iTunes is a great option when you upgrade to the latest iOS or iPadOS. However, sometimes you run into errors such as iTunes error 14 during your upgrade or a restore. This error is, fortunately, easily solved with few steps!
If during your upgrade process, you encounter a notification saying, “This iPhone could not be restored. An unknown error occurred (14),” we have a couple of solutions for you.
According to Apple, this particular error is most commonly caused by issues with your USB cable. Additionally, our readers report that iTunes error 14 is often caused by a faulty firmware update file. So check your device’s USB connection, the USB (Lightning) cable, and your computer’s or power strip’s USB port for any obstructions.
Why does my device get error 14?
You see error 14 when restoring or upgrading your iOS with iTunes. There are several different reasons for this error, including:
Look for the Made for iPod, Made for iPhone, and Made for iPad logos on your products. This logo ensures that the accessory was designed to connect specifically to iPod, iPhone, or iPad and that it is certified to meet Apple performance standards.
To diagnose if an issue exists with your USB cable, try the following steps, and check if the error occurs again.
Use the original Apple Lightning USB cable that accompanied your iDevice
For computers, don’t plug into a USB port on your keyboard–plug directly into the computer
Try a different USB port on your computer
Use a different Lightning USB cable if available
Test your Lightning USB cable on another computer
source: apple
Update to the Latest iTunes Version
If you still get iTunes error 14, verify that you have the latest update of iTunes.
Open iTunes and see if it prompts you to update to a new version
Follow the steps and update to the latest iTunes software
Try connecting your device again and see if that worked for you.
Error 14 can mean that your device’s memory is full. Try restoring your device via iTunes instead of updating it. If it doesn’t work at first, press the Option Key (Mac) or Shift Key (Windows) and then select Restore.
iTunes Error 14 Caused by Unsuccessful Firmware File
If iTunes isn’t recognizing the IPSW file or an update isn’t working, deleting the IPSW file from your computer forces iTunes to download a new IPSW file the next time you try to update.
In some cases, the upgrade file for your device was not successfully downloaded. If so, this may be causing the error 14. When a restore issue is specific to a user, it’s likely due to an unusable .ipsw file. iTunes uses these IPSW files to restore your device.
If you are getting iTunes error 14, those IPSW files may be unusable. So try deleting them, renaming them, or moving the file to a different directory.
Removing the IPSW file causes iTunes to download a new copy of the IPSW.
IPSW files on Macs
An easy way to find the ipsw file location on your Mac is with Finder
Tap open Finder in your dock and hold down the Option key
Select Go from the Top Menu
Choose Library
If you don’t hold down the Option key, you won’t see the Library option
Open the Library’s iTunes folder
Look for a folder called iPhone/iPad/iPod Software Updates
Manually locate your Mac’s IPSW file
iPhone~/Library/iTunes/iPhone Software Updates
iPad~/Library/iTunes/iPad Software Updates
iPod touch~/Library/iTunes/iPod Software Updates
Note: The tilde “~” represents your Home directory.
If you can’t see your user library, follow these steps to show it.
To locate the IPSW file on Windows depends on which Windows version, username, and the iOS hardware you use
We suggest you open Windows File Explorer, type “*.ipsw” into the search field, and make sure you are searching your whole PC.
Then find and delete those iOS update files in iTunes in .ipsw format. Or perform a search for .IPSW files in your /Users directory if you have more than 1 user account.
Note: To quickly access the AppData folder, click Start, type %appdata% in the search bar, and press the Return key. Windows 8: Move the cursor to the upper right, click the magnifying glass, type %appdata%, and press the Return key.
IPSW files on Windows Vista and 7
\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\iTunes\iPhone (iPad or iPod) Software Updates
Note: To quickly access the AppData folder, click Start, type %appdata% in the search bar, and press the Return key
IPSW files on Windows XP
Documents and Settings/[username]/Application Data/Apple Computer/iTunes/iPhone (iPad or iPod) Software Updates
Note: To quickly access the Application Data folder, choose Start > Run. Type %appdata% and click OK.
