Restrict an Adult's iPhone with Supervised Mode

Unlock powerful restrictions for an Adult's iPhone or iPad using Supervised Mode. Ensure website and app restrictions aren't bypassed.

Tech Lockdown Team

Updated September 12, 2025

Apple's Supervised Mode is a powerful feature that can be enabled on an iPhone or iPad to unlock additional restrictive capabilities. It's an ideal solution for adults who want to restrict how they use their own iPhone or to set up a shared family device with limited functionality. Supervised Mode can be used to block websites and apps and enforce certain settings.

This is a completely comprehensive guide on Supervised Mode, covering:

Specific use-cases of Supervised Mode
Supervising a device from start to finish, including backing up and restoring
Using an Apple Config Generator to customize restrictions on a supervised device

Overview

Once a device is set up with Supervised mode enabled (we'll show you how), you'll be able to customize restrictions.

You'll install a Config file (Apple Configuration Profile) that specifies the restrictions.

You can protect these config files from being removed from the device itself, so a user can't simply go into the settings app and uninstall them. Since this solution doesn't rely on an app and is deeply integrated with Apple's operating system, you'll find that it is incredibly effective compared to standard App Blocker apps.

Supervised Mode Capabilities

So why bother setting up Supervised Mode at all? In our experience, it's a core requirement for an Adult who wants to block porn or create a dumb iPhone .

When an iPhone or iPad is set up as a supervised device, you gain access to additional restrictive capabilities. The key difference between Supervised Mode and iPhone parental controls is that these restrictions can be enforced for an adult. Furthermore, some additional restrictions can be accessed (like controlling the network settings on the device).

Here are a few examples of popular settings that our users customize:

Protecting VPN & DNS Settings

If you are trying to block adult content on an iPhone , chances are that you (or an app) will customize the DNS or VPN settings to point to a DNS filtering service. Unfortunately, it's normally very easy to bypass this connection by adding conflicting DNS or VPN settings. Apple doesn't provide a way to prevent this on a standard iPhone.

Fortunately, when Supervised Mode is enabled, you can protect DNS settings so that they are locked onto your preferred filtering provider.

Once protected, it won't be possible for an app or the device's user to add conflicting DNS entries or modify existing ones. This closes down a critical content filtering loophole.

However, even with DNS settings being protected, a user could still add a VPN app, which sets a VPN connection and bypasses the iPhone's DNS filter.

This is another example where Supervised Mode is incredibly valuable; you can easily add a restriction that prevents a user or an app from adding a conflicting VPN configuration.

The option to add a VPN is completely removed, and apps lose the ability to request this permission.

Comprehensive App Restrictions

One of the best use cases is to use supervised mode as a powerful iPhone app blocker . Apps downloaded from the app store can pose a serious challenge for content blocking, and it's often difficult to reliably filter these apps.

For example, an app like TikTok can't be filtered to block explicit content, so many people choose to block the TikTok app on iPhone entirely .

Supervised mode can be used to control which apps can be installed from the App Store and added to the device.

When an app is blocked, it's not possible to open it on the device, even if it was downloaded previously. If the app is somehow added to the device outside of the app store, it will still be blocked. It's also possible, but not necessary, to completely disable the iPhone app store .

Enforced Web Content Filtering

Apple provides a powerful built-in web content filter that can be used to automatically restrict adult websites and your own list of URLs you want to restrict. It's possible to restrict specific pages on a website without blocking the entire website. For example, this is ideal if you are looking to block adult content on Reddit , where some sections of the website need to be restricted without blocking the platform completely.

When this web content filter is configured with supervised mode, it can be locked on and cannot be overridden using the corresponding section of Screen Time.

Protect Apps from Being Uninstalled

Most DNS filtering providers will provide an app that establishes the connection to the content filter. This app will usually add a VPN configuration to set up this connection. However, if the app is deleted from the device, this VPN configuration will also be removed, which completely bypasses content filtering.

