2 iPhones, 2 different users, multiple computers, ONE itunes library?

I have one big itunes library that stores both my wife's music and my own music and common music.
My wife has her own laptop and her own desktop computer
I have two laptops and one desktop computer
Our itunes library is on my desktop.
Is it possible for her to sync her iphone with her own playlists, music, videos, pictures and for me to have my own separate playlists, music videos and pictures?
If yes, how do I do this because I've searched and read other posts but I am still not clear.
Thanks in advance!
nevian

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1495

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An iPhone can be synced with only one iTunes library at a time

I recently bought a MacBook Pro, and I figured it would be pretty simple to move my iPhone to sync with iTunes on the Mac from iTunes on my pc, afterall it is the same program and both are designed for the iPhone.
I have been successful in getting the Contacts and Calendar to sync, but the Music, Applications, Video and a few other things give me this message when I check the sync box:
"The iPhone is synced with another iTunes library. Do you want to erase the iPhone and sync with this iTunes library? An iPhone can be synced with only one iTunes library at a time. Erasing and syncing replaces the contents of this iPhone with the contents of this iTunes library."
Obviously, I don't want to erase everything. Actually, I don't care about Music, Videos, Podcasts or Ringtones as I don't have any, but I do care about Photos and Applications. Actually Photos I can reload too, but I don't want to loose the apps I have purchased with the iTunes App Store.
I even tried going back to the PC and unchecking the Sync boxes on it, hoping this might disassociate it from the phone, but now even on that PC I get the same message.
How do I disconnect phone from the old iTunes and be able to sync it to the new iTunes? This should be simple right?

I made an appointment with a Mac Genius and I will say that while it was better than getting to talk to India on a poor quality phone call it was just about as helpful. Sure she was cute and friendly, but I left without my issue resolved and was surprised that I didn't even get a followup from anyone asking about my experience (hence my venting here)
Anyway, I found a solution for my issue here: http://tinyfish.net/2008/07/18/how-to-sync-iphone-with-multiple-computers/
This is a real solution to the issue, and has the benefit that I can do this to as many machines as I need and sync at any of them instead of just one. Hopefully, Apple doesn't delete my response since it truly is the answer to the problem and others might be looking for the same solution.

HT4527 an iphone can be synced with only one itunes library at a time error on same pc

an iphone can be synced with only one itunes library at a time error on same pc why?

Damaged library... See Empty/corrupt library after upgrade/crash.
tt2

Problem with second user account sharing one iTunes library

I have an iTunes library that is outside my Home folder that I am sharing between two users. One account functions flawlessly. All the songs are there. Everything is organized into folders by iTunes. iTunes Match is working as it should and all files have been downloaded from the cloud.
I have tried everything to get the second account to work as the other. I have used Apple's instructions to reimport the xml file. I have even recreated that users iTunes account from scratch. But when I go to preferences and point that account to the shared iTunes library the new account wants to copy the files or re-download the music and in both cases making duplicates in the library.
Looking for help.
Message was edited by: bitman

So I have both accounts now working... sort of. The problem is that the common iTunes Media folder they share does not contain the iTunes Library files (.itl and .xml). Those files are still in each account's Home folder iTunes Media folder. I can see this will be a problem keeping the shared iTunes Media folder happy.
I'm not sure how I got things to this point but I do want to correct it.
Can can I copy one of the account's iTunes Library files to the shared iTunes Media folder?

Two users on iMac, one iTunes library

My husband and I set up ourselves as separate users on our iMac. We use the same Apple ID (his) for iTunes.
I was able to transfer our iTunes library from our old PC onto our iMac and into my user side, but my husband cannot see our iTunes library on his user side.
1. How do we share the iTunes library so that both users can see and use it?
2. If #1 is possible, will future purchases from iTunes show up in both user libraries?
Thank you.

There's really no "good" way to have two accounts using the same physical library. The only fully tranparent way would be to make two separate copies, and turn on auto-download on both (even this might have problems). I assume you don't want to do this.
One kinda, sorta solution would be for you to leave your account logged in and turn on Home Sharing. He would then be able to see all the content. If you had auto download turned on, any purchases he made would be downloaded to your account, but would also be in his (although he could remove them).
Otherwise...
1. Make sure your permissions are set so you husband can see your directory on the computer (let me know if you need instructions on how to do this). From your husband's account, start iTunes and go to iTunes->Preferences->Advanced and DESELECT the "Copy files..." option. Then from the Finder, navigate from his account to yours- usually under Macintosh HD/Users/(your name). Navigate down to Music and drag the iTunes subfolder into the Library area of his iTunes. Your entire library will now show up in his Library, but the files will remain physically in yours.
2. There's no good way to do this. If you purchase new music, he will have to drag it into his library for it to appear.

Two computers, one iTune library

If I was to burn a back up cd of my iTunes library from my desktop and then install/restore that same back up cd on a different computer that has the iTunes program, will the iTunes library work on that computer?
If it does work, then would the iTunes library still work on the computer that a burned the back up cd from?
These two computers are not on a network.

Yes.

