The internal memory of the Xiaomi smartphone is full of games, and there is no room for new applications? Do not rush to remove your favorite projects – they can be transferred to a microSD card or USB-But in modern versions, it's a storage device. MIUI (13/14) Android (12+) This process has become more complicated due to security constraints. 2026 year, including bypassing system locks, choosing the right flash drive and solving typical errors.
It’s important to understand that not all games support external portability. Developers of some projects (such as Genshin Impact or Call of Duty Mobile) explicitly prohibit this in the application manifest. However, for most casual games and mid-budget projects, portability is possible – you just need to know the nuances. We tested all methods on the Redmi Note 12 Pro+, POCO X5 Pro and Xiaomi 13T models with the latest updates.
Why Xiaomi is blocking the transfer of games to the flash drive?
With Android 6.0, Google introduced the concept of Adoptable Storage, which is the ability to format microSD as part of internal memory, but with MIUI, this feature works with caveats:
- 🔒 Data security: Xiaomi follows Google’s policy, where external media are considered less reliable for storing executable application files.
- 🎮 Game performance: MicroSD (even class) A2) slower-than-integrated memory UFS 2.2/3.1, What can cause lags in heavy games.
- 📱 Optimization MIUI: In some models (e.g. Redmi 10 or POCO M4 Pro) the transfer function is hidden in the developer.
Android 11 also introduced the concept of scoped storage, which means that even if you move the game to a flash drive, it may not see its files (such as saves or cache), and we will discuss the solutions to these problems in the relevant sections.
Method 1: Standard transfer through MIUI settings (for supported games)
This method only works for games that explicitly allow external media transfer, and you can check this in the app menu:
- Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
- Select the game from the list.
- Click Warehouse and find Change (or Move to) SD-map).
If the button is not available, the game does not support portability, in which case you can move to Method 2 or Method 3.
The flash drive is formatted as a portable storage (not as internal memory) |
Card size is at least 32 GB (speed class A1/A2)|
The game does not use anticheat (for example, BattlEye or Easy Anti-Cheat)|
There is enough free space on the flash drive (at least 20% more weight of the game)-->
| Xiaomi model | Adoptable Storage Support | Max, the volume of microSD | Recommended grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Redmi Note 12/13 | ❌ No (only portable) | 1 TB | A2/UHS-I |
| POCO F5/X5 | ⚠️ Partially (through) ADB) | 512GB | A2/UHS-I |
| Xiaomi 13/14 | ❌ No. | 1 TB | A2/UHS-II |
| Redmi 10A/9A | ✅ Yes (through settings) | 512GB | A1 |
⚠️ Note: If you format a microSD as an Adoptable Storage, it can’t be retrieved without data loss, which can also slow down the system, as Xiaomi will use a flash drive to cache.
Method 2: Transfer over ADB (for power users)
If the standard method doesn’t work, you can force the game to be moved using Android Debug Bridge (ADB), which requires connecting the smartphone to a PC and basic command line knowledge.
Steps:
- Turn on Developer Mode on Xiaomi: go to Settings → About Phone and 7 times click on the MIUI version.
- Activate Debugging by USB in the developer menu.
- Connect your phone to your PC, install it. ADB-Drivers and open the command line in the folder with adb.exe.
- Enter the command to check the connection: Adb devices must appear serial number of your device.
- Run the port command (replace com.example.game with the game package): adb shell pm set-install-location 2 adb shell pm move-package com.example.game
If the team returns Success, the game is postponed. To get it back, use:
adb shell pm move-package com.example.game 0How do I find out the game’s packet name?
⚠️ Note: Some games (such as Free Fire or Mobile Legends) after porting through the game ADB They can give you an error of 963 or 941, which means that the application can't access its files on the flash drive.
Method 3: Manual transfer of game files (for any applications)
This is a method that works for games that are not portable in the standard way, by manually copying the game files to a flash drive and tricking the system into creating symbolic links, which requires root rights or use of the App2SD application.
Instructions:
- Install App2SD from Google Play.
- Open the app, select the game and click Create a link.
- Select the flash drive as the target storage.
- Confirm the creation of simlinks for /data/data/packet name and /Android/obb/packet name.
- Reboot the phone.
If you have root, you can do it manually through Terminal Emulator:
su
mv /data/data/com.example.game /storage/1234-5678/Android/data/
ln -s /storage/1234-5678/Android/data/com.example.game /data/data/com.example.game💡
Before transferring the Android/obb folder to the flash drive manually, many games (such as Asphalt 9) store basic data in the 1–2 GB, and their transfer will free up additional space.
Which flash drive to choose for games on Xiaomi?
Not every microSD is suitable for storing games.
- 📦 Volume: At least 64 GB (for 2-3 games), optimally 128-256 GB. Flash drives 4-16 GB are not suitable due to fragmentation.
- ⚡ Class speed: A1 — Minimum acceptable (for casual games). A2 — Recommended (read/write speed) 4000/2000 IOPS). UHS-I/UHS-II — For heavy games (such as Genshin Impact).
- 🏷️ Brand: Preference give Samsung EVO Plus, SanDisk Extreme or Kingston Canvas Go! Plus.Cheap no-name flash drives often fake the speed class.
You can check the real speed of the microSD using the A1 SD Bench app (available on Google Play). For games, not only is linear speed (MB/s) important, but also the number of I/O operations (IOPS). For example, a flash drive with 100 MB/s but 1500 IOPS will perform worse than a card with 80 MB/s but 4000 IOPS.
| Type of game | Minimum flash drive class | Recommended volume | Example of games |
|---|---|---|---|
| Casual (puzzles, arcades) | A1 | 32-64 GB | Candy Crush, Angry Birds |
| Medium (shooters, races) | A2 | 64–128 GB | Call of Duty Mobile, Asphalt 9 |
| Heavy (MMORPG, Open World) | UHS-I (A2) | 128-256 GB | Genshin Impact, PUBG Mobile |
Typical errors and their solutions
When transferring games to the flash drive, Xiaomi users often face the following problems:
- 🚫 Error "Application not installed": Reason: The flash drive formatted as FAT32, which does not support files larger than 4 GB. Solution: Reformat the card to exFAT or NTFS (PC).
- 🔄 Game crashes at launch: Reason: Insufficient microSD read speed Solution: Replace the flash drive with a class model A2 higher.
- 📁 Disappeared preservation: Cause: When transferred through ADB Or symlink, the way to save files has changed. Solution: Manually copy the folder. /Android/data/packet/files flash-drive.
- 🔌 Flash drive undetectable: Reason: The slot has accumulated dust or oxidized contacts.Solution: Clean the slot with alcohol and check the card on another device.
💡
If the game is slow after the transfer, try turning off background optimization in MIUI: Settings → Applications → Application Management → [Game] → Battery → No restrictions.
What to do if the game is not postponed?
If none of these methods worked, consider alternative solutions:
- 🔄 Cache Clearing: Delete unnecessary game cache files via Settings → Warehouse → Clear the cache. That could free up 1 to 5 GB.
- ☁️ Cloud saves: Use Google Play Games or services like Dropbox to transfer progress, and remove the game and reinstall it if necessary.
- 📱 Optimization MIUI: Turn off the Smart Cleaning function in Settings → Battery – It can delete game data.
- 🛠️ Root + Link2SD: Annex Link2SD It allows you to transfer games to the flash drive, but requires root rights.
If you’re a heavy-duty player (like Diablo Immortal or Honor of Kings), consider buying a smartphone with a large storage capacity (256–512 GB) or a model with UFS 3.1 support (like Xiaomi 14 Ultra or Black Shark 5 Pro).