Updating from OS 7.1.2: Use ipsw?

[spellflower]

Confession time: I have never updated the OS on my iPhone 5S, which I bought new in November of 2013. I'm still running 7.1.2, which is what the phone came with.

The phone was working fine until recently. Lately, though, Facebook has been quitting unexpectedly, and Spotify is having issues with accessing downloaded music when offline. I'm also running into problems with updating apps or getting new ones that require a newer OS.

So I've decided the time has come to update my OS. I checked Software Update in Settings, and it says I can get 9.3.3. But in another thread someone said I should consider using ipsw file to update instead.

What do you think? Should I just go ahead and update straight to 9.3.3? Or should I educate myself about ipsw and go that route?

 

[bbrks]

Do a simple update, if it doesn't work as expected, you can always restore with IPSW.

 

[Shirasaki]

Use ipsw and iTunes. It worth the hassle.
Although either OTA or iTunes upgrade are not that reliable nowadays.

 

[HangJebat]

Do a simple update, if it doesn't work as expected, you can always restore with IPSW.

Spot on.

 

[spellflower]

Use ipsw and iTunes. It worth the hassle.
Although either OTA or iTunes upgrade are not that reliable nowadays.

Shirasaki, why is it worth the hassle? What are the risks of the standard update procedure? What are the benefits of using ipsw?

 

[Shirasaki]

Shirasaki, why is it worth the hassle? What are the risks of the standard update procedure? What are the benefits of using ipsw?

By using ipsw file, you can use that file for future restore purpose without downloading firmware again, and in some cases, you need ITunes to restore, which also requires ipsw file.
Standard OTA is easy to use as long as update itself runs smoothly. However if something is going wrong in the middle, device may become immediately unusable. And you have no way to recover it without the assistance of computer.

 

[chrfr]

By using ipsw file, you can use that file for future restore purpose without downloading firmware again, and in some cases, you need ITunes to restore, which also requires ipsw file.
Standard OTA is easy to use as long as update itself runs smoothly. However if something is going wrong in the middle, device may become immediately unusable. And you have no way to recover it without the assistance of computer.

These issues are extremely rare and not worth the time and hassle. Yes, if something goes wrong, it'll be necessary to download the update for the iPhone but the chances of that being necessary are extremely slim.
There's no good reason not to just hit the update button on the phone itself.

 

[Nermal]

In any case the .ipsw file isn't too big and wouldn't take too long to download, unless you're somewhere like Australia

 

[Shirasaki]

In any case the .ipsw file isn't too big and wouldn't take too long to download, unless you're somewhere like Australia

I wonder why you mention Australia, rather than some remote states in USA. I admit Australia network infrastructure is not robust and strong though.
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These issues are extremely rare and not worth the time and hassle. Yes, if something goes wrong, it'll be necessary to download the update for the iPhone but the chances of that being necessary are extremely slim.
There's no good reason not to just hit the update button on the phone itself.

However your "slim chance" has been invalidated by recent iOS OTA issue bricking a good number of devices. I cannot clearly remember which version but one affects older devices such as iPad 2, and the other one affects iPad Pro 9.7".
Sure, not everyone is struck by those issues but the user base is there. Based on recent issues, I am really reluctant on admitting "chances are slim".
Those issues cannot help me much strengthen my other claims however.

 

[Nermal]

I wonder why you mention Australia

You used to list it as your location (if I recall correctly) so it seemed like a suitably cheeky example

 

[Shirasaki]

You used to list it as your location (if I recall correctly) so it seemed like a suitably cheeky example

Ugh.
Alright.

 

[chrfr]

However your "slim chance" has been invalidated by recent iOS OTA issue bricking a good number of devices. I cannot clearly remember which version but one affects older devices such as iPad 2, and the other one affects iPad Pro 9.7".

I have no idea which issue you're talking about for the iPad 2, but in the recent case with the iPad Pro, having the ipsw file would be of no help because the faulty version of iOS (9.3.2) wasn't going to solve the error 56 problem, so users were forced to wait until Apple released a fix. Users who downloaded the full update would have downloaded the full file twice– once the defective build of 9.3.2, then the fixed one. For those on metered connections, this matters.
Within the perspective that there are well over 1 billion iOS devices in existence, you can be certain that an almost immeasurably small group is bothering to download the ipsw each time iOS updates.

 

[KALLT]

Just do the over-the-air update. It really does not matter. You will be downloading a full upgrade anyway.

 

[JayJohnPaul]

Download the IPSW file from the web, backup via iTunes, then restore iPhone using the IPSW file, then restore backup. Simple as that. Should take about 20 minutes.

Why restore?

It will get rid of left over junk/cache files and get rid of any errors that you're currently experiencing.

Why download IPSW file from the web and not directly from iTunes?

S**t happens. Let's say iTunes is in the middle of updating your iPhone and an error pops out and you're asked to redownload the IPSW all over again which is time consuming and a waste of data. It happens a lot.

 

[I7guy]

I wonder why you mention Australia, rather than some remote states in USA. I admit Australia network infrastructure is not robust and strong though.
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However your "slim chance" has been invalidated by recent iOS OTA issue bricking a good number of devices. I cannot clearly remember which version but one affects older devices such as iPad 2, and the other one affects iPad Pro 9.7".
Sure, not everyone is struck by those issues but the user base is there. Based on recent issues, I am really reluctant on admitting "chances are slim".
Those issues cannot help me much strengthen my other claims however.

People have posted they need iTunes help after an update, I'm not one of them. I've been updating, immediately, after a release for 3 years without an issue and will continue to do so. An analogy would be never driving far from home because you're worried your car would break down.

 

[mich070]

Could you please explain me how does this work, or send me a youtube link where I can watch and follow the instructions please ?