Owners of Xiaomi smartphones often face intrusive pre-installed software that takes up space and consumes resources. the interface MIUI 11, despite its popularity, contains many system components that the average user does not need. Cleaning the device from digital “garbage” can significantly speed up the work of the gadget and extend its battery life.
In this article, we will discuss a detailed list of processes that you can disable or delete, how to free up internal memory and remove annoying advertising, while maintaining the stability of the operating system, and it is important to act carefully so that you do not disrupt the basic functions of the device.
Many Redmi and POCO owners mistakenly believe that deleting system files will lead to a “brick” of the device. In fact, Android has security mechanisms, and most bloatware is not critical for booting the kernel.
Analysis of the standard set of Xiaomi applications
The first step to optimizing will be to understand what is installed on your device by default. Xiaomi integrates its own services into MIUI 11 that duplicate Google’s features or do not carry a payload at all for the user from the CIS, such programs include Mi Cloud, Mi Video, Mi Music and various demo utilities.
Not all processes are equally harmful, but their cumulative impact on RAM is significant: the background activity of these services constantly consumes battery power. Before starting any manipulations, you must audit the installed software through the standard application management menu.
Special attention should be paid to programs with English names that are not clear, often with an analytics service or an ad module behind the acronym, and removing such components is safe if you do not use the Mi Home ecosystem or the manufacturer's cloud storage.
- 📱 Mi Browser is a standard browser that is often overloaded with news feeds and push notifications.
- 🎵 Mi Music and Mi Video are multimedia players that can be easily replaced by more functional counterparts from the Play Market.
- ☁️ Mi Cloud is a cloud storage service only needed by those who sync data with Xiaomi servers.
- 📊 Analytics – a service for collecting device usage statistics that transmits data to the company’s servers.
⚠️ Note: Before removing any system components, we strongly advise you to create a complete backup of important data. Although the risk is minimal, accidental deletion of a critical file can lead to interface failures.
It’s worth noting that some applications, such as Security and Settings, are the core of the MIUI shell. Deleting or forcing them to stop will cause your phone to fail. In process lists, always look for titles that contain the prefix “Mi” or “Xiaomi” if you don’t use their functionality.
Safe removal through smartphone settings
The easiest and safest way to get rid of excess software is to use the built-in Android features. In MIUI 11, many pre-installed apps can not only be removed, but also simply disable, which will hide the icon from the desktop and prevent the process from starting, while maintaining the ability to restore at any time.
To do this, you need to go to the Settings menu. → Annexes → All applications. In the list that opens, find the component that is not required. If the "Delete" button is inactive (gray), then the application is system, in which case the option "Disable" or "Stop" is available. Once disabled, the program will disappear from the list of active processes.
This method is ideal for users who don't want to connect the phone to a computer, and it ensures that you don't delete anything that's superfluous, because the system itself blocks access to critical files, but it doesn't completely free up memory in this way, because the files will remain in the system partition.
- 🗑️ Google Play Music and Movies – these services are closed or irrelevant in many regions.
- 📺 Turn off Google. TV (Play Movies before, unless you buy content from Google.
- 📰 Remove or disable the Google News app if you don’t read the recommendation feed.
- 🎮 Check for games from Google and Xiaomi – they are often preinstalled in demo mode.
☑️ Pre-deletion check
It's important to distinguish between user data and system files. When you delete an application through settings, the system often asks if you need to save data. If you plan to use the program in the future, choose saving. If you don't need the application at all, feel free to clear all data before deleting it.
Using ADB for deep cleaning of the system
Advanced users who want to remove all system debris, including hidden services, will require an ADB (Android Debug Bridge) tool, which allows them to control their smartphone from a computer at a deep level without requiring a superuser (Root) license.
Before you start, you need to activate the developer mode. Go to Settings → About Phone and quickly click on the build number seven times (MIUI version). After that, the menu will appear “Developers”, inside you need to turn on “Debugging by USB” and select USB mode as “File Transfer”.
adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 name.packetThis command removes the application for the current user without affecting the system partition recovery, which means that when reset to the factory settings (Hard Reset), all remote programs will return. Permanent removal would require a Root right, but in this article we consider safe methods without modifying the bootloader.
List of packets to remove in MIUI 11
There are many graphical shells for ADB, such as Xiaomi ADB/Fastboot Tools or Universal Android Debloater, which simplify the process by providing a convenient list of applications with ticks. You do not need to remember complex package names - the program will tell you what you can delete and what you should leave.
| Package name | Function | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| com.miui.analytics | Collection of usage statistics | Delete safely |
| com.xiaomi.joyose | Gaming service and optimization | Remove (often causes heating) |
| com.miui.miservice | Support and feedback | Can be removed |
| com.miui.virtualsim | Virtual SIM-map | Remove if not used |
Critical System Processes: What Not to Touch
While there is a desire to make the system as simple as possible, there is a list of processes that will cause unstable work or a cyclical reboot. In MIUI 11, dependency architectures are designed so that some visible applications rely on hidden system libraries.
