Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Completely disgusted with iphone syncing

D

DjJax33

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Apr 13, 2009
6
0
So I have been preaching about the iphone for a while now, and recently my macbook had serious issues, and was forced to wipe the system and start over. After plugging my phone in and opening itunes, I could not find a way to simply back up what was currently on my phone. I managed to sync my contacts to the computer and thought I could do the same with applications. It asked if I wanted to "TRANSFER" my apps to itunes. I selected "yes", and immediatly it begins removing them from my phone. I cannot see them in Itunes at all now, and am FURIOUS!!!!!

Are you telling me that an owner of a mac and iphone cannot perform a simple and easy backup on a fresh install?!?! What if I didn't have my music backed up???? This is outragous, I am so insanely mad for even having to write this post.

I absolutly do not have time to be scowring forums for solutions. If it is possible to retrieve my apps, could somebody please point me in the right direction? This problem could seriously change my outlook on the iphone... unacceptable.
 
store > check for available purchases...

and you should always back up your system, just in case the worst ever happens.
 
DjJax33 said:
What if I didn't have my music backed up????
Click to expand...

That's why iTunes frequently asks you if you want to backup your music. An iPod or iPhone is not a backup device, you really should make sure you keep a backup of your entire iTunes library on an external or network drive. It usually takes situations such as yours for people to stop being lazy and actually take the effort to make sure their data is backed up regularly.
 
DjJax33 said:
After plugging my phone in and opening itunes, I could not find a way to simply back up what was currently on my phone.
Click to expand...
Like PoitNarf mentioned, going back to the iPod days, Apple has never had an official method for copying everything from an iPod back to a computer (thus the market for third-party tools like Senuti and Pod to Mac). Why would you think an iPhone would be any different?

Apple has given you two huge tools to avoid the situation you put yourself in. One is Time Machine. The other the ability for iTunes to back itself up (including your apps) to CDs or DVDs.

You can redownload your apps again (either from the iPhone or from iTunes) without being charged.
 
Yes these are good suggestions and I wish I would have backed up and/or known about the authorize app function. You think such a function would be suggested when a phone is plugged in and sees new apps.

Simply deleting them from your phone after no such warning is rediculous. You get a warning before syncing your music and I would expect the same with apps. Due to a miscommunication and no warning, I have lost ALL my purchased apps. Un-expletive-acceptable.
 
DjJax33 said:
Due to a miscommunication and no warning, I have lost ALL my purchased apps. Un-expletive-acceptable.
Click to expand...
Hmm. I just tried what you did with my personal iPhone (by trying to sync with iTunes on my work computer, which has a blank iTunes library), and it clearly warned me that my apps would be erased.
 

Attachments

  • Picture 1.png
    Picture 1.png
    44.3 KB · Views: 85
Hey - Time Machine is the easiest thing in the world. I paid $175 for a rugged LaCie that I have attached to my 320 HD in my MacBook Pro. Time Machine works well and you'll never lose stuff.

In the past I was never one to back-up (I never realized the computer went in reverse) but after a major wipe-out I inexpensive back up each of my Apples. And now I sleep fine at night...8
 
aristobrat

I wish I could take a screen shot of the message I received, but I assure you it wasn't the one you displayed. Try the same thing, but instead of hitting the main sync button. Try to just sync your applications. That's when I lost mine.

I am pretty new to the mac world, and have never messed with ipods so I wouldn't expect anything different. I expect common sense. And their sync can only work towards a common sense approach. I've had problems with it since day one. For a phone that contains so much private information, the very least I expect is a warning. The password program I had was EXTREMELY important, and has caused me to lose money in my business.

As far as re-downloading my apps, that doesn't seem possible. I have spent more time than I need to looking, and anytime I try to download the same app from the store, it wants to charge me again. I don't see any options in Itunes to back up to any sort of medium either. Maybe both of these things are in apple's secret "easy and simple" menu that isn't so easy and simple to find.

Forgive my hostility, but this extremely misleading app deletion has caused everlasting bitterness towards apple, no matter how great their products.
 
Yes apparently I need to backup, but the iphone acts as my backup for many things. What if my backup hard drive failed? I do back up, and will do a better job from now on, but this apparent ipod/iphone sync functionality is confusing and hard to understand.
 
There is a way to get stuff off your iPhone. There's an app called Phoneview which lets you pull music/photos etc off your phone.

In terms of getting your apps, that's the warning that I've seen before. The way around it is to plug in the iPhone, cancel the synch and then go up to the iTunes File menu and tell it that you want to Transfer Purchases from the iPhone. That will put any iTMS songs and apps back into your iTunes library so that you can then unassociate the iPhone with the old library and resynch it with the new one
 
DjJax33 said:
As far as re-downloading my apps, that doesn't seem possible. I have spent more time than I need to looking, and anytime I try to download the same app from the store, it wants to charge me again.
Click to expand...
As long as you're signed into iTunes with the same account that you made the original purchase with, they shouldn't charge you to redownload an app.

Try it by redownloading one of the free applications you used. After you click "FREE", and type in your password, it should tell you that you've downloaded this prior, so there's no charge. Same thing should occur with any paid apps you redownload.

I don't see any options in Itunes to back up to any sort of medium either. Maybe both of these things are in apple's secret "easy and simple" menu that isn't so easy and simple to find.
Click to expand...
Anytime you purchase something from the iTunes Store on your Mac (music, video, application), iTunes pops up a window that asks if you want to backup. There is an option for the user to never display that popup again. Perhaps you clicked that.

If you want to manually start the backup, it's File > Library > Backup to Disc
 
This is apples fault because you failed to back up the items prior to your crash>??? This couldn't be your fault? Failure to properly back up your software and items for that software and hardware?

So the one I would be mad at would be yourself. Doesn't matter if you are 'New' to the mac world or not? Did you blame MS or your other os when it crashed and you did not properly back up your stuff?

Sorry I fail to see how this is apples fault at all?
 
1. Right click on the iPhone icon in the side bar and choose "Backup"
2. Right click on the iPhone icon in the side bar and choose "Transfer Purchases"
3. You can re-download any application for free. You can do this directly on the device or from iTunes.
 
I would like to thank everybody for their quick and helpful support. This day has made me more angry than I've been in a longggg time, but you all have helped tremendously. I greatly appreciate this community and all your help.

rhett7660 - blame can always be put on the user. As i said before, the iphone is my backup source. This has apparently been an issue for generations of ipods as well so I would say Apple could make it better.
 
DjJax33 said:
I would like to thank everybody for their quick and helpful support. This day has made me more angry than I've been in a longggg time, but you all have helped tremendously. I greatly appreciate this community and all your help.

rhett7660 - blame can always be put on the user. As i said before, the iphone is my backup source. This has apparently been an issue for generations of ipods as well so I would say Apple could make it better.
Click to expand...

Not ragging... but best of luck to you! Hopefully with all of the suggestions here you will be able to get your items back.
 
I have re-downloaded apps from Apple Store in the past and was never charged again. It simply states that I have downloaded it before and asks me if I want to download it again. Frankly the Iphone sync is far better than any other that I have used....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back