You’ve noticed a mysterious crescent icon on your Xiaomi smartphone’s notification panel and don’t know what it means?This symbol can appear on both new models (Redmi Note 13 Pro+, POCO X6 Pro) and on past-generation devices (Mi 11, Redmi 9A). 90% of the time, it signals the Do Not Disturb (DND) mode turned on, but sometimes the reasons for its appearance are less obvious.
In this article, we will take a look at all the possible values of the crescent icon on Xiaomi Android devices, including hidden MIUI features that can activate it. You will learn how to distinguish Do Not Disturb mode from other system notifications, why the icon can remain even after you turn off the DND, and what to do if it appeared without your participation.
1.Significant: Do Not Disturb (DND)
The most common reason for a crescent is activation of Do Not Disturb (DND) mode, which in MIUI blocks all notifications, calls and signals except those added to the exceptions.
- 🌙 The gray crescent is the standard mode DND free-of-setting.
- 🌙⏰ Crescent with clock – schedule is enabled (e.g. automatic time-out).
- 🌙🔕 Crescent with crossed bell - complete blocking of all sounds, including alarm clocks.
To check if DND is on, swipe down from the top of the screen and find the Do Not Disturb tile. If it's illuminated, mode is active. You can also go to Settings → Sound and Vibration → Do Not Disturb.
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If the Do Not Disturb tile is missing from the Quick Access Panel, add it: swipe down twice, click on the pencil icon and drag the desired element into the active area.
Important: In MIUI 14+, the DND mode can be activated automatically during sleep if the sleep mode function (Settings → Screen and Brightness → Sleep mode) is enabled, in which case the crescent will appear at a predetermined time (for example, from 23:00 to 7:00).
2. Hidden causes: other MIUI features with crescent icon
If you are sure that Do Not Disturb is disabled but the icon remains, check these less obvious settings:
- 📱 In-pocket mode (Settings) → Display. → Pocket mode: blocks accidental touches when the phone is down. MIUI phosphorus.
- 🔇 The silent mode (not to be confused with the DND!) — If you manually turn off all sounds through the volume button, a temporary icon may appear.
- 🌜 Night mode (Settings) → Screen. → Night mode - in older versions MIUI (12.5) was sometimes accompanied by a crescent.
- 🔒 Privacy protection – when activated, Hiding notifications on the lock screen (Settings) → Passwords and security → Confidentiality).
Especially often users confuse the mode "In the pocket" with DND. To distinguish them, pay attention to the behavior of the phone: if the screen does not respond to touch, when the device is down, it is "Mode in the pocket."
3.Why does the icon not disappear after the DND is turned off?
The situation where the crescent remains on the notification panel even after the Do Not Disturb mode is turned off is usually due to one of three factors:
- The system cache glitch - MIUI sometimes doesn't update the icons in real time. Solution: reboot your phone or clear the Settings app cache (Settings → Applications → Application Management → Settings → Clear cache).
- Automatic Rules – Check if the schedule is on for DND or other functions (Settings → Sound and Vibration → Do Not Disturb → Schedule).
- Conflict with third applications – some programs (e.g. Digital Wellbeing or Focus Mode) may emulate DND mode.
A critical feature of MIUI 13-14 is that if you disabled the DND through the Quick Access Panel, but previously configured it through the Settings menu, the system can store background mode activity. In this case, you need to go to Settings → Sound and Vibration → Do not disturb and manually deactivate all options.
How to completely reset your DND settings?
4. Step-by-step instruction: how to remove the crescent icon
Follow this algorithm to get rid of the icon:
Turn off "Do Not Disturb" through the notification panel | Check the DND settings in the Sound and Vibration menu | Turn off "Mode in your pocket" in the display settings | Make sure the silent mode is off (volume buttons) |Reboot the phone-->
If after these actions the icon remains:
- Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management, find System Settings and clear the cache.
- Check for MIUI updates (Settings → About Phone → System Update).
- If the problem persists, reset the network settings (Settings) → SIM-maps and mobile networks → Resetting network settings).
For POCO models (like the POCO F5 or X5 Pro), check the Game Turbo settings further, which sometimes blocks notifications and displays the crescent.
Table: comparison of crescent icons and their values
| Icon | Meaning | Where to find out | How to turn off |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🌙 | Do Not Disturb (DND) mode | Settings → Sound and vibration | Swipe down → DND tile or settings menu |
| 🌙⏰ | DND with schedule | Settings → Sound → Do not disturb → Schedule | Disable the automatic rule |
| 🌙🔕 | Completely blocking sounds (including alarm clocks) | Settings → Sound → Do not disturb → Exceptions | Allow alarm clocks in exceptions |
| 🌙 (flashing) | In the pocket mode | Settings → Display → Mode in your pocket | Disable the function or put the phone up screen |
| 🌙 (grey) | Night mode (outdated versions of MIUI) | Settings → Screen → Night mode | Disable or update MIUI |
Note: On the Xiaomi Pad 6 and other tablets, the crescent can mean a read mode (Settings → Screen → Read mode) that reduces blue radiation and blocks notifications.
6. Frequent User Errors and How to Avoid Them
When trying to remove the crescent icon, many people make these mistakes:
⚠️ Warning: Never use applications to force system icons to disable (e.g. System) UI Tuner. It could disrupt the job. MIUI and result in loss of warranty.
- 🔄 Rebooting without cleaning the cache - a simple reboot only helps 30% of the time.Always clear the cache Settings.
- 📵 Ignoring automatic rules, even if DND manually switched off, it can be turned on on schedule.
- 🔊 Confusion with silent mode – silent mode (volume buttons) and DND — function.
- 📲 Removing system applications – some “optimizers” suggest removing com.android.systemui, which leads to a device blink.
Another common problem is shell conflict, and if you use third-party launchers (Nova Launcher, Hyperion), they can duplicate MIUI icons, in which case temporarily return the standard launcher (Settings → Home Screen → Default Launcher).
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If the crescent appeared after the MIUI update, check the "Version Features" section in the update settings - there may be mentions of new features associated with this icon.
7 What should I do if nothing helps?
If you have tried all the ways, but the crescent icon remains, follow these steps:
- Check Safe Mode: Press the power button before the turn off menu appears. Press and hold the power off → Safe Mode. If the icon is gone in Safe Mode, the problem is in the third-party app.
- Reset network settings (Settings) → SIM-maps and mobile networks → Reset network settings.This will remove stored Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, but often solves problems with system icons.
- Perform a reset of application settings (Settings → About Phone → Resetting → Resetting of application settings).
- Contact the service center if the problem occurred after physical damage to the phone (fall, moisture).
For devices with unlocked bootloader (Xiaomi.eu, Custom ROM), additional steps:
adb shell settings put global zen_mode 0This command forcibly disables all DND modes via ADB. It will require Google’s Platform Tools and enabled USB debugging.