How to flash or reflash a Xiaomi phone, smartphone and tablet

When you purchase a smartphone or tablet, it usually already has firmware with a certain OS version, but this is not always convenient. And it's not even about the preinstalled functions. Many Xiaomi devices do not support the Russian language, and even if there is it, the translation may be inaccurate or incomplete. In addition, the Firmware often contains unnecessary options and applications that cannot be removed, or even worse, the gadget sometimes slows down, freezes, and does not open some programs. But these problems are easy to deal with - if you are not satisfied with the factory firmware of Xiaomi Mi5 or other devices from this manufacturer, then you can update or change it.

There are official and custom (Custom) Firmware. Custom builds are created by users, sometimes they are much better than factory OSes. Which software you choose is up to you.

Where to look for firmware?

A huge amount of Firmware is available on the 4pda website. There you can find firmware for any need, including global or Russian. Each OS has a description with screenshots and detailed instructions. You can immediately understand what the system interface looks like and what functions it has.

There is a specialized service with official Firmware for Xiaomi - proxiaom. There are news, reviews, articles, applications. Choose only the OS that is suitable for your phone or tablet. If you install Firmware that was developed for another model, then problems will arise with the gadget. The firmware can also be found on the official Miui website.

Unlock procedure

First, you will have to obtain official permission from the manufacturer to unlock. This is done using the link - https://en.miui.com/unlock/. It’s very easy to understand, because there is only one button. Click on it, thereby sending the request. To disable the lock, enter your Mi profile details. Sometimes the user is also required to enter personal data - phone number, name and country of residence. The manufacturer may also request the reason why you requested the unlock.

If the English version of the site is opened, then the data is entered in English. The Chinese version may also open, and then you will have to arm yourself with a translator. As the reason why you want to do unlocking, you can indicate the desire to install firmware with Russian language.

Processing the application takes several days, and sometimes about a week. Regularly review its status on the website so that it is unblocked as soon as possible.

Xiaomi phones are unlocked only in the developer's firmware. You can download it from official sources without the slightest restrictions. When you have received a positive response to your request from the manufacturer, you can begin the procedure.

Download the version of firmware you like for the developer.
Install Mi Flash Unlock (22.6 MB).
Turn off the smartphone, and then simultaneously hold down the power key and the volume down button to get into Fastboot.
We connect the gadget to a computer or laptop via a USB cable.
We activate Mi Flash Unlock and confirm the “Disclaimer”.
Log in to the system by entering your personal Mi profile data.
Click on the “Unblock” button.

If you did everything correctly, you have unlocked the bootloader. Now you just need to install custom Recovery on your unlocked phone and use it to install the firmware.

This method is suitable for any Xiaomi gadget that has a locked bootloader, including Xiaomi Redmi 4A and Xiaomi Mi4 phones, regardless of the amount of GB of RAM and internal memory.

What does "Locked bootloader" mean?

Bootloader (or “Loader”) controls the startup process of the operating system. This is analogous to a computer BIOS. If system files are damaged, the bootloader will allow you to activate recovery mode and reset the gadget to default settings.

In the latest Xiaomi models, Bootloader is blocked. This means that it will not be possible to reflash the device using standard methods. The manufacturing company sets a similar restriction so that third-party software is not loaded onto the devices, but rather they use a system that is specially designed for this gadget.

Online stores often install their own firmware. It may be filled with useless adware or be unstable. A blocked bootloader prevents you from downloading an incompatible OS to your Xiaomi device.

But this defense mechanism also has disadvantages. If you are somehow not satisfied with the factory Firmware, then you cannot change it, but you will have to look for workarounds.

You can try to remove the restriction by submitting an official request to Xiaomi. However, this doesn't always work.

You can find out if your bootloader is locked like this:

Turn off your device.
Press the volume up and power buttons at the same time. The combination may be different. It depends on the model. The instructions indicate which buttons to press.
If custom Recovery is enabled, it means that flashing Xiaomi Mi5 and other models is possible. Recovery is a debugging mode. You will recognize it by the “Install”, “Wipe”, “Backup”, “Restore” buttons.
If you see a screen like this, it means the bootloader is not locked.
If the phone reboots into Fastboot mode, it means the bootloader is locked. In this case, you can also install a new OS, but you will have to bypass the limitation, and if something goes wrong, it will be extremely difficult to restore the device.

What to do if you forgot your phone password?

There are situations in which the phone is locked due to repeated incorrect password entry. This can happen either by accident or because you have forgotten a previously set graphic or digital password.

On older MIUI firmware there was a password recovery function via Mi account. Now there is no such option, starting with MIUI 8 firmware. What to do in this case? Resetting Recovery will help, before which it will not be superfluous to unlock the bootloader. Please note: if unlocking itself does not threaten the safety of your data, then if you decide to reset your Xiaomi Note phone to factory settings, you will lose all data on the memory card.

Therefore, we first recommend removing both the SIM card and the memory card from the device. Logging into Recovery is still as simple as using the power and volume up buttons.

If your phone is locked not because you forgot the password, but after a child played with it and accidentally entered the wrong combination repeatedly, you can unlock it in a simpler way. Call from another phone to yours, accept the call and immediately minimize the dialog window. Next, through the settings, you can enter the correct password and unlock the gadget.

