How to Restore Xiaomi Phone After Resetting to Factory Settings: The Complete Guide

Resetting your smartphone settings (or hard reset) is a radical way to get your device back up to speed when it freezes, viruses or before it sells. However, after this procedure, many users experience a blank screen, lost contacts and no familiar apps. You can restore your phone after a reset in a number of ways, from automatic synchronization via Mi Account to manually transferring data from backups.

The main problem is that Xiaomi devices with MIUI 14+ can block activation through an old Mi Account after a reset, if the device was not disabled in advance, due to the enhanced protection against theft that the company has implemented in recent firmware versions. In this article, we will analyze legal ways to bypass the lock (if your phone is yours), return lost data and configure the smartphone from scratch without errors.

Preparation for recovery: what to do before the reset

If you haven't done the reset yet, but you're planning to do it, stop and save critical data first. Xiaomi devices (including Redmi, POCO, Black Shark models) have built-in backup tools, but they don't work perfectly. Here's what you should do:

• 📱 Sync your contacts with Google Account or Mi Cloud. Check if the option is enabled in Settings → Accounts → Sync.
• 📷 Copy photos and videos to your PC or cloud. Built-in Gallery → Albums → Backup allows you to save media files to Google Photos or Mi Cloud.
• 🔑 Record your account details. After reset, you may need to re-enter your username/password from Mi Account, Google, banking apps, and social media.
• 📱 Unlink your Mi Account (if you sell a phone). This is done in Settings → Mi Account → Delete your account. Without that, the new owner will not be able to activate the device!

If the reset is already done and there are no backups, don't panic. Some of the data can be recovered using third-party tools (which we'll discuss below), but the odds depend on whether you wrote new data to your phone after the reset, and each new file reduces the likelihood of successful recovery of old ones.

Unlocking your phone after reset: what to do if you need a Mi Account

Since MIUI 12, Xiaomi has implemented a theft-proof mechanism called FRP, or Factory Reset Protection, where if the phone was tied to Mi Account and the link was not removed before reset, the system will require you to enter the username and password from that account on first activation, which is a normal security measure, but it creates problems for legitimate owners who have forgotten the data.

Here are some ways to unlock your phone (if your phone is yours):

• 🔑 Enter your Mi Account details. If you remember your login (this could be an email or a phone number) and password, just log in.
• 📧 Restore access to Mi Account. Go to account.xiaomi.com, click on "Forgot your password?" and follow the instructions. You will need access to your linked email or phone number.
• 📞 Contact Xiaomi Support. If the phone is officially purchased, provide a check, a box with IMEI and a passport. Support can remove the lock remotely (but the process takes up to 7 days).

⚠️ Warning: Do not use Fastboot or EDL bypass methods unless you are sure you are doing so. This can cause the IMEI to be completely lost or the device to be “bricked up.” On newer models (Xiaomi 13/14, Redmi Note 12), these methods often don’t work because of the closed bootloader.

Data recovery after reset: contacts, photos, messages

If the FRP lock is successfully passed, the next step is to return the lost data, depending on whether the backups were turned on before the reset.

1.Recovery through Mi Cloud

If the phone was authorized Mi Account and enabled synchronization, some of the data can be returned directly at the first setting:

1. When you first turn on, select “Restore from backup.”
2. Sign in to the Mi Account.
3. Select the latest backup (see the date of creation in the title).
4. Confirm the recovery and wait until it is completed (may take up to 30 minutes).

Through Mi Cloud, the following are restored:

✅ Contact

✅ Messages (SMS)

✅ Notes

✅ System settings (wallpaper, sounds, shortcuts)

❌ No photos, videos, apps (only a list of them for re-installation) are restored.

2. Restoration through Google Account

Google syncs individual data types even if the Mi Cloud has been disabled:

• 📇 Contacts are automatically restored when you add a Google Account.
• 📅 Google Keep Calendar and Notes – synced when you first connect to the Internet.
• 📱 Application List – Google Play will offer you to install previously used programs.

To check what data is stored in Google, go to myaccount.google.com → Data and Personalization → Synchronization.

Make sure your phone is connected to Wi-Fi|Charge the battery at least 50 times%|Check the vacant space (at least 2 GB is required)|Shut down. VPN (It can block access to Xiaomi servers)-->

3. Manual recovery of photos and files

If there are no backups in the cloud, there are two options:

1. Connect your phone to your PC, and use programs like DiskDigger, Recuva, or EaseUS MobiSaver, which scan your internal memory for deleted files, and success depends on how much new data you write after you reset.
2. Check the memory card (if it was in your phone) Photos and videos are often saved to the SD card, and resetting the settings does not affect them.

To increase the odds:

✔ Use the original USB- cable (cheap cables may not transmit data).

✔ Do not save new files to your phone until you recover.

