How to Get Main Menu Back on Xiaomi Devices: A Complete Guide

You've turned on a Xiaomi Mi TV or a Redmi/POCO smartphone, but instead of the main menu (Main Menu), you see an empty screen, an error or no access to settings at all? This problem often occurs after updating your firmware, resetting to factory settings or incorrect interference with system files. In 80% of cases, it can be solved without going to the service center - just perform a few verified actions.

In this article, we will explore all the possible causes of Main Menu’s disappearance on Xiaomi devices (including TVs, smartphones and tablets), and provide step-by-step recovery instructions. From simple reboots to manually editing configuration files, you will find a solution for even the most difficult cases, with a special focus on models with MIUI 14/15 and TVs on PatchWall, where the problem occurs most often.

Why Main Menu is missing on Xiaomi: top-5 cause

Before you start a recovery, it is important to understand what caused the failure, and here are the most common scenarios that users face:

• 🔄 Failed firmware update – especially relevant for Xiaomi Mi TVs TV 4S/5, where after an automatic update can "fly" launcher.
• ⚙️ Resetting to factory settings without backup – often leads to the loss of the main menu binding to system services.
• 📱 Remove system applications (e.g. com.miui.home on smartphones or com.droidlogic.LiveTv on TV) via ADB root-right.
• 🖥️ Launcher conflict – installing third-party shells (for example, Nova Launcher) can block the regular Main Menu.
• 🔌 Hardware failures – damage to flash memory or screen controller (relevant for devices older than 3 years).

On Xiaomi TVs, the problem is often caused by damage to the file /system/etc/prop.default, which is responsible for loading the interface. On smartphones, the culprit is usually a malfunction of the miui.system service.

⚠️ Note: If before the disappearance of Main Menu you installed custom firmware (for example, LineageOS) or modified build.prop, restore the menu through standard methods will not work – you will need a complete flashing of the device.

Method 1: Reboot and reset cache (for all devices)

Start with the simplest of actions – they help in 30-40% of cases, especially if the failure is caused by a temporary conflict of system processes.

For Xiaomi Mi TVs:

1. Press and hold the Power button on the remote for 10-15 seconds until the device is completely turned off.
2. Turn off the TV from the socket for 2-3 minutes (this will reset the residual charge of the capacitors).
3. Plug it back in and turn it on. If the menu doesn't show up, move on to the next step.
4. Press the Menu + Home combination on the remote for 5 seconds – this will cause a hidden recovery menu (works on 2020 models and later).

For Xiaomi smartphones:

Perform a soft reset:

1. Press Volume Up + Power for 10 seconds until the device restarts.
2. Once turned on, check if the menu is up. If not, clear the cache: Go to Settings → About Phone → Memory → Clear the cache. Or through Recovery: turn off the phone, press Volume up + Power, select Wipe Cache Partition.

If Main Menu never appeared after these actions, the problem lies deeper – move on to the next method.

Method 2: Recovery via Safe Mode (for smartphones)

Safe Mode allows you to boot the device without third-party applications, which helps diagnose launcher conflicts. MIUI 12-15:

1. Turn off the phone.
2. Press the Power button and hold until the MI logo appears.
3. Once the logo appears, release the power button and immediately press Volume down, holding it until full load.
4. In the lower left corner of the screen should appear the inscription Safe Mode.

In this mode:

• 🔍 Check if Main Menu has appeared.If so, a problem in the third-party launcher (remove it via Settings). → Annexes).
• 📱 If there is no menu, go to Settings → Annexes → Manage applications and find com.miui.home. click Clear data and Stop.
• 🔄 Restart your phone in normal mode.

⚠️ Note: On some models POCO (for example, POCO F3) Signing into Safe Mode can block access to the developer's settings. If you need root rights, first disable them through Magisk.

Method 3: Manual recovery launcher on Xiaomi TVs

If Main Menu is missing from Xiaomi Mi TV (including Mi TV 4A, 4S, 5, Q1, Q2), the most likely cause is damage to the PatchWall system launcher.

