Using External HD for iTunes library.

Hi All,
How do I use my external HD to store all my iTunes music and also have my newly imported stuff go to the Ex HD also?
I did read about 40 pages of postings and have not found the answer.
Thanks
COVRC

Click here and follow the instructions.
(33939)

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Using external drive for iTunes Library

There's about 80G of music on my external hard drive. I'd like to use this music as the library when the external is connected to the laptop. I don't know how to make this work. I know it's possible to duplicate the music on the Powerbook and create another library on the HD. But what I'm looking to do is have the laptop library separate from the HD and to manually choose which is being used. The problem is getting the mac to create a library of the 80G of music stored on the HD.
Any replies greatly appreciated.
Powerbook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.8)

It's no different than creating any new iTunes library. Since you already have an iTunes Library file that you want to keep, rename that file...something like iTunes Laptop Library. Then hold down the Option key while opening iTunes and choose "Create Library" when presented with the option. iTunes will create a new iTunes Library file in the iTunes folder, and it will be empty. Use the Add command or drag-and-drop the external HD music folder to populate this new library. When you close iTunes, you might want to rename this new library file also, so the two library files, which can coexist peacefully side by side, are easy to distinguish from each other.
Whenever you want to switch from using one library to the other, just hold down the Option key when opening iTunes, select Choose Library, and select the other library file.
iMac G4 17; iBook G4 1.33 Mhz 14; iPod 3G 20GB Mac OS X (10.3.9)

Use of an external drive for itunes library - backup options?

Hi,
I have a dell laptop with 60GB of memory and I just purchased an 80GB ipod classic. I cannot upgrade the storage in this laptop. Originally I was thinking I would just buy a new laptop. But given that all laptops now come with Windows Vista and reading about all the issues that users have had with Vista and Itunes I do not think that would be a good idea. Do you agree that I should just stick with my Windows XP Machine?
So I was thinking I would change my music library so it resides on an external drive. My only concern with this - is how do I keep a backup of this external drive? From reading all the forum posts if this external drive failed it can be done moving the information from an ipod back to another drive using third party software but it sounds risky.
Any thoughts on how others are handling this would be appreciated.
Thank you!
Karen

Karen, most 3rd party software is pretty easy to use. The one thing I need to point out that relying on the iPod can be pretty risky, too. What if iPod is lost or stolen? What if you have an iPod problem that requires a restore? I would suggest that as a secondary backup for the EHD, you either burn data discs or possibly consider a 2nd EHD, since you can buy them pretty cheap these days. Right now, I backup to 2 different EHD's, then burn data discs as needed of my iTunes library, just in case I would be unlucky enough to lose everything.

Can I use Time Capsule for iTunes Library?

I have a Macbook Pro, an Apple TV, 2 iPads, 2 iPhones at home. Just bought 2TB Time Capsule today.
My kids purchased a lot of movies/TV shows from iTunes store, and it is building up lots of space in my MacBook. I also like to rip my CDs into Apple Losses Format to enjoy on my iPhone.
My Macbook is running out of space, I wonder if I can point my iTunes Library (Music, Videos) to Time Capsule. In other words, I hope to have access to my Music library whenever my iPhone is connected to my MacBook, and most importantly, the kids will be able to access their movies/TV shows from Apple TV / iPads.
Could someone please advice how to do that? Thanks!

Thanks!
Bob, if you don't me asking some details - if I will buy an external harddisk to store my itunes library:
1). Does it mean everytime I open iTunes (or before I connect any device), I have to ensure the external harddisk is connected vis USB?
2). Say I have some 50GB of data on my MacBook. If I modify Preference/iTunes Media Folder Location, will all the data be "moved" to the external USB drive automatically?
3). When we talked about "moving iTunes Media folder", does it include everything (i.e. my iPhone, iPad, backup, apps, etc), or it is just Music/Books/TV Shows/Movies?
Shamefully speaking, I might be a stupid dad - I used iPhotos to import all pictures/videos from Digital Camera, iPhones, iPads for a year, until last night I installed Aperture 3. I selected a folder "Pictures" and clicked Import from iPhoto Library, then I was shocked ....my Macbook HDD space shrinks from 40GB free to 1.29GB and still shrinking....as a result I had to move some of my music, videos to trash (to free up another 20 GB of space). Until Aperture finished importing all photos, I had only 2.5GB free
This morning, the first thing I did is to buy a Time Capsule, and try to free up spaces on my Macbook

I am using external drive for iTunes why does it put art on internal

I have my itunes library on an external drive which works quite well for the most part. However it keeps recreating an itunes folder and subfolders on my internal drive mainly artwork and .itdb, .itl and .xml files in user/music/itunes. this is quite annoying because I am trying to keep as much data as possible off my internal drive for space considerations. I have tried deleting these files but itunes just recreates them. Does anyone have any ideas?

pharmercist wrote:
Solved the problem. When I initially moved itunes to the external drive I copied the entire iTunes folder and seleted the appropriate library drive in preferences
This is not the correct way to do it.
This still uses the iTunes folder on the internal for the iTunes library file, artwork etc.
Holding Option and Choose library... tells iTunes to use everything in the iTunes folder you select.
Holding Option and Choose library... you do not need to change the Tunes prefs > Advance - iTunes media folder location.

Dlink router + external drive for itunes library?

I have a MBP who is slowly running out of space... I have a dlink router 826L with a 2TB external hard drive that is plugged in by usb into the router. dlink has settings to set it up as storage, but it wants to use a sharepoint software thing. I want to know if I can put all my music on it and then have itunes look for my music there. I have to admit, when it comes to networking, etc. i become so so so dumb.

Well did you let iTunes import all your music into its folder structure or just let it create a database of the songs?
More then likely it copied your music into itself because that is the default behavior of iTunes unless you first turn that off. So all your music is in the iTunes Library. Go to your Home folder, Your User Name folder, then Music/iTunes/iTunes Media/Music and all your music is in there.
But you can just copy the complete iTunes folder, ~/Music/iTunes, to your external drive then open iTunes and go to Preferences and the the advanced section and click the Change button
then browse to your external drive and select the iTunes folder that you copied over to the external.
Once you do that you can Delete, move to trash, the iTunes folder in your username music folder.

External Drive for itunes library.

Hello,
I was just hoping that someone could answer what is probably a very silly question.
I currently use my ibook as a working computer and itunes library. This is causing problems now as i'm running out of disk space. Is it possible to buy an external drive, move my itunes library file onto it, and then carry on as normal - obviously whenever the external drive is attached?
It would certainly help me out, stop me having to use my PC and therefore losing the Contacts, and Calendar features that my Mac gives me.
Thanks
Martyn

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301748
You could have searched Apple support for the terms "move iTunes folder" and saved yourself the wait, and you can also search here too as this is asked repeatedly.
Follow every instruction, step by step, no short-cuts and such and it works perfectly.

External drive for iTunes library and backing up via time machine

Hi, I currently have an 320gb external drive plugged into usb port of my imac for time machine back up, but my itunes library is 500gb and currently excluded from time machine back up, I would like to buy a 2 or 3tb external drive and then move my itunes library to that to free space on my imac.
I'd really like to know the best way to set up and what to buy, ie, if i move the library to an external drive am I able to back up the external drive via time machine, plus I assume if I do this i need a second external drive or time capsule to back up the library
Also the external drive is plugged directly into imac but I have an airport extreme is there any benefit plugging the drive into this, would this mean you access file from network (should you do this if its used for time machine), should I get rid of the extreme and buy a time capsule
Thanks in advance

Hi, I'd recommend one of these...
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/firewire/1394/USB/EliteAL/eSATA_FW800_FW400_USB
FW400 will be faster than USB2, & FW8000 even better.
I see no advantage to plugging it into Your Extreme.

