App “Acceleration” on Android-smartphones Xiaomi Redmi: a full analysis of functions and settings

Xiaomi Redmi smartphone owners often encounter a pre-installed app called Security or Cleaner, which appears on the menu immediately after buying a device and actively advertises its features: cleaning up garbage, optimizing RAM, speeding up games. But is it really a useful tool or an unnecessary ballast that only slows down the system? In this article, we will understand how Acceleration works, what tasks it solves, and whether it should be used in 2026.

Many users mistakenly believe that the app is actually overclocking the smartphone, as its name promises. In fact, most of the features of Acceleration duplicate Android’s built-in capabilities or even impair performance due to background activity. For example, automatic cache cleaning can lead to more frequently used applications being loaded. And the “game acceleration” feature sometimes conflicts with the settings of the games themselves. Next, we will analyze each option in detail – from cleaning garbage to protecting against viruses – and give recommendations on how to customize the application to your needs.

If you've never used Acceleration, but it's on the app list, don't rush to remove it. In some cases, it can be useful, like quick cache cleaning or CPU temperature monitoring. However, on devices with MIUI 14 and later, some of the Acceleration features are integrated into Security Settings, so a separate application may be redundant. Next, we'll see which features really work and which are just marketing moves.

What is an Acceleration App and Why You Need It

The Acceleration app (which can be called Security or Cleaner in global firmware) is a Xiaomi-branded tool that combines several features to optimize the smartphone. It is part of the MIUI preinstalled service package and cannot be removed without root rights.

• 🧹 Cleaning up garbage: Deleting temporary files, app cache, and residual data.
• 🔄 RAM optimization: forced closure of background processes to free up memory.
• 🎮 Gaming acceleration: performance settings for games (disabling notifications, blocking autobrightness, etc.).
• 🛡️ Virus protection: scanning the system for malware (using Avast or Tencent databases).
• 📊 System monitoring: displaying CPU load, temperature, battery usage.

On paper, everything looks useful, but in practice, many features are either inefficient or harmful. For example, manually cleaning the cache can slow down frequently used applications (such as Instagram or YouTube) as they have to re-upload data. And “RAM optimization” often causes Android to reopen closed applications, which wastes more resources than it saves.

However, the “acceleration” has advantages:

• ✅ Quick access to system boot information (useful for lag diagnosis).
• ✅ Ability to disable auto-run of unnecessary applications (saves battery).
• ✅ Built-in antivirus (though not the most reliable, but better than nothing).

It’s important to understand that Xiaomi is positioning this app as a “universal optimizer,” but in fact many of its features duplicate standard Android tools. For example, cache cleaning can be done manually in Settings → Storage, and battery monitoring in Settings → Battery.

Where is the Acceleration and how to open it

You can find the Acceleration application in several ways, depending on the version of MIUI and the smartphone model:

1. Through the app menu: the icon is called “Acceleration” (a zipper shield icon) or Security (global firmware).
2. Through the notification bar: Swipe down from the top edge of the screen and find the Cleanup or Optimization widget.
3. Through Settings: Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management. In the list, find Acceleration (or Security).

On some Redmi models (such as the Redmi Note 12 or POCO X5), the app can be hidden in the Tools or Utilities folder. If the icon is not on the home screen, try searching the system (swipe down the home screen and type "Accelerate").

If the app is not on the menu, it may be disabled or removed via ADB. To return it:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management → Three dots (menu) → Show all applications.
2. Find “Acceleration” and click “Enable”.

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On smartphones with MIUI 14+, some of the Acceleration features are moved to Settings → Battery and Performance, where you can configure optimization without running a separate application.

Detailed Functions: What Really Works

We will analyze each tab of the application “Acceleration” and evaluate its usefulness.

Controversial features are garbage cleaning and RAM optimization. Many users mistakenly believe that freeing up memory speeds up a smartphone. In fact, Android is designed to keep frequently used applications on RAM, saving time to reboot them. Forced shutting down processes forces the system to waste resources restarting them.

