Related
This discussion has been locked.
You can no longer post new replies to this discussion. If you have a question you can start a new discussion

Garmin Express wont recognise Itunes

Graysa23
over 5 years ago
I am trying to use garmin express with my Fenix 5 Plus and iTunes to transfer music to my watch. I have been through the instruction in express to allow the iTunes xml file to have access to other applications etc and then when I hit next it just keeps saying redo the instructions again.

Getting very frustrating.

Any help please ?

Cheers
  • 0 over 5 years ago
    Is there any point is posting on here, do Garmin ever answer?
  • 0 over 5 years ago
    This forum is mainly for user to user help, though Garmin staff are active in some. Here they pop in occasionally.
  • 0 over 5 years ago

    This is my second attempt at posting this. The first post disappeared into the Garmin ether, so good luck to this one!

    (It didn't, it was awaiting moderation but I've now deleted it as you posted again ... SUSSAMB )


    I encountered this problem as well. I have a specific (but probably not uncommon) setup, so I’ll post the details in case this is applicable to you.

    Windows 10 Home, Feature Update 1809
    iTunes 12.9.3.3
    Windows installed on C:
    iTunes installed on C:
    iTunes media files on D:

    I worked with both Gamin and Apple on this issue. I got this key detail from Garmin:

    Garmin Express is looking for 'iTunes Music Library.xml' in 'C:\Users\username\Music\iTunes'.

    For me there were two problems:
    1) Since my media files are on D:, the *.xml file was on D: as well.
    2) For some reason, on my computer the file was named ‘iTunes Library.xml’ – not ‘iTunes Music Library.xml’.

    This was my solution:
    1) Copy my ‘iTunes Library.xml’ file to another location
    2) Rename this copied file to ‘iTunes Music Library.xml’ (you won’t need this step if your file already has the correct name)
    3) Move the renamed, copied file to C:\Users\username\Music\iTunes’.

    This works, but it’s less than ideal, because this is not a one-time solution. Every time I add podcasts, create a new playlist, or buy a new song, iTunes updates the *.xml file located on D:. That means that for Garmin Express to see new information, I must run through this copy-rename-move job every time I make changes in my iTunes Library.

    According to Apple support, the XML file is deprecated in favor of an ITL file. The Apple rep referred me to this document: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201610. The link points to Mac-related information from November 2018, but the rep said that this applies to Windows as well). The rep noted that most modern applications should be calling the itl file rather than the XML file.

    There is another problem as well. Garmin Express apparently makes no allowance for users who store their iTunes media files on a drive other than C:. Garmin Express has no way to browse the computer to locate the correct file. I reported these details to Garmin support, so hopefully this will be addressed in a future software update.

    Again, this was specific to my setup, so your mileage may vary.

    Good luck, and I hope this helps!

  • 0 over 5 years ago
    The above is an example of a very good investigative post, with excellent information.

    These two snippets however:

    Garmin Express is looking for 'iTunes Music Library.xml' in 'C:\Users\username\Music\iTunes'.
    (...)
    Garmin Express apparently makes no allowance for users who store their iTunes media files on a drive other than C:. Garmin Express has no way to browse the computer to locate the correct file.

    seem indicating - and proving - that most problems flagged by users here on these forums are the result of rather naive and inflexible Garmin's attitude to both development and testing not replicating realistic scenarios & use cases.
  • 0 over 5 years ago
    For me there were two problems:
    1) Since my media files are on D:, the *.xml file was on D: as well.
    2) For some reason, on my computer the file was named ‘iTunes Library.xml’ – not ‘iTunes Media Library.xml’.

    This was my solution:
    1) Copy my ‘iTunes Library.xml’ file to another location
    2) Rename this copied file to ‘iTunes Media Library.xml’ (you won’t need this step if your file already has the correct name)
    3) Move the renamed, copied file to C:\Users\username\Music\iTunes’.



    Hi!

    Thanks for the tip. I took it a step further and set it up as a scheduled task to daily copy the 'iTunes Library.xml` from my custom directory to the place and file name expected. I did this by creating a 'itunes_garmin_library_sync.ps1' with the following single line in it. Save it somewhere on your computer

    Copy-Item -Path '<PATH_TO_CUSTOM_LOCATION_OF_XML>' -Destination 'C:\users\purch\Music\iTunes\iTunes Music Library.xml'

    In the Task Scheduler (search for 'schedule' in start menu) set up how/when you want to trigger the script. Then in the 'Actions' tab, click the 'New..." button. For the 'program/script' enter:

    C:\Windows\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe

    For the 'Add Arguments' box, you need to add:

    -ExecutionPolicy ByPass -File "<PATH_TO_PS1_FILE>\itunes_garmin_library_sync.ps1"

    If you don't include the execution policy setting, you will not e able to copy the file.

    Hit ok/save, and you are good to go. From the Task Scheduler program you'll be able to run it manually.
  • 0 over 5 years ago
    I have tried the changing of the iTunes library media file location and still doesn't work. I am the same as I have my media files on different hard drive.

    This is so frustrating.

    The main reason we got the plus watch to put music on it and sure enough, its a major pain in the ass and doesn't work as it should.

    Really poor by garmin.

    Any updates imminent to rectify this ??
  • 0 over 5 years ago
    I don't know if I'll be able to provide any helpful answers, but can you post the following?

    The full path to your real iTunes XML file including the filename
    The full path to the place where you've copied the file including the filename

    You've probably already done this next step, but in Garmin Express, go to Settings > Music and make sure that iTunes is still selected. With all of my troubleshooting and testing, my own setting was changed from iTunes back to Manual a couple of times.
  • 0 over 5 years ago
    F:\iTunes and is called iTunes Library.itl There is an .xml file same name but it doesn't have an icon so assuming iTunes doesn't use it anymore as was said somewhere above.

    C:\Users\chris\Music\iTunes
  • 0 over 5 years ago
    F:\iTunes and is called iTunes Library.itl There is an .xml file same name but it doesn't have an icon so assuming iTunes doesn't use it anymore as was said somewhere above.

    C:\Users\chris\Music\iTunes



    Just to clarify, based on my conversations with Apple and Garmin, Apple has deprecated the .xml file in favor of the .itl file. However, Garmin Express still uses the .xml, so that's the one you need to use. Based on the path you posted, I think you need to eventually wind up with this:

    C:\Users\chris\Music\iTunes\iTunes Music Library.xml

    You said that your .xml file has the same name as the .itl file, so that means that you should have a file called iTunes Library.xml. That's interesting, because my .xml file had the same name. But Garmin Express is looking for a file name iTunes Music Library.xml, so you'll need to copy the file to

    C:\Users\chris\Music\iTunes\

    and then rename the file to iTunes Music Library.xml.

    One more not based on what I did - I did not move the original .xml file. I left the original on my D: drive in case some other application needs to call it. I copied the .xml file and renamed the copied file.

    I hope this helps!