Recovery of native recavery on Xiaomi: official and unofficial methods

Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi or POCO smartphones often face the need to return standard recoveries after experimenting with custom firmware such as TWRP or OrangeFox. native recovery (Mi Recovery) is required for official updates through OTA, reset to factory settings without the risk of "brick", as well as to pass the anti-rollback (ARB) test on new devices. However, the recovery process is not always trivial: MIUI actively blocks changes in system partitions, and improper actions can lead to the loss of IMEI or complete inoperability of the communication module.

In this article, we will analyze all the current ways to return stock recaverie – from official methods through the Mi Flash Tool to manual stitching through fastboot and bypassing locks. ARB 4.0+. Particular attention will be paid to the nuances for devices on Qualcomm Snapdragon and MediaTek, as well as problems with unlocking the bootloader after 2021. OTA-updates or gives an error "This" MIUI "Version cannot be installed on this device.

Why you can’t just flash recavities through TWRP

Many users are trying to return stock recavers in the most obvious way - through installation. ZIP-file TWRP. This method only works on older devices (until 2019) and is fraught with serious problems on new models:

• 🔒 Locking the bootloader: Since 2021, Xiaomi has implemented a mechanism ARB (Anti-Rollback, which compares firmware and recovery versions, installing an old recovery on a new firmware will result in a "brick" with the error "Anti Rollback Check Fail".
• 📱 Sections recovery_a and recovery_b: Modern devices use the system A/B, If you just do one partition, you get a cyclic reboot.
• 🚫 Loss of loss OTA-Updates: Even if the recovery stands up, the system may refuse to install official updates due to a misc hash inconsistency.

On MediaTek devices (such as the Redmi Note 11 or the POCO M4 Pro), the situation is complicated by the bootloader’s closed source code, and trying to flash backs through the SP Flash Tool without the correct auth files will result in the “SLA Auth Fail” (0xC0030004) error, the only reliable way to do so is to use the official Xiaomi tools, which will be discussed later.

Official method: firmware through Mi Flash Tool

The most reliable way to get your recap back is to flash the full Fastboot ROM image through the Mi Flash Tool, which works on all devices, including newer ARB 4.0 models (such as the Xiaomi 13 or Redmi K60).

Download the latest Mi Flash Tool (2026.4.18 or later)|Download Fastboot ROM For your model from the official website (Section "Download")|Unpack. ROM folder|Install Qualcomm or MediaTek drivers (depending on the processor)|Enable debugging on USB and unlock the bootloader (if not already done)-->

Step-by-step:

1. Turn off the phone and turn it into Fastboot mode (press Power + Vol−). Connect to the PC.
2. Launch the Mi Flash Tool, press Select and point the path to the unpacked folder with Fastboot ROM.
3. At the bottom, select "clean all and lock" mode (this is important for resetting ARB flags!).
4. Wait until it's finished (10-15 minutes) and the phone will reboot with factory settings and the family of Recaveri.

⚠️ Warning: Clear all and lock will lock the bootloader and erase all data, including internal memory (userdata). TWRP or ADB.

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If the Mi Flash Tool gives an error called “Can’t find fastboot device”, try reinstalling the driver manually through Device Manager (select “Mi Flash” or “Android Bootloader Interface”).

Hand-held firmware recovery via fastboot

If you only need to return the backs without having to reflash the entire system, you can use the fastboot utility. This method is suitable for devices with an unlocked bootloader and without actively locking the ARB. Importantly, on devices with dynamic partitions (for example, Xiaomi 12T or Redmi Note 12), this method may not work – you will need full firmware.

Files required:

• 📄 Stock Recovery for Your Model (File) recovery.img). You can download from the Xiaomi Firmware Updater website (select the version corresponding to the current firmware!).
• 🖥️ ADB Fastboot (part of Google’s Platform Tools).

Firmware commands:

fastboot flash recovery recovery.img


fastboot flash recovery_b recovery.img # Only for devices with A/B partitions (e.g. POCO F4)




fastboot reboot recovery

⚠️ Note: If after firmware the phone hangs on the logo MI or goes into the bootloop, so the version of the recavery does not match the firmware version of the ARB. In this case, only full firmware through the Mi Flash Tool will help (see the previous section).

