At DriveSavers, we often receive requests for data recovery from grieving family members who don’t know the passcode to their loved one’s device.
Easy Does It With Apple iOS8 Upgrade
The new iOS8 operating system for Apple’s lineup of portable computing devices is available for download on September 17. Before making the move, here’s what you should do to safely complete the upgrade process.
First, if you haven’t already done so, make a backup copy of all data on every device that needs an upgrade.
Second, check your backup to make sure all of the important information from backing up is safe and secure.
Why the caution?
An operating system upgrade involves a complicated exchange of information that will improve the device’s performance and security measures while introducing new capabilities. Here’s a link detailing the top features in iOS8.
In most cases, the update goes through without a hitch. Here’s a link from CNET showing how it is supposed to work.
When Updates Fail
In a minority of cases, there can be problems that lead to data loss.
What if the wireless connection is broken or interrupted (even briefly) during transmission of the new code?
What if the update can’t be completed due to a conflict with other programs or software already loaded on the device?
In both of these examples, the old operating system (OS) could be incapacitated and the new OS might not work. The user is stranded with a non-working device and no access to the data.
Solutions and Saving Data
Users may be able to reset the device to factory specifications and reload a fresh version of the OS to get the phone or other devices working again. That’s not a great solution, however, if you haven’t backed up because it also may wipe out any data residing on the device.
If the data is important, a professional data recovery service may be the only way to reclaim anything valuable from an affected iPhone, iPad or iPod.
DriveSavers has a long history of helping iOS (or Apple) device users overcome data loss, but please back up your data before attempting an iOS upgrade and you should be fine.
If you need help, please call 800.440.1904. We’re available 24/7.