How to recover data on Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 after resetting to factory settings: the full guide 2026

Resetting the Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 to factory settings is a radical way to get your smartphone back to speed or fix software failures. But what if after this procedure you find that important photos, correspondence or documents have disappeared? Recovering data after a hard reset is a difficult task, but it is doable. The main thing is to act quickly and correctly so as not to erase the remaining traces of files.

In this article, we will discuss 5 proven methods of returning lost data: from using built-in functions MIUI You will learn how to restore contacts through Google Account, return photos from the Mi Cloud cloud storage, and even extract files directly from the phone’s internal memory – without superuser rights. We will also focus on the common mistakes that users make when trying to restore, and explain why some methods may not work on the Redmi Note 7 with firmware. MIUI 12+.

Important: The effectiveness of recovery depends on how long it has been since the reset and how much use the phone has been, and the faster you take action, the better the chances of success.

1. Check backups: Mi Cloud and Google Account

The first step is to check if your data is saved in the cloud services. Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 automatically syncs some of the information with the Mi Cloud, if this feature was activated before the reset. Similarly, Google Account works - it can store copies of contacts, calendars and even some settings.

To recover data from Mi Cloud:

• 🔄 Go to Settings. → Mi Account. → Mi Cloud.
• 📁 Select the Backup section and check the list of available backups.
• ⏳ If you have a copy, click “Restore” and select the data you need (contacts, notes, photos).
• ⚠️ Note that the free Mi Cloud account only provides 5GB of storage – if the space ran out, the old backups could be deleted automatically.

To recover through Google Account:

• 📱 Open the Settings. → Accounts. → Google.
• 🔍 Check the Contacts, Calendar and Google Photos sections – if sync has been enabled, the data should be displayed after you log in to your account.
• 🖼️ For photos: Open the Google Photos app and check the Recycle Bin folder (files are stored there for 60 days).

Why might this not work? If you've never set up a backup or turned off sync to save traffic, there's no cloud copy, and then move on to the next way.

2.Recovery via MIUI Backup: Local copies on the phone

Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 supports local backups through the built-in utility MIUI Backup. These files are stored in the phone’s internal memory along the path /MIUI/backup/AllBackup and are not deleted when resetting settings (unless the memory is formatted).

To recover data from the local backup:

1. Connect your phone to your PC through USB-cable (in file transfer mode).
2. Open the Internal Storage → MIUI → Backup → AllBackup folder.
3. Find a file with the.mbk extension (for example, backup_20260515.mbk).
4. Copy it to your computer and use the official Mi PC Suite utility for recovery.

Limitations of the method:

• ❌ Local backups are only created manually – if you haven’t done them, the folder will be empty.
• ❌.mbk files cannot be opened without Mi PC Suite.
• ❌ Recovery is possible only on the same phone (because of the link to the phone). IMEI).

💡

If the AllBackup folder is empty, try looking for backups in the root directory of internal memory – sometimes they are stored there with a name. backup_*.

3. Use of data recovery software (without root)

If you don't have backups, the only way to do that is to scan your phone's internal memory for deleted files, and you can use specialized tools like DiskDigger, EaseUS MobiSaver, or Dr.Fone to look for traces of files that haven't been overwritten by new data.

Step-by-step instructions for DiskDigger (free version):

1. Download and install DiskDigger from Google Play (Android 4.0+ is required).
2. Start the app and choose Basic Scan (for photos, videos, documents) or Full Scan (deep scan, takes longer).
3. Wait for the analysis to be completed (it can take anywhere from 10 minutes to several hours).
4. View the files found and save the files you need. SD-map.

Important nuances:

• 🔍 Basic Scan only finds thumbnails of photos/video, and Full Scan – full-size files, but requires more resources.
• 📱 Do not install the program on the same memory with which you restore data (use it). SD-map).
• ⚠️ Avoid saving recovered files back to your phone – this increases the risk of overwriting them.

Critical information: On the Redmi Note 7 with MIUI 14+ firmware, some programs (such as Dr.Fone) may not see internal memory due to changes in Xiaomi’s security policy, in which case only an ADB connection or PC use will help.

