Q: iTunes 10 kills Personal Hotspot via USB?
I've been using Personal Hotspot via USB every workday for more than a year. Today, the USB connection dropped in mid-use. I can't reestablish it - OSX says that the cable isn't plugged in or the iPhone is not configured for tethering.
iTunes sees the phone over the USB connection - syncing works correctly. The phone charges up over the USB cable.
Bluetooth works, but I prefer not to broadcast in an office environment.
This happened immediately after downloading & installing iTunes 10 (over the USB link!)
Reboot of the mac and/or iPhone doesn't help
Tech specs: Macbook Pro 8,2 with OSX 10.6.8 and my iPhone 4 (not "S"), iOS 5.1.1. USB cable was supplied with phone. I tried a different cable: no effect.
MacBook Pro (15-inch Early 2011), Mac OS X (10.6.8), iPhone 4, 5.1.1, iTunes 10
Posted on Sep 17, 2012 10:24 AM
Found this post in the discussions:
https://discussions.apple.com/message/17788766#17788766
It identifies the file /System/Library/Extensions/AppleUSBEthernetHost.kext as the source of a similar problem.
Tried the connection once more, just to verify the problem still existed.
Restored the file from my Time Machine backup (an effortless task) and presto - problem solved.
Interesting note: file size, and creation and modification dates, had not changed - but the restore worked.
Why iTunes 10.7 affected this file is a question for an iTunes guru.
Vote of thanks to David Empson for the research!
Posted on Sep 17, 2012 3:07 PM