Monday 19 September 2016

iTunes could not connect to the iPhone because an invalid response was received from the device

I encountered this issue on my home PC after getting my new iPhone 7. I had previously sync'd the phone with my laptop, but upon connecting it to my PC, I got the error message;

"iTunes could not connect to the iPhone because an invalid response was received from the device"

I was pretty confident the phone wasn't the issue as it had successfully sync'd with another computer - I tried the following steps first which did not fix the issue;


  • Different USB/lightning cable
  • Different USB port
  • Rebooted computer
  • Rebooted iPhone
  • Ensured iPhone wasn't locked when connecting
  • Removed iPhone device from device manager
What ended up fixing the issue in the end was uninstalling and re-installing iTunes on the computer.

68 comments:

  1. Did you lose your backup by uninstalling and reinstalling iTunes?

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  2. I didn't lose the backup, but you can take a copy of your backup if you're worried about it from %appdata%\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup

    You can also take a backup copy of your iTunes library by taking a copy of the files in your My Music\iTunes folder (iTunes Music Library.xml, iTunes Library.itl etc)

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  3. Thank you! Finally something that worked for me too

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  4. I'm having this same issue!
    I'm having trouble uninstalling iTunes from my mac laptop. Suggestions?

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    1. Hi Sara - I'm not all that familiar with Mac's, but found the below article which looks like it may be useful
      http://www.iclarified.com/4045/how-to-completely-uninstall-itunes-mac

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    2. Although this hasn't solved my problem, THANK YOU for this link. The step by step directions for finding all of the embeded locations for iTunes was really simple to follow.

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  5. Uninstalling/reinstalling worked for me! Thanks.

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  6. i also same issue, i can't connect stay right now.

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  7. if you uninstall/reinstall, does that mean you lose everything on your itunes?

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    Replies
    1. Hi Elizabeth - can take a copy of your backup if you're worried about it from %appdata%\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup

      You can also take a backup copy of your iTunes library by taking a copy of the files in your My Music\iTunes folder (iTunes Music Library.xml, iTunes Library.itl etc) before re-installing

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    2. Thank you so much! The trick worked!

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  8. Hallelujah, finally something that worked! Thanks a million for that tip, I was getting quite desperate already!

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  9. Yes! Thank-you. This worked for me too. My library stayed the same and my backups were also untouched.

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  10. Will definitely give this a try. I've tried all you mentioned and getting that error message. I never had problems before and have no idea why this is now happening! Argh! Perhaps it's related to the new iOS update as it seems nothing is working quite right on my phone now.

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  11. Yes this worked!!!! Thank you!!

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  12. I wondered why iTunes said it was up to date but clearly wasn't the latest version mentioned online. The remove/reinstall worked great. And, old iTune said my balance was 9 cents, new iTunes says $9+ :-)))

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    1. Now that you mention it I had the same issue - my iTunes said it was up to date when the version number wasn't the latest (until I removed and re-installed). Sounds like you got lucky with the update to your balance!

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  13. THANK YOU. This fixed my issue.

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  14. Massive thanks. I've been stressing that I was going to have to reset my phone.

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  15. Many, many thanks! Fixed this issue for me too.

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  16. It didn't work for me.. I uninstalled and reinstalled on a MacBook. Can you please help?

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  17. Thank you, sorted it for me too

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  18. Thank you so much for this. My iTunes said it was up to date but wasn't the latest version. I installed the update and all good now.

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  19. new to using a mac, how do you install A programme ?

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  20. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  21. Hi ..
    i have this problem and i do all that what you said ..
    and still not working ..
    I connect my iPhone to another laptop and it's work in windows.. but in macbook dosent work ..
    and i bot another iPhone in my MacBook and it's work .. i don't know why my iPhone give me this ^^ iTunes could not connect to iPhone because an invalid response was received from the device ^^
    I need to solve soon please

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    Replies
    1. Hello- did you resolve this issue? I'm having the same exact problem.. =[

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  22. I got as far as uninstalling and then installing.... and it's asking me for a "verification code" and I have no idea where Apple is sending the code. I've checked my email and there is no code sent to me (checked spam also).
    Spent all day without a phone trying to solve this.... going into Sprint service tonight.
    Any thoughts?

