If your iPhone 13 is acting up—stuck on the Apple logo, in a boot loop, or just plain unresponsive—restoring it through iTunes on a Windows PC might be your best move. This guide walks you through the different ways to restore your iPhone, whether you’re doing a standard restore, using recovery mode, or going all in with DFU mode.
What You Need First
- A Windows PC with the latest version of iTunes installed.
- A Lightning to USB cable to connect your iPhone to your computer.
- A backup of your iPhone (if you want to restore your data afterward).
- A stable internet connection for downloading iOS firmware.
Option 1: Standard Restore via iTunes Backup or New Setup
Use this method if your iPhone is working but needs a clean slate or a fresh backup restore.
- Connect your iPhone to your PC using a Lightning cable.
- Open iTunes, then click the device icon near the top left.
- Under the Summary tab, click Restore Backup.
- Choose the backup you want to restore from.
- Click Restore, then enter the encryption password if prompted.
- Let the process complete without disconnecting the iPhone.
This method wipes the device and restores it from the selected backup—or lets you set it up as new.
Option 2: Recovery Mode Restore (for stuck or disabled devices)
If your iPhone is unresponsive or you’ve forgotten your passcode, try this next:
- Turn off your iPhone 13 completely.
- Open iTunes on your PC.
- Press and hold the Side button while connecting the iPhone to the PC.
- Release the button when you see the Recovery Mode screen (a computer and cable icon).
- iTunes will prompt: “There’s a problem with the iPhone…” Choose Restore.
- Follow the onscreen instructions to reinstall iOS.
This will erase everything on the iPhone and install the latest version of iOS.
Option 3: DFU Mode Restore (last resort)
DFU (Device Firmware Update) mode is the most advanced recovery method, bypassing the operating system altogether.
- Connect your iPhone to your PC via Lightning cable.
- Follow this exact button sequence:
- Quickly press Volume Up.
- Quickly press Volume Down.
- Press and hold the Side button for 10 seconds (until the screen goes black).
- While still holding the Side button, press and hold Volume Down for another 5 seconds.
- Release the Side button but keep holding Volume Down for another 10 seconds.
✅ The screen should stay black. If you see the Apple logo or recovery screen, you didn’t enter DFU mode—try again.
- iTunes will detect your iPhone in recovery mode. Click OK, then choose Restore iPhone.
Restoring via Finder on a Mac (macOS Catalina and later)
If you’re using a Mac instead of Windows:
- Connect your iPhone to your Mac using a Lightning cable.
- Open Finder and select your iPhone from the sidebar.
- Click Restore iPhone under the General tab.
- Choose your backup or set up the device as new.
- Wait for the restore to finish—don’t unplug the phone.