i tried to update my phone & it is completely blocked now!!.... this is the message:Your iPhone could not be activated because the Activation Server is temporarily unavailable. Try connecting your iPhone to iTunes to activate it, or try again in a few min

This usually happens if the phone has been Hacked / Jailbroken / Modified...

If this is the case... Then...

Sorry... But...

The discussion of Jailbroken Devices is against the Terms of Use of this Forum.

You will need to look elsewhere.

Why Jailbreak is Not Supported

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3743

pattyla wrote:

the phone was unlocked!

Unlocked how and by whom? Only the carrier the phone is locked to can authorize unlocking it. If you took it to the corner cell shop and had them "unlock" it, then it was hacked and is now most likely permanently bricked.

Then you're one of the rare few... The vast majority of these problems are due to hacking or jailbreaking. Not necessarily all, but most of them by a large margin.

Just to be clear, your phone wasn't hacked or jailbroken prior to getting it unlocked by AT&T, was it?

Have you tried activating it using iTunes instead of over the air?

Have you tried activating over 3G instead of WiFi?

If you can't do any of these, google "iPhone DFU Mode". Put the phone in DFU mode and restore it.

If that doesn't fix it, make an appointment at the genius bar.

Uninstall itunes. Power off your computer and unplug everything and disconnect all cables. Wait 15 to 20 minutes then power up and plug everthing back in and reconnect all cables. Reinstall itunes. Wait another 20 minutes then reconnect your phone to itunes. That should do it.

Incamera: That should do what? Waste 30 minutes to an hour?

pattyla wrote:

thank you so much for this tip. phone is responding finally, but am i going to loose all my data? of course as the dummy i am, i forgot to backup... and have for a very long time too?

Um... it's waiting to be activated... there is nothing on the phone... If you didn't back it up before updating, then everything is already gone.

I'm sorry this didn't help. I had exactly the same problem and this solved it for me. I forgot to say that at the start of the process the phone should be powered off and remain off for at least a half hour, then it should be connected to the new version of itunes while powered off. It is basically a memory problem. Both the phone and itunes have a memory of the event which caused the phone to become blocked. Keeping the phone powered off

for some time allows the memory of the event to erase.