This article is still relevant but there is a newer version on the topic of iPhone passcode unlocking you should also read.
You have found your way to this page because you have forgotten your passcode on your iPhone and don’t have an iTunes backup.
Worse than that, you are worried that you may lose all your data.
So far, I expect you have tried to unlock your iPhone using the wrong passcode many times. Your heart sunk, when you tried 6 times and got the ‘This iPhone is disabled’ message.
You may even have got as far as using 10 attempts and seen a message saying your iPhone has been disabled and you must connect it to iTunes to fix it.
Don’t panic – you can unlock an iPhone if you forgot your passcode and had 10 attempts. You may be able to keep you data even without an iTunes backup.
There are many types of lock used by Apple to secure their devices such as IMEI lock, passcode lock and the iCloud lock. Each needs a different method to be removed such as the iPhone activation lock bypass or the iPhone 6 unlock. This article only deals with the passcode lock.
Consequences of wrongly guessing your iPhone passcode
No. of tries | Consequence |
---|---|
6 attempts |
Your iPhone is disabled for 1 minute |
7 attempts |
Your iPhone is disabled for 5 minutes |
8 attempts |
Your iPhone is disabled for 15 minutes. |
9 attempts |
Your iPhone is disabled for 60 minutes |
10 attempts |
You get the message “iPhone is disabled. Connect to iTunes” OR your iPhone is completely erased if Erase Data is turned on in Settings > Touch ID & Passcode (or Settings > Passcode for iPhones without Touch ID). |
iPhone passcode FAQ
How to fix this error
The fix you need to unblock your iPhone passcode depends on your circumstances.
- How to unlock your iPhone passcode if you have previously synced your iPhone to iTunes
- How to unlock your iPhone passcode if you have never synced your iPhone to iTunes
- How to unlock your iPhone passcode if you don’t have access to a computer
How to unlock your iPhone passcode if you have never synced your iPhone to iTunes
1. Synchronise your iPhone to your computer – you can do this even if you iPhone is locked. This creates a backup of everything on your phone. Obviously this works best if you have access to the computer your regularly sync your iPhone with.
The video below explains how to sync an iPhone if you are unsure.
2. When you connect your iPhone to the computer you may get this error message: “iTunes could not connect to the iPhone because it is locked with a passcode. You must enter your passcode on the iPhone before it can be used with iTunes.”
While your iPhone is still connected to your computer reboot your iPhone by holding down the power and home buttons at the same time. As soon as the Apple logo appears, let go of the power button but keep the home button depressed until you see a “Connect to iTunes” message appear on the iPhone screen.
3. On your computer, you will see a message appear in iTunes that a phone in recovery mode has been detected. You will be prompted to choose whether you want to restore your iPhone to factory settings, or restore it from a backup – if you want to put all of your personal information, contacts, messages, etc. back on to your phone, be sure to choose to restore it from the backup you performed in step 1.
The video below shows how the restore process works if you are unsure.
4. Your passcode will be erased and then all of your data will be restored from your backup. Once this process completes, the passcode will have been removed from your iPhone, and you should now be able to access it without any problems.