Recovery of deleted photos on Xiaomi Redmi Note 7: from the cart to deep scanning

Deleting photos from Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 is a familiar situation for many. One careless click and valuable pictures disappear from the gallery. But don't panic: 80 percent of the time, files can be returned even if you cleared the cart or used the "Delete Forever" feature. In this article, we will discuss all working methods of recovery, from standard MIUI tools to professional utilities and console commands.

The main feature of Redmi Note 7 is the use of the F2FS file system (on new firmware) or ext4 (on older versions of MIUI), which affects how deleted data is stored: when formatting or cleaning the gallery quickly, files are not physically erased, but only marked as “free space”, which allows you to restore them with special tools. However, time plays against you: the more active you use your smartphone after deleting, the greater the risk of overwriting photos with new data.

We tested all the methods on the Redmi Note 7 with MIUI 12.5-14 firmware (Android 9-11). If your phone is upgraded to a more recent version, some menu items may differ, but the recovery logic remains the same. Let's start with step-by-step instructions - from simple to complex.

1.A check of the basket at MIUI Gallery

The first thing you need to do is to look into the hidden cart of the standard Xiaomi gallery, which many users don't know is that deleted photos are stored there for 30 days (by default) before they are permanently erased, and this method works even if you click "Delete" in the gallery itself or through the file manager.

How to open the basket:

1. Launch the Gallery app (flower icon).
2. Slip on three horizontal lines (menu) in the lower right corner.
3. Select the Recycle Bin (or Trash if the interface is in English).
4. Find the right photos, hold your finger on them to highlight, then click Restore.

If the basket is empty or you've manually cleaned it, move on to the next method. Note: the Recycle Bin in MIUI doesn't sync with the cloud -- it only stores locally deleted files.

⚠️ Note: If you have used the "Clear the Recycle Bin" function or deleted photos through Files → Cleaning up, this method won't work, so the files are marked as deleted at the file system level, and they need to be restored with specialized tools.

2.Recovery through MI Cloud backups

If your Redmi Note 7 has been enabled to sync with MI Cloud, the chances of returning a photo are much higher. Xiaomi automatically backs up the gallery, but only if three conditions are met:

• 🔹 You have a Mi Account (linked to your phone).
• 🔹 Settings included in the settings option → Xiaomi account → MI Cloud → gallery → Synchronization.
• 🔹 There was enough room on the phone to back up (photos are only copied to the cloud when connected to Wi-Fi).

How to recover photos from MI Cloud:

1. Open Settings → Xiaomi Akcount → MI Cloud.
2. Check if the gallery sync is on. If so, tap the gallery.
3. Select Restore and specify the backup date (before the photo is deleted).
4. Confirm the recovery. Photos will appear in the MIUI/Gallery/cloud folder.

Nuance for Redmi Note 7: Some MIUI 12 firmware only backups the gallery by hand. To check this, go to Settings → Memory → Backup and see the list of available backups.

⚠️ Note: If you delete the photo before syncing with MI Cloud, this method won't help. The cloud only stores the data that was on the phone when you last booked.

💡

Before recovering from MI Cloud, check the free space on your phone – if it is less than 10% of the backup volume, the process may be interrupted.

3.Using file managers with recovery function

If the recycle bin is empty and there are no backups, the next step is to scan the phone's internal memory for "remnants" of deleted files, such as file managers with a built-in scanner, for example:

• 📁 DiskDigger (there is a free version with restrictions).
• 📁 Dumpster (works as an extended basket).
• 📁 GT Recovery (specializes in media files).

DiskDigger (most effective for Redmi Note 7):

1. Install the app from Google Play.
2. Start and select Start basic scan (for photo enough).
3. Wait until the process is completed (it can take 10–30 minutes).
4. View the files found, mark the necessary ones and click Restore.
5. Save your photo to a memory card or cloud (not internal memory!).

On the Redmi Note 7 with MIUI 14+ firmware, DiskDigger may not see system folders due to Android 11+ limitations.

