How to change icons on the lock screen Xiaomi

Xiaomi smartphone owners often face the desire to personalize the appearance of their device, but standard features of MIUI and HyperOS limit access to system elements. The lock screen is the first thing a user sees when unlocking a phone, and the presence of unnecessary or incomprehensible icons can be annoying. The standard shell does not allow you to simply remove system icons, such as alarm clock or Bluetooth, without the use of special tools.

Many users mistakenly believe that only wallpaper or font can be changed, but the reality is that deep customization is possible. Android provides mechanisms for interfering with the display of the interface, but they require either superuser rights or the use of specialized launchers and themes. In this article, we will discuss all the available methods, from simple settings to advanced utilities.

It is worth noting that removing system icons without root rights is not possible in all versions of the firmware, as Xiaomi’s security policy is constantly changing. If you want to simply change the style of icons, make them more vivid or minimalistic, this is easier than completely removing the system status indicators.

Standard settings for displaying notifications

Before resorting to complex methods, it is worth checking the basic settings of the system. Often users want to remove the icons of the applications that hang in the curtain or on the lock screen, not realizing that this can be done through the notification menu. → Notifications and status bar.

Here you will find the “Show notifications on the lock screen” switch, which will hide the contents of messages, but the system icons (Wi-Fi, battery) will remain. Also in the Settings menu → Lock screen, you can turn off the display of some widgets, such as a pedometer or Bluetooth device status, if this option is available in your version of MIUI.

However, if your goal is to change the appearance of the icons themselves (for example, make them round or color), this cannot be done with standard means. The shell system resources are rigidly set by developers. To change the style of the application icons displayed in the notifications, you will need to install a third-party theme through the Themes application.

• 🔘 Go to the Themes app and find a design where the preview shows the desired style of icons.
• 🔘 Install theme, but only use the “Icons” or “System” component if the theme allows selective installation.
• 🔘 Check the lock screen: Some themes change the style of charge indicators and alarm clocks.

⚠️ Attention: Installing themes from unreliable sources can lead to advertising on the system or unstable interface. Use only proven themes from the official store or from well-known authors.

It is important to understand the difference between application icons in notifications and system indicators at the top status bar: the former can be controlled in part through application-specific notification settings, while the latter are part of the SystemUI system interface and require more in-depth intervention to modify them.

Using Magisk Modules for Deep Customization

The most effective way to change or remove icons on the lock screen is to obtain superuser rights (Root) and install the Magisk manager. This method allows you to make changes to system files without violating the integrity of the system partition, which is important for the operation of banking applications (if you configure it correctly).

Once you install Magisk, you'll need to find and install a dedicated module, like the Remove Status Bar Icons or something similar, that's tailored to your Android version, which allows you to flexibly adjust which indicators will be displayed in the status bar and lock screen, and you can hide the NFC icon, vibration, alarm clock, or even signal level.

The installation process is usually simple: the downloaded.zip archive is downloaded through the Magisk app to the Modules section, after which a reboot is required. Xposed modules (LSPosed) also provide huge customization opportunities through the SystemUI Tuner or GravityBox module, allowing you to change not only the visibility, but also the size, color and position of the icons.

• 🛠️ Install Magisk via Fastboot mode or through the app (if the model allows you to do so).
• 🛠️ Download the Status Bar module from the verified repository.
• 🛠️ Activate the module in the Magisk menu and restart the device.
• 🛠️ Set up the visibility of icons through the module application or in the system settings.

Keep in mind that unlocking the bootloader required to obtain Root rights will drop all data from the phone and may temporarily limit some security features like Google Pay (though this is often bypassed). Data security when using Root modules is solely up to the user, so it is important to download files only from official developer pages on forums like 4PDA or XDA.

Replace icons by changing system files

For advanced users who don’t want to use Magisk modules, there is a method of manually swapping graphics resources, which requires the presence of Root rights and a file manager with access to the system partition, such as MT Manager or Root Explorer.

Graphic elements of the interface in Android are stored in files with the extension.apk, in particular in the form of SystemUI.apk. Inside this file are folders with resources (res), where are the images of icons in.png or.xml format, stat_sys_alarm.png for alarm clocks, it can be replaced with a transparent picture or a different color.

/system/framework/framework-res.apk


/system/priv-app/SystemUI/SystemUI.apk

Before making any changes, it is critical to back up the original file. If you replace the file incorrectly or break the structure, the phone can go into an endless bootloop. The system partition is very sensitive to changes, and an error in one byte can lead to an interface failure.

⚠️ Warning: Replacing system files without a backup may result in data loss or the need to flash the device through your computer. Always have the original firmware for your model on hand.

After the file is replaced, you must change the permissions of the new file to match the original (usually rw-r).--r-- Or 644).The phone must then be fully restarted.If the icons have not changed, you may need to clear the launcher's cache or Dalvik Cache via Recovery.

Configure the display through ADB-team

A less risky method that does not require Root rights but requires a connection to a computer is using USB debugging and the ADB command line, which allows you to hide certain system icons by changing the global settings of the system.

First, you need to activate the developer mode: go to Settings → About the phone and 7 times click on the version MIUI. Then in the advanced settings, turn on “Debugging by” USB». Connect your smartphone to your PC, install it ADB-Drivers and enter commands in the terminal.

There is a command to hide icons in the status bar, which indirectly affects their display when unlocked in some launchers. However, for the lock screen, the ADB's capabilities are limited to Android security policies.

adb shell settings put global icon_blacklist battery,location,alarm,volume

This command may not work on newer versions of HyperOS due to enhanced security, but on MIUI 12-13 it is often effective. The command line gives direct access to the settings database, bypassing the GUI. If the command is executed successfully, the selected icons will disappear from the top panel.

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Use the command "adb shell dumpsys statusbar" to see a list of all active icons and their exact system names for subsequent hiding.

To cancel changes and return icons back, a reset command or deletion of the key is used: adb shell settings delete global icon_blacklist. This is a safe method, as it does not make changes to system files, but only changes configuration flags that are easy to revert.

Comparison of icon change methods

The choice of method depends on your skills, phone model and desired result. Below is a table comparing the main ways to customize icons on Xiaomi.

As you can see from the table, the best option for the average user is the Themes and standard settings. They are safe and do not require complex manipulation. However, if you are an enthusiast and want complete control, Magisk + LSPosed is the gold standard in the world of Android modification.

Remember that with each update to Android and the MIUI/HyperOS shell, the methods may stop working. System paths and resource names may change. So always look for relevant information for your specific version of the software in the profile forums before starting any procedures.

Frequent problems and their solution

When changing system elements, users often face typical problems, one of the most common is a bootloop after replacing the system file. If this happens, you need to go to Recovery mode (pressing the power and volume button) and try to restore the backup or reset to the factory settings (Wipe Data).

Another problem is that Magisk modules don’t work or the phone can’t see them. In this case, check if the “Zygisk” option is enabled in the Magisk settings itself, as many modern modules require this framework. Also make sure that the module version is compatible with the version of your Android (for example, the module for Android 11 may not work on Android 13).

If the icons are gone, but the phone is working and you want them back, just delete the installed module or restore the original file through the file manager. Reverse changes are an important part of the experimentation process. Always keep the original files you plan to edit handy.

⚠️ Warning: If after installing the theme, the lock screen stopped responding to touches or is not working correctly, boot into Safe Mode (usually the off button at start) and delete the last installed theme.

Questions and Answers (FAQ)

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The safest and easiest way to change the visual style of icons is to use official themes in the Themes app, whereas removing icons completely requires risky manipulation of Root rights.