Windows 10 and iTunes sync problem

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Windows 10 and iTunes sync problem

I've been following the forum here for 2 months waiting for a solution to pop up that will solve my issue, and none have as yet unfortunately, so I figured it's time for me to ask specifically.

I upgraded to Windows 10 in August, and since that day have never been able to sync my iPhone 5 to iTunes since. The phone shows up in iTunes, I can browse the music and videos on the phone and play them through iTunes, but the 'Sync' button Is grayed out, unavailable. The phone also will not sync over WiFi (that option is grayed out as well.) I'm running iTunes 12.3 now, and have tried several different fixes. Updating the Apple iPhone driver in the Device Manager didn't help (it comes up as MTP USB Device every time I go to update it, saying it is the most up to date driver. The Apple Mobile Device driver also shows as the most up to date.) A full tear down and reinstall of iTunes has not fixed it, and I've tried several times. These seem to be the two most common suggestions, and neither have worked. It seems like most people were having trouble with iTunes even recognizing their phones/iPads, and these fixed that. That isn't exactly the problem I'm having, so I'm not sure what else to do. Anyone else have this issue and find a fix?

iPhone 5, iOS 9.0.2

Posted on Oct 17, 2015 8:37 AM

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Answer 1

turingtest2

Level 10

272,707 points

Sep 21, 2017 4:59 PM in response to JonniVA

For general advice see Troubleshooting issues with iTunes for Windows updates.

The steps in the second box are a guide to removing everything related to iTunes and then rebuilding it which is often a good starting point unless the symptoms indicate a more specific approach. When reinstalling it may help to right-click on the setup file and use Run as administrator. It may also help to temporarily disable any non-Microsoft anti-virus.

Review the other boxes and the list of support documents further down the page in case one of them applies.

The further information area has direct links to the current and recent builds in case you have problems downloading, or want to revert to an older version if the current one won't work properly for you at the moment.

Your library and device backups should be unaffected by these steps but there are links to backup and recovery advice should it be needed.

tt2

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Answer 2

Dec 23, 2017 8:58 PM in response to notyouraveragetroubleshooter

I've just read through this thread and have tried following this process you recommended. Unfortunately I can't finish it because I keep getting an error message when I try to uninstall the Apple Software Update program saying: "There is a problem with this windows installer package. A program required for this install to complete could not be run. Contact your support personnel or package vendor." This is the exact same message I got when I tried to update iTunes tot he latest version. Unfortunately, since the instructions say not to uninstall things out of sequence or partially, this means I can't use this fix. Is there another way to uninstall the program that doesn't rely on whatever the program is that is apparently missing from windows 10?

Cheers,

Monique

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Answer 3

turingtest2

Level 10

272,707 points

Dec 24, 2017 3:49 AM in response to monique007

See my post above yours. Try repairing Apple Software Update first, it may possible to remove it once you've done so. Otherwise work systematically through the advice given in the second box of the user tip and the notes below it.

tt2

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Answer 4

turingtest2

Level 10

272,707 points

Sep 10, 2017 1:42 PM in response to priyankanc

Try iOS device not showing in iTunes for Windows.

tt2

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Answer 5

turingtest2

Level 10

272,707 points

Oct 17, 2015 8:45 AM in response to mjdolan1770

Try the following:

Open Control Panel > Device Manager
Plug in your device
Locate Universal Serial Bus Controllers > Apple Mobile Device USB Driver (or whatever it shows up as)
Right-click and select Update Driver Software...
Click Browse my computer for driver software
Browse to C:\Program Files\Common Files\Apple\Mobile Device Support\Drivers or
C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Apple\Mobile Device Support\Drivers
Click Let me pick from a list of device drivers on my computer
Click Apple Mobile Device USB Driver
Click Next, then Close and exit Device Manager

tt2

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Answer 6

mjdolan1770 Author

Level 1

12 points

Oct 17, 2015 10:24 AM in response to turingtest2

Thanks for the response.

I had forgotten I already tried this one as well. It tells me the current driver is the most up to date version, so nothing changed and the issue wasn't resolved. Man this is frustrating.

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Answer 7

turingtest2

Level 10

272,707 points

Oct 17, 2015 10:59 AM in response to mjdolan1770

Step 7 should make it reinstall the driver rather than telling you it is already installed. Might just make a difference.

What AV package do you have, if any?

tt2

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Answer 8

mjdolan1770 Author

Level 1

12 points

Oct 17, 2015 11:36 AM in response to turingtest2

So it did install the driver this time (I believe I had done this too, but checked rather than installed the first time today). It didn't resolve the issue, however.

In the "View Devices and Printers," when the iPhone is plugged in, two entries appear under Unspecified: Apple iPhone and Apple Mobile Device USB Driver. I just want to double check that everything is happening correctly. The driver for that iPhone entry is the MTP USB Device. For the Mobile Device USB entry, when I go to update the driver and choose options, the two are Apple Mobile Device USB Driver and the MTP USB Driver. If I let it choose on its own, it chooses the Apple driver. Is that all correct?

Also, I noticed when I updated the USB Controller driver that you suggested, the Apple iPhone entry in Devices and Printers disappeared.

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Answer 9

turingtest2

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272,707 points

Oct 17, 2015 12:20 PM in response to mjdolan1770

Thanks for checking. I'm afraid I'm no wiser. It works fine for me. I wonder if uninstalling the MTP USB Device would help. I've checked my device manager and what I see when I plug in my iPhone is a new category called Portable Devices, which has an entry for Apple iPhone, and a new entry for Apple Mobile Device USB Driver which appears under Universal Serial Bus controllers. Both entries disappear when I unplug the phone.

tt2

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Answer 10

mjdolan1770 Author

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12 points

Oct 17, 2015 12:41 PM in response to turingtest2

Thanks for looking at that. I've got the same things in the Device Manager as you list. In Portable Devices ->Apple iPhone, what's the driver called for you? It shows as MTP USB Device on my end (I would expect it to be an Apple iPhone driver.) It doesn't give me any other options when I browse or try to choose on my own. Is that the case for you as well?

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Answer 11

turingtest2

Level 10

272,707 points

Oct 17, 2015 12:53 PM in response to mjdolan1770

Yes, if I try to reinstall the Portable Devices > Apple iPhone driver it is the MTP USB Device that is offered, and reinstalling it doesn't break anything.

tt2

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Answer 12

mjdolan1770 Author

Level 1

12 points

Oct 17, 2015 1:13 PM in response to turingtest2

****, I was hoping something would be different. Yeah, I uninstalled and reinstalled that driver, and nothing changed.

What confused me even more is that I can't sync over WiFi, which doesn't involve a USB connection. I can connect with the cable, check the box in iTunes to be able to sync this phone over WiFi, but on the phone itself that section is grayed out, so I can't do it. Any possibility this is ultimately all a problem with my phone itself?

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