Follow these steps once you delete or move the .ipsw file:
Close iTunes on your computer
Now open iTunes again on your computer
Check that you deleted the .ipsw (iOS upgrade file) file by going to System Drive> User> Your Username> App Data> Apple Com> iTunes> iPhone Software Updates–delete anything there if needed
If connecting your iPad or iPad follow the same path but after entering iTunes folder go to iPad Software Updates or iPod Software Updates
Restore and Upgrade your iDevice by following iTunes prompts
You should no longer get iTunes error 14. Your iPhone or iPad should successfully restore and upgrade to the latest iOS.
Manually select the IPSW file in iTunes
If you tried deleting the ipsw file and it failed, let’s instead manually choose which IPSW file you want iTunes to use.
For Macs, hold down Option Key
In Windows, press the Shift Key
Press the Restore button
Select the IPSW file you want to install
If removing the .ipsw file didn’t resolve your restore issue, then the issue is probably caused by another user-specific setting. This includes any third-party security software settings and your iTunes preferences.
source: apple
Where to get IPSW files for my iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch
Apple releases the latest IPSW files in iTunes. So if you want the newest iOS, just use iTunes.
But if your device uses older versions, find these outdated IPSW downloads at websites such as this one.
Download an ipsw file and restore your iPhone, iPad, or iPod with that file
Go to ipsw me and download the iOS version that was on your iPad
Make sure you download an Apple signed IPSW version
Open iTunes
Connect your iPad to iTunes
Wait for the Recovery Message to appear in iTunes with options to Update or Restore
Press & hold the Option key then choose the Update button with the option key still pressed
Locate that ipsw file you downloaded and select it
Wait for your iPad to restore to its iOS version
iTunes Error Caused by Third-Party Security Software
If none of the solutions above solve the error, check to see if any third party security software might cause the problem. Third party security software often prevents Apple iDevices to restore, upgrade, or back up by not allowing connections to Apple servers.
So try and temporarily deactivate any third party security software and check if iTunes error 14 error stops allowing your iDevice to upgrade or restore.
Summary
Using iTunes to upgrade to the latest iOS is good practice–just make sure you backup first!
However, if difficulties persist after trying to update, upgrade via WiFi instead of iTunes. Ensure you have an excellent WiFi connection and check that your iDevice’s battery has at least 50% power. If less than 50% charged, connect your iPhone, iPad, or other iDevice to a power source and start the upgrade. With a fast and reliable WiFi connection, your upgrade is seamless and fast.
I figured out a solution that worked for me! Let me know if it works for you. If it does share it with people who are also having this problem, If the solution works and you post it on any website give credit. it is horrible that this can happen, and that people are deleting all their data thinking it is the only option. I hope this helps you avoid that.
Background: (Solution below)
I had the same problem that everyone else is reporting of having of having an iPhone with full memory stuck in a boot loop. I tried updating to the latest IOS using iTunes on my windows computer after putting the phone in recovery mode (link on how to put phone in recovery mode: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201263) but it kept giving me an error 14. I tried all the USB stuff, but nothing fixed it, it just kept loading to around 25% and failing.
Solution that worked for me:
Please read entire description before attempting that particular step
1.) I deleted and reinstalled iTunes and then searched for the update file (the file with the extension .ipsw) in the file explorer (just type in .ipsw in the C: drive search bar).
2.) I deleted the update file and then reinstalled it but then I noticed that the file path listed for the update file (.ipsw file) included a path that did not seem to exist. I thought the problem might be that iTunes was unable to find the update file because of this file path issue, so I copied the update file to my desktop from the search screen.
3.) This time when I used the recovery mode I held down shift, clicked UPDATE, and selected the update file that I copied to my desktop. The phone then updated to around 90% when it stopped again but gave me an error code 6 instead of 14.
4.) For me this error code 6 was caused by my Norton Security software (which was expired not sure if that makes a difference) so I deleted my Norton Security Software (link to delete Norton Security Software: https://support.norton.com/sp/en/us/home/current/solutions/v15972972).
5.) After deleting Norton, I repeated the above steps starting with putting my iPhone in recovery mode, shift clicking the update button, and selecting the desktop update file. And this time it updated! After it updated the phone said, “attempting data recovery” where it made me put in my password twice. When the data recovery bar finished the phone restarted, showed me the new features of the update, and my phone worked and still had all my data! Sorry this is so long I just wanted to be thorough. If you have any question I will check back at this website for a little while and see if I can answer them, Good luck!
