iPad 2 does not want to activate after upgrade

Question

Level 1

10 points

iPad 2 does not want to activate after upgrade

Hi everyone,

I have used this iPad 2 for years without problems. A few days ago, I decided to upgrad to iOS 7.1.2 from 7.1.1.

I did a full restore to factory defaults. I do that once in a while in order to fix battery leak (when idle) problems.

The upgrade to 7.1.2 went just fine, the iPad rebooted, I went through the normal procedure, Hello, English, Wifi, etc. BUT THEN IT REFUSES TO ACTIVATE.

After 3, 4 minutes it says: the activation server is temporarily unavailable... I tried dozens of times, again and again 3 days in a tow.

It is so frustrating, an iPad in good condition stops working because it cannot activate

I went to Apple Store Genius bar, but after they tried themselves again to do another restore, they got the same result. It does not activate.

They told the iPad has an internal component that has problems (in other words it is defective) and this is why it does not activate.

They offered me to give me 150$ to get a new one, or to fix it for 250$

THIS ANSWER DOES NOT SATISFY ME.

I told them to plug one of their diagnostics device / utility in order to see what is going wrong.

The error that I get on the screen does not tell that my iPad is defective, and the iPad is NOT defective.

I can tell that because I used it fine so far, the restore went fine, just the activation does not work. WHY?

I will keep complaining, again and again in the store until they do something. This is not acceptable.

Please help. Any idea how to fix this ? Did anyone have this issue?

Thanks

With best regards

Titus

iPad 2, iOS 7.0.3

Posted on Aug 31, 2014 8:11 AM

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Answer 1

Demo

Level 10

166,747 points

Aug 31, 2014 10:30 AM in response to titust

There is no way to fix the problem if the Apple techs cannot fix it. Take it back to the store and keep complaining if you want to go that route but since the iPad is two years old and OOW, I don't know that they will be any more accommodating than they already have been.

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Answer 2

titust Author

Level 1

10 points

Aug 31, 2014 11:32 AM in response to Demo

You are saying: There is no way to fix the problem if the Apple techs cannot fix it. How do you know that? How can you be so sure? Who are you Demo?. Genius guys did not do any troubleshooting, did not run any diagnostic tests on the unit, did not consult any knowledge base, and they told me what they told me just because they wanted to get rid of me, 'cause there were 10 other people with problems waiting for them... They don't bother. AND ON TOP OF THAT WHAT KIND OF APPLE ERROR MESSAGE IS THIS FROM APPLE ?: "Your IPad could not be activated because the activation server is temporarily unavailable" Does this tell my iPad is defective ? NO.

Am I frustrated? yes I am, and I have all the reasons to be

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Answer 3

Demo

Level 10

166,747 points

Aug 31, 2014 12:42 PM in response to titust

Hey, I'm nobody and I don't pretend to be somebody or something that I'm not. I'm saying that if Apple can't fix it, then it can't be fixed. You never shared all of that other information about what they didn't do at the Apple Store.

And you are an expert? You know for sure that there is nothing wrong with the iPad because it goes through the motions of restoring the software? You base your expert opinion on what exactly? You've tried dozens of times over 3 days and still can't activate the device.... Hmmmmm.

Don't get get me wrong, I really do hope it all works out for you, but it doesn't look promising to me at this point. Like I said, take it back to the store and keep complaining. Demand that they put it on their diagnostic equipment. I'm sure that they will be happy to accommodate you. In the meantime, maybe somebody else will have a solution for you.

Good luck anyway.

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Answer 4

titust Author

Level 1

10 points

Aug 31, 2014 1:12 PM in response to Demo

No, I'm not an expert in Apple, although I have 30 years of experience in IT.

Yes, I know for sure that the device is 100% functional, as it was for 2 years until I've made the stupid mistake to upgrade it to the latest version of iOS.

Is this the way for Apple to force people to replace their devices with the last generation? or what?

