Introduction to the problem of data loss
Accidentally removing important videos on a smartphone is a stressful situation familiar to many Xiaomi users.The Redmi 7 model, released in 2019, is still heavily used due to its reliability, but the amount of its internal memory often forces owners to clean the gallery regularly.
Fortunately, the Android file system that the MIUI shell is based on is designed so that data doesn't disappear overnight. The operating system only marks the location where the video was stored as free to record new information. It's this time frame that gives you a real chance to recover lost footage without going to expensive labs.
The success of the operation depends on your actions in the first minutes after the discovery of the loss. The less new data is written to the disk, the higher the probability of successful file recovery. Below we will look at proven methods, from built-in system functions to the use of specialized software.
Analysis of the built-in MIUI basket
The first and easiest step is to check the Recycle Bin system folder, and the MIUI shell, by default, saves deleted items from the gallery and voice recorder for 30 days, a buffer zone designed specifically for these cases, and often users look for complex solutions while ignoring the obvious.
To check for your videos, you need to open the standard Gallery app. In the bottom menu, select the Albums tab and scroll to the bottom, and there you will find Deleted, which may also be called Recently Deleted, depending on the firmware version.
Inside this folder, files are sorted by deletion date, and you can select specific videos and click Restore to return them to the main album, but if you deleted the file more than a month ago or manually cleaned the shopping cart, this method, unfortunately, will not help.
- 📂 Open the Gallery app on the main screen.
- 📂 Go to the Albums tab at the bottom of the interface.
- 📂 Find and click on the Remote (or Recycle Bin) folder).
- 📂 Select the desired video and select the Restore option.
⚠️ Attention: Files in the cart take up space on your device. MIUI Allows you to automatically clean the cart if there is a lack of memory, making recovery impossible.
It's important to understand that if you used third-party file managers to delete, they could ignore the system basket and erase the data forever, so we're going to go deeper.
Use of the Mi Cloud cloud service
Mi Account holders often have gallery sync enabled by default.Mi Cloud provides 5GB of free space where your photos and videos can be automatically uploaded. This creates a backup independent of the physical state of the smartphone.
Even if you deleted the video from your phone, a copy of it could have stayed in the cloud. To check, go to your smartphone settings, select your Mi Account and click on Cloud. Make sure that the gallery sync slider is active when you shoot the video.
How to increase the space in the Mi Cloud?
An alternative way to check is by logging in via your computer browser. Go to the official i.mi.com website, log in with your login and password. The Gallery section displays all media files synchronized with your account, including those that have been deleted from your device but have not yet been removed from cloud storage.
- ☁️ Go to Settings. → Mi Account.
- ☁️ Select the Cloud section and check the synchronization status.
- ☁️ Go to i.mi.com to access from PC.
- ☁️ Find the video in the web interface and download it back.
⚠️ Note: When you delete a file from Mi Cloud cloud storage, it disappears from all synchronized devices instantly.
If the video is found in the cloud, you can upload it back to Redmi 7 or save it to your computer.This is the most reliable way to do so without having to install additional software, provided that the sync has been enabled in advance.
Check the archive of Google Photos and Google Drive
Google’s ecosystem offers powerful backup tools that are often pre-installed on Android.The Google Photos app has its own shopping cart, independent of the MIUI system basket. Removed items there are also 30 days, and up to 60 days for Google One users.
Also, check Google Drive, which is where many users habitually or automatically upload important videos. The disk interface also has a Recycle Bin folder where deleted files go. The navigation in the app is intuitive: the side menu hides all the necessary partitions.
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Turn on the “Free Space” feature in Google Photos only after you have made sure that all videos have been uploaded to the cloud, otherwise you will delete local copies and may not be in the cloud due to sync errors.
Pay special attention to the Archives section of Google Photos. Sometimes videos are not deleted, but accidentally archived, disappearing from the main stream of the tape. Checking the archive takes seconds, but can save search hours.
- 📸 Open the Google Photos app.
- 📸 Click on the profile avatar in the top corner.
- 📸 Select the item Cart or Archive.
- 📸 Restore the file by clicking on the three-dot icon and selecting Restore.
The advantage of Google services is that they are deeply integrated with the system, and even when you reset your phone, after you enter an old account, photos and videos can automatically return to the gallery.
Specialized software for recovery
When the built-in tools are powerless, deep memory scanning software comes to the rescue. For Redmi 7, which runs on a Snapdragon 632 processor, utilities like Dr.Fone, DiskDigger or Tenorshare UltData are effective, looking for the tails of deleted files in the file system.
Most of these programs require USB debugging mode enabled. On Xiaomi, this menu is hidden. You need to click on the build number in the About Phone section 7 times to become a developer, and then activate the item in the advanced settings.
Settings → About phone → (tap on "Version MIUI" 7 times) → Advanced settings → For developers → Debugging on USBConnect your phone to your computer via the original cable. Run the program on your PC and follow the scan instructions. The process can take anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour depending on the amount of memory.
☑️ Preparing for recovery via PC
⚠️ Note: Data recovery programs often require a Root right to scan deep internal memory. Obtaining superuser rights can void the warranty and lead to unstable system operation.
If the program finds files, they will be marked with color or status, green files are restored completely, red files are partially or corrupted, and save the recovered data directly to the computer, not back to the phone.
Comparison of recovery methods
The choice of method depends on the specific situation: whether the cloud was turned on, how long it has been since the deletion, and whether there is access to the computer. Below is a table that helps to navigate the effectiveness of various methods for the Redmi 7 model.
| Method | Need a Root. | Efficiency | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| MIUI basket | No. | High (30 days) | Low. |
| Mi Cloud / Google Photo | No. | High (if there was synchronization) | Low. |
| Applications (DiskDigger) | Preferably. | Medium (depending on cache) | Medium |
| PC software (Dr.Fone, etc.) | Often required | High (deep scan) | Tall. |
As you can see from the table, cloud services and the shopping cart are the safest and easiest methods, and using third-party software with Root rights gives the best result for old removals, but carries risks for data security.
For Redmi 7 owners with a microSD card, the situation is simpler: you can take the card out, paste it into the computer card reader and scan it with Recuva utility. This gives excellent results, since the memory card is not actively overwritten by the system as intensively as the internal drive.
Data prevention and security
After a successful recovery or to avoid future losses, it is critical to establish a backup system. Xiaomi offers convenient tools that should not be neglected. Regular backup is the only 100% guarantee of safety.
Configure automatic downloads to Mi Cloud or Google Photos only via Wi-Fi so you don't waste mobile traffic. It's also helpful to copy the video archive once a month to your computer or external hard drive. This three-copy rule saves you in critical situations.
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Regularly checking the synchronization work and having an up-to-date backup on an external medium is a guarantee that you will never lose important memories.
Avoid installing questionable apps for “phone speeding” or “memory cleaners” with aggressive settings. They can automatically delete files that the system considers “junk” but that are important to you.
- 🛡️ Set up weekly backups on PC.
- 🛡️ Use reliable cloud storage with two-factor protection.
- 🛡️ Periodically check the integrity of files on the memory card.
- 🛡️ Don’t fill up Redmi’s internal memory 7 All right, leave it. 10-15% freely.
Compliance with these simple rules will allow you to use a Xiaomi smartphone without fear of losing valuable video. Technology is evolving, and data protection methods are becoming more accessible, the main thing is to use them correctly.