Modern cleaning devices are no longer just mechanical devices, becoming full members of the Smart Home ecosystem. Owners of Xiaomi robot vacuum cleaners often face the need to provide access to cleaning management to other family members, whether spouses, children or elderly parents, this allows you to monitor the cleanliness of the house from anywhere in the world and delegate tasks to start or stop equipment.
However, the process of synchronizing devices between multiple accounts is not always intuitive and requires compliance with certain security rules. The main account (administrator) must be configured correctly so that guest users can fully manage the functions, but do not have the right to delete the device or change critical network settings. In this article, we will discuss all the nuances of the transfer of rights, possible errors and ways to fix them.
Before you start setting up, make sure your robot vacuum cleaner is already successfully connected to the Wi-Fi network and is tied to the Mi Home app on the main smartphone. Without a stable connection to Xiaomi Cloud servers, access rights transfer is impossible, since it is the cloud services that are responsible for authorizing new users. Also, make sure that all devices that will control the vacuum cleaner have the current version of the application installed.
Preparation of the main account and verification of the region
The most critical point in the setup process is the region chosen when registering the main Mi Account. The company's servers are strictly segmented by geography: devices connected to servers in China will not be visible to users registered in Europe or Russia, and vice versa. This is a fundamental limitation of Xiaomi's security architecture, which cannot be circumvented by standard methods.
If you plan to share, all participants should use the same region in the application settings, and you can check this by opening a user profile in the Mi Home app and looking at the top line of the menu. If a family member has an incorrect region, the app simply won't see the device on the local network or in the cloud sharing list.
⚠️ Warning: Changing the region in an already configured account may cause all previously added devices to disappear from the list. Before changing the settings, make sure you have the option to re-assign the technique or use a separate test account.
Also, make sure that the main phone is geolocated and given all the necessary permissions to run the application in the background. The robot vacuum cleaner must constantly communicate with the server to instantly receive commands from any authorized user. If the device will often go offline, the synchronization of statuses between users can occur with a delay.
Step-by-step: Adding family members through Mi Home
The sharing process is implemented through Share, which is in the device-specific management menu, and it's the most reliable way to flexibly customize the rights for each user individually, so you don't have to pass on your account password, which makes your home network much safer.
To start, open the Mi Home app on your administrator phone and go to your robot vacuum cleaner card. In the upper right corner of the screen, find the three-dot icon or gear that indicates your device settings. In the menu that opens, you need to find the Shared Access (or Share device), which is usually located at the top of the options list.
☑️ Checklist before adding the user
Once you click on the add button, the system will suggest you choose the invitation method, you can send a link through messengers, enter a phone number or Mi Account ID of the recipient, the second user must accept the invitation in his application, after which the device will appear in his list of available equipment.
- 📱 Open the card of the robot vacuum cleaner in the Mi Home app.
- ⚙️ Go to the device settings (three dots in the corner) and select Shared Access».
- 👤 Click "Add" and enter Mi. ID or the phone number of a family member.
- ✅ Wait for confirmation of acceptance of the invitation on the recipient’s device.
Importantly, the guest will have almost full functionality: starting a cleanup, returning to the base, setting up a schedule and viewing a map, but they will not be able to remove the device from the network or change its association to another main account without your consent, which protects the equipment from accidental or malicious “weaning”.
Use of family groups and alternative methods
Some versions of the Mi Home app and certain robot models have Family Group, a feature that differs from regular sharing in that it allows you to centrally manage access to all devices in the house at once, rather than one at a time, and this is especially important for large apartments with many Xiaomi gadgets.
To create a family group, go to the user profile in the app and find the appropriate section. Once you create a group, you can add other users to it using their Mi ID. All the devices you share through this group will be automatically available to all its members. This makes it easier to manage, but requires that all family members trust each other with full access to the smart home.
What is the difference between a regular sharing and a family group?
There is also a method of using guest access, which is often confused with full-fledged sharing. Guest mode usually limits the user's experience to only basic functions, such as start and stop, without the right to edit cards or change voice packets. For permanent family members, it is better to use a full-fledged add-on via Mi ID.
| Function | Main account | Normal sharing. | Family group |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting the cleanup | ✅ Yes. | ✅ Yes. | ✅ Yes. |
| Editing the map | ✅ Yes. | ✅ Yes. | ✅ Yes. |
| Deletion of the device | ✅ Yes. | ❌ No. | ❌ No (usually) |
| Scheduling | ✅ Yes. | ✅ Yes. | ✅ Yes. |
| Access to history | ✅ Yes. | ✅ Yes. | ✅ Yes. |
Features of working with maps and virtual walls
One of the most challenging tasks in sharing a robot vacuum cleaner is synchronizing maps of the room, and the map is stored in the device's memory and copied to a server, from where it is downloaded to all users' phones. However, if one user decides to share a room or build a virtual wall, these changes can be displayed differently on devices with different screen resolutions or application versions.
Virtual walls and no-go zones are a critical element of navigation. If a guest accidentally removes a no-go area (such as around a water tray or wires), the robot can get stuck or cause a flood, so it is recommended that the main changes to the map's vlog are made by only one person - the administrator.
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Tip: If the card “got away” or disappeared after adding a new user, try saving the current card as “Map 1” on the main account, and then forcefully update the data in the guest app.
Some models, such as the Xiaomi Vacuum Mop 2 Pro or Roborock (powered by Mi Home), support storage of multiple cards.This is useful if family members want to have different settings for different floors, but when shared, it is better to leave one current map to avoid confusion.
Common mistakes and ways to solve them
Despite the simplicity of the procedure, users often encounter problems when trying to share a device. The most common mistake is trying to add a device that is physically far from the router or has a weak signal.
There is also a frequent issue of app version incompatibility: If the administrator has Mi Home beta installed and the guest has a stable version from the Store, the functionality may not work properly.
- 🚫 Device Occupied: This means that the robot is currently executing another user's command or updating.
- 🌐 Network Error: Check if the router is blocking the connection (e.g., via a router) MAC-Filtering or Guest Wi-Fi Network).
- 🔒 Two-factor authorization: if the user is enabled 2FA, You may need a confirmation code to log in to your account on a new device before accepting an invitation.
⚠️ Warning: Never attempt to control a robot from two phones at the same time at the same time, which can lead to a conflict of commands, where the robot will randomly change direction or interrupt the cleaning.
If the device doesn't show up with the second user even after accepting the invitation, try logging out of the app and logging in again, which will update the list of available devices from the cloud, and cleaning the app's cache in your smartphone settings also helps.
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The key to success: All devices in the chain (router, admin phone, guest phone, robot) must have the correct time and date.
Data security and privacy issues
By giving access to a robot vacuum cleaner, you're effectively giving a third party access to your housing layout. Modern models build detailed maps of apartments that can be used to analyze the lifestyles of owners. So add only people you trust to your trusted list of users.
It is important to understand that a remote user can see the history of cleaning, including when no one was home, this can become a security vulnerability in the home, regularly check the list of devices that have access to your account, and delete those users who no longer need access.
If you lose the phone that had your primary account, change the password from Mi Account immediately, which will break the session on all devices, including family phones, and require re-authorization, allowing you to control who will gain access to the robot after changing the password.