Multiple computers, one shared library + music

What's the easiest way to keep a library updated and shared between multiple machines on the same network?
All the files are on my server. I need a library on my server (which is always on) so I can stream itunes from there to my airport express.
However, I'd also like to update the library from my desktop, and add new songs and playlists from there.
If I share the same file, it causes syncing issues.
If I copy the desktop library to the server library that's causing problems a) with locking and b) it means everytime iTunes is opened on the server it rebuilds the library files and so takes 10 minutes to start.
Is there a good solution I'm missing?

The only ones I know about are TuneRanger and SuperSync. They both have a trial. I've been thinking about getting TuneRanger.

Multiple computers, one iTunes account... how to consolidate?

I have three computers: Power Mac G5, iBook G4, Mac Mini.
I access and buy songs from iTunes from all three computers.
I update my iPod only from the G5.
So, is there a way to copy the songs I purchased from the iBook and Mac Mini onto my main computer (G5), so that I can sync to my iPod?

See this -> http://homepage.mac.com/oligrob/syncOtunes/syncOtunes.html

2 Computers - One iTunes Library - is this possible?

I have an iMac and a MacBook. Both have iTunes. Most of my music is on the iMac, but I occasionally purchase music on the MacBook. Both computers are usually used at home but in different locations and many times for different purposes. However, I do want to listen to music on both.
With the new Airport Extreme 802.11n will it be possible to consolidate my music on an AirDisk (hard drive attached to the base station) and share the exact same library between 2 computers?
Right now I can of course share libraries between the 2 computers but the libraries are completely separate. I'd like to consolidate to one.
Thanks for any information you have.

Curly Girl
This is definitely possible.
I have moved my library to my external hard drive following this procedure
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301748
Then I just changed the location of the library on the second computer and compacted.
At the moment i have mixed p.c. / Mac network - second mac gets back from the doctors tomorrow and i will experiment more.
The thing I can't do is have the p.c. update when i change the library via the mac and visa-versa , still working on that one
I think it would be easy to create a script/auto to sync the two library file on each mac, hopefully someone else here with greater knowledge can help
Good luck
MacBook (Black) Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Can i sync my iphone with more than one itunes library without erasing content?

So i just got a replacement iphone yesterday, and restored from a backup all my contacts and stuff.
I dont have my own laptop so when it comes to music i get all of my mine from other computers...this has never been a problem with my phone or ipods, but i guess it is now...when i click on manually manage it says:
"An iPhone can be synced with only one iTunes library at a time. Erasing and syncing replaces the contents of this iPhone with the contents of this iTunes library."
so i cannot go to a second device and take songs from them without erasing the ones from the previous comp.
they used to be able to authorized on up to 5 comps right? is this a new strict setting, or is there a way around it??
thanks

No. An iPhone can be synced with only one iTunes library at a time. Erasing and syncing replaces the contents of this iPhone with the contents of this iTunes library.
Basically you'd want to get the music to the library first, then sync it to the phone after you get it set up in your library. iTunes will not transfer songs off the phone that were not purchased through the iTunes store, so they need to be in your library beforehand. You might consult with the googles if there are other third party ways to do that.
The 5 compy authorization is for iTunes account authorization, which means transfering music bought through itunes, apps, etc.

HT204088 How how can I synch my ipod + iphone music to my new computer? I get the same error "my ipod or iphone is synched with another itunes library.An Ipod can be synched with only one itunes library at a time. What would I like to do Erase and Synch

How can I synch my ipod & iphone music (purchased from itunes on my old laptop) to my new laptop? I keep getting the same message on my itunes on my new laptop: " The ipod/Iphone is synched with another itunes library. An ipod/iphone can be synched with only one itunes library at a time. What would you like to do - Erase and Synch or Transfer Purchases?" What do I do?
A couple of other items:
1) I am guessing Apple does not keep a history of all my music purchases? As I did not have my entire library backed-up anywhere, and relying on the music I have on my ipod and my iphone as my only source of itunes music....I have lost over 500 songs!!!
2) I used to have an Apple account under another account name, and since have switched to a new account name. Is there anyway to find the history of purchases from my old Apple account name and transfer these over to my new account name and onto my new laptop?
I hope someone can help, I am having a very difficult time trying to obtain answers. Angie

The iphone/ipod is NOT a storage/backup device. Not maintaining a backup copy is a big mistake.
You can transfer itunes purchases from your iphone/ipod to your computer:
Authorize your computer for all accounts and then click File>Transfer Purchases

How to use iPhone with multiple computers on iTunes 11?

Both of my computers are Windows 7. I try to manage my music and videos on both iTunes. I used to be easy, like you just check the "Manually manage music and videos" square, and everything is fine... But after I update to iTunes 11, it just doesn't work. There is no resulting dialog box coming up where I can click "OK" after I checked square, and no matter I click "apply" below or "done" above, the iTunes asks to erase and sync with the iPhone. After it syncs, the "Manually manage music and videos" is checked. But if I move to another computer another iTunes, then it says I'm already syncing with one iTunes, and it needs to erase and sync with my iPhone again... and of course, the "Manually manage music and videos" is unchecked on this iTunes... If I try to check that on this one.. it's the same story happened before... Basically, there is just no way I can use one iPhone on two iTunes 11, is it?

