iPhone software update stuck on Install Now

I saw an old comment like this and now, three years later, mine is doing the same thing. Seriously, trying to move from an iPhone 11 to an iPhone 13 and it has been spinning on the software update, saying 'Install Now' for hours. I rebooted the phone and tried a second time, stuck at the same place.

iPhone 11, iOS 16

Posted on Sep 20, 2023 1:38 PM

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Posted on Sep 20, 2023 2:33 PM

Now that I got the new iphone up to 16.6.1 it took less than ten minutes to do the setup and transfer everything. If anyone else runs into this...


1 - set up the new phone as if it is just a brand new phone - don't transfer anything

2 - go to settings and download / install the latest updates

3 - factory reset the phone

4 - when it reboots, choose to transfer from your old phone or restore a backup


Maybe it is my wi-fi (but it's never been a problem before), or some kind of resource contention, but somehow it couldn't seem to handle doing the update and transfer at the same time.

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Question marked as Best reply

Sep 20, 2023 2:33 PM in response to sberman

Now that I got the new iphone up to 16.6.1 it took less than ten minutes to do the setup and transfer everything. If anyone else runs into this...


1 - set up the new phone as if it is just a brand new phone - don't transfer anything

2 - go to settings and download / install the latest updates

3 - factory reset the phone

4 - when it reboots, choose to transfer from your old phone or restore a backup


Maybe it is my wi-fi (but it's never been a problem before), or some kind of resource contention, but somehow it couldn't seem to handle doing the update and transfer at the same time.

Sep 20, 2023 2:15 PM in response to sberman

Yes, those are not the issues, but thanks. I found some suggestions that say to set it up as a new phone, then upgrade to 16.6.1 and THEN transfer your apps and data. I'm doing the update now and it seems to be working, rather than spinning. Not sure then how to transfer the stuff from the old phone but I'll work on that next!

Sep 20, 2023 2:44 PM in response to Janet_T63

Janet_T63 wrote:

Seriously, trying to move from an iPhone 11 to an iPhone 13 and it has been spinning on the software update, saying 'Install Now' for hours.

In hindsight, I should have asked several clarifying questions about this:

  • Which of these two iPhones are you attempting to update?
  • What are the current iOS versions of each iPhone?


Glad you got it resolved. Enjoy your Apple gear.

iPhone software update stuck on Install Now

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