Supervised mode can be used to protect iPhone apps from being deleted , which completely closes down this bypass technique.

Using the Apple Config Generator to Customize Restrictions

Once supervised mode is enabled on your (or the adult's) iPhone or iPad, you can use the Tech Lockdown Apple Config Generator to customize and add the config files to your supervised device.

This config generator was specifically designed for adults with a few key self-control features built in (more on this later).

Types of Restrictions

Website Restrictions

Navigate to the Web section of the Apple Config Generator to specify web content filtering preferences. This will lock on and customize the built-in filter Apple provides (similar to the one you can access in Screen Time settings).

Toggle on Enable Automatic Adult Content Filter to automatically block most adult websites:

When this option is selected, the Safari app will disable the option to start a private browser window. If you find that a website is wrongly blocked, you can add exceptions to the adult content filter. Web content filtering works on most major browsers on an iPhone.

Then, you can add your own list of URLs to block. You can specify a website blocklist that includes full page URLs. This lets you precisely target what you want to block, allowing you to access some pages on a website but not others.

If you have the adult website filter enabled, you do not need to specify adult websites in your website blocklist. Use this list for additional URLs that aren't classified as adult content.

There are two other options you should consider: disabling internet results in Spotlight search and removing the ability for Siri to access user-generated online content.

App Restrictions

One of the most important areas of the Apple Config Generator is customizing app restrictions to completely block apps on iPhone .

Get started by managing which apps can be installed on the device. You can choose between two modes:

Allowlist: block all apps other than ones you approve.
Blocklist: block only specified apps.

When using allowlist mode, choose all of the apps that you want to use on the supervised device. Any app not included on this list, even if it was pre-installed on the device, will be removed and can't be opened at all. The only exception is the Phone and Settings app - these will appear even if you don't add them to your allowlist (there's no way to block them).

When you click Add Apps, you'll see some of the most popular apps that are added to an app allowlist. You'll need to select each app you want to be available on the device (even the camera app).

If you aren't able to find your app by searching for it, try changing the country (search defaults to the United States). Some apps aren't available in every region.

If you decided to use the Blocklist approach instead, the first step is to determine if you want to block apps based on age rating. Adjust the slider to change the maximum app age rating allowed. You'll see examples of apps that will be blocked based on the selected rating.

Any app that is already installed that violates the age rating will be removed from the device. It's important to note that the major web browsers, like Google Chrome, are rated 17+. Safari is also rated 17+, but it's excluded from age-based app blocking. Many investment, finance, and dating apps are rated 17+. As a result, age-based app blocking might not be a good approach for an adult's iPhone.

Once you choose a max app age rating (or none at all), you can customize your list of blocked apps.

Next, you should restrict Deleting Apps and Hiding Apps to ensure content filtering isn't bypassed by deleting the underlying application.

Additionally, you can also customize content controls within Apple's default apps. For example, you can choose to restrict Explicit Apple Store Content, which impacts Apple Videos, Music, News, and Podcasts.

Under the General tab in the Apple Config Generator, you can further customize content restrictions like limiting Movie and TV ratings on Apple TV.

Network Restrictions

Under the Network tab of the Apple Config Generator , you can customize some options for restricting changes to internet connection settings.

First, you should set up a DNS Content Policy and customize DNS filtering rules to block categories of websites and enforce SafeSearch.

Once this is done, you can use the Enforce DNS Settings section of the config editor to lock DNS settings to point to this content policy.

This will ensure that DNS settings aren't changed and that DNS content filtering is used.

There are a few other options to consider as well:

Modifying Personal Hotspot settings: Some people choose to restrict this, even though it can be quite limiting
Force WiFi use: If you have configured your home router to block adult content , it might be useful to prevent a supervised device from turning off Wifi and using an unfiltered 4g/5g connection when at home. However, this isn't needed if you have locked your DNS settings to point to a dns filter since this will apply to 4g/5g connections as well.

Restricting Hard Reset

In the general tab, you can disable the ability to Erase Content and Settings using the settings app on the supervised device. This closes down a rare loophole that some people encounter.

