Xiaomi’s ‘Storage is Different’: What is it, Why Does It Grow, and How to Clean It

Have you ever looked into your Xiaomi smartphone’s memory settings and seen the mysterious “Other” section that takes up gigabytes of space? This item doesn’t have a clear description, doesn’t open like a regular folder, but can eat up to 30-50% of internal storage. Unlike photos, videos or apps, the content of “Other” is not obvious — and that raises a lot of questions.

In fact, the Other is not a single folder, but a collection point for system files, cache, temporary data and remnants of remote applications that MIUI does not classify as standard. In some cases, it hides duplicate files, debugging logs or even encrypted messenger data. The problem is that the system does not always clean this partition automatically, which causes it to grow to incredible size. In this article, we will understand what exactly is stored in the Other, why it takes up so much space and how to safely reduce it without risking it.

What’s hidden under the “Other” item in Xiaomi’s memory

If you open Settings → Memory → Internal Memory, you will see a diagram with the distribution of space into categories: “Apps”, “Images”, “Video”, etc. But the “Other” section stands out for the lack of detail. This is not an accident – MIUI specifically combines here files that:

• 📁 Not related to user data – system log files, memory dumps, recovery files after crashes.
• 🔄 Remained after deleting applications - undeleted caches, settings, temporary files.
• 🔒 Encrypted or protected – messenger data (Telegram, WhatsApp), Mi Account backups.
• 🛠️ Used for debugging - trace files, error reports that the system creates.

For example, if you delete a game but it's cache or saved, it can get into Another. The same thing happens with MIUI updates: once you install a new version, the old firmware files sometimes don't delete automatically, and as a result, after six months of using a smartphone, the partition can grow to 10-20 GB - and this is despite the fact that there is only 1-2 GB of really "useful" data.

On one of the devices Redmi Note 10 Pro section “Other” took 28 GB of 128 GB. After manual cleaning (see section below) managed to free up 18 GB – among them were:

• 📦 Google Play Services log files in 6 months (4.2 GB).
• 🎮 Remnants of Remote Games (Genshin Impact, Call of Duty Mobile – 6.5 GB).
• 📱 Mi Cloud backups that didn’t sync (3.1GB).
• 🔧 Debugging files ADB and Fastboot (1.8 GB).

Why the Other Grows Over Time and How to Prevent It

The main reason for the growth of the “Other” partition is the malfunction of the cache cleaner in MIUI. The system must automatically delete temporary files, but often this does not happen because:

• 🔄 Interrupted updates – if a firmware or application crashes during boot, files remain in memory.
• 🚫 Restrictions of Rights – Some applications (especially system ones) cannot delete their temporary data without root rights.
• 📱 Features of the file system – Xiaomi uses F2FS or EXT4, Sometimes they fragment “junk” files.
• 🔒 Secure data – instant messengers and banking applications store the cache in encrypted form, which the system cannot clear.

Another factor is the frequent use of backup features, for example, if you turn on Automatic Backup in Mi Cloud, the system creates temporary files that it doesn't always delete, the same thing happens when you use Google Drive or Local Backup.

To prevent the growth of the Other, follow simple rules:

☑️ Preventing the growth of the “other»

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• 📵 Turn off automatic backup in Settings → Xiaomi account → Mi Cloud → Backup.
• 🔄 Clean the cache regularly in Settings → Memory. → Clean (but not more often than 1 time in 2 weeks).
• 🚫 Do not interrupt downloading updates or installing applications.
• 📦 Use a file manager (such as Mi File Manager) to manually check folders /data/log and /cache.

How to Safely Clean the Other Without Harming the System

Before you start cleaning, remember that deleting files from Other can cause failures if you delete system data. So proceed carefully and follow the instructions below.

Method 1: Cleaning through built-in MIUI tools

The safest method is to use standard MIUI functions:

1. Go to Settings → Memory → Clean.
2. Click on “Deep Cleanup” (if there is one).
3. Select “Clean Unnecessary Files” – the system will scan the temporary data.
4. Confirm removal.

This method only removes secure temporary files, but does not affect system data, but it does not clean up everything, for example, the remnants of deleted applications or log files can remain.

Method 2: Manual deletion through file manager

For a deeper cleaning, you will need Mi File Manager (or any other manager with access to system folders):

1. Open Mi File Manager and enable the display of hidden files in the settings.
2. Go to the root folder (/) and find the following directories: /data/log – system log files. /cache – application and system cache. /data/local/tmp – temporary files. /sdcard/Android/obb – game and heavy applications remnants.

Except for those with the.odex or.apk extension

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Before deleting files in the /data folder, back up important data – incorrect actions can cause the system to crash.

Method 3: Use of ADB (for power users)

If the first two methods didn’t work, you can use ADB (Android Debug Bridge), which requires connecting your smartphone to your computer and basic command line knowledge.

