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Your iPad could not be activated because the activation server is temporarily unavailable

Your iPad could not be activated because the activation server is temporarily unavailable. Try connecting your iPad to iTunes to activate it, or try again in a couple of minutes.


[Re-Titled by Moderator]



iPad 2, iOS 9

Posted on Apr 16, 2020 6:07 AM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Apr 16, 2020 7:06 AM

We are seeing an increased incidence of issues activating 9 year old iPad2 devices. If restart of your home router - or changing your DNS Server settings do not resolve the issue, you should directly contact Apple Support for assistance.


To restart you home router, disconnect power - then wait at least 30 seconds before restarting. When you router has rebooted (which may take several minutes), force-restart your iPad:


  • On an iPad with a Home button: Press and hold the top button and the Home button at the same time. When the Apple logo appears, release both buttons.
  • On an iPad with Face ID: Press and quickly release the volume up button, press and quickly release the volume down button, then press and hold the top button. When the Apple logo appears, release the button.




For recommended DNS servers (configured at your home router and/or your iPad), you might choose one of the following highly regarded Recursive DNS Providers (IPv4 and IPv6 addresses included below):


Quad9

9.9.9.9

149.112.112.112

2620:fe::fe

2620:fe::9


OpenDNS

208.67.222.222

208.67.220.220

2620:0:ccc::2

2620:0:ccd::2


Cloudflare+APNIC

1.1.1.1

1.0.0.1

2606:4700:4700::1111

2606:4700:4700::1001


Should it be necessary to escalate your issue to Apple Support, during the current exceptional global situation, the quickest route to engaging with Apple Support will be via the Contact Support link at top-right of this page.

2 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Apr 16, 2020 7:06 AM in response to son124

We are seeing an increased incidence of issues activating 9 year old iPad2 devices. If restart of your home router - or changing your DNS Server settings do not resolve the issue, you should directly contact Apple Support for assistance.


To restart you home router, disconnect power - then wait at least 30 seconds before restarting. When you router has rebooted (which may take several minutes), force-restart your iPad:


  • On an iPad with a Home button: Press and hold the top button and the Home button at the same time. When the Apple logo appears, release both buttons.
  • On an iPad with Face ID: Press and quickly release the volume up button, press and quickly release the volume down button, then press and hold the top button. When the Apple logo appears, release the button.




For recommended DNS servers (configured at your home router and/or your iPad), you might choose one of the following highly regarded Recursive DNS Providers (IPv4 and IPv6 addresses included below):


Quad9

9.9.9.9

149.112.112.112

2620:fe::fe

2620:fe::9


OpenDNS

208.67.222.222

208.67.220.220

2620:0:ccc::2

2620:0:ccd::2


Cloudflare+APNIC

1.1.1.1

1.0.0.1

2606:4700:4700::1111

2606:4700:4700::1001


Should it be necessary to escalate your issue to Apple Support, during the current exceptional global situation, the quickest route to engaging with Apple Support will be via the Contact Support link at top-right of this page.

Your iPad could not be activated because the activation server is temporarily unavailable

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