Recovery of backup on Xiaomi: all ways and life hacks

Smartphone data loss is one of the most frustrating situations for users. Photos, contacts, messages and app settings can disappear at once due to factory reset, device breakdown or accidental deletion. Fortunately, Xiaomi offers several ways to create and restore backups, but not all users know how to use them correctly.

In this article, we will look at all the current backup recovery methods on Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO devices, from standard MIUI tools to advanced solutions like TWRP. You will learn how to return data from the Mi Cloud, local archive or even from another phone, pay special attention to the typical errors that prevent successful recovery, and give recommendations for choosing the best way for your model.

Important: The recovery procedure may vary depending on the version MIUI (global, Chinese, EU) If your device is released before 2018, some features may be missing or work differently. MIUI 12-14 and HyperOS.

1.Recovery Preparation: What to Do Before Starting

Before you start restoring backup, make sure that the key conditions are met, which will help you avoid errors like “failed to restore backup” or loss of data.

Basic requirements:

• 🔋 The battery charge is at least 50%. Recovery can take up to 30-60 minutes, and discharging during the process will lead to failure.
• 📶 Stable Internet connection (for cloud backups) Use Wi-Fi, not mobile Internet — data can exceed 1-2 GB.
• 📱 Version compatibility MIUI. Backup, built on MIUI 13, may not recover on MIUI 12 and vice versa).
• 🔑 For cloud copies, you will need a username and password from the Mi Account associated with the device.

If you are restoring a backup to a new phone, first perform the initial system setup (language selection, network connection). Xiaomi blocks access to the recovery features until this stage is complete.

⚠️ Warning: Do not attempt to restore the backup to a device with an unlocked bootloader or custom firmware.This can result in a "bootloop" or loss of a bootloop. IMEI. In such cases, use only TWRP or Fastboot.

Charge your phone to 50%+

Connect to Wi-Fi (for cloud-based copies)

Ensure compatibility of MIUI versions

Prepare a login / password from Mi Account

Download the latest drivers (for PC methods)-->

2. Recovery through Mi Cloud: step-by-step instructions

Mi Cloud is Xiaomi’s official cloud storage that automatically saves contacts, notes, photos and system settings. To recover data from the cloud, follow this instruction:

Step 1. Open Settings → Mi Account and log in under the same account you created the backup.

Step 2. Go to Settings → About Phone → Backup and Reset → Restore from Mi Cloud.

Step 3: Select the last backup from the list. Pay attention to the date of creation and the amount of data.

Step 4: Tick the data types to recover (e.g., Contacts, Messages, Wi-Fi settings) and click Restore.

It can take anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour, depending on the amount of data and the speed of the Internet, and when it's done, the phone will reboot.

Frequent errors in recovery via Mi Cloud:

• 🚫 "No ‘backups’ available – check that you are logged in to the correct Mi Account or that the backup was created.
• 🚫 "Unable to recover – try reconnecting to Wi-Fi or using mobile internet.
• 🚫 "Data corrupted, which means the backup was interrupted when it was created.

Once a week.

Once a month

Only before the dump.

Never do.

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3.Local Recovery via MIUI Backup

If you have backed up your phone or external drive (for example, SD-map USB-OTG), You can restore it without the Internet, and this is a method that works for devices with MIUI 10 and newer.

Instructions:

1. Connect the backup drive to your phone (if the copy is not stored in internal memory).
2. Go to Settings → About Phone → Backup and Reset → Local Backup.
3. Click Restore and select the backup file (usually with the.mbk extension).
4. Confirm the recovery and wait until it's done.

Where to look for a backup file? By default, local copies are saved along the way:

/MIUI/backup/AllBackup/

If you have manually transferred the file, make sure it is in the drive’s root folder (not inside the nested directories).

⚠️ Note: When you restore your local backup, all current data on your phone will be erased (except for files in internal memory that are not included in the archive.

The benefits of local recovery:

• ✅ Doesn't require the Internet.
• ✅ Faster than the cloud method (5-20 minutes).
• ✅ You can select specific data for recovery (e.g., only "Contacts" or "Applications").

Recovery through TWRP: for advanced users

TWRP (Team Win Recovery Project) is a custom recovery that allows you to create and restore complete system images, including user data.

• 🔧 You've got the loader unlocked.
• 🔧 You use custom firmware (like LineageOS or Pixel Experience).
• 🔧 Recover data after a failed update or bootloop".

