iPhone not working after 17.2.1 update

So we have about 40+ users that have updated fine and 4 or so that have this same issue. Heat, battery drain and cellular network not functioning. What does resolve it is if we remove our Intune management profile from the phone. Maybe there is some conflict with profiles (management or VPN) and this update? I know there are discussions on VPNs and deleting them, which isn't a solution just a temp work around as corporations need VPNs for access and need MDM management profiles.

We can reset the phone and start fresh then as soon as we install Intune and the management profile the phone breaks, delete the profile and it works fine.

There are a few people that have VPN profiles for access to corporate intranets; I’ve only seen one report on one of those, and it was because the certificate on the server had expired. Deleting and adding back the account fixed it. The vast majority of VPN problems are from users who only have VPN because it is an in thing or some internet “guru” said to on Youtube; VPN really isn’t needed on an iOS device; all it does is slow down the network connection to about 25% of its capacity and waste battery energy. And most users don’t really understand what it is, either. Apple’s Private Relay is actually better than VPN and is much more secure, because there is no middleman (the VPN provider) who records everything you do over the VPN connection. And possibly sells that information (certainly sells it if the VPN service is free, because they need income to stay in business).

VPN frequently creates more problems than it solves. But one important fact is that when you install VPN it configures itself to the specific hardware, iOS version and network that the phone uses. If any of those change it can break the VPN. So any time you change any of these you may need to delete the VPN app and profile, restart your phone then add them back (if you still want to use VPN) so it can configure itself to the new environment.

Thus, you don’t have to give up VPN if you really want it. Delete the profile (which automatically restarts iOS) and you can add it back.

I was having the issue with T-Mobile cellular. It would work for a while and then stop. Signal strength was 4-bars 5G. Disabling and reenabling cellular resolved it for a short period of time.

Removing the VPN profile I had did not help. Removing the InTune corporate management profile and then reinstalling it did resolve the issue.

Unlike another user who had an expired certificate in InTune, mine was still valid.

This update kicks me out of connecting to my provider too! Over the past 3 days, my phone has been freezing, stopping me from playing music, apps closing, when I get a call I hear nothing, my phone freezes when trying to read or scroll thru texts!! Worst update ever, Apple needs to fix this asap!! I’ve never had this many serious issues with an iPhone. Unacceptable.

Access to any internal resources will require a VPN (or ZTNA which installs a VPN profile). Along with internal resources, you can't access any of our Entra/Azure integrated cloud applications without coming from our ZTNA providers IP. Microsoft specifically has conditional access rules in Entra to list IPs that are allowed to connect to cloud apps, which if using a mobile device without a static IP you will need some kind of VPN/Proxy/ZTNA. If you don't have our ZTNA client installed, can't access email, teams, etc on your iOS device. This is best practice from every ZTNA provider (Zscaler, Netskope, Cylance, etc.).

However it is not the ZTNA (VPN profile) that is causing this, its the Intune Management profile (cert is valid until 2025), not sure if iOS treats them the same, maybe it does but we have tried the delete, reboot and reinstall steps. If we temporary remove these users from the ZTNA conditional access (so they don't need the ZTNA client) but keep the management profile on there from Intune the issue continues. If we remove the Intune profile add the ZTNA client (and profile) back the phone acts as it should (normal heat, phones calls work etc). As soon as the Intune profile gets applied the problems reappear. Its just strange because its only a few users and its across different models (XR, 14 and 15).

Going to open a ticket with our Apple Business/Developer account once the holidays are over.

Thanks!

Going back to a iPhone 8 Plus doesn’t need the the iOS 17.2.1 installed on phone to have needed services to work ( cellular service , text messaging, etc.) Apple and all carriers are not going to fix all issue for the small majority of us that are experiencing issues. I have friends that have older iPhones that this didn’t happen to due to the updates stop at iOS 16. I gave up and this has been an awful experience dealing with all involved.

I only JUST updated to any version of iOS 17 today, and subsequentially became unable to watch videos in the YouTube app (but I was still able to watch them in Firefox). SpeedTest's "Speed" test would connect to a server, but then throw an error (but SpeedTest's "Video" test said I could stream 4K). I was also unable to connect to the Apple App Store.

