Owning a Xiaomi smartphone is often marred by intrusive notifications that come at the most inopportune moment, especially when you pick up a device to just watch the time, and instead see an ad banner offering to download a game or apply for a loan. This is standard practice of monetizing budget devices, but fortunately it is not mandatory.
Users often confuse in-front ads with system bugs, but a separate component of the system is responsible for it. In this article, we'll take a closer look at the mechanisms that load content, and learn how to block them without getting Root permissions, so you can bring back the clean, concise look that engineers intended.
It’s important to understand that the shutdown process may vary slightly depending on the version of the MIUI shell or the new HyperOS. We’ll look at the universal methods that work on most current models, from the Redmi Note to the flagship Mi series.
The Nature of the Appearance of Advertising Banners in MIUI
Xiaomi’s advertising integrations are not accidental, but a smart business model: The company sells its smartphones at a minimal margin, making up for the difference in revenue from service and advertising, and displaying banners on the lock screen and in system applications is a system process that often masquerades as security updates or cloud services.
The main culprit is the MIUI System Ads service, which collects your preferences and loads the relevant creatives. Even if you turn off notifications in a particular application, msa can continue to show content through system widgets or lock screen, so the fight must be conducted in a comprehensive manner.
It's worth noting that across the firmware regions (Global, China, EU), the degree of aggressiveness of advertising varies, and in Chinese versions it is more common and more intrusive, whereas in global builds it is slightly less, but it is still present by default, and you can only get rid of it completely by (manually) disabling the relevant services.
⚠️ Warning: Do not attempt to remove system applications through third-party file managers indiscriminately. disabling msa service is safe, but removing critical system components may result in unstable interface performance.
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Advertising on Xiaomi is part of the company’s business model, not a virus, and can be completely disabled through system settings without breaking the warranty.
Disabling the MSA service: the main method
The most effective way to remove ads on the lock screen is to deactivate the MSA system service, which works on 95% of devices and does not require additional software installation, you will only need access to the Internet at the time of disconnection, so that the server receives a command to change status.
To start, go to your smartphone settings menu, find the Password and Security section (or just Security in older versions), and inside this menu, find the Access to Personal Data or Authorization and Privacy item, and it shows a list of all system processes that have access to your data.
In the list, find a service called msa. Click the switch opposite it to turn off access. The system will alert you that some features may stop working, and start a countdown of 10 seconds. This is done specifically so that the user does not accidentally turn off the service. After the time has expired, confirm the action by clicking Stop.
☑️ Shutdown checklist MSA
If you fail to disable the first time (the switch is back in its original position), repeat the procedure 3-4 times in a row. Xiaomi servers sometimes may not accept the request on the first attempt due to unstable connection. After a successful shutdown, the advertising should disappear within 24 hours, although often the effect is noticeable immediately.
Customization of personalization and recommendations
Even after the MSA is disabled, some interface elements may continue to offer content, which is due to personalization settings. The system analyzes your actions to offer “relevant” offers, and this feature also needs to be limited for complete comfort.
Go back to the main settings menu and select Password and Security. Go to Privacy. There are two tabs that interest you: Special Features (or Advertising Services) and Recommendations. The first one is to disable Personalized Advertising, which will prevent the system from using your data for targeting.
In the Guidelines tab, you'll see a list of system applications that are authorized to show you hints, usually Security, Downloads, Music and Themes. Go through the list and turn off the Receive Recommendations in each application to remove the pop-ups inside the system software.
| System component | Where to look for settings | What to turn off | The result |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSA Service | Password and security -> Access to data | The msa switch | Disappears advertising on the lock screen and in the interface |
| Personalization | Password and Security -> Privacy | Personalized advertising | Advertising ceases to be targeted |
| System applications | Password and security -> Recommendations | Receive recommendations | Removes hints inside applications |
| Mi Video/Music | Application settings -> General | Online recommendations | Clean player interface |
What to do if the MSA button is not pressed?
Using DNS to Block Advertising
The most powerful tool in the arsenal of advanced users is the change of DNS-This method allows you to filter traffic at the network level, blocking requests to known ad servers before they reach your phone, and it solves the question of how to permanently remove ads on Xiaomi, not only in the system, but also in the browser and some applications.
To implement this method, go to Settings -> Connection and Sharing (or Wi-Fi). Find a Private Item DNS (Private DNS). The default is Auto or Disabled. You have to select Host Name of the provider. DNS (manually) and enter the reliable filter address.
The most popular and proven solution is the server dns.adguard.com. Enter this line in the input field and save the settings. The phone may lose its connection to the Internet for a second, after which the network will recover, but all advertising traffic will be cut off.
dns.adguard.comThe advantage of this method is that it doesn't require superuser rights and it works on top of any version of Android. But it also has a flip side: if the AdGuard server is unavailable, you may stop having the Internet in some applications, in which case, just return the DNS setting to Auto.
⚠️ Attention: When using private DNS Some applications (for example, telecom operators for charging) or public Wi-Fi networks with authorization may not work properly. DNS.
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After installation DNS-Reboot your smartphone, which ensures that all background processes start using a new traffic route from scratch.
Disabling Advertising in System Applications
The lock screen isn't the only place Xiaomi likes to host content. System utilities are also full of banners. To get perfect clean, you need to clean each one separately. It takes about 5 minutes, but the result is worth it.
Start with the Security app. Open it, click on the gear in the top right corner, and find Receive recommendations by turning it off. Next, go to Clean up inside the Security app, click on the gear again, and also turn off recommendations.
Then we'll take multimedia apps. In Music and Video, you'll go to the settings (usually through the "My" or gear menu), find the Settings -> Additional (or General) section, and disable items related to online content and recommendations. In Themes, go to the profile (the person at the bottom right), click on the settings and remove the tick from Show Ads.
- 📱 Conductor: Click on three menu bars -> Settings -> Information -> Remove the box "Receive recommendations».
- 📂 Downloads: Three dots in the corner -> Settings -> Remove the tick “Show recommended content».
- 🔍 Google Search: Google Settings -> Settings for Google apps -> Search and Assistant -> Google screen -> deactivate "cards».
Don't forget to check Calendar and Cleanup, too. In Calendar, you need to go to your settings and turn off Subscriptions or Holidays if they're uploading advertising content. A comprehensive approach will allow you to enjoy the device without unnecessary visual noise.
Removing unnecessary system applications through ADB
For those who want to go further and remove the ad modules physically (although not required for the average user), there is a method using ADB (Android Debug Bridge), which requires connecting the smartphone to the computer, which allows you to remove the application miui.system.ad.solution or daemon, which is responsible for swapping the icons for advertising.
First, you need to activate the developer mode. Go to Settings -> About Phone and quickly press 7 times on the MIUI Version (or OS Version). After that, a new section Additional -> Developer will appear in the settings menu. Turn on USB Debugging there.
Connect your phone to your PC, install drivers and ADB. In the command line, type a command to remove the advertising demon:
adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.miui.misysYou can also remove analytics and advertising services, but you should do this with caution. Removing critical components can lead to a cyclical reboot. It is recommended to use only to remove explicitly advertising packages, such as com.miui.personalassistant (if you do not use the tape on the left).