Did u try this method using windows or mac? I am using a macbook air it doesn’t allow me to uninstall itunes and I couldn’t seem to find the .ipsw file in my computer
Same problem as the rest of you memory full on IPAD even though half of it is other. I backedup tried to update and restore and became a paperweight. Unknown error 14. Screen had itunes logo on it and cable pic. If it wasnt that it would blue screen my windows desktop and reboot everything. After days of trying everything I came across a solution that worked for me. Before you click restore hold down the shift key and click it. Then hold down the shift key while you click update and restore. I dont know if it was this page or another where I saw that in the commentss but it WORKED. I knew it was going to be different right away because it was much slower on progress bar in Itunes. Ipad is back to where it was before I started. Didnt fix memory issue but didnt lose anything. So dont know why that worked but I hope it helps you out. And FYI I will not by another Ipad.
wait you hold shift-click retore, then you hold it again and then click update and restore? i don’t have an option that is for update and restore, my options are broke into two one for update one for restore.
I never write on forums but this is so frustrating!!!
My iPhone X had the same problem. I reached the max of 64 gb, it froze, I tried to restart and it got stuck to the apple logo. After continuous chats with apple support, watching YouTube videos and taking my phone to the best tech guy there is, this new mama here lost all the pictures with her baby from birth to 6 months. I was desperate and tried everything and there was nothing I could do, the worse feeling ever. I blame myself for not backing up my phone and not buying more storage in iCloud which I just did( lesson learned, the hard way) and blaming Apple, they should do something about it so things like these don’t happen.
Hope you guys have a better outcome.
My daughter has a iphone 11, 3 months old and this has happened to her. Memory full, black screen with apple logo, tried to back up lots of times and keep getting error code 14, she switched it off last week and it hasnt worked since, again, does not want to loose data, has anyone managed to fix this problem?
I’m also having this issue and I think it was because my storage was full too and I couldn’t update my iPhone 7 because of it. But in my case, I spent weeks slowly but surely deleting hundreds of photos (mostly duplicates) and even deleted about two-thirds of my apps to try and free up space but somehow it just wasn’t enough. I don’t understand how it wasn’t. How big did this freaking update have to be? My phone was acting weird through all this, and one day I went to restart it and it did the whole apple logo loop thing. I’m beyond devastated/frustrated researching this issue because it doesn’t even make sense to me, not to mention I don’t want to lose almost two years worth of pictures. I had wedding/honeymoon pictures I hadn’t yet backed up. I haven’t wanted to restore my phone because I’m hopeful so I have it sitting on my desk until either there’s a solution or I come to terms with the supposed only fix which is restoring it.
I’m sorry that this has happened to you guys as well but it makes me feel like I’m not alone through this horrible situation. If anyone has any insight or help, feel free to reach out.
Hello. My IPhone Xs is frozen on the apple logo screen. After choosing the option of UPDATE with ITunes and the computer, my IPhone begins with the downloading but suddenly stops during the process due to an “unknown error”. I believe the reason of the error is that I have low storage available, how can I fix this without restoring my phone (losing my data)?
Thank you.
I have the exact same problem. I’ve tried every step on this list to correct Error 14, the only one I can’t do is free up space on my device as it is frozen on the Apple logo. I think that means the only option is to restore and lose everything.
I have the exact same error, updates to 20% tried different computers, different cables, different USB ports. Still nothing. Has anyone got a solution?
Hi All,
I am having the same problem as most of you. Error 14 in itunes. apple logo with progress bar stuck at about 25% on phone during forced update. Was anyone able to resolve? Many thanks!
Having this issue last night, i think it was trying to update to 13.7 and then it started with continues loop
getting different errors 14, and others.
My icloud was non stop annoying some days ago, i ended up going in to the Icloud and free some space, 3 days later, i didnt approve the update, phone just restarted while i was playing a game.
Any help is welcome. no solution with the itunes on 2 different machines same result.