Method A: Through the service menu (without firmware)

1. Turn the TV off the socket.
2. Press the Menu + Home buttons on the remote and, holding them, connect the TV to the outlet.
3. Hold the buttons for another 10-15 seconds until the service menu appears (usually a blue screen labeled Factory Menu).
4. Select Reset Launcher (or Restore Default) with volume buttons and confirm the choice with OK button.
5. Reboot the TV.

Method B: Reinstall PatchWall via ADB

If the service menu is not available, you will need to connect to ADB:

1. Download Platform Tools and unpack it on your computer.
2. Connect the TV to your PC via USB (enable USB debugging in the developer settings).
3. Open the command line in the folder with Platform Tools and execute: adb shell pm clear com.mitv.tvhome adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.mitv.tvhome adb shell pm install -r /system/priv-app/TVHome/TVHome.apk
4. Reboot the TV with the adb reboot command.

On the 2023 Xiaomi Mi TV models (e.g. Mi TV Q2 75), the path to the launcher may be different: instead of TVHome.apk, use PatchWall.apk from the /system/priv-app/PatchWall/ folder.

Method 4: Reset to factory settings (last chance)

If none of the previous methods worked, it would be a complete reset, which would delete all the data, but would make Main Menu work again 95 percent of the time.

For Xiaomi TVs:

1. Go to Settings → Device → Reset and Reset → Reset all settings.
2. Enter. PIN-code (default 0000 or 1234).
3. Confirm the reset. It'll take 3-5 minutes.

For Xiaomi smartphones:

1. Turn off the phone.
2. Press Volume Up + Power to enter Recovery.
3. Select Wipe Data → Wipe All Data (use volume buttons for navigation).
4. Confirm the action and wait for the completion.

After discharge:

• 📱 On your smartphone: when you first turn on, select a region and connect to Wi-Fi. Main Menu should appear automatically.
• 📺 On TV: perform the initial setup (select language, connect to the network). If the menu does not appear, repeat the reset again.

⚠️ Attention: On Xiaomi TVs 2021-2026 Years of factory reset may require you to enter the Mi Account activation code if the device was linked to the account!

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Factory reset is the most reliable way to return Main Menu, but only use it if other methods have failed. All data will be deleted without recovery!

Method 5: Manual editing of system files (for advanced ones)

If you’re familiar with ADB and willing to take a chance, you can try to restore Main Menu by editing configuration files, a method that works for Xiaomi Android TVs and root-right smartphones.

For TVs (restore prop.default):

1. Connect to ADB (see Method 3).
2. Execute the command to download the original file: adb pull /system/etc/prop.default prop_default_backup.txt
3. Open the downloaded file in your notebook and find the line: ro.launcher=com.mitv.tvhome/.MainActivity If it is not available or damaged, add it manually.
4. Save the file and download it back: adb push prop_default_backup.txt /system/etc/prop.default adb shell chmod 644 /system/etc/prop.default
5. Reboot the TV.

For smartphones (restore miui.home):

1. Install Root Explorer or any file manager with root access.
2. Go to /data/system/users/0/ and find runtime-permissions.xml.
3. Remove it (the system will create a new one when you restart).
4. Reboot the phone.

These actions will only work if the problem is related to access rights to the launcher. If the launcher file is physically missing, you will need to flash it.

Table: Methods compatibility with Xiaomi devices

What do you do if nothing helps?

If you’ve tried all the ways but Main Menu never came along, there are two options left:

1. Fastboot Firmware Reflash: Download the official firmware for your model from Xiaomi Firmware. Unpack the archive and execute in Fastboot: fastboot flash all firmware.zip fastboot reboot
2. Contact the service center: If the device is guaranteed, do not try to sew it yourself - this will void the warranty. EDL-Emergency Firmware (Switch) if other methods have not worked.

For Xiaomi TVs older than 5 years (such as Mi TV 3), Main Menu may not be able to recover due to wear and tear of flash memory.In this case, consider buying a new device or installing custom firmware (such as ATV or CoreELEC).

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Before flashing, check if your model supports unlocking the bootloader. Some devices (such as the Redmi Note 10 Pro) require permission from Xiaomi, which can be obtained from the Mi Unlock website.

FAQ: Frequent questions about Main Menu on Xiaomi