Reset All Settings vs Erase All Content and Settings Guide

Reset all settings Vs Erase all content and settings.

I want to give my old iPhone 8 to my son, so what should I do to clear it. I found some options in Settings to reset my iPhone. Should I choose Reset All Settings or Erase All Content and Settings?

- Question from Apple Community

There are many situations where you want to reset your iPhone settings or content. For example, after years of use, your iPhone may encounter some problems, you can factory settings your iPhone to renew it. If or want to sell your iPhone to others, you want to erase all personal data before selling. 

Luckily, there are 2 options for resetting an iPhone: Reset All Settings, and Erase All Content and Settings. But lots of users don't know what the differences between "Reset All Settings" and "Erase All Content".

Refer to the following sections, which will demonstrate detailed information about the two operations, and help you to make the right decision.

What Is the Difference Between Reset All Settings and Erase All Content?

In short, "Reset All Settings" returns your iPhone to its original state without erasing content, which "Erase All Content and Settings", literally, permanently removes all data from your iPhone. You can go to iPhone Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone to access these two functions.

This part will elaborate more detailed information on these two options. Read carefully, and choose one between them as per your need.

Section 1. What Does Reset All Settings do?

It literally means returning all the system settings on iPhone back to the status when it is manufactured. You can use most apps on iPhone as usual but sometimes you need to give permissions in Privacy Settings.

You might have noticed the option Reset Network Settings. It is used to fix some network issues like iOS update not connect to Internet. It is helpful, but the biggest problem is that this will let iPhone forget all the saved passwords of Wi-Fi and the Bluetooth connection history.

Why iPhone reset all settings?

Reset All Settings could also fix other issues like iCloud backup stuck. If you have any problems with system issues, this could be a good solution.

But it is worth mentioning that the "Reset All Settings" option does everything that Reset Network Settings does. This would be terrible if you can’t remember the complicated passwords.

Section 2. What Happen When You Erase All Content and Settings?

If you select Erase All Content and Settings, it means you delete everything on iPhone including the settings and app data. This iPhone needs to be activated again then. It means you need to connect iPhone to Wi-Fi, sign in with your Apple ID, and then set up your iPhone as you get it for the first time.

Why choose "Erase All Content and Settings"?

Generally, there are 3 main reasons why people want to erase all data and settings on iPhone.

• Avoid data leakage before selling iPhone: When you have a new iPhone, you may want to sell your old device or give it to others. Completely deleting the data is necessary to avoid data being hacked by malicious intent.
• Free up iPhone storage: iPhone keeps increasing data every day. You may find your iPhone storage is full, you can delete content to make it fresh. To give insurance to your decision, you’d better backup iPhone to computer so that you could recover some useful information later.
• Restore iPhone backup: The third purpose of choosing to wipe your iPhone is to restore your iPhone from the previous iCloud backup. In fact, this is the only way to use your iCloud backup, because the option only appears after you set up iPhone.

If you feel that there are serious system problems or viruses on your iPhone, completely clean your iPhone in this way would save you from misgivings. What’s more, you could have other ways to remove iPhone data or rescue your iPhone.

Other Ways to Erase All Content and Settings on iPhone

Now you have known the difference between "Reset All Settings" and "Erase All Content and Settings". But sometimes, when you encounter some issue leading to malfunction, so you can reset it on your iPhone. 

In addition, you should know that "Erase all content and settings" is the process of deleting all data, but it still has a chance to recover the deleted data. So here we would like to introduce another way to erase iPhone data, making your iPhone date unrecoverable.

Method 1. Erase iPhone data with iTunes

Some issues might stop you from erasing iPhone data on iPhone, but you could still do this on computer. iTunes would help you factory reset your iPhone on PC like you do that on iPhone. If you have an old iTunes backup, you could restore backup after setting up iPhone.

1. Download iTunes and connect iPhone to a computer with USB cable.

2. After the device icon appears in the upper-left corner, click it.

3. Click Restore iPhone to factory reset your iPhone.

Method 2. Completely wipe iPhone data with FoneTool (Unrecoverable)

FoneTool is a professional iOS eraser, which is able to completely wipe an iPhone data by overwriting the device. It is a common way to wipe an iPhone to avoid data recovery.

Besides, you can also use it to fix some unrepairable issues. It can help you to skip the setup guide, you can quickly use your iPhone.

Step 1. Download FoneTool and connect iPhone to computer with USB.

Step 2. Click Toolbox > Select Data Eraser on the home screen, and choose Erase All Data.

Step 3. Check Automatically activate iPhone and ignore initial settings to quickly start using your iPhone later.

Step 4. Click the button Erase Data to clean your iPhone.

Bonus: Fully Backup Your Old iPhone Before Erasing

Don't forget to backup your iPhone in advance if you choose to erase all content and settings on your iPhone. To make the iPhone backup as simple as possible, you can try FoneTool's Full Backup process. It can fully backup all data, including all files and settings on your old iPhone, and fully restore the backup file to your new iPhone. Follow the simple steps to make it.

Step 1. Connect your iPhone to computer via USB > Launch FoneTool, and choose Phone Backup > Click Get Started under the option Full Backup.

Step 2. Optionally, enable Backup encryption to access the backup data with password next time > You can freely select a wanted storage path > Finally, click Start Backup to begin the task.

Conclusion

When you need to clear your iPhone, you might want to modify the settings or delete data. This guide gives you very useful advice to let you know Reset All Settings vs Erase All Content and Settings.

FoneTool is recommended because it erases your iPhone and protects your data at the same time. Share this guide and it would help more people.