iPad 4 A1458 ME392LL/A "unable to check for update", stuck in iOS 9.3.5 (13G36)

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iPad 4 A1458 ME392LL/A "unable to check for update", stuck in iOS 9.3.5 (13G36)

Good morning, everyone.

While stuck in quarantine, my aunt brings her iPad that has a "1" notification on Settings>General>Software Update but panics with "Unable to Check for Update", "An error occurred while checking for a software update".

Most workarounds involve resetting the networking settings, force-restarting with power + home button, trying Google's DNS and switching networks but none of these options worked.

Offline updating requires iTunes but Group Policies prevent me from running Windows Store apps on my work machine (the only machine at hand) and factory resets require backups, that should be verified first since I'm sure of their integrity.

Anyways, there are about 70GB of free space on the device and Apple reports iOS version 10.3 is the latest for this particular device. Is there any other advice you could give me? Before I go the factory reset way?

iPad (4th gen) Wi-Fi

Posted on Apr 12, 2020 6:26 PM

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Answer 1

Apr 12, 2020 7:18 PM in response to jontzbaker

When a device has skipped as many updates as this device has skipped, it's often very difficult to update over the air. In hat case, it would be advisable to update it using a computer with iTunes.

Here are two links, one for how to update over the air or using iTunes and one if you can't update:

Update your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support

If your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch won’t update - Apple Support

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Answer 2

jontzbaker Author

Level 1

9 points

Apr 13, 2020 9:26 PM in response to lobsterghost1

Lucky I found a Macbook and the assisted update worked like a charm. It had Catalina on, for future reference sake, and the update was done via Finder, as instructed.

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iPad 4 A1458 ME392LL/A "unable to check for update", stuck in iOS 9.3.5 (13G36)

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