You might need to put your iPhone in recovery mode to fix all manner of software problems, from a short battery life to totally unresponsive phone. Recovery mode is also especially useful if you’re having trouble updating or restoring your iPhone.
Before we get started, you should know that you’ll need a computer (running macOS or Windows) and a cable to connect it to your iPhone. If you’ve got everything you need, follow the steps below to learn how to put your iPhone in recovery mode.
Data Loss Concerns With Recovery Mode
If you need to put your iPhone in recovery mode to restore it, you can ignore this section because you’re going to erase all your data anyway. However, if you’re using recovery mode to update or troubleshoot your iPhone, you should know that it comes with a risk of data loss.
This isn’t always the case; usually you can enter and exit recovery mode without losing any data on your iPhone. But if something goes wrong, you may need to erase and restore your iPad to get it out of recovery mode again.
For that reason, we strongly recommend that you back up your iPhone before putting it into recovery mode.
How to Enter Recovery Mode on iPhone
The below steps will work with iPhone 8 or later, including iPhone SE (2nd generation and later).
- Make sure that your Mac is up to date. If you’re using a PC, make sure you have the latest version of the Apple Devices app or iTunes.
- Connect your iPhone to your computer with a USB cable.
- Open the Finder on your Mac, or open the Apple Devices app on your PC. If your PC doesn’t have the Apple Devices app, or your Mac is using macOS Mojave or earlier, open iTunes instead.
- Keep your iPhone connected and wait until the Connect to computer screen appears.
- Press and quickly release the volume up button. Press and quickly release the volume down button. Then, press and hold the side button until you see the Connect to computer screen.
After Putting an iPhone in Recovery Mode
Once your iPhone is in recovery mode, you need to use Finder or iTunes on your computer to update or restore the device.
Select your iPhone from the sidebar in Finder or from the top-left corner in iTunes, then go to the Summary or General tab and click Update or Restore, depending on your needs. Update will install the latest version of iOS without erasing any data. Restore will update iOS while also erasing all the data and resetting your iPhone to factory settings.
Force Restart Your iPhone to Exit Recovery Mode
If you need to exit recovery mode, but you don’t want to update or restore your iPhone, you should be able to do so by force restarting your iPhone. To do this, disconnect your iPhone from the computer, then quickly press and release the volume up button, then quickly press and release the volume down button, and then press and hold the side button until you see the Apple logo.
And if recovery mode didn’t help solve your software issues, consider using DFU mode with your iPhone instead, which offers a deeper level of software reset for your device.
iPhone Recovery Mode, Made Easy
We’ve seen how to enter recovery mode on iPhone 8 or later models. It’s a simple process once you know it, but the increasingly confusing button combinations are a bit obtuse. Hopefully, you won’t need to use these often, if ever.