Turn off Wi-Fi and mobile data | Charge your phone at least 50% |Free 1–2 GB of storage |Do not install new apps-->

4. Connect to PC and use of professional utilities

If mobile apps don't work, you'll need to connect the Redmi Note 7 to your computer.

• 🖥️ PC Windows/macOS.
• 🔌 Cable USB (preferably original).
• 🛠️ Recovery software (recommended by Recuva, PhotoRec or EaseUS Data Recovery).

Step-by-step instructions for Recuva:

1. Install Recuva on your PC.
2. Connect your phone in File Transfer (MTP) mode (select this option in the notification curtain).
3. Start Recuva, select Photos in the file type.
4. Specify your Redmi Note 7 drive (usually a removable drive with a letter like F:).
5. Click Analysis → wait for completion → tag the files found → Restore.

For PhotoRec (more powerful tool, but no graphical interface):

photorec /d D:\recovered /cmd D:\phone_drive fileopt,jpg,jpeg,png

Where:

• D:\recovered is a folder to save recovered files.
• D:\phone_drive — disk letter of your Redmi Note 7.

⚠️ Warning: When recovering from a PC, never save files to the same drive that you're scanning from! This may result in overwriting of data that hasn't been recovered yet. Use another physical drive (like a PC hard drive).

5. Recovery through ADB (for advanced users)

If previous methods have failed, the last chance is to use Android Debug Bridge (ADB), which requires developer mode to be enabled and is suitable for users willing to work with the command line.

Step 1: Preparation

• 🔧 Turn on the settings. → The phone. → Version. MIUI (Tap 7 times to activate the developer mode).
• 🔧 Back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers and enable debugging by USB.
• 🔧 Install. ADB Tools on PC.

Step 2: Creating a memory image

1. Connect your phone to your PC and open the command line in the adb.exe folder.
2. Follow the commands: adb devices adb shell su dd if=/dev/block/mmcblk0 of=/sdcard/recovery.img bs=4096 This will create an image of internal memory on the memory card (replace mmcblk0 to your partition if you use custom recovery).
3. Copy recovery.img on your PC and scan it with PhotoRec or Autopsy.

This is the most complex method, but it can return photos even after resetting if the data has not been overwritten, but without root rights, you will not be able to access the memory partitions fully.

💡

ADB-This method is only suitable for advanced users, and a mistake in the commands can lead to data loss or system failure.

6. Contact the Xiaomi Service Center

If all independent attempts to restore the photo failed, the last option is to contact the official service center Xiaomi.

• 🔬 Chip-Off analysis (direct reading of data from memory chip).
• 🔬 JTAG-Connection (for phones with damaged firmware).
• 🔬 Specialized software (e.g, UFS Explorer or R-Studio).

What you need to know before visiting the service:

• 📌 The cost of restoration starts from 3 000-5 000 rubles (depending on the complexity of the recovery).
• 📌 The warranty on the phone will burn if you need to open the case.
• 📌 In 30% of cases, data cannot be restored (if memory is physically damaged).

The addresses of official Xiaomi services in Russia can be found on the website mi.com/ru/service. Check before visiting whether they are engaged in data recovery – not all centers provide this service.

Frequent Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Many Redmi Note 7 users make critical mistakes that reduce the chances of recovery to zero, and the most common ones are:

❌ Error 1: Continuing to use your phone after deleting it

Every new photo, app installed, or cache of sites overwrites the memory sectors where deleted files were stored, solution: immediately after deleting, put your phone in flight mode and do not use it until you recover.

❌ Error 2: Restore Recovered Files to Your Phone

This fragments the data and can damage other deleted files, so you can always save the recovered photos to your PC or cloud.

❌ Mistake 3: Using Unreliable Software

Some utilities (like WonderShare Dr.Fone) promise recovery, but in reality they just scan the cache of the galleries. Solution: Choose programs with good reviews on 4PDA or XDA Developers.

❌ Error 4: Formatting a memory card

If the photos were stored on a microSD, formatting the card almost always makes recovery impossible. Solution: scan the card on a PC before formatting.

💡

The most common reason for a failed recovery is to try to return files months after deleting, with a maximum time limit of 2-3 weeks for a successful recovery.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions