software update taking forever on new iphone 12

To update over the air from the phone all of these requirements must be met:

• You need at least 6 GB of free storage
• You must be connected to a Wi-Fi network (and not a personal hotspot) unless it is an iPhone 12 or 13 series with an active 5G network connection
• The phone must be charged to at least 50%, and preferably plugged in so it stays above 50% during the update
• The phone must not be in Low Power Mode
• The phone must not be connected through VPN, and it may be necessary to delete any VPN apps and VPN profiles
• The phone cannot be in Airplane mode
• You cannot still have a beta version installed on the phone
• You cannot have a previous version that was downloaded, but not installed - go to Settings/General/iPhone Storage to look; if you find an iOS installer, delete it

If ANY of these are not met the update will take “forever”, until you correct the deficiency.

If you can't meet all of them you can still update using your computer.

Try this

Go to:

Settings -> General -> iPhone Storage

Check for the iOS Update, if you find it then tap and delete it. After that - close all your apps and restart your iPhone.

When your iPhone is turned on again, log on to a good WiFi network and connect your iPhone to a charger.

Go to Settings -> Display & Brightness -> Auto Lock and set to Never. This is to prevent the phone from going to sleep while the update is being downloaded. Remember to set the setting back after the update.

Now, go to Settings -> General -> Software Update and start downloading iOS 15.5 - just leave your phone while the update is downloaded. When the phone shows "Install" just press and let your phone update. Hopefully it shows no errors this time.

Good luck.