Smart albums in the Xiaomi Redmi 9 gallery are automatically generated collections of photos and videos that the system grouped by dates, places, events or even faces. On the one hand, they make it easier to find the right shots, but on the other hand, they often clutter the interface, duplicate files and take up space in memory. Especially annoying when albums appear by themselves after updating MIUI or synchronizing with the cloud.
In this article, we’ll look at all the possible ways to delete smart albums on Redmi 9, from standard gallery settings to radical methods using ADB and third-party file managers. You’ll learn why albums return after deletion, how to disable their automatic creation, and what to do if the Remove button is inactive.
Why Smart Albums Are Reappearing and Can They Be Shut Down Forever?
The main problem with Xiaomi Redmi 9 smart albums is their stubbornness, and even after being removed through a standard gallery, they can recover from:
- 🔄 Sync with Mi Cloud – the cloud automatically restores the structure of the albums on the next connection.
You can't shut down the generation of smart albums forever without root rights, which is part of MIUI logic, but you can minimize the number of them.
- Use a third-party gallery (such as Google Photos or Simple Gallery).
If you need to completely remove system albums (such as Screenshots, Downloads, or WhatsApp), you will have to resort to radical measures, as discussed in the last section of the article.
Method 1: Delete a smart album through a standard MIUI gallery
The simplest method that works for custom albums (manually created or automatically tagged) is not the right one for system folders (e.g. Camera or Screenshots).
Instructions:
- Open the Gallery app on Redmi 9.
- Go to the Albums section (the icon in the form of a stack of photos at the bottom of the screen).
- Find an unnecessary smart album and click on three dots (⋮) top-right corner of his preview.
- From the menu, select Delete album (or Delete from device if the album is synced to the cloud).
- Confirm the action by pressing OK.
Disable Wi-Fi (to avoid synchronization with the cloud)
Check if the album contains important files.
Backup photo (if necessary)
Close all background applications-->
⚠️ Note: If the album contains files, they will be deleted permanently. To save the photos, first transfer them to another album or PC.
| Type of album | Can I remove it? | Will it recover after the reboot? |
|---|---|---|
| User-generated (manually created) | ✅ Yes. | ❌ No. |
| Automatic (by date/place) | ✅ Yes. | ⚠️ Maybe. |
| System (Camera, Screenshots) | ❌ No. | ✅ Yes. |
| Cloud (from Mi Cloud) | ✅ Yes (but it will also get out of the cloud) | ✅ Yes (in synchronization) |
Method 2: Hiding Albums Through Gallery Settings
If you can't delete an album (like a system album), you can hide it from the main view, and it won't free up memory, but it will clean up the interface.
How to hide it:
- Open the gallery. → Albums.
- Press on. ⋮ → Settings (or Album Management in New Versions) MIUI).
- Choose Hide the albums.
- Check out unnecessary albums and click Ready.
To bring back the hidden albums:
- Go to the Gallery Settings → Hidden Albums.
- Uncheck the boxes.
💡
Hidden albums still take up space on the device. To free up memory, use Storage Analysis in your phone settings (Settings → Memory).
⚠️ Note: In some versions MIUI (for example, MIUI 12.5 and later) there may be no hiding option for albums, in which case try updating the gallery via Google Play or use method 3.
Method 3: Delete via File Manager (for power users)
This method is suitable for removing system albums that are not deleted through the gallery (for example, Screenshots or Downloads).
Instructions:
- Install a file manager (e.g., MiXplorer).
- Open the manager and give access to the storage.
- Go on the path: /storage/emulated/0/ Here are folders corresponding to the albums: DCIM/Camera – photos and videos from the camera; Pictures/Screenshots – screenshots; Download – uploaded files; Pictures/WeChat or WhatsApp Media – media from instant messengers.
Remove the unnecessary folder (or its contents).
⚠️ Attention: Deletion of folders DCIM or Pictures can cause the camera or gallery to crash. Do not delete them completely - only the content or specific subfolders (e.g. Screenshots).
What to do if the folder is not deleted?
Method 4: Reset gallery settings to factory
If smart albums continue to appear even after manual removal, resetting the Gallery app will help, which will return all settings to factory settings, but will not affect the photos themselves.
How to reset:
- Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
- Find the gallery and open its settings.
- Click Warehouse → Clear the data and Clear the cache.
- Confirm the action.
Method 5: Radical solution – disabling the MIUI gallery via ADB (no root)
This is the only way to permanently get rid of system smart albums without getting root rights.The method requires connecting the phone to a PC and using ADB (Android Debug Bridge).
⚠️ Attention: Wrong commands ADB They may disrupt your phone. Follow the instructions carefully!
Steps:
- Turn on USB Debugging on Redmi 9: Go to Settings → About Phone. Tap 7 times on MIUI to activate Developer Mode. Go back to Settings → Additional → Developer. Enable USB Debugging.
- Connect your phone to your PC and install Platform Tools (if not installed).
- Open the command prompt (cmd) in the adb.exe folder and type: adb devices Make sure your Redmi 9 appears in the list.
- Run the command to disable automatic grouping: adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.miui.gallery This will disable the standard MIUI gallery.
- Install an alternative gallery (e.g. Google Photos or Simple Gallery).
To return a standard gallery, do:
adb shell pm enable com.miui.gallery💡
Disabling the MIUI gallery through ADB does not delete files, it only blocks it from working, and all photos will remain in place and will be available in another gallery.
Frequent Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
When deleting smart albums, Redmi 9 users often face typical problems.
| Mistake. | Reason. | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| The "Delete Album" button is inactive | Album system or synced to the cloud | Use method 3 (file manager) or turn off sync |
| Albums are coming back after reboot | Gallery background process works | Reset the gallery settings (method 4) or disable it via ADB (method 5) |
| Cannot delete the folder through the file manager | No rights to record or folder used by the system | Restart your phone or use your PC to remove |
| After the albums are deleted, all photos will disappear. | The entire folder, not its contents, has been deleted | Restore files from the Recycle Bin or Backup |
Another common problem is duplication of photos on different albums, because MIUI labels the same files in different categories, to avoid taking over.
- 📁 Use one gallery (do not mix) MIUI Gallery and Google Photos).
- 🔍 Check the folder regularly DCIM/.thumbnails — There are miniatures that also take up space.
- 🗑️ Clean the gallery basket (it keeps files for up to 30 days).