Sometimes (usually late at night when I need to get to bed) itunes will not respond once it opens on my windows laptop. Get twirly spin and if that ever stops, itunes freezes and I cannot do anything with it.

Hi marti1951,

Welcome to the Support Communities! If the iTune application on your PC is unresponsive or quits when you launch it, try the steps outlined in the resource below:

iTunes for Windows Vista, Windows 7, or Windows 8: Fix unexpected quits or launch issues - Apple Support
http://support.apple.com/en-us/HT203206

Start iTunes in Safe Mode

Open iTunes in Safe Mode to isolate any interference from plug-ins or scripts not manufactured by Apple.

1. Hold down Shift–Control while opening iTunes. You should see a dialog that says "iTunes is running in safe mode" before iTunes finishes starting up.
2. Click Continue.
3. See if the issue you're experiencing persists in Safe Mode.

If you have the same issue while iTunes is in Safe Mode, proceed to the "Create a new user account" section. If you don't experience the same issue, follow these steps to remove third-party plug-ins.

Create a new user account

By creating a new user account, you can determine if the issue affects a specific Windows user account or all accounts. Follow the steps below to create a new user account in Windows Vista or Windows 7:

1. Choose Start > Control Panel.
2. Open "Add or remove user accounts." (If you're using the Classic view in Windows Vista, open "User Accounts," and then open "Manage another account.")
3. Select "Create a new account" and follow the instructions to set up the account.
4. Once you create the new account, choose Start > Log Off.
5. Log in to the new user account.
6. Open iTunes and see if the issue you're experiencing persists in this new user account.

If you have the same issue in the new user account, proceed to the "System-wide troubleshooting" section. If you don't experience the same issue, proceed to the "User-specific troubleshooting" section.

User-specific troubleshooting

If you experience the issue in one particular user account, the suggestions below may resolve the issue. Before proceeding, you'll need to make hidden files and folder visible in Windows using steps 1-5.

1. Remove iTunes Preference files. Some of the files that iTunes stores settings and preferences in may be unusable. iTunes saves its preferences in two folders. Move one of them to the desktop and test to see if the issue persists. If it does, move it back and remove the second folder. The locations for the preference folders are:

   • c:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Apple Computer\iTunes

   • c:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\iTunes

2. Create a new iTunes Library.
   1. Hold the Shift key while opening iTunes. You'll be asked to choose an iTunes library.
   2. Choose Create Library.
   3. In the following window, select a location to save the new iTunes Library.
   4. Click Save. iTunes will open the new library. After you close iTunes, you can always select the original library by holding the Shift key while opening iTunes.
3. Recreate your iTunes Library. If your iTunes library has become unusable, rebuilding it may resolve the issue.
4. Check for issues with content files. Sometimes an audio file can cause iTunes to quit unexpectedly or stop responding when it's analyzing gapless playback information. To determine which file may be causing the issue, follow the steps below:
   1. Quit iTunes.
   2. Navigate to the iTunes folder:
      • Windows Vista:

        c:\users\username\Music\iTunes

      • Windows 7 and Windows 8:

        c:\users\username\My Music\iTunes

   3. Move the iTunes Library.itl file to your desktop.
   4. Open iTunes. You shouldn't see any content in iTunes.
   5. Choose File > Add Folder to Library.
   6. Navigate to the folder where your music is located:
      • Windows Vista:

        c:\users\username\Music\iTunes\iTunes Media

      • Windows 7 and Windows 8:

        c:\users\username\My Music\iTunes\iTunes Media

   7. Choose an artist, album, or song to add to the library.
   8. Wait for iTunes to successfully add the item to your library and perform the gapless playback scan.
   9. If successful, continue adding songs to your library.
   10. If there is an issue with one of your files, you'll notice your issue reappear after you add it to the library. You should repeat these steps, being careful not to add the files that caused the issue.

System-wide troubleshooting

When troubleshooting system-wide issues with iTunes, try these steps:

1. Check for viruses. Windows viruses can interfere with a variety of computer functions, including iTunes.
   1. Make sure that you have current anti-virus software installed with up-to-date virus definitions.
   2. Scan your system.
2. Check for anti-virus and Internet security software. Internet security software may cause iTunes to quit unexpectedly. Try disabling the Internet security software temporarily or exempting iTunes from any active scanning done by the software. If this resolves the issue, check with the maker of the software for an update to the software or its virus definitions. Learn more about fixing security software issues.
3. Check for conflicting processes. Sometimes other programs and startup items can conflict with iTunes. Learn how to troubleshoot conflicts using Msconfig in Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8.
4. Remove iTunes configuration files. Removing unusable configuration files from iTunes can resolve launch issues.
5. Check the iTunes installations. An improper installation of iTunes can contribute to a variety of issues. Follow these steps to completely reinstall iTunes.
6. Update the drivers on your PC. Outdated drivers on your computer can cause strange behavior with iTunes, iPod devices, and other apps. Learn how to update the drivers on your computer.

I hope this information helps ....

- Judy

Hi marti1951,

I'm not sure if this is what is happening on your iPod nano, but it is the only thing I can think of as to why podcasts would be deleted from the device. Check the settings in iTunes as outlined in the manual below:

Downloading Podcasts to iPod nano - iPod nano User Manual - pg. 23

manuals.info.apple.com/MANUALS/0/MA101/en_US/iPod_nano_Features_Guide.pdf

Downloading Podcasts to iPod nano

The settings for downloading podcasts to an iPod nano are separate from the settings for transferring songs. Podcast transfer settings don’t affect song transfer settings, and vice versa. You can download podcasts to your iPod nano manually, or you can set iTunes to automatically update all podcasts or selected podcasts.

To set iTunes to update the podcasts on iPod nano automatically:

1. 1 Select iPod nano in the iTunes Source list and click the Options button.

2. 2 Click Podcasts and select one of the following options:

To Set iTunes To

Update all podcasts automatically

Update selected podcasts automatically

Limit the number of episodes automatically updated on iPod nano

Do This

Select “Automatically update all Podcasts.”
When you click OK, iTunes updates the podcasts on iPod nano to match the podcasts on your computer.

Select “Automatically update selected Podcasts only,” check the boxes next to the podcasts you want to update, and choose an update option from the pop-up menu.
When you click OK, iTunes updates your selected podcasts on iPod nano to match the selected podcasts on your computer.

Select one of the automatic update options and then choose an option from the Update pop-up menu: “All episodes, ” “Only checked episodes, ” “Only most recent episode,” or “Only unplayed episodes.”
When iTunes updates iPod nano podcasts, episodes other than the ones you set are deleted from iPod nano.

When you set iTunes to update iPod nano podcasts automatically, iPod nano is updated each time you connect it to your computer.

To set iTunes to let you manually manage podcasts:

1. 1 Select iPod nano in the iTunes Source list and click the Options button.

2. 2 Click Podcasts and select “Manually manage Podcasts.”

   To download podcasts manually to iPod nano:

In iTunes, drag the latest episodes of shows from the Podcasts playlist to your iPod nano.

Marti, if this doesn't answer your question, or you have additional issues with iTunes, you may want to initiate a conversation with one of our technical advisors. They have some tools, like screensharing, which may be helpful to troubleshoot your issue. Here's the link to get that started:

https://getsupport.apple.com/GetproductgroupList.action

Cheers,

Judy