When you need to erase iPhone but the option Erase All Content and Settings not working, you can follow this guide to know why it happens, how to fix it, or erase it in another way.
iPhone 7 erase all content and settings not working
I have got my new iPhone 11 so I decided to factory reset my old iPhone 7. I have made a backup but there is a problem deleting iPhone content. After I tap Erase Content, nothing happens even after several minutes. What should I do?
- Question from Apple Community
iPhone could store all your important data. If you don’t use your iPhone or are going to sell the device to a stranger, you need to remove the data in case of data leak. Usually, everything could be just done by one step on iPhone.
Go to iPhone Settings > General > Reset > Erase All Content and Settings. Enter your passcode, confirm you would like to erase the device, and then your device would become empty. Don’t forget to backup iPhone to computer before you erase iPhone.
Although most of the time iPhone’s reaction is satisfying, an error might occur when you delete the data. If you tap it but get no response or are told that verification failed, you could find a way to fix the issue erase all content and settings not working.
Section 1. How to fix erase iPhone content and settings failed
Section 2. How to Erase iPhone content with iTunes on computer
If you cannot erase iPhone with the right Apple ID and password, it is mostly caused by bad Internet so in this section, suggestions are mainly about fixing network issues.
Solution 1. Check Internet Speed: Although you are erasing your data on your own device, the Internet is a must in this process. Without the Internet, you cannot start the process. Even if you use Find My to remotely erase iPhone, the content on iPhone would not be deleted before it is connected to the Internet, so you need to open Safari or other apps to test whether the Internet condition is good or you need to connect a better Wi-Fi.
Solution 2. Reset Network Settings: The direct way to solve network issues is to reset the related settings but you need to save the passwords of Wi-Fi so you could connect them later.
Go to iPhone Settings > General > Reset > Reset Network Settings.
Solution 3. Disable Find My: Find My is used to locate and retrieve iPhone. If it is enabled on iPhone when you are erasing iPhone data, you would be required to enter your Apple ID and password. That means there is a redundant process. It increases the likelihood of failing to erase iPhone so you need to disable it in advance.
Go to iPhone Settings > tap your profile > select Find My > tap Find My iPhone and then switch it off.
Solution 4. Sign out of iCloud: Like turning off Find My, it is the operation to erase part of data by yourself.
Go to iPhone Settings > tap your profile > select Sign Out at the bottom.
Solution 5. Insert your SIM card: After you got your new iPhone, you might eject the SIM card from your old iPhone and insert the SIM card into your new iPhone to activate it first. After that, you decide to erase your old iPhone while you would get the error message that Verification Failed-There was a problem connecting to the server.
If you see this, you need to erase your iPhone using cellular data. Reinsert the SIM card and then you could erase iPhone this time.
Your iTunes could not only be used to manage your media files but also manage your iPhone data. It could backup, restore, update, and of course, erase iPhone. If iPhone won't erase all content and settings. When erase all content and settings not working, you can factory reset iPhone with iTunes even when you forget your iPhone password (you need to put iPhone into recovery mode if so).
1. Download and install the latest iTunes. Connect iPhone to computer with USB cable.
2. Click the device icon below the option Account after it appears.
3. If you don’t have an iPhone backup, click Back Up Now to save your iPhone data. You can read this guide What Does iTunes Backup Include to save your wanted data. After that, click Restore iPhone above to erase iPhone content.
The simplest way to erase your iPhone is using the professional software FoneTool. 100% wipe your iPhone clean and you just need one click and the rest work would be left to the software.
FoneTool would also provide an excellent solution to let you backup iPhone to computer useful data before you erase iPhone. Compared to iTunes, FoneTool would let you preview and select iPhone data so that you could save only the needed information.
Step 1. Download FoneTool to computer and connect iPhone with USB cable.
Step 2. Click Toolbox > Select Data Eraser on the home screen.
Step 3. In this window, choose Erase all data.
Step 4. Adjust the settings according to your situation.
Step 5. Click Erase Data to quickly empty your iPhone.
Erasing iPhone could prevent data leakage. If you encounter the "erase all content and settings not working", you could use the 5 solutions in this guide to fix the issue or try erasing iPhone on computer.
FoneTool gives you the best solution. It is perfect for backing up and erasing data. It is definitely worth trying.
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