Restoring an iPhone from a backup, using iTunes, is a pretty simple and straightforward process. This article includes the step by step procedure to do the same.
People using smartphones, regularly store a lot of important data and information on their phone, since they carry out a multitude of activities on their device. But sometimes, all the data on the phone can be lost due to different reasons, and this is something undesirable.
You will be glad to know that every time you sync your iPhone with the Apple iTunes on your computer, the data on your phone is saved on your machine, by default. This is a security measure that is present on the device, and needless to say, it is a very handy security measure. Losing data is something that is out of our control, as no one plans to lose their data intentionally, it just happens. This could occur as a result of some corrupted program on the phone, a malfunction in the hardware or software, loss or theft of the phone, or due to intentional erasing of all data.
Restoring iPhone from a Backup File
Since the data has all been stored on your computer already, you just need to follow a few simple instructions in order to reinstall all the files and settings. If you’re concerned about how long does this process take, then don’t worry, as this is a very quick procedure.
- Connect the iPhone to the computer with which it was last synced.
- Click on ‘Agree’ for all the software licenses that open up initially.
- Enter all your iTunes account information, and fill up the information for the phone that the program will ask you for.
- Now choose the option ‘Restore from the Backup of’ and then pick an item from the drop down list. It is best to pick the most recent copy.
- The restore process will now begin, and it will be completed in a few settings.
- Now check the content on your device. Some music files will be excluded from this process, but most of your settings and other data will be transferred successfully.
- You can sync the excluded music back to the phone from the iTunes library with the regular method.
You never know when you might need to use this method for yourself, and it is the same procedure for any Apple iPhone model that you use. You must be aware though that in addition to your music content, all your video content, photo content, and downloaded applications, will not be reinstated with this method. You will need to re-sync your device to reinstall all this data, but this should not be too difficult. Your downloaded applications can be saved on iTunes beforehand, and this is something that you must do every time you plug the phone in. Keep copies of your applications and games because these cannot be reinstalled with the help of this method.
Another way to carry out this process is to simply plug the iPhone in and then control-click or right-click (depending on which computer you use) on the symbol appearing towards the left. From there you can select ‘Restore from Backup’, and you can even select ‘Backup’ to make a backup of your data at that very instant. You can also go to the Summary tab and then reinstate the data from there as well. Since you will be unable to sync any data and files on your device without iTunes anyway, we assume that you already have the latest version of iTunes installed on your machine.
A lot of people have a lot of fears and questions with regards to this process after jailbreak. You must know that jailbreaking is something that is legally allowed, so there are ways to get around the whole process. If you own a jailbroken iPhone, then you must surely be using some Cydia applications on it. Use a program like PkGBackup to store these applications and games, and this can be used to reinstall all these apps and games later.
When you restore a jailbroken device from iTunes, you can choose a file from date after the device was jailbroken and this will reinstate all those settings. You need not worry since Apple will not take any action against you. If you are still concerned you can get a restore file from an earlier date and then jailbreak the device again.