Solved: iTunes is Waiting for Windows Update to Install Driver for This iPhone

Since iTunes can be downloaded for free both from the iTunes website and the Microsoft store, many iPhone users find it a convenient and cost-effective tool to transfer iTunes music libraries, side load pictures, videos, and backup data of their Apple device.

However, the process may fail and you will receive the “driver not installed iTunes is waiting for Windows update to install the driver for this iPhone” message when connecting iPhone to iTunes on PC Windows.

Section 1. What causes iTunes is waiting for Windows update error?

Actually, Windows automatically installs the necessary drivers, and updates to ensure the iTunes driver is installed successfully. iTunes driver not installed may occur due to the following reasons.

●Too old Windows version
●The outdated iTunes
●An outdated driver
●Some viruses or conflicting applications
●Irregular cable

Note: You can firstly try checking and changing another cable when you encounter “driver not installed iTunes in Windows 11/10/8/7 computer”.

Section 2. How to fix iTunes is waiting for Windows update error in Windows 11/10/8/7 computer

The next section will recommend four solutions to fix this iTunes driver stuck on Windows update issue.

• Solution 1. Update Windows system
• Solution 2. Update iTunes
• Solution 3. Reinstall and update the driver
• Solution 4. Disable conflicting applications

Solution 1. Update Windows system

As the prompt suggests, the problem might happen if you are running an outdated Windows system on your computer. For this, you can follow the steps to upgrade it.

Step 1. In the bottom-left corner of the taskbar, search “windows update”, click Open to launch Windows Update. (You can also go to the Settings directly to find Windows Update.)

Step 2. Tap on Update & Security and then click Check for Updates.

Solution 2. Update iTunes 

If the problem is still here after updating the Windows system, you can check if you have installed the latest iTunes. If not, you can update it. You can directly open iTunes, click Help on the menu bar, and choose to Check for Updates. Then, follow the prompts to install the latest iTunes.

There are two ways to update iTunes.
1. Find and open Apple Software Update in the search bar, select Checking for New Software, any update will be listed on the screen, choose the update, and then tap on the Install option.
2. Open the Microsoft Store app, tap on the ellipsis icon on the top-right corner, and select Downloads and updates. Find iTunes in the list of apps, and click the Download icon.

Solution 3. Reinstall and update the driver

If updating both Windows and iTunes failed to do enough to resolve the issue, it’s time to reinstall to update the driver.

Step 1. Open the Device Manager, locate the Portable Devices category, and then click on its expansion icon.

Step 2. Right-click on Apple iPhone, and click Uninstall Device.

Step 4. Restart your computer and relaunch the Device Manager. Once again, locate the Portable Devices category and then click on its expansion icon to find Apple iPhone. Right-click to choose Update driver. 

Step 5. Select ‘Search automatically for updated driver software’ from the pop-up screen. 

After the update procedure is finished, you can remove your iPhone and reconnect it to your PC, you will not see the error of iTunes driver Windows 10.

Solution 4. D  isable antivirus or conflictin  g applications

Many a time, it’s an antivirus app that conflicts with the functioning of the system and leads to the “iTunes is waiting for windows update” error. If you recently downloaded some unidentified or other third-party antivirus software, you can go to the program to uninstall or disable the app to fix the error.

Step 1. Press “Windows + R” to launch the Run command, enter “appwiz.cpl” in the search box, and then click OK to continue.

Step 2. You can see all apps installed on your computer, select the one you believe might be leading to this error, and click Uninstall at the top to perform the process.

Free iTunes alternative to easily backup/transfer/manage iOS data

Since a lot of iPhone users encounter unwanted errors like iTunes is waiting for a Windows update to install the driver for this iPhone, iTunes may be a bit complicated to back up or manage IOS data. If you are not satisfied with iTunes, you can consider FoneTool as its ideal alternative. It's free and professional.

Compared with iTunes which can create a full backup of your device simply, FoneTool allows you to back up your iPhone selectively to a computer and transfer data to any other iDevice like iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch without the incompatibility issue. It fully supports iOS 15/14/13 and all iOS devices, like iPhone SE/14/13/12/11, iPad Pro/Air 5.

Step.1 Download FoneTool and connect your iPhone to a computer with a USB cable.

Step 2. Choose Phone Backup on the main screen. Locate the Selective Backup. Click Get Started.

Note: In the main interface, you can click the Transfer to iPhone,iPhone to iPhone Transfer, or Transfer to Computer button to transfer data.

✓ Transfer iPhone to Computer: Transfer data from iPhone to computer or computer to iPhone at a very fast speed. You can transfer iPhone photos, music, contacts, and videos in one click or only the selected items.
✓ Transfer iPhone to iPhone: If you've been using it for a while, you don't need to reset your new iPhone. Safely transfer data without losing anything important memories.

Step 3. Click an icon to select the specific items you want to back up, and click OK. Here, we choose photos as an example.

Step 4. Click Backup Storage Path to select a storage path, then click Start Backup. 

Conclusion

You might be in trouble when you backup with iTunes because iTunes is waiting for windows update to install driver for this iPhone, the above contents offered the solutions for you, and you can try to fix the issue by yourself. Besides, if you encounter other similar problems as the iTunes backup session failed, FoneTool can be a brilliant way for you to create backups and manage iOS data.