My First Gen iPad will not sync. It stayed at Step 1, backing up iPad for over three hours and would not continue. My iTunes is on a Windows PC running XP.

I previously created a backup with no apparent problem and updated to OS 4.33. But then I noticed that none of my pdf files were in iBooks. They showed on iTunes so I tried to sync.

Any help greatly appreciated.

Stuck in back-up can be rectified by rebooting the iPad with it plugged into the PC and iTunes up and running. (Hold the Home button and sleep/wake button simultaneously on the iPad until you get the message to slide). Slide the slider to boot the iPad. The spinner will appear and the iPad will shut down. Wait 30 seconds or so and turn the iPad back on. (Hold down the sleep/wake button until you see the Apple logo.) When the iPad restarts click on your iPad name in iTunes then click one of the tabs in iTunes (apps or movies) and click "Apply" rather than synch. This has worked for me twice in the past.

Note: If the spinner spins for a long time during shut down hold the sleep/wake button down again and it should eventually shut down.

Originally Posted by The Alternative

Stuck in back-up can be rectified by rebooting the iPad with it plugged into the PC and iTunes up and running. (Hold the Home button and sleep/wake button simultaneously on the iPad until you get the message to slide). Slide the slider to boot the iPad. The spinner will appear and the iPad will shut down. Wait 30 seconds or so and turn the iPad back on. (Hold down the sleep/wake button until you see the Apple logo.) When the iPad restarts click on your iPad name in iTunes then click one of the tabs in iTunes (apps or movies) and click "Apply" rather than synch. This has worked for me twice in the past.

Note: If the spinner spins for a long time during shut down hold the sleep/wake button down again and it should eventually shut down.

Interesting. I've never run into this problem, but it's good to know. The other possible solution I've heard of is to go into iTunes Preferences, the Devices tab, and delete the backup file.

It is not necessary to hold the home button to get the power off slider. The sleep/wake/power button by itself will do just fine.

Holding the power and home button at the same time is for a soft reset. When doing that you ignore the power off slider, and wait until you see the Apple logo. It then reboots. What more this does than a simple restart, I don't know, but it has fixed things a restart wont.

Thanks for all the help. I finally got it to sync, but there is a new problem. Some apps did not show after sync. I noticed that some were not checked off on iTunes even though I had selected the option to automatically sync new apps.

I generally add new apps directly from the iPad, not purchasing through iTunes and then syncing. I went back, checked apps and synced again.

Now, when I go to the iPad, it shows a number of the apps need updating, even though I had previously updated them on the iPad.

Did I miss a step? Are apps still not quite in sync?

Originally Posted by singlestick

Thanks for all the help. I finally got it to sync, but there is a new problem. Some apps did not show after sync. I noticed that some were not checked off on iTunes even though I had selected the option to automatically sync new apps.

I generally add new apps directly from the iPad, not purchasing through iTunes and then syncing. I went back, checked apps and synced again.

Now, when I go to the iPad, it shows a number of the apps need updating, even though I had previously updated them on the iPad.

Did I miss a step? Are apps still not quite in sync?

I think that if you update the apps in iTunes and synch again you should be okay.

Originally Posted by The Alternative

Originally Posted by singlestick

Thanks for all the help. I finally got it to sync, but there is a new problem. Some apps did not show after sync. I noticed that some were not checked off on iTunes even though I had selected the option to automatically sync new apps.

I generally add new apps directly from the iPad, not purchasing through iTunes and then syncing. I went back, checked apps and synced again.

Now, when I go to the iPad, it shows a number of the apps need updating, even though I had previously updated them on the iPad.

Did I miss a step? Are apps still not quite in sync?

I think that if you update the apps in iTunes and synch again you should be okay.

I think that this might have been the answer. I don't have an iPhone, so maybe there is a similar step for that device that everybody knows about.

When I deleted and tried to reinstall a free app, I got the message, "You have already purchased this app. Check for available downloads" in iTunes. I think this is a pointlessly cryptic message.

I normally purchase apps directly through the app store app on the iPad. I thought that selecting the option to transfer purchases to iTunes would take care of things when I connected to my PC.

But I noticed an option in iTunes for apps, Check for updates." I selected this option, and let iTunes update before syncing again.

This appears to have worked, although I am still showing a couple of apps that still show as requiring an update.

This may help another user in the future. Note that I don't think that doing a reset accomplishes anything unless you have tried to update apps.