"Backup" as opposed to "Sync"

I have probably been using my Apple TV in the "wrong" fashion for the last two years. I've purchased 99% of my content on the Apple TV rather than on my iTunes platform on my PC, and I now want to backup selected TV Shows to my pc. The only way I've found to do this is through sync. But I have a few questions:
[a] I have no idea exactly what SYNC'ing does. Is there a detailed explanation anywhere?
Does syncing make the selected ITunes content of both machines identical?
[c] Does my PC or my Apple TV have primacy in terms of SYNC to the other - or does it depend which TV Shows/Films were purchased on which machine?
[d] Why when I ask iTunes on my PC to stop sync'ing does it say that all TV Shows on my Apple TV will be deleted - which for the way I'm set up is crazy!
[e] I would much prefer to copy selected TV Shows from the Apple TV to iTunes on my PC - is that possible?
Sorry - this has probably been dealt with elsewhere - but I couldn't find anything.
Thanks
D

Syncing essentially means mirroring the content of one device on another device. When you sync your ATV to your iTunes library, files that you have set for syncing will copy to the ATV hard drive. If you delete synced files from the library, they will also be deleted from the ATV drive.
If you buy directly on the ATV, purchased content should sync to your iTunes library the next time it is connected. If you want to backup that content, you will have to do it from iTunes or from the library folder, as there is currently no method for backing up content directly from an ATV.
I use Toast and data DVDs to back up the files in my iTunes library, then delete them after I watch them. If I want to watch them again at a later date, I import them back into my iTunes library from the DVD using the "Add to Library" option in the iTunes File menu.

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My iPad Air gets a error when I try to backup. It does sync properly. My iPhone backs up and syncs without isssue. I am running latest itunes and iOS 8 versions. Thank you.

My iPad Air gets an unknown error when I try to backup. It does sync properly. My iPhone backs up and syncs without isssue. I am running latest itunes and iOS 8 versions. Thank you.

Try rebooting your computer and reset the iPad. Press and hold both the Home button and the Sleep/Wake button continuously until the Apple logo appears. Then release the button and let the device restart. You will not lose data doing this. It's like a computer reboot.

Have never been able to backup iTouch in iTunes sync. Error message says that a session cannot be started. Have tried manual backup - same message. Thanks for any advice!

Have never been able to backup iTouch in iTunes sync. Error message says that a session cannot be started. Have tried manual backup - same message. Thanks for any advice!

Error 1 or -1
This may indicate a hardware issue with your device. Follow Troubleshooting security software issues, and restore your device on a different known-good computer. If the errors persist on another computer, the device may need service.
The" may need service' meand there is a hardware problem. In that case make an appointment at the Genius Bar of an Apple store.
Apple Retail Store - Genius Bar

Why does iTunes forget my automatic backup and Wi-Fi Sync settings?

Every single time I hook up my iPad, the settings for Automaticlly Back Up and Sync with this device over Wi-Fi are unchecked.
I switch from "This Computer" to iCloud and turn Wi-Fi Sync back on and hit the SYNC button on the bottom right to apply the settings.
When I disconnect and reconnect the iPad, the settings are back how there were before; backup to This Computer and Wi-Fi Sync turned off.
I'm going to ignore everyone that suggests to Restore the device. That is unacceptable. There seems to be an issue in either the iPad or iTunes' files on the local computer.
Thank you for everyone's help.

Hey alextiming
I will not tell you to restore your iPad, but if Wi-Fi Syncing is not working for you, check out the following article to help troubleshoot and resolve that issue.
iTunes 10.5 and later: Troubleshooting iTunes Wi-Fi Syncing
http://support.apple.com/kb/ts4062
Thanks for using Apple Support Communities.
Regards,
-Norm G.

Restoring new iPhone 4S from iCloud backup has created a sync nightmare with iTunes

I've restored my new iPhone 4S from iCloud and plugged it into my computer to sync over the apps so they wouldnt have to redownload via iCloud. Hit the initial ok dialogue button, which had an auto-sync apps option checkmarked under it (this was the only dialogue option and only checkmark). Now iTunes wants to reload all apps and erase app data.
The phone is peforming as expected, download the apps one-by-one from iCloud, however, I won't be able to sync the phone, as leaving apps sync checked will rewrite all apps (and add apps I don't want on my phone), and unchecking apps sync will delete all apps from the phone. I've tried removing the ~/Library/iTunes/ folder, hoping it would force iTunes to re-initialize the sync config. This didn't help at all.
Any suggestions? I really don't want to re-restore from iCloud, but thinking I'm gonna have to and hope that not checking the auto-sync apps when the phone is plugged in for the first time will fix the issue. It's rather mindnumbing that there doesn't appear to be any less painful options to setup a new device from an iCloud backup of an old device. Thanks in advance and I apologize if this is hard to follow.
Larry
Edit: Going to repost this in iPhone discussion. You may discard this posting here. I unfortunately couldn't delete the post.

