The situation when the owner of a smartphone can not access their data because of a forgotten password is frighteningly common. Xiaomi’s modern security systems, running on the basis of MIUI or the new HyperOS, are designed to protect the user’s personal data from prying eyes. However, this same protection becomes a serious obstacle if you do not remember the installed code, graphics or complex alphanumeric password.
In most cases, the only way out is to completely reset the device to factory settings, which means removing all information from internal memory. Reset the password to Xiaomi without losing data is impossible in any of the official ways, since the encryption system binds the access keys to the unlock code. Do not look for “magic” programs on the Internet that promise to unlock without losing files – most often it is a virus or fraud.
Before you start taking action, you need to clearly understand what kind of lock you are facing, this can be a simple lock screen, Mi Account (anti-theft) or Google Account (FRP) lock. The type of protection depends on the method of solving the problem, so carefully study all the options below to choose the right one for your case.
Device preparation and risk assessment
The procedure for resetting the lock is stressful for the operating system and requires prior preparation to avoid additional problems.First of all, make sure that the battery level is at least 50-60%.
The second critical point is that you have access to the Internet. Some methods, especially those involving a Mi Account, will require a stable connection to Wi-Fi or a mobile network. If the phone is locked and you are not allowed to pass beyond the password screen, you can connect to the network through the Recovery menu or when you call emergency services (unless such a vulnerability is closed in your version of the software).
⚠️ Note: All of the methods described below result in the complete removal of photos, contacts, messages and applications. Accept the idea that you will not be able to recover data without a pre-created backup in the Mi Cloud or Google Drive cloud.
It's also worth checking if Find Device is enabled, and if it's active, the phone will need to reset the password from the Mi Account it was previously linked to, which is an anti-theft mechanism that can't be avoided by simply resetting your settings, and if you don't remember the Mi Account password, the procedure becomes complicated and requires you to restore access through the manufacturer's website.
Reset the lock via the Recovery (Hard Reset) menu
The most versatile and time-tested way to remove any type of lock is to perform a hard reset through the Recovery Engineering Menu, which works on all Redmi, POCO and Xiaomi models, regardless of the shell version, the main condition is that the phone must properly load to the lock screen or at least respond to button presses.
To enter recovery mode, you need to turn off your smartphone completely. After that, press the combination of the buttons: usually a Volume Up button (Vol+) and a Power button. Hold them simultaneously until the Mi logo appears, then release the power button, continuing to keep the volume up. A menu with several points in English or Chinese will appear on the screen.
Navigation in the Recovery menu is done with volume buttons (up/down), and the power button selects the item. You need to find the Wipe Data item. In newer versions of MIUI, this item can be hidden in the submenu or require confirmation through the input of a special code displayed on the screen. If you see the code, enter it using volume buttons to move by numbers and a power button to confirm input.
☑️ Checklist before Hard Reset
Once you select Wipe Data, confirm the action by selecting Wipe All Data. The system will warn you of the consequences again. You agree, and the cleanup process will begin. Upon completion, the screen will show the message "Data wiped successfully." Now select Back to Main Menu, and then Reboot -> Reboot to System. The phone will restart, and the initial setup process will take a few minutes.
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If the Recovery menu is in Chinese, look for icons or item counts: Wipe Data is usually the second or third item on top.
Use of Xiaomi Find Device
If you have logged in to your Mi Account account and the internet is turned on on on on the locked device, you can try to unlock your smartphone remotely through the official Xiaomi Cloud service.This method is convenient because it does not require physical access to the device buttons, but it only works if the Find Device function has been pre-activated in the settings.
Go to the official i.mi.com website from a computer or other smartphone, enter the username and password from your Mi Account. In the cloud service interface, select Find Device, and the map will show the location of your gadget if it is online.
From the list of available actions, select the option “Erase” (Erase), which will delete all data and reset the screen lock password. However, as with Hard Reset, once turned on, the phone may require re-authorization to the Mi Account if the theft protection is active.
| Method | We need the Internet. | Data retention | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recovery Mode | No. | No. | Low. |
| Mi Cloud | Yeah (on the phone) | No. | Low. |
| Google Find My | Yeah (on the phone) | No. | Medium |
| ADB (debugging) | No. | Theoretically yes | Tall. |
*Note: ADB only allows password files to be deleted if USB debugging was enabled on the phone in advance and access permissions were given to the computer.
Search for the Google Find My Device
An alternative option for devices linked to a Google account is to use Find My Device, which is similar to the Mi Cloud, but uses a search engine infrastructure, and is effective if you don't remember the Mi Account password, but remember the Google data.
Go to android.com/find and log in to the Google account that was the main one on the locked phone. If the device is displayed on the map and is online, select Clean Device. This initiates a full reset command.
Once you do that, it will reboot. It's important to understand that on modern Android versions (7.0 and higher), FRP (Factory Reset Protection) protection will work after that reset. The phone will require you to enter a login and password from a Google account that was synchronized with the device before the reset, which is designed to protect against theft, so it's extremely difficult to get around this requirement without your account data.
What to do if your phone is not connected to the internet?
The problem of Mi and Google accounts (FRP Lock)
Many users are faced with a situation when after resetting the password with the lock screen, a new request appears: “Activate the device” or “Log in to the account”. Mi/Google». It's not a bug, it's a regular security system, and if you don't remember that data, the phone turns into a useless piece of plastic and glass.
To unlock Mi Account, you need to restore access through account.xiaomi.com. You will need access to the linked phone number or email. If the number is lost, the recovery procedure can take a long time and require you to contact the receipts for the purchase of the device in support.
Google FRP is a more complicated block, and only by entering the right data is officially circumvented, and informal methods of bypassing specific utilities (such as Mi Unlock Tool combined with certain actions, or exploiting vulnerabilities in TalkBack) are available, but they require a PC, special cables, and deep technical knowledge, and often stop working after Google’s security update.
⚠️ Attention: Purchase of withdrawal services FRP-The locking of the doubtful masters often leads to the fact that the phone is blocked again after a few days or the communication module stops working.
Fastboot and Mi Flash Unlock
If standard methods don’t help or the phone goes into a cyclic reboot after trying to reset, you can use Fastboot mode. This is a low-level mode designed to flash the device. It will require a Windows computer and the Mi Flash Tool or Xiaomi ADB/Fastboot Tools installed.
To log into the Fastboot on the phone turned off, press the Volume Down and Power buttons at the same time. The screen will show an image of a hare repairing an android, or the inscription will appear on the screen. FASTBOOT. Connect the device to the PC through high-quality USB-cable.
There are two types of unlocking via Fastboot:
- 🔓 Unlock Bootloader: The official method, requiring application on Xiaomi’s website and waiting (3 to 30 days) is unlocked after obtaining permission, allowing you to install clean firmware without being tied to regional accounts.
- 🛠 Forced flashing: Allows you to write a new image of the system on top of the old one. However, if the phone is "Device Locked" in Fastboot, you can not write global firmware over Chinese (or vice versa) without unlocking the bootloader - the program will give an error.
This is a method that works for power users, and if you get the wrong firmware, you can permanently shut down your device, and you can use the official firmware from miui.com or xiaomifirmwareupdater.com.
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Unlocking the bootloader through the official Xiaomi website is the only legal way to completely clear the phone of all bindings and regional restrictions, but it takes time and requires the availability of a mobile phone. SIM-map.