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

Delete important photos from Xiaomi Redmi Note and don't know how to get them back? Don't panic - there are chances of recovery, even if the pictures disappeared from the gallery. In this article, we will analyze all the working methods, from standard MIUI tools to professional utilities for deep memory scanning. It is important to act quickly - the fewer operations you perform on your phone after deletion, the higher the probability of success.

The reasons for losing photos are different: accidental clicking, resetting, memory card damage or firmware failure. We will look at solutions for each case, including recovery through the MIUI basket, cloud services (Mi Cloud, Google Photos), connection to a PC and specialized programs like DiskDigger or Recuva. Separately, we will focus on the nuances of working with internal memory and microSD cards – they require different approaches.

If photos were recently deleted (within 30 days), start with simple methods. For old or badly damaged files, you will need advanced tools. On Redmi Note 10/11/12 smartphones with MIUI 13/14, the gallery basket stores files up to 15 days by default - this period can be extended in settings.

1. Checking the basket in the standard MIUI gallery

The first thing you need to do is to look in the gallery basket, and in MIUI, deleted photos are not erased immediately, but are placed in temporary storage, and the storage period depends on the model and the firmware version:

• 📱 Redmi Note 8/9 (MIUI 12 below): 30 days
• 📱 Redmi Note 10/11/12 (MIUI 13/14): 15 days (configuration)
• 🔄 After cleaning the basket manually or at the end of the term, the files are deleted irrevocably.

To recover the photo:

1. Open the Gallery app (or Photos in new versions).
2. Tap it on three points (⋮) top-right → pick the basket.
3. Find the right pictures, click on them → the Restore button (arrow icon up).

If the basket is empty or there are no photos, then you can move on to the next way, and note that in some firmware, the basket may be disabled to turn it on.

Settings → Applications → Gallery → Storage → Include the basket

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If the shopping cart doesn't show up, try updating the Gallery app through Google Play or Mi App Store. Sometimes bugs get fixed in newer versions.

2. Recovery via Mi Cloud or Google Photos

If your Redmi Note has been enabled to sync with the cloud, the chances of returning photos are much higher.Mi Cloud and Google Photos automatically save copies of the pictures, but there are nuances:

Instructions for Mi Cloud:

1. Go to i.mi.com from your phone or PC.
2. Sign in with the same Mi Account that was used on Redmi Note.
3. Open the Gallery section → Basket.
4. Select the desired photos and click Restore.

⚠️ Note: If you have dropped your phone to factory settings or logged out of your Mi Account after deleting the photo, you will lose access to the cloud cart.

Mi Cloud|Google Photo|Yandex.Disk|Nothing else |Not using-->

3. Connect to a PC and search for hidden files

If the photos were not synced to the cloud, but are still physically present in the phone's memory, they can be found through the computer.

• 🔌 Connect Redmi Note to PC via USB-cable (file transfer mode).
• 📁 Open internal memory or microSD card in Windows Explorer.
• 🔍 Enable the display of hidden files: Explorer → species → Hidden elements (checkmarks)
• 📂 Look for the folders: DCIM/.thumbnails, Pictures, MIUI/Camera or Android/data/com.android.gallery3d.

Deleted files can be stored in folders with the.nomedia extension or have changed names (for example, IMG_2023*.Try sorting files by date - the latest photos are usually at the bottom of the list.

Enable the display of hidden files|Check the folder. DCIM and her subfolders|Sorting files by date of change|Try to open files with the.tmp or.nomedia extension-->

If the photos are not displayed but take up disk space, use SpaceSniffer (Windows) to visualize the space occupied, and it will show the “invisible” files that can then be manually extracted.

4.Programs for deep memory scanning

When standard methods don't work, specialized data recovery software comes to the rescue, scanning the phone's memory at a low level and finding fragments of deleted files.

