How to Restore iPhone without iTunes (Fast and Easy)

Summary

This post will be divided into two parts:
1) how to restore a disabled, frozen, or locked iPhone without iTunes;
2) how to recover iPhone data without iTunes.
You will also need Passvers iOS System Recovery to deal with all possible situations.

iTunes is useful for iPhone /iPad. It can restore data or factory reset an iOS device when it is frozen, locked, or dead. However, there are many situations when you would like to restore/factory reset iPhone or iPhone data without iTunes, for example:

When iTunes fails to restore the disabled/locked iPhone or get iPhone out of recovery/DFU mode.
iTunes shows error 3194, 4013, 4014, 9, 51, etc. when you try to restore iPhone with iTunes.
When you don't get any iTunes backup.
When you only need to extract several contacts/photos instead of restoring the whole iTunes backup.

And we’ve rounded up some practical solutions to help you out.

📝 Quick Navigation:

Refer to Part 1. Restore iPhone System Without iTunes if you want to fix a disabled/locked/frozen/broken iPhone by restoring it wihout iTunes or passcodes.
Head to Part 2. Restore iPhone Data Without iTunes if you want to restore iPhone from a backup or recover the deleted data of iPhone without iTunes.

Part 1. How to Restore iPhone System Without iTunes

When your iPhone is stuck at recovery mode, DFU mode or is disabled after entering a wrong passcode too many times, you may need to factory reset your iPhone with iTunes. However, sometimes, iTunes just stops working when you really need it or fails to fix your iPhone back to normal by throwing error 3194, 3013/3014, etc. Luckily, there is another way that can format your iPhone without iTunes.

Passvers iOS System Recovery can reset the iPhone without iTunes and get your device out of abnormal states. It can:

Factory reset locked or disabled iPhone without passcode without iTunes;
Restore iPhone stuck at Recovery mode/DFU mode without iTunes;
Fix iPhone in a boot loop, frozen status back to normal;
...

Most importantly, the Passvers program is easy to operate and can restore your iPhone with higher data security. It offers three repair modes: Free Quick Fix, Standard Mode, and Advanced Mode. The first one is totally free and can fix subtle system errors, and only the Advanced Mode will erase all the contents on your phone while the first two can help you out without wiping data.

Supported Model:

iPhone 13 Pro Max/13 Pro/13/13 mini/12 Pro Max/12 Pro/12/12 mini/11 Pro Max/11 Pro/11/XS/XS Max/XR/X/8 Plus/8/7 Plus/7/SE/6s Plus/6s/6 Plus/6/5s/5c/5/4S/4
iPad: All models of iPad Pro, iPad Air, iPad mini and iPad
iPod: iPod touch 7/6/5/4/3/2/1

Tutorial Video – How to Restore iPhone or iPad Without iTunes

Follow these steps to fix your iPhone without iTunes.

Step 1. Download iOS System Recovery to PC/Mac

Click the download button below to get iOS System Recovery software on your PC or Mac. Then launch the program and click Start.

Step 2. Connect iPhone to Computer

Connect your disabled or frozen iPhone to the program.

If your iPhone is in recovery mode, the program will smartly detect whether your device is in an abnormal state. Rest assured and just click Confirm to continue.

If your iPhone is disabled, click Advanced Mode to continue.

Step 3. Enter Recovery Mode/DFU Mode

If you have chosen Advanced Mode, you'll need to follow the instruction to put your device in DFU mode.

If not, follow the steps on the instructional window to enter Recovery mode in your iPhone. You may also skip this step if your iPhone is stuck at recovery mode or DFU mode.

Step 4. Double-Check Information of Your iPhone

You'll need to confirm the device name, the model of your iPhone. Make sure the information is correct about your iPhone.

After that, the software program will provide all possible and viable firmware for downloading and repairing your iOS devices. Then you may select to download or import in your device.

Step 5. Restore iPhone Without iTunes

Click Next > Repair. In the Standard Mode, the program will download suitable firmware according to the information you have provided and begin to restore your iPhone.

After the firmware is successfully downloaded and imported to your iPhone, the program will repair the potential vulnerability and unknown issues on your iPhone. Wait patiently then your iPhone will be fixed.

Please notice that if you restore the disabled iPhone in Advanced Mode, all your data will be gone after resetting your iPhone. To get your iPhone out of recovery mode, Apple logo screen, or black screen issues using the Standard Mode, all data will be fine on your phone.

