iPhone error 4013: what it is and how to fix it

2 weeks ago

While we're agelong past nan days wherever a wired USB to Lightning relationship was basal to instal iPhone package updates, sometimes it's still an easier measurement to spell — for example, if you person a constricted information relationship and nary Wi-Fi available. And if you tally into the dreaded "iPhone Unavailable" error, you whitethorn not person immoderate different action but to plug your iPhone successful and reconstruct it to mill settings nan old-fashioned way.

While this process runs smoothly astir of nan time, location are scenarios wherever you whitethorn tally into a snag. Unfortunately, erstwhile this does happen, nan correction messages tin beryllium somewhat inscrutable, offering small thief different than to show you that "An chartless correction occurred" and showing a numeric codification that gives you small penetration into what that "unknown" problem could be. Chief among these is correction 4013.

The bully news is that nan causes of these errors tin often beryllium very easy to hole — once you cognize wherever to look, that is. Unfortunately, since they screen a wide scope of imaginable problems, Apple can't really constituent to immoderate 1 point successful nan message, which is why it simply flags it arsenic an "unknown" error. However, location are a fewer troubleshooting steps that you tin effort that will much often than not resoluteness correction 4013, and moreover immoderate of its cousins for illustration 4005 and 4014.

What is iPhone correction 4013?

Error 4013 indicates a connection problem has occurred betwixt your instrumentality and your computer. The connection tin show up erstwhile restoring thing from an iPod classic to nan latest iPhone 14 Pro Max, and it fundamentally intends that iTunes (or Finder successful later versions of macOS) grounded to pass pinch your instrumentality properly.

Of course, location tin beryllium a batch of reasons for this. Unplugging your instrumentality successful nan mediate of a reconstruct will often consequence successful a 4013 error, arsenic will a bad USB port, a dodgy cable, driver problems, and more. Hence, there's nary 1 spot to look, but if you screen a fewer of nan pursuing bases, you tin norm retired nan astir communal causes for this error.

Person holding powered disconnected iPhone 12 Pro pinch broadside fastener showing.

Restart your iPhone, iPad, aliases iPod Touch

Sometimes nan cliche is true: turning things disconnected and backmost connected again really does hole everything. Rebooting your Mac aliases PC should truthful beryllium a first step, but don't hide to besides restart nan instrumentality that you're trying to update aliases reconstruct from that computer. How to do this varies depending connected which instrumentality you're using.

Step 1: Here's really to do it for a 2017 aliases later iPhone model, which includes nan iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone SE (2020), iPhone SE (2022), and each Face ID-equipped iPhones, arsenic good arsenic each iPad models without a beforehand Home button:

Press and quickly merchandise nan measurement up button.
Press and quickly merchandise nan measurement down button.
Press and clasp nan broadside aliases apical fastener until nan instrumentality restarts and you spot nan Apple logo appear.

Step 2: For nan iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, and iPod Touch (7th generation), property and clasp some nan side/top fastener and nan measurement down fastener simultaneously until you spot nan Apple logo appear.

Step 3: For nan iPhone 6s, iPhone SE (2016), and earlier models, arsenic good arsenic nan iPod Touch (6th generation) aliases earlier and each iPad models that person a location fastener connected nan front, property and clasp some nan side/top fastener and nan location fastener simultaneously until you spot nan Apple logo appear.

Step 4: Once your iPhone, iPad, aliases iPod Touch has vanished restarting, unlock it pinch your passcode, link it to your computer, and effort restoring aliases updating it again.

iphone correction 4013 really to hole it itunes for windows connected laptop

Install nan latest type of iTunes

If you're moving Windows aliases macOS Mojave (10.14) aliases earlier, you should guarantee that you've downloaded and installed nan latest type of iTunes connected your Mac aliases Windows PC that's due for your operating system. As of this writing, that's iTunes 12.12.9 for Windows.

Note that this won't use if you're utilizing macOS Catalina (10.15) aliases later, arsenic iTunes is nary longer utilized to negociate iPhones, iPads, and iPods connected these much caller operating systems. Instead, you tin reconstruct your instrumentality done nan macOS Finder app, which is simply a halfway portion of nan OS.

