Apple’s iOS 15.4 update is a huge milestone upgrade and it could take quite a bit of time to install on your iPhone.
The company’s pushed its new iOS 15.4 update and the software brings a lengthy list of changes to iPhone users. The update includes new features, enhancements, bug fixes, and security patches.
If you’re moving your iPhone from iOS 15.3.1 to iOS 15.4, you get the shortest list of changes and the smallest download size. To give you an idea, the iOS 15.4 update is around 1.25 GB for iPhone 12 Pro users moving up from iOS 15.3.1.
If you’re upgrading from an older version of iOS, your iOS 15.4 download could be even larger because the changes from the update(s) you skipped are baked in.
While some of you might want to skip the iOS 15.4 download for the time being, most people should install the software right now, or, at some point in the near future.
If you decide to install iOS 15.4 on your iPhone, you’ll want to set aside some time to get the upgrade properly installed on your device.
Moving a device from one version of iOS to another can cause problems so you’ll want to monitor the download and installation.
We can’t tell you exactly how long the process will take because it will vary. That said, we can help you approximate how much time you should set aside should you choose to install the new software on your iPhone.
Task Time
Sync (Optional) 5-45 Minutes
Backup and Transfer (Optional) 1-30 Minutes
iOS 15.4 Download 5 Minutes to 15 Minutes
iOS 15.4 Installation 7 Minutes to 12 Minutes
Total iOS 15.4 Update Time 12 Minutes to 1 Hour+
Pre-Installation
Before you start the iOS 15.4 download make sure you’re prepared.
If you don’t know how to properly prepare for an iOS upgrade, take a look at our pre-installation guide. It’ll walk you through the most important steps to take before you start the installation process.
You should be able to get through these steps in 30 minutes, but it all depends on your skill level and the current state of your iPhone.
If you haven’t backed up your data in awhile or if you aren’t familiar with iOS 15.4’s changes, the pre-installation process could take you a longer.
You don’t need to follow every single step in the guide, but at the very least you’ll want to make sure your phone’s data is backed up properly.
Data loss issues are pretty rare, but if you store sensitive data (photos, videos, etc) on your device, it’s always better to err on the side of caution.
iOS 15.4 Download
Once you’ve prepared, it’s time to start the download process.
Again, the exact size of your iOS 15.4 download will depend on your iPhone model and the version of iOS it’s currently running.
If you’re on the latest version of iOS 15 for your iPhone you’ll, again, see the smallest download size. If you’re running an older version, your download could be larger.
If you’re on a fast Wi-Fi network, the download could finish up in less than seven minutes. If your connection is slower, or you’re downloading during peak hours, you might be looking at 10 minutes or more.
iOS 15.4 Installation
Once your device is done pulling iOS 15.4 from Apple’s servers, the installation process will begin. This could take longer than the download.
If you’re moving up from iOS 15.3.1, the iOS 15.4 installation should take around 10 minutes to complete. It took about seven minutes to install on an iPhone 12 Pro that was previously running iOS 15.3.1.
Your iPhone might reboot itself a couple of times during the installation process, but this is perfectly normal. Your device should boot up normally once the installation process completes.
Post-Installation
After the installation finishes up, you might need to spend time logging into your iCloud account, signing into your device’s various apps and services, and/or setting up Apple Pay.
You also might want to spend some time checking your important data (photos, music, etc) to make sure everything carried over properly.
After you do that, make sure you test your core applications and services to ensure they’re working normally. New iOS software can cause apps to go haywire.
If you notice an issue with one or more of your apps, try downloading the latest version. Developers are still rolling out iOS 15 support updates.
You’ll also want to poke around your phone for bugs and performance issues. If you notice something take a look at our list of fixes for common iOS 15 problems.
4 Reasons Not to Install iOS 15.4 & 11 Reasons You Should
Install iOS 15.4 for Better Security
If security is important to you, you'll want to think about installing Apple's iOS 15.4 update right away.
The iOS 15.4 update has a whopping 36 new security patches on board and they will help protect your phone from harm.
If you want to learn more about these patches, head on over to Apple's security site for the particulars.
If you missed iOS 15.3.1, it had one security patch on board. You'll get it with iOS 15.4. For more about it, head over to Apple's security page.
If you missed iOS 15.3, you'll get its patches with your upgrade. iOS 15.3 brought 10 new security patches to iPhone users. If you're interested in the details, you can read more about them right here.
If you missed iOS 15.2.1, you'll get its security patch with your upgrade. You can learn more about the change over on Apple's website.
If you missed Apple's iOS 15.2 update, you'll get its 30+ security patches with your upgrade. You can read all about them over on the company's security site.
iOS 15.2 also included some important upgrades to privacy. The software brought the company's App Privacy Report to Settings. This lets you see how often your apps have accessed your location, photos, camera, microphone, contacts and more during the last seven days. You can also see their network activity.
In addition, iOS 15.2 brought Apple's communication safety features for kids. You'll find these features in the Messages app, in Siri, in Spotlight, and in Search.
If you missed iOS 15.1, iOS 15.4 will bring its security patches to your iPhone. You can read more about them on Apple's website.
If you missed iOS 15.0.2 you'll also get its security patch with your upgrade. You can learn more about it right here.
iOS 15.0 also brought numerous security patches to your iPhone. If you'll be moving up from iOS 14 and you're interested in the exact nature of these improvements, you can read about them over on Apple's security website.
Apple's updated its website with new information about iOS 15's batch of security patches. The company now says the software patched up an issue that could have exposed a user's private Apple ID information and in-app search history. It also says iOS 15 patched up an issue that allowed apps to override Privacy preferences.
If you skipped iOS 14.8 or any older versions of iOS, you'll get the security patches from those updates with your iOS 15.4 update as well.
In addition to those patches, iOS 15 comes with some security and privacy upgrades including improvements to Siri. Requests made to Siri are now processed on the device itself using Neural Engine. This makes it more secure.
If you're an Apple Card user, you'll now get a security code that changes regularly to use when you make online transactions.
Apple's also included a built-in authenticator that's similar to Google Authenticator. This will let you generate verification codes for enhanced sign-in security under your Passwords.
There's also a Mail feature that hides your IP address. The company will add a new App Privacy report feature in the next version of iOS 15 that will tell you when an app has accessed sensitive information.
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