How to Flip Data with Xiaomi if the Screen is Not Working

The situation when your favorite smartphone Xiaomi or Redmi falls on the pavement, leaving behind only a black spot or a chaotic network of cracks, is familiar to many. The worst thing at this point is not the cost of replacing the display, but the fear of losing forever saved photos, important documents and contacts. If the touchscreen has stopped responding and the image is missing, the standard way to “just copy” becomes impossible, but this does not mean that the data is lost.

There are several proven methods to extract information even from a completely non-working module. The key to success here is pre-preparedness: whether USB debugging mode or account sync was enabled. In this article, we will look at all possible scenarios, from simple cloud solutions to complex ADB and mouse manipulation.

Don't rush to bring your device to a service center, where you can charge a fee to save data. Often, you can solve the problem yourself using a connection through the service. USB-If you know the right sequence of steps, let's look at each option in detail so you can choose the one that suits your situation.

Use of the Mi Cloud cloud service

The easiest and most reliable way to recover data is pre-configured sync. Xiaomi owners often ignore the suggestion to create a Mi Account on the first turn on, but if the screen breaks, it becomes a lifeline. If you have ever logged in to your account, chances are that your contacts, notes and even photos are already in the cloud.

You don't need your phone to access the data. You just go to the official website https://i.mi.com/ from any computer or other smartphone. By entering your login and password, you can access a web interface where you can unload all the stored objects. Synchronization is usually automatic when you connect to Wi-Fi, so even if the phone is broken, the data could have time to fly to the cloud.

But there's a caveat: if the phone has been off or in flight mode since the last breakage, the latest data won't sync, in which case it will only work for old information.

• 📸 Go to i.mi.com and log in to your Mi. ID.
• 📂 Select the Gallery or Contacts section to view the available data.
• 📥 Click the Download or Export button to save files to your computer.

⚠️ Warning: If you don't remember the Mi Account password, it will be almost impossible to recover it without access to the linked phone number or backup email!

Unfortunately, if sync has been disabled or you've never created an account, this method won't help, and then you'll have to move on to more complex but efficient solutions using a physical connection.

Connection USB-mouse-wise OTG

If the phone screen is on but the touch doesn't respond to touch, or if you see an image but can't press anything, OTG (On-The-Go) technology will help you. This method allows you to connect a regular computer mouse to your smartphone and control the cursor interface. For Xiaomi and Redmi, it's often the only way to unlock the device and allow access to files.

You'll need a USB Type-C to USB-A adapter (or Micro-USB, depending on the model) and any wired USB mouse. Once you connect your mouse to your phone, a cursor will appear on the screen (if it shows anything at all) and you can enter a pattern lock, pin or password, and then flip the files.

This becomes more complicated if the screen is completely black, and then you go blind, relying on memory, first plug in the mouse, then press the on button (emulate unlock), swipe up to unlock, and try to tap the center of the screen to open the menu.

• 🖱️ Connect. USB-mouse to phone OTG-cable.
• 🔓 Use the left mouse button to simulate touching and entering a password.
• 📂 Find the “Conductor” or “Files” menu and copy it to a flash drive (if it supports) or to the cloud.

This is ideal when the matrix is intact and only the digitizer (sensor layer) is damaged, and if the image is missing completely, then we move on to the next, more versatile method.

Copying data through a computer (drive mode)

The most common scenario: you connect a broken Xiaomi to a computer through a computer USB-You can only charge the file instead of the folders, and that's because the default version of Android and the shells are the modern versions. MIUI Prohibit access to the file system without screen confirmation.

To circumvent this limitation, it is necessary to change the mode of operation. USB. If the screen is at least partially working or you can control the phone through the OTG-Mouse, you need to find the notification “Charge through” USB» and switch it to the "File Transfer" mode» (MTP). After that, the computer will see the phone as an external drive.

If the screen is black and the mouse doesn't work, you can try the blind method, but it only works if the phone was previously connected to that particular computer and was ticked "Always Allow." Otherwise, without confirmation on the screen ("Always Allow" or "Allow access"), the computer will not see the internal memory.

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Use short and high quality USB-Cheap "charging only" cables don't transmit data, leading to a connection error.

For advanced users, there is a command line option if USB debugging has been enabled, but for the average user, the most reliable way to try is to connect the phone to a familiar computer where synchronization was previously performed.

Use of the “Find Device” service by Google

If you have a Google account activated and geolocation enabled on your phone, you can use Find My Device, which, while its primary function is to search and lock, sometimes allows you to remotely back up or at least make sure the phone is online.

Go to android.com/find and log in with the same Google account as the broken phone, and if the device is located, you'll see its location, so you can send a command to lock or clean it, but you can't upload the files directly, but it's a great way to check the status of the device before you take a more radical step.

Google account settings can also check which data is already synced, contacts, calendar, Google Keep notes and photos (if Google Photos are enabled) are likely already saved, and check these services separately, without relying only on Mi Cloud.

⚠️ Warning: The remote erasure feature (“Clean the device”) will permanently destroy all information, only use it if you are sure that data is not needed or your phone is stolen.

Do not rely on this method as the main way to upload heavy files (video, archives), as Google is focused primarily on synchronizing settings and contacts, and not on a full backup system.

Application of debugging over USB (ADB)

For tech-savvy users, there is a powerful tool called Android Debug Bridge (ADB). If the developer menu included USB debugging in advance and the checkbox was always "allow this computer," you can fully control your phone from a PC.

To do this, you need to download the Platform Tools package from Google. Once you connect your phone, you can execute commands in the terminal. For example, the adb pull /sdcard/DCIM/Camera/C:/Backup/ command will copy all your photos from the camera to the Backup folder on disk C.

adb devices


adb pull /sdcard/ /phone_backup/

This method requires that Xiaomi drivers are installed on your computer. If there are no drivers, your computer won’t see the device in debugging mode. It’s also important that the phone is unlocked at least once after being turned on, otherwise the ADB may not work due to Android’s security policy.

If debugging wasn't enabled in advance, it's useless. In modern versions of MIUI, enabling debugging requires confirmation via SMS or Mi Account, making it impossible to activate blind.

Alternative methods and service centers

When the software is exhausted and the data is vital, there's a hardware option, so you can temporarily plug your desktop into the phone board, and it doesn't have to be an original display, and any compatible module, even the used one, will do just fine, as long as it shows the picture and reacts to the touch.

Many service centers are willing to put a "donor" screen on the weight so you can copy the data, charging only for the work, not for the new display, which is the most guaranteed way to save information from a completely dead phone.

There are also special boxes for programmers that allow you to connect to memory directly, but this is more relevant for phones that do not turn on at all (the board burned down), rather than just when the screen is broken. For Xiaomi with a whole board but a broken screen, temporary replacement of the display is the optimal solution.

• 🛠️ Contact the service with a request to temporarily connect the screen to remove data.
• 💾 Buy the cheapest compatible display on the marketplace for self-replacement.
• 🔌 Use it. HDMI-Adapter (if the model supports video output) to display the image on the monitor.

Remember that trying to disassemble the phone yourself without experience can damage the plumes or battery, which will finally destroy the chances of recovery.

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The most reliable way to save data from a broken Xiaomi is to temporarily connect the working display in the service center or on your own.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)