How to transfer applications to SD-Xiaomi map: a complete guide with circumvention of restrictions MIUI

Owners of smartphones Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO Often face a lack of internal memory, especially if the device is equipped with 32 or 64 GB of storage. One of the obvious ways out is to migrate applications to the storage. SD-map, but in the latest versions MIUI (13/14) Android (12/13) This feature is either hidden or limited. In this article, we will discuss all the current ways, including official settings, bypassing system locks and alternative solutions for models based on Qualcomm and Mediatek.

It’s important to understand that modern versions of Android (starting with 6.0) limit the ability to fully port applications to external drives for security and performance reasons. However, there are several workarounds for Xiaomi, from formatting the card as internal storage to using it. ADB-We tested all methods on Redmi Note 11 devices, POCO X4 Pro and Xiaomi 12T, to provide current instructions.

Why Xiaomi is blocking the transfer of applications to the SD-map?

Since 2019, Xiaomi has been gradually removing the app port option from the settings menu, due to several factors:

• 🔒 Security: Android counts SD-cards less secure than internal memory (risk of data loss when retrieved).
• ⚡ Performance: Class maps A1/A2 slower-than-integrated memory UFS 2.2/3.1, What's stopping apps.
• 📱 Politics MIUI: The company encourages the purchase of devices with a large amount of memory (128/256 GB).
• 🛠️ Technical limitations: Not all applications support external drives (e.g. games with external drives) OBB-file).

However, you can bypass these restrictions - below we will consider all working methods, starting with the simplest.

Method 1: Formatting SD-maps as internal storage

This is the official method from Google that allows you to use the SD-Note: once formatted, the card cannot be retrieved without losing data, and it will only work on that device.

⚠️ Attention: Use class cards A2 or UHS-I (For example, SanDisk Extreme or Samsung EVO Cheap class cards A1 Class 10 will be a major brake on the system.

Instructions:

1. Put it in. SD-card to slot (for hybrid slots you will need to sacrifice a second one) SIM-card).
2. Go to Settings. → Memory. → [Name of name SD-map] → Threefold (⋮) → Storage settings.
3. Select the internal memory and confirm the formatting.
4. After the device is rebooted, the card will be displayed as part of the internal storage.

Now you can transfer applications through Settings → Annexes → [Choice of application] → Warehouse → Change. → SD-However, not all programs support this mode - some (for example, WhatsApp or Google Play Services) will remain in internal memory.

Make a backup copy of data from the card|Check the speed class (minimum) A1)|Ensure compatibility with the device|Charge your phone at least 50 times%-->

Method 2: Transfer over ADB (for power users)

If the port option is hidden in MIUI, it can be unlocked via ADB (Android Debug Bridge), a method that works on most Xiaomi devices with Android 8.0+, but requires a PC connection.

Steps:

1. Activate Developer Mode: Go to Settings → About Phone → MIUI version and tap 7 times.
2. Enable USB debugging in Settings → Additional → For developers.
3. Connect your phone to your PC, install ADB Tools, and execute the command:

adb shell pm set-install-location 2

This team forces the system to propose SD-map as default setting:

• Reset the device.
• When installing new applications, choose SD-map.
• You can transfer the already installed programs through Settings → Applications (the option will appear after the command).

⚠️ Note: Some applications (e.g. system or high-performance) won’t migrate even after ADB-Also after resetting or updating. MIUI The team will have to re-run.

Method 3: Using applications for forced transfer

If the previous methods didn't work, you can use third-party utilities.

• 📱 AppMgr III (App 2 SD) — Shows you which apps can be moved, even if the option is hidden in the MIUI.
• 🔧 Link2SD — Creates symbolic links for data transfer (requires root rights).
• 📂 Files by Google – helps clear cache and transfer media files (not apps!).

Example of AppMgr III:

1. Install the app from Google Play.
2. Open the Portable tab - all compatible programs will be displayed here.
3. Tap on the app and select Move to SD-map.

Important: Apps with a widget or background services (like Nova Launcher or Greenify) may not work properly after porting. Test each app separately!

Method 4: Transfer of cache and application data

If the application itself cannot be moved, you can free up space by moving its cache and data (for example, downloaded files from Telegram or Spotify).

How to do this:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → [Select Application] → Storage.
2. Click Clear cache (this is secure, data will not be deleted).
3. For some applications (such as Google Chrome) there will be an option to Move to SD-file-card.

To automatically transfer media files (photos, videos) use the built-in function Storage optimization in Settings → Xiaomi allows you to configure the saving of new files immediately on the SD-map.

💡

If you often shoot videos in 4K, Reconfigure the camera to save files to SD-Map: Camera settings → Preservation site → Memory. SD-map.

Method 5: Root access and full memory control

For advanced users, the most radical method is to obtain root rights and use tools like FolderMount or GL to SD.

• 📁 Move over OBB-Game files (such as Genshin Impact or Call of Duty Mobile).
• 🔄 Create symbolic links to cheat the system.
• 🗑️ Clean up system debris that is not available without root.

Instructions for FolderMount:

1. Get root rights (for example, through Magisk).
2. Install FolderMount from XDA Developers.
3. Select the application folder (for example, /Android/obb/com.game) and indicate a new place to SD-map.
4. Create a pair (source → destination) and restart the device.

⚠️ Note: Root access will void Xiaomi’s warranty and may result in bootloop if you do not do the right thing.

💡

Root access is as free as possible, but it's only suitable for advanced users, and there are only 1-4 options for most tasks.

Frequent problems and their solutions

When transferring applications to SD-The following errors may occur in Xiaomi:

If the app stopped updating through Google Play after the transfer, return it to internal memory, update, and then transfer it to SD again.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions