By Achilles Hill | Last Updated
When some iPhone users are attempting updating their device to the latest iOS version(iOS 17/18) or restoring iPhone via iTunes, they may receive an error message writing "The iPhone software update server could not be contacted. Make sure your network settings are correct and your network connection is active, or try again later". What happened? In this tutorial, you will learn 6 Ways to Fix the iPhone Software Update Server Could Not Be Contacted Error.
When you are told the iPhone software server cannot be contacted, it is possible that there is something wrong with your iTunes server. So the first way you can try to fix the problem is to quit and wait for a while and then reopen your iTunes. Maybe this error message will disappear after doing this. If it doesn't work, try the following other ways.
If the iPhone update server could not be contacted, the message prompts you to make sure your network settings are correct and your network connection is active. How to do it?
1. Reboot your Wi-Fi router. Turn off Wi-Fi router and restart it about 10 minutes later to see whether this problem gets resolved or not.
2. Check your network connection. You should make sure your computer has connected to Wi-Fi correctly. To check this, use your browser to launch a website to see if it opens.
3. Connect your computer to a different network. If your computer has some issues in recognizing your Wi-Fi connection or the signal of network is poor, unstable and frequently interrupted, connect it to another different network.
However, if there is no problem with your network settings and network connection and you still encounter the error message saying that iPhone software update server could not be contacted when you try to update your device through iTunes. You can choose to update the iOS software via OTA without iTunes.
Step 1: Go to Settings>General>Software Update. If there is a new version of iOS available, you will be brought to the installation screen.
Step 2: Click Download and Install to update your iOS device. When prompted, enter your PIN code to make a confirmation so that you can start the process.
Step 3: Your device will reboot after the process is completed. Now you can enter the password to access your device.
Actually that the iPhone update server cannot be contacted is likely to be resulted from you using a lower version of iTunes. You can uninstall the current one and download iTunes of the latest version. Then when you use it to update your device, you won't see the pop-up message again. Why not have a try?
Then the last way recommend to you is to download the firmware manually because this method is a little time-consuming and complex. In order to implement this way, you can download the iOS IPSW file. Follow the below instructions to carry out this method.
Step 1: Download the IPSW file as per your device model.
Step 2: Connect your device to the computer with a USB cable, launch iTunes, and wait for iTunes to recognize your iPhone.
Step 3: Go to Summary, press Shift (Windows) or Option (Mac) on the keyboard and then click Restore iPhone.
Step 4: The previous step will bring you to a popup window where you can choose the IPSW file you had downloaded previously.
Step 5: Then you will be told iTunes will erase and restore your iPhone, click Restore to verify this action and complete the process according to the following onscreen instructions.
And then wait for iTunes to update your device.
If none of the five ways mentioned above works, you can try to fix this error with a powerful tool named iSunshare iOS Repair Genius. It can help you fix most common system problems quickly and safely. Here is a guide on how to use this tool to fix this update error.
Preparations: Before repairing, you need to download this tool and install it on your pc. Besides, you should connect your iPhone to your computer and make sure that they are connected in the whole process of repairing.
Step 1: In the interface of software, select one of repair modes (The following steps take Standard Mode as an example.). Standard Mode allows you to fix most of common system issues without data loss while Advanced Mode can fix any system problem but the data will be erased.
Step 2: Click Start button to continue.
Step 3: If your iPhone is connected to pc, it will be automatically detected by this tool and you just need to click Next button to continue.
If your iPhone cannot be detected, you need to put your iPhone in Recovery Mode or DFU mode. Follow the clear guide on the screen to continue to next step.
Recovery Mode:
DFU Mode:
Step 4: The tool will automatically identify your iPhone model and show you the available versions of firmware. Click Select button to choose where to save the package and then click Download button to download a firmware package.
Alternatively, you can click Copy button to download the firmware in a browser and click Select button to import it.
Step 5: Wait for the program to verify the firmware.
Step 6: Click Repair button to start repairing.
Step 7: It will take a few minutes, but it's worth waiting. A window pops up prompting that the device is repaired successfully.
Finally, your iPhone gets back to normal and it is upgraded to the latest iOS version.
In summarize, to fix the iPhone software update server could not be contacted error, all the ways mentioned above are worth trying. Compared with other methods, it is more convenient and effective to solve this issue with iSunshare iOS Repair Genius. What's more, if your iPhone encounters other system problems like stuck on Apple logo, frozen on black screen with loading circle, this tool can fix them quickly and effectively.