Before flashing

Before flashing Xiaomi Mi5 or any other model, do the following:

Fully charge the gadget so that the battery does not run out while reinstalling the OS.
Back up information from your phone or tablet. Save contacts, messages, sms, notes, photos, videos and other important data on another device or in network storage.
Install device drivers on your computer. They must be included with your smartphone or tablet. They can also be downloaded on the Internet, but in most cases they are installed automatically when you connect the phone to the computer.
Search online and download a utility called “adb”. This is a universal program that allows you to manage Android devices from a PC. You may need it to flash Xiaomi. Place the folder with it at the root of the system disk. The path to the directory should not contain Russian letters or spaces (it will turn out to be C:\adb).
Download the Firmware in advance that is suitable for your phone model. The name of a multilingual OS with Cyrillic support must contain the word “Global” (meaning “global”).
Enable USB debugging on your mobile device. To do this, go to the settings and tap on the item with the OS version several times. After this, the “For Developers” mode will become available in the parameters. The option you need will be there.
A USB cable must be available to connect the Xiaomi to the computer.

To update the firmware, connect the device to your computer

How to check if Xiaomi bootloader is unlocked

When the Mi Unlock program has completed setting up your smartphone, you need to check whether the bootloader is unlocked. This will take no more than five minutes. You can find out the status in two ways: through a smartphone and a computer.

Via phone

The described method is suitable for the latest version of the shell - MIUI 10:

Go to settings and select the “About phone” section.
Find the “Kernel” item and click on it several times in a row.
In the list that opens, click on “Software version”.
Find the words “fastboot lock state”.
If the status says “unlock”, everything was done correctly.

photo: attach.en.miui.com

Via computer (Windows, Linux)

You can also view the bootloader unlock status on your computer. To do this, the phone must be connected via USB. Checking on Windows is carried out in two minutes: you need to open the command line and enter the command “fastboot oem device-info”. If the window shows “true”, the unlock bootloader function has completed successfully. To check on a computer with the Linux operating system, you must:

open terminal;
enter the command “adb-sudo apt-get install android-tools-adb android-tools-fastboot”;

photo: 1.bp.blogspot.com

launch fastboot mode on your smartphone;
select “sudo fastboot devices”, under which the build number of the smartphone will appear;

photo: 1.bp.blogspot.com

look at the “sudo fastboot oem device-info” section, where the bootloader status is indicated.

photo: geek-nose.com

Firmware with MiFlash

To flash the gadget, you need to find and download the MiFlash program on the Internet, but installing it on a PC is not so easy. To do this, you should temporarily disable checking digital signatures of drivers.

Go to Start - Programs - Accessories.
Right-click on “Command Prompt” and select “As Administrator” from the list that appears.
Type “bcdedit.exe /set loadoptions DDISABLE_INTEGRITY_CHECKS” and “bcdedit.exe /set TESTSIGNING ON” in turn without the quotes. After each command, press Enter.
Restart your computer. A notification should appear that the system is operating in test mode.
Launch MiFlash. The OS will periodically warn you that the program does not have digital signatures. Confirm that you agree to the installation.
Do not change the initialization settings. The path to the directory with the utility should not contain Russian characters or spaces. Use only Latin characters in catalog names.
To exit test mode, type “bcdedit.exe /set TESTSIGNING OFF” at the command line. Then restart your PC.
To install adb, you also need to disable driver digital signature verification.

After this, you can download the firmware.

Unpack it to the root of the system disk. The directory name must also contain only English letters.
Turn off your phone.
Connect it to your PC via USB port.
Press the volume up and power buttons on your device. Hold them until recovery or fastboot is activated. This method is not suitable for Xiaomi Mi5 and models with a locked bootloader. In them you need to switch to EDL mode.
Launch MiFlash. The program should automatically detect that the gadget is connected to the computer. To update the information, click on “Refresh”.
Click Browse. Specify the path to the folder where the firmware is located.
Click on the "Flash" button. Wait for the installation to complete.
Disconnect your phone and turn it on. When starting for the first time, the system may take a long time to load.

Firmware via EDL

To install global firmware for Xiaomi Mi5, you need to switch the device to EDL mode. This is also true for devices with a locked bootloader.

Turn off the gadget.
Press the volume down and power buttons at the same time. Hold them until a hare wearing earflaps appears on the display, repairing the Android robot. This is a kind of Fastboot logo.
Connect your device to your PC.
Launch MiFlash. The program should display the connected phone.
Go to the adb directory.
Hold down the Shift key and right-click anywhere in the folder (where there are no files or directories).
From the context menu, select Open Command Window.
Write "fastboot devices" and click. The gadget's serial number will be displayed. If it does not appear, it means that the Xiaomi drivers are not installed correctly.
Type the command “fastboot oem edl” and press Enter. The smartphone screen will go dark. This means that it has entered EDL mode.
The computer will notify you that a new device has been detected and will automatically update the drivers for it. Wait for the process to complete.
In MiFlash, click "Refresh". Information about the connected device will change.
Now you can install Firmware.

Xiaomi firmware with locked bootloader if there is no EDL

Here's how to flash Xiaomi Mi5 to global firmware if EDL doesn't work on the device:

Repeat steps 1–9 from the previous chapter. If, when switching to EDL, the message “FAILED” appears, this means that this mode is blocked.
Find and download the Unlock_edl utility.
Unzip it to your system disk. Names must contain only English characters.
Connect your phone in fastboot mode.
Hold Shift, right-click on the Unlock_edl folder and select “Open Command Window.”
Enter the commands “fastboot devices”, “fastboot flash aboot emmc_appsboot.mbn”, “fastboot reboot-bootloader”, “fastboot oem edl” in sequence. After each one, press Enter. The edl mode should start.
You can install the firmware.

If there are any problems with the device, it is better to download the factory Firmware (Chinese) first. This will restore all system files and modes, and then you can use the multilingual OS.

To flash a Xiaomi device, you need to bypass the restrictions. In modern devices from this company, the bootloader is locked, so installing a new OS using standard methods will not work, but it is still possible to change the Firmware.