Galaxy S22 suddenly out of storage

[Alexandrius47]

Hi!

My phone is only a month old and everything has been running okay but today I tried recording a video and noticed a weird thing.

Usually when recording it says how many minutes of video are left and that number used to be around 55 minutes of recording left, however today I noticed it said only 18 minutes available. I went to the Device care/ Storage and found out that my system takes up 85Gb! This for sure wasnt the case a few days ago as I could record videos for however long.

I have tried cleaning cache partition in recovery mode, but with no effect.

Any ideas what could suddenly happen and how to free the storage back would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance.

[KevP79]

My system storage is only at 36.68GB on a 256GB S21FE.

Maybe clearing the devices system cache will free some space back up. (Its a possibility some of the old update files are still cached in there)

A 85GB system partition seems excessive.

[BandOfBrothers]

I've seen instances like this before and if my memory serves correctly the options that could help maybe >

Clear Cache Files from the phone's System Partition Section  > https://www.samsung.com/uk/support/mobile-devices/how-do-i-clear-the-cache-on-my-device/ You may need to insert your earphones or hook upto a powered On Laptop to access the Clear Partition Section. This may help with lag or stutters as this clears the phone of old/unused or broken cache files.There is also a Repair Apps option in the Menu System too. 

And as a last resort back up and Factory Reset.

Would you let us know how you get on please 🤔 @Alexandrius47 

[Fizaan]

Hi on my s22 the system takes up 55 so I think it is normal because I always update to latest

[Alexandrius47]

Thanks for all the replies, you guys are great. The problem is getting worse though..

@Robin999 good idea! I plugged the phone to my pc and from what I could see all the folders have the same size as my phone says..no hidden or rogue files

@KevP79 yes! Clearing the cache of a device was the first thing I tried but that didnt help at all

@BandOfBrothers Clearing cache didnt free any additional space in my case. I think the factory reset would resolve this but with no guarantee of it happening again I guess

**So a little update, I used my phone as usual yesterday..took a couple of videos, which I deleted after uploading the online and now my system folder grew in size!  Doing a bit of a research online I came across similar issues with overflowing system files in OnePlus devices and some even suggested that it is a general Android issue.. Have you guys heard about such a problem in Samsung phones?

Anyways, here is where I am today

[BandOfBrothers]

You're very welcome @Alexandrius47 

No my storage has always been what I'd expect it to be.

Clearing the cache was a hopeful option 😔 

I think a factory reset maybe the solution. 

However do proceed to explore all avenues 👍 

[Alexandrius47]

OK! Last update before I reset the phone.

It seems that when I record a video, for some reason there is a file or multiple files created in system directory taking up roughly twice the size of the video. When I delete the video the size of Videos folder increases appropriately but the system folder stays the same and just like that it just fills up.

Last screen just for laughs, system files at 100Gb

[Members_7YssXFU]

You have probably reset your phone by now, but I wanted to say that i had a similar issue with the system size.  I managed to fix it thanks to a thread on here someone (neo i think?) Said that in the folder that you are in checking the storage size, if you allow the system permission to access My Files (which is done by clicking on the info symbol in the Apps row and that will take you to the section to allow the permission). The storage space should get redistributed between System and Apps. It took about 50gb of my system storage when i tried it. 

[Alexandrius47]

@Members_7YssXFU Appreciate the suggestion, but that was not my case. I had all the permissions granted and ma apps folder size was indeed the correct size.

I had to  factory reset the phone, because eventually the storage got full. It did not solve the issue! However with a lot of free space and a bit of a time I was able to replicate the issue and found the cause.

So the thing is, when I take a video and trim the length of it in Samsungs Video Editor,after saving it, it creates a file or multiple files twice the size of the original video in the system folder.I guess this is done to be able to go back to the trimmed video and revert the changes and get the original video back.But when I delete the video it goes away from the Gallery but the file/s in system folder stay there.

So the solution for me is after trimming/editing the video I have to save the new clip as a copy. This way I can delete the original and nothing fills up my System Folder.

I have been doing this since the reset and my System folder has been at 35Gb and hasnt increased in size.

[Jddojow]

Seems like some sort of bug. Cleared space on my devic, but then it automated added even more junk,