How to Recover Remote Calls on Xiaomi Smartphones: From MIUI to Third-Party Tools

Losing your Xiaomi call history is stressful, especially if the deleted records included important numbers or business conversations. Unlike photos or messages, the call log is often seen as temporary, but it can be restored if you act quickly and correctly. In this article, we will look at all the current methods, from built-in MIUI functions to specialized programs, and explain why some “folk” methods do not work on modern smartphones.

The main problem is that Xiaomi (and other manufacturers) don’t keep the call log in the cloud by default, unlike contacts or notes, which means that the chances of recovery depend on whether sync with Google Account was enabled, whether local backups were created or third-party backup apps were used, and we analyzed all possible scenarios and compiled an action checklist that will help you return remote calls even if you are not a technical expert.

1. Checking the basket in MIUI: a hidden feature of new versions

Starting with MIUI 12.5 and up, Xiaomi added a hidden remote call basket to the Phone app, the equivalent of a gallery feature, but this option only activates when manually enabled in settings and doesn't work on all models to check for it:

1. Open the phone application (pipe icon).
2. Slip on three dots in the upper right corner → select “Settings”.
3. Scroll down to the “Advanced” section and find the “Basket” (or “Remote Calls”) item.
4. If the option is active, you will see a list of deleted records with the possibility of recovery (saving period - up to 30 days).

⚠️ Note: On smartphones with MIUI Global (European firmware) basket may not be available even in newer versions.

2. Recovery through Google Contacts: The Cloud Method

If your Xiaomi has enabled sync with your Google Account, there is a chance to return some of the call history through the web version of the service, which works because Google briefly stores metadata about calls (date, time, number) as part of the “Activity” function.

1. Go to Google Contacts and log in under the same account as you do on your phone.
2. On the left menu, select “More” → “Restore Contacts”.
3. In the drop-down list, select the date before the call was deleted (e.g., “1 day ago”).
4. Click Restore – this will not only return contacts, but also the call history associated with them (if it was saved).

🔹 Limitations of method:

• 📅 Only calls associated with saved Google contacts are restored.
• ⏳ Maximum “recoil” – 30 days.
• 🚫 Not working for numbers not saved in the address book.

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Before recovering, export your current contacts to the VCF file (via Settings → Export) to avoid duplicates.

3. Local MIUI backups: where to look for backups

Xiaomi creates local backups of the system, including the call log, but only if the function was manually enabled. MIUI/backup/AllBackup internal memory or SD-To extract data:

1. Connect your phone to your PC via USB (file transfer mode).
2. Go to the folder. MIUI/backup/AllBackup and find a file with the.bak extension (for example, system_20260515.bak).
3. Copy it to your computer and use the Mi Backup Extractor utility (available on GitHub) to extract data.

⚠️ Note: Backup files are encrypted, you will need a password from your Mi Account to open them, and if you don't remember it, use the official recovery manual on Xiaomi's website.

Third-party applications: risks and recommendations

If the built-in methods didn't work, you can use specialized utilities to recover data, but there are nuances: most of these programs require root rights, and their use may violate the security policy of MIUI. We tested several tools and made a list of proven options:

• 🛠️ Dr.Fone (Wondershare) – Recovers calls without root, but only if they were recently deleted (before the root). 7 Supports Xiaomi Redmi Note 10/11/12, POCO X3/X4.
• 🔧 EaseUS MobiSaver – works with root devices, extracts data directly from system files call_log.db.
• 📱 GT Recovery (only for Android 9 and below) is a free option, but requires a PC connection.

🔴 Warning: Apps without root access often show "ghost" data - numbers that have long been deleted from the system but left in cache. Always check the restored records for relevance.

Charging the phone > 50%|Disable antivirus on PC|Use the original USB-cable|Do not connect other devices during the process-->

5.Manual recovery via ADB: for advanced users

If you have experience with Android Debug Bridge (ADB), you can try extracting the call log directly from the system database, which works even without root, but requires USB debugging enabled.

adb pull /data/data/com.android.providers.contacts/databases/contacts2.db


sqlite3 contacts2.db "SELECT * FROM calls;" > calls_backup.csv

📌 Explanation:

• The first team copies the database of contacts and calls to the PC.
• The second extracts the history of calls into the file. calls_backup.csv.
• Use Excel or Notepad++ to view the result.

⚠️ Attention: MIUI 14 and newer access /data/data/ limited even ADB. In this case, you will need to obtain a temporary root rights through Magisk.

6.Prevention: How to avoid loss of calls in the future

To avoid the problem again, set up an automatic backup of your call history. Here are the working ways:

• ☁️ Sync with Google: Enable the option in Settings → Accounts. → Google → Synchronization of the account → Contacts (calls will be linked to contacts).
• 📱 Call Logs Backup: Creates backups in format XML/CSV and send them to email or cloud.
• 🔄 Regular export through MIUI: Once a week, backup your settings. → System system → Backup.

💡 Tip: If you make frequent calls to important numbers, save them to Google Contacts marked "Important" and this will increase your chances of recovery through the cloud.

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The most reliable way is to combine local MIUI backup + cloud sync with Google, which covers 90% of data loss cases.

FAQ: Frequent questions about call recovery on Xiaomi