How to Downgrade from iOS 17 to iOS 16: The Ultimate Guide

Apple’s latest version of operating system, iOS 17, is finally here. Many people can’t wait to try out these cool new features and install the iOS 17 or iPadOS 17 on their devices.

However, some users may experience troubles with iPhone or iPad after an iOS 17 update, such as device crash, apps stop working, poor battery life, etc.

If you’re finding iOS 17 to be buggy, don’t fret, you can still downgrade back to a previous iOS version that was working for your iPhone or iPad.

In this article, we will guide you through how to downgrade from iOS 17 to iOS 16. Keep reading to learn how it is done.

Part 1: Backup iDevice before Downgrading

Before we get into doing an iOS 17 downgrade, let’s first learn how to back up your device. In case something goes wrong and the downgrade process delete all the date saved in your iPhone or iPad, you should take a working backup that you can quickly restore at any point. Once you have the backup, you can then start to downgrade iOS 17 to iOS 16 without worrying about data loss.

1.1 Backup iPhone/iPad with Fucosoft iOS Backup & Restore

To backup your iPhone or iPad, we recommend you use Fucosoft Free iOS Backup & Restore. This free tool makes your iPhone backup easier than ever, allowing you to free backup various kinds of files, including photos, music, contacts, messages, WhatsApp and more.

Unlike iTunes, you can either take a backup for specific files or do a complete backup of all data without any limitations. Also, you are able to preview the data from the backup file and restore selected files to any iOS device. What’s more, you can freely access and extract data from iTunes backup without restoring your device.

Here’s how to backup iPhone or iPad without iTunes:

1. Download, install and run Fucosoft iOS Data Backup & Restore on your computer, then connect your iPhone or iPad with it.
2. Once your device is connected successfully, choose “Backup & Restore” from the top menu to start the backup process.
3. In the next window, select the file types you want to backup. Then click on “Backup” and wait for the process to complete.

1.2 Backup iPhone/iPad with iTunes

Of course, you can also backup your iPhone or iPad with the help of iTunes. However, you should keep in mind that iTunes can’t restore a backup of a higher version. So, you must backup your iPhone before updating to iOS 17. Here’s how to do it:

1. Connect your iOS device to your computer and launch iTunes. For mac users running on 10.15, just go to Finder.
2. Head to the Backups section which will be somewhere in the Summary or General tab.
3. You can just hit the “Back Up Now” button and your device will be backed up immediately.

Part 2: How to Downgrade iOS 17 to iOS 16

Now that you have taken the backup, let’s move on to how to downgrade from iOS 17 to iOS 16. There are many ways to do it, you can either use iTunes or third-party tools. Here we will introduce the top two ways to do an iOS 17 downgrade.

2.1 Downgrade iOS 17 with Fucosoft iOS System Recovery

Fucosoft developed another powerful tool to help you downgrade from iOS 17 to iOS 16 safely and easily – iOS System Recovery. Using it, you can downgrade iOS 16 to a previous version without using iTunes or jailbreaking.

More than that, it is also a professional iOS repair tool that helps you fix various iOS system issues such as white Apple logo, Recovery mode, DFU mode, black screen of death, iPhone is disabled, iPhone won’t turn on, etc. If you encounter errors while updating/restoring your device with iTunes, this tool can also bypass various iTunes errors and get your iPhone/iPad back to normal.

Here’s how to downgrade iOS 17 to iOS 16 without iTunes:

1. Launch Fucosoft iOS System Recovery on your computer and Connect the iOS device you want to downgrade to the computer using USB cable.
2. Choose “ Standard Repair ” in the main interface, then click on “Next” to proceed.
3. The program will detect your device model and offer all the available firmware versions. Choose your preferred iOS 17 version and click “Download”.
4. Once the iOS 17 firmware package is downloaded to your computer, click “Start” to begin downgrading iOS 17 to iOS 16.

2.2 Downgrade iOS 17 with iTunes

If you don’t want to install third-party tool on your computer, you can also do the iOS 17 downgrade using iTunes. iOS 17 now is still in its beta version, you can downgrade to iOS 16 with iTunes at anytime you like.

However, once the iOS 17 official public version is released, you will only have 14 days to downgrade to a previous version. Here’s what you need to do:

Step 1: Connect your iOS device to your PC or Mac with a lightning cable and launch iTunes. Make sure you’re running the latest version of iTunes.

Step 2: Follow the right steps to put your device into Recovery mode. When successful, the connect to iTunes screen will appear on your device.

• For iPhone 8 or later models: Press and quickly release the Volume Up button. Press and quickly release the Volume Down button, then press and hold the Side button.
• For iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus: Press and hold the Side and Volume Down buttons at the same time.
• For iPhone 6s or earlier models: Press and hold the Home and Top/Side buttons at the same time.
• For iPad Pro with Face ID: Press and quickly release the Volume Up button, then do the same with the Volume Down button. Press and hold the Top button until the device begins to reboot. Keep holding the Top button until it goes into Recovery mode.

Step 3: Once your device booted into Recovery mode, iTunes will prompt you to Restore or Update it. Choose “Restore” to erase your device and install the latest public release version of iOS.

