App updates aren't coordinating between iTunes and iPhone 'updater'

[Mindflux]

This morning iTunes said I had like 8 updates, so I updated and re-synced the phone. Then just a few moments ago I checked updates on the phone and it shows other apps that require updating.

Like Pandora Radio is 1.0.1, but iTunes says I have 1.0.0 (cmd-I). If I click check for updates it says I'm up to date. If I check on my iPhone it says Pandora Radio has an update available.

What's going on here?

Even "Transfer Purchases" doesn't help.

Also, I just right clicked an app in iTunes and said "Show in Finder".. I have Aurora Feint.ipa, Aurora Feint 1.ipa, Aurora Feint 2.ipa and so on. It seems each time you update a version it tacks on a new file to your directory (leaving the old files behind, which can be large)..

So I wiped out my Mobile Applications folder and am now transfering them all from my iPhone, yet stuff that I JUST updated to 1.0.1 on my iPhone shows up as version 1.0.0 on iTunes.

 

[GreenLightJerky]

I had the same thing happen.
Maybe it has to do with how you downloaded the programs to begin with?
I cant remember which apps I downloaded from the phone and which from iTunes.

 

[UltimateSyn]

Diddo.
PhoneSaber told me I had an update on the iPhone, but not updates were to be found in iTunes, and I did not have the current version. I had to update OTA, which for some reason I'm wicked OCD about.

 

[bacaramac]

I am having huge issues with keeping apps in sync. I think the whole "It Just Works" theme needs to be revisted for the Apps.

Things that need fixed with either iTunes update or firmware update:

1. Apps purchased on iPhone should automatically sync back to iTunes (like music does)

2. When I update Apps on iPhone they should automatically update iTunes that is was updated.

3. When apps are updated, Apple should leave app in the same location on iPhone vs. putting updated app in the first open screen position. This is annoying if they update apps like today (8 app updates). I had to move them all back to the right location after downloading in iTunes and re-syncing iPhone (the updates were transferred).

 

[Mindflux]

Ok now it's a new day and iTunes thinks I have 14 apps to update. It says Morocco needs an update to 1.0.1, yet that's the version I have.

 

[philgilder]

1. Apps purchased on iPhone should automatically sync back to iTunes (like music does)

they do...
itunes should ask you if you want to transfer purchases, and then just check the box and it will do it automatically from then on

 

[Mindflux]

they do...
itunes should ask you if you want to transfer purchases, and then just check the box and it will do it automatically from then on

Yet it doesn't half the time. I just updated the AIM app from iTunes and told iTunes to sync but it's done nothing to move the AIM update over. I go to the updater on the iPhone and it says there's an AIM update.

 

[osirisX]

How the iPhone handles updates:
- Version 1 of app is installed.
- App Store notifies you version 1.1 of said app is available.
- App Store downloads update, deletes the old version and then installs the new one.

How iTunes handles updates:
- Version 1 of app is installed.
- iTunes notifies you version 1.1 of said app is available.
- iTunes downloads update, keeps version 1 of the IPA, version 1.1 is then stored as IPA 1 (future updates are then stored as IPA 2, IPA 3, IPA 4, etc).

The problem is iTunes gets confused with which IPA it should use.

 

[Mindflux]

How the iPhone handles updates:
- Version 1 of app is installed.
- App Store notifies you version 1.1 of said app is available.
- App Store downloads update, deletes the old version and then installs the new one.

How iTunes handles updates:
- Version 1 of app is installed.
- iTunes notifies you version 1.1 of said app is available.
- iTunes downloads update, keeps version 1 of the IPA, version 1.1 is then stored as IPA 1 (future updates are then stored as IPA 2, IPA 3, IPA 4, etc).

The problem is iTunes gets confused with which IPA it should use.

This sounds about right. Thought I can clearly see that the IPA file iTunes is referencing is either "IPA 1" or later. The version number still shows 1.0.0, while the file info for that same program says it's FOO 1.ipa.

I dont see any reason for iTunes to keep around previous versions of the applications. All this does is create clutter. Just 4 updates to Aurora Feint yields approximately 100MB of space. While that's small in relation to hard drives these days that's still space used that does not need to be.

 

[osirisX]

The Get Info window may say it's referencing the most current IPA, but it's really referencing the first one. Also, iTunes sometimes fails to move IPAs to the Trash when you tell it to.

The only real way to keep things updated is through the App Store on the iPhone.

 

[Mindflux]

The Get Info window may say it's referencing the most current IPA, but it's really referencing the first one. iTunes sometimes fails to move IPAs to the Trash when you tell it to.

The only real way to keep things updated is through the App Store on the iPhone.

But when updating an app through iTunes I dont get a prompt to trash the old version. It just sits there, stored.

I hope they fix this in 7.8.