But gaming acceleration can be useful if you play heavy games like Genshin Impact or Call of Duty Mobile, which disables background processes, blocks notifications, and can even increase the clock speed of the processor, but on some devices this leads to overheating, so you need to use it with caution.

How to use the “Acceleration” so as not to harm the smartphone

If you decide to use Acceleration, follow these guidelines to avoid impairing performance:

The most common mistake is to clear the cache frequently, and many users click Clear every day thinking it speeds up the smartphone, but the cache is actually used to load apps quickly, so if you clear the Chrome cache, for example, the browser will open pages longer the next time it starts.

Another nuance is RAM Optimization, which closes the background apps, but Android can manage the memory itself, and if you see Telegram or Music Player hanging in the background, that's OK, it's OK, the system decides when to close them, and forced cleaning can cause these apps to open longer the next time they run.

But the game acceleration should be used selectively, for example, for PUBG Mobile or Honor of Kings, it can give an increase in FPS, but for simple games like Candy Crush, there is no benefit, and in fact, on weak smartphones (for example, Redmi 9A), this feature can cause overheating.

⚠️ Warning: If after activating the "Game acceleration" smartphone began to warm up a lot, turn off this feature and check the temperature in the "Monitoring" section. Prolonged overheating (above 50)°C) may reduce battery life.

Can you remove the “acceleration” and what happens if you do it?

The Acceleration app is a system application, so you can't remove it with standard means, but there are a few ways to get rid of it:

• 🔧 Disconnect: Go to Settings → Annexes → App management. Find Acceleration (or Security). Click Disable (not visible on the menu, but will remain on the system).

Removal via ADB

adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.miui.cleanmaster

For global firmware:

adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.miui.securitycenter

Installation of custom firmware

LineageOS

Pixel Experience

What happens if you remove or disable the “Accelerator”?

• ✅ The “Cleanup” widget in the notification panel will disappear.
• ✅ Notifications about the “clogging” of the system will cease to arrive.
• ⚠️ Quick access to temperature monitoring and CPU loading will be lost (but this information can be obtained through other applications, such as, CPU Monitor).
• ⚠️ Some features (such as blocking auto-launch apps) will become less available.

If you do not use the Acceleration feature, you can safely turn it off - this will not affect the stability of the system. However, before deleting through ADB, back up the data, as incorrect actions can lead to failures.

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Disabling Acceleration won’t improve performance by itself, but it will eliminate unnecessary notifications and background activity. The only real speed gain is manual optimization (disabling autostart, removing unnecessary applications).

Alternatives to Acceleration: Which Apps are Best to Use

If you don't like the standard Acceleration, you can use third-party options. Here are the best options for different tasks:

The main advantage of third-party applications is that they don't work in the background unnecessarily, unlike Acceleration, which constantly monitors the system. For example, SD Maid cleans garbage only on request, not automatically.

If you want maximum performance, it is better to abandon the “optimizers” altogether and manually configure the system:

• 🔋 Turn off auto-run of unnecessary apps in Settings → Annexes → Auto-start.
• 🗑️ Clean the cache regularly manually (but no more than 1 time per week).
• 🎯 Use light launchers (like Nova Launcher) instead of the standard launcher. MIUI Launcher.

⚠️ Warning: Do not install SEOs from unknown sources (such as apkpure.com). Many of them contain malicious code or display intrusive ads. Only use proven apps from Google Play.

Frequent Acceleration Problems and How to Solve Them

Despite promises to improve performance, the Acceleration app itself sometimes becomes a source of problems, and here are the most common mistakes and solutions:

• 🔄 Persistent notifications of system clogs: Solution: Open Acceleration» → «Settings" (cogs at the top) → «Notifications» → Turn off "Optimize».
• 🐢 Smartphone began to brake after cleaning the cache: Solution: Reboot the device and wait 10-15 minutes – Android will restore the necessary cache.
• 🔥 Overheating with Gaming Acceleration enabled: Solution: Turn off the function in the application settings or set a temperature limit (if you have such an option).
• 🚫 Virus scanning does not work: Solution: Update the antivirus database manually (Protection tab» → «Update»).