Ok, so this is pretty infuriating. I've gone ahead and restored from iCloud again. This time when I plugged my phone into iTunes for the first time, I unchecked the option to automatically sync apps. As expected, the Apps are not set to sync now, however, the computer does not display the apps loading on the phone, so if I did go ahead and turn on App sync, I would end up losing all app data. It appears that I will have to let all apps redownload from iCloud before I can do anything regarding syncing with iTunes. I can't believe this is the only option. I suppose I could turn off iCloud backup on my iPhone 4, allow it to create a local backup, then local restore onto iPhone 4S, then turn on iCloud backup. That seems a little too band-aidish to me, though.
Larry
Edit: Yes, I have 10.7.2 and all available system updates as of today (10/14/11).

Restoring calendar backup block iCal from sync

So, the issues with iCloud calendar never ends. After the beautiful discovery i did in my other post, now i'm trying to recover my calendar backup. When i restore my .icbu file, iCal restore all then it get stuck while trying to sync with iCloud. So now, it's my Mac that can't sync with the other devices.
I try recovering the entire directory in the library with time machine, but nothing. Deleting the .plist file and nothing again. It doesn't talk with iCloud anymore, if anybody have some idea, would be glad.

Ok, seems i've found a way to solve the problem. For what i know the problem is with iCal of Mavericks 10.9 that's the system i'm running now.
Issue: you were previously syncing you calendar with your iCloud ID (with mac/me/icloud domain) and for some reason now, you need to log in with another apple domain and you can't sync your calendar or restore your calendar backup done with your previous login.
- go to iCloud panel in the preferences and disable the syncronization with iCal. It will delete all your calendar from your pc.
- go to ~Library/Calendar and delete all the directory inside it. To be able to empty the trash you need to restart the computer.
- after the restart open iCal again, you will start working locally. Create as many calendar you had in the past because you are going to move manually your old events over them.
- now, go in the directory where you saved your iCal backup and right click on the file, and select "show content" of the package, or use timemachine to recover your old calendar directory always under ~library.
- you will find a lot of directory name with letters and numers. Enter in the one that ends with ".caldav".
- now: every other directory you find inside contains the events of each single old calendar you had before. To see what calendar are you looking at, open one directory and open the info.plist you find inside it.
- on the bottom of the file you should be able to recognize the name of your calendar, so all your past events are in the directory "events" of the same directory.
- select all the events and move them over the calendar you've created locally on iCal.
- do this for each other calendar, you can forget all the others directory.
- when you are finish, go back on the icloud panel and activate the iCal sync with iCloud and let the two calendar merge. It will take a lot of time, more than you expect. Just be patient, because for a few events on two calendar, mine took several minutes.
- you are done, you should be able to sync everything again!
Remember that to be able to receive events and badge on the calendar of your iDevice, you need to use the original iCloud email you used at the moment you opened your account! No alias will work and even if you are like me an old mac.com members, neither me.com or icloud.com used in combination with your original username will work! They are like alias, with the difference that you can use them to log in your account!

IPhone 5 Restore from Backup apps won't sync

I had to reinstall IOS 8 and then restore from backup. The restore works fine. When the phone is syncing, at step 5 it says "Syncing apps". It gets stuck at number 2. No errors, just sits there. I have let it sit for 10 hours. This happens if I restore from a local backup or from iCloud. My phone is working now, but has no apps, no content, etc.

I had this exact problem when setting up my new iPhone 6. My solution wasn't pretty as I went through and clicked off install for all the apps, got a successful sync without apps then clicked them all back to install and synced again. I got all my apps installed, but lost all my folders and had to redo organizing over 350 apps into folders.

Backup Problems When Automatically Sync Is NOT Selected

Because I have a huge iTunes library of over 150GB, I always Manually Sync my iPod's and iPhone 3G.
Now with regard to my iPhone 3G, I have noticed that recently when I have downloaded some Applications from the Apps Store via Wi-Fi on my iPhone 3G, after my last Sync with iTunes, when I connect my iPhone 3G to iTunes again, iTunes says it is performing ‘a backup'.
But instead of transferring these new Apps/files over to iTunes it fails to copy them over. ~ Until I updated my iPhone 3G’s software from v 2.0, to 2.0.1, iTunes would always ask me if I wished to transfer purchases from my iPhone 3G to my iTunes account.
Anyhow, I decided to try the +"File|Transfer Purchases From XXXXX iPhone"+ Menu command, but this does not work. Instead, iTunes states in its top window that it is transferring the Applications that have been installed via Wi-Fi.
But that takes about three seconds, and nothing is in fact transferred. I have checked in both places where they should be if successfully transferred over, and that is the Applications window in iTunes or in the folder +"Mobile Applications"+ within the iTunes folder itself.
Both are missing the files that are supposed to have been transferred.
I have read somewhere that if you do not use Automatic Sync with your iPhone 3G, then backups are not always carried out correctly.
Can anyone advise me on this as well as my above problem?
II did find one reference in Apples online support called: "iPhone and iPod touch: About backups" [You can find this at the following Link:] http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1766
Unfortunately, this only covers the process of backups if you synchronise automatically.
So, has anyone and ideas or suggestions pleas?
All advice gratefully received.