Tip If your iPhone is detected successfully after you launch Passvers iPhone System Recovery, a free quick fix page will prompt. From the window, you will notice that the program also has the ability to upgrade or downgrade your iPhone system, and can restore iPhone from a certain of device issues for free.

Extra Tips A Comparison Between Restoring iOS Device with iTunes and Third-Party Tools.

	Erases all information	Upgrade or Downgrade iOS system	Factory Reset	Troubleshoot and Fix Device-related issues	Troubleshoot and Fix Screen-related issues	Troubleshoot and Fix Recovery Mode-related issues
Restore iPhone with iTunes	Y	Y	Y	N	N	N
Restore iPhone with Passvers	N	Y	Y (Uses Advanced Mode)	Y	Y	Y

Part 2. How to Restore iPhone Data Without iTunes

If you accidentally deleted important data such as contacts, photos, videos, SMS, etc. on iPhone, FonePaw iPhone Data Recovery can help you recover lost data from iPhone without iTunes backups or restore data from iCloud/iTunes backups without iTunes. It can:

Recover files from iPhone directly, which requires no iTunes backup.
Restore data selectively from iTunes/iCloud backups.
Can be used to recover all kinds of files from iCloud/iTunes backup when your iPhone is water damaged, lost, frozen, or locked.
Works with iPhone/iPad running on latest iOS 15 and more.

Here's how to restore iPhone data with FonePaw iPhone Data Recovery:

Step 1. Launch the FonePaw Program

After downloading and installing the program, run it on PC with double clicks. Then you will see an interface below. Connect iPhone to the computer via a USB cable. After that, select the first recovery mode "Recover from iOS Device" and then click on "Start Scan" to continue.

Note If you have an iTunes backup, you can choose "Recover from iTunes Backup File" to restore iPhone from iTunes backups without iTunes.
If your iPhone has backed up to iCloud, you can simply restore iPhone from iCloud by entering your Apple ID and password in "Recover from iCloud Backup File" mode.

Step 2. Scan iPhone data on PC

All iPhone data will be automatically scanned by the program. You can pause or stop the scanning process at any point you like.

Step 3. Preview and restore iPhone data

Soon you will see that all iPhone files are listed on the menu in certain categories. Select "Camera Roll", "Videos", "Contacts", "Notes" or any other data you like to take a deep preview of. Just mark down the items that you want to get back to iPhone and hit on the "Recover" button to save all marked files to PC.

Passvers iOS System Recovery

Fix your iOS system without losing any important files!

Part 3. FAQ About Restoring iPhone

Is restoring iPhone the same as resetting?

No, it isn't. Restoring iPhone actually goes deeper that resetting.

In general, if you reset an iPhone, you go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone to reset the phone and fix simple issues like the network connection and location error or keyboard, screen bugs. Although you may factory reset your iPhone by choosing Erase All Content and Settings and all the data on your iPhone is wiped out, it’s still lighter than restoring because resetting does not affect the firmware and iOS system version of your iPhone.

But restoring your iPhone usually means wiping all your data and even the OS on the phone and your phone will look like a brand new one inside with a clean OS after the restoration. Or you can restore your phone from being stuck on DFU Mode or frozen status, etc. If you don't back up your data and restore your phone, you will lose all your files, contacts, messages, or call logs. But you can get them back with third-party software like FonePaw iPhone Data Recovery.

Are there other ways to restore my iPhone without iTunes?

In order to restore your iPhone system, except for using third-party software like FonePaw iOS System Recovery, you can also try using Finder if you’ve got a Mac computer.

Step 1. Connect your iPhone to your Mac via a USB cable. (You may need to tap “Trust” to confirm authorization)
Step 2. Open Finder and choose your iPhone at the sidebar.
Step 3. Head to General > Software > Restore iPhone to factory reset the iOS device and reinstall the system. If your iPhone cannot be detected normally, you may need to put it into recovery mode and then try to connect to Finder again.

However, it has to be noted that Finder is the alternative software of iTunes for a Mac. Actually, it works the same way as iTunes. So, this way is only recommended when you prefer to use iTunes but cannot access it. If you fail to solve the problem with iTunes, using Finder might not function either.

Can iCloud restore my iPhone system?

In fact, you can only restore some deleted data to your iPhone from iCloud if you've backed them up before. But it can't restore your phone system with iCloud as you do with Passvers iPhone System Recovery. So if there are some errors with your iPhone, fix it first and then you can restore your data from iCloud.