So if I’m understanding everything correctly in the comments below, if u get error 14 and you know it’s because your memory is too full to download the current iOS update, then that means there is no way to force it to update right? Which means if u don’t have data backups u simply lose everything cuz u have no choice but to perform a factory reset, is this a correct understanding? I had this issue and I have already done factory reset and lost all vids and photos. I just want to know if I should be kicking myself if there WAS a different option available I was unaware of, or if the reset I did WAS sadly my only option….. which from the comments I’m reading here…… it seems that WAS my only option, right? Thanks for any help. – Jared
Never do anything without a proper backup!
Case in point: iPhone 6S, 64GB, almost 5 year-old. Full of photos, notes, documents, etc.
The update to iOS 13.6 failed three times with error 14. As there was no other option, I went ahead using the “restore” functionality which is restoring your device to the latest software version (I previously had 10.3.3 so now I ended up with 13.6). More or less what I wanted, right? Yeah, except that without a backup you lose everything and with a backup you don’t. This advice is valid for any software update be it Apple, Windows, you name it. Backups! Two or three if you can as one might get corrupted if it was done a while ago. I suggest making them in the same day as you want to update the software.
Hello all – Me too! Same problem! Rachael my phone was dragging too and wats app was giving Storage Full message and not opening, so after deleting around 18 photos and removing them from Recently Deleted I thought I would switch my phone off and on to clear anything up, and that’s when I got the apple and boot loop going on. Its been 3 days now. I have more than 20,000 photos and videos of my children. I hope someone can help??
@Maryam, did you manage to do anything about that? I have the exact same issue at hand. Looking into DFU now as the update in recovery mode did not work.
@Maryam @Sven @Ez @Arron Same issue here. I need to recover thousands of videos and photos of my children too and my phone is not even a year old. Can we all try to communicate constantly on this? I’m trying to find a fix and very willing to pay to be able to retrieve my files. Email me ingridthegirl at Gmail so we can update each other.
Edwin Riverasays
This is terrible. No warning, nothing. what should we do?
Majasays
HI, same problem with you all. I can not open my iPhone 6s and I do not want to lose all my kids photos on it. Please add me to the group as Ingrid said if you find a solution, to keep in touch if apple solves this problem number 14 (I hate that number now!).
Lolosays
Me too recovery mode error 14 and full storage
Esthersays
Did anyone found a solution yet? Same problem here, is there a way to get the photos back again?
Andrewsays
Hello,
my iphone 6S was memory full and unable to turn on. The apple logo keep appear on the screen.
Connected my iphone to computur and already downloaded firmware version 13.4.1 and half way updating suddenly updating corrupted and prompt an error message “iphone could not be updated. an unknown error occurred (14)”.
Tried many times with different iphone lighting cable also encountered the same problem. Doubt of insufficient memory caused the update being corrupted.
Appreciate if you could advice is there any method to continue the update until complete without loss any data in the phone? Many thanks!
Same issue with my 6s. This article incorrectly attributes the Error 14 to what Apple claims. It is actually the result of the device having full storage and not being able to flash / update the iOS. There appears to be no solution as of yet, unfortunately.
Did you figure anything out, Andrew or Megan? My problem with my Xr exactly mimics Andrew’s. My phone was full (but still had about 4 GB open). I enabled iCloud photo to ease the fullness and noticed my phone dragging in performance so I simply tried to restart it, thinking I would clear the cache and it would get better. Right after that, it began a constant boot loop which it has not yet come out of. I put it in recovery mode and I’m able to get iTunes to see and recognize recovery mode and complete the update but then when I restart the phone, it’s still prompting to be connected to iTunes to be updated. And when I do that, it displays the Apple updating screen on my phone with a bar that never gets more than 1/3 of the way through and gives the (14) error code, just like with OP. I’ve deleted .ipsw files, restarted the update, and it keeps doing the same. I don’t know what else it could be.
Hi Rachael, my wife’s iPhone 7 has exactly the same issue. Was trying to free up space on 128GB iPhone 7 by deleting some old photos. Phone crashed, so I restarted it, then all I get is the white background with the black Apple logo. Have tried updating it with my Mac several times, but it returns an Error 14 message every time. Have tried a number of ports and different iPhone cables, but this hasn’t worked. I’m desperate not to to a factory reset as I’ll lose a load of baby photos of my daughter. Not sure if they would have been backed up in iCloud either.