When the restore is completed, you can either restore from a previous backup or set up your device as new. If you have passed the 14-day duration and want to downgrade to a previous version that is no longer signed by Apple, you can download the firmware package at ipsw.me. Once you’ve downloaded the iOS version you need, you can follow the steps below:

1. On your iPhone or iPad, go to iCloud and turn off the Find My iPhone feature.
2. Connect your device to your computer and run the latest version of iTunes.
3. Go to the Summary tab. For mac users, hold the Option key ad hit the Update button. For Windows users, hold the Shift key and press the Update button.
4. iTunes will now open a browser and let you select the IPSW file. You can select and open the files that you downloaded earlier.
5. You will be asked if you want to forcefully update the device. Confirm your choice and you are done the iOS 17 downgrade.

Part 3: iOS 17 Downgrading Issues and Fixes

Downgrading iOS is not an easy task, especially for those with less technical experience. You may face various issues while downgrading from iOS 17 to iOS 16. Don’t worry. Here we will explain some common errors you might face and provide you workable solutions.

3.1 iOS 17 Downgrade Failed Many Times

Downgrade fail is the most common issue that you might get. This often happens due to incompatible iOS versions. You need to confirm that the iOS you are downgrading to is compatible with your device. In most cases, we suggest you try to downgrade iOS 17 to the latest public version iOS 16.

Further, there are another two causes. One is low free storage space on your device and the other one is poor internet connection. So, when try to downgrade your device from iOS 17 to iOS 16, make sure your device has enough free space and connected to a stable internet.

3.2 iOS Stuck in Recovery/DFU Mode/Apple Logo

Your iPhone or iPad may stuck in white Apple logo, Recovery mode or DFU mode while downgrading iOS 17. Don’t fret, it can be fixed in no time. All you have to do is restart your device and it will back to normal. If you can’t restart it, forcefully do it. Here’s how to force restart your device depends on its model:

• For iPhone 6s or older: Press the Power and Home buttons for at least 10 seconds.
• For iPhone 7/7 Plus: Press and hold the Power and Volume Down buttons until your device restart.
• For iPhone 8 or later: Hold the Volume Up button and release it. Then hold the Volume Down button and release it. After that, keep holding the Side button.

This usually happens when you are downgrading from an unstable version of the iOS. So, make sure you are doing it from an stable version to avoid this error. If force restarting doesn’t work, you can connect your device to iTunes and restore it to factory settings.

3.3 iOS Downgrade Stuck on “Attempting data recovery”

Attempting data recovery is the final step in the iOS 17 downgrade process, which might take some time to finish. Your iPhone or iPad may get stuck on this screen when you have jailbroken your device and you are using iTunes to downgrade the iOS version. We suggest downgrade jailbroken device with third-party tool like Fucosoft iOS System Recovery instead of iTunes.

If you are experiencing the stuck issue, don’t worry, you can simply connect your device to iTunes and boot it into Recovery mode to get rid of the problem.

3.4 iOS Downgrade with iTunes Won’t Work

Some people prefer to use iTunes to downgrade iOS 17 but the process might not work as expected. You may encounter the error “the iPhone could not restored. An unknown error occurred.” This can be caused by corrupt IPSW file, unsupported iTunes version or Find My iPhone is enabled. To fix it, you can follow these steps:

• Download the correct IPSW file from a trusted website and ensure it is compatible with your device.
• Make sure you are running the latest version of iTunes. Just open iTunes and go to Help > Check for Updates.
• On your iOS device, go to Settings > iCloud > Find My iPhone and turn off this feature.

3.5 iPhone Stuck in Boot Loop during Downgrade

Your iPhone may stuck in boot loop while downgrading iOS 17 due to insufficient free space, corrupt IPSW file, incomplete update, etc. The easiest solution here is to force restart the device to fix some minor errors. If force restarting the device doesn’t work, you can try to restart the iOS 17 downgrading process.

We recommend you use the third-party tool Fucosoft iOS System Recovery. This tool can help you get your iPhone out of the boot loop and downgrade the device to iOS 16. Moreover, it is capable of fixing various kinds of iOS and iTunes related issues without causing data loss.

3.6 Data Loss after iOS 17 Downgrade

Data loss is a common problem during the downgrading process. That’s why we strongly suggest you backup iPhone/iPad data before you do the entire process. If you already have a backup, you can restore the lost data easily.

What if you didn’t make any backup and lost your important photos, videos, contacts, messages, WhatsApp, etc. Don’t worry. You still have the chances to retrieve them back.

Fucosoft iPhone Data Recovery software is an efficient tool that helps you recover different kinds of file directly from iPhone without backup. You’re allowed to preview all recovered files and selectively recover what you need only. Please note that you need to perform data recovery as soon as possible to avoid data overwriting.

3.7 Backup Cannot be Restored after iOS 17 Downgrade

If you already took the backup, errors can also happen. You may fail to restore your previous backup to the downgraded device due to compatibility issues. For example, you took the backup in iOS 17 and after downgrading to iOS 16, you try to restore the device from the backup. In this case, the restore might not work properly.

To solve this problem, we suggest you use Fucosoft iPhone Data Recovery. It also works as iPhone backup extractor, which allows you to access, video and extract data from iTunes/iCloud backup without restoring the device.

Conclusion

In this guide, we’ve introduced how to downgrade from iOS 17 to iOS 16 with or without iTunes. You installed iOS 17 on your iPhone or iPad but find it is too problematic? You can follow the steps above to downgrade your device back to iOS 16.

Please make sure that you have made a complete backup of your device data before doing the iOS 17 downgrade. If you find this guide helpful, please share it to your friends and leave a comment below. Thanks for your reading.