AMCarter3

Q: Why does iTunes say my iPhone 6s needs to be updated to iOS 9.2.1

iTunes says my iPhone 6s needs to be updated to iOS 9.2.1 despite the fact that it is already on iOS 9.2.1. The phone's Software Update shows it up to date, yet iTunes seems to think it is not. What to do?

MacBook Air (13-inch, Early 2014), OS X Yosemite (10.10.1), 16 GB Ram; 480 GB SSD

Posted on Feb 21, 2016 8:42 PM

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Q: Why does iTunes say my iPhone 6s needs to be updated to iOS 9.2.1

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  • by AMCarter3,

    AMCarter3 AMCarter3 Feb 23, 2016 7:52 AM in response to Meg St._Clair
    Level 1 (31 points)
    Mac OS X
    Feb 23, 2016 7:52 AM in response to Meg St._Clair

    I'm not trying to start an argument with either of you. However, the statement "it is excellent version control" IS an opinion. It is not a fact. And I disagree with that opinion.

  • by boulderskies@ck,

    boulderskies@ck boulderskies@ck Feb 26, 2016 2:57 PM in response to Niel
    Level 1 (14 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Feb 26, 2016 2:57 PM in response to Niel

    I have this same issue, have read this thread and still dont understand. What is Error 53, what does it have to do with the original question? Also, we could do without all the editorializing. Should people who have this situation just do the update iTunes is suggesting?

     

    Thank you, Scott

  • by Meg St._Clair,

    Meg St._Clair Meg St._Clair Feb 26, 2016 3:03 PM in response to boulderskies@ck
    Level 9 (59,389 points)
    iPhone
    Feb 26, 2016 3:03 PM in response to boulderskies@ck

    boulderskies@ck wrote:

     

    I have this same issue, have read this thread and still dont understand. What is Error 53, what does it have to do with the original question? Also, we could do without all the editorializing. Should people who have this situation just do the update iTunes is suggesting?

    An internet search would turn up Error 53. But, in summary, it was an error that appeared if someone who had an non-functioning TouchID on an iPhone 6 or later, tried to restore or update their phone. The phone would be rendered unusable. There is no reason not to update your phone.

  • by boulderskies@ck,

    boulderskies@ck boulderskies@ck Feb 26, 2016 3:05 PM in response to Meg St._Clair
    Level 1 (14 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Feb 26, 2016 3:05 PM in response to Meg St._Clair

    But my phone doesnt need an update, according to Settings, Update.Hence my confusion.

  • by Hannah Feng,

    Hannah Feng Hannah Feng Feb 26, 2016 3:06 PM in response to AMCarter3
    Level 1 (1 points)
    Feb 26, 2016 3:06 PM in response to AMCarter3

    Hi AMCarter,

     

    Do you want to update it or not? If you do not, go to Settings > General > Notifications > And turn that off. If you want to update it, connect your device to iTunes, or just update it from settings. If you believe that iTunes is right and there isn't a new update, just go to Notification Center and turn that off so it doesn't bother you around.

  • by Meg St._Clair,Solvedanswer

    Meg St._Clair Meg St._Clair Feb 26, 2016 3:21 PM in response to boulderskies@ck
    Level 9 (59,389 points)
    iPhone
    Feb 26, 2016 3:21 PM in response to boulderskies@ck

    boulderskies@ck wrote:

     

    But my phone doesnt need an update, according to Settings, Update.Hence my confusion.

    This particular update will only appear if you connect your phone to iTunes. If you connect your phone to iTunes and it suggests you update, there's no reason not to. I haven't connected my iPhone to iTunes (I rarely do) since the update was released so I haven't updated. However, if my TouchID went bad and I hadn't done it and I then tried to restore my phone, I might have problems. However, I'll probably continue to live dangerously until the next major update.

  • by AMCarter3,Apple recommended

    AMCarter3 AMCarter3 Feb 26, 2016 4:23 PM in response to Meg St._Clair
    Level 1 (31 points)
    Mac OS X
    Feb 26, 2016 4:23 PM in response to Meg St._Clair

    Since I do connect my iPhone and iPad to iTunes on with regular frequency for backing up, downloading updates, etc., I did the iOS 9.2.1 "update". No issues detected. Everything is fine.

  • by gail from maine,

    gail from maine gail from maine Feb 26, 2016 5:36 PM in response to Hannah Feng
    Level 7 (26,425 points)
    iCloud
    Feb 26, 2016 5:36 PM in response to Hannah Feng

    Hannah Feng wrote:

     

    Hi AMCarter,

     

    Do you want to update it or not? If you do not, go to Settings > General > Notifications > And turn that off. If you want to update it, connect your device to iTunes, or just update it from settings. If you believe that iTunes is right and there isn't a new update, just go to Notification Center and turn that off so it doesn't bother you around.

     

    As Meg pointed out, this update would not appear in your Settings, nor is it accessed via your settings. This us an update that is only triggered when you connect to iTunes. It will be triggered whether you have already updated to 9.2.1 or not. As was previously explained by Lawrence, this is a slipstream update that has the same version number as the update that you may or may not have done via the Settings app on your device. The notification for this update does not appear on the Settings icon at all.

     

    Cheers,

     

    GB

  • by 0s1r1s,

    0s1r1s 0s1r1s Feb 29, 2016 4:01 AM in response to Niel
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 29, 2016 4:01 AM in response to Niel

    Why the frak wouldn't Apple make it more obvious that there has been a change? That's just [mentally impaired] in my opinion. How hard is it for them to say v.9.2.2 or v9.2.1.1? I just did it so it's pretty easy in my opinion.

  • by Lawrence Finch,

    Lawrence Finch Lawrence Finch Feb 29, 2016 4:02 AM in response to 0s1r1s
    Level 8 (38,147 points)
    Mac OS X
    Feb 29, 2016 4:02 AM in response to 0s1r1s

    Do you think it makes you look smarter to use inappropriate language in a post? It doesn't.

     

    To answer your question, it has to do with the version control system that Apple uses. It doesn't support more than 3 levels (most version control systems don't), so it can't be 9.2.1.1. And there is probably a 9.2.2 that does something entirely different. But you can get additional levels using the build number, which Apple has done in this instance. The previous version was 9.2.1(13D15) and the one that is installed after the update is 9.2.1(13D20).

  • by drcox611,

    drcox611 drcox611 Mar 2, 2016 8:57 AM in response to gail from maine
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Mar 2, 2016 8:57 AM in response to gail from maine

    Here's my situation, which I can't tell is the same as is being debated here.

     

    Itunes 12.3.2

    Iphone 6+ v9.2.1

     

    Iphone is acting laggy so I want to restore it.  I plug it into my MBP and hit restore.  iTunes says there's a new version, 9.2.1, that must be downloaded and installed before I can restore the phone.  Yet when I try to download it, after about 15 minutes it states that the download failed (forget the error reason).

     

    So, iTunes says I need to upgrade to 9.2.1, but cannot successfully do so thereby preventing me from doing a restore on my phone.  Thoughts other than doing a factory reset on the phone and then hoping "restore from backup" isn't similarly blocked by this failure to download issue?

     

    Thanks

    Perry

  • by Lawrence Finch,

    Lawrence Finch Lawrence Finch Mar 2, 2016 10:11 AM in response to drcox611
    Level 8 (38,147 points)
    Mac OS X
    Mar 2, 2016 10:11 AM in response to drcox611

    It's impossible to help you without the exact error message and error code. Also your computer type and operating system.

     

    Even if there was no update you would get the same error doing a restore, so you need to solve that problem first.

  • by Campervanshayna,

    Campervanshayna Campervanshayna Mar 20, 2016 6:11 PM in response to Lawrence Finch
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Mar 20, 2016 6:11 PM in response to Lawrence Finch

    Can someone help? I don't understand the technical discussion above. What can I do? The message i get is that My iphone can't be used with itunes on my macbook because the phone needs a new version of itunes. but my OS is up to date on my phone - it's a 6s. What recourse do i have?

  • by Lawrence Finch,

    Lawrence Finch Lawrence Finch Mar 20, 2016 6:19 PM in response to Campervanshayna
    Level 8 (38,147 points)
    Mac OS X
    Mar 20, 2016 6:19 PM in response to Campervanshayna

    Campervanshayna wrote:

     

    Can someone help? I don't understand the technical discussion above. What can I do? The message i get is that My iphone can't be used with itunes on my macbook because the phone needs a new version of itunes. but my OS is up to date on my phone - it's a 6s. What recourse do i have?

    You can continue using the phone with the current version. But you will have to update iTunes to the latest version (12.3.x) to sync the phone and for future updates. To install the latest iTunes your Mac must have OS X 10.8.5 or later.

  • by gail from maine,

    gail from maine gail from maine Mar 20, 2016 9:04 PM in response to Campervanshayna
    Level 7 (26,425 points)
    iCloud
    Mar 20, 2016 9:04 PM in response to Campervanshayna

    As Lawrence indicated, the message refers to the version of iTunes that is running on your Mac. Until the OS X on the Mac is upgraded so that it can run the latest version of iTunes, your phone won't be able to "talk" to the Mac. The iOS on your phone is just fine.

     

    Best of luck,

     

    GB

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