Reset your iPad or iPhone? Sound scary right? Maybe. There might be few reasons why you would want to reset your iPad or iPhone. For instance, you might want to sell it later or maybe pass it to a family member. One of the most common cases would be the forgotten passcode issue.
May I need to remind you that resetting your device means erasing all of the content and should be a last resort option and one you should only take in rare circumstances. However, resetting can also serve as a good option to resolve issues with your iPhone or iPad if it’s crashing or freezing, or suffering from problems you can’t identify. Though It’s not a guarantee, you’d be surprised how often it works.
There are few ways you can use to reset your iPad or iPhone. In case your device is not responding or your iPhone is frozen, you might want to consider a hard reboot. You could also try using iTunes if you’ve synced with iTunes, but if not, you can use recovery mode. Interestingly, you can remotely erase anything personal on your device if you’ve been the victim of theft.
Most importantly, make sure you made a backup before any of the incidents like forgetting your passcode or before it got stolen. Apple devices are encrypted out of the box meaning that erased files aren’t simply hidden and displayed as free space, but are completely removed. And no software can bring back deleted files.
It’s not much of a big deal resetting your device if you follow the steps below. Like earlier stated make sure that important information is backed up before you wipe your device.
How To Reset Your iPad Or iPhone Using iTunes
If your iPhone is unusable for some reason, you can reset it to factory settings via iTunes. These steps will help you restore your iPhone or iPad to factory settings via iTunes on your PC or Mac.
- First, connect your iPhone or iPad to a PC or Mac you synced with.
- Open iTunes.
- Wait for the device’s icon to show up on iTunes. It will appear below the play/ pause button. Once it shows up, click it.
- Now you may be asked to enter the passcode and whether to “Trust this computer” on your iPhone or iPad. Make sure you trust the computer once you enter the passcode.
- Now on iTunes on your computer, click the blue Restore iPhone… button.
- Then click the Restore button in the pop-up to begin resetting your iOS device to factory settings.
How to Factory Reset Your iPad Or iPhone
- Go to Settings > General > Reset.
- Here you will see several options. To bring your iPhone back to its factory default settings, tap on “Erase All Content and Settings” and then on “Erase iPhone”.
- You may see a prompt that asks you to update your iCloud backup before erasing. You should tap Back Up Then Erase. However, if you don’t want to update your iCloud backup, tap Erase Now.
- If a Passcode or a Restrictions Passcode is set, you will be asked to enter it before being able to reset your device.
- After you enter the Passcode you will be asked for your Apple ID password. Enter it to begin erasing all data from your device. Once you do these things, you will be able to reset your iPhone or iPad.
- The reset back to factory settings will run and shouldn’t take more than a few minutes. When you see the welcome screen, it means the factory reset is finished and no personal data is left on the device.
Note that you can also customize it if you don’t want to completely reset your iPhone or iPad. You can just reset certain things such as device settings, network settings, keyboard dictionary, home screen layout, and location & privacy. All of these options can be seen under Settings > General > Reset.
Hard Reset Your iPad Or iPhone
You might find this method very useful if your device has never been synced with iTunes before. Follow these few steps below.
- Plug the USB cable to your PC but don’t plug your iPhone/iPad just yet. Don’t start iTunes either
- Grab your device and hold down the “Sleep/Wake” button for a few seconds. After the slider appears, perform a finger swipe to turn it off.
- Now plug the USB cable to your iPad or iPhone while holding the “Home” button to turn the device on.
- When “Connect to iTunes” message appears, release the button.
- Launch iTunes. It will tell you that it detects your iPad in recovery mode. Click “OK” and then “Restore” to begin the reset.
Remotely Reset Your iPad Or iPhone Using Find My iPhone
This method is especially convenient if you have lost your device or it has been stolen. Below are few steps you could follow to do so.
- Go to the Find My iPhone website and log in using your Apple ID.
- If you have more than one device in this account, choose the one that you want to reset from the list of available devices.
- Click the “Erase iPhone” or “Erase iPad” option available in your device’s information box.
- You’ll be asked to confirm your decision. After that, the reset will start. If the device is offline, it will begin as soon as the device becomes online.
