Where to look for hidden notes on Xiaomi: secret folders and system tricks

Have you ever encountered a situation where an important note has disappeared from the standard Notes app on Xiaomi? Or suspect that someone has deliberately hidden information in your phone? Hidden notes in the MIUI firmware are not a myth, but a real feature that not all users know about. In some cases, the system automatically archives or moves notes to protected sections, and sometimes users activate the concealment mode without even knowing it.

In this article, we’ll look at all the possible ways to detect hidden notes on Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones, from standard MIUI features to technical tricks using file manager and ADB. It’s important to understand that some methods require superuser rights (root), while others work without them. We’ll also explain how to distinguish really hidden notes from accidentally deleted or archived ones.

1. Check the archive in the standard appendix “Notes”

The first thing to do is to look at the archive of the Notes app itself. Many Xiaomi users don't even know that the utility automatically moves old or marked notes to a separate folder.

• 📱 Open the Notes app (icon with yellow notebook).
• 🔍 Click on the three dots in the upper right corner (menu).
• 📁 Select Archive or Cart item (depending on version) MIUI).
• 🔄 If there are no notes, try pulling the screen down for an update.

Some versions of MIUI 14+ may call it Fixed or Hidden, and if you don't find this section, it may have been disabled in the settings to enable the archive display:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Notes → Memory.
2. Activate the option to show the archive (if any).
3. Go back to the app and update the list.

⚠️ Attention: B MIUI 15 on Android 14, the note archive can be hidden behind additional authentication. If the system requests a password or fingerprint, it means that the notes were manually hidden through the Privat Mode feature.

2. Search through the MiNotes system folder

All notes in Xiaomi are stored as files in the system folder, and even if they are not displayed in the application interface, they can be found through the file manager.

• 📂 Open any file manager (e.g., Mi File Manager or Solid Explorer).
• 🔎 Cross the path: /storage/emulated/0/miui/notes/
• 📄 Look for files with the.note or.json extension.
• 🔄 If the folder is empty, check the alternative path: /data/data/com.miui.notes/files/ (Root rights are required).

Note files usually have names like note_123456.note or backup_20260501.json. You can open them with any text editor (like QuickEdit), but the content will be encrypted if the note is password-protected. Decryption will require specialized software like MiNote Decryptor (available on GitHub).

⚠️ Note: Delete or edit files in the folder /data/data/ without root, you may crash the Notes app. Always back up before making changes!

3.Use of the mode "Private space" (Second Space)

Second Space (or Private Space in newer versions of MIUI) allows you to create a separate user profile with your own apps and data, and if a note is missing, it may be there to check:

• ⚙️ Go to Settings. → Special facilities → Private space.
• 🔑 Enter your password (if it is set).
• 📱 Switch to a private profile and open the Notes app.
• 🔍 Check all sections, including the archive.

If you don't remember the Second Space password, you can only reset your access via settings (Settings → About Phone → Settings Reset). However, this will delete all the data in private space! Alternatively, use ADB to reset your password (USB debugging is required).

4. Recover deleted notes through backups

If the note has been deleted but not hidden, you can try to restore it from a backup. MIUI automatically backs up notes to the Mi Cloud cloud or locally to recover:

1. Open Notes and go to Settings → Recovery.
2. Select the last backup date.
3. Confirm the recovery (the process may take a few minutes).

If local backups are not available, check out Mi Cloud:

• 🌐 Go to i.mi.com from your PC.
• 🔑 Sign in with the same account as on your phone.
• 📄 Go to the Notes section and check for deleted records.

Important: Mi Cloud only stores notes 30 days after deleting, if more time has passed, you can't restore them, and make sure that sync is enabled in the application settings (Settings → Sync).

Synchronization with Mi Cloud is enabled?|Are there local backups in the Notes settings?|Archives and basket checked?|Is the app Installed Notes on the phone?-->

5. Advanced methods: ADB and root access

If the standard methods didn't work, and the note is critical, you can try extracting it through ADB (Android Debug Bridge) or root rights, which are suitable for advanced users and require technical skills.

Try the simple way through ADB:

1. Enable USB Debugging in Settings → About Phone → MIUI version (click 7 times, then go back to Additional → For Developers).
2. Connect your phone to your PC and execute the command: adb pull /data/data/com.miui.notes/databases/ notes_backup This will copy the note database to your computer.
3. Open the notes.db file with SQLite Browser and find the note table.

More advanced methods are available for root users:

• 🔧 Use Root Explorer to access the site /data/data/com.miui.notes/shared_prefs/ — Here you can store the settings of hidden notes.
• 🔍 Check the file. miui_notes_prefs.xml presence of parameters hidden_notes_list.
• 📱 Install a modified MiuiNotes app with support for hidden post display (available on forums) XDA Developers).

⚠️ Attention: Misuse of the right ADB or changing system files from root can result in the complete removal of all notes without the possibility of recovery. TWRP Or Mi Flash Tool.

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If you're not sure about your ADB skills, try an alternative: the MiXplorer app, which has superuser mode enabled, which lets you browse databases of applications in a user-friendly interface.

6. Alternative applications for finding notes

If the built-in Notes app doesn't show hidden entries, you can try third-party utilities that scan the device's memory for text files.

• 🔍 ES File Explorer (enable the display of hidden files in the settings).
• 📂 FX File Explorer (with root support).
• 🔎 Search My Files (Search for File Content).
• 📱 MiXplorer (the best choice for Xiaomi with root).

When using third-party file managers, pay attention to the following folders:

/storage/emulated/0/Android/data/com.miui.notes/




/data/user/0/com.miui.notes/




/sdcard/miui/backup/Notes/

Some apps, like Google Keep or Evernote, can automatically import notes from Mi Notes when you first run them, so try installing them and checking if your records have moved there.

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Third-party file managers often find notes where standard MIUI tools don't show them, but root rights are still required to access system folders.

7. What should I do if nothing has worked?

If you tried all the ways, but the note was never found, it may have been:

• 🗑️ Removed irretrievably (e.g., by cleaning the app cache).
• 🔒 Encrypted using third-party software (e.g. AppLock).
• 📱 Transferred to another account (if several people used the phone).
• 🛠️ Damaged by a malfunction. MIUI.

In such cases, the last options remain:

1. Contact the Xiaomi Service Center (if the note has legal value).
2. Use professional data recovery tools such as Dr.Fone or EaseUS MobiSaver (paid, but more effective than manual methods).
3. Try to restore a note through Google Drive if you have previously enabled sync with it.

If you deleted a note recently (within 7 days), try rolling back your system through Settings → About Phone → System Update → Three Dots → Update. This will return the firmware to the previous version where the note may still have been saved.

FAQ: Frequent questions about hidden notes on Xiaomi