Messenger users Viber often face the need to find saved photos, videos or documents that they received or sent in chats. The standard smartphone file manager does not always intuitively show the folder structure, especially after updating the operating system to versions Android 11 and higher. This is due to Google's security policies, which have limited access to system directories for third-party applications.
If you are trying to free up space on your device's memory or transfer important media files to your computer, you need to know the exact directory address. In this article, we will look in detail at where exactly the data of the popular messenger is located in modern and outdated versions of the OS, and also consider ways to quickly access them without using root access.
Changes in the Android file system and their impact on Viber
Before the release Android 10 the data storage structure was extremely simple and understandable for anyone user. Applications could freely create their own folders at the root of the internal drive, making it easy to find content through any Explorer. In the case of Viber, this was a separate directory, access to which did not require special permissions.
The situation changed dramatically with the introduction of the concept Scoped Storage (shared storage). Now access to shared folders is strictly regulated, and application data has been moved to a protected area. This is designed to prevent malware from scanning and stealing your personal information, but for ordinary users it makes navigation more difficult.
⚠️ Warning: On Android 11, 12, 13 and later, standard file managers may not display the contents of the folder
Android/datawithout granting special permissions. If you see an empty folder, try using the built-in explorer from the smartphone manufacturer.
Understanding these changes is critical when searching. media content. If you are using an old guide written for Android 9, you simply will not find the files in the specified path. The system deliberately hides them from superficial viewing, requiring explicit confirmation of access when the system directory is first opened.
Path to files on Android 11 and later
In modern versions of the operating system, all application data, including cache and downloaded files, are located in a deeply nested structure. To get to them, you will need to open the internal drive and sequentially follow the following route:
First go to the root of the memory, then open the folder Android. Inside it, find the directory data. This is where the private data of all installed apps is stored. Next, you should find a folder with a unique application identifier, which for Viber looks like com.viber.voip.
The final path to media files on new devices looks like this:
/Android/data/com.viber.voip/files/ViberMediaInside this directory you will find several subfolders sorted by content type. For example, photos will be in Images, and videos will be in Video. Voice messages are often saved in a folder audio_messages, although their format may be specific for playback outside the messenger.
If you see the "Access restricted" message when entering the Android/data folder, click the "Allow access" button at the bottom of the Explorer screen. This action is safe and allows access only to the file system, and not to the phone settings.
Data location on Android 10 and older versions
If your smartphone is running Android 9 Pie or earlier versions, the logic for storing files is much simpler. The messenger developers used the root directory of the internal storage to save user content, which made it visible immediately when opening the file manager.
In this case, you do not need to delve into the depths of the system. Just open the device memory and find the folder named Viber. It is located on the same level with directories such as DCIM, Download or Bluetooth.
Full path for old devices:
/Viber/ViberMediaHere the subfolder structure is similar to the new system: separate directories for photos, videos and documents. This arrangement is convenient because you can quickly transfer files to your computer via a USB cable by simply copying the entire folder, without having to navigate through hidden system partitions.
The main difference: on Android 10 and below, the Viber folder is in the root of the memory, and on Android 11+ it is hidden inside Android/data/com.viber.voip.
The folder structure and types of saved files
Regardless of the operating system version, the internal organization of files within the directory ViberMedia remains logical and orderly. This makes it easy to sort the received content and remove unnecessary items without affecting important correspondence. Knowing the structure helps to effectively manage smartphone memory.
Let's consider the main directories that you will find inside:
- 📷 Images — all received and sent photos are stored here in original quality (if compression is not enabled).
- 🎬 Video — directory for videos that you downloaded from chats or recorded through the app.
- 🎙️ audio_messages — folder with voice notes. Files can have the extension .ogg or .m4a.
- 📄 Documents — a place to save PDF, Word, Excel and other documents sent in correspondence.
- 🖼️ Stickers — a cache of stickers and emoji that are downloaded for display in chats.
