Apple

How to force an iPhone to restart


force restart an iPhone

Sometimes phones don’t work well and fail, it’s a reality. And although it is not always the system’s fault, there are situations in which we will be forced to force an iPhone to restart in order to have our phone working properly.

Would you like to learn how to force an iPhone to restart? We tell you the reasons why you can do it, the ways to do it and the alternatives you have.

When can we be interested in doing a forced restart on an iPhone?


all apple devices can be force restarted

There are certain situations in which we may be interested in forcing an iPhone to restart, basically Why can’t we do a normal reboot?.

One of the reasons is the classic that the phone is blocked or does not respond correctly. In the event that your iPhone is frozen or does not respond to interactions as it should, before giving it up as lost, it does not hurt to force a restart to see if it works well.

Although it is not necessary to force it, in moments of extreme slowness issues It could be difficult to restart the mobile due to its poor usability, so for this reason it could also be useful to find that way to reset it.

These slowdowns are not always caused by the operating system: some poorly designed applications that consume excessive resources They can be the key to having performance problems that need a forced reset.

If you have fallen into the misfortune of suffering from an application that causes a lag on your phone, force rebooting gives you the ability to get back into the system so you can uninstall it.

Finally, there are certain tools that are based on violating the phone’s security to recover deleted information (such as the famous Cellebrite suite), as well as being able to jailbreak our operating system and get the long-awaited access root for our user.

Some of these tools, in order to be able to operate within the steps that they indicate, may ask us that when a specific moment arrives, that let’s force reboot to exploit some vulnerability discovered by its developer.

How to force restart any iPhone model


reboot iphone

For iPhone 8 and later: an evolution thought of FaceID

Traditionally, the restart of Apple terminals used to be done using the Home buttons, which although they are present in versions 8 and SE of the iPhone, in the rest of the models starting with the iPhone X it was replaced by the massive use of FaceID.

The adoption of this standard for unlocking and security ended up causing Apple to have to consider changing the screen unlock model of its devices, complicating the mechanics a little more since a series of steps must be followed in an orderly manner to achieve that. reboot:

  • Quickly press and release the button volume up.
  • Then quickly press and release the button volume down.
  • Finally, hold side button (the one used to turn the device on/off) until you see the Apple logo on the screen.
  • Release it and the iPhone will automatically reboot.

Although this seems somewhat cumbersome (and it is, why are we going to lie) After doing these combinations several times, it will come out the first time. As they say in the English saying, “practice makes you perfect”

The case of the iPhone 7: a particular evolution

In the case of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus terminals, Apple wanted to differentiate itself from what it had to date by adding a slightly different combination, which we sensed that what it was trying to do was break the habit of using the Home button, which had already ceased to be a physical button and had become a haptic button.

To restart the phone, you must simultaneously press the power button (on the right or top side of the device) and the volume down button (on the left side), as always until the Apple logo is visible. Then release them and the phone will start as normal.

Legacy iPhone models: the case for the iPhone 6s and earlier

If what you have is an iPhone classified as legacy or vintage, you can also choose to force restart it.

To do so, simply hold down simultaneously the start button (circular button on the front) and the power button (at the top or side) until you see the Apple logo on the screen. Then release the buttons and the iPhone will restart.

Is there an alternative to force restart on an iPhone?


iPhone battery repair

If what you are looking for is to force an iPhone to restart and you want an alternative without having to use the buttons, there are two that do exactly the same thing but are less optimal.

The first is wait for the phone to run out of battery. A phone with a battery charge of less than 3.3V will turn off and automatically restart when fully charged. And although as a method it is very valid, we do not see it as advisable since it is tremendously slow: you have to wait for the battery to drain completely.

The other alternative, closely related to this, you can already imagine: disconnect iphone battery. And although as an option it is technically feasible and not too difficult, it requires opening the phone and having a minimum of technical skills that allow you to disassemble the battery. If you are interested in this topic, we talked a long time ago about how to change the battery on an iPhone in this article.

Conclusion: The Best Method to Force an iPhone to Restart


If we have to choose a method to force an iPhone to restart, our clear winner is to stick with the official method and not make weird inventions: Apple has already thought of this and although the method from the iPhone 8 is complicated, once we you become to it you automate it enough.

It is important to note that forcing a restart should not be done lightly, as it can cause the loss of unsaved data on open applications.

But also if you have had to use this method several times in a row, be careful. Maybe there is something else wrong with your phone that you don’t know about, so It doesn’t hurt to pay a visit to your nearest Apple Store and that they check what is happening with your mobile.

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