It is strictly forbidden to remove components related to telephony, contacts, message and settings. Even if you think you do not need a standard "calling" and you use Viber or Telegram, system calls may stop working correctly, and you should also avoid touching System UI and Settings Provider.
- 📞 Telephony components: any packages with the names phone, dialer, telephony.
- 📝 System framework: framework, services, provider.
- ⚙️ Settings and interface: Settings, SystemUI, Launcher (unless an alternative is installed).
- 🔐 Security: SecurityCenter, Antispam (deletion may disrupt permissions).
⚠️ Note: Remove the com.miui.securitycenter package MIUI 11 often leads to the fact that no permissions are issued to new applications, and may also lose access to the settings of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
If you accidentally delete an important component, don't panic. Since we use the user-to-user method (user 0), the data physically stays in the system. You can return everything back by commanding adb shell cmd package install-existing name.packet or simply resetting to factory settings.
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Use the App Inspector app from the Play Market to find out the exact package name of any app installed. Just point the camera at the icon or select from the list.
Cleaning cache and temporary files
In addition to removing applications, regular cleaning of accumulated garbage plays an important role. MIUI 11 A powerful security tool is built in that can clean the cache, but it often leaves deep traces in the folder. Android/data. For deep cleaning, you can use file managers with support for rights ADB orthologies.
Special attention should be paid to the folder MIUI/Gallery/cloud, If you are not using the cloud and the folder MIUI/debug_log, These files can take up gigabytes of space, and check the Download and Bluetooth folder, which often store forgotten files.
Auto-cleaning through built-in tools is safe, but superficial. Manual removal requires you to enable the display of hidden files in the Explorer. Be careful not to delete files with the.obb extension in the Android folder unless you want to re-download data for games.
- 🗑️ Folder log and debug_log: contains error reports, you can delete content.
- 📸 Folder thumbnail: stores thumbnails of photos and videos, frees up a lot of space.
- 📦 Backup folder: Old system backups, only relevant after reset.
- 🌐 Cache folder in browsers: often grows to hundreds of megabytes.
The frequency of this procedure depends on the intensity of the phone’s use, and active users are advised to perform a file review once a month, which will not only free up space, but also speed up the file system, since it will not have to index thousands of unnecessary files.
Disabling Advertising and Extra Notifications
One of the main reasons users want to clean up their Xiaomi is intrusive advertising, which is built into system applications: Explorer, Downloads, Music, Security. Disabling ads is also done through hidden settings and removing ad modules.
A key element is the MSA (MIUI System Ads) service, which, combined with the ban on recommendations in each application settings, significantly reduces the number of pop-ups, but completely removing ads without removing system components through ADB is difficult.
Every standard application setting (like Music or Downloads) has a Receive Recommends switch that needs to be manually turned off, and it takes time, but it costs a lot of time to get the interface clean and professional.
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Complete removal of advertising services (MSA, Daemon) through ADB is the only way to get rid of pop-up ads in MIUI system applications.
Remember to check the permissions for installed applications. Often, junk software that you install yourself (lightlights, QR scanners) requires access to contacts and geolocation, and also shows ads in the notification curtain.
Recovery of the system after errors
If you're having problems with optimization -- the phone is rebooting, the sound is gone, or the network is down -- you need to know the escape route. As mentioned earlier, the ADB deletion method is reversible for user 0. The easiest way is to reset to factory settings.
To perform the reset, go to Settings → About Phone → Reset. Select Delete All Data. This will put the phone back out of the box by recovering all deleted system files. Remember to save personal photos and contacts before doing so.
In more difficult cases, when the phone is not loading normally, you may need to log in to Recovery mode. On the phone turned off, press the power and volume button at the same time. From the recovery menu (volume button - navigation, power - selection), select Wipe Data.
- 🔄 Soft Reset: Regular reboot, helps with minor interface freezes.
- 🔧 Hard Reset: Completely reset via the recovery menu, deletes all data and returns system files.
- 💻 Re-install via ADB: attempt to restore a specific package by install-existing.
- 🏭 Mi Flash: flashing the device through the computer in case of critical errors (for advanced devices).
⚠️ Warning: Hard Reset permanently deletes all personal data, photos and messages. Make sure you have an up-to-date copy of important information on your computer or in the Google cloud.
Proper preparation and understanding of the processes you disable will reduce the need for recovery to zero. MIUI 11 is a fairly stable shell, and it rarely breaks from removing standard applications like Mi Video or Mi Store, unless you touch the system core.