Apple’s new iOS 16 was just released and you are trying to update your iPhone to it but you end up getting stuck on the verifying update screen. No matter how long you wait it just won’t finish verifying and stays stuck. Don’t worry, you’re not the only one going through this problem and we do have some solutions for you, so keep reading and learn how to get this fixed.
What can I do when iPhone is stuck on verifying update?
How long should my iPhone say “Verifying Update”? Why is my iPhone stuck on “Verifying Update”?
You’re probably asking yourself these questions. It usually takes a few minutes, but it can be stuck due to a network issue, different problems with your device, or other unknown reasons.
In the following sections, you’ll learn just what you can do to successfully go through with your update and fix this problem.
1. Check WiFi
One reason your iPhone may be stuck on verifying update may be due to your internet connection. Are you using a stable WiFi connection or are you outside using a random public WiFi?
If you are outside then you should wait until you go back home and use your home WiFi because you will have a better signal so things can run a lot better.
If you don’t have the option of changing to a different WiFi then you should check your current connection to make sure that there is no issue with the connection. Go to your modem/router and see if the light is on indicating you have full connectivity.
You can also disconnect your modem/router and reboot it to get your connection back to normal. Lastly, go to your phone’s Settings app and reboot your connection by disabling your WiFi for at least 45 seconds to a minute then re-enabling WiFi and reconnecting to your network.
2. Force Restart iPhone
If there is no problem with your network connection, then another option is to restart your iPhone. The method of restarting you should use is a force restart which is a bit different from simply just powering off your device.
When you force restart your iPhone, you are literally forcing everything to completely reset when it turns back on and this can help fix any glitches that may be causing your update to not go through “Verifying Update”.
Force restarting is pretty simple and it’s quick too, it will only take a minute or so. To do a force restart of your iPhone what you have to do is quickly press and release the volume up button followed by the volume down button then hold the side button for a couple of seconds until you see the Apple logo. Once the Apple logo pops up release the side button and that’s it, you have just successfully completed a force restart.
3. Delete Old Software Update
Not even a force restart has helped? Then the issue might be something related to your iPhone software file. If this is the case then you will have to remove the software file that has been downloaded so that your software update service on your phone can go back to functioning the way it’s intended to. There are a couple of ways you can do this but the easiest and most convenient would be to just go through with it directly on your iPhone. Let’s get started.
- Open up the Settings app on your iPhone and tap on General.
- Tap on iPhone Storage.
- Scroll down and find the iOS version and tap on it.
- Tap Delete Update once then tap Delete Update again to confirm.
- Once you’ve removed the update, go back to the Settings app again and tap General.
- Then tap on Software Update and select Download and Install to reinstall again.
4. Turn Off Screen Time Restrictions
If you have restrictions set up on your iPhone then it may become a pretty common occurrence that your downloads and updates end up being disturbed. So if you are having trouble verifying an update on your iPhone then it might possibly be due to the fact that you have these restrictions turned on. To check if this is indeed the reason why your iPhone keeps getting stuck on verifying update then you can turn your restrictions off.
- Open up the Settings app.
- Tap on the Screen Time tab.
- Then tap on Turn Off Screen Time and enter your Passcode if prompted.
- Lastly, disable Screen Time by tapping Turn Off Screen Time.
5. Update Through iTunes
Another option you have to bypass the “Verifying Update” screen is to try and update directly through iTunes/Finder instead of on your iPhone. You can do this either on Mac or PC; it will work with either system. Make sure to have the latest version of iTunes installed so that you don’t run into any issues while updating. Let’s get started and show you the steps on a Windows computer.
- Open up iTunes and connect your iPhone to your Mac or PC.
- Look at the top left menu of the iTunes window and click on the iPhone icon.
- Go to Summary and click the Check for Update or Update button.
- Finally, follow the on-screen instructions to finish the update of iOS 16.
6. Use Recovery Mode
The last method that you can try to prevent your iPhone from being stuck on verifying update is to restore your phone using recovery mode. Make sure that you back up your phone before doing this or you will end up losing all your data. You can either back up your iPhone to iCloud or to your computer using iTunes.
With this method, we will basically be completely resetting your iPhone back to factory settings and then restoring all your data through a backup, so it’s important that you create a backup before starting. That way you don’t lose any new data you may have that isn’t on any of your old backups.
- Open up iTunes and connect your iPhone.
- Put your iPhone into Recovery Mode by quickly pressing and releasing the volume down button then pressing and holding the side button until you see the recovery mode screen pop up.
- You will get a message from iTunes saying that a device was found in recovery mode and give you two options to Update or Restore your iPhone, choose Restore.
- If prompted enter your Apple ID and or Passcode.
- Next just wait a couple of minutes for the restore process to complete.
- Once your iPhone has finished restoring you’ll be brought to the welcome screen where you can begin your iPhone set up.
- Follow the setup instructions until you get to the Apps & Data screen, then tap Restore From iCloud Backup.
- Next, sign into iCloud with your Apple ID.
- After you sign in to iCloud, choose the backup that you created earlier to restore from.
- Make sure that you stay connected to WiFi the entire time throughout the restoration process. It should only take a few minutes to hours (depending on the size of your backup) before your iPhone is fully restored from iCloud backup.
If none of the other above methods have worked so far, this last and final method definitely will. Now that you’ve fixed the issue you can finally go and enjoy the new iOS 16 update!
