But the same feature becomes counterproductive if you forget the passcode to your iPhone. So, if you have made multiple attempts to enter the passcode, your iPhone enters the disabled state. Along with it, it’ll also show that it can’t connect to iTunes currently. But, still, there’s a workaround to bypass it and get back into your iPhone.
Why is My iPhone Showing Disabled Connect to iTunes?
There is a certain limit up to the number of times the iPhone allows you to enter the incorrect passcode. After every attempt, there’s a certain cooldown duration before you can retry entering the passcode. For example, after five failed attempts, you’ll see the “iPhone is disabled” error. Afterward, in your 7th, 8th, and 9th attempts, you’ll have to wait for 5 minutes, 15 minutes, and 60 minutes respectively. In your 10th incorrect attempt, you’ll get the iPhone is disabled, connect to iTunes error. This means that iTunes is the last resort and the only solution to revive your phone.
How to Fix “iPhone is Disabled Connect to iTunes”?
When you get this error code, you can’t normally unlock your iPhone even if you wait multiple hours. Now, the only option left is to seek help from iTunes. Using iTunes, we’ll need to wipe all the existing data and restore your saved data from your iCloud backup. Next, all you need is a PC and a lightning cable.
Force Restart iPhone
One of the first steps to try is to see if a simple restart can bypass the error. Depending on your iPhone model, there are slightly different steps to force restart it.
On iPhone 8, SE, X, Xs, XR, 11, 12, 13
For iOS 15, 16, or more recent models of the iPhone, you can follow these steps:
On iPhone 7
Hold down the Volume Down Button along with the Sleep/Wake Button. Continue doing this until you can see the Apple logo. Then, let go of both buttons.
On iPhone 6s
Hold down the Sleep/Wake Button along with the Home Button. Let go of both buttons once you can notice the Apple logo.
Set iPhone to Recovery Mode
Now before we use iTunes, we need to prepare our iPhone by putting it on Recovery Mode. This is a troubleshooting method that completely erases your iPhone’s data. So this will also get rid of the iPhone disabled error. When your iPhone is successfully in this state, you can see a logo of a laptop and the lightning connector on the screen. Here’s how you can do it:
Restore iPhone Using iTunes
Finally, here’s how you can use iTunes to restore the available backup on your iPhone.If you’ve successfully restored your iPhone, you can now unlock it and continue using it like how it was before.
Using Find My iPhone on iCloud
If you currently can’t use iTunes or Finder, you can also use iCloud to restore your iPhone. Here are the exact steps for it:
Contact Apple Support
If you’re still having trouble regaining access to your iPhone, you can visit any nearby Apple store or the support page.