The folder is worth mentioning separately .thumbnails. It stores small copies of images for quick viewing in the messenger gallery. They take up space, but deleting them will cause the pictures to be loaded again the next time you open the chat, wasting Internet traffic.
| File type | Extension | Where to look | Can be deleted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Photo | .jpg, .png | ViberMedia/Images | Yes, if there is a copy |
| Video | .mp4, .3gp | ViberMedia/Video | Yes, they take up a lot of space |
| Voice | .ogg | ViberMedia/audio_messages | Yes, if it is not important |
| Sticker | .webp | ViberMedia/Stickers | No, it will download again |
What to do if the folder is empty?
If you entered the folder, but it is empty, check the settings of the application itself. You may have disabled automatic saving to the gallery. Go to Viber Settings -> Privacy and Data -> Saving to Gallery and enable the desired item.
How to enable automatic saving to the Gallery
Many users cannot find files simply because they are not saved to the general gallery of the smartphone, but remain only inside the application cache. In order for photos and videos from Viber to appear in the standard Gallery or Google Photos application, you need to change your privacy settings.
Go to the messenger menu by clicking on the three dots or the gear icon. Select section Settings, then go to item Privacy and data. Find the switch Save to gallery and activate it. Now all new media files will be duplicated in a public folder DCIM/Viber or Pictures/Viber.
This feature is extremely useful if you want to quickly show a photo friends through a general gallery view, without delving into the file system. However, it is worth remembering that this takes up additional disk space, since the files are actually duplicated: one copy remains in the protected application folder, and the second appears in the public domain.
☑️ Setting up photo saving
Clearing the cache and freeing up space on the phone
Over time, folders messengers can grow to gigabytes, filling up valuable space on the internal storage. This is especially true for group chats, where videos and pictures are constantly sent. Regular cleaning garbage helps speed up your smartphone.
The safest way to remove unnecessary stuff is to use the built-in tools of the application itself. In the Viber settings there is a section Memory and data (or simply Data), where space usage statistics are displayed. There you can select a specific chat and clear its history of media files without deleting the conversation itself.
⚠️ Attention: Deleting files through the system file manager (manually) may result in a loading error being displayed in the chat instead of a picture. Use Viber's built-in cleaning to correctly remove data from the application database.
If you still decide to clean files manually through Explorer, be extremely careful. Delete only the contents of the Video and Imagesfolders. Do not touch files with the extension .db or .journal in the root folder of the application - these are databases of your contacts and messages. Deleting them will result in a complete loss of chat history.
Manually deleting files from the Android/data folder does not immediately update the used space counter inside the Viber application. To correctly display the free space, it is better to restart the smartphone after cleaning.
Access problems and their solutions
Sometimes users are faced with a situation where the folder exists, but the phone displays the error “No access” or “File is damaged.” This often happens after a system update or when connecting the phone to a computer in file transfer mode (MTP).
The computer may not see the contents of the folder Android/data due to limitations of the MTP protocol in new versions of Android. In this case, it is recommended to use wireless transfer methods, for example, a app for Mac or the built-in Nearby Share function to send files to another device. The problem may also lie in the access rights of the file manager itself. Go to Android File Transfer for Mac or the built-in Nearby Share feature to send files to another device.
The problem may also lie in the access rights of the file manager itself. Go to Settings smartphone, select Applications, find your file explorer and check the permissions. Make sure he has access to Files and media or Storage. Without this permission, the application sees only its own files.
Why don’t I see the Viber folder on the computer when connected cable?
On Android 11+, access to the Android/data folder via a USB cable is often blocked by the security system. Try using cloud storage or send the files to yourself via Telegram/mail for downloading on your PC.
Is it possible to transfer the Viber folder to an SD card?
Officially transferring the application cache to a memory card is not possible in modern versions of Android. The system stores application data only in internal memory for security and speed.
Where are Viber chat backups stored?
Backups are not stored as separate files in the ViberMedia folder. They are created in a hidden system partition or uploaded directly to Google Drive (on Android) when setting up autosave.
How to find deleted photos from Viber?
If a photo has been deleted from a chat, it is also erased from the ViberMedia folder. You can only restore it from a Google Drive backup, if it was created before the deletion, or through the phone gallery recycle bin (if the file was saved there).