Bypassing Anti-Rollback (ARB) on new devices

Since 2020, Xiaomi has implemented an Anti-Rollback mechanism that blocks rollbacks on older versions of firmware or recovery. If you are trying to return your native recovery on a device with an ARB 3.0+ (for example, Redmi Note 10 Pro, Xiaomi 11T), the system will issue an error and block the bootloader.

1. Check the current version of ARB via fastboot getvar anti (e.g., the answer anti: 4 means ARB 4.0).
2. Download Fastboot ROM with an ARB version equal to or higher than the current one.
3. Swipe the ROM in "clean all" mode (without locking the loader), then manually flash the recovers.

📌 Exception: On certain devices (e.g, POCO F3 Xiaomi Mi 11 can be bypassed ARB, If you have to use the same version MIUI, It's set now:

1. Download Recovery ROM (not Fastboot!) for your model from en.miui.com.
2. Unpack. ZIP-archive and find the file recovery.img picture-folder.
3. You can use fastboot flash recovery.img.

⚠️ Note: On devices with MediaTek (e.g. Redmi Note 11 Pro)+ 5G) circumvention ARB through hand firmware recavery is impossible - you will need a complete flashing through SP Flash Tool with authorization files (auth) These files are distributed only to authorized service centers Xiaomi.

Recovery of the Recovery on the blocked loader

If your Xiaomi bootloader is locked (locked status), you can't flash the recovers using standard methods.

1. The official unlock is via the Mi Unlock Tool.The process takes up to 720 hours (30 days) of waiting, but once unlocked, you can flash any recovery.
2. Exploiting vulnerabilities (only for older devices until 2020) for example, the Redmi Note 7 (lavender) could use an EDL-mode bug to unlock without waiting, and newer models do not work.

📌 Important: If you bought the phone with your hands and the previous owner did not untie the Mi Account, it will be impossible to unlock the bootloader without proof of purchase (check, box with a box of cards). IMEI). In this case, only a request to the Xiaomi service center with documents remains.

Checking the integrity of the recovery after firmware

Once the stock Recovery is restored, you need to make sure that the system recognizes it correctly.

1. Turn off your phone and press Power + Vol+ to enter the recaverie.
2. Check the look: Xiaomi’s native recovery has a blue interface with the MI logo and support for Chinese/English (on global firmware).
3. Select Reboot → System. If the phone loads normally, the recavery works.
4. Try to install it. OTA-Update through Settings → The phone. → Updating the system.

⚠️ Note: If the phone is running a recovery firmware error, "This package is for 'xxx' devices; this is a 'yyyy'," you've downloaded firmware for another model or region, such as the firmware for the Redmi Note 10 Pro (sweet) will not work for the Redmi Note 10 Pro. 5G (Always check the code name of the device!

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On devices with ARB 4.0+ (Xiaomi 12/13 series, Redmi K50/K60), trying to flash recovers from another version of MIUI will lead to a “soft brik” – the phone will boot, but lose communication (IMEI) and access to the camera, in which case only a complete flashing through EDL (requires an authorized Xiaomi account).

Frequent mistakes and their solutions

Even when following instructions, users often encounter problems, and consider common mistakes and ways to fix them:

• 🔧 Error "Invalid sparse file format at header": Occurs when trying to flash the recaveri through TWRP. Solution: Use only fastboot.
• 📵 Phone not turned on after firmware: Most likely, the discrepancy of versions ARB. Solution: Scroll through the full Fastboot ROM Using the Mi Flash Tool, "clean all".
• 🔑 Mi Flash Tool Requires Authorization: On New Devices (2022)+ year) for firmware through EDL Authorized account required, solution: use fastboot mode or contact the service.
• 🔄 Cyclical reboot after installing the recaverie: So, it will not stitch the section recovery_b. Solution: Sweep through both sections (see command above).

💡 Advice: If after all the manipulations the phone still does not accept OTA-Update, check the file /data/.ota_flag. Sometimes it contains incorrect firmware data. Delete it through ADB:

adb shell


su




rm /data/.ota_flag




reboot

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions