Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Problems updating iPhone to iOS 7.1.2: what to do?

There has been a steady stream of folks out there who have experienced problems updating their iPhone, iPad or iPod to iOS 7.1.2. Here's what you need to know before upgrading to the latest iOS maintenance update by Apple.

Most widely reported upgrade problems with iOS 7.1.2

Soon after the release of the new iOS version, iMore reported that the update may freeze before completing. However, the problem seemed to be easily solvable by a cold restart of the iPhone or iPad.

ios 7.1.2 maintenance update on iphone screen

On the other hand a more important issue has been occurring during update to 7.1.2. Both iPhone and iPad users saw their devices enter into Recovery Mode soon after initializing the update. The usual iTunes globe icon and a cable appear on the iPhone screen.

recovery mode on iphone

If this happens to you, be sure to follow this Apple troubleshooting guide on how to exit from the infamous Recovery Mode:

I'd also advise you to use iTunes when updating to iOS 7.1.2 rather than choosing the OTA (Over The Air) update provided directly from within your iPhone or iPad. Updating iOS via iTunes has shown in the past to be more stable than the OTA update.

itunes window showing ios update for iphone 5s

It goes without saying that making a complete backup of your iPhone or iPad via at least iTunes or iCloud before updating is crucial. Using multiple backup methods is the most certain way to prevent data loss in case something goes very wrong with your iOS update.

The importance of multiple iPhone backups

Backing up your iOS device is nothing new. However, did you know that you can create simultaneous backups with both iTunes and iCloud and in fact, this is the recommended way to go? Don't only rely on one backup method as you risk loosing iPhone data. In the event your iPhone enters into Recovery Mode during the iOS update process, you need to restore the iPhone from factory settings via iTunes. At that point you will lose any non-backed up data on your phone.

I'd also recommend backing up via third-party utilities as yet another alternative method of preventing data loss. Here's a number of ways to backup iPhone messages, photos, music, and apps via third-party utilities:

iphone backup methods before updating to ios 7.1.2

Don't overlook backing up your iPhone or iPad. Updating to iOS 7.1.2 has proved to be tricky.