The smartphone Samsung Galaxy A31 has deservedly enjoyed popularity in its segment due to its high-quality screen and autonomy, but 64 or 128 gigabytes of internal memory inevitably fill up over time. Users often encounter a situation where the system issues notifications about lack of space, and devices begin to work slower, slow down when opening a menu, or freeze while shooting video. This is a natural process of accumulation of digital waste, which requires timely intervention to restore the device’s performance.
Freeing up space on Android is not just deleting old photos, but an integrated approach to managing files, application caches and system logs. In this article we will examine in detail the standard shell tools, hidden developer functions and radical methods that will help restore your gadget to its former speed. You don't have to be a technical expert to perform these steps, as the interface is intuitive. One UI, hidden developer functions and radical methods that will help restore your gadget to its former speed. You don't have to be a techie to follow these steps, as the interface is intuitive.
Analyzing occupied space through settings
The first step before any cleaning should be to understand what exactly is taking up space in your memory Samsung A31. The system provides a built-in analyzer that clearly shows the distribution of data by category. To access this information, you need to go to menu Settings, then select item Device maintenance and click on section Memory. Here you will see a pie chart displaying applications, images, videos, audio files and documents.
It often turns out that the lion's share of space is occupied not by the apps themselves, but by their cache and downloaded files. For example, messengers like Telegram or Viber can quietly consume tens of gigabytes, saving all viewed media files. It is also worth paying attention to the folder Downloads, where APK installation files are often downloaded, which are no longer needed after installing apps. Regular checking of this section allows you to identify memory “eaters” before they critically slow down the system.
Pay attention to the "Applications" section. Sometimes one game or social network can take up more space than your entire photo gallery. Click on a specific application in the list to see detailed statistics: the size of the app itself, the amount of user data and the cache size. This will help you make an informed decision about what can be deleted and what is better to transfer to external storage.
Clearing the cache and deleting temporary files
The safest and fastest way to free up space is to delete cached data. Cache are temporary files that applications create to speed up their work, but over time they accumulate and become useless ballast. Unlike user data, deleting the cache will not lead to the loss of your logins, correspondence or progress in games, so this procedure can be performed regularly without fear.
For individual cleaning, go to Settings, select Applications, find the desired app (for example, YouTube or Chrome) and press Storage. In the menu that opens you will see a button Clear cache. Clicking on it will instantly delete the temporary files of this particular application. If you want to clear the cache of all apps at once, use the "Optimization" function in the Device maintenancesection by clicking the button Optimize now.
⚠️ Attention: Do not confuse the "Clear cache" button with the "Clear data" button. The second option will completely reset the application to its factory state, deleting all your settings, accounts and saved information within the app.
In addition to the cache of individual applications, there are general temporary files in the system that can be deleted through the storage menu. Go to Settings → Device maintenance → Memory and scroll down to Cache files. The system will offer to delete them, the amount of freed up space shown. Confirming the action will launch the cleaning process, which usually takes a few seconds.
To quickly clear the cache of all applications, you can simultaneously hold down the power button and the button turn down the volume to bring up the restart menu, but in new versions of One UI it’s easier to use the built-in optimizer in the notification shade.
Gallery management and transferring media files
Photos and videos are the largest files on any smartphone. Photos taken with the main camera Samsung A31 with a resolution of 48 megapixels can take up a significant amount of space, especially if you shoot in RAW format or record video in high quality. It is irrational to store thousands of pictures in the internal memory, so they need to be systematically transferred.
The easiest way to unload the gallery is to use cloud services, such as Google Photos or OneDrive, which are preinstalled on devices Samsung. Set up automatic synchronization, and then use the Free up space feature. This option will remove from the device those copies of photos that are already securely stored in the cloud, leaving only thumbnails for viewing.
If you prefer to store files locally, purchase a memory card microSD. Samsung Galaxy A31 supports installation of cards up to 512 GB (and officially up to 1 TB). After installing the card, you can reconfigure the camera so that new pictures are saved directly to it. To do this, open the application Camera, click on the gear icon and select Save location → SD card.
- 📸 Move existing photos manually through the "My Files" application, selecting the DCIM folder and using the "Move" function.
- ☁️ Set up auto-upload in Google Photos with high quality compression to save space in the cloud.
- 🗑️ Regularly empty the "Trash" folder in the gallery, since deleted photos are stored there for another 30 days, taking up space.
Transferring media files to an SD card or to the cloud is the most effective way to free up gigabytes of space without losing important memories.
