Apple TV not finding my library.

I've experienced this same issue. I have fixed it by:

Going into Settings/General/Network/Configure TCP/IP/Manual

Even though I use DHCP I've manually set up an IP for my ATV2 to use (ie 192.168.3.30) in lieu of taking the next DHCP assignment. A router using DHCP will automatically assign an IP 1-99 (the last two digits of an IP address) starting with 1. I've found by assigning ATV2 to a never used address mitigates connection problems as I'm regularly accessing the network with other machines/devices and using 1-15 which have a tendency to "bump" ATV even though they shouldn't.

"Ended up that I needed to have all my songs and vidoes checked before it would pull up my iTunes stuff. Hope this helps."

+ This did it for me.. I had forgotten that I turned that off in iTunes the night before.

Having exactly the same problem. All devices running latest updates. 2 PCs with Home Sharing on, 2 iPhones with AirPlay all connect to Apple TV fine. Let the ATV sleep and bam, and four can no longer connect or see the Apple TV!

Only way I can reconnect is by restarting router. Useless!

Same here...only I restart the ATV2 instead of my router. Seems like there's a process that goes to sleep on the ATV once the screensaver starts or the unit goes into standby and it never wakes up when you go back into the menu.

Months later and still no real solution found?

I can't get my ATV2 to connect to my home share on my MBP either. The ATV can see shows on itunes store, and youtube. I cannot access my library on my mbp. I want to view photos in particular. I have setup the photo events to be shared within itunes, turned on home sharing. I have a simple wireless router in the same room s the MBP and the ATV2.

This worked for me! The issue I had was when I went to an iPhoto source under iTunes Advanced Menu -> Chose Photos to Share. Home sharing was not even on! It was a option for me to click on even though I had checked on in the preferences prior. Hope this helps.

Try this article from apple. it was updated two days ago and it has some information in it that I haven't seen before that you have to add to a firewall among other things.

http://support.apple.com/kb/TS3125

Hope it helps..

The bottom line. Apple TV is a piece of junk with respect to home sharing. Mine works, doesn't work. I reboot everything, turn off sharing, turn back on, etc. Then it will work again. For a little while. Then it stops.

It's just junk. And it amazes me because it's so easy. If they won't so stinking propriety, all would be fine. I could point to my shared drives directly, my Western Digital Book Live, etc. All of which perfectly all the time.

Junk.