Owners of the popular smartphone Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro sooner or later face the need to return the device to its original state. This can be caused by various reasons: from selling the gadget to a new owner to serious software failures that interfere with the normal operation of the Android operating system. The process of complete data cleansing, or so-called “hard reset”, is a powerful tool, but requires careful approach.
Before you start taking action, you need to understand that the reset will destroy all your personal information, photos, contacts, installed applications and files will be permanently deleted, which is why it is critical to back up data to the Mi Cloud cloud service or to your computer before starting the procedure.
In this detailed guide, we’ll take you through all the ways you can get the Redmi Note 8 Pro back to factory settings, learn how to reset through the standard settings menu if your phone responds to commands, and what to do if your device is locked or not turned on, and also look at the nuances of working with your Google account and Mi Account.
Preparation of the device for complete reset
The first and most important step is preparation. Ignoring this step can lead to loss of valuable data or locking the device after rebooting. Make sure that the battery is at least 50-60%. If the phone turns off due to discharge during the data erasure, it can damage system partitions.
The next step is sync. Check that all your contacts are saved to your Google account. To do this, go to the settings and make sure that the switch opposite the Contacts item is activated. Photos and videos are best uploaded to Google Photos or copied to an external medium.
⚠️ Warning: If you don't know the password from your Mi Account or Google account linked to your phone, be sure to untie them before resetting. Otherwise, theft protection will work, and you can only activate the phone by entering the previous owner's data.
It’s also worth checking for important files in the Downloads folder and messengers. WhatsApp or Telegram correspondence history isn’t always automatically saved, so back up chats manually through the app settings themselves.
☑️ Checklist before reset
Reset via system settings (Soft Reset)
It's the easiest and most secure method available to every user whose phone is running normally and allows you to log in to the menu, and it doesn't require any special knowledge or connection to a computer, but it's done through the MIUI shell interface.
To start, open the Settings app and scroll to the bottom of the list. Find the About Phone section and click on it. In the menu that opens, select Reset. Here, the system will offer two options: Reset all settings (return only system settings, do not touch files) and Erase all data (full reset).
We're interested in the complete cleanup, and when you select the appropriate item, the system will request confirmation of the action, and you'll need to enter a pattern lock, a digital pin, or a screen unlock password that's installed on the device, which is a security measure so that an accidental reset cannot be performed by an outsider.
Once you enter your password, you'll see a final warning, click Reset or Clear Everything. The phone will tell you that it'll take a few minutes. The device will restart, the Redmi logo will appear, and then the cleanup progress indicator. Don't interrupt this process.
What to do if the menu does not open?
It is important to note that once the procedure is complete, the phone will turn on as a new one, you will be asked to choose a language, connect to Wi-Fi and log in to your account, and the initial setup may take longer than usual, as the system will perform internal file optimization.
Recovery Mode (Hard Reset)
If your smartphone doesn't boot, freezes on your logo, or you forget your pattern lock, it helps to reset through recovery mode, which is called Hard Reset, and works even when the operating system is not available, and you use physical control buttons to enter this mode.
Turn off the Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro completely. Make sure the device is turned off, not in sleep mode. Then simultaneously press the volume button ("Loud Up") and the power button. Keep them pressed until the Mi logo appears.
Once you see the logo, release the power button, but keep holding the volume button. In a few seconds, the Recovery menu will appear with a black background and a few lines of text. In this menu, the touch screen does not work - the navigation is done with volume buttons (up/down), and the selection is with the power button.
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In the Recovery menu, navigation can be inverted on some versions of the firmware. If the volume button up pushes the cursor down, just use the opposite button to select the desired item.
Using the volume buttons, select Wipe Data and confirm the choice with the power button. Then the system will prompt you to select Wipe All Data. Confirm the action by selecting Confirm. The formatting process will begin, and then the message "Data wiped successfully" will appear.
Press Back to Main Menu, then select Reboot and confirm Reboot to System. The first run after such a reset can last up to 10-15 minutes. Don't panic if the phone hangs on the logo for a long time - this is normal behavior.
Solving problems with Google and Mi accounts
Xiaomi smartphones today are heavily secure, and once reset to factory settings, FRP (Factory Reset Protection) is activated. If you reset but didn’t delete your accounts beforehand, the system will require you to enter a password from your Google account that was synced to your device before the reset.
So the same thing happens with Mi Account, where if Find Device is active, the phone locks and requires authorization, and it's a theft protection, and you can't get around it legally without passwords, so again, deleting your accounts before reset is a must.
To delete accounts, go to Settings → Accounts and Sync. Select a Google account, click on it and select Delete Account. Do the same for Mi Account. Only then can you safely reset.
| Type of lockdown | Cause of the occurrence | Decision-making |
|---|---|---|
| Google FRP | Reset without leaving your Google account | Entering a password from Google Mail |
| Mi Account Lock | The "Find the Device" function is activated | Entering a password from the Mi Account |
| Lock screen | Forgotten pattern lock or PIN | Recovery reset (data will be deleted) |
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Forgotten account passwords are the main reason a phone turns into a brick after a reset. Always remember your credentials.
Cleaning cache and temporary files
Sometimes a full reset is not required and problems with the Redmi Note 8 Pro can be solved by clearing the cache.Cash are temporary files that speed up the application, but over time can accumulate errors.
You can clean up via the Recovery menu. Enter the Recovery mode as described above. In the main menu, select Wipe Data, but instead of completely cleaning, find the Wipe Cache option (some versions of MIUI may call it differently or not, then the cleanup is automatically done when you select Safe Reset).
The easiest way is to use the built-in Security app. Open it, press Cleanup and wait for the system to be analyzed. The app will suggest removing garbage, cache and unnecessary files, which is useful to do regularly, every 1-2 months.
It is also worth clearing the cache of individual “heavy” applications, such as browsers or social networks. Go to Settings → Apps → All apps, select the right one, click Memory and then Clear Cache. This often solves problems with hanging specific programs.
Frequent errors and ways to fix them
Xiaomi users may face a variety of difficulties in resetting, and one of the common problems is that the phone freezes during the data cleanup phase (the indicator can stand at 9% or 99%), in which case you shouldn’t panic and turn off the device immediately.
Wait 15-20 minutes. It can take a lot of time to erase large amounts of data on flash memory. If progress has been ongoing for more than an hour, you can try to force the phone to restart by holding the power button for 10-15 seconds.
Another mistake is choosing the wrong item in the Recovery menu, and users often confuse Wipe Data and Reboot. Be careful: if you choose to do something that is too much, you can cancel it by returning to the Main Menu before the process starts.
If the phone does not see after the reset SIM-card or Wi-Fi is not working, this may indicate damage to the system partition, in which case you will need to flash the device through the computer using the Mi Flash Tool utility. However, such cases are rare and usually involve interruption of the reset process due to battery discharge.
⚠️ Warning: Do not attempt to interrupt the reset process by removing the battery, as the Redmi Note 8 Pro does not have a removable battery. Forced button reboot is the only safe method of emergency intervention.
It is also important to consider that after a reset, some banking applications may require re-binding the device or confirmation via SMS. SIM-The card is active and ready to receive messages.