Error code; original file could not be found, would you like to locate it?

when i try to transfer songs from my library to my ipod shuffle, i get this error message (error code; original file could not be found, would you like to locate it?). Then an exclamation point(!) in the first column it appears next to the song in the library.
When i go to the folder mymusic/itunes/itunesmusic folder, the song is there, but why is there an exclamation point next to the song in the library? And how do I restore all these songs, and what causes this?

Sounds like your iTunes .ITL library file got corrupted.
What are the iTunes library files?
There are some posts around here by Buegie on how to fix that...

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I have a new computer that downloaded all of my playlist. but i cannot play all songs. i get a error that say "the song could not be used because the original file could not be found. would you like to locate it? but it does not help to resolve.

i installed itunes to my new computer and transfered all my playlist from the older computer. the software came with the new computer hp link up. the problem
comes in where i want to play a certain song on a playlist and this error pops up "the song could not be used because the original file could not be found.
would you like to locate it? which is of no help.
is there a solution to this problem?

The file path for these songs IS NOT correct per your iTunes Library file.
See: http://dougscripts.com/itunes/scripts/ss.php?sp=listmias for an Applescript to locate these files for re-adding.

"original file could not be found, would you like to locate it." error

I recently bought my first MAC and imported my Itunes library onto it using my 3G 40GB ipod. When I try to play some songs in Itunes on the MAC I get the "original file could not be found, would you like to locate it." error message. The songs are on my IPOD and able to played from my ipod, yet they will not synch or transfer to the MAC.
What can I do other than reload the songs from the original cd's?
Thanks in advance.
Sean

Click on this earlier post of mine and read ALL the info listed before trying any fix.
http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=5351732#5351732
DIXIE

When I try to listen to a song I purchased last week, I get the message, "could not be used because the original file could not be found. would you like to locate it?" What do I do to find it?

When I try to listen to the songs I purchased from iTunes last week, I get the error message, "could not be used because the original file could not be found. would you like to locate it?" What do I do to fix this problem or locate the song?
Thanks!

I am getting this same message. I recently bought a new Macbook Pro and the geeks transferred my files from my mini-mac. Perhaps they did not transfer something critical? I follow the "locate" option when it asks to find my files and I get a file folder that has a red circle with a white bar in the middle.
I have the same issues with my downloaded movies but my apps all seem to be fine.
Even more confusing - it seems to allow random songs to play and download on my Macbook and other devices. But most of my music - whether downloaded from iTunes or my CD collection comes up with that message about the original file.
Should I get new geeks to locate these files on my old mini-mac?

My partner deleted my itunes (10) library. I use a WD external back-up and retrieved my itunes library, but when i try to play a song i get the message 'could not be used because the original file could not be found Would you like to locate it?'

My partner deleted, by accident my itunes library. I have an iMac 10.6.7, Itunes 10. I use an WD passport as an external back up and retrieved my itunes library but now get the message "could not be used because the original file could not be found. Would you like to locate it?" so itunes is not recognised the exclamation marked songs, how do i get the retrieved files recognised. At times I get fed-up with Apple blocking files being used, although I like the product its restrictions are so silly!

You not only have to retrieve the library file from the backup drive but the actual music files (usually stored within the "iTunes Media" folder) as well.

When i try play a song i get this message " the song could not be used because your original file could not be found, would you like to locate. I tunes works on my iPad

OSX 10.9.5

I am getting this same message. I recently bought a new Macbook Pro and the geeks transferred my files from my mini-mac. Perhaps they did not transfer something critical? I follow the "locate" option when it asks to find my files and I get a file folder that has a red circle with a white bar in the middle.
I have the same issues with my downloaded movies but my apps all seem to be fine.
Even more confusing - it seems to allow random songs to play and download on my Macbook and other devices. But most of my music - whether downloaded from iTunes or my CD collection comes up with that message about the original file.
Should I get new geeks to locate these files on my old mini-mac?

'Original file could not be found' Would you like to locate it?

