Apple

9 Things to Do Before Installing iPadOS 15.6.1

Published

2 years ago

08/25/2022

Downloading Apple’s new iPadOS 15.6.1 update might be tempting, but there are some steps you should take before you move your iPad to the company’s new software.

iPadOS 15.6.1 is a small point upgrade and the software is now available to download if you own a compatible iPad, iPad Air, iPad Pro, or iPad mini.

Apple’s new firmware brings two important security patches to iPad users. It doesn’t have any known bug fixes or features on board.

If you’re moving your iPad from iPadOS 15.6 to iPadOS 15.6.1 you get the shortest list of changes and the smallest download size. If you’re moving up from an older version of iPadOS, your iPadOS 15.6.1 update will be more substantial. That’s because the features and fixes from the updates you skipped are baked into the firmware.

iPadOS 15.6.1 is an important upgrade and most of you will want to install the new software today or some point in the near future. That being said, it’s difficult to predict how the software will run on your iPad and that’s precisely why you’ll want to prepare yourself, and your device, for the move. A little prep work prior to starting the installation should help you avoid serious issues.

If you do run into issues on iPadOS 15.6.1, note that you can’t downgrade back to iPadOS 15.6 in an effort to improve your device’s performance.

Apple’s closed off the downgrade path to older versions of iPadOS including iPadOS 14. So if you’re having a great experience on iPadOS 15.6 or below, you’ll want to approach iPadOS 15.6.1 with caution. Once you make the move to it, there’s no going back.

With that in mind, we want to take you through the best way to prepare for iPadOS 15.6.1. We recommend spending 30 minutes, or more, prepping for the move.

Backup Your Data

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Backing up your iPad's data is an important step to take before installing new software like iPadOS 15.6.

Many of you already know how to properly backup your data (photos, videos, etc), but if you're unsure, here's what you'll need to do.

You can backup your data using Apple's iCloud service. It's an easy way to ensure your important files are safe. If you're unfamiliar with the iCloud backup process, you'll want to check out Apple's guide.

If you don't want to use iCloud, you can back up your data using iTunes. If you're running macOS Monterey, macOS Big Sur or macOS Catalina, you'll need to use Finder, not iTunes.

If you store a ton of data on your iPad, note that the backup process could take quite awhile to complete so you'll need to remain patient while the process completes.