Why does iTunes not recognise a plugged in iPhone on Windows 8.1?
I have iTunes 11.0.4.4 and have just installed Windows 8.1 - iTunes seems to work ok, but when I plug the iPhone in (iOS 6.1.4) it doesn't appear and be recognised.
The OS sees the phone and I can copy files from it, but iTunes doesn't react to it.
Are there any known issues with Windows 8.1 - am I paying the price for being on the bleeding edge?
This technique just worked for me on 11.1.3.8 (it broke on the Windows 8 to 8.1 upgrade):
- Control Panel, uninstall "iTunes" and "Apple Mobile Device Support"
- Plug out your iDevice(s)
- Reboot (might be unnecessary, but Windows 2.0 trained me to do this all the time after driver changes)
- Run the iTunes installer (you might already have downloaded it)
- Plug in your iDevice(s)
At this point, my iPod and iPad were recognized and synced. My library appears to be intact as well.
I subsequently rebooted and these devices are still found.
I have a permanent fix for this. The Apple Mobile Device USB Driver has to be reinstalled for Windows 8.1. To do so…
- Plug in your device.
- Open Device Manager (Control Panel → Hardware and Sound → Device Manager) and expand "Other Devices", "Portable Devices" or "Imaging Devices".
- Right click on any selection that recognizes and iPod or iPhone and select "Update Driver Software".
- Allow it to search for the driver software itself and the Apple Mobile Device USB Driver will be reinstalled under "Universal Serial Bus controllers".
After installing and without ever unplugging your device, iTunes will then recognize your device. My iPod Classic 160 GB is now synching for the first time since the update!