By Hally | Last Updated
"When I tried to restore iPhone via iTunes, the process is stuck on the software download interface and saying iTunes is currently downloading the software for this iPhone and will install it when the download is complete. How can I move forward to update my iPhone?”
Are you stuck with the message “iTunes/Your Mac is currently downloading software for the iPhone” for hours with no progress? How can you get rid of this issue and restore the iPhone normally? In this article, you can learn the step-by-step guide to solve the stuck issue.
Several factors can cause iTunes to freeze while downloading software for your iPhone:
It is crucial to keep a stable and fast internet connection during the downloading software process. You need to make sure the iPhone/iPad is connected to Wi-Fi instead of mobile data. If possible, perform a test on the connection speed with online tools. And if the network speed is slow and unstable, try to restart the router and your device. In this way, you can ensure the smooth downloading process and get rid of the issue—stuck on iTunes is currently downloading software for the iPhone.
Restarting iTunes can resolve temporary glitches. After that, you can update the iTunes to the latest version.
On Windows computer, just double click to run iTunes and it will pop out a prompt to inform you the new version of iTunes if there is new version available. Or you can go to click Help tab and choose Check for Updates. After that, you will also get the download iTunes prompt.
On Mac, go to App Store > Updates to check for iTunes or Finders updates.
If you have downloaded the third party security apps, there might be confliction between the apps and the iTunes software update downloading. As a result, you get stuck on iTunes is downloading software for this iPhone. Thus, you can try to remove the third-party security apps and then re-do iPhone restoration.
It may help to solve the problem that iTunes is stuck on downloading the software for this iPhone if you reset all settings on your iPhone. It is easy for you to do on the iPhone: tap Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone> Reset All Settings. If it asks you to enter the passcode, just do what it shows to reset iPhone settings.
If iTunes gets stuck on the downloading firmware process, you can try to manually download the iOS software package and restore the iPhone.
Step 1: Visit ipsw.me to download the correct firmware file for your iPhone model.
Step 2: Open iTunes, connect your iPhone, and press Shift + Restore iPhone (Windows) or Options + Restore iPhone (Mac).
Step 3: Select your downloaded IPSW file and follow the instructions to restore the iPhone.
If all above methods cannot help you to get out of this iTunes error, you can try to put iPhone into recovery mode and then restore it.
First of all, you should connect the iPhone to your computer and the run iTunes. Then put your iPhone into recovery mode.
Finally, when iTunes detects your iPhone, you can click the Restore button and follow the on-screen instructions to restore iPhone.
When you get the error message saying that iTunes is currently downloading software for the iPhone and cannot get past this status, you can use iOS system recovery tool ---iSunshare iOS Repair Genius to fix this iTunes error without data loss. Also, it can repair corrupted files in iTunes and fix it back to normal.
Besides, this software can solve a wide range of iOS and iTunes issues, such as iPhone black screen of death and iTunes cannot read the contents of the iPhone. If you find iTunes or your Mac stuck on currently downloading software process and makes no response, try iSunshare iOS Repair Genius!
Step 1: Get iSunshare iOS Repair Genius on your computer with the below download button.
Step 2: Open the software and choose iTunes Repair on the home interface.
Step 3: Choose Repair iTunes Errors to scan your iTunes components.
Step 4: Minutes later, hit the Repair button to fix iTunes issues. After that, you can try again to update or restore your iPhone.
If the stuck issue persists, you can take advantage of the System Repair function in iSunshare iOS Repair Genius to update/restore your iPhone without iTunes.
Q1: How long does it take for iTunes to download software for iPhone?
It depends on the iOS and your internet speed. Generally, it will take 30 minutes to an hour to finish the software downloading. For example. It takes about 30 minutes for iOS 18 downloading and installing.
Q2: It shows Your Mac is currently downloading software for the iPhone, but no progress after hours, what should I do?
In such situation, you can close iTunes and check the internet. If there is no problem, restart iTunes/Finders on your Mac to begin the process. Or you can try the mentioned solutions on this article to get it solved.
Q3: Will restore my iPhone erase all data?
Yes, it will erase all your data. Thus, you should back up your iPhone regularly.
Getting stuck on “iTunes is currently downloading software for the iPhone” can be frustrating, but it’s often due to connectivity or software issues. You can follow the above solutions to resolve the iTunes errors and finish iPhone update or restore process.