Is there another solution to get the phone going again, without losing my photos? Any help appreciated!
Iphone sucks big time.. I am experiencing it now.. Half way through and I am going bonkers after this error. Luckily I had backed up my pics on Google Photos.. Please install google photos if you are trying to recover your phone from this tragedy. I tried third party apps they are all BS
they want u to pay but no assurance.
Tried to update and back up an Iphone 7 on this computer for very first time, crashed durin update to iOS 13 and error 14 occured, now device is showing that needs to be recovered, can you advise is there any way to restore the data without any back up from iCloud or previous backUp on this device.
Error 14 is often caused by using third-party USB charging cables or cables that are frayed or otherwise compromised.
Use the original Apple-branded USB cable that came with your device. If you don’t have it, try a different Apple-branded USB cable.
Switch to a different USB port on your computer. Don’t plug the cable into your keyboard’s ports.
Try a different computer.
If you remove the iPhone from the computer and restart or force restart it, does it work?
To force restart an iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus: Press and hold both the Side and Volume Down buttons for at least 10 seconds, until you see the Apple logo on-screen.
If your iPhone 7 still works, try backing up to iCloud instead. Go to Settings > Apple ID > iCloud > iCloud Backup > toggle it on and choose Back Up Now.
We are so sorry to hear that your iPad is having issues while trying to update it.
Let’s try a few things on that iPad:
Use the USB cable that came with your husband’s iPad instead of your
Use a different USB port on the computer or try a different computer (if possible)
If you already tried that, there’s is another option that involves more time and effort.
1) Go to ipsw me and download the iOS version that was on your iPad BEFORE you updated
2) make sure you download an Apple signed IPSW version
3) Open iTunes
4) Connect your iPad to iTunes
5) Wait for the Recovery Message to appear in iTunes with options to Update or Restore
6) Press & hold the Option key then choose the Update button with the option key still pressed
7) Locate that ipsw file you downloaded and select it
8) Wait for your iPad to restore to its previous iOS version
If you want to update your iPad, first backup that iPad to both iCloud and iTunes. Then try updating over-the-air or use the ipsw me site again to download the full software onto your computer first.
Your information did not work at all. I can not find the .ipsw (iOS upgrade file). They are not located where you say there are. Search for them does not work.
I figured out a solution that worked for me! Let me know if it works for you. If it does share it with people who are also having this problem, If the solution works and you post it on any website give credit. it is horrible that this can happen, and that people are deleting all their data thinking it is the only option. I hope this helps you avoid that.
Background: (Solution below)
I had the same problem that everyone else is reporting of having of having an iPhone with full memory stuck in a boot loop. I tried updating to the latest IOS using iTunes on my windows computer after putting the phone in recovery mode (link on how to put phone in recovery mode: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201263) but it kept giving me an error 14. I tried all the USB stuff, but nothing fixed it, it just kept loading to around 25% and failing.
Solution that worked for me:
Please read entire description before attempting that particular step
1.) I deleted and reinstalled iTunes and then searched for the update file (the file with the extension .ipsw) in the file explorer (just type in .ipsw in the C: drive search bar).
2.) I deleted the update file and then reinstalled it but then I noticed that the file path listed for the update file (.ipsw file) included a path that did not seem to exist. I thought the problem might be that iTunes was unable to find the update file because of this file path issue, so I copied the update file to my desktop from the search screen.
3.) This time when I used the recovery mode I held down shift, clicked UPDATE, and selected the update file that I copied to my desktop. The phone then updated to around 90% when it stopped again but gave me an error code 6 instead of 14.
4.) For me this error code 6 was caused by my Norton Security software (which was expired not sure if that makes a difference) so I deleted my Norton Security Software (link to delete Norton Security Software: https://support.norton.com/sp/en/us/home/current/solutions/v15972972).
