I have an old iPhone 4S (iOS 9.3.6) with important data on it.
It's been running fine, but a couple of years ago, it suddenly went into the "Hello, connect to Wifi or iTunes" activation screen.
From my research, I'm not alone and the root-cause seems to be an iOS 9 glitch and/or Apple's decision to stop supporting iOS 9.
This is strange as I don't know how the phone contacted the Apple servers. I deliberately kept it offline without a SIM card nor any "remembered" internet network. Does the phone have an in-built clock or expiry?
Anyway, I've been hesistent to do anything, as I read other users get stuck in an activation lock if they no longer have their original Apple ID.
However, I really need to access the data recently.
So I have some questions:
1) Is there a way to backup/extract the data before I do anything else?
I'm hopeful because for some reason, I can access the photos through Windows Explorer, but not the notes and messages etc.
When I try using iTunes to create a backup, it asks me to connect to the internet for activation first. Other 3rd party software like iMazing, MobiMover can't backup either, says phone is not activated.
2) What will happen when I finally connect the phone to the internet?
From what I read, connecting to Wifi on the phone won't work, it will prompt an error as iOS 9 activation is no longer supported. The workaround seems to be to use iTunes to activate and upgrade the iOS at the same time.
If I upgrade the iOS, will all my Apps be transferred or are they re-downloaded? I have important data in one of the app, so I'd like to preserve as much of the current state as possible.
Can I only upgrade to the next earliest supported iOS, instead of the latest iOS 16/17?
3) If I do get stuck in activation lock, do any of the paid services that claim to help actually work?
Apparently some tools can use a fake mirror activation server to trick the iPhone?
Thanks for helping, I'm really desperate to get my data back.
It's been running fine, but a couple of years ago, it suddenly went into the "Hello, connect to Wifi or iTunes" activation screen.
From my research, I'm not alone and the root-cause seems to be an iOS 9 glitch and/or Apple's decision to stop supporting iOS 9.
This is strange as I don't know how the phone contacted the Apple servers. I deliberately kept it offline without a SIM card nor any "remembered" internet network. Does the phone have an in-built clock or expiry?
Anyway, I've been hesistent to do anything, as I read other users get stuck in an activation lock if they no longer have their original Apple ID.
However, I really need to access the data recently.
So I have some questions:
1) Is there a way to backup/extract the data before I do anything else?
I'm hopeful because for some reason, I can access the photos through Windows Explorer, but not the notes and messages etc.
When I try using iTunes to create a backup, it asks me to connect to the internet for activation first. Other 3rd party software like iMazing, MobiMover can't backup either, says phone is not activated.
2) What will happen when I finally connect the phone to the internet?
From what I read, connecting to Wifi on the phone won't work, it will prompt an error as iOS 9 activation is no longer supported. The workaround seems to be to use iTunes to activate and upgrade the iOS at the same time.
If I upgrade the iOS, will all my Apps be transferred or are they re-downloaded? I have important data in one of the app, so I'd like to preserve as much of the current state as possible.
Can I only upgrade to the next earliest supported iOS, instead of the latest iOS 16/17?
3) If I do get stuck in activation lock, do any of the paid services that claim to help actually work?
Apparently some tools can use a fake mirror activation server to trick the iPhone?
Thanks for helping, I'm really desperate to get my data back.