I use VPN.ac, but I wasn't currently connected.

I'm using an iPhone XS with ConsumerCellular with a physical SIM card.

lonnieprice wrote:

While I don't use a VPN, my iPhone is managed by my company's installation of Microsoft InTune, which I noticed (Settings:General:VPN & Device Mgmt) had a signing certificate (IOSProfileSigning.manage.microsoft.us) that had expired December 12, 2023. To test this theory, I removed this Management software and my phone's cellular calls worked perfectly again!

This prompted me to look at my VPN profiles. There was a very old one from Express VPN, which I hadn't used in years, and also an app-specific profile, for the Aloha browser. I deleted ALL of the VPN profiles, and I was once again able to watch videos in the YouTube app, do a Speed test with SpeedTest, and connect to the Apple App Store. I then opened the VPN.AC app, which prompted me to create a new VPN profile. I did, and connected to the VPN, and I was still able to use the previously mentioned services as normal.

Because I didn't delete the VPN profiles individually and test my connection after removing them one-by-one, I can't say for sure what specific profile(s) was causing the issue.

Hopefully, this will help someone else resolve their 17.2.1 issues, although from reading other comments, I suspect that there may be a number of different issues at play, here.

Over the past week since updating to 17.2.1, I’ve had 2 calls with Apple support, and 3 with T-mobile. They both point the finger at the other. At least T-Mobile can get my phone working enough to connect to the network, but it only lasts 1-3 days, and then it won’t connect. A real pain over the holidays when I can’t use calling, texting, navigation as I’m traveling, etc. I don’t understand why they aren’t talking to each other to figure out why this is happening to so many people.

This does not look like it is a carrier issue. We support corporate accounts with end user device support and found a temporary fix, although most users will not like it. Wiping the phone clean and not restoring iCloud data will

make the phone operable. As soon as you sign into your Apple ID and start syncing data, the problem resumes.

Same, this happened to me yesterday (1st Jan) which is a week after I upgraded the software. I went to my phone carrier (Three Mobile in U.K) which normally messes things up but after a few attempts with new SIM cards, it was evident that it was a device issue rather than a network issue. I went to the Apple store and they informed me that I need to buy a new phone as the one I am using is a four years old device :-/ I refuse to agree that I need to purchase a new handset after four years, especially if I spend the money I do buying from Apple. I need my celluar reception for my business, it is harmful not having it. Apple is loosing its status and I am not sure what to do....

After update to 17.2.1, my iMac does not recognize my iPhone 11pro, so it cannot be backed up to my iMac now. Fortunately I did do a back up to iMac before upgrading from 17.2 to 17.2.1...

Anyone heard of a fix coming??

Just trying to see if anyone has found a fix. Apple has been absolutely no help. I made the mistake of factory resetting my phone to solve the problem, unfortunately now my 13 Pro Max is stuck on "Unable to Activate: An update is required to activate your phone". The thing is, my phone was already updated to 17.2.1 before i factory reset it so I'm really at a loss. Is anyone else having this issue? There's no problem with the SIM card as i was able to get an old iPhone 6S working, but it has zero storage space and I really need my Pro Max to work.

I’m downloading it right now and honestly I’m thinking about reconsidering lol apple know exactly what they’re doing . This whine iPhone thing been a scam . I’m honestly surprised that the newer phones are experiencing these issues . They’re already in trouble (sued) because they’re tampering with the bugs in older iPhones so you can get the new one lol apple get it together because the fact that 200 plus customers are experiencing these issues is ridiculous.

You likely had an eSIM for service so when you wiped it, you wiped the eSIM. You will need to contact your carrier to have a new eSIM generated. Also, will need ot be connected to WiFi for the eSIM to download.

This does not look like it is a carrier issue. We support corporate accounts with end user device support and found a temporary fix, although most users will not like it. Wiping the phone clean and not restoring iCloud data will

make the phone operable. As soon as you sign into your Apple ID and start syncing data, the problem resumes.