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    Replies
    1. The verification code is sent via iCloud - so make sure you're signed into your iCloud account on your phone. The code should also come through to any other apple devices you have on the same iCloud account (eg. an iPad)
      If not, I hope Sprint service were able to help you!

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  23. Peter Morrissey, you are a god among men. I don't care how many puppies you kick or banks you rob, your helpful tip was right up there with the work of Mother Teresa! Uninstalling and reinstalling itunes did the trick!

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  24. uninstalled and re-installed itunes 2 times...still doesnt work :-(
    any solution out there?

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    Replies
    1. I did the uninstall / re-install for iPhone 7 and it still doesn't work... I badly need help too

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  25. I followed the advice to uninstall/reinstall iTunes and it didn't work for me initially. However, I looked up the latest version of iTunes and found out it was not what Apple automatically selected and installed on my MAC. It turned out I had to do an OS X upgrade in order to install the latest OS X on my MAC and then the latest iTunes (v12.5.3) could be installed on my MAC. After spending several hours with backing up the older OS X and upgrading both OS X (to v10.12 Sierra) and iTunes I finally was able to sync my new iPhone 7 with the latest iTunes. Apple really needs to do a much better job on addressing this issue.

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  26. PC USER: I just updated my iTunes version and it worked!

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  27. this did not work for me because the new version is for a 64 bit machine. The 32 bit version is the old version that I uninstalled. That version would not recognize my iphone or ipad. I am running windows on a desktop. I guess I am out of luck in using anything to update my Apple devices on my desktop. I have an iphone 7 coming. I should have bought a different phone!

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  28. this did not work for me because the new version is for a 64 bit machine. The 32 bit version is the old version that I uninstalled. That version would not recognize my iphone or ipad. I am running windows on a desktop. I guess I am out of luck in using anything to update my Apple devices on my desktop. I have an iphone 7 coming. I should have bought a different phone!

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  29. The 32 bit version for Windows is still not a valid 32 bit version. Not sure what else to do?

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  30. Came across this when my new iPhone 6, iPhone 5, and IPad stopped connecting. I went through using this guide to reinstall iTunes to 12.5 but it did not correct the issue. I ended up manually installing the Mobile Device USB drivers (https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204095#update) and 1 by 1 each device worked again. Hope this helps someone. Thanks! Justin

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  31. mine is doing the same thing for my iphone 6SE....I have tried every trick and still won't connect. The drive is telling me it is update. my computer won't let me down load the newest version of itunes. I uninstalled itnues and reinstalled it but still having same problems need help!

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  32. Huge thank you from me as well, as I found a few completely unhelpful (although I'm sure very well-intentioned) YouTube videos on this issue, but unintalling and reinstalling iTunes really did the trick. Thanks again!!!

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  33. Mac user here (probably not for much longer). When I try to delete iTunes so I can uninstall and reinstall it says that it cannot be modified or removed and is required by OS X. Fucking Apple sucks sometimes.

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    1. Apple has slid way downhill. All the die hard pretentious Apple fans are eating a slice of humble pie. The golden age is over people!

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  34. You don't have to uninstall first. Just download 12.5 and install.

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  35. Thank u so much...This worked for me too.
    I checked Itunes Update show that the latest version but apparently it's not.

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  36. Uninstalling/installing iTunes worked for me! Nothing else I tried did. Thank you!

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  37. Thank you so much! Some videos on YouTube said we need to hold the home button and lock button together blah blah.. I'm so glad I came across this page. Worked like a charm :)

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  38. was having the same issue... thanks for the help. All I had to do was update itunes on my PC then I was able to synch properly. cheers!

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  39. OMG thank you this actually worked and I tried many different things but you actually do have to uninstall then reinstall. I tried just updating and that didn't work.

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  40. Thank you uninstalled and reinstalled and my phone now connects cheers

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  41. I use a MacPro1,1 with it's maximum install of OS X Lion allowed.
    Maximum of iTunes 12.1 allowed.

    I have found that the iPhone is not the problem. After massive testing. After multiple upgrades to 10 and downgrades back to 9, I have come to the realization of 2 things.