PowerBook G4 using external HD for iTunes to new MacBook Pro

How can I move my iTunes library (all music, movies, ratings history, etc) from my old PowerBook G4 using an external hard drive to my new MacBook Pro?
Migration Assistant will not work due to incompatible versions of the software, and the Apple Store/Training Crew/Genuis Bar couldn't help me and told me to connect to the external HD, drag my music over and start a new library. But my goal here is to not lose almost ten years of ratings, playlists and history.
The iTunes program files (Version 9.2.1) are on the old PowerBook G4, but all actual music files are on the external. I know this isn't going to be easy, but how can I make this happen without starting over???
Thank you all for your help,
EH

I think I know hte issue but not the immediate solution. Your external drive doesn't have the full library, just the media files. The library files which have all the things you see in hte iTunes browser are on your old computer so you don't see it when you plug the drive into your new computer.
You could try copying just the library files from the hard drive of your old computer to the same location on your new computer, then try opening hte external drive. This might work.
Incidentally, mpst people put their whole library, not just hte media files, on their external drives so it is all a neat package for moving between computers. I don't think, though, that this will be a simple matter of copying the library files to the hard drive because the location references might not work

Using external drive for itunes

Hope someone can help with this: I am going travelling and want to take my music library, at present in itunes on my desktop G4. I have copied this library onto a 100GB portable hard drive, and would now like to get itunes on my macbook to refer to this library on my hard drive. I tried going to preferences and changing the itunes music folder location to
Lacie Drive:music:itunes:itunes music:
but after I okay this, nothing happens, the itunes on my macbook is still full of the few songs I have put there, and no sign of the 2.99GB of music that I copied off the G4.
Ideally I want to keep the hard drive of the macbook as empty as possible, so would like to use itunes just from the external drive, plugging it in whenever I want to use itunes.
Many thanks,
Hugh
G5, macbook pro, G4 Mac OS X (10.4.7)

By changing the location, you only told iTunes where to store the next ripped CD or purchased music. iTunes doesn't know where your music is.
The song locations are stored in the 'iTunes Library' file.
If you're using iTunes 7, there could be an easy fix.
First, copy the entire iTunes folder from the G4 to the external drive (not just the iTunes Music folder inside it).
Then connect the drive to the MacBook and hold the Option button down when you run iTunes. Keep holding it down until a window pops up that lets you choose a library (or create a new one).
Choose the iTunes folder on the external.
iTunes now should recognize it.
Hope this helps.
M

Use time capsule for iTunes library

I would like to use my new time capsule as the location for my iTunes library. How do I go about doing that? Currently my iTunes library is on my MacBook Pro.

The Time Capsule was designed for your backups, not for everyday or "original" copies of files or folders. It is not a media server.
The smart move would be to get another hard drive and connect it to your Mac. Move the iTunes library to that hard drive.
Then, Time Machine will back up both your Mac and the hard drive to the Time Capsule.
iTunes will run just as fast as if it were on your Mac.....and more importantly....you will have backups for both your Mac and the important data on the hard drive on the Time Capsule.
Note that having the "key" will not help a bit if you are trying to connect a wireless device that does not want to see apostrophes, dollar signs, asterisks, and any other special character.
Change the name of your wireless network to something that uses only normal letters and numbers, with no spaces. Do not exceed 20 characters.
Same rule for password.

TS4526 Cable, internet, Netflix, iTunes library. Can use Amazon Video for iTunes library? Other program? OR Must have AppleTV for iTunes library?