 

[DroppedCalls]

I've been having the same issues with a few of my apps..
i will download the latest app(b/c sometimes checking updates doesn't reveal any updates), then view properties of my newly updated app and the old version no. remains the same!..

also the inconsistency of the app store on the iphone and itunes...

I get the latest update notifications on my iphone..but not in my itunes..

this leaves me with this NEW issue....
if I download the latest apps using my iphone app store, when I go to resync, FOR SOME REASON, even if it says that i am transferring new updates to my itunes, when I go check the version numbers in my applications folder, it reveals the OLD versions again!... therefore, when I resync, the old versions get installed onto my iphone!!!

it has come to my conclusion that if I want the latest and greatest update for any apps, I should do it thru itunes....but do not download the updates directly from the app store, instead, wait until they show up in the "check application updates" dialog of the application section of itunes...but then you suffer the "no updates available" BS, when you know there is an update!!!!

to me this is total crap!!...

 

[Mindflux]

it has come to my conclusion that if I want the latest and greatest update for any apps, I should do it thru itunes....but do not download the updates directly from the app store, instead, wait until they show up in the "check application updates" dialog of the application section of itunes...but then you suffer the "no updates available" BS, when you know there is an update!!!!

to me this is total crap!!...

Nope. I think the opposite is correct. Update via the App Store on the phone. If you do it through iTunes the file downloads, but iTunes still has the 'old' file in the database. So even though iTunes shows you are up to date you can sync and check the app store updater on the phone and shows those very same updates you supposedly got via iTunes on your PC/Mac.

 

[miniyou64]

This is a major problem. I've done all my updates direct to my phone and now iTunes says I have 28 updates available and now wants to reinstall old versions on every sync!

 

[n8236]

Ya, those update syncs really suck. I have the same problem.

 

[jdiehl99]

3. When apps are updated, Apple should leave app in the same location on iPhone vs. putting updated app in the first open screen position. This is annoying if they update apps like today (8 app updates). I had to move them all back to the right location after downloading in iTunes and re-syncing iPhone (the updates were transferred).

I totally agree! Nothing worse than having to move apps to page 4 from page 1 because of an update.

I've had the same issue with iTunes showing updates... anytime I downloaded an update through iTunes, I would still see (1) next to "applications" in the iTunes window. But, if downloaded the update through the iPhone, I didn't have that problem.

I finally just deleted all of the apps from iTunes and then transferred them over from the iPhone. When an update comes out, I am only downloading it through the iPhone. That seems to be working (at least for now).

This is definitely something Apple needs to work out.

Jodi

 

[n8236]

This is utter bs. I can't get this to work at all. I removed the apps from the iPhone, dl'ed the updates via iTunes, sync'ed with all the tricks I know and it's still spitting out errors that I can't download the apps. sigh.

 

[TimothyB]

I just had to recover my iPhone, then corrupt backup, so it's got a fresh start where all apps were installed by iTunes.

I also want to only update apps through iTunes now, as some have said it's a little more reliable for the iPhone in the long run. And especially now that there's no update on the iPhone now.

But for some reason iTunes says my Apps are all up to date, even after I sync it, yet the iPhone reports 4 apps need updating.

Oddly the iTunes bar on the left shows a 4 next to applications, so I go in there, it says 4 updates are available like the iphone does, but you click on that and it says none are available, days later.

These apps in question were installed from iTunes, so it should know. But now it's forcing me to update them only through the phone, which I don't want to do, anything to avoid long backups. I'm not always on Wifi, and having to do one at a time means just updating 1 then remembering to do the next later.

So in iTunes, an app I have is 1.2 Ambiance, yet it's 1.3 in the store, how do I get iTunes to update it? If i try to redownload it from itunes, it says it's going to charge my credit card.

 

[beate]

How the iPhone handles updates:
- Version 1 of app is installed.
- App Store notifies you version 1.1 of said app is available.
- App Store downloads update, deletes the old version and then installs the new one.

How iTunes handles updates:
- Version 1 of app is installed.
- iTunes notifies you version 1.1 of said app is available.
- iTunes downloads update, keeps version 1 of the IPA, version 1.1 is then stored as IPA 1 (future updates are then stored as IPA 2, IPA 3, IPA 4, etc).

The problem is iTunes gets confused with which IPA it should use.

I was having a horrible time with the updates. iTunes said I had them but then none there to download. Same with the phone.

I finally realized what might be causing the problem.

Being annoyed with all the versions on my HD, I had deleted all the extras and had renamed the last version to just the App name (no 1, 2, 3, etc.). Luckily I had a BU and was able to reconstruct. Not a fun task as some had been updated since BU and so I had to change the numbers of what I currently had on the HD also.
Oh yeah, I had about 60 Apps at the time - real fun.

After a bit of "surgery", my update notifications were in sync and I haven't had an issue since. This was a couple of weeks ago.

I bow to the authority of the computer!!!