✔ Start the scanner immediately after reset — every hour reduces the chances of 10-15%.

Setup of the phone after reset: step-by-step instructions

Once you unlock and restore the data, you need to set up the system correctly to avoid future problems.

1. Update your firmware. Go to Settings → About Phone → Update your system and install the latest version of MIUI. This closes vulnerabilities and improves app compatibility.
2. Log in to the accounts: 🔑 Mi Account (required, otherwise Xiaomi services will not work). 📧 Google Account (for access to the Play Market and synchronization). 💳 Banking applications (SberBank, Tinkoff, etc.) – they must be installed and re-associated.

Restore applications

Google Play

Set up security.

• 🔒 Enable screen lock (PIN or fingerprint) in Settings → Lock screen.
• 🛡️ Activate Find Device (Settings → Google → Security) for remote control of your phone.
• 📱 Disable the installation of applications from unknown sources (Settings → Applications → Special Rights).

Important nuance: On new Xiaomi models (Redmi Note 12 Pro+, Xiaomi 13T) after reset, 5G can be turned off. To return support for fifth-generation networks, go to Settings → SIM- cards and mobile networks → Preferred network type and select “5G/4G/3G/2G”.

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If the vibration or notification sound is lost after the reset, check the settings in Settings → Sound and Vibration → Vibration modes. Often the reset resets them to standard values that can be turned off.

Frequent mistakes after resetting and how to fix them

Even after a successful recovery, Xiaomi users face unexpected challenges, and here are the most common ways to solve them:

If after resetting the phone began to warm or brake, the reason may be:

• 🔄 Background data synchronization (wait 1-2 an hour until the system stabilizes).
• 📱 Outdated firmware (update MIUI to the latest version).
• 🗑️ Residual files from old applications (clean the cache in Settings → Storage → Clean up).

⚠️ Warning: On some models (POCO F3, Redmi K40) developer mode may disappear after reset. To return it, go to Settings → About Phone and 7 times click on Version MIUI. Then enable debugging on USB in Settings → Additional → For Developers.

Special cases: recovery from a failed discharge

Sometimes the reset is not correct: the phone is getting stuck on the MI logo, does not turn on or gives out errors.

1.The phone is stuck on the screensaver of MI or Redmi

This happens if:

• 🔋 The battery is discharged during reset (plug in charge and wait 10-15 minutes).
• 📱 The firmware is damaged (you need to reflash the phone via Fastboot).
• 🔄 Conflict after the update (try logging in to Recovery and resetting again).

To get out of the freeze:

1. Press the Power button + Volume up for 10-15 seconds to force the phone to turn off.
2. Turn it on again. If the logo is hanging again, go to Recovery (press Power + Volume up when you turn it on).
3. From the Recovery menu, select Wipe Data → Wipe All Data.

2. the telephone shall not be switched on after discharge

If the screen is black and the charging indicator is not lit:

• 🔌 Connect the original charger and wait 30 minutes (the battery may be completely drained).
• 🔄 Try a hard reboot: press Power + Volume down for 20 seconds.
• 📱 If it doesn't work, the phone might have suffered a hardware failure (e.g., a battery plume disconnected), and you need a diagnostic at the service center.

3. "No Command" error in Recovery mode

If you try to enter Recovery, a robot appears with an exclamation point and the inscription No Command:

1. Press the Power button and briefly press Volume up.
2. If it doesn’t work, connect your phone to your PC and use the command: adb reboot recovery.
3. In extreme cases, run your phone through Fastboot (instruction below).

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If the phone doesn't respond to any combination of buttons, but when you connect to the PC, it makes a sound, the problem is in the screen or the plume, not the firmware, and then resetting through ADB or Fastboot won't help: you need repairs.

Fastboot Firmware: The Extreme Recovery Method

If none of these methods worked, and the phone still doesn't work properly, it's still firmware through Fastboot, a method that's suitable for power users and requires a PC with Xiaomi drivers installed and the Mi Flash Tool.

Warning: Incorrect firmware can turn your phone into a brick. If you are not sure about your actions, contact the service center.

Step-by-step:

1. Download the firmware for your model from the official Xiaomi website. Choose the version of Fastboot (file with the extension.tgz).
2. Install drivers: Download Mi PC Suite from the official website. Connect your phone in Fastboot mode (press Power + Volume down when turned on). Wait for the drivers to be installed in Device Manager (Android Bootloader Interface should appear).

Unpack the firmware.

C:\Xiaomi\ROM

Mi Flash Tool

• Select a firmware folder.
• Press Refresh – the program must detect the phone.
• Select Clean All (complete clean) or Clean All and Lock (if you want to lock the bootloader back).
• Press Flash and wait until it is completed (5-10 minutes).

Warning: Bypassing locking through firmware on newer models (Xiaomi 13/14, Redmi Note 12) often doesn't work due to hardware protection.