|
 |
Opening
|
|
|
|
 |
I had a frustrating issue this past week where I was updating a bunch of apps on my iPhone and they became stuck and I had the hardest time resolving the issue without resorting to extreme measures.
|
|
|
|
|
Luckily I was able to hack my way through it after a couple of days, but it shouldn't be that involved. These devices are supposed to be simple, right?
|
|
|
|
|
Made me realize that I know a lot about how to troubleshoot Mac issues, but when it comes to iOS I'd really like to know how to do more without resorting to the "restore" option.
|
|
|
|
|
Where to Start?
|
|
|
|
|
Troubleshooting process
|
|
|
|
|
Make sure your data is safe, if possible.
|
|
|
|
|
If you can run backup before beginning do.
|
|
|
|
|
If you can backup the application data separately, say by export or to the cloud, do it.
|
|
|
|
|
Go through each troubleshooting item step by step beginning with the easiest process (I.e. restart the app, or restart the device)
|
|
|
|
|
Test after each troubleshooting action. No point in continuing if the problem is fixed. Seems obvious, but you'd be surprised.
|
|
|
|
|
Keep detailed notes of the things you've done. Consider taking screen shots of settings you change, error messages, etc.
|
|
|
|
|
Press the Home + sleep wake button
|
|
|
|
|
Saved to the camera roll
|
|
|
|
|
Preflight
|
|
|
|
|
Think about any and all recent updates or changes
|
|
|
|
|
Consider physical items. Bad cables, bad hub, bad port, etc.
|
|
|
|
|
Common issues and solutions?
|
|
|
|
|
If an app won't launch, crashes, won't update
|
|
|
|
|
Update iOS or your app
|
|
|
|
|
Suspend the app
|
|
|
|
|
Tap the home button
|
|
|
|
|
Relaunch the app
|
|
|
|
|
Quit and re-launch the application
|
|
|
|
|
If the issue affects only a single app, try closing just that app:
|
|
|
|
|
Press the Home button to return to the Home screen.
|
|
|
|
|
Double-tap the Home button to display recent apps.
|
|
|
|
|
Tap and hold the affected app until the red minus appears.
|
|
|
|
|
Tap the red minus to quit the app.
|
|
|
|
|
Press the Home button, then restart the app.
|
|
|
|
|
Restart your device
|
|
|
|
|
Hold the Sleep/Wake button until "slide to power off" appears. Slide to power off your device. When it is off, press the Sleep/Wake button to turn it back on.
|
|
|
|
|
Reboot the device
|
|
|
|
|
Press-and-holding the Sleep/Wake button and the Home Button together for at least ten seconds, until the Apple logo appears.
|
|
|
|
|
Wait for the device to restart.
|
|
|
|
|
Quit ALL your suspended apps
|
|
|
|
|
Use the same procedure you used before to quit the app you were having trouble with
|
|
|
|
|
Double-tap the Home button to display recent apps.
|
|
|
|
|
Tap and hold the an app until the red minus appears.
|
|
|
|
|
Tap the red minus on each app to close it.
|
|
|
|
|
Do this until ALL the suspended apps are quit.
|
|
|
|
|
Reinstall the affected application
|
|
|
|
|
Remove the application from your device and reinstall it.
|
|
|
|
|
Touch and hold any application icon on the Home Screen until the icons start to wiggle.
|
|
|
|
|
Tap the "x" in the corner of the application you want to delete.
|
|
|
|
|
Tap Delete to remove the application and all of its data from your device.
|
|
|
|
|
This will delete all the applications data also.
|
|
|
|
|
You may be able to restore from the cloud if the app offers syncing. Or manually.
|
|
|
|
|
Press the Home button.
|
|
|
|
|
Go to the App Store.
|
|
|
|
|
Search for the application and then download it again.
|
|
|
|
|
Note: If it is a paid app, ensure you are using the iTunes account you purchased the app with originally. If it is not, you will be charged for the app again. For more information regarding downloading previously purchased items, see this article.
|
|
|
|
|
Contact the developer
|
|
|
|
|
If its an app specific problem there might be a known issue
|
|
|
|
|
Unfortunately the App Store app doesn't seem to have an easy way to get the developers website link, at least not that I could find.