I gotta admit to being pretty sick of seeing this message, when trying to edit/play songs from itunes.
Could someone please tell me where I'm going wrong.
All my music is on an Ext HDD simply because there is more than my laptop can handle. I have changed the preference settings so that the itunes music folder location is this one folder on the HDD. All of the music was transferred to the ipod from this particular folder on the HDD.
However, I almost always have this message pop up. The strange thing is that it also seems random as in, some songs can't be found one day and a different batch the next day! I know that in computer software terms, that doesn't make sense but that is the way it appears.
Thanks..

You're welcome!
+the ITunes folder that is automatically created from the beginning and defaults to My Documents, has been moved to the designated music folder in the HD, thats right isn't it?+
Maybe, depends how you did things. If you just changed iTunes Edit > preferences > Advanced tab > music folder location, that only affects future music that you add.
Older files will still be on the default C: drive unless you did the Consolidate library command.
Also, you might have a few itunes database ITL libraries floating around, one on your C: drive and another on your G: drive.
You can open different libraries by starting itunes, and immediately *press & hold* the shift key.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=iTunesWin/7.6/en/15502.html
Mayeb someone else will chime in with thoughts.

TS4062 i cannot sync all the songs/artists i want with i tunes I am getting the message "The song could not be used because the original file could not be found would you like to locate it" but it cant... most of my music on i tunes is now saying this I h

Help I cannot

Hello Imelda2
You would need to locate those songs on your computer. Check out the article below for tips on how to locate the files and relink them.
iTunes: Finding lost media and downloads
http://support.apple.com/kb/ts1408
Regards,
-Norm G.

Hi all, when i use itunes , to play a song this message comes up ,the song could not be used because the original file could not be found would you like to locate it?

help !

dwmwood,
Double click a song with ! mark on side, you will be given an option to locate the file where the song is held. If so select "locate" and direct it to the folder / file where the song is and open it.
iTunes then will give you the option to use this process to update all of your library. OK that as this will do it automatically instead of doing them one by one.
I hope this helps.

Original File Could Not Be Found - Would you like to locate it? Yes!!!

Hey Folks,
I notice that Apple basically doesn't support iTunes judging by the number of unanswered questions -- I mean officially answered.
I'm having the problem where my iTunes shows the songs but with the ! icon. When I try to access them, I get the message such as above.
If I say yes, I can easily find the songs right where they were put by iTunes when I loaded them from disc.
There are hundreds of songs in this predicament. Is there a way to fix them in bulk?
Thanks in advance for any help you fellow users can provide.

Is there a pattern as to where iTunes thinks the songs are?
For example, does itunes think the songs are in c:\users\bob\music\itunes\spicegirls\* when the actual location is c:\users\bob\music\itunes\itunes library\spicegirls\* ?
Is it ALL of your songs which are affected?
If so, perhaps moving them to the correct place using explorer might be the better options, otherwise you may be there for a while.
however, ensure that you have you itunes library backed up first before you go ahead with this task.
Rgds
Paul
PS: Sorry for the poor taste shown in my example. Worryingly, the Spice Girls were the first thing that popped into my head!
PPS: iTunes has limited support because it's free. iTunes Billing has better support because you've paid for something

"song could not be found would you like to locate it? "

I get this message alot i guess because i keep all my music on an external harddrive. When i got a new harddrive and put my songs on it alot of the "paths" suddenly did not work. if the computer cannot find the song all i have to did is say i would like to locate it and then type the name of the song in and it finds it every time. The problem comes when i have to do this say a hundred times because i have a ton of music. Can i make itunes or automater do that for me? If that doesn't make sense please leave a comment and i'll get back to you thanks again.

iTUnes isn't like other programs in windows that "Watch" folders and files for changes. What I mean buy this is players like WIndows Media Player (WMP for short) Winamp and others will "Watch" for changes you make. If you go into "My MUsic" folder and chage the name of a song file or move it from one folder to another, these players will catch that change usually and update there library.
Sadly iTUnes for windows does not do this. If you change ANYTHING, like the name of the file or the folder its in, or move it from one folder to another, iTUnes looses track of its location and puts a ! mark beside the songs.
The only way to fix it is either put the files and folders back to the way they were OR manually go thru the library and show iTUnes where each file is.

