Updating apps using iTunes 12.6.5.3

Have just upgraded my iMac to Mojave thinking that my iTunes was old, which is why it wouldn’t update the apps and this would give me an up to date version. I’ve now got iTunes 12.9.5.5 and Apple have completely scrapped the apps tab, which means that the only way to update apps is through your devices. This is a complete pain, as my husband, myself and kids share apps using different Apple IDs, which could previously be managed through iTunes on the Mac. 😖

The iTunes 12.6.5.3 version will only work in Sierra and High Sierra, that is why your iTunes updated to 12.9.5.5 as you went to Mojave. And yes it does not support App downloads or updates into iTunes anymore.

However don't bother going back at this point, because the iTunes 12.6.5.3 version in Sierra/High Sierra has been broken since March 17th or so. Many of us have petitioned Apple support in various ways and on several threads here to bring it back online, but so far NADA.

March 18th was the debut of Music app to replace iTunes for the more recent versions of OS for Mac, the support agent I talked to said that is likely why iTunes 12.6.5.3 version is no longer working. I was also told backing up devices thru the Mac now will be done in Finder since iTunes has disappeared and Finder will NOT include copies of all of our iOS apps. So good luck rebuilding any old devices without long wait times to download your apps over the internet......

For now I am checking each of our iOS devices( we have 5 active phones and ipads) in the app store every couple days to be sure they have latest updates, apparently that is all we have going forward.

I have been submitting feedback on the same issue I have with iTunes without app store and we needed to download the same app updates multiple times on multiple devices. But it seems Apple doesn't really care about that.

I have used this method a couple of times when getting new phones and it has restored an exact copy of the previous phone including apps onto the new phone. As far as I’m aware, it uses the information in the backup, which includes the apps. I presume it’s the apps stored in iTunes. The only thing I had to manually reinstall was some films that I had manually put on. Hope that helps

Does any one else know if you can backup an iOS device to a Mac running iTunes 12.6.5.3 AND also back up same iOS device up to another PC running Windows 10 iTunes version 12.6.5.3 ?

I think there is some kind of reason you cannot actually backup same device to two different iTunes, but am not finding anything on Apple support for iTunes about it.

I understand from other posts that Win 10 iTunes 12.6.5.3 is working still to download and also backup iOS apps, so am thinking about using it instead of Mac version iTunes 12.6.5.3 for apps. But all music and other stuff now is in Mac version and don't want to lose that.

i don’t believe there’s any reason why not. You need to copy the iTunes media folder and the mobilesync/backup folder from the Mac to the pc and presumably make sure you have up to date encrypted backup on both devices

iTunes Package Contents changed on 19th March 2020 (right click iTunes>Show Package Contents.... and navigate the various folders to see content change dates)

Does anyone know what would happen if an earlier version of these Package Contents were to be restored - e.g. via Time Machine?

And would iTunes simply override the restored version again?

Thanks for thoughts/knowledge re.this

Thanks for thoughts regarding this

Without knowing a myriad of details about your system, it's impossible to answer your question. The iTunes.app package modification dates may vary depending upon macOS version, iTunes version and Apple maintenance updates that have been applied.

In general, unless you're a programmer who's intimately familiar with macOS and its various subsystems, modifying any executable is ill-advised.

If you want to experiment then do that in a virtual machine, with copies of your data files, so that there is no risk to your production machine.

I'm using Apple configurator, because iTunes enterprise 12.6.5 is not downloading anything lately- since March 18th.

Today no way to be able to connect to Apple Servers

At launch of Apple configurator I get the error

The server gave an error during download: 401 Unauthorized.

But I'm not downloading anything yet!!!

Is anyone else having the same issue?

Is it because I'm using Apple software on Apple hardware?! 😡

Yes I’m using AC too. Haven’t tried it today, but typically this is a sign-in error. Try ‘sign out’ then wait a long long time then ‘sign in’ and wait a long long time.

the sign in/out process seems very slow. It’s often 5 or 10 minutes after it ‘returns’ before the operation is complete on my system (high Sierra)

Hi John

Only just seen your reply - thanks for the advice. And yes, definitely not wanting to mess with production machine. If I do clone etc and try it, I'll post results though I'm fairly confident Apple will just override the change as it seems to be an auto-install across the board, regardless of OS version.

Hopefully with the recent release of the Exposure Notification API to support COVID-19 contact tracing, Apple may be amenable to re-enable iTunes 12.6.x as a way of app management/deployment.

Thanks Gerard for offering to share experimentation results. I remember the days when that was an integral part of the Apple community:-)

Many issues are traceable back to auto-update. That's why, upon installing macOS, literally the first thing I do after initial boot-up is clear "Automatically check for updates" in System Preferences. Number two for me is ensure that the only thing enabled in iCloud is "Find My Mac".

To solve the problem of apps updating themselves automatically, there is a handy utility called Radio Silence. It's basically like a firewall in reverse and prevents specific outgoing traffic from a selected app.

This actually raises a question I have personally been wrestling with for a similar reason (obtaining entitlement for Configurator- I can't say buying as don't feel like you are really BUYING-- lol).

Can one use VMware Fusion to serve a NEWER version of Mac OS in a container then the native HOST OS. Use case: run Catalina (or other Mac OS > 10.12) in a VMware Fusion on Mac OS 10.12.6 (Sierra). Reasons for this include trying to run current TurboTax, obtain entitlement for Apple Configurator, and test potential upgrade and deployment scenarios. Hardware (MacBook Pro NATIVELY supports running Catalina so no hardware limitation)....

Running "future" or test version of OS in VM that is hosted on a PREVIOUS version of Mac OS is a PERFECTLY reasonable IT test procedure where redundant compatible hardware may not be available.

THANKS!!

Tom

Tom, indeed you can run a newer macOS version under Fusion on a host running an older operating system. For example, macOS 10.13.6 will run as a guest under VMware Fusion 10 on a mid-2011 iMac running 10.11.6 El Capitan.

VMware has extensive documentation and resources to determine compatibility such as:

https://www.vmware.com/resources/compatibility/search.php?deviceCategory=software

https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/2088571

Please refer to an earlier post in this thread about modify the systemversion.plist to get Apple Configurator 2.

In essence, you'll copy an existing macOS vm and change the system version to 10.14.2. The App Store in the vm will now allow you to download Apple Configurator 2. Then discard the entire vm including the downloaded file. Its only purpose was to associate Apple Configurator 2 as an item purchased with your Apple ID.

You can now install a compatible version of Apple Configurator 2 in your production machine normally.