IPhone – iTunes sync thesteriously failing in various ways

data synchronizationiphoneitunesmacbook pro

I have an iPhone 4S with iOS 7.0.4, and my MacBook (10.6.8) has iTunes 11.1.4.

I have a few small mp3 files that I want to copy from my MacBook to my iPhone.

When I connect the phone to the MacBook and initiate a sync, it always fails in 1 of 2 ways:

  • iTunes would push Flashlight and Facebook to my phone and then would say "Canceling sync" and stop. I do not want Facebook, and I do not want Flashlight either since one is already built into iOS. But I'd be willing to have them if it's required for my mp3s to sync.
  • or iTunes hangs on the last step of the sync, "Waiting for changes to apply."

My iTunes says that it's the latest version, and so does my iOS. And I've restarted my phone and MacBook several times.

How can I fix this problem? It's not specific to which mp3 files.

Best Answer

Make sure that the "Automatically install new apps" option under the "Apps" tab when in the iPhone settings in iTunes is UNchecked.

Next, from the "Summary" tab of your iPhone settings in iTunes, check the "Manually manage music and videos".

Finally manually drag/drop the mp3 tracks you wish to add to the iPhone to the open iTunes window when it is focused on your iPhone music. This will directly add the songs without the need to sync the iPhone.