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up vote 28 down vote favorite
2

I made an awesome program the other day, and I wanted to upload it to my Arduino. After clicking the upload button, some really mean dude named avr came along and stopped me. He told me:

avrdude: stk500_getsync(): not in sync: resp=0x00

All I want to do is just upload my program, but avr won't let me. He's even unintelligible, so can someone tell me what the heck he's trying to say? Is there any way I can ban him, arrest him, or simply get rid of him and his stupid message?

Translation:

Whenever I try to upload a program to my Arduino, I get this error message: avrdude: stk500_getsync(): not in sync: resp=0x00 What does this mean, and how can I fix it?

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2  
Pretty common error message, not always trivial to solve: electronics.stackexchange.com/… –  jippie Feb 12 '14 at 6:47
3  
Nice title! I've had that error myself... –  TheDoctor Feb 12 '14 at 22:46
    
+1 for the title :D... I really hate this dude as much as you did! –  DRS David Soft Mar 6 at 1:52
    
+1 for title 😀 –  Mathsman 100 May 2 at 14:29
    
Try installing the driver (cp2102)for the arduino. That did help me out. Thanks for the previous answers ppl :-) –  user10926 Jun 30 at 18:21

5 Answers 5

up vote 18 down vote accepted

This is caused by a connection error between your computer and the Arduino, and can result from many different specific problems. Here are some things that can fix this error:

  • Disconnect and reconnect the USB cable.
  • Use a different USB cable.
  • Press the reset button on the board.
  • Restart the Arduino IDE.
  • Make sure you select the right board in Tools ► Board ►, e.g. If you are using the Duemilanove 328, select that instead of Duemilanove 128. The board should say what version it is on the microchip.
  • Make sure you selected the right port in Tools ► Serial Port ►. One way to figure out which port it is on is by following these steps:
    1. Disconnect the USB cable.
    2. Go to Tools ► Serial Port ► and see which ports are listed (e.g. COM4 COM5 COM14).
    3. Reconnect the USB cable.
    4. Go back to Tools ► Serial Port ►, and see which port appeared that wasn't there before.
  • In extreme cases, you may need to burn the bootloader.
  • Make sure digital pins 0 and 1 do not have any parts connected, including any shields.
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2  
There are other possible causes. Your could have damaged the ATmega, you could have damaged the bootloader on the ATmega, you could have power issues, or a myriad of other possibilities. The not in sync: resp=0x00 is really a generic "ATmega not responding" message. Anything that could cause the ATmega to not respond can cause it. –  Connor Wolf Feb 24 '14 at 4:47
    
So can I not have anything in 0 or 1 ever? –  Tim Mar 31 at 14:40
    
@Tim You can connect stuff to those pins, but you have to disconnect them if you want to communicate with your Arduino via the USB cable. –  The Guy with The Hat Mar 31 at 15:12
    
I got this error on my very first Duemillanove years ago. It was a dead UART chip (or connection from USB to UART chip). Very frustrating. I bought an AVR programmer and burned the bootloader. Purchased another CPU with bootloader preloaded. Wasn't until vendor sent a replacement that I was able to join the world of Arduino aficionados (and I now have two spare CPUs). –  linhartr22 Jul 31 at 22:07
    
"Disconnect and reconnect the USB cable" works for me –  Grace Shao Aug 5 at 19:58
up vote 3 down vote

If none of the above steps work, try reinstalling Avrdude and the avr-gcc compiler. I had to do this after my Mega started suffering from this.

If you installed Avrdude and avr-gcc separately, simply uninstall them. if not, you may have to reinstall the Arduino IDE. These steps will depend on your operating system.

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Its highly unlikely that the problem would be caused because of the toolchain being used. This is too extreme, IMO. –  AsheeshR Feb 12 '14 at 3:11
1  
It's the only way I could solve my problem –  TheDoctor Feb 12 '14 at 4:24
    
What is this installation process you are talking about? The arduino editor tool is just unzipped. There is no installation process. –  Connor Wolf Feb 24 '14 at 4:48
up vote 5 down vote

Unfortunately, it can also mean that you burned your microcontroller. Were you doing anything dangerous right before you tried to upload a new sketch? Is the microcontroller still working, with its previously loaded sketch?

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up vote 0 down vote

i had the exact same problem. i tried installing the IDE in another laptop and uploaded the program from that laptop. Problem solved. then i came back to my laptop, uninstalled the IDE and re-install it.. it works.

however, i wasn't satisfied because i cant find the source of the problem.. so i tried running everything again the same exact way.. i found the problem but not sure if that can be the actual cause of it..

in my project, i needed to carry out serial communication between arduino and MATLAB (GUI).. in order to see/verify the output(type) of MATLAB (GUI) serial data, i used HYPERTERMINAL and also VIRTUAL SERIAL PORT EMULATOR. i noticed that every time when when hyperterminal is running or VSPE is running while my serial monitor is on it screws up the uploading feature of the program. im not sure if its because of the VSPE or HYPERTERMINAL, but reinstalling the IDE worked for me. :-)

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1  
One of the Serial Control lines, I think it is DTR, is used to reset the Arduino. When you try to program your Arduino, your terminal program could be interfering. –  linhartr22 Apr 23 at 20:06
up vote 1 down vote

I've had the same message. Every time it has been solved by selecting the right port ie USB under the menu Tools then Ports. Its a simple step but I always forget. I'll unplug the Arduino to stop the current program, plug it in again to my computer to upload the new program and get the error, panic, curse, and only then, remember.

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I think this is the most common solution. –  chicks Jun 21 at 13:52

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