Important: Use TWRP formalized MIUI may result in loss DRM-keys (encryption) that will disrupt the camera and other functions.Be sure that your model is supported and you understand the risks before you start.

Step-by-step:

1. Download TWRP for your model from the official website twrp.me.
2. Install TWRP via Fastboot: fastboot flash recovery twrp.img fastboot boot twrp.img
3. In TWRP, go to Backup → Restore and select the backup folder (usually /TWRP/BACKUPS/).
4. Mark the partitions for recovery (e.g. Data, System) and confirm the action.

What to do if TWRP asks for a password?

If the backup was created with encryption, enter the lock password of the screen that was used when you created the copy. If you forgot it, you can not recover the data.

💡

Before you restore through TWRP, make a fresh backup of the current state of the system, which will help you roll back if something goes wrong.

5.Restore to Xiaomi's new phone

If you bought a new Xiaomi smartphone and want to migrate data from your old one, use the Device Cloning feature (available on MIUI 12+ and HyperOS), which combines cloud and on-premise recovery.

How to transfer data:

1. On an old phone, go to Settings → About Phone → Backup and Reset → Cloning the Device.
2. Select “I’m an old phone” and wait for the generation to arrive. QR-code.
3. On the new phone, when you first turn on, select Data Transfer and scan QR-code.
4. Confirm the data transfer via Wi-Fi Direct (make sure both phones have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth enabled).

The process can take up to 30 minutes, and when completed, the new phone will show:

• 📱 Contacts, messages, call log.
• 📷 Photos and videos (if they were in the gallery).
• 🔧 Settings Wi-Fi, wallpaper and some applications.

⚠️ Note: Cloning is not tolerated: 🚫 Account passwords (Google, social networks). 🚫 Data from some applications (e.g. banking or two-factor authentication). 🚫 Files stored on SD-map (to be carried manually) After transfer, check the key functions (camera, fingerprint, NFC).

6. Common mistakes and their solutions

Even if you follow instructions correctly, users often encounter problems, and let's look at the most common errors and how to fix them.

Error 1: "Failure to restore backup. Try again later."

Causes and solutions:

• 🔹 Unstable Internet connection → Reconnect to Wi-Fi or use mobile internet.
• 🔹 Mi Cloud servers are overloaded → Try to restore the backup in 1-2 hours.
• 🔹 Version incompatibility MIUI → Update the firmware to the latest version.

Error 2: "The backup file is corrupted."

This means that the backup was interrupted when the file was created or that the file was physically damaged.

• 🔹 Try to restore an earlier copy.
• 🔹 If the backup is stored on SD-Check it for errors via PC (use chkdsk in Windows).
• 🔹 Download backup again from Mi Cloud (if it is a cloud copy).

Error 3: “There is not enough room for recovery.”

Local backup requires a space that is 1.5 to 2 times larger than the archive.

• 🔹 Free up space by removing unnecessary files or apps.
• 🔹 Move the backup to SD-card or PC, and then recover from there.
• 🔹 Break the backup into pieces (if it supports your version) MIUI).

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If recovery through standard methods doesn’t work, try resetting your phone to factory settings (Settings → Reset) and repeating the procedure on a clean system.

7. Alternative methods: ADB and third-party utilities

If standard methods don’t work, you can try to recover data through ADB (Android Debug Bridge) or specialized programs, which are suitable for advanced users.

Method 1: Recovery through ADB

This will require:

• 🖥️ Computer with installed ADB and Xiaomi drivers.

Recovery teams:

adb backup -f C:\backup\xiaomi_backup.ab -apk -obb -shared -all


adb restore C:\backup\xiaomi_backup.ab

Note: This method does not recover all types of data (e.g. SMS may not be portable).

Method 2: Data recovery programs

Third-party utilities like Dr.Fone, Tenorshare UltData or EaseUS MobiSaver allow you to extract data even from damaged backups.

• ⚠️ They are paid (free versions have restrictions).
• ⚠️ No 100% recovery guarantee (especially for encrypted data).
• ⚠️ You may require root rights, which will void the guarantee.

When should alternative methods be used?

• 🔹 If the standard recovery is completed with an error.
• 🔹 If you only need to extract a piece of data (for example, photos from a damaged backup).
• 🔹 If the phone is not turned on, but you have access to internal memory via Fastboot.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions