I normally do not have any beta releases on devices that I’m trading in or otherwise setting up a new replacement device with. I try to make certain I’m on whatever general release is current. Are there any specific things that need to be done to accomplish this? I normally always use the device to device wireless transfer method to set up a new device. I believe I’d read something fairly recently that the process will recognize the beta software on the device that’s being replaced and will offer to upgrade the new one. I’m hoping that’s correct.
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Setting Up New Device When Current One Is On Beta
- Thread starter papbot
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I have the same question, ideally doing a direct iPhone (currently on 26.1 beta 3) to a new iPhone transfer. 🖐️
You can't "Transfer" iOS 26.1 to 26.0.1, period. You have two options:
1. Start from scratch, sync iCloud, reinstall apps
2. Install the beta on the new device, transfer everything, turn off Beta updates, wait for 26.1 full release at which point you'll be off beta.
1. Start from scratch, sync iCloud, reinstall apps
2. Install the beta on the new device, transfer everything, turn off Beta updates, wait for 26.1 full release at which point you'll be off beta.
I thought that during the direct iPhone-to-iPhone transfer the new iPhone sees that the old iPhone is running a beta and offers you to continue doing so on the new one?
Just to be clear, I do not want to turn off beta updates on the new iPhone, just to transfer everything over.
I believe you’re correct. From responses I got on another forum, once your iCloud account is set up in the transfer you’ll be able to install the beta version (whatever release is currently out). As long as both devices are on the same iCloud account it should just walk you through the process. I know years ago you had to go through some shenanigans when doing this but I’ve read both here and elsewhere that it’s fairly seamless now.
It should prompt, but then the restore from the backup usually fails. Easier to just set it up as new, install the beta, then reset it and restore from a backup.
My plan is to try and do a direct transfer from iPhone to iPhone, not pulling the data from iCloud. If this fails, I will do it your way.
I was running the latest beta on my iPhone 11, and when I set up my new phone it installed the beta on it as part of the process. I used the iCloud option as it's faster (I was at home on wifi).
The entire thing was very straight-forward.
(The only thing that wasn't, and next time I'll just click "set-up later", was all my cards in Wallet. It tried to get those working, with texted codes that should go straight to the wallet app, before I'd managed to re-activate my eSIM on the new phone.)
The entire thing was very straight-forward.
(The only thing that wasn't, and next time I'll just click "set-up later", was all my cards in Wallet. It tried to get those working, with texted codes that should go straight to the wallet app, before I'd managed to re-activate my eSIM on the new phone.)
That’s what I was told elsewhere. Back in the days when beta profiles were used on the devices to install beta software it was more complicated. But, since profiles were done away with it’s more straightforward. Once the iCloud log-in that’s used for beta software is activated on the new device the beta software “should” be installed. If you try an iCloud restore prior to that it may fail. I no longer do it that way as transfer from the old device has proven faster for me. The only slowdown are apps that all have to be downloaded from the App Store but that happens in the background and doesn’t interfere with using the device.
That may give you more complications than you expect. I’ve had responses from several who have recently gone through this scenario and all said the beta will be installed during the setup and transfer from the old device. So essentially turn the device on and start the quick setup. Once you’ve gone so far as to activate the new phone, gone through the tedium of installing the IPSW, you may find that quick start is no longer available. My feeling is do what’s simple, just turn the phone on, perform the quick start and do what it tells you. Easy-peasy.
Ok, so this is how it actually went today:
I started a Quick Start procedure between my old iPhone 15 and the new 17 and:
1) iPhone 17 asked me to install a day 1 update first, so the transfer was interrupted. Once the iOS 26.0.1 was installed and the new iPhone rebooted, I could start the Quick Start gain;
2) This time, after setting up FaceID, it recognised I was running 26.1 Beta 3 and offered me to download it too, which I did. It then got stuck with the spinning wheel at the bottom, so, after about 10 minutes of wait, I restarted it and the iPhone was still showing iOS 26.0.1, so the Beta 3 OTA installation failed;
3) Downloaded the IPSW for Beta 3 and installed it with my MacBook. Back to Quick Start again.
