Android freed up space by itself (?)

[YannickJoshua]

I barely had any free space left on my Nexus 5 (OS 6.0.1) so it gave me a notification about that. The Google Play Store app said I had about 385MB left to use, but it wouldn't let me install any app. So I was about to back up some photos and screenshots and delete them off of my phone, but then I fell asleep and the next morning the notification was gone. I went to check the Play Store App and it said that I had 500MB of free space.

That would mean that my Android OS deleted files by itself, without my permission. Is it allowed to do that? And could I find out what it deleted? I had a bunch of incognito tabs open, but they're still there. My photos are also still there, so are my screenshots. I'd like to find out what it deleted. Also, is there a way to prevent Android from deleting files by itself?

 

[kate]

It was most likely temp/cached files that were removed, which is routine.

Clear an apps cache:
1. Go to Settings -> Apps
2. Tap the app
3. Tap Storage (if Clear Cache isn't already there)
4. Tap Clear Cache

 

[Hadron]

Agreed. Caches are temporary by definition, and can be deleted by the OS as needed. They don't contain data you have created, or the settings/bookmarks/whatever of your apps, just stuff like images from recently viewed webpages or other such temporary data.

 

[YannickJoshua]

It was most likely temp/cached files that were removed, which is routine.

Clear an apps cache:
1. Go to Settings -> Apps
2. Tap the app
3. Tap Storage (if Clear Cache isn't already there)
4. Tap Clear Cache

Agreed. Caches are temporary by definition, and can be deleted by the OS as needed. They don't contain data you have created, or the settings/bookmarks/whatever of your apps, just stuff like images from recently viewed webpages or other such temporary data.

Alright, both of you thanks for your answers! I really appreciate your help, feel sort of relieved now