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Old PC not available, no backup. How to sync an iPhone 3GS to new PC

The PC that our son originally sync'ed the iPhone 3GS to has been destroyed. No backups are available - the same incident that took out the PC also took out the backup device.
How do we sync the iPhne 3GS with the new PC without losing anything? Preferably also with recovering and backing up apps, photos, and other content on the iPhone (Kindle books, etc.)
I have not exhausted the search possibilities, but I'm not seeing any third-party programs that can resonstruct all of these items in the iTunes account on the new PC.
Help, please?
Thanks,
David

Make sure your new computer is authorized in iTunes. Disable autosync in itunes, connect your iphone, right click on it in the device list and choose backup.
This will save data, pictures and settings to itunes. See what's included in this backup here: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1766
Transfer your purchases the same way to copy all apps and bought media from the Store to your computer.
Set up at least one contact and event on your computer to be able the merge your calendars and contacts after your iphone got wiped during the first sync.
The rest of the data can be restored from the backup you made.
Restoring: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1414
Music is one way only, from the computer to your device, unless you bought the songs in itunes and transferred your purchases.
There is 3rd party software out there, but not supported by Apple, see this thread: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2013615&tstart=0
Saving data is also explained here: How to back up your data and set up as a new device

Why does SYNC take so long now? And why does it BACKUP every time i sync?

Sync takes SO darn long now and when I sync, it does a BACKUP that is causing the sync process to take SO SO SO LONG!
Whats the deal? anyway to turn OFF the BACKUP option?

I have half a dozen screens full of apps - some of which will definitely have to go as some sync operations - especially if there are apps being updated for me takes hours. Yesterday it got stuck during an app update over the wifi - and I had to do a restore - the restore took some time - which included restore from a backup from only a few days ago - the following sync has been running for a couple hours now and appears to be only 75% or so complete. rather annoying.

Disable iDevice backup when using WLAN sync

Hi everyone,
when syncing an iPhone/iPad/iPod iTunes will automatically create a backup of the device which is nice. I usually sync via USB which is reasonably fast. But sometimes I use the option to sync wirelessly which is fast enough only if you skip the backup. I know that you could disable device backups using
defaults write com.apple.iTunes DeviceBackupsDisabled -bool true
but I would love to have the option to only disable backups while syncing via WLAN. Is there a way to do that?

I completely agree with you. The auto-backup is a horrible waste of time. I can understand doing it once a month, or maybe even once a week, but given the fact that EVERYTHING in iTunes is backed up in at least two ways without any user input (hard drive & iTunes purchasing record) this long and obnoxious step is several degrees past overkill.
I read the entire manual for the iPod Touch and all I found out was how to delete the backup. For some reason, there is no to turn off the auto-backup mentioned.
Are the iPod Touches really that unstable?

HT1766 I have an old backup an want to sync my phone. Will the contacts on my computer overwrite he contacts on my iphone?

I have an old backup with a list of contacts on Outlook, however want to update it with my latest list. If I select contacts on sync will it overwrite the list on my phone with the old list from my pc?

you dont. its all or nothing

Backup Assistant unable to sync - resolved

I recently got a new phone and was unable to get backup assistant to work properly. I ran it on my old phone first and verified that my contacts had all been uploaded. I activated the new phone and installed backup assistant. I attempted a sync and although it appeared to be successful, no contacts were downloaded to my new phone. Repeated attempts garnered the same result. I resolved the issue by editing my contact list online simply by adding a contact. I then performed a sync and all of my contacts were then downloaded to my new phone successfully.
Searching and digging through all the posts I was unable to find this simple solution so I thought I would post it myself.

Thanks for sharing your solution!

Backup Assistant Service Failed - Sync state not supported by this operation

I have a Samsung Stratosphere running Gingerbread 2.3.5. Recently I tried to use the Backup Assistant app and it gave me the error message:
Service Failed
Sync state not supported by this operation
How do I get it to work again? I can't think of anything that could have caused this. It worked when I first got the phone.

I clicked on "backup my contacts" and they backed up--I see them. Here is
the strange thing: the first person to get back to me told me to disable
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later, it started to back up. Huh????? Seems like it is inconsistent.
So, do I just wait until it doesn't work again (dumb question--what else
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Thanks so much. I am new to Verizon and so far I am pleased and really
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On Wed, Nov 21, 2012 at 6:10 PM, Frances Purcell-Abbott <

Loading from Backup Disks--Unauthorized to sync music

I recently had to reformat my computer after a virus problem. I was able to backup my entire library and I can listen to everything just fine on the computer. When I tried to sync it to my library, I get the error message that it could not sync because I am not authorized to play them on this computer.
Please help!

I'm about to do the same thing - had a virus and had to reformat. BAcked up to an external hard drive and now the hard drive is not being recognized by the computer. Assuming the tech gets it working, any tips for transferring the music back to the reformatted computer? I downloaded the latest itunes and synched with my account already. But let me know if there is a trick to getting it to synch. thanks!!
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"Backup" as opposed to "Sync"

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