Many iPhone user has been asking the question on how to recover deleted text message on iPhone. We understand some text messages can be deleted accidentally or intentionally, but somehow the need rise to have them back again. It can be frustrating to do so if you decide to use media storage software to recover those SMS messages, but luckily it’s easier than most iPhone users think.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER:
If you decide to apply this article, please do so at your own risk. Although we think the steps suggested here are safe if conducted correctly and should not cause any damage to your iPhone, data will be lost if no good backup is available. Please insure you run a full backup and test it before attempting any of the steps below.

First of all, it’s important to note that if the iPhone deleted text messages were exchanged since the last sync, it’s not possible to recover those SMS message. It’s only possible to recover text messages if they were deleted AFTER the last synchronization with iTunes. In other words, recovering a text message is only possible if the you didn’t synchronize the iPhone with iTunes after deleting SMS messages.

FACT: SMS messages remain on the iPhone after deletion. When “deleted” on the iPhone, they are technically hidden and marked for deletion. Text messages are then deleted only after sync with iTunes.

In order to recover a deleted text message or messages, run through the following 4 easy steps:

STEP 1:
Make sure iTunes doesn’t automatically sync with iPhone when connected.

STEP 2:
Connect your iPhone to iTunes and Back up by selecting Preferences > Backup from iTunes, or right-click on your iPhone and choose back up.

STEP 3:
Restore your iPhone by selecting Restore under Preferences. Note that restoring the iPhone will restore the previous iPhone firmware. Your iPhone will be completely erased after the new firmware is installed. So make sure your back up is good!

STEP 4:
The final step will be to restore your iPhone from the back up you created on step 2. This will allow you to restore any data you have backed up, including the “deleted” text messages.

That’s it!

It’s important to distinguish between iPhone data restore and iPhone firmware restore.

iPhone data restore allows you to restore data you have already backup on iTunes. This is your photos, video, text messages…etc.

iPhone firmware restore is pretty much like a restore to factory switch. This will restore your iPhone to the previous firmware or system and no user data. This option is often recommended if your suspect that your iPhone OS or iOS is unstable.

We hope you find the above steps to restore iPhone deleted text messages helpful and we’ll appreciate any feedback or comments you may have.

UPDATE JUNE 12, 2011: PLEASE READ THE COMMENTS:

We have had a tremendous feedback on this how-to post. The process worked for some people and didn’t for others. We highly recommed you backup your iPhone before doing anything else. Also ensure you read the comments below with experiences from people who tried a different approach to restoring deleted iPhone text messages.