Sync iPod/iPad/iPhone with two computers
Although it isn't possible to sync an Apple device with two different libraries it is possible to sync with the same logical library from multiple computers. Each library has an internal ID and when iTunes connects to your iPod/iPad/iPhone it compares the local ID with the one the device normally syncs with. If they are the same you can go ahead and sync...
I have my library cloned to a small 1Tb USB drive which I can take between home & work. At either location I use SyncToy 2.1 to update the local copy with the external drive. Mac users should be able to find similar tools. I can open either of the local libraries or the one on the external drive and update the media content of my iPhone. The slight exception is Photos which normally connects to a specific folder on a specific machine, although that can easily be remapped to the current library if you create a "Photos" folder inside the iTunes Media folder so that syncing the iTunes folders keeps this up to date as well. I periodically sweep my library for new files & orphans with iTunes Folder Watch just in case I make changes at one location but then overwrite the library with a newer copy from the other. Again Mac users should be able to find similar tools.
As long as your media is organised within an iTunes Music or Tunes Media folder, in turn held inside the main iTunes folder that has your library files (whether or not you let iTunes keep the media folder organised) each library can access items at the same relative path from the library folder so the library can be at different drives/paths on different machines. This solution ensures I always have adequate backups of my library and I can update my devices whenever I can connect to the same build of iTunes.
When working with an iPhone earlier builds of iTunes would remove any file not physically present in the local library, even if there was an entry for it, making manual management practically redundant on the iPhone. This behaviour has been changed but it will still only permit manual management with a library that has the correct internal ID. If you don't want to sync your library between machines on a regular basis just copy the iTunes Library.itl file from the current "home" machine to any other you want to use, then clean out the library entires and import the local content you have on that box.
tt2

Two iphones different accounts one itunes library?

My wife and I each have an iphone 4 each with its own apple account. Can I sync both phones in itunes on a Windows PC using one itunes library. We share the same media files. Do I have to set up two Windows user accounts and two different libraries?
I also have an ipad which uses the same apple account as my iphone, and I am able to sync both devices using one itunes library and one Windowws account.

judge2001 wrote:
Do I also have to create an user account on my Mac for her in order to have her own addressbook and calendar?
yes.
How will she access "my" iTunes library from her account?
click here for information.
you can authorize iTunes on her user account to play/use content purchased with your iTunes store account and vice versa.
JGG
edited by the Jolly Green Giant (where Green stands for environmentally friendly)

One iTunes library for multiple accounts, iPhones, laptops and PCs.

First off, I'll apologize up front for asking a question that has probably been asked a million times. I've searched the intarwebs and these forums but I've seen so many different answers and read so many different threads pertaining to my question that I think I've over-informed myself to the point of confusion.
OK, for the longest time I've had one iTunes library running on one Windows PC in my house. I used that for updating all our iPods. That was fine for the last however-many-years we've had iPods.
We just picked-up a couple iPhones last night.
All I want to do is move the iTunes library to our NAS so that we can both access the library from any laptop or PC in order to update the music on our iPhones using our different accounts.
Is there a definitive way to do this, or do I have to follow one of these sideways, shady and round-about ways to get this done.
Having to run upstairs to the PC seems to be completely needless with all this technology we have!
Any help would be appreciated.

After reading this and several other related threads, I am becoming thoroughly confused about all of this. I have a situation similar to the one that pokerpal described in the post dated January 7 at 8:06 pm, except that the music files on my system are located on an external hard drive. Everything else is pretty much the same though - I am the admin user (and the main iTunes user and maintainer) and my girlfriend is a standard user who has no music in her own iTunes library. She can see and listen to and make playlists from and sync her iPod with the music in this library from her account, and I can do the same thing, independent of her, from my account. And if I make a change to information within a song, she doesn't see it, and vice versa, and I understand that. What I don't understand is why when I add a song or an album to the music files by importing a CD or downloading something from the iTunes Music Store, she has no way of knowing that unless I tell her, and then she can add it to her library by using the "Add to Library" function. Is there no way of automatically updating her library files to add the new song(s)? We have almost 15,000 songs and videos in that library, and I don't even want to think about what might have to happen if the answer to my question is "no." Interestingly enough, if I put an update to a Word document in the same exact location (on the hard drive), we can update that and pass it back and forth all day - why is that such a difficult task for iTunes to accomplish?
Sorry I went on so long, but this has been building up for some time, and none of the solutions I've read about here have really been of any help, so I'm a bit frustrated and, as I said at the beginning, confused.
iMac G5, MacBook Mac OS X (10.4.8)

One iTunes Library, Multiple Users

Is it possible to have one iTunes library (say the Administer's iTunes library) and share it with multiple users on the same computer?
Thanks.
Mick

See if this helps: iTunes: How to share music between different accounts on a single computer

2 iPhones, 2 different users, multiple computers, ONE itunes library?

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