Previous articleMemory is clogged on Xiaomi: how to find and remove “invisible” garbage on Android

Your Xiaomi shows that the memory is 90% full, but you have not installed new applications or downloaded large files? This is a typical situation for smartphones on MIUI - the proprietary shell actively caches data and system processes leave behind "tails" resulting in users being faced with the message "Not enough space on the device", although the gallery only a couple of photos, and in downloads - empty.

The problem is compounded by the fact that standard Android tools (like Settings → Storage) often don’t show real memory eaters.

• 📁 Hidden folders with app cache (like.thumbnails or Android/data)
• 🤖 System dumps (error logs that take up gigabytes)
• 🔄 Duplicate files created by backup copies MIUI or cloud services
• 📱 Residual files after deleting applications (such as com.xiaomi.*)

In this article, 7 proven ways to free up memory on Xiaomi, including hidden tricks for power users. All methods are tested on the Redmi Note 12 Pro+, POCO X5 Pro and Mi 11 Ultra models with MIUI 14 and Android 13, but will also be suitable for older versions.

1. Diagnosis: What exactly is taking up memory?

Before you delete files at random, you need to identify the main culprits. MIUI has a built-in storage analyzer, but it often hides system data.

1. Open Settings → About Phone → Memory (or Storage depending on the version of MIUI) Here you will see a diagram of the distribution of memory by category (Apps, Images, Videos, etc.).
2. Click on category c (e.g., “Other” or “System Data”) – gigabytes of garbage are often hidden here.
3. For detailed analysis, use third-party tools like Files by Google or SD Maid (available on Play Market) They'll show: 🗑️ Cache folders (>1GB) 📂 Empty folders and duplicates 🔍 Files left over after deleting applications

Notice the folders:

• /storage/emulated/0/Android/data – this is where application data is stored (may weigh 10+GB)
• /storage/emulated/0/DCIM/.thumbnails – image thumbnails (often 1-3 GB)
• /storage/emulated/0/MIUI/backup – MIUI backups (can lie for years)

💡

If the System Data section is more than 5GB, it is a reason for deep cleaning, most often there are error logs (/data/tombstones) and memory dumps (/data/anr).

2. Clearing cache and temporary files

Cache speeds up applications, but grows to uncontrollable sizes over time, and on Xiaomi, it can be cleaned in a number of ways:

Method 1: Built-in cleaning in MIUI

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Slip on the three dots in the top right corner and select "Sort by size."
3. Open each application from the top-10 by size and click Clear Cache (not to be confused with Clear Data – this will remove all settings!).

Method 2: Deep Cleaning with Recovery

If the phone is severely slowing down, cleaning the cache in recovery mode will help:

1. Turn off your smartphone.
2. Press the Power button + Volume up until the Mi logo appears.
3. From the Recovery menu, select Wipe & Reset → Wipe Cache (use volume buttons for navigation, power for selection).
4. After the reboot, check the free space - this method frees up to 2-5 GB.

Method 3: Automatic Cleaning with Security App

Xiaomi has preinstalled the Security utility (shield icon), which can:

• 🧹 Remove unnecessary APK-files after updates
• 🗑️ Clean the cache of social networks (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok)
• 🔍 Finding large files (>100MB)

Launch the app, go to Clean up and click Deep Clean up. Attention: don't delete files from Important Data - these can be game or settings saved.

3. Systemic debris and logs disposal

MIUI actively logs system processes that take up gigabytes over time, and these files are not visible through standard conductor, but can be manually deleted.

How to find and delete logs?

1. Connect your phone to your PC and enable USB Debugging (Settings → About Phone → MIUI version – tap 7 times, then go back to Additional Settings → For Developers).
2. Use ADB (Android Debug Bridge) to access hidden folders. Enter the command: adb shell su rm -rf /data/tombstones/* rm -rf /data/anr/* rm -rf /data/log/*
3. Reboot the phone. That'll free up 500MB to 2GB.

Note: Deleting logs through ADB requires root rights. If they do not exist, use an alternative method:

1. Install a file manager with access to the root folder (such as FX File Explorer or Root Explorer).
2. Go to /data/log and delete all files with the.log or.txt extension.

