Like all Android smartphones on the market, HUAWEI phones also have a built-in battery optimization service that can kill your apps automatically when it deems fit. The purpose of doing this is to maximize your battery life. However, you may want to allow certain apps to run at all times, even if they use a bit more battery. Here’s how to stop your HUAWEI device from closing apps automatically:
TIP: This guide was written using a HUAWEI P60 Pro with EMUI 13.1.0 installed (based on Android 12). It should work the same for all HUAWEI smartphones and tablets, as long as they have a recent version of EMUI installed.
In the Settings app, go to Battery
You see several battery-related settings and power-saving modes. Tap on Launch manager.
Tap on Launch manager
TIP: To get to the same place, in the Settings app, you can also tap Apps & services, followed by Launch manager.
Your HUAWEI device now shows the list of apps installed on it. Most of them are set to Manage automatically. This means that EMUI can close their background processes as it sees fit based on its energy-saving algorithms. To stop this from happening for the app that interests you, scroll down the list until you find it or use the Search box at the top to enter the app’s name.
Find the app you want
When you find the app you’re interested in, tap on the switch next to its name. You are setting the app to Manage manually. A prompt is shown where you are asked what kind of activities you want to allow the app to perform:
Set the app to Manage manually
Find all the apps you want to run in the background and repeat the same steps. You’ll notice that their switches from the Launch manager list get turned off, and you see Manage manually beneath their name. This is good, as it means your HUAWEI device stops killing those apps when they run in the background.
TIP: If you have a HUAWEI smartwatch or fitness band, here’s how to turn your activities into social media memories with HUAWEI Health.
Disable Manage all automatically
WARNING: While disabling this setting solves your frustration with apps getting closed by your HUAWEI device, it also lowers the battery life of your smartphone, sometimes quite significantly! That’s why I recommend disabling the restriction for running in the background only for the apps where this is required.
In the Settings app, tap Apps & services
You see a screen with lots of options and settings related to apps. Tap on Apps.
Tap on Apps
This takes you to the list of apps and games installed on your HUAWEI device. Tap the four dots on the top-right corner and then on Special access.
Tap the four dots and then on Special access
You are shown several types of special access settings. Tap Battery optimization.
Go to Battery optimization
You see the apps that are set as Not allowed. These are the apps that HUAWEI never kills, not even when your Battery optimization is turned on. This list is relatively short, including apps made by HUAWEI and a few others. Tap on Not allowed and then choose All apps.
Tap on Not allowed and choose All apps
In the All apps list, find the app you want by scrolling down or search for it using the Search apps box on the top. Then, tap on its name.
Find the app you want
In the menu at the bottom of the screen, choose Don’t allow and tap OK. It sounds counterintuitive to select this setting. However, this setting means not allowing the battery optimization service on my HUAWEI to kill the app. This is why you are informed the setting may drain your battery more quickly.
Choose Don't allow and tap OK
Repeat this for all the apps you do not want your HUAWEI device to kill, and you are done.
Step 1. Set your HUAWEI to allow specific apps to run in the background
First, you must configure the EMUI software on your HUAWEI smartphone or tablet to allow the app you want to run in the background and stop closing its services automatically. To do that, open the Settings on your device. You should find a shortcut for it on your Home screen. In the Settings app, tap on Battery.- Auto-launch - allow the app to start itself automatically when you turn on your device or when it needs to run in the background.
- Secondary launch - allows the app to be launched by other apps that need it.
- Run in background - allow the app to keep running in the background for as long as it needs, whenever it needs.
BONUS: Set your HUAWEI to allow ALL apps to run in the background
If you want to be more radical and ensure that your HUAWEI smartphone or tablet allows all installed apps to run in the background, first tap the switch for Manage all automatically. Activating this switch enables EMUI (the operating system on your device) to manage all the apps and stop them from running in the background according to its algorithms. Tap the same switch once more to completely disable this feature, and allow ALL apps to run in the background.Step 2. Set your HUAWEI to disable the Battery optimization for your apps
Unfortunately, your work doesn’t stop here. To ensure that your HUAWEI smartphone or tablet never kills the apps you want to run in the background, you should also disable the Battery optimization feature for those apps. To do that, go to Settings again, and tap Apps & services.
Discussion (37)
Works like a charm even with Harmony OS 3.0. Thanks a ton!
