MacMost Now 729: Sharing iOS Apps With Family

If you have several people in your household and want to share iOS apps between them, you can do it with iTunes Home Sharing. But turning on Home Sharing on each computer, and then authorizing each other to use purchased items from each others' accounts, you can drag and drop apps in iTunes. Then sync with your iOS devices to put those apps on your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad.

Comments: 22 Responses to “MacMost Now 729: Sharing iOS Apps With Family”

    Dan
    12 years ago

    Gary,

    How does this tip work regarding updates? Will the person-1 apps that have been brought over to person-2's iTunes be updated for person-2 the same way they will for person-1? Or, when things update for person-1, will person-2 then have to re-copy the updated app from person-1's share?

      12 years ago

      Not sure. I think it will update normally. But often updates are done directly on the iOS device now anyway.

        Storm Garelli
        12 years ago

        Hi Gary. My related question is... When an App gets updated, and Persons 1 & 2 try to install the updates on their iDevices, will they each be able to use their own passwords? Or will they both have to use Person 1's password?

        Cheers.

          12 years ago

          Not 100% sure. But it is easy enough to find out when the time comes.

          Junaid
          12 years ago

          Hey Storm,

          You need to put the password of that account which owns that App, I'm doing this since long and if i update the apps on iPhones then i put that ID's Password and same if you are downloading the updates on your iTunes.

    Wayne
    12 years ago

    Gary,
    Each person can update shared apps but the username and password must come from the person that originally purchased the app.

      Storm Garelli
      12 years ago

      Wayne said: "Each person can update shared apps but the username and password must come from the person that originally purchased the app."

      Yes, I feared that would be the case. In which case, there's no real advantage in this home sharing tip over & above the even easier method of Person 2 signing into their own iPhone using Person1's credentials and then looking at the "Purchased" / "Not on this iPhone" list in the App Store app and downloading any of Person 1's purchased Apps that way.

      (unless I've missed something)

        12 years ago

        Signing out and in and out and in can have consequences, as I have heard of a 90-day lockout when you do so. But don't confuse signing out and in with "authorizing." You can be signed in as YOU all the time, and then have your Mac authorized as you and your spouse both at the same time and share content. Home sharing allows this and you would only need to download the app once to one account and then it copies from one Mac to the other over your network, not the Internet.

    Massimo
    12 years ago

    Hi Gary, when activating the home sharing feature you are requested to enter Person1's AppleID and password when launching iTunes in Person2's computer in order to authorize the latter to use the same contents. Does this mean that a computer can be authorized for two separate AppleID simultaneously? Entering Person1's AppleID in computer 2 doesn't prevent you to change the AppleID for the next 90 days?
    Thanks

      12 years ago

      You can have two or more IDs authorized, yes, certainly. That's how this works, and that's how Home Sharing works too. It is very common to do it.

        Massimo
        12 years ago

        Thanks for your reply. My question about the 90 days block was referring to the option in iTunes store to keep all your devices (Mac and iOS) synchronized. This seems working only for one AppleID at the same time.

          12 years ago

          That 90 days thing is if you log out of your iTunes account, then log into another to download something. Authorizing is not that -- you aren't logging out and logging back in again.

    Mitchell
    12 years ago

    Geat information. Will this work to share iDVD with another Mac in my home?

    James M. Gross
    12 years ago

    Maybe I missed something.
    When I went into my wife's account on our shared Mac, I put in my credentials under "Authorize . . . ." Apple said it was already authorized. Next to my name there is only a "Music" icon, not a "Home" for sharing and apps do not show up.

    "Home Sharing" is on in my user ID.

    It appears Apple considers the whole computer "Authorized" and not individual users.

    Being it works for others, I must be doing something wrong. But have not figured it out yet. Any ideas?

    Thanks in advance. BTW your video was very timely.

      12 years ago

      No. iDVD is a Mac app. This is about iOS apps. Totally different.

      James M. Gross
      12 years ago

      Does anyone have an idea of what I am missing or doing wrong?

      TIA

    Don N
    12 years ago

    Gary.....my wife and I both use the same Apple Store ID on different iPads. We both downloaded a free app, but she later paid to upgrade it to get rid of some bothersome advertising. Should we be able to use this technique to upgrade my iPad to the app without advertising?

    Thanks!

      12 years ago

      So you made an in-app purchase? In-app purchases should be recognized across all of "your" devices. But I'm not sure on that. Never tested it. Haven't thought about it. It might depends on how the developer implements it. See if you still have ads. If not, then I guess that in-app purchase is for that device only.

    Ken Ostrander
    11 years ago

    What if you no longer back up to a Mac and only use iCloud for 2 iPhones and an iPad?

      11 years ago

      Backup and sync are two different things. You can backup to iCloud but still sync to your Mac.

    Shannon
    11 years ago

    Will this work for a family of five? We have one laptop(MacPro, Mountain Lion), 3 iPhones, & 2 iPods.

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