How to completely disable auto-start on Xiaomi: 5 proven ways

Xiaomi smartphones based on MIUI They are known for their performance, but many users face the problem of auto-run applications, a feature designed to speed up the work of commonly used programs, often has the opposite effect: The phone starts to "brake", the battery discharges faster, and in the background there are dozens of unnecessary processes. POCO, Where limited resources are spent on background tasks.

In this article, we’ll look at all the possible ways to disable autoruns on Xiaomi devices, including hidden MIUI 14 settings, commands over ADB, and even radical methods for power users. You’ll learn how to disable autoruns for individual applications, how to disable background activity of system services, and what to do if settings are reset after an update, and how to check if apps have stopped running automatically.

Why Auto Launch on Xiaomi is Interfering with Your Phone

The MIUI Auto-Start function was conceived as an optimization: the system preloads frequently used applications into memory so that they open faster, but in practice this leads to:

• 🔋 Accelerated battery discharge - background processes are consumed to 20-30% day-load.
• 🐢 Slowdown – RAM gets clogged with unnecessary tasks, especially on devices with 4-6 GB memory.
• 📱 Overheating – constant processor activity increases the temperature of the body.
• 🚫 Intrusive Ads – Some apps (such as Mi Video or GetApps) show notifications even in the background.

According to XDA Developers’ tests, disabling auto-runs for the 10 most voracious apps increases battery life by 15-25%, while opening those same apps slows by only 0.3-0.8 seconds — a difference that is almost invisible to the user.

Method 1: Disable Autostart via standard MIUI settings

The easiest method is to use the built-in MIUI tools. It is suitable for most models, including the Xiaomi 13/14, Redmi Note 12, POCO F5 and others with the MIUI 12-14 shell version.

Instructions:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Select the app you want to disable autoplay for (like Facebook or Mi Browser).
3. Slip on AutoRun (or Autoboot in some versions).
4. Move the slider to the off position.
5. To completely turn off background activity, go back and select Permissions → Background Activity → Ban.

Note that for system applications (e.g. Mi Security or Mi Cloud), the autorun option may be blocked, in which case you will need to use ADB (see Method 3).

Back up important data |Close all background apps |Plug your phone to charge (recommended) |Check the MIUI version in the settings-->

⚠️ Note: After disabling the autorun for messengers (WhatsApp, Telegram), notifications may come with a delay. To avoid this, add them to Settings → Battery → Optimizing the battery → No restrictions.

Method 2: Massive shutdown of autostart via "Safety"

MIUI has a hidden feature called Mass Autostart Control that allows you to turn it off for all applications at once, a technique that works on most devices but may not be available on some regional firmware.

How to find it:

1. Open the Security app (the shield icon).
2. Go to the Acceleration section → Auto-start.
3. Click on the icon. ⚙️ (settings) in upper right corner.
4. Choose Disable All or manually uncheck the boxes from unnecessary apps.

If there is no AutoRun section, try an alternative path:

• 🔍 In the search bar in Settings, enter "autostart".
• 📌 Sometimes the option is hidden in the settings. → Battery → Battery management → Settings (⚙️) → Auto-start.

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If the application stopped sending notifications after disabling autorun, check its permission settings. Sometimes you need to manually allow notifications and background activity (despite the autorun being disabled).

Method 3: Disable AutoRun via ADB (for power users)

Some Xiaomi system applications (such as MiuiDaemon or Analytics) do not allow you to disable auto-start through the standard menu, in which case Android Debug Bridge (ADB) – a tool for low-level device management – will help.

Step-by-step:

1. Enable Developer Mode: Go to Settings → About Phone. Tap 7 times on MIUI Version. Go back to Settings → Additional → Developer. Activate USB Debugging.

ADB Tools

adb devices

Make sure your device is listed.

Facebook

adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.facebook.katana

For other applications, replace com.facebook.katana with their batch name (you can find out through the App Inspector in the Play Market).

Important: Disabling system applications (e.g. com.miui.analytics) can cause your phone to run unstable. Before experimenting, back up through Settings → System → Backup.

Method 4: Using third-party applications (without root)

If you are uncomfortable with ADB, you can use specialized utilities. They do not require root rights, but some features may be limited.

Top.-3 autostart-control applications:

• 🛡️ Greenify – suspends the background activity of applications. Works in tandem with Xposed (requires unlocking the bootloader).
• ⚡ Battery Guru – shows which apps consume the battery and lets you disable their auto-run.
• 🔧 AutoStart Manager – a specialized tool for managing the boot (requires) ADB full access).

Example of AutoStart Manager:

1. Install an app from the Play Market.
2. Connect your phone to your PC and execute the command: adb -d shell pm grant com.ramdroid.autostartmanager android.permission.WRITE_SECURE_SETTINGS
3. Open AutoStart Manager and mark the applications you want to disable AutoStart for.
4. Press Apply and restart the phone.

⚠️ Note: Apps like Greenify may conflict with MIUI Optimization is a built-in Xiaomi service that restores background processes. To avoid this, disable optimization through the ADB: adb shell settings put global miui_optimization_disabled 1

Method 5: Radical method – disabling MIUI Optimization (requires caution)

MIUI Optimization is responsible for automatic memory and process management, and disabling it gives you full control over auto-start, but can lead to:

• 🔄 Increased battery consumption (the system stops optimizing background tasks).
• 📉 Slow down animations (some transitions will become less smooth).
• ⚠️ Unstable work (rarely, but occasional reboots are possible).

If you are ready for experiments, do:

1. Activate Developer Mode (see Method 3).
2. Connect your phone to your PC and execute: adb shell settings put global miui_optimization_disabled 1
3. Reset the device.
4. Check the result: Autorun can now be turned off for any application, including system ones.

To get it all back, do this:

adb shell settings put global miui_optimization_disabled 0

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Disabling MIUI Optimization gives you maximum control over auto-run, but is only suitable for power users. Most devices have enough standard methods (Method 1 or 2).

How to check if auto-start is actually disabled

Many users experience a situation where, after disabling autorun, applications still run in the background.

• 🔄 Automatic recovery (MIUI Returns the settings after the reboot).
• 📦 Application updates (new versions may reset permissions).
• 🤖 System Services (some processes run through JobScheduler).

How to check:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Select the application and check the AutoRun status.
3. Use ADB for in-depth verification: adb shell dumpsys activity broadcasts | grep "com.example.app" (replace com.example.app with the application's batch name).
4. Install CPU Monitor or BetterBatteryStats to track background activity.

If the auto-start is back on:

• 🔧 Repeat the shutdown through ADB (Method 3).
• 📵 Turn off automatic app updates in the Play Market.
• 🔄 Check for updates MIUI — Auto-start bugs may appear in new versions.

FAQ: Frequent questions about auto-launch on Xiaomi