UPDATE CRASHED IPAD - SOLUTION?

(Apologies for Corporate-speak below, it's from a formal letter of complaint I wrote).

I recently purchased a new Windows PC and wanted to create a fresh local backup of my iPad. On my previous computer I had used iTunes to do this, but Apple now directs Windows users towards the Apple Devices application, so I used that instead.

It's important to note that, rather than pay the Apple Tax for iCloud backups, I always backup to my PC. And that, as I had built myself a new PC, and given away the old one, I needed to create a new backup on the new PC.

I connected the iPad and initiated a backup.

Shortly after that process began, Apple Devices informed me that the iPad had to be updated to a newer version of iPadOS before the backup could proceed.

I normally install iPadOS updates promptly when they are offered, and this particular update had not previously been offered to me on the iPad itself. I understand that this is because it is a major 'new whole number' update. More importantly, I would ordinarily prefer to create a backup before installing a new operating system, precisely because operating-system updates can sometimes fail.

Apple Devices did not give me that option. In practice, installing the new operating system was made a precondition of creating the backup I had connected the iPad to make.

I therefore accepted the update.

Several minutes into the process, the update failed. The iPad was left displaying the Recovery Mode screen showing a computer and cable and could no longer boot normally.

I then made extensive attempts to recover the existing installation without erasing the device. These included attempts using Apple Devices and iTunes on different computers, different USB cables and different

USB connections. I also purchased iMazing specifically in an attempt to reinstall iPadOS without erasing the device.

These attempts produced a succession of errors. iMazing

reported: “Failed to copy preflight options during recovery mode

restore.”

Apple Devices subsequently failed during a non-erasing

Update with: “The iPad ‘iPad’ could not be updated. An unknown error

occurred (2003).”

Windows Device Manager also intermittently reported the iPad

as: “Unknown USB Device (Device Descriptor Request Failed).”

I then took the iPad to an Apple Store Genius Bar and explained the history in detail. I was told that Apple had no solution other than to erase the iPad completely and reinstall the operating system from scratch - losing me all my extensive configuration, subscriptions and authenticators.

I also have an iPhone, which I keep much simpler, and do backup to both iCloud and my PC. But many of my apps and settings are not installed on the iPhone.

Anybody got any thoughts about how to get my installation - or at least it's configuration - back? I'm pretty tech savvy.