Step 1: If you're utilizing Windows 10 aliases later: If you downloaded iTunes straight from nan Microsoft Store, you tin besides cheque for updates from there. To do this, unfastened nan Microsoft Store app and take Get Updates.

If you installed iTunes straight from Apple's website, you tin cheque for updates and download nan latest type from wrong nan iTunes app. To do this, unfastened iTunes and take Help > Check for Updates from nan paper barroom astatine nan top.

Note that if you're installing iTunes caller connected Windows 10 aliases later, it's powerfully recommended that you drawback it from nan Microsoft Store, arsenic that provides nan latest disposable type — 12.12.9 arsenic of this writing. You tin only download iTunes 12.10.11 (64-bit) aliases the 32-bit version straight from Apple. These are besides compatible pinch Windows 7 and Windows 8.

Step 2: If you're utilizing macOS Mojave (10.14) aliases earlier, you tin cheque for nan latest type of iTunes done nan built-in Software Update system aliases download it directly from Apple's iTunes Downloads page. The correct type of iTunes depends connected which type of macOS aliases OS X you're using, arsenic follows:

If you're utilizing macOS Mojave (10.14), iTunes is bundled pinch macOS, and iTunes 12.9.5 — nan past type of iTunes to beryllium created for nan Mac — is included successful nan last 10.14.6 Mojave release; it's not disposable arsenic a abstracted download.
If you're utilizing macOS High Sierra (10.13), download iTunes 12.8.3.
If you're utilizing macOS Sierra (10.12) aliases OS X El Capitan (10.11), download iTunes 12.8.2.
If you're utilizing OS X Yosemite (10.10.5), download iTunes 12.8.1 .
If you're utilizing OS X Mavericks (10.9), download iTunes 12.6.2.
If you're utilizing OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.5), download iTunes 12.4.3.
If you're utilizing OS X Lion (10.7), upgrade your strategy to OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.5) and Download iTunes 12.4.3. iTunes 12.2, which is nan latest type supported by OS X Lion, is not officially disposable arsenic a abstracted download.
If you're utilizing OS X Snow Leopard (10.6), download iTunes 11.4.

Apple besides offers iTunes 10.6.3 and iTunes 9.2.1 for moreover older versions of OS X, but if you person to spell that acold back, we'd powerfully recommending uncovering a machine that tin grip a newer type of iTunes, arsenic these aren't apt to support immoderate iPhone aliases iPad that's been released successful nan past 5 years anyway.

iphone correction 4013 really to hole it windows update moving connected laptop

Update your operating system

Regardless of whether you're utilizing a Windows PC pinch iTunes aliases a caller type of macOS, you should besides guarantee that your operating strategy is afloat up to day pinch nan latest Windows updates aliases macOS package update. This is particularly important pinch macOS, since galore of nan components that are utilized to pass pinch your iPhone are successful nan underlying operating system.

Step 1: If you're utilizing Windows 10 aliases later, you tin cheque for updates by going to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update.

Step 2: For macOS Ventura (13.0) aliases later, cheque for updates by selecting nan Apple paper successful nan top-left area of your screen, and past selecting System Settings > General > Software Update.

On macOS Monterey (12.0) aliases earlier, this is recovered nether System Preferences > Software Update from nan aforesaid Apple paper successful nan top-left corner.

Step 3: Follow nan steps to download and instal immoderate updates your machine finds, and past effort restoring your iOS instrumentality aliases iPod aft nan updates person been applied and your machine has restarted.

Note that if you're doing a awesome macOS type update ending successful macOS Mojave (10.14) aliases earlier, you should besides cheque to guarantee that you're moving nan latest type of iTunes that's due for nan caller OS. For example, aft updating from Sierra to Mojave, you whitethorn request to spell to Software Update again to get iTunes 12.9.5.

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Put your instrumentality successful betterment mode

If you're encountering correction 4013 while trying to reconstruct your instrumentality backmost to mill settings, you whitethorn beryllium capable to get things moving by forcing your iPhone, iPad, aliases iPod Touch into betterment mode. This is simply a hardware-level mode that bypasses nan normal iOS/iPadOS method of interfacing pinch your computer, which tin thief if nan correction is being caused by a package glitch connected nan instrumentality side.

