Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference to kick off June 10 at 10 a.m. PDT with Keynote address
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The Keynote will be available to stream onapple.com, the Apple Developer app, the Apple TV app, and the Apple YouTube channel. On-demand playback will be available after the conclusion of the stream.
User profile for user: Shelbyb764
Shelbyb764 Author
User level: Level1 9 points
Okay this is a doozy and I’m pretty sure I’ve dug my own grave at this point. But one day the passcode that I’ve always used for my Apple Watch was no longer the passcode and I was locked out. I couldn’t access the watches info in the app on my phone either. I tried holding down the side button and dial until the apple logo came up, then just holding down the dial and I get the red exclamation part saying to go to support.apple.com/watch/restore and it’s stuck there. And then I tried just holding the side button and then the dial and I get the same response. I saw somewhere to try to remove the watch from the app and iCloud (this is where I dug my own grave) so I did. And I’m just still stuck in the same spot. I eventually got the watch to say “press ok to recover” (or whatever the phrasing is for that) and it said to enter a passcode and I put mine in, it spends 2-3 hours going through the loading process and then says it failed. I’ve tried using 1111, 0000 and 1234 as well and that’s a no go.
Anyone have any ideas?? I’m at my wits end. There’s gotta be some kind of resolution. I don’t love anywhere near an Apple Store either so I’m really trying to just figure it out at home.
Thank you in advance for any help and insight!
Posted on Aug 17, 2023 1:06 PM
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User profile for user: WheelieNick
WheelieNick
User level: Level8 38,329 points
Posted on Aug 17, 2023 1:08 PM
Hi there
Please try and follow these steps to see if you can fix this issue
- Put your watch on its charger and keep it there until you complete these steps.
- Press and hold the side button until you see the power buttonin the upper-right corner of the display.
- Press and hold the Digital Crown until you see Erase all content and settings.
- TapReset, then tap Reset again to confirm.
- Wait for the process to finish, thenset up your Apple Watch again. When asked, restore from a backup.
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User profile for user: WheelieNick
WheelieNick
User level: Level8 38,329 points
Aug 17, 2023 1:08 PM in response to Shelbyb764
Hi there
Please try and follow these steps to see if you can fix this issue
- Put your watch on its charger and keep it there until you complete these steps.
- Press and hold the side button until you see the power buttonin the upper-right corner of the display.
- Press and hold the Digital Crown until you see Erase all content and settings.
- TapReset, then tap Reset again to confirm.
- Wait for the process to finish, thenset up your Apple Watch again. When asked, restore from a backup.
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User profile for user: gretta115
gretta115
User level: Level1 8 points
Apr 26, 2024 10:33 AM in response to Shelbyb764
I have an older watch (series 5) and the above advice didn't work for me. I called in and they used a different method:
1) connect to charger
2) hold crown and side button at the same time for a few seconds then let go
3) then I saw the apple logo and was told to press and hold the side button until a red button showed up prompting me to erase and reset the watch
Hope this helps!
User profile for user: JCOxendine
JCOxendine
User level: Level1 8 points
Jan 9, 2024 3:52 AM in response to WheelieNick
Helpful post! Followed the above steps an I was able to reset “My Apple iWatch”!
Thank You sooooo very much!
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User profile for user: horia48
horia48
User level: Level1 8 points
Jan 14, 2024 8:07 AM in response to WheelieNick
Is not working. Doesn't appear to erase
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User profile for user: honistie
honistie
User level: Level1 8 points
Mar 24, 2024 5:05 PM in response to Shelbyb764
How do you reset your Apple Watch
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User profile for user: RickRowl
RickRowl
User level: Level1 15 points
Dec 13, 2023 2:25 PM in response to javaliga
I am late to this party, but I just had the exact same issue. This last time I actually had patience and kept my finger on the side button well after "Click OK to Recover" EVENTUALLY the Reset button showed. Never got around to clicking the digital crown. Did not have to. The Reset just showed at the bottom of the screen.
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User profile for user: javaliga
javaliga
User level: Level10 119,509 points
Aug 17, 2023 2:08 PM in response to Shelbyb764
Shelbyb764 wrote:
This is the process that I described as not working in my original post. Any other ideas?
Not really. Did you put your watch on its charger and keep it there until you complete the steps that WheelieNick gave you?
If you forgot your Apple Watch passcode - Apple Support
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User profile for user: Doodle_Mom
Doodle_Mom
User level: Level1 8 points
Feb 10, 2024 8:26 AM in response to Shelbyb764
Any suggestions…..I have tried everything above and the 20 second hold on just the button & the hard reset still isn’t working. It restarts just like normal.
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User profile for user: justinmullen
justinmullen
User level: Level1 14 points
Apr 28, 2024 9:29 AM in response to gretta115
this worked really well. thanks.
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User profile for user: Mikesameri
Mikesameri
User level: Level1 8 points
Apr 21, 2024 11:50 AM in response to Shelbyb764
Resetting Apple Watch
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User profile for user: faminat
faminat
User level: Level1 8 points
May 1, 2024 3:50 AM in response to Shelbyb764
To reset my apple watch
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User profile for user: Shelbyb764
Shelbyb764 Author
User level: Level1 9 points
Aug 17, 2023 1:12 PM in response to WheelieNick
This is the process that I described as not working in my original post. Any other ideas?
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User profile for user: Shelbyb764
Shelbyb764 Author
User level: Level1 9 points
Aug 17, 2023 3:30 PM in response to javaliga
Yes I did. I just forgot to include that in my original post. Yes, I have followed those directions previously and they did not works.
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User profile for user: Junaod
Junaod
User level: Level1 13 points
Jan 26, 2024 8:33 PM in response to WheelieNick
Thank you!
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User profile for user: Doodle_Mom
Doodle_Mom
User level: Level1 8 points
Feb 10, 2024 8:27 AM in response to Doodle_Mom
Wait…if you get the whit dot circle it’s reset right?
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Factory Resetting Apple Watch