, leaving the user with a minimum of free space, and it is in such situations that there is an urgent need to transfer data to an external drive to keep the device stable and fast.
However, since Android 6.0, Google’s security policy has changed, and standard methods of installing apps directly on the USB flash drive have been abolished.Now the process requires a deeper understanding of the file system or using special modes of operation of the drive. In this article, we will discuss all the current ways to solve the problem of crowded memory.
Before you start taking action, you need to be clear about the risks and technical limitations of your phone model. Not all games support external drive, and some may run slower or even refuse to start. Proper preparation of the device is the key to successful data migration without losing progress in games.
Preparation of SD card and choice of speed class
The first and most critical step is choosing the right drive. To run modern three-dimensional games with heavy graphics, the speed of reading and writing data is crucial. If you use an old or slow card, the games will load for eternity, and in the process of gameplay, unpleasant jerks and friezes can occur.
Note the marking of your drive. For comfortable work in conjunction with a smartphone Xiaomi recommends using cards standard UHS-I or UHS-II with a speed class of at least 10 (Class 10). It is desirable that the case was marked A1 or A2, which indicates optimization for working with applications.
If you plan to use the drive exclusively for gaming, it should be in stock. Heavy projects like Genshin Impact or PUBG Mobile can take up more than 20 GB, taking into account cache and updates. So the minimum recommended volume starts from 64 GB, but it is better to immediately focus on 128 GB and above.
⚠️ Note: Buying cheap memory cards from nameless brands often leads to data loss. Flash memory in them can have real capacity many times less than the declared one, which will damage installed games.
Before formatting, be sure to save all important photos and documents to your computer or to the cloud. The process of preparing a map for working with applications involves the complete destruction of all data on it at the moment.
Configure the memory card as internal memory (Adoptable Storage)
The most effective way to solve space shortages is through a feature known as Adoptable Storage, which allows the Android system to perceive external space. SD-So the card is an extension of the built-in storage, and in this case, the operating system encrypts the drive, and then you can't just plug it into another phone and read it.
To activate this mode, insert the card into the Xiaomi smartphone slot. After the notification of a new device appears, click on it. If there is no automatic offer, go to the Settings menu, then select the About Phone section and click on Storage. From the list of available drives, select your card.
In the menu that opens, find Format. The system will offer two use cases: Portable Storage and Internal Storage. Choose the second option, and once confirmed, the system will format the disk and combine its space with the system.
☑️ Pre-formatting verification
Once the process is complete, the system may suggest that you move the data you already have, and if you want to make room, you can agree to it, and now, when you install new games, the default system will be to save them to the combined volume.
⚠️ Note: Once the card is formatted as internal memory, it will not be possible to remove it without losing data and resetting the phone settings.
Manual transfer of installed games through settings
If you don't want to format the card with internal memory, you can try to migrate the already installed applications manually, which does not work with all games, since developers decide whether to allow the transfer of their product to an external medium.
Go to Settings of your Xiaomi smartphone and find the Apps section. Next, select All Apps to see the full list of installed software. Find the game you want to move in the list and click on it.
In the app management menu that opens, find the Memory or Storage button. If the developer has authorized the transfer, the Change or Move button will be active. SD-Click on it and wait until the file copying process is complete.
- 🎮 Portable games usually have a small size of the main game. APK-file.
- 📁 Cache files (Obb) often remain on the internal drive even after the transfer.
- 🚫 System applications and widgets cannot be transferred to an external map.
It's important to understand that even a successful transfer doesn't guarantee perfect performance, and some heavy games can crash when launched from an external drive due to read speed limits.
Why is the transfer button inactive?
Using a file manager to transfer cache
Often the game itself weighs a little, but the bulk of the cache files are taken up, which by default are downloaded to internal memory, and can be transferred manually using the built-in MIUI Explorer or a third-party file manager, such as Total Commander or X-plore.
Cache files are usually located in a folder. Android/obb or Android/data. You need to find a folder with the game name (e.g. com.pubg.krmobile) and move it to a similar directory on the site. SD-After that, the settings of the game itself sometimes require you to specify a new path, but most often Android finds the files itself.
This operation may require advanced permissions. Android 11 and later severely restricts access to system folders. You may need to give the file manager special permission through the system window that pops up the first time you try to access it.
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Use Xiaomi’s Explorer app for initial analysis: it will show you which folders take up the most space, which will help you make a decision about the transfer.
This method is the most secure, as it does not require formatting the card and does not change the system storage settings, you can return files at any time if you notice performance problems.
Comparison of storage methods: table and features
To make it easier for you to decide on a strategy for vacating space, we have prepared a comparison table that will help you weigh the pros and cons of each method in the context of using a Xiaomi smartphone.
| Parameter | Portable storage | Internal storage | Manual cache transfer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speed of play | Standard. | High (depending on the map) | Tall. |
| Security of data | High (can be read on PC) | Encryption (only on this phone) | Tall. |
| Installation of new games | Only manually or partially | Automatically default | It requires control. |
| Risk of data loss | Minimum | High when retrieving the card | Minimum |
As you can see from the table, the internal storage mode is the most comfortable, but it requires sacrifices in the form of card-to-device binding. The portable mode is more flexible, but less efficient for automation.
The choice of method depends on your priorities: if you want to have data mobility and frequent memory card changes, choose portable mode. If the phone is used as the main gaming device and the card is there all the time, format it with the internal one.
Possible problems and solutions
Users may encounter a number of difficulties in setting up the game, and it often happens that after transferring the game stops running or produces a Files Not Found error, which may be due to a change in the path to the files or a lack of speed in writing the card.
Another common problem is that the system says there's not enough space, even though there are many gigabytes of free space on the card, which can be due to fragmentation of the file system or errors in the partition table, in which case the full formatting of the map on the computer in the exFAT file system helps.
- 🔄 Try to reboot your smartphone after porting heavy apps.
- 🔍 Check the map for errors through the storage settings menu.
- 📉 Remove and install the game again if the transfer was incorrect.
If you’re using cards that are larger than 128GB, make sure your smartphone officially supports these volumes.While many Xiaomis work with 256GB and 512GB, older models may have memory controller limitations.
⚠️ Note: Persistent errors in the recording SD-The card may indicate that it is about to fail. Don't ignore the system's warnings about the damage to the drive.
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The stability of the game depends on the quality SD-Cards: Savings on the drive often leads to loss of game progress and nervous breakdowns.
Optimization of the smartphone with external memory
After you have successfully transferred the games, it is recommended to perform a small optimization of the system. the file system on external drives is prone to fragmentation faster than the internal memory of eMMC or UFS. Periodically check the state of the storage.
It’s also worth turning off automatic game updates over the mobile network if you don’t want to surprise the map at the wrong time: set up Google Play or GetApps so that updates only download over Wi-Fi and only if there’s enough space.
To extend the life of the memory card, try not to install applications that constantly write logs or temporary files in the background. Leave the external drive as storage for games, photos and videos, and leave the system processes with internal memory.
By following these simple rules, you can significantly expand the functionality of your budget or mid-range Xiaomi smartphone and enjoy your favorite games without the constant fear of space shortage.