5.) After deleting Norton, I repeated the above steps starting with putting my iPhone in recovery mode, shift clicking the update button, and selecting the desktop update file. And this time it updated! After it updated the phone said, “attempting data recovery” where it made me put in my password twice. When the data recovery bar finished the phone restarted, showed me the new features of the update, and my phone worked and still had all my data! Sorry this is so long I just wanted to be thorough. If you have any question I will check back at this website for a little while and see if I can answer them, Good luck!
Hi Benjamin!
Did u try this method using windows or mac? I am using a macbook air it doesn’t allow me to uninstall itunes and I couldn’t seem to find the .ipsw file in my computer
I think he is using a Windows PC because he is pressing shift (which is described to be necessarly pressed when searching for the ipsw file.
I would like to install a later version but I cant find a signed one. Which makes it hard then to update it with itunes.
Best wishes
It worked!!!!
Same problem as the rest of you memory full on IPAD even though half of it is other. I backedup tried to update and restore and became a paperweight. Unknown error 14. Screen had itunes logo on it and cable pic. If it wasnt that it would blue screen my windows desktop and reboot everything. After days of trying everything I came across a solution that worked for me. Before you click restore hold down the shift key and click it. Then hold down the shift key while you click update and restore. I dont know if it was this page or another where I saw that in the commentss but it WORKED. I knew it was going to be different right away because it was much slower on progress bar in Itunes. Ipad is back to where it was before I started. Didnt fix memory issue but didnt lose anything. So dont know why that worked but I hope it helps you out. And FYI I will not by another Ipad.
wait you hold shift-click retore, then you hold it again and then click update and restore? i don’t have an option that is for update and restore, my options are broke into two one for update one for restore.
I never write on forums but this is so frustrating!!!
My iPhone X had the same problem. I reached the max of 64 gb, it froze, I tried to restart and it got stuck to the apple logo. After continuous chats with apple support, watching YouTube videos and taking my phone to the best tech guy there is, this new mama here lost all the pictures with her baby from birth to 6 months. I was desperate and tried everything and there was nothing I could do, the worse feeling ever. I blame myself for not backing up my phone and not buying more storage in iCloud which I just did( lesson learned, the hard way) and blaming Apple, they should do something about it so things like these don’t happen.
Hope you guys have a better outcome.
My daughter has a iphone 11, 3 months old and this has happened to her. Memory full, black screen with apple logo, tried to back up lots of times and keep getting error code 14, she switched it off last week and it hasnt worked since, again, does not want to loose data, has anyone managed to fix this problem?
I’m also having this issue and I think it was because my storage was full too and I couldn’t update my iPhone 7 because of it. But in my case, I spent weeks slowly but surely deleting hundreds of photos (mostly duplicates) and even deleted about two-thirds of my apps to try and free up space but somehow it just wasn’t enough. I don’t understand how it wasn’t. How big did this freaking update have to be? My phone was acting weird through all this, and one day I went to restart it and it did the whole apple logo loop thing. I’m beyond devastated/frustrated researching this issue because it doesn’t even make sense to me, not to mention I don’t want to lose almost two years worth of pictures. I had wedding/honeymoon pictures I hadn’t yet backed up. I haven’t wanted to restore my phone because I’m hopeful so I have it sitting on my desk until either there’s a solution or I come to terms with the supposed only fix which is restoring it.
I’m sorry that this has happened to you guys as well but it makes me feel like I’m not alone through this horrible situation. If anyone has any insight or help, feel free to reach out.
Hello. My IPhone Xs is frozen on the apple logo screen. After choosing the option of UPDATE with ITunes and the computer, my IPhone begins with the downloading but suddenly stops during the process due to an “unknown error”. I believe the reason of the error is that I have low storage available, how can I fix this without restoring my phone (losing my data)?
Thank you.
I have the exact same problem. I’ve tried every step on this list to correct Error 14, the only one I can’t do is free up space on my device as it is frozen on the Apple logo. I think that means the only option is to restore and lose everything.
Hi Guys, I also have the same problem 🙁 🙁
Really bad experience for the first time ever as Apple User.
Anyone got any solution, please share…..
Thank you…..
I have the exact same error, updates to 20% tried different computers, different cables, different USB ports. Still nothing. Has anyone got a solution?
