iPod iPod classic not recognised in Windows 7

Hello.

I have a Macbook Pro and I want to listen to my Mac formatted iPod using my iPod Classic on iTunes for Windows 7 at work.

When I plug in my iPod to my work PC iTunes will pop up (latest version) on Windows 7 Professional (64-bit) saying that the contents of my iPod cannot be read and it needs to be be restored.

Using my same machine, if I launch a virtual machine running Windows XP Professional (32 bit) then the iTunes I have on there reads the iPod fine and all music is visible and can be listened to. If I use the same virtual machine to successfully restore the iPod and set it up using the setup wizard that appears after restoration then as soon as I disconnect the iPod from the VM and have it back to Windows 7 I get the same error (contents cannot be read) - how is that possible?

There is some sort of fix. I did manage to get it working on my work PC under iTunes for Windows 7 providing that it was formatted for PC and also a picture file was added otherwise Windows cannot recognise it (this was done by a friend - found no supporting information on the internet about this).

So, that means I would have a PC formatted iPod Classic which I manually manage with my Macbook Pro where my music collection is stored. Suffice to say I still get the same error about the contents not being read and the whole process starts all over again.

On my Macbook Pro I have Windows XP (32 bit) inside VMWare Fusion, it recognises the iPod fine, formats it and I even manually put an image file on to it but still my work PC cannot read the contents.

If my work PC is locked down in terms of USB (meaning I cannot access any USB devices plugged in to it) then would that be the issue? Sometimes also my iPod comes up as a removable disk on my work PC and other times (after the 'fix' I mentioned it correctly appears an an iPod).

I am at my wit's end with this. Is there any way I can read my Mac formatted iPod on my work PC just to listen to the music in any other application other than iTunes? I tried Foobar 2000, it said 'iTunesDB access was denied'.

I also tried replacing the iTunesDB file with a backup but the backup file was not on my iPod Classic for some reason.

I tried changing the drive letter and restarting the services as Apple described in their support documentation - No luck.

I tried another USB cable and all USB ports on my work PC - No luck.

Also, on the work PC, I can access the iPod to restore it in iTunes, click 'Restore' and then it restarts but the iPod setup assistant does not appear nor does the iPod in the sidebar (meaning it cannot be named etc.), would this be caused by USB being locked down also?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks.

Ian

Hello.

Thanks for replying. I thought that would be the issue too but it still does not explain how my friend who fixed it for me to work (also head IT guy) managed to restore it properly for my work PC to recognise it, especially with regards to why my PC cannot read it unless it has an image file on it.

Does anyone know of a PC music player that supports a Mac formatted iPod so I can play music off it?

Furthermore, if I use CopyTrans then the iPod is recognised (formatted as either Mac or PC) and the music can be played, how is it that can do it but iTunes cannot?

Basically, as said, I'd like to be able to just play the songs on my Mac formatted iPod on my work PC - nothing more with Last FM support if possible.

Many thanks.

Ian

Hello.

One thing that confuses me is I restored my iPod using my Macbook Pro, plug it in to my work PC and iTunes correctly says it cannot read it and then when I open CopyTrans Manager (Free) it can read it fine (read only mode) and I can listen to my music.

I tried that software and I did not seem to get anywhere with it so I will try another one I have found (HFS+ by Paragon) and let you know.

Many thanks.

Ian

Hello Kanunu.

I would love it if someone knew of any software you could install on the iPod to make it readable on both PC and Mac without any messing around but I doubt it exists.

To answer your questions:

1 - It will charge just fine, the issue will be that iTunes will not see it and therefore will nag you to restore it so that it can be seen.

2 - You can reformat the iPod to Windows and the Mac will read it fine too (does not work the other way around) but you will have to manually manage your music if you do it this way.