Q: Home Sharing drop out with Apple TV2

There's a new Apple TV update out today. Do we know if it fixes this? If anyone has upgraded please let us know your results. Thanks

Have yet to have any issues with the new update

I didn't have any issues with this UNTIL I did the new update to 4.3 today.  Now, I have no entries for "COMPUTERS" in ATV2, even though I have 3 libraries shared.  I've tried enabling and disabling Home Sharing on multiple copies of iTunes, and I've rebooted ATV2 multiple times.  Seems like the update is the problem, though I did see the shared libraries for a short time after the update.  Any idea how to get them to show up again?

klinebch

That's very curious.

I was waiting to post again as I've recently installed the update and unplugged the ethernet cable.  So far I've had no problems at all. Not saying I won't of course, as the drop out problem takes a while to appear, but so far so good.

Have you tried restarting iTunes and/or rebooting the computer?

Cheers

I've restarted iTunes multiple times with no effect.  No reboot yet.  Would be a curious fix, for sure.  I don't think it's the iTunes that's the problem, as my macbook with Lion/iTunes 10.4 and Win7/iTunes 10.4 are not showing up, yet can talk to each other just fine via Home Sharing. 

I've removed and readded HomeShare in ATV itself, but that didn't help either.  I'm almost ready to reset it to factory defaults, but was hoping to avoid such a move if I could.

Ah well ... I knew I'd be speaking too soon. It just dropped out.

I did a reset of the ATV2 -- holding the menu key and the down button on the remote until the light flashes. When it restarted, my library was again visible and I coud hear the music I'm streaming through AirPlay.

I rather expect it to drop out again at which time I'll plug the ethernet cable back in and see what happens.

Grrrrrrrrrr

Installed new update. Now ATV2 works even worse than before. Thought I had it fixed - at least my iPhone4 streamed music consistently. Now that drops out after 2 songs.

I did a factory reset on ATV and that fixed things for a little while.  Now my main library is dropping out already, and I expect other wierdness to begin shortly.  it's definitely a buggy release; I liked the old firmware much better and wish I could go back to it as I only rarely had problems with it.

After 2 minutes of running a TV video from iTunes I got drop out as per usual. TV picture defaults to My iTunes Library and I have to select the program all over again at 'resume', then it drops out again, etc, etc. I have an end to end Apple system, tried ethernet connection and no difference. Only curious quirk is if I select video from iMac and set Apple TV from airplay - then all is stable, works perfectly. When you 'push' from the iMac all is okay but when you 'pull' from ATV2 menu it drops out but not other way round. Is this anomally a clue? Anyone got any ideas please? I have Lion, latest iTunes version and ATV2 4.3. Everything all up to date and working except this blasted ATV2 since March 2011!!!!!!

Well, it's nice to know that I'm not the only one with this problem...!!!

No ATV2 thanks to the update... Guess we'll have to wait a week or so for them to figure it out...!!!

Let's hope they quietly watch the forum and take notes!

What? Like they've been watching and taking notes since 9 March when the forum started?

One can only hope...!!! Thank God I have my Staples Button for these kind of emergencies...

Here's an update. I'm lucky. My ATV has been working perfectly well plugged into the modem/router with an ethernet cable to which my computer and iPhone are connected wirelessly.

I use it mostly to stream music and radio from mycomputer to the stereo system that plays around the house. Occasionally, I stream a movie from the Internet or from my computer. It has all been working just fine.

Yesterday, like so many hapless users around the world, I was pathetically excited by the announcement of an updated operating system for the ATV. I installed it and pulled the ethernet cable out. Immediately I had a connection.

All went well for a while: I streamed the radio and music. I was actually using two sets of speakers—the stereo connected to the ATV via AirPlay and another set plugged directly into the computer. After awhile, I realised the stereo was not working. Sure enough, the connection between computer and ATV was lost. I tried reconnecting but with no result until I reset the ATV. The connection was re-established and it ran happily for the rest of the day.

In the evening I turned off the music, put the ATV to sleep and eventually the computer hibernated. As did I.

This morning when I restarted the computer, I could not establish a connection—neither from the computer nor my iPhone. I should say that I usually just start the radio or music in iTunes and the ATV wakes up and goes about its business; I don't have to turn it on.

Trying not to reset it, I turned on the ATV with the remote. Nothing happened. I tried restarting iTunes. Still nothing. I then plugged in the ethernet cable and, bingo, it reconnected immediately with AirPlay icons showing on both the computer and the iPhone. A wee while later, just for the **** of it, I pulled out the cable and, after a brief, pause, a wireless connection established itself. The system has been running happily on the wireless since then. Trying to emulate the fault, I tried disconnecting, putting the ATV to sleep, hibernating the computer and then restarting, but the connection re-established itself immediately.

I don't know whether the ATV goes into some deeper sleep cycle after a time, or whether iTunes or some driver on the computer is affected by the computer going to sleep then hibernating, but it would be less than satisfactory if one had to reconnect to the ethernet or reset the ATV in order to make the thing work properly on the wireless network. If the problem recurs, I won't bother; I'll just reconnect the ethernet and await the next OS update.

I suppose, though, there's some very faint hope that this tale will provide a clue to someone better versed in the detailed workings of the technology than me. I hope so.

I'll also say—as one who has had an ATV2 that functions well, albeit only via ethernet—that it's a great thing. The ability to stream music, radio and video from the computer and the internet, all controlled from anywhere in the house by an app on the iPhone should I want to, is just fantastic. The ability to hire movies quickly and easily over the internet and watch them on demand is also great. I don't pretend to understand the problem with the wireless connection, but I'd be pretty sure Apple will figureit out and we'll all have an inexpensive and thoroughly useful gadget.

My thanks for the advice from others on this forum that has helped me get mine working. My commiserations to all those of you deeply frustrated by being unable to get yours' to work.

Cheers

PS This is completely unrelated to the problem of the ATV2's connection, but I wrote this post in a word processor and then copied it into this site. Random spaces between words simply disappeared.

Go figure.

Ah well ... faint hope.

The wireless dropped out after a couple of hours.