Thank you for the feedback
Used your tutorial to activate RadioDroid for running in the background on a Huawei P smart phone. Works properly, thnak you!
Happy to help!
Thanks for the advice, worked like a charm! Now my eBay notifications work perfectly!
Very useful instructions – thank you!
Same for me p20 mate done all the settings and did not want to work for a music app????????
23/11/2020
On Huawei P30 smartphone with Android 10 (EMUI 10), app connects to internet while the screen goes off with mentioned setting but huawei suspend microphone input and cannot get microphone input while sleeping.
I’m using a p10 lite. I did the process but the app that i want is gmail, witch is not shown! Any tips?
Nice topic and clear enough to understand.
I try those settings on my Y6 EMUI 9.1
Hopefully, it works because that apps killing is really working on my nerves.
Grts
Didier
Huawei music app (obligatory for car audio) is on ‘not allowed’ and it still is killed by the system all the time. I know it because at least once a week when I jump into the car the music playback does not start (it hangs on question “do you want to allow push notification” on startup), to which I of course answer no, because I don’t want blink blink sounds killing my songs. It is asked every time if you say no. Mozart would do a blackflip in his grave. This phone cannot even playback car audio OK.
Thank you so much! So clear and helpful and solved the issue I was having with my Fitbit sync.
This didn`t work…Still it is not eny mark on the app icon for snapchat
great it helps me.
Unfotunately STRAVA does not work (it always loses GPS signal after 0,7km and stops recording) on my HUAWEI MATE 10 after upgrade on EMUI 10. Previous EMUI 9 worked properly.
Thank you very much. Ive been tring to solve this problem for many time…I think now its is solved. Tomorrow I will ride the bike using Strava and later let you know.
Many thanks from Brazil. Be safe.
It is perfect! Many thanks
Perfect! Thanks!
Very helpful, it works perfectly, very easy to understand, thank you very much!!!
Thank you for this! This has been giving me a headache ever since I got my Honor 10 lite. So frustrating to have forms or writing disappear when you look for info on another app, or addresses disappear from google maps unless you keep the screen on.
Seems to be working better already, I just thought my phone was broken and glitchy!
Glad to help. 😉
Exactly the same problem. I think the article is talking about Huawei killing the apps when you lock the screen, but here the problem is when I open another app and after 10 seconds I get back to the previous app, it restarts and I lose whatever I was doing. It is really frustrating and these steps don’t seem to work for me, Huawei P smart 2019 with EMUI 10. It really makes the phone useless and single-tasking. Any other advices?
It doesn’t work on a P Smart 2019. Any other tips?
You also need to change the battery optimisation setting –
Settings:apps:apps then tap the triple dot menu and choose “special access”, then “battery optimisation”.
From there you can choose the apps to exclude from optimisation.
(“not allowed” means not closed by optimisation feature)
Doesnt work.
Still not helping on Mate 20 Pro with EMUI 10. A manually allow apps all 3 checkboxes for running in background. And MIUI still killing my apps. Also I tryied to lock them in task switcher with swiping down an app preview for lock icon and it doesn’t help too.
Not working on P30
Why the browsers in not in the list, when i minimize and maximize the browser start fresh ????????????
Huawei mate 20 pro here, still having issues with it not connecting properly to fitbit tracker which requires connected GPS when I am running.
I’ve tried all these steps, but still the device can’t connect after 10-15 minutes of running because huawei shut the app in the background (I think).
Any further ideas?
It works on apps installed by user, but if for instance you try to do this with Chrome Explorer… You cannot even find it in the list!
PS.: Tried already on a Huawei P30 Pro, EMUI 9.1.0.175.
I tried it for Pokömon Go and it didnt help…
Thank you so much for this very informative and helpful discussion of how to run apps in the background for my new Hauwei. Runkeeper kept turning off when I was In San Francisco yesterday, and this article explained which settings I should change. Extremely helpful! Thanks!
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Thank you for the guid but in my huawei p smart 2019 this not works why?? I have done many times but it doesn’t work why?? Emui version 10.0 android 10
Thank you so much for the help. Every time i went running and used My running tracker it Disabled itself after 15 minuttes and I could understand why. This helped so much
Glad to help.
The app I want to protect is the in-built camera (for astrophotography I need to turn off the screen while the pic is taken), but that app is not shown 🙁 I have a P20, Emui 9.