Hi All,
I am having the same problem as most of you. Error 14 in itunes. apple logo with progress bar stuck at about 25% on phone during forced update. Was anyone able to resolve? Many thanks!
I have the exact same error, updates to 20% tried different computers, different cables, different USB ports. Still nothing.
Having this issue last night, i think it was trying to update to 13.7 and then it started with continues loop
getting different errors 14, and others.
My icloud was non stop annoying some days ago, i ended up going in to the Icloud and free some space, 3 days later, i didnt approve the update, phone just restarted while i was playing a game.
Any help is welcome. no solution with the itunes on 2 different machines same result.
So if I’m understanding everything correctly in the comments below, if u get error 14 and you know it’s because your memory is too full to download the current iOS update, then that means there is no way to force it to update right? Which means if u don’t have data backups u simply lose everything cuz u have no choice but to perform a factory reset, is this a correct understanding? I had this issue and I have already done factory reset and lost all vids and photos. I just want to know if I should be kicking myself if there WAS a different option available I was unaware of, or if the reset I did WAS sadly my only option….. which from the comments I’m reading here…… it seems that WAS my only option, right? Thanks for any help. – Jared
Never do anything without a proper backup!
Case in point: iPhone 6S, 64GB, almost 5 year-old. Full of photos, notes, documents, etc.
The update to iOS 13.6 failed three times with error 14. As there was no other option, I went ahead using the “restore” functionality which is restoring your device to the latest software version (I previously had 10.3.3 so now I ended up with 13.6). More or less what I wanted, right? Yeah, except that without a backup you lose everything and with a backup you don’t. This advice is valid for any software update be it Apple, Windows, you name it. Backups! Two or three if you can as one might get corrupted if it was done a while ago. I suggest making them in the same day as you want to update the software.
I got this error code. Redownloaded the ipsw file via internet download manager (first downloaded with chrome and got error) and solved problem.
Hello all – Me too! Same problem! Rachael my phone was dragging too and wats app was giving Storage Full message and not opening, so after deleting around 18 photos and removing them from Recently Deleted I thought I would switch my phone off and on to clear anything up, and that’s when I got the apple and boot loop going on. Its been 3 days now. I have more than 20,000 photos and videos of my children. I hope someone can help??
@Maryam, did you manage to do anything about that? I have the exact same issue at hand. Looking into DFU now as the update in recovery mode did not work.
I would be keen to know as well. I have this same issue. Most worried about my photos. Thanks.
Same issue as Maryam, anyone found a fix for this?
@Maryam @Sven @Ez @Arron Same issue here. I need to recover thousands of videos and photos of my children too and my phone is not even a year old. Can we all try to communicate constantly on this? I’m trying to find a fix and very willing to pay to be able to retrieve my files. Email me ingridthegirl at Gmail so we can update each other.
This is terrible. No warning, nothing. what should we do?
HI, same problem with you all. I can not open my iPhone 6s and I do not want to lose all my kids photos on it. Please add me to the group as Ingrid said if you find a solution, to keep in touch if apple solves this problem number 14 (I hate that number now!).
Me too recovery mode error 14 and full storage
Did anyone found a solution yet? Same problem here, is there a way to get the photos back again?
Hello,
my iphone 6S was memory full and unable to turn on. The apple logo keep appear on the screen.
Connected my iphone to computur and already downloaded firmware version 13.4.1 and half way updating suddenly updating corrupted and prompt an error message “iphone could not be updated. an unknown error occurred (14)”.
Tried many times with different iphone lighting cable also encountered the same problem. Doubt of insufficient memory caused the update being corrupted.
Appreciate if you could advice is there any method to continue the update until complete without loss any data in the phone? Many thanks!
Hi! Did you have any luck? My iphone 7 is having the same problem.
Same issue with my 6s. This article incorrectly attributes the Error 14 to what Apple claims. It is actually the result of the device having full storage and not being able to flash / update the iOS. There appears to be no solution as of yet, unfortunately.
