Mark for Offline Sync and Enable Desktop Sync Do not Show up

[saebon]

Plan

Premium

Country

US

Device

iPhone SE, Microsoft Surface

Operating System

iOS 15, Windows 10

My Issue

My problem is that I cannot listen to my local files on my iPhone, as they won't sync whatever I do. I've been browsing the forums about anything to help with this and the two solutions I see the most of are to turn on a switch that says "Mark for Online Sync" or something close to that but on my playlists, no such switch exists on my iPhone or computer. The other thing, "Enable Desktop Sync", is supposed to be in my settings under "Local Files", but nothing is there besides a switch to enable or disable local files, which I have enabled. Really confused on this one, no one else seems to be having my issue. 

[CarlosE]

Hi there @saebon,

Thanks for reaching out to the Community and welcome!

First up, make sure to follow the steps in this article to sync your Local files. If they don't play, try doing the process again while using a different Internet connection, like another WiFi network or creating a mobile hotspot from your phone.

In case the issue persists, it's worth running a clean reinstall of the app on both devices by following these steps. This can be helpful to get rid of any cached files that might be causing trouble. We also suggest downloading the app again from the Microsoft Store in your computer.

Hope this helps. Keep us posted on how it goes.

[saebon]

I've already tried the clean reinstall on both devices and redownloaded Spotify from the windows store as was suggested in a different comment. The local files will play on my computer, but no dice on syncing to my phone, as I said in the earlier post. I've tried the steps, I have premium, nothing seems to work. Included are screenshots of my playlist where the switch for online sync should be, and where enable desktop sync should be.

[CarlosE]

Hi @saebon,

Thanks for your reply.

To confirm, did you try using a different connection? Also and if possible, could you try syncing the Local files on a different phone to see if that works? This would help us narrowing down the possible root cause of the issue.

We'll be on the lookout.

[Lunarcakes]

I am also having this problem. I just learned that i can use my local music and was looking into it and ive done all the steps it says but there is NO button or setting for me to switch to offline sync mode. I dont know if my problem is because i have student premium but i feel like that shouldnt be any difference, but i too cant find a single offline sync button ANYWHERE. Yes, ive clean installed, yes, ive tried different devices. There is NO button. I am also using iphone 11, ios 15 and my pc windows 10 and playlist and settings looks the same as your pictures.

[MafeG]

Hi @Lunarcakes,

Thank you for posting in this thread!

If you're missing the option to sync local files, your mobile app may not be recognizing the desktop app in the network.

In order to better assist you, please let us know if on your phone you're able to see the playlist with the files but can't download it, or if you're not able to see the playlist at all. We'll continue from there. 

Keep us posted.

[Massey5]

[Moderator edit] On an iPhone, browse to the playlist that you want to sync and swipe the switch that appears at the top-right of the screen to Offline. On Android devices, tap Edit Offline Playlists, select the check boxes next to the playlists you want to sync, and tap Done.

[jonathanderson]

I'm having the same issue, was there a solution for it?

[Vasil]

Hey @jonathanderson,

Could you describe what it is you're experiencing currently :?
We'll take a look and take it from there 🙂
Thanks!

P.S. Any details / screenshots / links to uploaded videos of the issue would be appreciated!

[jonathanderson]

Not able to sync local files from desktop computer to iphone - main issue is that "enable desktop sync" option isn't showing up at all. The devices are able to find each other on the network.

[Eni]

Hey there @jonathanderson,

Thanks for getting back to us.

In this case, you can try storing your local files in your phone. Also, make sure to turn the "Show audio files from this device" on in the app settings, if you haven't already.
 

For more info, we suggest that you take a look at this article. 

Let us know how it goes.

[jonathanderson]

Well, putting the files on the phone manually is not what I wanted to do, and not what the functionality of the app promises. Are you saying that the desktop sync function is broken?

[Vasil]

Hey @jonathanderson,

The desktop sync function does not currently work this way. 
Only syncing from your current device data is now possible, but no cross-platform syncs.
You need to have you local data on the device you wish it to play through Spotify.

[fitznutz]

I have the files of the songs I want synced to  my phone downloaded on my phone but it wont show up in local files

[Dian]

Hey there,

Thanks for the replies.

Recently there was a change on how the local files are being handled by the app. If you want to use local files, check out this FAQ page and give the steps from there a go.

There is no syncing between devices anymore, the files must be physically present on the device you want to play them on beforehand.

Hope this clears things a bit,

Cheers!

[jonathanderson]

Thanks for all the replies. Interestingly, I was able to get it to work by turning off my VPN -- I think the devices were finding each other over the internet but not on the local network, and turning off the VPN fixed that.

[Eni]

Hey @jonathanderson, 

Thanks for getting back to us and letting us know. 

We can confirm that Spotify doesn't officially support VPNs. This means that issues with the app while using a VPN are expected behavior. 

We're glad to hear that now it's working as expected. Give us a shout if it starts misbehaving again; we're always here to help.

Have a good one 🙂

[oopdi]

I have downloaded all my audio files to my phone and it still doesnt show up. I have literally done EVERYTHING. Please help

[Eni]

Hey there @oopdi,

Thanks for getting in touch about this and welcome to the Community. 

Could you let us know which troubleshooting steps you've already tried? That way we can avoid repeating any steps. 

On another note, we suggest that you take a look at this FAQ for more info on how to download your local files on your device. 

Let us know how it goes.

[BegrudginglyHere]

Saebon, did you ever get an answer that actually worked? I have a premium subscription, have done everything described, and it still doesn't work. And "Enable Desktop Sync" still isn't showing up.