How to remove the wallpaper carousel on Xiaomi from the lock screen and return it back

The wallpaper carousel on the Xiaomi lock screen is one of the most controversial features of MIUI. On the one hand, it adds visual diversity by automatically changing background images from the collection of Xiaomi Wallpapers or Google Wallpapers. On the other hand, many users complain about the arbitrary change of wallpaper, lags when unlocking and even increased battery consumption due to the background activity of the service. If you are among those who are annoyed by this feature, or vice versa, accidentally disabled it and want to return, our instructions will help you understand the nuances of the settings.

In this article, we will look at all possible ways to manage the wallpaper carousel, from standard MIUI settings to hidden settings through ADB and third-party utilities. We will focus on the problems faced by owners of devices on MIUI 14/15, where the settings interface has changed, and we will also discuss why the carousel can spontaneously turn on after updates and how to avoid this.

Why the wallpaper carousel appears on the lock screen Xiaomi

The Wallpaper Carousel feature was introduced in MIUI since version 12 as part of a personalization strategy, and is activated by default in two cases:

• 📱 When the first switch on the smartphone – the system offers to choose the style of wallpaper, and among the options there is an option “Automatic change».
• 🔄 After updating MIUI — Some versions (for example, transition from MIUI 13 by 14) reset wallpaper settings to factory.
• 🎨 When installing themes from the Mi Theme Store – some themes force the carousel to be “full immersion».

In addition, the carousel can be turned on independently if the wallpaper synchronization between devices is activated in the Mi Account settings, in which case the smartphone pulls up the settings from another gadget (for example, the Xiaomi Pad tablet), where the function was enabled.

⚠️ Attention: On devices with MIUI For the global market (e.g. Redmi Note 12 Pro)+ 5G) The paths to the carousel settings may differ with Chinese firmware (e.g. Xiaomi 13 Ultra), and the option is often hidden in the menu in Chinese versions. → Personalization.

Method 1: Disable the carousel through standard MIUI settings

The easiest method is to use the built-in system tools, and the instructions are relevant for MIUI 12-15 (including HyperOS for new models):

1. Open the Wallpaper app (icon with brush and mountain).
2. Go to the “lock screen” tab (bottom of the screen).
3. Click on the current wallpaper - the editing menu will open.
4. In the upper right corner, tap the icon. ⚙️ «Settings».
5. Turn off the Automatic Wallpaper Change slider (or Wallpaper Carousel in English).

If this item is missing, try an alternative path:

1. Click the empty space on the home screen → select “Wallpaper”.
2. At the bottom of the screen, switch to the “lock screen” tab.
3. Scroll down to the "Advanced" section and turn off "Dynamic Wallpaper".

On some models (such as the POCO F5 or Xiaomi 12T), the option may be called “Live Wallpaper” – it also needs to be deactivated.

Method 2: Remove the Wallpaper system application (for advanced ones)

If standard methods don't work, you can go a radical way of disabling or removing the system application that controls the carousel, which is a risky way, as it can cause other functions to fail (for example, customizing themes), recommended only for power users!

This will require:

• 🔓 Unlocked bootloader (unlocked bootloader).
• 🛠️ Root rights (for example, through Magisk).
• 📱 Application for system package management (e.g. App Systemizer or Titanium Backup).

Instructions:

1. Install Root Explorer or similar file manager with root support.
2. Go to /system/priv-app/WallpaperCarousel or /system/app/WallpaperPicker.
3. Find files with the.apk and.odex extensions associated with wallpaper (e.g. WallpaperCarousel.apk).
4. Rename them by adding.bak at the end (e.g. WallpaperCarousel.apk.bak).
5. Reset the device.

⚠️ Warning: Removing system applications may disrupt Mi Theme Store and personalization features.Before experimenting, back up through TWRP Mi Cloud.

Method 3: Using ADB to turn off the carousel

If you don’t have root, but you have access to USB debugging, you can turn off the carousel via Android Debug Bridge (ADB), a method that works on most Xiaomi devices, including Redmi and POCO.

