How to Unlock Disabled iPad Without Losing Data [iOS 26 Supported]

"My iPad is disabled after several wrong passcode attempts. I can't access my photos, notes, and other data stored on it, which is a real hassle for me. Can you unlock disabled iPad without losing data? "

Nowadays, iPad is becoming popular among people, and many of them use it for work and study. However, some users may forget their iPad passcode and encounter disabled issues, making it troublesome for them to access the data stored on it. Are you searching for how to unlock disabled iPad without losing data? In this post, we'll provide a step-by-step guide to help you fix a disabled iPad with ease, ensuring no data loss.

Quick Answer: Is It Possible to Unlock Disabled iPad Without Erasing?

No. Apple’s security design doesn’t allow a passcode to be removed without wiping the device. If you see "iPad is disabled", “iPad Unavailable” or “Security Lockout”, your only option is to erase it, which removes the passcode.

The only way to avoid permanent data loss is to restore from a backup—either from iCloud or from your Mac/PC backup.

Step 1: Check If You Have a Backup

Before erasing, it’s important to know whether your data can be recovered.

1. Check for iCloud Backup (from another device):

1) On another iPhone/iPad signed in with your Apple ID: go to Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup.
2) See the date of the Last Successful Backup.

2. Check for Computer Backup:

If you’ve synced your iPad with a Mac (Finder) or PC (iTunes), you may have a local backup stored there.

Step 2: Choose Your Method to Unlock Disabled iPad

In this part, we'll introduce three official Apple-supported methods and one professional way to unlock your disabled iPad. Pick the one that matches your situation.

Method	Needs Find My iPad?	Needs Apple ID?	Needs Computer?	Works Offline?	Ease of Use
1️⃣ iOS 15.2 Feature	✅	✅	❌	❌	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
2️⃣ iCloud Find My	✅	✅	❌	❌	⭐⭐⭐⭐
3️⃣ iTunes/Finder	❌	❌	✅	✅	⭐⭐⭐
4️⃣ TunesKit iPhone Unlocker	❌	❌	✅	❌	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Method 1. Unlock Disabled iPad via iOS 15.2 Feature

You can use the iOS built-in feature to unlock your iPad if the iPad version on your iPad is iOS 15.2 or later. You can follow the below steps to erase your iPad.

1. Wake up your locked iPad and keep entering the wrong passcode until your iPad shows Security Lockout on the screen.
2. You will see an Erase iPad option appear at the bottom right. Tap it.
3. Enter your Apple ID and password to sign out of Find My.
4. The iPad erases itself.
5. On the setup screen, choose Restore from iCloud Backup or Restore from Mac/PC.

Method 2. Unlock Disabled iPad via Find My iPad

Find My iPad is a powerful feature with various functions, including unlock disabled iPad remotely. To use this feature, you must enabled Find My iPad on your device, and you need to recall the Apple ID and its corresponding password. You can use this feature on both computers and mobile phones, which is really conveniet for you to conduct.

1. Launch a browser on another device or computer, and then head to the icloud.com.
2. Log in to your Apple ID with the password and select the Find My iPad icon.
3. Select the All Devices list, and then choose the disabled iPad.
4. Hit on the Erase iPad option and then Erase to confirm. The erase will begin when the iPad is online.
5. Set up your iPad and choose Restore from Backup.

Method 3. Unlock Disabled iPad via iTunes/Finder

Using iTunes (Finder) to unlock your iPad is also an official way recommended by Apple. It allows users to restore iPad on the computer. Yet, the process is a little complex. If you have ever synced your iPad with iTunes before, you can connect your device to iTunes and restore it directly. If you have never synced, you need to put your device into Recovery Mode first.

1. Get your iPad connected to your PC/Mac.
2. Then,you need to launch the latest version of iTunes on your PC (or Finder on your Mac).
3. After your iPad is detected by iTunes/Finder, click on your iPad icon, and select the Summary option to proceed.
4 (Optional). put your iPad into Recovery Mode if you have never synced before:
o Face ID models: Quickly press Volume Up → Volume Down → hold Top button until Recovery Mode screen appears.
o Home button models: Hold Home + Top (or Side) button until Recovery Mode screen appears.
5. At last, click on the Restore iPad option to unlock your disabled iPad.
6. If you have previous backed up your iPad, you can restore the backup file from iTunes.