Cleaning up memory dumps

Dumps (*.dmp files) are created when applications crash, take up a lot of space, but are useless for the average user.

1. In the file manager, go to /data/tombstones.
2. Select all files and delete them. If the folder doesn't open, use ADB (the command above).

4. Search and delete duplicate files

Duplicates are one of the main causes of memory loss, and they occur when:

• 📲 Transfer files between devices
• 🔄 Automatic backup (Google Photos, Mi Cloud)
• 🎵 Download music from multiple sources

To find duplicates:

1. Use applications like Duplicate Files Fixer or Files by Google (Clean up → File Duplicates).
2. Manually check the folders: DCIM/Camera — Download photos and videos – Music or Ringtones files downloaded

Before removing duplicates, check if they are:

• 📸 Backups of photos (e.g. edited versions)
• 🎵 Different versions of the same song (320 kbps vs 128 kbps)
• 📄 Important documents with different names

💡

Duplicate applications often misrepresent video files. Check the duration and size before deleting - sometimes "duplicates" are of high quality or cropping.

5. Cleaning up memory from remnants of remote applications

When you delete an application through Settings, it often leaves behind:

• 📁 Folders in /Android/data/ and /Android/obb/
• 🗃️ Settings files in /data/data/ (root)
• 🔧 Cash and temporary files

How to remove these "tails":

No root rights.

1. Open a file manager (such as Mi File Manager).
2. Go to /storage/emulated/0/Android/data.
3. Find folders with names of remote applications (for example, com.facebook.katana for Facebook) and delete them.

With root rights.

For complete cleaning:

1. Use Root Explorer or SD Maid (enable the "Custom" option).
2. Go to /data/data/ and delete folders with the names of unnecessary applications.
3. Clean /data/app-lib/ – this is where the remote programs libraries are stored.

Example: After deleting Genshin Impact, a file size of 10+ GB can remain in /Android/obb/com.mihoyo.GenshinImpact.

6.Optimizing MIUI: disabling unnecessary functions

MIUI is known for its heavy interface, which consumes memory even in the background.

• 📊 Animations and transitions: Settings → Additional settings → Window animation → Select "No animation».
• 🌐 Auto-update MIUI: Settings → The phone. → Updating the system → Turn off "Automatic Booting».
• ☁️ Backup in Mi Cloud: Settings → Xiaomi account → Mi Cloud → Backup → Turn off unnecessary data.
• 📸 Autoload Media in Gallery: Gallery → Settings → Autoboot → Disable WhatsApp, Telegram and other messengers.

It is also recommended that:

• 🛑 Limit the background activity of applications: Settings → Battery and productivity → Battery management → Select “Limit background activity” for unnecessary applications.
• 🔄 Turn off automatic synchronization: Settings → Accounts and synchronization → Turn off sync for unnecessary accounts.

💡

Disabling animations not only saves memory, but also speeds up the interface by 15-20% (tested on the Redmi Note 11 Pro+).

7.Extreme measures: reset to factory settings

If none of the methods worked, and the memory is still full of invisible debris, then Hard Reset remains. It's a radical way, but it's guaranteed to clean up all system files.

How do you do the reset right?

1. Back up your important data (photos, contacts, messages) and use Google Photos for media and Mi Cloud for settings.
2. Go to Settings → About the phone → Reset settings.
3. Select “Delete all data” and confirm the action.
4. After rebooting, set your phone up as new. Don't restore data from a MIUI backup - it may contain the same garbage!

Attention: the reset will remove:

• 📱 All installed applications and their data
• 📸 Photos and videos (if not saved to the cloud)
• 🔑 Wi-Fi and Bluetooth devices passwords
• 🎮 Game saving (if not linked to an account)

After discharge:

• 🔍 Install only the necessary applications.
• 🚫 Opt out of backup via Mi Cloud (use Google Drive).
• 📊 Check the storage regularly (once a month).

FAQ: Frequent questions about memory cleanup on Xiaomi