Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones often face intrusive banner ads that appear in system utilities and applications.This is a fee for the affordable cost of devices, as the company partially subsidizes the price of gadgets through advertising revenue. However, constant pop-ups and recommendations in folders can be very annoying and distracting from work.
Fortunately, the modern MIUI shell and the new HyperOS provide users with powerful tools to control what is displayed on the screen. You don't have to be a programmer or get super-user rights to get rid of most ad integrations. You just need to go through multiple menu items consistently and turn off the corresponding switches.
In this article, we will take a closer look at how to remove ads from Xiaomi apps, disable system recommendations, and block Internet access for ad modules. We will look at security settings, system applications, and even more advanced traffic filtering methods. Follow the steps to turn your smartphone into a clean and user-friendly tool.
Disabling System Advertising through MSA
The main source of intrusive advertising in the Xiaomi ecosystem is the MSA (MIUI System Ads) service, which is responsible for collecting data about your actions and showing personalized offers in various corners of the interface, and disabling this service is the first and most important step in the fight for cleanliness.
To deactivate it, go to your phone's settings and select "Passwords and Security." Next, you need to find the "Access to Data" or "Authorization and Security" section, where the list of system services is located. In the list, find the msa and put the switch into an inactive state. The system will warn you that without this service, some functions may not work correctly, but for the average user this is not critical.
⚠️ Attention: After disconnection MSA The system may require you to wait 10 seconds before confirming an action. If you accidentally click Cancel, the process will have to start again, since the "Cancel" button will become active again only after a day.
It is important to understand that MIUI sometimes tries to automatically reactivate this service after updates or restarts. Therefore, after turning off, it is also recommended to prevent the application from accessing the network. Go to Settings → Apps → All Apps, find in the msa list, select Data Use, and disable Wi-Fi and mobile network access. This ensures the channel of advertising data.
Also, check your ad personalization settings. In the same Passwords and Security menu, look for Advertising Services (or Privacy → Advertising Services) and you need to disable Ad Personalization. This will not remove ads completely, but will make them less intrusive and stop using your data to match offers.
Setup of system applications: Security and Explorer
System utilities like Security and Explorer often contain embedded news feeds and banner ads, which can slow applications and distract users, and can be easily disabled in the settings of each application.
Start with the Security app, which is the control center of the system, and open it and click on the gear at the top right of the screen. In the menu that opens, find the Get Recommendations section and turn off the switch. It's also worth looking at the Cleanup section inside the app's settings and removing the tick from Get Recommendations so that banner ads don't show up after the memory cleanup process.
Then we go to Explorer. Open the app, click on the menu (three bars or dots) and select Settings. Here you also find Get Recommendations and deactivate it, which will remove the ad tape from the file manager's home page, leaving only access to your files.
☑️ Verification of system applications
Also, check the Downloads app, which often includes a tab with news and ads, go to the download settings (usually through the menu in the corner) and turn off the "Show recommended content" option, which will free the screen from unnecessary visual noise.
It is important to note that after major updates to HyperOS or MIUI, settings may be reset. Check these points periodically, especially if you notice the return of ad units. Control over system applications gives a significant increase in the comfort of using a smartphone.
We remove advertising in folders and on the desktop
One of the most annoying features of Xiaomi’s shell is the appearance of promotional recommendations in folders on the desktop.When you put multiple apps together in one folder, a line of “Recommended Apps” with icons of games and programs that you don’t need may appear at the bottom.
To remove this item, open any folder on your desktop that has ads. Click on the folder name (or the empty space next to the name to call the folder settings menu). In the window that appears, find the Recommended Apps or Promoted Apps switch and turn it off. Now, the folders will only show the apps you put there manually.
Also worth paying attention to is the Wallpaper Carousel widget, which constantly changes wallpaper on the lock screen and often shows advertising images with brand or store logos. To turn off, go to Settings → Lock Screen → Wallpaper Carousel and turn off the feature. You can choose a static image or standard wallpaper system.
⚠️ Warning: Disabling Wallpaper Carousel may cause the pedometer or note widgets to stop showing on the lock screen if they were tied to this particular service. MIUI substitute.
