ATV: How to Soft and Hard Reset Apple TV
Posted by David Kirk in Apple Mac
Most of the problems with your Apple TV (ATV) can be solved by a simple reset or reboot.
Resetting the 2nd generation Apple TV is simple; however, I always forget the remote combination to do it. Occasionally, my device will lose it’s HDMI handshake. A simple reboot fixes the process. Likewise, if the device becomes unresponsive, a reset frequently fixes the problem.
As far as the ATV is concerned, a soft and hard reset are exactly the same. The device completely reboots the OS no matter what method you use.
To reset your Apple TV, press and hold the Menu and Down keys for at least 6 seconds until the white light on the ATV rapidly blinks. Let go of the buttons and the device will restart.
Alternatively, you can just unplug the device. Let it sit several seconds before reconnecting power. The device will restart with a full reboot of the OS.
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April 06, 2012 at 9:16 pm, brook gardner said:
I have tried to reboot and reset my apple tv several times and each time it comes back to the aple and its still frozen
all i see is the apple
when i do the reset with the remote it blacks out but then comes back to the apple
April 07, 2012 at 5:37 am, David Kirk said:
@brook – This is typically a sign of a dying piece of hardware in the device. If you can’t get it to respond to the hard reset, then taking to an Apple store or mailing it in for repairs is your only option. Good luck to you.