|
|
|
|
|
Luckily the iTunes Store on your Mac does
|
|
|
|
|
In iTunes 11, click the 'iTunes Store' button
|
|
|
|
|
Click the App Store tab and find the page for the App you are having issues with.
|
|
|
|
|
On the Apps page in the left column there should be a "Developer Website" link.
|
|
|
|
|
Visit the developers website and check for a support section, FAQ, or contact address
|
|
|
|
|
Resets for battery and wi-fi issues
|
|
|
|
|
Settings > General > Reset
|
|
|
|
|
'Reset All Settings'
|
|
|
|
|
Will roll back all the iOS settings to their factory defaults
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to redo any custom settings, like your wi-fi connectivity, notifications, Bluetooth, etc.
|
|
|
|
|
Your data should remain in tact.
|
|
|
|
|
This trick can sometimes b=-work for fixing battery issues.
|
|
|
|
|
'Reset Network Settings'
|
|
|
|
|
This does a similar factory reset back to defaults, but just for the network settings
|
|
|
|
|
Can be useful if you're having connectivity issues
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to reenter things like Wi-Fi WPA passwords.
|
|
|
|
|
Reset for Safari issues
|
|
|
|
|
General > Settings > Safari
|
|
|
|
|
Tap 'Clear Cookies and Data'
|
|
|
|
|
Will remove local data and cookies for all web sites
|
|
|
|
|
This includes saved passwords
|
|
|
|
|
Interestingly I've also noted the need to re-authenticate to the App and iTunes stores sometimes
|
|
|
|
|
If you prefer to only remove the data for specific sites you can tap the 'Advanced' option and then 'Website Data'
|
|
|
|
|
Scroll through individual domains and swipe to get the 'Delete' option
|
|
|
|
|
You can also tap 'Edit' and it the red "minus" buttons to remove a sites Safari data.
|
|
|
|
|
What worked for my stuck updates
|
|
|
|
|
I tried the following:
|
|
|
|
|
Tapping the "Waiting" icon to see if it would unstick
|
|
|
|
|
Going into the App Store and clicking "Update All" again
|
|
|
|
|
Updating on my Mac in iTunes and syncing the apps over.
|
|
|
|
|
Then I found this tip on the Discussion Boards
|
|
|
|
|
Go to the updates tab located in the "App Store".
|
|
|
|
|
Tap the app that is stuck installing.
|
|
|
|
|
That will take you to the app details page.
|
|
|
|
|
Click on the app icon located at the top left of the screen.
|
|
|
|
|
That should take you back to the app, in it's "waiting" or "loading" state on your home screen.
|
|
|
|
|
Tap on the app icon again and it should start installing.
|
|
|
|
|
This worked for me on a couple apps.
|
|
|
|
|
What ultimately worked though was logging out of the App Store and logging back in.
|
|
|
|
|
Extreme measures
|
|
|
|
|
Restore your device
|
|
|
|
|
Connect the device to iTunes
|
|
|
|
|
Check to make sure you have a recent backup under the "Backups" section. If not, perform a backup, if possible, by clicking the 'Backup Now' option
|
|
|
|
|
Click the 'Restore' button
|
|
|
|
|
iTunes will go through the process of restoring the device software. It will reset the device and once it's completely in iTunes it will give you the option to restore from Backup or set up as new.
|
|
|
|
|
If possible the first tim you'll want to restore from Backup to recover all your data and settings
|
|
|
|
|
This will can take some time as all your apps, media, etc. will need to resync back to the device
|
|
|
|
|
If you select set up as new, you will lose all your data and need to reset up all your settings, sync options, etc.
|
|
|
|
|
Recovery Mode
|
|
|
|
|
This basically put the device back into the state that it came in from the factory just like the day you bought it.
|
|
|
|
|
You will lose all the data, but again you can restore that back from your backups if you have them.
|
|
|
|
|
1. Disconnect the USB cable from the iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, but leave the other end of the cable connected to your computer's USB port.