• 🛠️ DiskDigger (Android) – works without root, but with limitations.
• 💻 Recuva (Windows) – requires connecting your phone as a removable drive.
• 📱 EaseUS MobiSaver – Supports recovery from microSD.
• 🔍 PhotoRec (for experienced users) – console utility with maximum scan depth.

Instructions for DiskDigger (without root):

1. Install DiskDigger from Google Play.
2. Launch the app and select Start basic scan.
3. Wait until the process is completed (it can take 10–30 minutes).
4. View the photos you find and save them to a memory card or cloud.

⚠️ Note: When recovering via PC, don't save files back to your phone - this can overwrite the remaining data.

For maximum results, scan the internal memory and microSD card separately, if the photos were on the memory card, remove it and connect it to the PC through the card reader, so the chances of recovery are higher.

5. Recovery after reset to factory settings

If the photos are gone after a hard reset, things get complicated, but they're not hopeless, and it's important whether the Mi Account and the data encryption are enabled.

• 🔐 No encryption: Files remain on the disk but lose user attachment and can be restored via DiskDigger or PhotoRec.
• 🔒 Encrypted (MIUI 12+): The data is encrypted with a key that is erased when reset.Recovery is almost impossible without a backup.
• ☁️ With Mi Cloud Sync: Photos can be returned from the cloud (see Section 2).

Algorithm of action:

1. Do not add a new Mi Account after a reset, as this may block access to old data.
2. Connect your phone to your PC and scan the memory with Recuva or EaseUS.
3. If your phone has been encrypted, try to remember the password from your old Mi Account – sometimes this allows you to unlock access to files.

Redmi Note with MIUI 13/14 may have MIUI/Backup/AllBackup folder after reset, check for gallery backups, and look for files with.bak or.old extensions.

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If the reset was performed via Fastboot (fastboot erase userdata command), the chances of recovery tend to zero – the data is erased at the physical level.

6.Apply to the service center and professional services

If all of these methods have failed and photos are critical (such as documents or unique footage), it is worth considering professional recovery. Specialized laboratories can extract data even from damaged memory chips, but these are:

• 💰 It is expensive: from 5 000 to 30 000 rubles depending on the complexity.
• ⏳ Takes time: 3-10 days (sometimes longer).
• 🔧 Requires disassembly of the phone (risk of loss of warranty).
• 📊 Does not guarantee 100% success depending on the extent of memory damage.

In Russia and CIS, such services are provided by:

• Laboratory of Data Recovery "Pirit" (Moscow, St. Petersburg).
• Data Recovery Center (Kyiv, Minsk, Almaty)
• Xiaomi official service centers (only if the problem is related to a hardware failure).

Please specify before contacting:

1. The cost of diagnosis (sometimes free).
2. The percentage of successful recovery for your model (Redmi Note 8/9/10/11/12)
3. Terms and conditions of confidentiality (your data must not be accessed by third parties).

⚠️ Warning: Don’t trust the recovery of data to dubious workshops or private masters without a license, and the risk of leakage of personal information (photos, correspondence) in this case is extremely high.

7. How to prevent future photo loss

To avoid the problem of losing photos, set up automatic backup and follow the simple rules:

• ☁️ Cloud Backups: Enable Autoboot in Google Photos (Settings) → Backup and sync. Activate Mi Cloud (Settings) → Mi Account → Mi Cloud → gallery).
• 📁 Local Copies: Move photos to your PC or external drive regularly. Use apps like SyncMe to automatically sync to your home NAS.
• 🔄 Additional measures: Install Dumpsys or Swift Backup to create app backups (including gallery).Do not store a single copy of important photos on your phone - use the rule "3-2-1" (3 copy, 2 carrier, 1 house-house).

On Redmi Note, you can also increase the storage time of files in the basket:

Gallery → Settings (⋮) → Recycle Bin → Storage period (maximum 60 days)

If you frequently delete photos by mistake, install the Dumpster app, which creates an additional shopping cart with advanced recovery settings.

FAQ: Frequent questions about photo recovery on Xiaomi