Error message:song could not be found would you like to locate it

The music is already in my folder, as this had =s happened with most of my music is there a quick fix?

You get exclamation marks or dead tracks because iTunes can’t find the file. This can happen for a number of reasons:
The song file or a folder in its path was renamed
The song file or the folder it is in has been moved
The song file has been deleted
The device containing the song files e.g. external drive is not accessible.
So did you change anything? If so can you put it back how it was?
Anyway, if all your tracks have exclamation marks, the quickest fix is to close iTunes, then drag iTunes Library.itl and iTunes Music Library.xml out of your iTunes folder to the desk top.
Then open iTunes and an empty library is created. Then use File>>Add folder to library to add your iTunes umisc folder to iTunes. If you have music in other folders add those too.
This fix loses all coutns, ratings and playlists.
If only a few tracks have exclamation marks, you can just add your iTunes music folder, this will not create duplicates, but will add any missing tracks.
The entries with exclamation marks will remain and these can be removed, which I can tell you how to do if you choose this route.

Error message - Original file could not be found

When I open itunes, and try to click on a song, there is an "!" and I get the error message "original file could not be found. Would you like to locate it?"
It does this for every song. I have to trace it down to "My Music\itunes\itunes\itunes music" and under that I have hundreds of files by artist.
How can I listen to the songs so I don't have to click on each one to make them play?
I hope you can help me.

First, a correction from my previous post: At the beginning I meant to write The iPod wasn't designed to sync playlist-related information back to iTunes.
And as for the polydorus link, let's try this .
Sorry about that.
Does that make sense? Do I need both folders?
No, in the end you'll only need one but I'm still not sure which one.
*I think the difference is there are no folders like in wndows, but the itunes library leads me directly to my library on the itunes website
I don't understand what you mean by the itunes library leads me directly to my library on the itunes website.
It sounds like there is only one iTunes database - iTunes Library.itl - file and that it's in your iTunes1 folder. Whether or not that is the case, what I'd like you to do is follow the instructions in this article in the Apple Knowledge Base for opening an alternate iTune Library file. Select the Choose Library option and use the navigtion window that appears to make your way to an .itl file.
Select the .itl and iTunes will open with a Library that may - or may not - be different than what you last saw: somewhat different contents or exclamation marks may be present again.
If it's not a library you're happy with, close iTunes, wait ten seconds or so and then repeat the procedure looking for another .itl file - each one contains references for a different iTunes library.
When you find a library you're happy with, i.e. all the contents are listed and no exclamation marks, make a note of the location of that .itl. It's the one you're going to want to work with.
Using that database file, you can go back to iTunes, right-click various songs > Get Info > Summary tab and look to the bottom of that window to find out where that Library is being directed for those files. Make a note of that location.
When we know those two things, we should be able to proceed from there with deleting things.
In the future, when I buy new songs from apple, where will they automatically get stored?
In the location that's been selected in iTunes Edit menu > Preferences > Advanced tab for the iTunes Music folder.
What will happen when I sync my ipod on the computer?
That brings us back to the beginning of this post, by default the synch goes from iTunes to your iPod. So you shouldn't synch your iPod unless there's a satisfactory Library being displayed in iTunes.

Itunes error message - 'original file could not be found etc etc'

Since last syncing my ipod with itunes running on windows 7 home premium, I am now getting the error message 'The song "xxxxxxxx" could not be used because the original file could not be found. Would you like to locate it?'
Can anyone point me towards a solutuion please?

Hi INeedTherapy,
This article contains information about locating missing media:
iTunes: Finding lost media and downloads
http://support.apple.com/kb/ts1408
Take care,
- Ari

When i click to play song I get message that file can not be found, would I like to locate it? What do I do?

When I click on songs I purchased. I get message that "song could not be used because original file could not be found. Would you like to locate it?"
I used to be able to play them, What do I do?

It means the media is not where iTunes expects it to be.
iOS devices are not and have never been backup devices.
Are the files in question still on the computer?
If not, you should restore them from the backup of the computer. You do have a backup, correct?

Error code; original file could not be found, would you like to locate it?

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