Disabling Generative AI Features

The Apple Intelligence features can be turned off and disabled as well. Certain features, like Image Playground and Genmoji, are common options people disable:

Protecting Config Files from being Removed

In Config Preferences in the Apple Config Generator, you can choose to enable Removal protection.

You can choose to require a pin to be entered or Prevent Uninstall from the settings app entirely.

Locking the Apple Config Editor

If you are managing your own supervised device and want to prevent yourself from reducing the strictness of your config, you can lock the editor. Locking the editor will prevent you from reducing your restrictions, but you'll still be able to add restrictions.

First, you'll need to lock your Tech Lockdown profile .

Then, click the cog icon in the config generator to open editor preferences:

Enable profile locking restrictions so that when your Tech Lockdown profile is locked, the editor is also restricted:

If you need to reduce restrictions in the config editor, you'll need to unlock your Tech Lockdown profile.

Syncing Config Changes to your Supervised Device

Once you've customized your config using the Apple Config Generator , click the Sync to Device button to get started adding it to your supervised device.

Whenever you make changes to your supervised config, you'll need to follow these steps to "update" the config on the device.

To download the config, you can scan a QR code if you are using the Apple Config Generator on your computer or download it directly if accessing from your supervised iPhone.

You'll be prompted to allow the download

The "Profile Downloaded" message should appear after you allow the download

Open the Settings app on the supervised device

Tap the "Profile Downloaded" navigation item that appears under your Apple account in settings

Install the profile. You'll need to enter your iPhone or iPad passcode

Enable Supervised Mode on an iPhone or iPad

If you'd like to use Config Files to restrict devices as an adult, your personal iPhone or iPad must be configured so that Supervised mode is enabled. Many of the features used by Config Files will not work on standard iPhones (without supervised mode enabled).

Supervision your iOS involves these steps:

This is a large guide

We strongly recommend using the Table of Contents for this guide on the right-hand side of the webpage.

Prerequisites

To enable supervised mode, you will need a separate computer, even though many of the steps below involve only your iPhone. When it comes time to actually enroll your iPhone as a Supervised Device, you will need to plug your iPhone into your computer and prepare it for supervision using Apple Configurator.

Verify you have a Mac (preferred) that you can use for this process.

If you only have a Windows computer...

Apple Configurator is only supported on Mac devices. There are third-party options you could consider that are supported on a Windows computer, but they typically aren't free.

If you have a Mac computer, you will be using a tool called Apple Configurator. It's free and easy to install on most Mac devices from the App Store.

If you have a Windows computer, you will need to use an alternative tool, as Apple Configurator is not available on Windows. The tool we recommend is called iMazing. It does require a one-time payment of around $50 to activate the software.

We've also had a couple of people using Windows computers borrow a friend's Mac to initially enroll their iPhone in Device Supervision to avoid paying for iMazing. In many cases, this should be fine, since you will only need Apple Configurator to initially to supervise.

Choose between Apple Configurator or iMazing; depending on which type of computer you have available.

You will need to plug the iPhone into your Mac or Windows computer using the iPhone charging cable. Make sure that you have a compatible cable.

Check that you have a cable to plug the iPhone into your computer.

Expect to devote at least 1 hour to completing the supervision process from start to finish.

Confirm that you can allocate at least 1 hour.

Step 1: Back Up Important Data From Your iPhone

Please watch the video below, which clarifies some important points. Then, proceed with the steps below in order.

In the video above, we've highlighted two main ways to restore data:

Restore backed up iCloud data (like photos, videos, and contacts) if you have a single iOS device; you're required to redownload apps after enabling supervised mode
Transfer backup between multiple iPhones/iPads to restore full data; you can keep all data after enabling supervised mode

In either case, we strongly recommend reading through this section to get an idea of what backing up your iPhone looks like. We do have instructions available for restoring a full backup if you have all of the required devices.

