IOS – How to clear data listed as “Other” on the iPhone

ios

Since iOS 1 I have always lost Gigs of storage to the "Other" category on my iPhone.

I have cleared my Safari data, told my phone not to sync music, apps and just about every other syncable option and yet I still find myself loosing 2-4 gigs of storage after about a month of use.

I have read that the issue lies in the way iOS and iTunes handle deleting data, incomplete synchronization and building the iTunes library on the Phone.

The "Other" Section in iTunes normally does contain 70 – 200 MBs for system information but 2-4 gigs is clearly an error. How can I fix this or am I stuck Restoring my phone every month?

Problem Details:

  • iTunes is up to date and I have tried on both OS X 10.6.x and 10.7.x
  • Have Had issue with iPhone, 3G, 3GS, 4, 4S, iPad and iPod touch 2nd
    Gen.
  • Devices are not and have not been jailbroken
  • Application data has been accounted for
  • Safari Data has been cleared
  • 5.1GB Audio/0.01GB Photos 3.1GB Apps/0.04GB Books

Best Answer

I cleared 2gb of "other" space by using DiskAid to dig into the file system of the phone and clear out corrupted data.

WARNING - this may be dangerous, use extreme caution. If in doubt, don't.

Once diskaid is installed and running, click the file system menu on the left to expand the folders on the right. When looking around, I found a 2gb file in applicationarchives related to a program that I know didn't download correctly, and had since been deleted. Removing the file freed up the "other" space.