Smooth sailing with the Direct Transfer after that, so my gut feeling about it being easier to install 26.1 beta 3 with IPSW file before doing anything was actually right. Basically, saves you having to install two different updates on a new device (26.0.1 and then the relevant beta on top).
The Direct Transfer took about 15-20 minutes in total, so not too bad, but next time might listen to you guys and pull the data off iCloud instead.
Beta life, heh, but all fine now and I am really glad a had a Mac nearby! 😊🖐️
I started a Quick Start procedure between my old iPhone 15 and the new 17 and:
1) iPhone 17 asked me to install a day 1 update first, so the transfer was interrupted. Once the iOS 26.0.1 was installed and the new iPhone rebooted, I could start the Quick Start gain;
2) This time, after setting up FaceID, it recognised I was running 26.1 Beta 3 and offered me to download it too, which I did. It then got stuck with the spinning wheel at the bottom, so, after about 10 minutes of wait, I restarted it and the iPhone was still showing iOS 26.0.1, so the Beta 3 OTA installation failed;
3) Downloaded the IPSW for Beta 3 and installed it with my MacBook. Back to Quick Start again.
Smooth sailing with the Direct Transfer after that, so my gut feeling about it being easier to install 26.1 beta 3 with IPSW file before doing anything was actually right. Basically, saves you having to install two different updates on a new device (26.0.1 and then the relevant beta on top).
The Direct Transfer took about 15-20 minutes in total, so not too bad, but next time might listen to you guys and pull the data off iCloud instead.
Beta life, heh, but all fine now and I am really glad a had a Mac nearby! 😊🖐️
You still had to install 2 updates, 26.0.1 and 26.1 beta. When I set up my 17PM it offered the 26.0.1 update which I selected to install. After the phone became active the quick start was no longer being recognized. When that happens Apple instructs you to restart both devices, which I did and then everything proceeded without issue. My instinct is when presented with that initial software, it may be best to decline it when you know you’re going to be installing an even later update afterwards. Seems like once you had declined 26.0.1 (if that was an option) the setup would have continued and it would then recognize the beta on your old device and installed that, saving you from having to install 2 updates sequentially. Anyway, that’s my plan if and when I’m in the same situation again. The quick start method has proven to me to be faster than pulling a restore from iCloud so I haven’t done it that way in years.
When I migrated via an iCloud backup from my 11 to the 17, I declined the 26.0.1 upgrade as I knew it was about to upgrade me again to the 26.1 beta.
Ah, good, thanks for mentioning that. That was my feeling. No reason to install a 26.0.1 update when you’re planning to install a 26.1 update right after. Seems like that may just be asking for issues.
Wish I had known there was an option to decline that first update before embarking on my installation. Well, I ended up with a very clean Beta 3 install in the end. 😉
I think there’s an option, when the update notification appears, for “Later” or something like that. Normally my finger just pops over to “update” but I think there is that other option for later.
Possibly, but I just assumed that this initial update was a must for the whole direct transfer process to continue. So in the future similar installations I will just update the new iPhone’s system to the latest beta via IPSW file and will skip the extra installations, as I had three in total yesterday (26.01 OTA ok, 26.1B3 OTA failed and then 26.1B3 IPSW ok). From what I have understood, once the new iOS is installed the whole setup process starts afresh, offering us all the possible setup options (direct, iCloud or transfer from a backup) 🖐️
I believe there was an update that was specific to the 17s initially. When I started up my 17PM the transfer process had begun from my previous phone but I, unfortunately, chose to install that update. After the 17 came back up the transfer process had stopped. Going by what I had read in Apple’s instructions I restarted both devices and got the quick start going again.
I will be facing the similar situation this week as I’m getting the new M5 iPad Pro and will be setting it up from my current iPad, which is on the 26.1 beta. I believe somewhere in the process, an update will appear for 26.0.2, which was released last week for the M5 devices. If that comes up, I’ll try tapping later to allow the setup to continue and, hopefully, get 26.1 installed, which should include whatever is in 26.0.2. At worst I’ll have to install 26.0.2 first and then probably restart both devices to get quick start going again.