How to Fix iTunes Error 17 When Upgrading or Restoring Your iPhone/iPad

The iTunes Error 17 is a common error that shows up when an Apple user is trying to update his or her iOS device. How exactly do you fix this error? Like the iTunes Error 3194, there are actually several options you can try out so that you can solve the iTunes Error 17.

The simplest option to fix the iTunes Error 17 is following these steps:

1. Safely remove your iOS device from other devices.
2. Restart your iOS device.
3. Reconnect your iOS device to your computer.
4. Try to update your iOS device again.

If your iOS device still would not work or if the error keeps on showing up, then continue reading to see other reliable troubleshooting options.

Check Your Internet Connection

Most of the time, the iTunes Error 17 shows up because of an issue with your connection. When your iOS device cannot connect to Apple servers, it fails to download the IPSW file which is necessary to successfully add new features or further secure your device.

Here are the steps to check your internet connection:

1. Check the status bar of your iOS device.
2. If you are connected through your mobile data, you will see either a dot, an E, or a 3G.
   1. Dot – represents a GSM/GPRS connection. This is the slowest connection and has a speed of only up to 114kbps.
   2. E – represents an EDGE connection. It has a speed of up to 400kbps.
   3. 3G – represents its name. It is the fastest mobile connection with the speed of up to 1Mbps. You can have 3G if your device is 3G enabled.
3. Once confirmed that you are connected through your mobile data, look for a Wi-Fi server for a faster internet connection.
4. Make sure your Wi-Fi connection does not give you limited access only.
5. Try connecting to the Wi-Fi server through other devices to confirm that it works smoothly.

Check Your Security and Anti-Virus Software

If you have confirmed that your internet connection is the problem, then try checking the security and anti-virus software on your iOS device. Some security and anti-virus software prevents the iTunes app to connect to the Apple server. To make sure no software is hindering your iOS device to connect to a server, we recommend that you temporarily remove or disable all software with firewalls or anti-virus.

To remove your anti-virus software, simply uninstall it from your device. If you do not want the hassle of uninstalling your anti-virus software only to install it again, you may opt to disable it instead.

Reboot the Hosts File

Even after rebooting your device or disabling anti-virus software, some users still come face to face with the iTunes Error 17. If you are one of these users, you may try rebooting the Hosts file in your device. The Hosts file is a file used by your iOS device to map hostnames to IP addresses.

Here are the steps to resetting the hosts file on a Windows device:

1. Open Notepad.
2. Copy and paste the following text into your new Notepad file:

# Copyright (c) 1993-2006 Microsoft Corp.

#

# This is a sample HOSTS file used by Microsoft TCP/IP for Windows.

#

# This file contains the mappings of IP addresses to host names. Each

# entry should be kept on an individual line. The IP address should

# be placed in the first column followed by the corresponding host name.

# The IP address and the host name should be separated by at least one

# space.

#

# Additionally, comments (such as these) may be inserted on individual

# lines or following the machine name denoted by a ‘#’ symbol.

#

# For example:

#

# 102.54.94.97 rhino.acme.com # source server

# 38.25.63.10 x.acme.com # x client host

# localhost name resolution is handle within DNS itself.

# 127.0.0.1 localhost

#:1 localhost

3. Save your Notepad file on to the desktop. Rename it as ‘hosts.’
4. Close the file.
5. Go to C:\Windows\System32\drives\etc.
6. Locate the file named ‘Hosts.’ Rename or delete this file.
7. Move the ‘hosts’ file you created in Step 3 to C:\Windows\System32\drives\etc.
8. Restart your PC and try to update your iOS device once more.

Here are the steps to resetting the hosts file on a Mac OS X:

1. Open Applications from the Finder.
2. Select Utilities.
3. Open Terminal.
4. Copy and paste ‘sudo nano /private/etc./hosts’ into the Terminal.
5. Press return.
6. Enter your Mac password.
7. The Terminal will now open the Hosts file.

Check Your iTunes Updates

Sometimes, the real culprit is that you are still using an older version of the iTunes app. If so, make sure to update it to the latest version available. You may check the latest update in the Apple’s iTunes download page located at https://www.apple.com/itunes/download/. You may also follow the succeeding steps easily:

Updating the iTunes app on Mac device:

1. Open the iTunes app.
2. Select the iTunes option in the menu bar.
3. Click ‘Check for Updates.’
4. Install the latest version available.

Updating the iTunes app on a Windows device:

1. Open the iTunes app.
2. Select the Help option in the menu bar.
3. Click ‘Check for Updates.’
4. Install the latest version available.

Check Out Third-Party Software

If the iTunes Error 17 is still bothering you after trying out all the aforementioned solutions, try to look up third-party software that were made to fix the error.

One software is the Tenorshare TunesCare which is free to try. The Tenorshare TunesCare was created to troubleshoot all types of errors that are commonly encountered by iTunes users during restoring or upgrading their iOS devices.

Here is how to install and use the Tenore TunesCare software:

1. Download the free Tenorshare TunesCare software.
   1. If you are a Windows user, download it for free from https://download.tenorshare.com/downloads/tunescare.exe.
   2. If you are a Mac user, download it for free from https://download.tenorshare.com/downloads/tunescare-mac.dmg.

2. Click ‘Fix All iTunes Issues’ to troubleshoot any errors your iTunes app is facing.
3. When you see the option to ‘Repair iTunes,’ click on this option. This will download iTunes drives that are necessary to repair your software.
4. In less than two minutes, the Tenorshare TunesCare will have automatically repaired your iTunes software of the Error 17.

Has Your Problem Been Solved?

After carefully following any of the solutions we have showed above, you should be free of the annoying iTunes Error 17. This error is only one of the common errors that are encountered by iTunes users. Generally, errors like this are simple to troubleshoot.

If after trying out all the solutions and still not fixing your problem, we advise you to report this error to the Apple customer service. However, this should rarely be the case as the iTunes Error 17 is most often the fault of a not updated iTunes app or a security software. We recommend that you make sure that your iTunes app is always updated and not affected by any security software to ensure proper installation of updates or restoration of files at all times.

You might want to check out these related posts:

How to Fix the “iTunes Has Stopped Working” Error?

How to Repeat Favorite Songs On the Apple Music App

How to Fix Error 3194 While Updating or Restoring your Apple Device

How to Fix iTunes Errors 4014/4013 – Can’t Update My iPhone