The situation when Xiaomi Redmi 9 refuses to delete images is familiar to many users of the budget segment. It seems that you click the button "Delete", but after an instant the files reappear in the gallery or the process freezes dead. This is annoying, especially when the memory is full, and you need to vacate space urgently. Most often the problem lies not in the hardware failure, but in software conflicts or the features of the MIUI shell.
Smartphone owners often find that the system reports successful deletion, but storage space is not vacated, which may indicate errors in indexing media files or cache problems in the system application Gallery. Android is a complex system where deleting a file does not always mean its instant physical erasure from the drive. Sometimes it takes several steps to check settings and service folders to fix the problem.
In this article, we will explore the main reasons why Redmi 9 ignores photo cleanup commands. We will look at both software bugs and cloud service settings that can interfere with your work. Understanding the nature of the problem will help you avoid data loss and set up your device correctly. A critical reason is often active synchronization with the cloud, which instantly restores deleted local files.
System memory overflow and cache error
One of the most common but common causes of failures is internal memory overflow. When free space falls below a critical level (less than 500 MB), the Android operating system begins to work unstable. In such conditions, the file deletion process can be interrupted because the system does not have enough resources to update the file table. The phone tries to perform the operation, but due to lack of space for temporary files, the operation ends in error or “hangs”.
The second important aspect is the bloated cache of the Gallery or Files app, which over time accumulates temporary data, thumbnails and logs that may conflict with the user's current actions. If you're trying to delete a photo and the app is not working correctly, it may not send the correct signal to delete the file from the storage, in which case cleaning the specific application's data through settings helps.
To solve the problem, the following actions must be performed:
- 📱 Go to Settings. → Annexes → All applications and find the "Gallery».
- 🗑️ Click “Clean” and select “Clear Cache”, then try to delete the photo again.
- 💾 Free up space by deleting unnecessary videos or heavy files through the file manager.
- 🔄 Restart the device so that the system redistributes memory resources.
⚠️ Note: When cleaning the application data (not only the cache), the settings of the gallery itself, such as the order of sorting or hidden albums, may be reset, but your personal photos will not be affected, since they are stored in a separate folder.
Sync conflicts with Google Photos and Mi Cloud
Modern Xiaomi smartphones are closely integrated with cloud services. If you have Google Photos or Mi Cloud sync enabled, you may experience a boomerang effect. You delete a photo from the device, but sync perceives this as desynchronization and instantly returns the file from the cloud back to the phone's memory, which creates the illusion that the phone is bugging or not deleting files.
Users often forget that deleting from a cloud album can be different from deleting a local copy. Google Photos has a "Free Space" option that only deletes photos that have already been uploaded to the cloud. If you delete photos from a standard MIUI gallery and synchronization is active, file version conflict is inevitable. The system believes that the file in the cloud is true, and restores it.
To avoid this, follow the algorithm:
- ☁️ Turn off Wi-Fi and mobile internet before removing large numbers of photos.
- 🚫 Temporarily disable sync in your Google account settings and Mi Account.
- 📂 Use a file manager to remove files directly from the folder DCIM/Camera.
- ✅ After cleaning, turn on the Internet and check the synchronization status.
How to permanently remove photos from the cloud?