You'll need:

• 🖥️ Computer with installed ADB-driver.
• 📲 Included debugging by USB on a smartphone (Settings) → The phone. → Version. MIUI → 7 times tap to unlock the developer menu, then Settings → Additionally. → For developers → Debugging by USB).
• 🔌 Cable USB Type-C (preferably original).

Steps:

1. Connect your smartphone to your PC and confirm the debugging permission.
2. Open the command line (Win + R → enter cmd) and do:

adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.android.wallpaperbackup


adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.miui.wallpaper

Use the following to return the carousel:

adb shell pm enable com.android.wallpaperbackup


adb shell pm enable com.miui.wallpaper

If the commands don’t work, try an alternative:

adb shell settings put global wallpaper_carousel_enabled 0

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Before execution ADB-Check the list of installed packages through adb shell pm list packages | This will help you to accurately identify the name of the service responsible for the carousel on your model.

How to return the wallpaper carousel if it is missing

If you accidentally turned off the automatic wallpaper change or it disappeared after the update, you can restore it in several ways:

If the carousel never appeared, check:

• 📥 Internet connection – without it, the system cannot download new wallpaper.
• 🔒 Background restrictions - in Settings → Battery → Background Limitation Make sure there are no restrictions for the Wallpaper app.
• 📦 Updates MIUI — Sometimes the function is temporarily disabled due to firmware bugs (for example, in the MIUI 14.0.3 for Xiaomi 11T Pro).

Problems and mistakes when working with a wallpaper carousel

Even after successfully turning off or on the carousel, users are faced with bugs.

1.The carousel turns on itself after the reboot

Reason: com.miui.wallpaper has a high priority for auto-run.

• Open Settings → Applications → Application Management → Wallpaper → Autostart and turn it off.
• Use ADB to completely disable autostart:

adb shell cmd appops set com.miui.wallpaper RUN_ANY_IN_BACKGROUND ignore

2. wallpaper does not change, although the carousel is included

Possible causes:

• 📵 No Internet connection – check the connection to the network.
• 🔋 Battery Limitation – Add Wallpaper to Optimization Exceptions (Settings) → Battery → Optimizing the battery).
• 🗃️ Not enough memory – clear the Wallpaper app cache (Settings) → Annexes → Wallpaper. → Clear the cache).

3.After the carousel is turned off, the wallpaper is dropped on standard ones

This is due to a failure in the launcher settings.

1. Set wallpaper manually through the wallpaper menu.
2. Reset the launcher settings (click the main screen → Settings → Reset).
3. If the problem persists, try changing the theme to a standard one (Settings → Theme → My Theme → Standard).

💡

If the wallpaper carousel is not stable, check for updates to the Wallpaper app in Google Play or Mi App Store first.

Alternative applications for wallpaper management

If you don't like the built-in MIUI carousel, you can use third-party solutions, which offer more flexibility: manual image selection, adjusting shift intervals, support for Live Wallpapers, and even integration with Google Photos.

Top.-3 applications:

• 🌄 Wallpaper Engine – supports animated wallpaper and customization (requires root for full-fledged work on the wallpaper). MIUI).
• 🔄 Tapet – generates unique wallpapers on a schedule and automatically updates them.
• 🖼️ Zedge – a huge library of static and live wallpaper with the ability to adjust rotation.

To install alternative wallpaper on the lock screen:

1. Download the app from Google Play.
2. Select your favorite wallpaper and click "Install".
3. In the window that appears, select “lock screen” (not “main screen”).
4. If the option is not available, pre-disable the built-in carousel through the MIUI settings.

On some devices (such as Xiaomi 13 Pro) to use third-party wallpaper on the lock screen, you will need to turn off MIUI protection:

1. Go to Settings → Password and Security → Protection MIUI.
2. Turn off the option "Block Wallpaper".

FAQ: Frequent questions about wallpaper carousel on Xiaomi