Method 4. One-Click to Unlock Disabled iPad via TunesKit iPhone Unlocker

If your forgot your Apple ID or the Find My is disabled, our most recommended tool to unlock your disabled iPad is TunesKit iPhone Unlocker. It is a powerful unlocking tool for iPhone/iPad/iPod users.

No matter if you want to unlock disabled iPhone without losing data, remove iPad Screen Time passcode, or bypass Apple ID password, you can easily conduct it with simple steps within minutes. With the assistance of this tool, you don't need to search for help from others when you are locked out of your iOS devices.

The following is step-to-step guidance on how to unlock disabled iPad with TunesKit iPhone Unlocker.

1Make your iPad plugged into a computer

At the beginning, you need to plug your iPad into the computer with a matched USB cable. Then, run TunesKit iPhone Unlocker on your computer, and wait for this tool to detect your iPad. When it is detected, please select the Unlock iOS Screen and hit on the Start button.

2Set your iPad into DFU/Recovery mode

In this section, please put your iPad into DFU/Recovery mode using the on-screen guidance. If you don't know how to do it, please follow the onscreen instruction to make it.

3Download iOS firmware package

Confirm that the information given on the screen is matched with your iPad. If there is anything wrong, please correct it manually. When you finish checking the information, click on the Download button to continue.

4Unlock disabled iPad

Once the downloading of firmware package is finished, TunesKit will start to unlock your iPad. All you need to do is to wait several minutes for it to finish. After unlocking your iPad, you can set your iPad as new and restore your data from backup.

Video Tutorial - How to Unlock Disabled iPad with Ease

Next, you can watch the following short video to learn how to unlock disabled iPad without losing data. After unlocking your iPad with the methods below, you can try restore your data from iCloud backup or iTunes backup.

Step 3: Restore Your Data from iCloud or iTunes

When you finish unlocking your disabled iPad, all your data will be erased. Next, you can recover your backup data from iCloud backup or iTunes. Then, you can solve the problem of how to unlock iPad is disabled connect to iTunes without losing data. Here are the steps you can take to restore your data from iCloud backup or computer backup

From iCloud Backup:

1. On setup screen, choose Restore from iCloud Backup.
2. Sign in with your Apple ID.
3. Pick the most recent backup.
4. Keep connected to Wi-Fi and power until restore completes.

From Computer Backup:

1. Run iTunes on your PC (or Finder on Mac), and then connect your iPad to it.
2. On the interface, click on the iPad icon. Then, select the Summary option.
3. Choose Restore Backup to retrieve your data.

FAQs: Unlock Disabled iPad Without Losing Data

Still have questions about unlocking your disabled iPad? Here are some quick answers.

Q1: Is there any way to unlock disabled iPad without data loss?

If you have not backed up your data before, the answer is no. But if you have a backup, you can restore your data after you unlock your devices with any of the four methods above. Or you can try the best data recovery tool -- TunesKit iPhone Data Recovery to retrieve your data.

Q2: Can I use iCloud to unlock my disabled iPad?

Yes, if "Find My iPad" is enabled, you can unlock it via iCloud remotely. If you have backed up your iPad data to iCloud before unlocking your disabled iPad, you can then restore the backup file to your iPad after unlocking it, so you won't lose any data.

Q3: Can I back up my data after my iPad is disabled?

If you have synced your iPad with iTunes before, you can save your data through it when your iPad is disabled. If not, unfortunately, there is seldom any software that can help you save disabled iPad data. You have to unlock your iPad to use it as a USB accessory of your PC, or the PC can't recognize your iPad.

Q4: What if iTunes doesn't recognize my iPad?

If iTunes doesn't recognize your iPad, you can try to put your iPad into Recovery mode and then connect it to iTunes. You can put your iPad into DFU mode as well.

Conclusion

That's all for how to unlock disabled iPad without losing data. If you don't want to be bothered by the disabled iPad, just try our most recommended unlocking tool – TunesKit iPhone Unlocker, and then restore your data via iTunes. I hope that this post can be conductive for you to settle down your matter. If you are still having other questions, please feel free to leave us a comment below.