Smartphone users Samsung often face a situation where a notification about a lack of internal memory appears at the most inopportune moment. The culprit of this problem in 90% of cases is the messenger Viber, which quietly accumulates gigabytes of photos, videos and voice messages. This issue is especially acute on models with a storage capacity of 32 or 64 GB, where every megabyte counts.
The system shell One UI from Samsung provides powerful tools for managing storage, but the standard messenger settings often hide the most effective cleaning methods. If you notice that your phone has started to work slower or the system is constantly prompting you to delete unnecessary files, then it’s time to do some spring cleaning in your chat folders.
In this article we will look in detail at all the available ways to free up space: from the built-in tools of the application itself to advanced methods through the file manager. You will learn how to delete old messages without losing important contacts and how to set up automatic cleaning so that the problem does not return in a month.
Analysis of the occupied space in the application settings
The first step before any radical action should be diagnosis. You need to understand exactly what type of content is eating up the lion's share of your disk space. In the latest versions Viber the platform Android has a built-in quite informative memory usage analyzer that sorts data into categories.
To get to this section, open the messenger menu and go to More → Settings → Memory. Here you will see a visual chart showing the relationship between text, images, video and audio files. Typically, video files occupy up to 80% of the total volume, since they weigh significantly more than regular photos or stickers.
Pay attention to the “Cache data” item. These are temporary files that an application downloads to speed things up, but which often bloat to inappropriate sizes. Clearing this section is safe and will not lead to the loss of correspondence, however, the effect may be temporary if you do not disable autosaving of media.
Periodically check the “Memory” section inside Viber - this will help identify “heavy” chats that can be archived or deleted completely.
If the analysis shows that the main volume is occupied by media files from group chats, it makes sense to go into the settings of each such group separately. Often in work or entertainment groups, users daily send hundreds of pictures and memes that you personally do not need at all, but take up disk space Samsung Galaxy.
Using the built-in “Data Clearing” tool
The messenger developers have provided a built-in function for mass deletion of unnecessary content, which works much more efficiently than manually erasing messages one by one. This tool allows you to filter files by type and download date, which saves a lot of time.
In the same section Settings → Storage find the “Clear data” button. When you click on it, the system will prompt you to select categories to delete. You can check just “Photos and Videos” or add “Voice Messages” and “Stickers” there. This gives flexibility in managing storage.
- 🗑️ Deleting old media files allows you to free up space instantly without deleting the correspondence itself.
- 📅 Sorting by date helps delete content downloaded more than a year ago, which is no longer relevant.
- 📁 Selective clearing of specific chats is available by long pressing on the name of the dialogue in the list.
It is important to understand the difference between deleting media and deleting messages. If you select the option to clear media files only, the text history of your correspondence will be preserved, but placeholders will be displayed instead of pictures. This is an ideal option for those who want to preserve the context of the conversation, but get rid of the “heavy” load.
⚠️ Attention: Before starting mass cleaning, make sure that important photos and documents are already saved in the phone gallery or cloud storage, since the process is irreversible within the application.
After confirming the operation, the system may freeze for a few seconds, especially if several gigabytes of data are deleted. Do not forcefully close the application at this moment, let the process complete correctly so as not to damage the message database.
Manually deleting files through the Samsung file manager
Standard messenger tools do not always see all files, especially those that were saved manually or left over from deleted chats. For deep cleaning, you need to use the built-in application "My Files"which is preinstalled on all smartphones Samsung.
The folder structure in modern versions Android 11-14 has changed due to restrictions on access to system directories. Now the main Viber data is on the way Android → media → com.viber.voip → Viber. However, on older versions of the firmware, the path may look like the root folder Viber.
Inside the directory Viber you will find several key subfolders. The folder Downloads contains all the files that you downloaded manually. The folder Media is divided into subcategories: Viber Images for photos and Viber Videos for videos. This is where duplicate files often accumulate.
Path to the media folder:
/storage/emulated/0/Android/media/com.viber.voip/Viber/Media
Using sorting by size in the file manager, you can quickly find the heaviest video files and delete them. This is the most effective method of combating memory fragmentation, when many small files do not allow the system to work optimally.
☑️ Deep cleaning through the file manager
Be extremely careful when deleting files directly through File Explorer. Deleting system database files (files with the .db extension) will lead to a complete reset of the application and loss of the entire correspondence history without the possibility of recovery.