Optimizing the work of messengers
Messengers have become an integral part of our lives, but they are also the main culprits of memory shortage. Applications like WhatsApp, Telegram and Viber by default save every received photo, video and voice message to the phone's internal memory. Over time, these folders grow to incredible sizes, filling the storage with duplicates and unnecessary postcards.
In Telegram the situation is resolved most elegantly thanks to the cloud architecture of the messenger. Go to Settings applications, select Data and memory → Memory usage. Here you can limit the cache size and set up automatic cleaning. For example, set the rule: “Delete media files if they have not been opened for more than 3 days.” This will allow you to always have access to correspondence, but the files will be downloaded again only when necessary, without constantly taking up space.
In WhatsApp the mechanism is a bit different because messages are stored locally. Go to Settings → Data and storage → Storage management. Here you will see a list of chats sorted by space. You can go into a specific dialog, select large videos or files and delete them selectively. It is also recommended to disable autosaving of media to the gallery so that duplicates do not end up in the general album of the phone.
Path to disable autosave in WhatsApp:
Settings → Chats → Save to gallery → Select "No"
Do not forget about download folders inside messengers. Often, users download documents, presentations or archives that were needed once and forget about them. Regular revision of the "Documents" section in the file manager will help you find and delete such forgotten files.
Transferring applications to a memory card
Although modern versions Android limit the ability to transfer applications to a memory card for reasons of security and performance, on Samsung A31 this feature is still available for many apps. Transfer allows you to free up valuable space in the built-in storage by moving the body of the application to a slower but more spacious SD card.
To check the possibility of transferring, open Settings → Applications, select the desired app and click Storage. If the button Edit is active and clickable, you will be able to select a memory card as a storage location. After confirmation, the system will move the application files. Please note that system applications and some critical services (for example, banking clients or encrypted instant messengers) may not support this function.
| Data type | Can be transferred to SD | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| Photo and Video | Yes | Must transfer |
| Games (heavy) | Partially | Transfer if the game is slow |
| Social networks | No/Partially | It is better to leave it in the internal memory |
| Music and Books | Yes | Ideal for storage on a card |
⚠️ Attention: When moving applications to a memory card, their launch speed may be slightly slower, especially if you are using an old or cheap microSD card with low write speeds.
What to do if the "Change" button is inactive?
If the transfer button is inactive (gray), then the application developer has prohibited installation on external media. In this case, the only option is to delete the application and find its analogue that supports transfer, or resign yourself to this space in the internal memory.
Radical measures: Reset to factory settings
If neither clearing the cache, nor deleting files, nor transferring data to the card gave the desired result, and the phone continues to signal about lack of space, the last resort remains - a full reset to factory settings. This procedure completely removes all information from the device, returning it to the condition it was in when purchased. This is guaranteed to solve problems with software errors and accumulated system garbage.
Before performing this operation, it is critical to create a backup copy of all important data. Use account Samsung Cloud or Google Drive to save contacts, calendar and notes. Copy photos and documents to your computer or external hard drive. Make sure you remember the password for your Google account, as after resetting the system will require it to confirm ownership of the device (FRP protection).
To perform a reset, go to Settings → General settings → Reset → Reset data. Carefully review the list of data that will be deleted and click the Resetbutton. The process will take a few minutes, after which the phone will reboot and begin the initial setup. You will receive a clean system with the maximum amount of free memory.
☑️ Preparing for a full reset
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Why does the memory fill up even if I don’t download anything?
System processes, application updates in the background, browser caches and automatic synchronization of messengers constantly create new ones files. Also, part of the space is reserved by the system for the correct operation of virtual memory and installation of updates.
Is it safe to delete the Android folder on a memory card?
No, deleting the entire folder Android is not recommended. Application data (game obb files, app settings) is stored inside it. Removing it will cause games to stop running and applications to reset. You can only delete specific folders inside if you are sure of their contents.
How to disable advertising that takes up cache space?
Advertising itself does not take up much space, but its elements are cached. To combat intrusive advertising, you can use DNS filtering (for example, set private DNS dns.adguard.com in the connection settings), which will reduce the amount of downloaded advertising garbage.
Is it possible to delete Samsung system applications to free up space?
Without obtaining root access, you cannot completely remove system applications, you can only disable them. Disabling will hide the application and stop it running, freeing up some RAM but taking up little space in the built-in storage. Complete removal requires a connection to a PC and the use of ADB commands.