If you use a third-party theme, the ads can be embedded directly into the design of the icons or interface, in which case it is recommended to go back to the standard theme Classic or Default, to make sure that the source of the ads is the system, not the visual style.
Blocking advertising in the browser and applications
Browser and third-party ads are a separate category of problems. MIUI cannot completely block advertising within third-party software, but we may use built-in protections and DNS-filtering.
In Mi Browser (or any other default browser), go to the settings and find the Privacy and Security section. Activate the Ad Block feature. This will help hide banners on visited sites. However, for more effective protection, you can use third-party browsers with built-in ad-blockers, such as Brave or Firefox with the addition of uBlock Origin.
To block ads in all applications at once, including games and utilities, you can use the Private DNS method. This method does not require installing additional programs. Go to Settings → Connection and Sharing → Private DNS (or Personal DNS). Select the option “Host Name of the DNS provider” and enter the address in the field:
dns.adguard.comOnce you save your settings, all your device traffic will pass through AdGuard filters that cut off known ad domains, which can significantly speed up page loading in apps and remove banners. However, keep in mind that some apps may stop working correctly if advertising is part of their functionality.
| Locking method | Efficiency | Difficulty | Impact on speed |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSA shutdown | High (systemic advertising) | Low. | No influence. |
| Application settings | Medium (inside utilities) | Low. | No influence. |
| Private DNS | High (browsers and games) | Medium | Could slow down the start. |
| Third-party blockers | Maximum | Tall. | Battery's running out. |
What to do if the DNS is not working?
Use of blocking applications
If standard methods are not enough, specialized applications come to the rescue. The most popular and effective solution for Android is AdGuard. VPN-A tunnel on the device through which all incoming and outgoing traffic is filtered.
Unlike the method. DNS, AdGuard allows you to flexibly configure filters for specific applications. You can create a rule that completely bans Internet access for embedded advertising modules, but leaves access to the main functionality of the program. APK-file from the official website of the developer, as in Google Play version is limited.
Another powerful tool is Blokada, which works in a similar way by blocking requests to known ad servers, and Blokada’s advantage is open source and the ability to use its own host lists, giving advanced users full control over which connections are allowed and which ones are not.
When using such blockers, it is important to monitor battery power; constant filtering of traffic can increase energy consumption by 5-10%; and some banking applications and services with strict security checks may not start with an active local VPN.
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Use the “Sleep Mode” or “Traffic Saving” feature in the blocker settings to turn off filtering when you’re connected to a reliable home Wi-Fi. This will save battery life.
Frequent questions and possible problems
When disabling ads, users often encounter nuances that require clarification, such as why ads reappear after a system update. The answer lies in Xiaomi’s policy: with major updates (for example, switching from a system update). MIUI 13 by 14 or HyperOS) privacy settings can be reset to default values. MSA The recommendations will have to be repeated.
Another common question is the safety of shutting down system services: Is it dangerous? Disabling msa and advertising recommendations is safe for the stability of the phone. You will not lose data, and the basic functions (calls, messages, camera) will work properly. The only thing that can change is that some widgets in the Mi Video or Mi Music feed that are based on affiliate content will disappear.
Also worth mentioning is “advertising in notifications.” If you see ad flies from unknown apps, chances are you accidentally installed a junk program. Check the list of installed apps, sort them by installation date, and remove suspicious utilities (lightlightlights, memory cleaners, questionable browsers). Xiaomi system ads don’t usually come in the form of push notifications unless a wallpaper carousel or in-app recommendations is included.
⚠️ Warning: Be careful when installing applications from unknown sources that offer “total ad removal” – often viruses or miners themselves – only use proven open source solutions or official stores.
To sum up, fighting ads on Xiaomi is a one-time process. 10-15 You can use your smartphone for months to come, and you can use it comfortably for all the menu items. MSA, settings of applications and use DNS-Filtering gives the best result.
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The comprehensive approach (disabling MSA + DNS + application settings) eliminates 95% of all advertising in the Xiaomi system without the need to obtain root rights.