Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco smartphones often face a situation where internal storage is overcrowded and the system is slower than usual. The main reason for this phenomenon is the accumulation of a large amount of unused software, which continues to consume the resources of the processor even in the background.
The process of uninstalling software products on the shells of MIUI and the new HyperOS can vary significantly depending on whether the application is user-generated or system-based. Standard removal methods are available to everyone, but more advanced tools will be needed to deepen the cleaning of preinstalled debris. Understanding the difference between these types of programs will help avoid critical errors in system optimization.
In this article, we will look at all the available ways to remove games and applications, from standard actions through the desktop and ending with the use of debugging by ADB. You will learn to safely get rid of embedded software that cannot be removed by conventional methods, and learn which components should not be touched. Follow the instructions carefully so as not to disrupt the stability of your gadget.
Standard removal through the desktop
The easiest and most obvious way to get rid of an unnecessary game or program is to use a standard desktop interface. On most Xiaomi models with a MIUI shell, just pinch the app icon with your finger for a couple of seconds, and then a context menu will pop up, where you need to select “Delete” or click on the basket icon that appeared at the top of the screen.
If after a long press, the menu does not appear, and the icon begins to shake, this means that you are in desktop editing mode, in which case you need to drag the icon to the top of the screen, where the inscription “Delete” or red cross appears, the system will automatically confirm the action, and the program will be uninstalled along with all its data.
- 🗑️ Press the app icon on the home screen before the menu appears.
- 📱 Click the “Delete” button in the confirmation window that appears.
- 🔄 If the icon is shaking, drag it to the basket icon at the top of the screen.
It is worth noting that this method only works for custom applications that have been downloaded by you from the Google Play store or GetApps. System components such as Music, Video or Mi Browser often do not have an uninstall button in this menu, as they are protected from accidental removal by the manufacturer.
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If you want to save progress when you uninstall the game, make sure it’s synced with Google Play Games or the developer account before cleaning.
Management through system settings
More detailed control of the installed software provides a menu of settings of the smartphone. This method allows you not only to remove programs, but also to see how much space they occupy, and force to stop their processes. To go to this section, you need to open Settings and find the App item, and then select All applications.
In the list that opens, you can sort programs by size or installation date, making it much easier to find heavy games that take up gigabytes of memory. If you choose an unnecessary application, you will be taken to the information screen about it, where the Delete button will be available. If the button is inactive (gray), then it is a system component that can not be removed by standard means without additional rights.
You can also clear the cache and the application data if you don't want to delete it completely, but just reset it to factory settings, which often helps solve problems with game freezes or service errors, and cleared data can temporarily increase the speed of the program the next time you run.
Removal of embedded system applications
Many users want to get rid of pre-installed software, often referred to as “bloatware,” which includes Google services, built-in browsers, app stores, and various demo versions of games, which cannot be removed by standard methods, since they have the rights of system components, and require the developer mode to be activated to remove them.
First, you need to start debugging the USB. To do this, go to the Settings. → On the phone and press. 7-10 once on the line “Version MIUI» or "Version" OS», until you get a message that you've become a developer, then you'll be on the menu. → For developers, find and activate the Debugging Switch USB.
⚠️ Warning: Be extremely careful when removing system components: Removing critical services such as Security, Google Play Services, or System UI», It can cause a cyclic restart of the phone (bootloop) or complete device failure.
Once debugging is enabled, you can use special deletion applications, such as System App Remover or NoBloat, which require root rights, or use a computer method through ADB, which is safer.
- 🛠️ Activate Developer Mode by pressing 7 times on the build number.
- 🔌 Put the debugging on. USB developer menu.
- 📲 Connect your phone to your computer through a high-quality cable.
- 💻 Use it. ADB-Commands for Safely Removing System Packages.
Using ADB for Advanced Cleaning
The most effective and safe way to remove embedded applications without root rights is to use the Android Debug Bridge (ADB) toolkit, which allows you to send commands directly to the operating system from the computer, bypassing interface restrictions. To get started, you need to download Platform-tools from the official Google website and unpack them on your computer.
Connect your smartphone to your PC, allow debugging on your phone screen, and open the command line in the ADB folder. First, check the connection with the adb devices command. If the device is determined, you can start searching for packages. To find the name of the application package, use the adb shell pm lists command, which will display a list of all installed programs.
adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.miui.videoplayerIn this example, the standard Xiaomi video player is removed. pm uninstall deletes the application for the current user (user 0), but leaves its files on the system, which allows you to return everything back at any time. This is the main advantage of the method before obtaining root rights, where deletion is often irreversible without flashing.
How to return a remote application via ADB?
Table of common system packages
When working with ADB, it is important to know the exact names of the packages you plan to remove. Below is a table with the names of Xiaomi system applications that users often delete and their security for removal.
| Title of the annex | Packet name | Security of removal | Impact on the system |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mi video | com.miui.videoplayer | Safe. | Lack of built-in player |
| Mi Music. | com.miui.player | Safe. | Lack of built-in player |
| Mi Browser. | com.android.browser | Safe. | We need an alternative browser |
| Mi Account. | com.xiaomi.account | Dangerous. | Problems with synchronization |
| Security | com.miui.securitycenter | Critically. | System instability |
Use this table as a reference, but always check the relevance of packages for your particular firmware version. Package names may vary slightly depending on the regional version of MIUI (Global, China, EEA).
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Removal via ADB is reversible and does not require root rights, making it the preferred method for most users.
Cleaning cache and residual files
When apps are removed, devices often have tails in their memory — folders with settings, cache, and temporary files — that can take up a significant amount of space, especially if you’ve removed some heavy graphics games, and you can use the built-in Security app, which has a Cleanup feature to find them.
Run the scan, and the system will suggest removing the debris. However, be careful: sometimes algorithms mark important files as garbage. A deeper analysis can be done through the Settings menu → Memory, where it is visually displayed what exactly occupies space. It is also useful to check the file manager for folders with the names of remote games.
☑️ Checklist for full cleaning
Possible problems and solutions
There may be errors during the deletion process, such as the system may give a message saying, “Can’t delete the application,” which often happens if the application process is active in the background, so you first go to the application settings and press the Stop button and then try again to delete.
⚠️ Warning: If after removing the system component, the phone starts to behave strangely (sound disappears, the network is not working), do not panic. Try resetting the settings to the factory, previously saving important data.
Another common problem is automatic reinstallation of remote applications, a behavior that is common for some Google or Xiaomi services that restore their software set after a system update or reset, and to avoid this, you can turn off auto-update for specific applications in Google Play settings or prevent installation from unknown sources for system services.
If you removed a game but it continues to appear in the Recommended list on your desktop, it doesn't mean it's installed. It's just a shortcut to the app store. You can delete that shortcut just like a regular icon by pinching it and selecting deletion.