If a photo is in the cloud, simply deleting it from your phone may not be enough. Go to the Google Photos app or photos.google.com, find an unnecessary image and delete it there. Then clear the cart in the cloud. Only then turn off sync on your phone and delete local copies.> Problems with the MicroSD card If your photos are stored on an external MicroSD card, the deletion problems may be related to the physical state of the drive or the file system. Memory cards have a limited resource of write and read cycles. Over time, the memory sectors wear out and delete local copies. If the card was retrieved without first turning off the Android menu, the file placement table could be damaged.The phone sees the file, but when you try to access it for removal, it receives an error from the card controller. In such cases, standard removal methods do not work, formatting or replacing the drive is required: 💿 Remove the card and connect it to the computer through the card reader. 🖥️ Try to delete files from your computer; if you fail, the card is faulty. 🛠️ Perform error check with Windows or utility SD Formatter. 📱 Insert the card back into Redmi 9 and check the gallery.Gallery app errors The standard Gallery app from Xiaomi sometimes doesn't work properly after system updates or installing third-party launchers. Bugs in the code can cause the interface to respond to clicks, but the command is not transmitted to the system. This often happens when there are too many photos in the album (thousands of files) and the application does not have time to update the index. In such situations, deleting through the standard interface becomes impossible. A more effective way is to use the system application Explorer (Files) that works directly with the file structure and is less dependent on visual effects and the thumbnail cache. If the conductor can not delete the file, then the process using this file is active in the background. Table of comparison of methods of deleting files: Method Efficiency Risk of data loss Gallery speed MIUI High Conductor High Medium Safe Mode Maximum Low High Conductor High Medium Safe Mode Maximum Low Low PC (ADB/USB) Maximum High Depends on PC ⚠️ Note: If you use a third-party gallery (e.g. Google Photos as the primary), make sure it has the right to change files. 10/11 Access to the file system of third-party applications is limited. 💡Use Safe Mode to delete persistent files. Press the off button, then hold your finger on the "off" item on the screen for a long time until you prompt you to go to Safe Mode. In this mode, third-party applications do not work and do not block deletion. System Restrictions and Access Rights In some cases, files are not deleted due to Android system restrictions. Since version 10, Google has implemented strict restrictions on apps accessing files in root directories, so if the photo was created by a system application or belongs to another user profile, your current account may not have the right to delete it without root rights. It's also worth checking if the file is a system interface element, some wallpapers or images preinstalled by the manufacturer are protected from deletion, and if you try to remove them by standard methods, the security system will block them. In this case, only connecting to a computer in debugging mode or obtaining superuser rights will help, which is not recommended for ordinary users: 🔒 Check if the file is protected by “Read Only” (via PC). 👤 Make sure you are logged into the correct user account. 🔧 Use it. ADB-commands for forced removal (for advanced). 🚫 Do not try to delete files from system folders Android/data manually without understanding the consequences. 💡System files and secure folders can't be deleted by standard means without violating system integrity, and that's fine. Don't waste time fighting system protection if the file doesn't take up critical space. Reset and flashing If none of the soft methods worked, and the Redmi phone 9 It's still inappropriate when you're working with files, maybe the file system is damaged or there's a deep bug in the firmware, and then the last thing you can do is reset the whole thing to the factory settings, and it will delete all the data, including photos, and it will put the phone back in a store-like state». Before you reset, make sure to back up important contacts and documents, as it will be impossible to restore them after reset without a backup. Reset eliminates software conflicts, cleans system debris and access rights, which in 99% of cases solves the problem of undeleteable files. Procedure for discharge: 💾 Save important data on PC or in the cloud. ⚙️ Go to Settings. → The phone. → Resetting settings. 🧹 Select “Erase all data” and confirm the action. ⏳ Wait for the process to be completed and the initial setup. ⚠️ Attention: Full reset removes ALL data from internal memory, including photos, videos, apps and accounts. Make sure you have an up-to-date backup before starting the procedure. Frequently asked questions (FAQ) Why are photos deleted, but the space is not vacated? Most likely, deleted files have been in the recycle bin inside the Gallery or Files app, and they take up space until you clear the recycle bin, and the space may not be displayed correctly because of the system cache, and the reboot will help. Can you delete the system wallpaper on Redmi 9? Standard tools, no, they're protected. Removing them requires Root rights or special applications to remove system debris, but this can lead to unstable interfaces. Does the virus affect the inability to delete photos? Yes, malware can block access to files or permanently restore them. It is recommended to check the phone with an antivirus, for example, built-in security from Xiaomi or a third-party solution like Dr.Web. How to delete a photo if the screen does not respond to clicks? Connect your phone to your computer through USB-cable. Select file transfer mode (MTP) and delete unnecessary images through Windows Explorer or macOS directly from the DCIM folder. Settings reset will definitely delete all undeleteable photos? Yes, full reset clears the user partition completely. All photos you took or downloaded will be destroyed, so backup is mandatory.