Smartphone owners Honor 10 often face the problem of lack of internal storage, and messenger becomes one of the main “eaters” of space. WhatsApp. The constant exchange of photos, videos and voice messages quickly fills gigabytes, which leads to a slowdown of the system and the inability to install new applications.
The situation is aggravated by the fact that standard methods for deleting files are not always effective, since the messenger creates many hidden copies and cached data. Understanding the structure of data storage in Android allows you not only to delete files, but to do it competently, freeing up space without losing important correspondence.
In this article we will analyze in detail all the available ways to optimize storage specifically for the model Honor 10, taking into account the features of the shell EMUI and the file system. You will learn how to find hidden folders, clear the cache safely and set up automatic device maintenance.
Analysis of occupied space in application settings
The first step before any radical action should be diagnosis. It is necessary to understand exactly what takes up the most space: message text, media files or the system cache. To do this, open the phone settings and go to the Applications → Applicationssection, finding in the list WhatsApp.
Inside the application menu, select Storage. Here you'll see two main categories: the size of the app itself and the amount of data. It is the data, which includes the message database and media files, that takes up the lion's share of memory. By clicking on the button Clear cache, you will delete temporary files that are not critical for the operation of the messenger.
It is important to distinguish between clearing the cache and clearing data. If you choose clearing data, you will delete all correspondence history and account settings on this device, which will require re-authorization. The cache can be cleared regularly; this is a safe operation to free up several hundred megabytes.
⚠️ Attention: Before performing any actions to clear data, make sure that you have an up-to-date backup copy of correspondence in the cloud Google Drive, otherwise restoring the history will be impossible.
Analysis through system settings gives only a general picture, but does not allow you to delete files selectively. For more detailed work, you will need to use the built-in tools of the messenger itself or the file manager.
Using the built-in storage management tool
The most effective and safe way to free up space is to use the standard storage management function built directly into the interface WhatsApp. This tool allows you to visualize memory and delete files by category, which minimizes the risk of losing important documents.
To get to this section, open the messenger, click on the three dots in the upper right corner and select Settings → Data and storage → Storage management. A list of chats will be displayed here, sorted by the amount of data occupied, which immediately shows which dialogues require attention.
The system suggests deleting files larger than 5 MB, which is often the fastest way to get free space. You can also go into a specific chat and selectively delete heavy videos or groups of images, leaving text correspondence untouched.
- 📂 Click on the “Uploaded by you” section to see the files that you sent and delete them for all participants (if necessary).
- 📹 Sort media by type (videos, images, documents) to quickly find and delete the most heavy formats.
- 🗑 Use the “Select All” function with caution; it is better to preview the contents of the folder so as not to delete important ones.
Regular use of this tool helps maintain order without the need for third-party software. This is especially true for Honor 10where the amount of built-in memory may be limited.
Manual cleaning through the Honor file manager
For users who prefer complete control over the file system, manual cleaning is available through a standard explorer Files on Honor 10. This method allows you to find and delete files that may have been “lost” or not displayed in the standard messenger interface.
Open the application Files and go to the internal memory. You will need to find the folder Android, then media, then com.whatsapp and WhatsApp. In older versions of Android, the path could be simpler: just the root folder WhatsApp. Inside you are interested in the folders Media and Databases.
In the folder Media all received and sent files are stored. Pay attention to the folder WhatsApp Images i WhatsApp Video. Often you can find a folder there Sentwhere all the files you sent are duplicated - deleting them will safely free up space, since the originals are already in chats.
Nuances of working with the Databases folder
The Databases folder stores backup copies of your correspondence. You can delete old files with names like msgstore-2023-10-01.1.db.crypt14, leaving only the most recent msgstore.db.crypt14 file. This can free up several gigabytes if backups have not been deleted for months.
When working with a file manager, it is important to remember the file naming structure. Deleting system files, such as privacy.db or configuration files, may lead to resetting settings or the need to re-verify the number.
- 🔍 Look for files with the extension
.tmpin the root folder of the application - these are temporary files that can be safely deleted. - 📁 The folder
Profile Photoscontains avatars of all your contacts, the cache of which can grow to hundreds of megabytes. - 🔄 After manual cleaning, it is recommended to restart the smartphone so that the system correctly recalculates the free space.
