Error 40 - At my wits end.

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TyphTyph Author

Level 1

5 points

Error 40 - At my wits end.

Hi there guys,

A friend of mine recently gave me his iPhone 6+ as he encountered an error he couldn't fix.

I've been an 'Apple fanboy' for the last 10 years so know and use their products a lot but this one has stumped me.

Ok, so..

Firstly, I should point out that the phone doesn't respond to anything at-all, ie; turn on or off etc etc (just black screen) unless when plugged in to the computer, and it tells me it's in recovery mode and needs restoring, the phone powers up, shows the Apple logo and the non-moving progress bar until I unplug it then it just goes back off.

Now, the actual issue is just that.

I plug the phone in and iTunes sends me a message saying 'This phone is in recovery mode and needs to be restored' so I go ahead and click restore. The phone then turns on as above, Apple logo and a non-moving progress bar, before saying 'iTunes could not restore this iPhone. Error 40'.

If I then leave it, it hangs at the Apple logo and progress bar but if I disconnect then it powers off.

I have tried different cables, different PC's and Macbooks, I've manually downloaded the signed ISPW file on a few computers and tried to manually choose (iOS 10.3.3) to restore it that way to make sure it isn't a firewall issue. I've also added gs.apple.com and related to my hosts files.

I've tried all the methods under the sun to get the phone out of recovery mode including third party apps including Dr.Fone and TinyUmbrella. Some apps tell me the phone is in DFU mode so I've tried all the methods to get it out of that as well, no avail.

Another issue I've picked up on.. when using other apps, it tells me no phone is connected.. I then go to restore on iTunes so that it powers up (and fails) and if I don't 'OK' the error or disconnect the phone and leave it on the hanging screen then these apps pick it up then as if it's connected but unfortunately when trying to use them to leave recovery and/or DFU mode, it fails.

Any ideas as this is driving me insane?!

Thanks in advance.

iPhone 6 Plus, iOS 10.3.2

Posted on Aug 7, 2017 9:48 AM

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Answer 1

ChrisJ4203

Level 10

236,807 points

Aug 7, 2017 11:12 AM in response to TyphTyph

If you check this support document, Get help with iOS update and restore errors - Apple Support it indicates that Error 40 could very well be a hardware error. Make an appointment at the Genius Bar of the nearest Apple store to have the device examined by Apple for a hardware fault. They will explain options after that point.

Check your hardware

If you see error 53, use these steps.

If you see one of the errors below, you might have a hardware issue:

1, 3, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16
20, 21, 23, 26, 27, 28, 29, 34, 35, 36, 37, 40, 56
1002, 1004, 1011, 1012, 1014, 1667 1669

Here's what to check. Try again after each step:

If iTunes is already open, quit and reopen it.
Check your third-party security software.
Make sure that your USB cable, computer, and network are reliable. Then try twice more to restore your iOS device.
Check for outdated or modified software.

If you still see the error, contact Apple Support.

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Answer 2

Aug 7, 2017 11:13 AM in response to TyphTyph

It sounds like the most fundamental problem is that the battery in the phone needs to be replaced.

Here is a link to the error help for error 40: Get help with iOS update and restore errors - Apple Support

Check your hardware

If you see error 53, use these steps.

If you see one of the errors below, you might have a hardware issue:

1, 3, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16
20, 21, 23, 26, 27, 28, 29, 34, 35, 36, 37, 40, 56
1002, 1004, 1011, 1012, 1014, 1667 1669

Here's what to check. Try again after each step:

If iTunes is already open, quit and reopen it.
Check your third-party security software.
Make sure that your USB cable, computer, and network are reliable. Then try twice more to restore your iOS device.
Check for outdated or modified software.

If you still see the error, contact Apple Support.

Note that if the phone has ever been jailbroken, or the computer you are using to restore the phone has been used to hack or jailbreak an iOS device, you would see this error. Also note that the 3rd party apps that you mentioned are tools for hacking the phone, so they may be the problem.

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