How to see what applications are running on Xiaomi: all the ways for MIUI 12-14

On Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO MIUI-enabled smartphones, running apps continue to run in the background, consuming battery power and RAM. But how to find them quickly? In this article, we’ll look at all the current ways to test active processes, from the standard multitasking menu to the hidden tools of the developer.

It's important to understand that background apps and cached processes are not the same thing: the former are actively consuming resources (for example, music players or instant messengers), and the latter are simply stored in memory for quick launch, we will show how to distinguish them from each other and what to do if the smartphone begins to slow down due to overloaded multitasking.

The instructions in this article are relevant for MIUI 12, 13 and 14 (including global and Chinese versions), as well as for most models, from the budget Redmi Note 12 to the flagship Xiaomi 14 Ultra. If your smartphone runs on pure Android (for example, POCO F5 with HyperOS), some methods may differ - we will mention this too.

1. Standard multitasking menu (gesture or button)

The quickest way to see a running app is to call up the menu of recent tasks, and most Xiaomi smartphones use a gesture to do this:

• 👆 Swipe your finger up from the bottom of the screen and hold for 0.5 seconds (don't let go right away!). ☐ (square.
• 📱 If you POCO F4/F5 or Redmi K60 With HyperOS, the gesture may differ: swipe up with a pause in the middle of the screen.
• 🔄 This menu only displays custom applications (the ones you ran manually) and you can't see the system processes here!

To close the unnecessary application:

1. Spend the application card upwards (on MIUI 14) or press the cross ✕ (on MIUI 12/13).

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On some models (such as the Xiaomi 13T), the multitasking menu supports horizontal scrolling – swipe left/right to see all open apps, even if they don’t fit on the screen.

⚠️ Closing all apps through Clear All is not always helpful! MIUI Automatically optimizes background processes, and forced termination can, on the contrary, increase battery consumption at the next start.

2. Battery section – Hidden list of active processes

If you need to see all the processes, including system, go to the battery settings:

1. Open the Settings. → Battery.
2. Slip on the consumption chart (at the top of the screen).
3. Select the Battery Usage (or Battery Usage) tab.
4. Press three points. ⋮ In the upper right corner and select Show full details).

Here you'll see:

• 🔋 Applications with the highest consumption (including background).
• ⏱️ Time of activity of each process.
• 📊 Percentage of use CPU (Only on some models, such as the Xiaomi 12 Pro).

3. Developer menu: advanced process monitoring

For power users, MIUI has a hidden developer menu where you can see all the active processes in real time, including system processes.

Settings → About the phone → MIUI version (shap 7 times in a row)

After activation:

1. Back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers.
2. Find the Debugging section and turn on Do not turn off the screen (to make it easier to monitor).
3. Use the Running Services (or Running Services).

On this menu you will see:

• 📌 Active annexes (with indication of the PID memory).
• 🔄 Background processes (including system processes, e.g. com.miui.home).
• 🗑️ The ability to forcefully stop any process, but be careful!).

⚠️ Attention: The developer menu displays all processes, including those critical to the work MIUI. Stopping unfamiliar services (such as miui.daemon) can cause a smartphone to crash, and only use this feature if you know exactly what you're doing!

4. With the help of third-party applications (for advanced users)

If standard MIUI tools are not enough, you can install third-party monitoring tools.

• 🛠️ Greenify -- allows you to freeze background applications, saving power. ADB unlocks the extended functions.
• 📊 Simple System Monitor - This is a simple system monitor. CPU, RAM Real-time networking (requires Android 10)+).
• 🔍 Process Manager (from Spica Apps) – analogue of the task manager Windows, but for Android.

Example of setting up Greenify:

1. Install the app from Google Play.
2. Enable Aggressive Hibernation Mode in the settings.
3. Add apps that you need to “sleep down” (like Facebook or TikTok).
4. Connect to your PC and execute a command to unlock advanced features: adb -d shell pm grant com.oasisfeng.greenify android.permission.WRITE_SECURE_SETTINGS

Install ADB on PC| Enable debugging over USB in developer settings | Connect phone to computer | Execute adb command to unlock-->

Third-party applications are useful if:

• 🔋 You need to save battery on older models (Redmi Note 8 Pro, POCO X3).
• 🛡️ You suspect that an app is spying on you (for example, constantly using the Internet).
• 🔧 You are developing your own applications and need detailed statistics.

5. ADB teams: for technical specialists

If you're familiar with Android Debug Bridge (ADB), you can get a full list of running processes through the command line. This is the most accurate method, but requires a PC connection.

Instructions:

1. Download the Google Platform Tools.
2. Enable USB debugging in the developer settings.
3. Connect your phone to your PC and enter in the terminal: adb devices (you should display your device).
4. Execute the command to view active processes: adb shell ps -A | grep -E 'u0_a|system'

Transcript of the conclusion:

• u0_a[Number: user applications (e.g, u0_a100 — It's usually Chrome).
• Systems are MIUI system processes.
• PID is a unique process identifier (required for forced closure).

To close the PID process:

adb shell kill [PID]

⚠️ Warning: Kill and Kill Teams -9 This can cause your phone to run unstable if you complete critical processes (such as surfaceflinger or zygote!

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ADB is the only way to see all the processes, including those hidden from the user in the standard MIUI interface. However, for ordinary tasks (for example, close Instagram), the multitasking menu will suffice.

6 Features on POCO and Redmi with HyperOS

POCO smartphones and the new Redmi (like the Redmi Note 13 Pro+) can run on HyperOS instead of MIUI.

• 🔄 Gesture to call multitasking: swipe up with pause (like on "pure" Android).
• 📊 In the battery settings there is no tab Use of the battery - instead there is a battery → Use of applications.
• 🛠️ The developer menu is called Special Opportunities. → Developer parameters.

If your smartphone has been upgraded from MIUI to HyperOS, some features may work differently.

• 🔋 HyperOS does not have a separate “Security” section – application settings are moved to Settings → Annexes.
• 🔄 Forced app stops now require confirmation PIN-Code (to protect against accidental actions).

For owners of POCO F6 or Redmi K70 with HyperOS, we recommend:

1. Use Android 12+ gestures for multitasking (they are more responsive).
2. Enable Memory Optimization in the developer settings for automatic back-end management.

7.Why do apps run themselves in the background?

Many Xiaomi users complain that private apps (such as Mi Video or GetApps) are reappearing on the active list.

• 🔄 Autoruns – some applications (especially system ones) have the right to run automatically.
• 📱 Push notifications – messengers and social networks wake up when receiving messages.
• 🔋 Optimization MIUI — The shell can "wake up" frequently used applications to speed up work.

How to fix it:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Select the app you want (like Facebook) and turn it off: 🚫 Auto-start 🔔 Showing notifications 🔄 Background activity

Mi Browser

disconnection through ADB

adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.android.browser

Some models (such as the Xiaomi 13 Lite) have a hidden Deep Optimization feature that aggressively closes the background processes.

##4636## → "Battery Information" → Menu (⋮) → "Optimization"

FAQ: Frequent questions about running apps on Xiaomi