Background
I have a Xiaomi Pad Pro 5G that I bought two years ago. After upgrading to the latest MIUI 14 system, I found that Google Play Store downloads would get stuck, no matter what kind of app I was trying to download.
Beforehand Procedures
I tried resetting the Google Play Store by clearing all its data. This didn't work.
I rebooted my tablet.
I downloaded and updated to the latest Google Play Store app. I used the APKPure website to download the original APKs.
However, the downloads were still stuck in a pending state. So I started investigating the issue.
Details
Flashing the International ROM
I decided to try flashing the International ROM. This is a non-official ROM that is developed by the community. To do this, I first needed to unlock the bootloader on my tablet.
Here are the steps on how to unlock the bootloader on a Xiaomi device:
Bind your device to a valid Xiaomi account.
Insert a valid SIM card if your device is cellular-enabled.
Enable the Developer mode switch in the Settings app.
Wait at least a week for the device to be unlocked using the Mi Unlock Tool. This tool is only available for Windows PCs.
I was able to unlock my bootloader successfully. I then downloaded the International ROM from the MIUIVer website.
However, I failed to flash the International ROM. There are a few things to keep in mind:
You need to use a download accelerator such as Folx Pro to speed up the download process.
You need to download the ROM for the correct device model. For example, the Mi Pad 5 is a different device from the Mi Pad Pro.
I downloaded a third-party ROM from a website that I would rather not mention. This ROM was not different from the official latest version, and I encountered some errors while using the flashing tool. I lost CNY 29 on this purchase.
Solving the Network Problem
After my struggles with the International ROM, I decided to flash the last stable MIUI 12 version, which is coded as 12.5.8. I then recalled that my Google TV had recently been unable to connect to the internet, even though my home network and wireless router were working fine.
I wondered if the problem with the Google Play Store downloads on my tablet was also related to the network. So I changed some settings related to the time, region, and language.
I set the date synchronization to manual mode and the region to the place where my network is located. However, this didn't work.
Finally, I found some threads that suggested that the problem could be solved by globally redirecting all traffic to a specific network node. This worked!
The Final Solution
To fix the Google Play Store download stuck on pending issue on the Xiaomi Pad Pro 5G:
Set Open**sh mode to Global.
Set up a Hong Kong node.
I did some research and found that the Meta version of Open**sh may have some bugs that prevent it from properly processing some special network packets that are necessary for Google Services. However, this cannot be seen from the dashboard (for either the normal or meta version).
To fix this, you can:
Set the mode to Compatible mode.
Check the redirecting UDP traffic.
Conclusion
This was a tough experience, but the solution was actually very simple. The most important thing is to follow an effective exploration path. Otherwise, you will waste a lot of time and patience.
Additional Tips
If you are not comfortable flashing ROMs or changing network settings, you can try contacting Xiaomi support for help.
Be careful when downloading third-party ROMs from unknown sources. These ROMs may contain malware or other security risks.
If you are still having problems after following the steps above, you can try resetting your tablet to factory defaults. This will erase all of your data, so be sure to back up your important files first.