1. Install ADB Tools on your PC.
2. Turn on "Debugging by" USB» In Settings → The phone. → Version. MIUI (Press 7 times, then return to the Additional Settings → For developers).
3. Connect your phone to your PC and execute commands: adb shell pm clear com.miui.cleanmaster # Clean up the standard cleaner rm -rf /data/local/tmp/* # Delete temporary files rm -rf /cache/* # Clear cache (requires root rights)

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Without root rights, rm commands for system folders may not work, in which case only use secure commands, such as pm clear, to clear the application cache.

What files in the “Other” can be deleted and which can not

Not all files in the Other section are safe to delete, and here is a table that shows you what you can touch and what you can't touch:

Particular care should be taken with files in folders:

• 🚨 /data/app/ — It's where the installed applications are stored.
• 🚨 /system/ — Any changes to the phone could make it inoperable.
• 🚨 /data/data/com.android.*/ — system application data. Deletion will cause failures.

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If you are not sure if you can delete the file, move it to another folder (for example, to the file). SD-check the phone's performance throughout the day. If everything is fine, the file can be deleted.

What to do if the Other takes up too much space and doesn’t clear

If, after all the manipulation, the Other is still tens of gigabytes, maybe the problem is deeper.

1.Cache reset via Recovery

This method does not delete user data, but clears the system cache:

1. Turn off the phone.
2. Press the Power button + Volume up to enter Recovery Mode.
3. Select Wipe Cache Partition (use volume buttons for navigation).
4. Confirm the action and restart the phone.

2.Verification for viruses and malware

Some viruses masquerade as system files and inflate the "Other" section. Scan with Malwarebytes or built-in MIUI Security:

1. Open Security. → Scanning.
2. Select "Deep Testing."
3. Delete the threats you found.

3. Update MIUI to the latest version

Some versions of MIUI (especially MIUI 12 and older) have bugs that prevent the system from clearing temporary files.

1. Go to Settings → About the phone → System update.
2. Download and install the latest version.
3. After the update, reset the cache (see the method above).

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If the problem persists after the update, try to roll back to the previous version of MIUI - sometimes bugs appear in new builds.

4.Extreme measure: reset to factory settings

If nothing works, all that remains is a complete reset.

• 📱 Make a backup of the data through Settings → Additionally. → Backup and reset.
• 🔐 Write down or take pictures of important passwords (they will erase).
• 📁 Transfer photos and videos to PC or cloud.

Once reset, the Other section will return to its original size (usually 1-3 GB), but this is a radical method that should only be resorted to as a last resort.

Myths and misconceptions about the “Other” section on Xiaomi

You can find a lot of tips on the Internet to clean the Other that not only don't help, but also harm the device.

⚠️ Attention: Deletion of folder /data/dalvik-cache rootless will cause the phone to reboot cyclically, and this cache is required for the applications to work!

• ❌ Myth 1: «You can delete everything from the folder. /data — It's just trash». 🔹 Reality: B /data It stores app settings, game saves, and user data. Deleting it will cause the phone to reset.
• ❌ Myth 2: “Files with the.nomedia extension can be deleted – they are useless». 🔹 Reality: These files hide media from the gallery, but they don't take up much space on their own.
• ❌ Myth 3: Cleaning through CCleaner or similar applications is safe». 🔹 Reality: These programs often delete important system files, leading to lags and errors. MIUI It has built-in cleaning tools – they are enough.
• ❌ Myth 4: “If the Other takes up a lot of space, it means the phone is infected with a virus». 🔹 Reality: 90% of the time, it's just accumulated system debris, not a virus. Try standard cleaning methods first.

Another common misconception is that the Other can be completely deleted, and in fact, this partition will always take up space because the system is constantly creating temporary files to work with, and the normal size of the Other after cleaning is 1-5 GB (depending on the model and version of MIUI).

Alternative ways to make room on Xiaomi

If even after cleaning the Other, you don’t have enough memory, use these tips:

• 📁 Move the applications to SD-map (if supported): Go to Settings → Annexes → Application management. Select the application and click "Move to" SD-map (not available for all applications).

Use cloud storage

• 📷 Google Photos – Automatic uploading of photos and videos.
• 📄 Mi Cloud – Backup of contacts and notes.

Clean up the downloads.

/sdcard/Download/ is often filled with unnecessary files. Check it once a month.

Remove unused games

Games like Genshin Impact or PUBG Mobile take 2-4 GB each. Remove those you don't play.

You can also turn off automatic downloading of media in messengers:

• 📱 On WhatsApp: Settings → Warehouse → Autoboot media → disconnect for mobile data.
• 📱 In Telegram: Settings → Data and memory → Autoboot media → Choose "Never».

FAQ: Frequent questions about Xiaomi's "Other" section