How to: Force-sync a first generation Apple TV with iTunes 12

For anyone else out there who's still using a first generation Apple TV and iTunes 12 and realized there's no longer an option to "force" the device to sync, I have a work around.
Background
With my first generation Apple TV, I "manually" manage the content stored on the device. As well, I don't add content movie-by-movie (song-by-song, etc.). Instead, I have three playlists (Movies, TV Shows, and Music) that I then sync to the Apple TV. The problem is, even pre-iTunes 12, modifying the content of a playlist didn't trigger iTunes to offer to "sync" the device (I don't think it was smart enough to deal with the EOL first generation Apple TV in terms of playlist content changes). But, at least with pre-iTunes 12, you were able to right-click on the device in the sidebar and this would bring up a contextual message with "Sync" as one of the options. So, even though the "Sync" option was greyed-out in the main iTunes window, you could still initiate the sync via the contextual menu (thus "force syncing" the device with iTunes). But, with iTunes 12, this contextual menu has been removed (right clicking does nothing) and thus the ability to "force sync" is gone.
Solution
After trying many different options to get the first generation Apple TV to sync with iTunes (after updating the content of a synced playlist), this is the only solution I've come up with that works:
1. Create a playlist called "ATV Force Sync".
2. Put a single movie in the playlist (I used a short, 10 second video, but I'm sure you could also use a song or any other media—just use something that is short and you don't care if it's on or off the device).
3. To "force sync" the Apple TV, iTunes > Apple TV > Settings > Movies > Sync Playlist, check the checkbox beside the "ATV Force Sync" playlist. This will then enable the Sync"button and you can now force the Apple TV to sync with iTunes (it'll sync the "ATV Force Sync" playlist, but also sync any changes to any other playlist the Apple TV is set to sync with). Then, the next time you want to force sync (i.e., if you've updated the content in a playlist you want to sync), just uncheck the checkbox beside the "ATV Force Sync" playlist, and the Sync button will be enabled again (and so on, enabling/disabling the "ATV Force Sync" every time you want to force-sync the device).
Anyway, it's not an ideal solution, but at least it works. I've filed a bug report with Apple, but let's be honest, I don't think supporting the first generation Apple TV is on their "to do" list anymore. <G>
Hope this helps someone else out there!
Kristin.

Hi minjak—I'll see if I can help?
Has the Apple TV ever been connected to iTunes at all (on that, or another computer)? From the sounds of it, the ATV has already been "paired" with an iTunes library, thus it's not (and won't) show up in your current version of iTunes.
So, here's what I'd suggest. On your Apple TV, do the following…
Go to Settings > Computers > Select iTunes Library (or something like that—I don't remember 100% what the option is called as I don't have the screen in front of me right now) and select "Disconnect".
This should remove and "synced" or "paired" computer (iTunes) from your ATV.
Then, re-sync it back up to your version of iTunes. You have to do something like this…
On your ATV, go to Settings > Computers > Connect to iTunes and a passcode should display on your screen. Then, go to iTunes, and the ATV should appear (give it about 15-20 seconds). If it does, select it and enter the passcode showing on the ATV. This should re-sync the ATV to your copy of iTunes.
Make sure both the computer and Apple TV are on the same internal network. And if possible, connect the Apple TV to the network via ethernet (rather than WiFi). Again, make sure the Apple TV is "online" and connected to the same network at the computer running iTunes.
If all works, you should see the Apple TV appear in iTunes, something like this (i.e., there's now a small Apple TV icon at the right end of the row of icons along the top)…
Anyway, have a go at the instructions above and let me know what happens, and we can go from there!
Thanks,
Kristin.

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