How to turn off advertising in the Xiaomi Gallery

Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphone owners are familiar with the intrusive marketing that occurs in system applications, especially when a banner or pop-up appears when viewing photos or editing images, not a bug, but part of the company’s monetization strategy, but many users prefer a clean interface without unnecessary visual noise.

Fortunately, MIUI and the new HyperOS shell provide tools to manage these notifications, even though they are hidden in different menus. Getting rid of ads requires a series of actions, since there is no single “disable everything” button. In this article, we will discuss all the current methods of blocking intrusive banners.

Please note that disabling ads does not affect the functionality of the Gallery app, your photos will remain safe and the editing tools will work normally, and the only change is the disappearance of commercial offers that often overlap content or require closure before starting work.

Disabling MSA service in system settings

The first and most important step is to deactivate the MSA system component (MIUI System Ads), which is responsible for collecting user data and displaying targeted advertising in embedded applications, including the gallery, and without disabling this service, other manipulations may not be effective.

To start, you need to go to your device's settings menu, and find a section that is usually called "Passwords and Security" or "Faceprints." In some firmware versions, this item may be in the "Advanced Settings" category.

Inside the security section, look for "Access to Personal Data" or "Special Features." In the list of active applications, find msa and put the switch into an inactive state. The system will warn you that some functions may be disrupted, but for the average user this is not critical.

⚠️ Attention: After the first shutdown MSA If the "Disable" button is inactive, try turning off and switch on the switch several times in a row until the timer for 10 seconds appears.

After a successful shutdown, it is recommended to restart the smartphone, which will break the current advertising sessions and update the system configuration. Sometimes you need to repeat the procedure 2-3 times, since Xiaomi servers may try to automatically reactivate the service.

Set up parameters inside the Gallery application

Even after system changes, the app itself can save its own content display settings. In the new versions of the HyperOS and MIUI 14 shell, developers have implemented additional switches that control recommendations and news feeds inside the gallery.

Open the Gallery app and go to My Page or click on the settings icon (usually three dots or a gear) and find the Recommendations or Receive Recommendations option here. Disabling this option will remove the block with the photos and banner ads offered on the app's home screen.

It's also worth checking your cloud settings. If you're syncing with Xiaomi Cloud, it might offer a paid storage extension. It's not a classic ad, but it looks like an obtrusive offer. You can turn off storage overflow notifications in the Cloud section of the phone's basic settings.

• 📸 Go to the settings of the gallery through the "Profile" menu or the gear icon.
• 🚫 Find the "Recommendations" switch and turn it to the "Off" position".
• ☁️ Check your cloud settings to remove location purchase notifications.
• 🔄 Clear the app cache through the application management menu to apply changes.

Importantly, the interface can vary depending on the Android version and regional firmware. Global ROMs usually have more settings than Chinese ones. If you don't find an item, it may be hidden in the "About" or "Advanced" submenu.

Using DNS to Block Advertising

One of the most effective methods that works at the operating system level is to configure a private DNS, which allows you to block requests to ad servers before they reach your device, and is especially relevant for users who do not want to go into deep system settings.

Go to "Settings" ->"Connection and Sharing" (or "Wi-Fi and Internet"). Find "Private DNS" (Private DNS). The default is "Auto" or "Disconnected." You have to select "Host Name provider" DNS" (Manual) and enter the address of the special server.

dns.adguard.com

After you enter the address, save the settings. DNS-The requests will be passed through AdGuard filters, which automatically screen out known advertising domains, which will remove ads not only in the gallery, but also in the browser and in other applications.

⚠️ Attention: When using private DNS Some apps or sites may stop working correctly if they use the same domains for analytics. DNS in the "auto" position".

Limitation of background activity and permissions

Ads often run in the background, waiting for the right moment to display a banner. Restricting the rights of system services can prevent them from activating. This is a more radical method that requires caution, but gives excellent results.

Go to Settings -> Applications -> All Apps. In the upper right corner, click three dots and select Show System Processes. Find Mail and Content Center in the list, which are often responsible for push notifications.

For each of these applications, follow the following steps:

1. Press "Permissions" and disable access to memory, phone and location.

2. Under Battery, select "No Limits" (so that the system doesn't kill the process if you want to control it yourself) or "Strict Limitation" if you want to completely ban background work.

3. Turn off "Stop" item.

Also worth noting is GetApps (formerly Mi Apps), which is a Xiaomi app store that is often a source of advertising, and if you don't use it, you can turn it off in the same app management menu, which will free up resources and reduce the number of pop-ups.

Resetting the advertising identifier

Each device is assigned a unique advertising ID (OAID) that is used to track your interests and show relevant ads, and resetting that ID periodically knocks down targeting algorithms, making the ads less accurate or stopping them from showing at all.

To do this, go to Settings -> Passwords and Security -> Privacy. Go to Advertising Services or Advertising ID. Here you will see the Reset ID or Delete Advertising ID button.

After reset, it is also recommended to disable the option “Personalization of ads” This will prevent the system from using your data about search queries and visited places to create an advertising profile.

• 🔍 Go to your smartphone’s privacy settings.
• 🆔 Find the "Advertising Services" section and click "Reset" ID".
• 🚫 Turn off the switch "Personalized Advertising".
• 📉 Repeat the procedure once a month for maximum efficiency.

It is worth noting that on some global firmware, this item may be called differently or not, in which case the alternative is to install third-party applications to change the name. IMEI or MAC-address, but it requires root rights and is not recommended for regular users for security reasons.

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Regularly cleaning the Gallery app cache through the application management menu helps to delete temporary files that may store ad impression data.

Alternative solutions and third-party galleries

If the built-in Xiaomi gallery continues to annoy with its behavior even after all the settings, the most drastic decision will be to install an alternative application for viewing photos. Modern third-party galleries often work faster, have more advanced functionality and, most importantly, are completely devoid of advertising.

Popular options like Google Photos, Simple Gallery (or its forks, since the original was purchased) or A+ Gallery offer a user-friendly interface and powerful editing tools, and once installed, the system can suggest making it the default application to open images.

To secure your choice, go to Settings -> Apps -> Default Apps. Under Gallery or Photos, select the app you installed. Now, clicking on any photo in your messengers or browser will open a clean gallery without ads.

Using third-party software also allows you to bypass the restrictions imposed by the MIUI system on formatting photos or videos, you get full control over your media files without intermediaries in the form of advertising integrations.

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Installing a third-party gallery is a 100% guarantee of no advertising, as you completely abandon the use of the native Xiaomi app.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)