itunes won't open

Are you getting an error message when iTunes fails to launch? If so, what does it say? (Precise text, please.)

No error message. Just the circular arrow that typically signifies "wait," which seems to spin for an unusually long time, then stops.

🙂 many thanks. That's useful to know in its own right.

Can you check something else for me please? Is your QuickTime Player also currently failing to launch? (With or without an error message?)

🙂 Many thanks.

In recent times, the error-message-free iTunes and QuickTime launch failures have been indicating that another application has stashed old QuickTime componentry in your system files. (The computer sees that before it sees the newer componentry in your program files, and if there's a version missmatch between the system stuff and the program files stuff, everything turns to custard for your iTunes and QuickTime Player. The precise symptoms seem to depend on what files are stashed in the system, and what version mismatches you're getting ... lately a lot of error-message-free launch failures have been reported.)

So just in case we'll go looking for older QuickTime componentry in the most common locations for it to be stashed.

First we'll need to change some view settings.

In your Start menu, open Computer.

In your Organise menu, select Folder Options.

In the View tab, make sure that "Show hidden files and folders" isselected, and Hide extensions for known file types isunchecked.

Click OK.

Now in Computer, open your C:\ drive (or whichever drive you have your operating system installed on).

Open the "Windows" folder.

If you have a 32-bit Windows 7,open the "System32" folder.

If you have a 64-bit Windows 7, open the "SysWOW64" folder.

What files and folders can you see in there withQuickTime in the title? (In a standard installation of Quicktime you should be seeing precisely twofiles... QuickTime.qts and QuickTimeVR.qtx ... and no QuickTimefolders whatsoever.)

Are there any other QuickTime files, sampson?

If not, are you seeing any QTJava files?

Okay. We'll put aside that possibility for the moment.

By way of experiment, try disconnecting from the internet and/or your network. Restart the PC and then try launching iTunes and/or the QuickTime Player. Do they launch when not connected?

(Checking to see if something is interfering with iTunes and QuickTime attempting to go on line. That can sometimes cause a launch problem like this.)

I recently had this very same problem, and without having to make a single post I found your response to this gentleman.

You were extremely helpful, your guidance fixed my problem, but I was impressed most by your outstanding and shining courtesy, patience, and graciousness. You are a SHINING beacon in a world of short-tempered help forums, and I want you to know that I am looking into any form of commendation I can award you beyond the standard thumbs up.

You are truly one of the most patient and kind people I've ever seen on the internet.

I upgraded to iTunes 10.5 yesterday on my laptop running Windows XP 32bit.

Download and install went ok, but when I try to open iTunes it just won't load.

There is no error message or pop-up - the hourglass icon appears briefly, and iTunes.exe comes up in the Windows Task Manager for about three seconds and then disappears.

Tried uninstalling and reinstalling, as well as repairing in Control Panel>Add or remove Programs, but still have the same issue.

I should mention that Quicktime opens just fine.

Please help and thanks so very much in advance!

I am having the same issue. The files are there, I followed your second advice and opened in safe mode with no network and it worked!

could you please let me know how i can open itunes not in safe mode?

My problem was nothing more complicated than that I did not have authorization to run iTunes. I clicked on the iTunes icon, then Properties and picked the security tab and gave myself authorization to run the program. All worked well after that. Maybe that will help someone.

Since the latest "upgrade" my iTunes won't open. It behaves as noted above, just spinning. I can get it to reopen if I force close the "Apple Push" process using task manager.

Is this new process necessary? How to I work around this bug?

I have a Windows XP and whenever I turn on my computer, iTunes runs fine. Then I close it and try to reopen it, it either doesn't open or freezes up. I tried ending the process which seemed to work, but then it just kept on freezing up. Restarting the computer does the same thing. Opens fine just the one time, and then when you try to open it a second time, nothing. Oh yes, and I have iTunes 10.5.2.11. Please help.