I have purchases from iTunes movies and TV. I can play Netflix and Amazon TV. I also have TIVO thru which i connect my TV. .Amazon indicates that it can download iTunes. Can I use Amazon to play my iTunes purchases OR must I have an AppleTV device?
Also have 3 yr old large screen VIZIO hd TV. If I have to have an ATV, can I connect it through an hdmi on side panel? Or do I have to use a rear hdmi connection? How do I then connect CABLE>TIVO>TV and ATV?
Too many hdmi cables, not snuff hardware knowledge!
Thanks!
Laura

Jaap74 wrote:
Two things that are not clear
- I think it is not possible to have iTunes running at the same time on two Macs in the discribed setting.
- I think over a wireless connection, it will reduce speed.
Anyone with experience?
I think what you mean is that it's not possible for two Macs to access the same iTunes library (ie. the same collection of media files) at the same time. From my research, this seems to be the case, and that's not my issue.
In my particular situation -- one that i'm sure is shared by many others -- my partner and i have separate user accounts on the same Mac, +entirely sharing a single iTunes Library+ (ie. same media files, same playlists, etc., as if we were a single user) and as long as we remember to quit iTunes whenever we walk away from the Mac (allowing the other to log in and launch iTunes and access our common library), this is not a problem.
And that is when my particular problem arises: when we launch iTunes, we are often asked to choose a Library (a series of navigations that my partner isn't entirely comfortable with), and occasionally the Data folder on the TimeCapsule is unavailable.
As for the wireless connection to our library, this has not so far proven to be an issue. Depending on what other activities are going on at the time (ie. TimeMachine backups or background Internet activity, i presume), i have only rarely experienced brief interruptions in music streaming from the TimeCapsule (<1 second). In fact, last night, we watched a movie on the laptop, with the file streaming from the TimeCapsule, and it only hesitated a few times, and again for less than a second.
Message was edited by: William Mclaughlin

Using an external drive for Itunes library

I find Itunes a poor program and I am being discouraged from using it to get music which is a shame
The albums are often more expensive than the CDs and it is difficult to back up the downloads. You need to rip them to disc straight away.
I would like to have a external drive ripnas where all my music is stored and it can be accessed by my three computers when and I want to listen to my music and I can download tracks from which ever computer I want.
Finally when I use my ipad, or Ipod it can be linked to the Music drive rather than a computer this means I can play tracks downloaded from any source with out the ipods etc being linked to a particular computer and having to be wiped clean if you want a track from the wrong computer you downloaded the track from.
Any ideas sorry about the rave but seem to have lost tracks I have brought ( back up with time machine but thats no longer working only a year old the power supply blown so lost whole lot of music I had thought i had carefully backup)
Any thoughts about who to resolve this mess would be gratefully received
If I download Flac files I dont have any of these problems and easy to back up)

Neale Watson wrote:
The albums are often more expensive than the CDs and it is difficult to back up the downloads. You need to rip them to disc straight away.
Buy the CDs. there's your backup-the original CD.
I would like to have a external drive ripnas where all my music is stored and it can be accessed by my three computers when and I want to listen to my music and I can download tracks from which ever computer I want.
This works. I do it this way.
Any thoughts about who to resolve this mess would be gratefully received
If I download Flac files I dont have any of these problems and easy to back up)
iTunes music files should be backed up on CDs or DVDs (not hard drives) as a data disc.
Tracy

Using an external HD for my library

My laptop's 60 GB HD is full with my library. I have the whole library backed up on an external HD, how do I make iTunes reference the external HD for my library?

Thanks for replying Rick, the answer is both. I've been using the ext HD for backup, but now I'd like to remove the library from my laptop, keeping the iTunes software on my laptop, but have it reference my G: drive (external HD) for the music. Is that possible? If I remove the library from my laptop's HD will it default to the external?

Using an External Drive for iTunes Libray for Two Computers

Is it possible to use a portable hard drive to store the iTunes Library and have a laptop and a desktop both use the same iTunes library? I travel a lot and take the portable with me to download podcasts & music, but when I sync the ipod it says it can only be sync'd with one computer. I have tried to just install iTunes on the portable drive, but it appears to store configuration information on the computer the drive is attached at the time. Any suggestions or am I stuck just useing one computer to sync to?

You might find this article useful: iLounge - Managing your iTunes Library on an External Hard Drive

Using External HD for iTunes library.

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