Disabling autosaving of media to the gallery
One of the main reasons for the rapid filling of memory is the function of automatically saving all incoming photos and videos to the main gallery of the smartphone. By default, on many devices Samsung this option is activated, which leads to duplication of files: one copy is in the Viber cache, the second is in the general gallery.
To disable this function, go to More → Settings → Privacy. Find the “Save to Gallery” switch and move it to the inactive position. Now new media files will be stored only inside the messenger and will not clog the main camera roll.
This action will not delete already saved files, so after disabling the function it is recommended to go to the application "Gallery", find the album Viber and delete its contents manually if you no longer need it. This will instantly free up a significant amount of space.
| Content type | Where is stored by default | Action to save |
|---|---|---|
| Photos | Gallery + Viber Cache | Disable autosave |
| Video | Gallery + Viber Cache | Delete from gallery manually |
| Documents | Downloads folder only | Move to SD card |
| Voice | Only inside chat | Delete old ones messages |
Users often forget that even after turning off autosave, old files remain in memory. Regularly reviewing the gallery once a month will help keep the system clean and prevent notifications about low space from appearing.
Disabling autosave in the gallery prevents file duplication and is the most effective way to prevent memory overflow in the future.
Clearing the cache through the Android system settings
If built-in messenger tools do not help free up enough space; you can use system application management tools in One UI. This method allows you to delete temporary files that may have become “stuck” and are not deleted using standard methods.
Go to Settings your smartphone Samsung, then select the section Applications. Find Viber in the list and click on it. In the menu that opens, select Memory (or "Storage" depending on the firmware version).
Here you will see two buttons: “Clear cache” and “Clear data”. Clicking the first button will safely delete temporary files, image thumbnails and application logs. This can free up 100 MB to 1 GB of space instantly.
⚠️ Warning: The Clear Data button will completely reset the application to its factory state. You will lose your entire chat history and settings if you have not made a backup copy in advance. Use this option only as a last resort!
After clearing the cache, it is recommended to restart your smartphone. This will allow the system to correctly recalculate free space and update file system indexes, which will have a positive impact on the overall performance of the device.
Why does the cache grow so quickly?
The Viber cache stores thumbnails of all viewed images and videos, as well as temporary files for quickly loading stickers. Over time, this base becomes huge, especially in active chats with a large amount of media.
Transferring media files to an SD memory card
Owners of smartphones Samsung series A and some models S have ability to expand memory using a microSD card. Although the application itself Viber does not allow you to directly change the path of saving data to a memory card in its settings, this can be bypassed through the system.
The most reliable way is to transfer already accumulated data arrays manually. Using the file manager My files, select the folders Viber Images and Viber Videos, select the "Move" option and specify the path to your memory card SD card. Create a separate folder there, for example Viber_Archiveto avoid losing files.
For new files, you can try changing the default storage settings in the system, although on modern versions Android this function is often blocked by OS developers for security reasons. However, periodic manual transfer of archives to a memory card is a great way to keep the internal memory free.
- 💾 Memory cards of the format UHS-I provide sufficient speed for storing archived photos and videos.
- 🔄 Regular transfer of files once a month prevents critical filling of the internal drive.
- 📂 Create a clear folder structure on the SD card to quickly find the materials you need.
Remember that when you transfer files to a memory card, they may not be displayed inside the messenger gallery, but will remain accessible through the file manager. This is a compromise between saving space and ease of viewing.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Will the correspondence be deleted if I clear the Viber cache?
No, clearing the cache through system settings or inside the application deletes only temporary files (thumbnails, logs). Text message history, contacts and settings will remain intact. However, deleting “Application Data” will lead to a complete reset.
Why does the memory fill up again immediately after clearing?
Most likely, you have auto-saving of media enabled in the gallery, and new heavy files are constantly arriving in active chats. Check your privacy settings and disable downloading media over the mobile network, leaving only Wi-Fi.
Is it possible to recover deleted photos from Viber?
If you deleted files through the messenger settings or file manager without a prior backup in Google Photos or the cloud, it is almost impossible to restore them. Viber does not have its own trash can for deleted media.
How to clear Viber memory on Samsung without deleting the application?
Use the built-in tool in the menu Settings → Memory → Clear data inside Viber itself. This will allow you to select specific types of files to delete without affecting the application and account itself.
Does transferring files to an SD card affect the speed of Viber?
No, transferring archived files to a memory card does not affect the speed of the messenger, since the application accesses them only when you explicitly request it through the file manager. Current cached files remain in the internal memory for speed.