4. PC Recovery: ADB and Specialized Software

If the software on your phone didn’t work, try connecting the Redmi Note 7 to your computer and scanning your memory with desktop utilities, a method that is more complex but often more effective — especially if the phone isn’t rooted.

Method 1: Using Recuva (for Windows)

• 🖥️ Connect your phone to your PC in File Transfer mode (MTP).
• 🔍 Run Recuva and select the file type to search for (e.g., Images»).
• 📂 Specify the path to the phone’s internal memory (usually a Redmi Note 7 drive in This Computer»).
• ⏳ Wait for the scan to end and save the files found on your PC.

Method 2: ADB Pull for Power Users

If the phone is identified in ADB, you can try extracting the data directly:

adb shell


su




dd if=/dev/block/mmcblk0 of=/sdcard/recovery.img bs=4096




exit




adb pull /sdcard/recovery.img

This method requires command line knowledge and can be dangerous if used incorrectly.

Enable USB debugging in Settings → About Phone → MIUI version (click 7 times)

Install Xiaomi USB Drivers on PC

Use the original USB-cable (not cheap analogues)

Disable screen lock (if the phone requests a password when connecting)

-->

5. Recovery of deleted messages and contacts

Messages from SMS and correspondence in messengers (WhatsApp, Telegram) are the most difficult to recover. If there are no backups, the chances are minimal, but you can try the following methods:

For SMS:

• 📱 Use the app. SMS Backup & Restore (if you did backup before resetting).
• 🔍 Check the folder. /data/data/com.android.providers.telephony/databases/ Root Explorer (root required).

For WhatsApp:

• ☁️ If you have backup enabled in Google Drive, reinstall the app and restore data when you first start.
• 📁 Check the folder. /sdcard/WhatsApp/Databases — There may be local copies of chats (files) msgstore.db.crypt12).

For Telegram:

• ☁️ All cloud chats are restored automatically after logging in to your account.
• 🔒 Secret chats and local media files cannot be restored.

💡

Messages from Viber and Facebook Messenger are almost impossible to recover without a backup, and these messengers do not store data locally in a readable format.

6 What NOT to do after reset (critical errors)

Many users accidentally impair the chances of data recovery due to improper actions, and this is what is strictly forbidden to do after a hard reset:

⚠️ Warning: Do not install new apps or games on your phone before trying to recover! every new entry into internal memory reduces the chances of success.

Top.-5 mistake:

• 🚫 Formatting SD-Even if it doesn't read, don't rush to clean it up, it can be recovered.
• 🚫 Update to firmware. New version. MIUI Overwrite system partitions where file traces may have been saved.
• 🚫 Using your phone as a flash drive. Connecting in mode USB Mass Storage could lead to data overwriting.
• 🚫 Fastboot resets. Commands like fastboot erase userdata erase data permanently.
• 🚫 Disable debugging by USB. Without it, many recovery programs will not be able to scan memory.

If you've already made one of these mistakes, your chances of recovery drop dramatically, and you just have to go to a service center, and you don't guarantee 100% success.

7 Prevention: How to avoid future data loss

The best way to combat data loss is to back up regularly, and on the Redmi Note 7, there are a number of ways to do this:

Automatic reservations:

• ☁️ Set up autosynchronization with Mi Cloud (Settings) → Mi Account. → Mi Cloud → Backup).
• 📱 Enable reservations in Google Photos (High quality – free and without volume restrictions).
• 🔄 Use Sync for Reddit, Swift Backup (requires root) to copy apps and their data.

Manual copying:

• 🖥️ Once a month, connect your phone to your PC and copy folders. DCIM, Downloads and WhatsApp on your hard drive.
• 📁 For contacts, export them to.vcf via Contacts → Settings → Exports.

Additional measures:

• 🔐 Set a password for important apps (e.g. Gallery Vault for photos).
• 📵 Turn off automatic formatting SD-Cards as internal memory (this makes it difficult to recover).

💡

Even if you don’t plan to drop your phone, a backup will save your data when stolen, broken, or accidentally deleted.

FAQ: Frequent Data Recovery Questions on Redmi Note 7