Step 1: Follow nan steps successful nan erstwhile sections to guarantee that your machine operating strategy and iTunes (if applicable) are updated to nan latest versions.

Step 2: Reboot your Mac aliases PC.

Step 3: Connect your iPhone, iPad, aliases iPod Touch to your machine utilizing a USB cable. Ignore correction 4013 aliases immoderate different errors that travel up. Quit iTunes if it opens automatically aft connecting your device.

Step 4: If you're moving macOS Catalina (10.15) aliases later, unfastened Finder; different unfastened iTunes (or reopen iTunes if you discontinue it successful nan erstwhile step).

Step 5: Keep your instrumentality connected to your machine while performing nan pursuing steps, depending connected nan exemplary of your device. Note that these are nan aforesaid steps described successful nan conception connected restarting your device; nan quality successful this lawsuit is that you're doing them while your iPhone, iPad, aliases iPod Touch is connected to your computer.

For a 2017 aliases later iPhone exemplary -- including nan iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone SE (2020), iPhone SE (2022), and each Face ID-equipped iPhones -- property and quickly merchandise nan measurement up button, past do nan aforesaid pinch nan measurement down button, and past property and clasp nan broadside fastener until you spot nan betterment mode surface appear.
For nan iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, and seventh-generation iPod Touch, property and clasp nan top/side fastener and measurement down buttons simultaneously until you spot nan betterment mode surface appear.

For nan iPhone 6s and iPhone SE (2016) aliases earlier models, property and clasp some nan location and top/side buttons simultaneously until you spot nan betterment mode surface appear.

Alert successful Finder connected macOS showing an iPhone is connected successful Recovery Mode.

Step 6: Once nan betterment mode surface appears, your instrumentality should look successful Finder aliases iTunes pinch a pop-up that indicates there's a problem pinch your instrumentality "that requires it to beryllium updated aliases restored." Select either Update to effort to instal nan latest type of iOS/iPadOS connected your instrumentality without erasing it, aliases Restore to return it to mill settings.

If an update fails, you tin repetition nan supra steps and effort nan Restore action instead. This will erase everything connected your iPhone, iPad, aliases iPod Touch, returning it to marque caller settings, aft which you tin group it up from scratch and take to reconstruct a backup from your machine aliases iCloud, if you person 1 available.

Other steps you tin effort to hole correction 4013

Since this is simply a communications error, location are respective different things that could beryllium getting successful nan measurement of a successful reconstruct of your iPhone, iPad, aliases iPod.

Step 1: Check your USB cable. Ensure you're utilizing an Apple-certified Lightning aliases USB-C cablegram — nan 1 that came pinch your instrumentality should activity — and that it's undamaged. Try a different cablegram if you person 1 connected hand. While immoderate reputable brand-name cablegram should besides activity fine, galore of nan cheaper aftermarket Lightning cables you'll find successful stores are designed for charging your instrumentality and whitethorn not grip information transportation properly.

Step 2: If you're utilizing a Windows PC, guarantee that your drivers are up to date. You tin cheque for Windows driver updates published done Microsoft nether Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update; however, if you don't spot thing caller here, it's worthy besides visiting your PC manufacturer's website and seeing if they person immoderate driver updates disposable for nonstop download. You'll want to attraction peculiarly connected USB and "chipset" drivers, arsenic these are nan ones astir apt to effect connection pinch your iPhone, iPad, aliases iPod.

Step 3: Temporarily disable immoderate antivirus aliases different devices that effort to scan nan devices you link to your PC. These tin get successful nan measurement of iTunes communicating decently pinch your iOS instrumentality aliases iPod. You're improbable to request these while restoring your device, and if that fixes nan problem, you tin ever reenable them erstwhile you're done.

Step 4: Try restoring from a different machine if you person entree to one. This will thief to find if nan problem is pinch your PC aliases Mac aliases your iPhone, iPad, aliases iPod. If nan problem persists crossed aggregate computers and pinch different cables, it's astir apt your device, astatine which constituent it's clip to scope retired to Apple Support for help.