Recovery of deleted photos on Xiaomi Redmi Note: all working methods

Delete important photos from Xiaomi Redmi Note and do not know how to return them? Don't panic - even after cleaning the basket or resetting the settings, there are chances of recovery. 7 Proven methods, including free tools, cloud backups and low-level memory scanning. 10/11/12, where MIUI Restricts access to system folders.

The rule is, the faster you start, the more likely you are to succeed. When you delete files, they don't physically erase them, they're just labeled as "free space" and can be overwritten with new data. So don't install new apps, take photos, or update the system before you try to restore them. If the photos were deleted a long time ago (more than a month ago), the odds drop dramatically, but it still makes sense to try the methods in the deep scan section.

1. Checking MIUI cart and Google Photos

The first thing you need to do is check the built-in MIUI Recycle Bin and Google Photos cloud service, and many Redmi Note users don't even know that deleted files are stored there for up to 30 days.

For MIUI basket:

• 📁 Open the Files app (yellow folder icon).
• 🗑️ Go to the basket section in the lower menu.
• 🔍 Find the right photos, highlight them and click Restore.
• ⚠️ If the basket is empty, check the settings: Files → Settings → Basket → Enable the basket (on some firmware it is disabled by default).

For Google Photos:

• 🌐 Open the app or web version of photos.google.com.
• 🗑️ In the side menu, select the basket.
• ⏳ The photos are stored there for 60 days (as opposed to 30 days in the same period). MIUI).
• 🔄 If no photos, check the Archive folder – sometimes files are moved there instead of being deleted.

⚠️ Note: If you used the Storage Optimization feature in Google Photos, the original photos could have been removed from the device and replaced with lower quality versions.

2.Recovery through MIUI backups

Xiaomi smartphones automatically back up user data if Backup is enabled in the settings, and these copies can contain deleted photos even if they are not in the shopping cart.

How to check:

1. Open Settings → About Phone → Backup and Reset → Local Backups.
2. If there are fresh copies (date after the photo is deleted), select it and click Restore.
3. 🔍 Note: All contents of the copy, including applications and settings, will be restored. To extract only photos, you will need a PC (see section 4).

If you don’t have local copies, check out Mi Cloud’s cloud storage:

• 🌥️ Go to i.mi.com and log in.
• 📂 In the Backup section, find your Redmi Note.
• 🔍 Pay attention to the date of creation of the copy – if it is older than the date of deletion of the photo, it is pointless to restore the copy.

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If you regularly connect Redmi Note to your PC, check the Internal Storage\MIUI\Backup\AllBackup folder on your computer — sometimes copies are saved there automatically.

3. Use of specialized applications (without ROOT)

If the photos aren't found in the cart or backups, it's time to move to specialized utilities. Xiaomi Redmi Note will be suitable for applications that scan the memory of the device at the file system level. Importantly, do not install programs on the smartphone itself, this can overwrite deleted data. Use a PC or cloud services.

The best free tools:

Step-by-step instructions for DiskDigger (the easiest option):

1. Download DiskDigger to another phone (not the one where the photos were deleted!).
2. Connect the Redmi Note as USB-drive (in the developer settings, turn on debugging by USB).
3. In DiskDigger, select Basic Scan (without ROOT) and specify /storage/emulated/0/DCIM folder.
4. 🔍 After scanning, mark the desired photos and save them on PC.

⚠️ Note: If Redmi Note uses a file system F2FS (Check in the settings → The phone. → Version. MIUI), Some programs (like Recuva) may not see deleted files, in which case try PhotoRec or connect your phone in Fastboot mode.

4. Deep scanning via PC (for power users)

If standard methods don't work, you'll have to connect the Redmi Note to your computer and use professional tools like TestDisk or R-Studio, which takes longer, but finds files even after formatting.

What you need:

• 🖥️ Computer with Windows/Linux.
• 🔌 Cable USB (Preferably original from Xiaomi).
• 🛠️ TestDisk (free) program).
• 🔧 On. USB-debugging on the phone (Settings) → The phone. → Version. MIUI → 7 times press the version MIUI, Then back to the extra → For developers).