    1) It's not just iTunes that is not connecting. The iPhone is not being recognized by the computer at all once iOS 10 is installed. I cannot use image Capture to download pictures/video off the phone. Nothing.

    2) If you do not have at least iTunes 12.5, the iPhone will not be recognized by the computer. And in my case I'm capped at iTunes 12.1 because of my Operating system version cap. iOS 10 with ONLY communicate with iTunes 12.5 or higher. It will also, ONLY communicate with OS X 10.8 or higher.

    As soon as i downgraded my iPhone back to iOS 9, everything worked fine.
    My iTunes 12.1 would not even register that there was an iOS update available so i had to upgrade from my phone's update system.

    To downgrade, I had to find a someone's computer using OS X that would communicate with my phone.

    Just apple's sneaky little way of making us buy more stuff we don't need.

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    Replies
    1. Hi Brandon,

      Thank you for this information. I cross referenced your info with Apple's website info, as well as wikipedia. Your information saved me a lot of headaches. So, i went straight to the source, and upgraded to Yosemite & iTunes 12.5. And, I'll continue on trying to get my new iPhone 7 synced from here. Hopefully it will work.

      The other thing I would add to your notes, is that Apple has become Nazis with their OS installation media. I've since learned that each generation OS has a certificate expiration date. So, even copies downloaded from the Apple App Store will cease to work after a roughly 2 year window after its release. For example, when I tried to install Yosemite on my Mac w/ the installer I saved from the App Store, it would outright fail. Only after Googling the error, I learned that I had to set my clock/ date back 2 years to when Yosemite was released- i.e. 2014, that it would install.

      Seems like Apple has gone the way of the dark side and is no longer the user-friendly company they once were. But, thanks for sharing your knowledge. It definitely helped.

      Detrich

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  42. How did you uninstall and re-install iTunes?

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  43. I uninstalled iOS. Not iTunes.

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  44. Yep.... fantastic. Took me almost a year to sort this problem. Thanks

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  45. This worked perfectly for this error message, thank you!

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  46. I've tried everything from trying different USB's to different USB ports. I've uninstalled and reinstalled iTunes on my MacBook Air I got in 2012...any suggestions on what to do next?

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    Replies
    1. Ive replied in my post just below Leesa. I hope it works for you. I did for me, finally can update my songs on iTunes!! Good luck!

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  47. Hi guys, I tried the above and it didn't work for me. I have a 2011 Macbook Pro. I updated my Macbook from Mountain Lion to El Capitan then to Sierra (for free on the App Store) that took about 5 hours all up. It then downloaded the latest itunes for free and as soon as I plugged my iPhone 5 in (with the latest update) it worked :)!!! So pleased cos I was starting to get really peed off! Hope this works for you. Make sure you have OS Sierra or higher.

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  48. Thank you so much!!! I was ready to pull my hair out!! Worked for me, I have a 6sPlus. When I reinstalled Itunes everything was still there!

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  49. Worked for me too, iTunes said it was up to date but wasn't, once updated the new iPhone 7+ was recognized

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  50. Just got an iphone se and can't connect to itunes. Have tried everything else except uninstalling itunes because i have thousands of songs on it i'm worried about loosing my library, it must be an old version although updated regularly.Just need reassuring I won't loose my songs?

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  51. Just got an iphone se and can't connect to itunes. Have tried everything else except uninstalling itunes because i have thousands of songs on it i'm worried about loosing my library, it must be an old version although updated regularly.Just need reassuring I won't loose my songs?

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  52. Had this error but fixed it simply by connecting to an updated version of iTunes. It appears iOS 10 and above does not work with lower versions of iTunes

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  53. Thank you! I tried just updating and it didn't work. Tried your suggestion-uninstalled and downloaded it again and voila-it worked. I didn't loose any data. Everything was still there.

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  54. itunes working perfectly fine with my iphone on home pc .but talking about laptop .i tried 2 differnet laptops .and all three machines running same itunes .but home pc is working fine and other 2 laptops showing the error (iphone could not connect to. . . . ) need help :(

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  55. my iphone is working fine with itune on home pc .but talking about laptop .i tried 2 differnt laptops.all 3 machines are running same itunes but home pc is working fine while latops are showing same error (iphone could`t connect to the iphone . . . . )need help asap :(

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