I'm reposting a solution that I posted MUCH earlier in this thread because I know it's worked for others. I hope it works for you, too:
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FIXED! FIXED! FIXED!
After days of trying everything I read to fix the issue of my iPad not connecting (or syncing) wirelessly with iTunes on my Mac, I FINALLY fixed it last night. My wireless sync works perfectly and I'm back up and running with Things and Apple Remote.
Here's a recap of what I was experiencing:
Problem
iTunes would sync over wi-fi with my wife's iPhone and iPad, as well as my iPhone. It just wouldn't sync my iPad over wi-fi. When I connected with the cable, it showed up fine, but as soon as I disconnected the cable, the iPad "disappeared." Furthermore, my iPad could "see" my iTunes library in Apple Remote, but it would time out when trying to actually connect. Same with Things for Mac.
My Setup
Mac OS X Lion
Airport Extreme
iPhone 4
iPad 1
The Solution (for me)
I'm not sure exactly which of the following activities fixed it, as I did them all in the same general time, prior to testing my connection. But they're all simple, so if all of the "easy fixes" don't work for you (e.g. "sync this iPad in iTunes" is checked in iTunes), give these steps a try.
- Open "Settings-->General-->Network-->Wi-Fi"
- Click the blue arrow at the right hand side of the network you are connected to. (Note, you need to be on the same network as the computer that's running your main iTunes account.)
- Here's the kicker, even though my iPad was running on the same account as all my other devices, it wasn't connecting to iTunes.
- After you've clicked on the blue arrow and opened the network settings, select "Renew Lease." When the confirmation pops up, select "Renew Lease."
- Then select "Forget this Network" at the top of the screen. NOTE: Don't click this if you don't remember the password to your network, because you'll need to log in again after you do this.
- After you forget the network, select the "Wi-Fi Networks" arrow at the top left corner of the screen to return to the previous screen.
- Find the network you want to log in to and select it. Enter your network password.
- Again, press the blue arrow at the right of the screen.
- Scroll down to the bottom and select "Manage this Network."
- If you are running an Airport/Extreme and haven't already done so, it will ask if you want to download Airport Utility for iPad. Do it, and let it install.
- Once it loads, your router will show up on the screen. Select it. A small window will pop up.
- On that window, select "Edit" at the top right corner. A larger window will pop up.
- On that window, select "Advanced" at the bottom.
- Scroll down to the bottom of the screen and select "Restart Base Station"
- Be patient! It will take even longer than restarting from Airport Utility on your computer.
After the network reboots, try connecting to your library in Apple Remote on your iPad (if you have it) or see if iTunes on your computer now recognizes your device.
For me, after my router rebooted VIA THE iPAD, I was immediately connected. I didn't have to reconnect via cable to iTunes or anything, and Apple Remote worked instantly.
For Windows PC Users
Even though I'm running Apple across the board, you may want to try "Forget this Network" on your problem device, even in a mixed environment, then reboot your router. My iPad was showing up on the proper network and I had previously rebooted my computer, iPad, and router multiple times. Only after actually forgetting and reconnecting to the network was I able to sync up.
Hopefully this post helps save someone the incredible frustration that it's caused me.
Good luck!
