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The recurring plague of 'Other Memory'

I am currently at my wits end attempting to solve this problem of why the data designated as 'other memory' contintues to occupy all of the free space on my phone.


To quickly summarize, I used a suggestion mentioned numerous times in previous threads about this topic and did a complete reset of my phone. After restoring a previously saved backup, this shrunk the amount of 'other memory' on my phone from 5GB to 200MB; however, over the course of the past four days that number has ballooned back to 5GB despite me not installing any new apps or using my phone an excessive amount (where it may generate a large cache through various apps.)


So now I am dealing with having to micromanage the 90MB that remains on my phone, constantly juggling between having to delete old photos to take new ones. This is no way to live and if I have to continue attempting to manage the storage on my phone this way, either by painful micromanagement or having to reset and restore my phone every four days, I will dump this rotten product into the toilet and upgrade to a Galaxy instead.


My 5S is running the current iOS and has never been jailbroken. Is there a method to deal with this issue once and for all that I'm unaware of or is this 'other memory' just a feature of the new operating system that I was unaware of?


Please help.

iPhone 5s, iOS 9.3.1

Posted on May 5, 2016 1:27 PM

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12 replies

May 5, 2016 1:53 PM in response to sberman

I also saw that suggestion prior to creating this post and have downloaded that software; however, it doesn't explain how the data designated as 'other memory' on my phone ballooned almost 5GB in size over less than four days of general use. It seems abnormal and having to run software on a daily or weekly basis to keep that issue at bay is unrealistic.


Are there any other thoughts as to why this is occuring other than the breakdown of what that other memory might consist of?

May 6, 2016 7:50 AM in response to modernkicks

UPDATE: Last night I did another factory reset of the device and restored a previous backup to eleminate the glut of 'other data' -- reducing it from 5.5GB to 900MB -- and now, no less than 12 hours after I performed that reset, the device is once again filled with over 5GB of junk data.


Awesome.


As you can imagine, this device performs like a dream when it is operating at 128MB over capacity. In all seriousness, my next solution to this problem is skipping this POS across the Mississippi River unless someone any helpful advice as to why this problem keeps recurring.

May 6, 2016 8:10 AM in response to modernkicks

This probably doesn't apply but worth a shot: are you running [an older version of] WhatsApp? I used the term 'probably doesn't apply' because this was a common problem a month or two ago but I don't see much on it lately. Basically, WhatsApp would fill all the space in Other up; and was solved by deleting WhatsApp and reinstalling the latest version.


Good luck and keep us informed as to your progress and hopeful solution.

May 6, 2016 8:11 AM in response to modernkicks

My iGadgets have their Others at a minimum and have had so since the beginning. I'm sure that having updated the iOS and the apps exclusively thru iTunes on a Mac has contributed immensely in keeping it that way. Failed downloads accumulate in the Other and the largest are usually the iOS updaters. Only until the download and update is successful does the space get cleared. even though there's no new iOS out as of late, some apps might be partially responsible in your case.


Another idea would be doing a new Restore then turning ALL Internet services OFF leaving it as a dumb phone. No "social networks", Location services, whathaveyou. After a few hours of test to confirm Other remains minimized, try starting up your usual services one at a time to find which is the culprit.

May 6, 2016 5:58 PM in response to modernkicks

Elcpu's advice was closest to the money in terms of what an Apple rep thought might be the culprit. Their hunch is that there is something corrupt in the backup that is being used after the phone is completely wiped and set up as new. I used a different backup for each time I've wiped and restored the phone, so all parties seem to agree that this is a soft hunch.


Nonetheless, it was recommended that I wipe the phone and reinstall the apps that were previously installed through the App Store to see if the issue with my ballooning 'other memory' still remains. If so, then it's the fun game of whack-a-mole between hardware issue and software issue. Neither would be covered through any warranty, so if I draw the low card with either of those problems I have a sneaking suspicion that the Genius Bar is going to present me with two possible solutions: buy a new phone or go take a long walk off a short pier.


It was already a hassle the first time around getting them to replace my previous iPhone 5S due to a different hardware defect; I can't imagine I would be so lucky a second time.


Let's see what becomes of this. Thanks to everyone for playing so far; it's very much appreciated.

The recurring plague of 'Other Memory'

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