(1) Check iCloud Sync Settings

To be sure your personal Photos and Videos are not lost when supervising your device, check iCloud Settings are correct.

On your iPhone, double-check your iCloud sync settings to ensure that you are backing up important data.

Go to Settings > [your account name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup.

Tap on See All to view current backup status for your Photos and Files

Verify that your Files, Photos, and Messages are being backed up.

(2) Create a Full Backup of your iPhone

iCloud can be used to store your iPhone backup. It is also possible to create a backup on your Mac computer if you'd prefer.

In your iPhone, go to Settings > [your account name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup.

Ensure that you've created a up-to-date backup by selecting "Back Up Now"

Allow the Backup to Finish.

Step 2: Disable Activation Lock

iOS devices have an activation lock feature, which we temporarily need to disable to supervise the device. You will re-link after you supervise the device.

What happens if I don't disable Activation Lock before supervising?

Activation Lock will interrupt the supervision process and cause it to fail. You will need to reset your iPhone again.

The easiest way to disable the activation lock feature is to remove your device from the Find My app.

To disable activation lock (remove it from the Find My app):

Turn off your iPhone. Read more here if you don't know how to do this.

Go to www.iCloud.com/find

At the top, click All Devices.

Select the device that you are attempting to supervise

Click Remove from Account. Read more here if you don't know how to do this

Note

The device must be turned off in order for you to remove it.

Apple should present you with this pop-up when you try to remove the device:

The feature we're trying to disable is the activation lock feature.

Removing the device from Find My will immediately disable the activation lock feature.

Double check that the device is being marked as removed after a certain date; this confirms that activation lock is disabled on that device.

Step 3: Enroll Device With Apple Configurator

Use Apple Configurator to supervise your iPhone or iPad.

After you've supervised your iOS device, you will then be able to install profiles to restrict settings.

Note that if you have a Windows device and you'd like to use it to enable supervised mode, see our guide for using iMazing on Windows . You will be prompted to return back to this guide when you're done with iMazing.

(1) On Your Mac

Connect your iOS device to your Apple computer.

Enter your passcode on your iOS device and authorize (trust) any connection requests. Otherwise, you will get an error in Apple Configurator.

Tip: Temporarily Disable Auto Lock

Temporarily disable auto-lock on your iOS device so that you don't have to keep unlocking your device during this tutorial. This should be in Settings > Display & Brightness > Auto Lock

On your Mac computer, open the app store and download "Apple Configurator"

Open Apple Configurator

You should see your iOS device in apple configurator. If you don't, double check that your iOS device is unlocked and you have accepted connection requests.

Click the device and then select the "Prepare" icon

Prepare with a manual configuration like the following:

Do not enroll in an MDM

Skip enrolling in Apple Business Manager

Create an organization. The information here does not matter.

Generate a new identity

Select "Show all steps" then click "prepare"

You will probably receive a prompt indicating that the device needs to be erased. You must reset your device in order to enable device supervision.

Note

You cannot restore an iCloud backup or it will remove device supervision. Make sure that you have backed up any two-factor authentication apps that you use

Wait for Apple Configurator to finish preparing your device

(2) On your iPhone

Confirm that you see the screen below but do not proceed to set up your iPhone:

Step 4: Restore Backed Up Data On Your Newly Supervised iPhone

Your newly supervised iPhone should be on the initial setup screen:

Swipe up to proceed, but stop once you get to this screen:

When you sign into your Apple Account when prompted, you'll get access to all of the data you synced with iCloud.

App Data cannot be restored without undoing Supervision

iCloud sync cannot restore your App Data. You'll need to re-install and set up your apps again.

Choose Set Up Without Another Device:

Once you get to the Apps & Data screen, choose Don't Transfer Apps & Data:

After the first-time setup is finished, open the Settings app and make sure that the device is supervised.

How to restore from a Full Backup and keep Device Supervision

This is technically possible, but requires many additional steps that may not be intuitive at first. See our guide for restoring full data on Supervised Devices to learn more.