[Fix] iPhone Won’t Update – An Error Occurred Installing iOS

The ‘Error Occurred Installing iOS’ error pops up when users attempt to install a pending iOS update. Every time Apple releases a brand-new software update for the iPhone, there’s bound to be a segment of users that run into issues.

By now, this is a widespread error among iOS users and is caused by a software glitch, a network inconsistency, or by insufficient space to accommodate the pending update.

Other potential causes include loss of connection because airplane mode or low power mode is enabled. 

The following solutions should help fix this error that pops up when installing the latest iOS version:

1. Restart and Charge your iPhone

This may be the obvious solution, but restarting your iPhone can often resolve update errors and this issue with the iOS update is no exception.

To accomplish this, press and hold the Power Button + Home Button on your iPhone until the ‘Slide to Power Off’ slider appears.

Note: If your iPhone lacks a Home button, press and hold the Side button + the Volume Up (or Volume Down button) simultaneously. Wait 30-40 seconds and then turn your iPhone back on.

Also, one of the most important things you must do is ensure that your iPhone is at least 50% charged. Once you’ve done this, attempt to install the update again. 

IMPORTANT: The Update will not install if the battery of your iPhone is under 50%.

2. Free up enough space to install the update

You will also face this error if your device does not have enough space to install the pending updates. Due to this, one of the first things that you need to do is check your iPhone storage.

To do so, these are the steps that you need to follow:

1. From the home screen of your iPhone, go to Settings.
   

   

2. Once you’re inside the settings menu, tap on General.
   

   

3. Next, scroll all the way down and tap on iPhone Storage.
   

   

4. Check and see how much space you have available. If it’s less than 5 GB, take the appropriate steps to free up enough space to accommodate the update.
   Note: If you don’t have enough storage space, select the apps that you don’t use very often and tap ‘Offload App’. You’ll still have the Icon and the Data for the app on your iPhone, but the app itself will be removed. You can redownload the app at any time by tapping the icon, which will install the app again along with all of your app data.
5. Once you’ve ensured that you have enough space, install the failing iOS update again and see if the problem is now fixed. 

3. Enable and Disable Airplane Mode

Turning Airplane Mode on and then off via the iPhone’s Settings menu disconnects and reconnects all wireless connections. It may be precisely what your device needs to go on with the update.

Note: This is typically reported to be effective in situations where there’s a problem facilitated by the local network connection and you’re trying to install the update on Wi-Fi. 

Here’s a quick guide on briefly enabling Airplane mode in order to force a soft refresh of the WI-Fi connection:

1. From the home screen of your iPhone, go to Settings.
   

   

2. Enable Airplane Mode from the Settings menu by enabling the associated toggle. 

   

3. Scroll down and tap on General.
   

   

4. Scroll to the bottom of the screen and tap on Shut Down.
   

   

5. Slide to Power off. Once you do this, wait for a few seconds and turn your iPhone back on.
6. Go back to Settings and disable Airplane Mode.
7. Try to install the Update once again and see if the update error is now fixed. 

4. Turn off Low Power Mode

If by any chance your iPhone is in Low Power Mode, the installation of an iOS update will fail because the modules required for the update to finish cannot be executed.

In this situation, disabling the iPhone’s Low Power Mode will fix the update error.

Follow the instructions below to see if Low Power mode is turned on and disable it if necessary.

Here’s what you need to do:

1. From the home screen of your iPhone device, tap on Settings. 

   

2. From the main Settings screen, scroll all the way down and tap on Battery. 

   

3. If Low Power Mode is turned enabled on this screen, disable it. Do so by disabling the toggle associated with Low Power Mode.

   

4. Once the low power mode has been disabled, install the 14.8 iOS update once again and see if the issue is fixed. 

5. Reset Network Settings 

Resetting your Network Settings can help resolve the error that occurred while installing the latest iOS version. This fix will be effective if you only experience this update issue while using your home network. 

The only downfall is that existing WiFi networks, Bluetooth devices, and stored network passwords, will be deleted.

Note: This won’t affect you much, but you will need to reconnect to your currently saved Wi-Fi and reconnect all Bluetooth devices that you might be using. 

Follow the steps below if you understand the implications and you wish to proceed with this procedure:

1. Unlock your iPhone and tap on the Settings icon.

   

2. From the Settings screen, scroll down and tap on General.
   

   

3. Next, tap on the Transfer or Reset option situated at the bottom of the screen.

   

4. Tap on Reset from the menu that just appeared. 

   

5. From the drop-down menu tap on Reset Network Settings.
   

   

6. Now all you need to do is enter your Password and confirm the operation.
7. Wait until the Reset is complete, then attempt to install the pending update again and see if the error is now fixed. 

6. Turn off VPN 

If you have VPN tunneling configured on your iPhone, then it might be possible that iPhone is unable to connect to datacenters.

Fortunately, you can bypass this Apple roadblock by temporarily disabling your VPN network and installing the update. 

To do so, here are the steps that you need to follow:

1. Unlock your iPhone and tap on Settings.
   

   

2. From the main Settings menu, go to General.
   

   

3. Scroll down and tap on VPN and Device Management.
   

   

4. From the next menu, disable the active VPN network.
5. Once the VPN is turned off, try to install the Update again.

If you are still unable to install the pending updates, consider updating iOS through iTunes.