Instructions for TestDisk:

1. Connect Redmi Note to your PC in file transfer mode (MTP).


2. Run TestDisk and select your phone’s drive (usually the last one on the list).




3. Select the partition table type: [Intel] Intel/PC partition.




4. Click [Analyse] → [Quick Search].




5. After scanning, select the data partition (usually the largest partition).




6. Press [P] to view files. Deleted photos will be marked in red.




7 Copy them to a PC using the [C]. key.

Redmi Note 10/11 models with MIUI 13+ may require bootloader unlocking, as Xiaomi restricts access to memory partitions. Without that, TestDisk will only see a fraction of the files. If you don't want to risk it, skip this method and move on to the next partition.

5. Recovery through cloud services (Mi Cloud, Google Drive, Telegram)

Many Redmi Note users forget that photos could have been automatically uploaded to the cloud.

1.Mi Cloud (Xiaomi cloud)

• 🌥️ Go to i.mi.com and log in.
• 📷 In the Gallery section, check the Camera and Screenshots folders.
• 🔍 Search by date – photos may have been synced before being deleted.
• ⚠️ Note that Mi Cloud only stores thumbnails to save space.

2. Google Drive / OneDrive

• 📁 Check the Backup folder in your cloud – sometimes backup photos get there.
• 🔎 Use the search for keywords: type:photo after:2023-01-01 before:2023-12-31.

3. Social networks and instant messengers

• 📱 Check out Saved Messages on Telegram – many save photos there.
• 💬 V Viber/WhatsApp Open chat rooms with yourself or friends where you may have sent your photos.
• 📘 V VK/Instagram Check the Save and History Archive.

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Even if you don’t remember uploading photos to the cloud, check all services – MIUI automatically syncs for new Xiaomi accounts by default.

6.Recovery after resetting settings or memory damage

If the photos were deleted after hard reset or the phone stopped turning on, the chances of recovery are dramatically reduced, but they are, in which case only low-level memory scanning through Fastboot or EDL modes will help.

What can be done:

• 🔧 Fastboot Mode: Connect your phone to your PC while holding Power + Vol Down. Then use it. ADB To create a memory dump: fastboot devices fastboot pull /dev/block/mmcblk0 mmcblk0.img File received mmcblk0.img You can scan it in PhotoRec.
• 🛠️ EDL-Mode (only for experienced): Requires an authorized Xiaomi account and a special cable. Allows full access to memory, but you risk blocking the device.
• 💽 Chip-off method: If the phone doesn't turn on, you can remove the memory chip and connect it to the programmer (sweeping equipment is required).

For Redmi Note 10/11/12 models with UFS 2.2 chip, recovery is complicated by hardware encryption, in which case only the official Xiaomi service center will help (but they do not guarantee data safety).

⚠️ Note: If a phone is stolen or lost and then found with deleted photos, do not attempt to recover the data yourself).

Make sure the battery is 100 times charged%|Download ADB and Fastboot Tools|Prepare the cable. USB (preferably original)|Backup your current data (if the phone is turned on)|Disable automatic updates MIUI-->

7.Prevention: How to avoid future loss of photos

To avoid losing important photos, set up automatic backups and follow these rules:

MIUI settings to protect your photo:

• 🔄 Enable Auto Sync with Mi Cloud: Settings → Accounts. → Mi Cloud → gallery.
• 📤 Configure Google Photos to backup in original quality (up to 15GB free).
• 🗃️ Regularly copy photos to your PC or external drive through Files → DCIM → Camera.
• 🔒 Set the password on the folder. DCIM (Applications like File Lock).

Backup applications:

On Redmi Note models with MIUI 14+, enable Album Protection in the Gallery, which prevents photos from being accidentally deleted and hides them from other apps.

FAQ: Frequent questions about photo recovery on Xiaomi