Same. I am at a loss. I don’t want to lose all my photos. 🙁
Did you figure anything out, Andrew or Megan? My problem with my Xr exactly mimics Andrew’s. My phone was full (but still had about 4 GB open). I enabled iCloud photo to ease the fullness and noticed my phone dragging in performance so I simply tried to restart it, thinking I would clear the cache and it would get better. Right after that, it began a constant boot loop which it has not yet come out of. I put it in recovery mode and I’m able to get iTunes to see and recognize recovery mode and complete the update but then when I restart the phone, it’s still prompting to be connected to iTunes to be updated. And when I do that, it displays the Apple updating screen on my phone with a bar that never gets more than 1/3 of the way through and gives the (14) error code, just like with OP. I’ve deleted .ipsw files, restarted the update, and it keeps doing the same. I don’t know what else it could be.
Hi Rachael, my wife’s iPhone 7 has exactly the same issue. Was trying to free up space on 128GB iPhone 7 by deleting some old photos. Phone crashed, so I restarted it, then all I get is the white background with the black Apple logo. Have tried updating it with my Mac several times, but it returns an Error 14 message every time. Have tried a number of ports and different iPhone cables, but this hasn’t worked. I’m desperate not to to a factory reset as I’ll lose a load of baby photos of my daughter. Not sure if they would have been backed up in iCloud either.
Is there another solution to get the phone going again, without losing my photos? Any help appreciated!
Andy
Iphone sucks big time.. I am experiencing it now.. Half way through and I am going bonkers after this error. Luckily I had backed up my pics on Google Photos.. Please install google photos if you are trying to recover your phone from this tragedy. I tried third party apps they are all BS
they want u to pay but no assurance.
Hello,
Tried to update and back up an Iphone 7 on this computer for very first time, crashed durin update to iOS 13 and error 14 occured, now device is showing that needs to be recovered, can you advise is there any way to restore the data without any back up from iCloud or previous backUp on this device.
Thank you in advance!
S.
Hi Stoyan,
Error 14 is often caused by using third-party USB charging cables or cables that are frayed or otherwise compromised.
Use the original Apple-branded USB cable that came with your device. If you don’t have it, try a different Apple-branded USB cable.
Switch to a different USB port on your computer. Don’t plug the cable into your keyboard’s ports.
Try a different computer.
If you remove the iPhone from the computer and restart or force restart it, does it work?
To force restart an iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus: Press and hold both the Side and Volume Down buttons for at least 10 seconds, until you see the Apple logo on-screen.
If your iPhone 7 still works, try backing up to iCloud instead. Go to Settings > Apple ID > iCloud > iCloud Backup > toggle it on and choose Back Up Now.
Thank you for posting this info…your site was a beacon in a time of iPhone upgrade darkness! It was the USB cable! Thanks again!
Why is everything so difficult?
Trying to upgrade my iPad from my laptop.
Have latest version of iTunes, got half way loaded iPad went to black screen logo will come up for a second and goes off.
Computer says error 14 have done everything still won’t work.
Using husbands iPad as mine seems to be dead.
Hi Leah,
We are so sorry to hear that your iPad is having issues while trying to update it.
Let’s try a few things on that iPad:
Use the USB cable that came with your husband’s iPad instead of your
Use a different USB port on the computer or try a different computer (if possible)
If you already tried that, there’s is another option that involves more time and effort.
1) Go to ipsw me and download the iOS version that was on your iPad BEFORE you updated
2) make sure you download an Apple signed IPSW version
3) Open iTunes
4) Connect your iPad to iTunes
5) Wait for the Recovery Message to appear in iTunes with options to Update or Restore
6) Press & hold the Option key then choose the Update button with the option key still pressed
7) Locate that ipsw file you downloaded and select it
8) Wait for your iPad to restore to its previous iOS version
If you want to update your iPad, first backup that iPad to both iCloud and iTunes. Then try updating over-the-air or use the ipsw me site again to download the full software onto your computer first.
Hope this works for you.
Liz
Your information did not work at all. I can not find the .ipsw (iOS upgrade file). They are not located where you say there are. Search for them does not work.
Try searching instead by pressing the Windows key + R and then type in %appdata% and press return.
This should show your AppData\Roaming folder.
Locate the .ispw files here: AppleComputer\iTunes\iPhone (or iPad/iPod) Software Updates
Another option is to search for .IPSW files under /Users directory