In my household we have 3 IPhones, 2 Macbooks, and 2 iPads. Is this the reward for being faithful to Apple? I have paid 750$ for this iPad 2 years ago, the iPad was good, good enough for what I needed, and it's still good but I cannot use it. Now it's just a nice paper weight, just because Apple is not capable to tell me what is wrong with it. Oh yeah, your device might have a problem... but we don't know what it is, you have to buy another one. But what is the problem, how do I know it's not something wrong with the entry for my iPad in their database ? or whatever glitch they might have in their software...

And you are telling me that they have been accommodating... 😁 ?

Give me abreak

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Answer 5

titust Author

Level 1

10 points

Aug 31, 2014 3:28 PM in response to titust

Follow up on the above issue: "Your iPad could not be activated because the activation server is temporarily unavailable" PROBLEM SOLVED

I have spent hours on the web to find a solution for this problem and I found this (see below)

https://www.ifixit.com/Answers/View/164750/ipad+2+not+activating+error

This article says: that this problem can be caused by broken baseband chip after water damage or impact damage.

Apparently iTunes is trying to read the device's baseband chip (IMEI number or something like that) to activate the device and it cannot.

My iPad did not have water damage for sure. Maybe it had an impact, who knows.

The article says that if it has had impact damaged, using hot air on the baseband chip may bring the baseband function back. Obviously I did not open the iPad to apply any hot air.

I just had this crazy idea, if this can be temporarily fixed by hot hair it may be fixed as well by some kind of extreme temperatures high or low.

I wanted to try both experiments, low temperature first and then high temperature (using a hair drier). I did not have anything to lose, my device was a nice paper weight because it had the iOS installed but did not activate.

I tried first to put the iPad in the freezer for 10 minutes. Guess what, I removed it from the freezer, tried to activate it, and IT WORKED RIGHT AWAY.

No need to try to heat it anymore.

YES IT DID WORK, and NO, I AM NOT CRAZY. I am still flabbergasted. Maybe my case was one in a million.

Anyway the conclusion is that there is something screwy inside. I WILL NEVER EVER try to upgrade it or wipe it to avoid activation

I don't know if this can help other people, but I feed responsible to post the resolution here.

Titus

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Answer 6

Demo

Level 10

166,747 points

Aug 31, 2014 3:51 PM in response to titust

I realize that you don't give a rats behind what I think, nonetheless, I am truly glad that you were able to get the iPad activated again .... and I never thought that you were crazy. I really thought that something was fried inside and that the iPad was beyond hope.

Obviously, I was totally wrong. Good for you.

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Answer 7

ayoub123

Level 1

31 points

Aug 31, 2014 4:01 PM in response to titust

Hi,

Try to restore it again by doing these steps and when you get on the hello bit, skip some steps and try your luck

Disconnect the USB cable from the device, but leave the other end of the cable connected to your computer's USB port.
Turn off the device: Press and hold the Sleep/Wake button for a few seconds until the red slider appears, then slide the slider. Wait for the device to shut down.
While pressing and holding the Home button, reconnect the USB cable to the device. The device should turn on.
Continue holding the Home button until you see the Connect to iTunes screen.
iTunes will alert you that it has detected a device in recovery mode. Click OK, and then restore the device.

Hope this helps

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Answer 8

Demo

Level 10

166,747 points

Aug 31, 2014 4:09 PM in response to ayoub123

I Think that Titus was able to finally activate his iPad ..... 😉

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Answer 9

ayoub123

Level 1

31 points

Aug 31, 2014 4:15 PM in response to Demo

ok thanks

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Answer 10

ayoub123

Level 1

31 points

Aug 31, 2014 4:17 PM in response to Demo

Also Demo,

I have an ipad mini and because my ipad was blocked to itunes i wanted to do a full system restore but i had important photos on it and it wiped out all of my pictures and i had not backed my ipad up for a year.

Please help

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