iMac and iTunes not recognizing my iPhone (2009 iMac with High Sierra 10.13.6)

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Level 1

4 points

iMac and iTunes not recognizing my iPhone (2009 iMac with High Sierra 10.13.6)

Hi, Someone answered this question for me about 6 months ago but I can't find the thread. There is something (not straightforward, intuitive or in a settings menu) that I need to do to get iTunes (and my iMac generally) to recognize the attached iPhone. It worked until recently - perhaps it was my new iPhone or a system update that blew out the modification. Something to do with the age of my Mac and hence it is limited to High Sierra. I'll save the instructions this time..... Thank you,

John

iMac 27″, macOS 10.13

Posted on Oct 18, 2020 1:41 AM

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Answer 1

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turingtest2

Level 10

278,149 points

Oct 18, 2020 4:30 AM in response to heppo160

For iOS 12 or later you need iTunes 12.8.0.150 or better running on OS X 10.11.4 or better. See How to upgrade to OS X El Capitan - Apple Support if required. iOS 13/14 require iTunes 12.8.2.3 or better.

Assuming a suitable version of iTunes is in place then in Finder use the menu item Go > Go to Folder..., copy the following text, paste it into the dialog box and press enter:

/System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/MobileDevice.framework/Versions/Current/Resources

Unlock your device and connect it to USB. Double click on MobileDeviceUpdater in the folder that has opened. It should notify you of a software update. Install it and iTunes should hopefully recognize your device.

tt2

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Answer 2

heppo160 Author

Level 1

4 points

Oct 18, 2020 4:56 AM in response to turingtest2

Hi. Clicking on mobiledeviceupdater didn’t seem to do anything. Nothing launched. I think you are close though. I seem to recall opening a configuration file in a directory like this and directly editing it.

Alternatively, can you tell me how to find the advice I received on this forum about 6mo ago?

thank you in advance,

john

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Answer 3

DeJoRo55

Level 1

12 points

Oct 18, 2020 9:09 PM in response to heppo160

I am also having this issue.

Mac OS 10.4.6.

iTunes 12.9.5.5

When I launch the MobileDeviceUpdater app I get an error message.

"Can't install the software because it is not currently available from the Software Update Server."

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Answer 4

turingtest2

Level 10

278,149 points

Oct 19, 2020 12:18 AM in response to DeJoRo55

I assume you mean macOS 10.14.6 Mojave. iTunes is baked into that version of macOS and cannot be reinstalled from a download. You'll probably have to wait on Apple to fix the issue with the update.

tt2

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