Using iTunes to Restore your iOS Device

This guide explains how to restore your iOS device using iTunes.

Requirements

You must have iTunes installed on your PC or Mac before you can follow this guide. You can download iTunes for Windows 64-bit here or download Windows 32-bit here.

You can also get the Mac version by using this link.

You will also need your iPhone, iPad or iPod with a USB cable without the connector.

Fst Off

First, open the iTunes application on your PC or Mac. Make sure it's setup before proceeding.

Connect your device to your computer using the USB cable.

Once your device is connected, make sure to check to see if you have a backup before proceeding with the following steps. All data, files, accounts, etc, will be lost if you don't backup your device, either to iCloud or iTunes.

Now, follow these steps.

1. On your device, act like you are doing a reboot by pressing the home and wake buttons together and holding them in for 10 seconds. When you reboot your device normally, you usually release both buttons. In this scenario, you want to realize the wake button, and keep the home button pressed down. This puts your device into a state called "recovery mode."
2. You should get a message from your computer on iTunes saying that you have put your device in recovery mode, and until you remove it from that state, you can not do as much. Dismiss this message and locate the device sidebar. This is usually the tabs located at the bottom, and make sure your device is checked.
3. Scroll down through your device's stats, like iOS version, device capacity, etc, until you find restore.
4. Select Restore and read the alert that appears, then press Restore/OKAY to continue.

During this process, don't press any buttons or disconnect your device, otherwise issues, like your device getting stuck in a boot loop, may occur.

Several Seconds Later...

You should hear your device's charging sound when the process is complete, or if on a phone, putting the ringer on silent will make it vibrate twice.

Now, you can toggle VoiceOver back on with a tripple click of the home button, and start completing the setup wizzard.

Once you reach the Restore screen, you can use your iCloud backup, or your iTunes Backup (requires USB), to restore all your content.

Conclusion

I hoped this guide helped. Please note that steps in this guide could be outdated at any time, and my goal is to update them as best as possible, but I can't always do this, as I don't use iTunes as oftenly as iCloud.

Hit me up with my contact form with any questions regarding this guide or other entries I've submitted.