iTunes 11.4
Apple has released iTunes 11.4 with under-the-hood changes that ensure compatibility with iOS 8, which will become available to supported iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch models on 17 September 2014. (The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus will also run iOS 8, and those models will be released on 19 September 2014; see “Apple Announces iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus with Larger Screens,” 9 September 2014.) iTunes 11.4 is available as a direct download from Apple’s iTunes Web page or via Software Update. (Free, 232 MB via direct download or 97.3 MB via Software Update, 10.6.8+)
I usually don't upgrade my iOS on devides using OTA and prefer using iTunes.
So concerned and slightly confused, this requires Maverick OS right? So that means if you want to eventually upgrade your devices to iOS8, you need first to upgrade OS to Maverick?
No, the little 10.6.8+ tag at the end means that iTunes 11.4 runs on Mac OS X 10.6.8 (Snow Leopard) and later.
So you can continue to sync iOS 8 devices with a Mac running Snow Leopard as long as you have iTunes 11.4 or later.
Not true. I have OS 10.6.8 and can no longer sync or back up my iPad 2 or my iPhone 5s. Apparently, there's a bug and the only current solution seems to be to revert to iTunes 11.3.1. Found the solution in the Apple Discussion Forums. Unfortunately, this solution does not work for iPhone 6!
Actually, I found an easier fix the works for the iPhone 6 as well. In my case, the extension file /System/Library/Extensions/AppleUSBEthernetHost.kext seems to the culprit. By removing that file (dated May 28, 2009) and then reinstalling iTunes 11.4 (downloaded from Apple), the file gets updated to July 28, 2014 and everything seems to be back to normal.
Thank you, reinstalling and replacing the file fixed the problem.