|
|
|
|
|
2. Turn off the device: Press and hold the Sleep/Wake button for a few seconds until the red slider appears, then slide the slider. Wait for the device to turn off.
|
|
|
|
|
3. If you cannot turn off the device using the slider, press and hold the Sleep/Wake and Home buttons at the same time. When the device turns off, release the Sleep/Wake and Home buttons.
|
|
|
|
|
4. While pressing and holding the Home button, reconnect the USB cable to the device. The device should turn on.
Continue holding the Home button until you see the "Connect to iTunes" screen. When this screen appears you can release the Home button.
|
|
|
|
|
5. In iTunes you should see the "recovery mode" alert dialog.
|
|
|
|
|
6. Use iTunes to restore the device.
|
|
|
|
|
Restore on the Device without iTunes
|
|
|
|
|
You can do a similar erase back to factory settings on iOS
|
|
|
|
|
Settings > General > Reset
|
|
|
|
|
Tap 'Erase All Content and Settings'
|
|
|
|
|
The device will wipe all content and do a restore leaving only a brand new copy of the OS on the device.
|
|
|
|
|
Restore from Backup
|
|
|
|
|
In iTunes you can click the File menu and select Devices > Restore from Back up.
|
|
|
|
|
OR: Open the iOS device's Summary tab.
|
|
|
|
|
Click the device button in the upper right corner.
|
|
|
|
|
Or click the View menu and select Show Sidebar. Select your iOS device in iTunes under Devices.
|
|
|
|
|
Click the Restore Backup button.
|
|
|
|
|
A dialog should appear allowing you to select the backup you wish to restore. Generally you'll want the most recent one for your device.
|
|
|
|
|
Selectively getting App data
|
|
|
|
|
So if you have to go through the extreme measure of restoring your device and setting it up as new it can be painful to lose all your data.
|
|
|
|
|
Game high scores, application documents, preferences to meticulously crafted.
|
|
|
|
|
You can potentially selectively restore that data, but it's not without it's risks.
|
|
|
|
|
make sure you have backups before you start messing around and know if you mess up you may need to restore to this backup.
|
|
|
|
|
Make sure that version of the app that you are restoring the data to is the same version that was backed up by iTunes
|
|
|
|
|
Know that if you make a mistake you could bork the app and have to start over. Shouldn't matter too much since you have a clean installed app with no data.
|
|
|
|
|
iPhone Backup Extractor (free) - Super Crazy Awesome
|
|
|
|
|
This lets you browse old iOS backups and extract an applications data.
|
|
|
|
|
Make sure you get the one from Super Crazy Awesome. (I have not tested it on Mountain Lion)
|
|
|
|
|
In case you are curious the backup files are at: ~/Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup, but you'll probably never figure out the cryptic folder and filenames there, so just use the app.
|
|
|
|
|
PhoneView ($29.95) - eCamm
|
|
|
|
|
Lets you browse your device when it's connected via USB
|
|
|
|
|
Can extract data directly from the device
|
|
|
|
|
Contacts, Notes, Call logs, voicemail, media content, etc.
|
|
|
|
|
Can also extract or add App data, copy to or from device.
|
|
|
|
|
iExplorer ($34.99) - Macroplant
|
|
|
|
|
Similar to PhoneView
|
|
|
|
|
Has a Backup Explorer built-in
|
|
|
|
|
Most, but not all, apps keep their data in the 'Documents' folder at the root of the Application folder
|
|
|
|
|
Use iPhone Backup Extractor to extract the Applications folder to your Mac
|
|
|
|
|
Browse and find the data you want to restore
|
|
|
|
|
Connect your device to your Mac using it's USB sync cable
|
|
|
|
|
Use PhoneView or iExplorer to browse to the Application folder on your device. Put the data from the extracted backup into the exact same location in application folder on the device, overwriting the old file.
|
|
|
|
|
Disconnect your device and launch the app to see if the data is restored.
|
|
|
|
|
Data might need to be restored from other locations like the Library/Application Support folder or the Library/Preferences folder.
|
|
|
|
|
In extreme cases if you are unsure you may try restoring all the folders/data you find in an applications folder extracted from your backup.
|
|
|
|
|
Closing
|
|
|
|