ActiveSync 4.5 Ate my Device Partnerships!

Although I have a PC setup running Windows Vista Ultimate Edition and the new Windows Mobile Device Center (ActiveSync replacement), my main PC that syncs with most of my Windows Mobile devices runs Windows XP Media Center. Since…

Microsoft ActiveSync 4.5

…was released for those of us still syncing Pocket PCs and Smartphones with XP, I decided to upgrade from 4.2 to 4.5 today. No problem right? Simple upgrade, right? Wrong…

The upgrade process itself went smoothly. However, when I brought up ActiveSync 4.5 (without any WM device attached to the PC), I noticed it had lost all of its device partnerships! This meant that I had to re-partner every device. The pre-Windows Mobile 5 devices partnered quickly as usual. However, because Windows Mobile 5 devices keep their PIM data in slow non-volatile RAM, the partnership for WM5 boxes took forever. I’m talking what seemed like 5 to 10 minutes per device.

The Windows Mobile platform is over 10 years old now. This sort of problem should have stopped happening during the last century. ActiveSync continues to be a user-hostile application and continues to earn its nickname of ActiveStink. Let’s hope its successor, WMDC, doesn’t earn its own pejorative nickname.

14 thoughts on “ActiveSync 4.5 Ate my Device Partnerships!

  1. D Grace

    New HTC Touch. Works great but can’t sync with windows XP. At the very end of the install process the entire computer crashes. Using Palm for many years now without trouble. Looks like I’ll throw this HTC stuff away and go back to Palm.

  2. Martin Saly

    The same problem: XDA Orbit + WM6 + ActiveSync 4.5 + WM2000 at work + XP at home = “Set up a sync partnership” again and again.
    Maybe I am naive but how can be Microsoft accessed to ask for support?

  3. Gerhard S

    I have the same problem with ActiveSync 4.5 and HTC Advantage X7500 WM6. Microsoft really sucks, I see this problem is since February 2007 and still yet to be resolved. It’s really a shame.
    I’m tired of doing everytime new partnership to connect my pocket pc to my home desktop and to my office laptop.

  4. Jennine D

    Activesync 4.5 or any other number is definately activestink. I have had non-stop problems with sync pairing of iPAQ. Total waste of time. Relationships keep dropping out. upgraded and absolutely useless too.

  5. Dieter Preiser

    Does anyone have a fix to this problem. It is driving me crazy. I need to be able to sych wiht my office PC as well as my home PC. I’ve tried Activesync 4.1 and 4.5 with identical results.

  6. Keith Wilson

    I seem to have the same problem. Continually starting over with a new partnership windows mobile 6 any ideas on fixes?

  7. Heath Springer

    I have the same issue , every time I sync with work Pc after syncing at home I have to delete the prior partnership and start over. Vice versa on syncing at hone after syncing at work.
    I have always found microsoft pocket pcs a pain but have to use pocket pc for work. I use palm for home stuff because it simply works.

  8. Pingback: Andy Cunningham » ActiveSync 4.5 Ate my Device Partnerships!

  9. Robert

    I had the same issue.

    I disconnected my device a couple times and reconnected it. After the 3rd try it finally recognized my old partnership. I also did a soft reset. Weird…

  10. Mike Burlison

    I have same problem as Barry, ever since I installed 4.5, whenever I go from one machine to the other, it acts as though it’s a “new” machine and will not proceed until I delete the pre-existing relationship set-up from the time before. Drag for sure.

  11. Barry Seymour

    I have to agree. I have an AudioVox SMT5600 with Windows Mobile 2003. I updated ActiveSync to ensure I stayed in sync (sorry) with the changes to Daylight Savings Time.

    I connect to two PCs, home and work. Now every time I connect to a PC it thinks this is a new partnership, which I have to redefine. When I start to sync it says something to the effect of ‘there are two different data sets. Do you want to overwrite the phone with the stuff on your PC or merge the two sets of data?’ The damn stupid thing keeps ASKING me this every time I go from one computer to the other.

    I did the same thing with my old Palm PDAs and NEVER had trouble like this. You’re right, this sort of thing should have been solved in the last CENTURY.

    I’m seriously considering going back to Palm — this is just BOGUS.

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