Whenever you are trying to upgrade or downgrade the iOS of your Apple device one common error that many people face is the famous error 3194 problem. If you are one of those who are struck during restoration of your device due to this particular problem then I am happy to inform you that this post will cover all the necessary steps you need to take in order to fix error 3194 and make sure your iOS device do not get stuck on the restore screen.
What is Error 3194 ?
Error 3194 is a warning message that is generally displayed inside iTunes whenever you are trying to restore or update a jailbroken device. If you have been updating your iPad from 5.1.1 to iOS 6 then the chances are you might have encountered it. The error message shows a statement that tells that your Apple device cannot be restored due to unknown reasons. Many people feel that they have done some mistake with their iOS download and starts the process all over again but the truth is they will still encounter this problem. 3194 is caused when iTunes uses your Internet connection to validate the legitimate Apple servers. Whenever these servers find out that you are trying to update a jailbroken device you will encounter this problem.
Steps for fixing 3194
- Open your hosts file in your PC/Mac. For PC go to C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc. If you are using Mac then follow the steps for editing your hosts here.
- Add a line 188.8.131.52 gs.apple.com (Just Copy Paste this at the end of your hosts file)
- Save your hosts file and restart iTunes
- Now connect your iPad or iPhone and restore them normally. You will not get the error message.
The fix is rather a tricky one and I will explain you what exactly you are doing. Basically your hosts file determines a bunch of network preferences for a particularly computer. By adding the line given in step 2 you are telling the computer to validate the iPad or any iOS device using a different server. This step is crucial for bypassing the error message. Once the validation is tricked, there is no other step where Apple will try to determine the settings required for a clean restore or iOS upgrade.
Note: After successful restore or upgrade please add a #tag in front of the new line you entered. So it should look like #184.108.40.206 gs.apple.com. This is done to deactivate the Apple server alteration and avoid any complication during running iTunes normally.
Other reasons for 3194
Although 99 percent 3194 errors happen due to apple validations, there can be some other reasons as to why error 3194 occurs. First and foremost please make sure that you are using the latest version of iTunes. Also recheck your host area to see if there is any other IP address assigned to the name gs.apple.com. If so simply add a # in front of it. This basically comments out the line and makes it inactive.Sometimes you can also solve the problem by running a registry cleaner on your computer. Use CCleaner as the software is light and does the job pretty well.
Thanks for reading my posts and I hope this proved useful in solving error 3194. If you are till facing any problems then please feel free to ask anything in the comments section below. I will be happy to help you with all your queries.
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