Setting up automatic download media files
To prevent the problem of full memory from returning in the future, you need to correctly configure the automatic download settings. By default, WhatsApp downloads all incoming media files via the mobile network and Wi-Fi, which quickly eats up free space.
Go to Settings → Data and storage. In the Auto-downloading media section you will see three categories: “When using mobile data”, “When connected to Wi-Fi” and “When roaming”. To save space, it is recommended to disable auto-loading of videos and often photos in all modes.
The best strategy is to configure loading only when connected to Wi-Fi, and then with the exception of video. Video files take up the most space and are best downloaded manually only when you really want to watch them.
⚠️ Attention: The settings interface may vary slightly depending on the version WhatsApp and system updates EMUI. If you do not find the setting, check for application updates in Google Play or AppGallery.
You should also pay attention to the “Media Visibility” setting. If you disable it, new photos and videos will not automatically appear in the phone gallery, which will keep the album clean, although it will not reduce the physical amount of data in the messenger’s memory.
Comparison of cleaning methods and their effectiveness
Different cleaning methods give different results and require different amounts of time. So that you can choose the best option for your situation, we have prepared a comparative table of methods.
| Cleansing method | Data security | Efficiency (MB) | Complexity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cache clearing | High | Low (100-500) | Low |
| Deleting via “Storage Management” | High | Medium (depends on the user) | Medium |
| Manual deletion via file manager | Medium (risk of error) | High (up to 5 GB+) | High |
| Complete application reinstallation | Low (without backup) | Maximum | High |
As can be seen from the table, manual deletion through a file manager gives the greatest increase in free space, but requires care. Clearing the cache is more of a preventive measure that should be performed weekly.
A complete reinstallation of the application only makes sense if the database is damaged or has grown to a gigantic size due to many small fragments that are difficult to clean out manually. However, this method requires the mandatory creation of a backup copy.
A combined approach (regularly clearing the cache + manually deleting large videos once a month) is the most effective for long-term maintenance of order.
Optimizing backup operation
Backups of correspondence saved on Google Drive or in local memory, also take up space. B Honor 10 local copies are stored in the folder Databases. If you have accumulated many old backups from different dates, they can take up a significant amount of space.
It is recommended to keep only one recent, current copy. All files with dates in the name (for example, msgstore-2023-05-01.1.db.crypt14) can be safely deleted. The file itself msgstore.db.crypt14 (no date) cannot be touched if you want to save the current history.
In addition, check the backup frequency settings. If you're short on space, you can disable downloading videos to backup. This is done in section Chat → Chat backup → Video. Disabling this option will significantly reduce the size of the backup in the cloud and speed up the recovery process.
☑️ Quick cleaning checklist
Additional tips for servicing Honor 10
Smartphones Honor are equipped with a built-in “Phone Manager” (or “Optimization”) utility, which can help in the fight for free space. Launch the application, select Clean and let the system analyze your device. It often finds remnants of deleted applications and temporary files of other apps.
It is also worth checking the “Downloads” folder. Often, users download files from WhatsApp through a browser or other channels, and they remain dead weight there, not directly related to the messenger folders, but taking up space.
If after all the manipulations the memory still fills up too quickly, perhaps the problem lies in the overgrown database. In this case, you can try to export important chats separately, and then clear the application data to create a new, “clean” database.
Use the “Archive” function for old chats that you don’t want to delete. Archived chats do not take up space in the main list, but continue to be stored on the server or in a local database until you delete them completely.
Regular maintenance of the device is the key to its fast operation. Do not allow the memory to be filled to capacity, as this can lead to serious malfunctions in the operation of the operating system. Android.
Is it safe to use third-party cleaning applications (Clean Master and analogues)?
Using third-party “cleaners” on modern versions of Android often does not provide performance gains, and sometimes even causes harm. They can aggressively unload processes from RAM, forcing the system to restart them, which drains the battery. The built-in tools Honor and WhatsApp are quite sufficient.
What to do if important photos are missing after cleaning?
If you deleted photos from the folder WhatsApp Images, check the “Recently Deleted” folder in the application Gallery. The files are stored there for 30 days. Also, the photos could be automatically synchronized with Google Photos or Huawei Cloud, check cloud services.
Why does the memory fill up again immediately after cleaning?
Most likely, you have active groups with high activity, where they constantly send videos and photos. Go to the group settings and disable media for specific chats, or limit auto-download in the general settings of WhatsApp.