Best place to host my 47,000+ iTunes Library?

So I moved my iTunes collection (47,000 + items/294 GB) to my 1TB Time Capsule years ago... Inexplicably every time I quit iTunes or restart my Macbook Air and then restart iTunes, the iTunes media folder defaults back to > Users>Music>iTunes> then all my files are missing and I have to open iTunes preferences>advanced and reset the itunes media folder and point it to TimeCapsule>iTunes>my music then depending on whether I check "Keep iTunes Media folder organized" or Not I may have to wait an hour while iTunes runs a mysterious little engine...
Also the mobile applications folder seems to always sit at Users>Music>iTunes>Mobile Applications - no matter what I do - why!
I've called Apple support regarding these 3-year nagging glitches once I got my new Macbook Air last week... After raising the question to level 2 and waiting 24 hrs for a response... the official response from Apple is that Time Capsule doesn't officially support hosting iTunes. Time Capsule is officially for Time Machine backups only. In my humble opinion it seems like a silly/niche/overkill use of Time Capsule - the average macbook internal drive is 320gb and Time Capsule now comes in 2 and 3 TB capacities - does one really need 64 backup revisions of their internal drive? Time Capsule for the most part does an excellent job of streaming my music, videos, and podcasts other than the aforementioned preference hiccups which could be easily fixed I think with an software/firmware update...
It's possible I'm overlooking something obvious (that's why I called Apple). It's also possilbe one of you may be able to recommend another wireless drive or software to try?
Some recommend I just buy a Macbook pro with a 750GB hard drive but I really wanted another air for the lightest and portabliltiy. In a few years 500GB SSD will drop below $500 and then I can upgrade the internal drive but until then I'm looking for another solution...
I was excited about iTunes Match service when it was announced since I thought it was an answer to my prayers but the 25,000 limit excludes power iTunes users like myself.
ALSO I'M AWARE OF HOLDING DOWN THE OPTION KEY WHEN LAUNCHING ITUNES - NOT A PERFECT SOLUTION - HOPING SOMEONE HAS ANOTHER IDEA? THANKS.

If I have an iTunes library on an external HD I put all the files for that library on the ext HD. So why not partition part of the TC to iTunes use?
In the iTunes folder would be the following items:
Album Artwork
iTunes Library Extras.itdb
iTunes Library Genius.itdb
iTunes library.itl
iTunes library.xml
iTunes Music (folder)
Mobile Applications (folder)
Previous iTunes Libraries (folder)
So I launch iTunes with the 'option' key down and follow the dialog to the ext HD. If you close iTunes - iTunes should default to the last library open if the disk is available.
MJ

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HT1364 I just bought a new PC and now have ample space on my C drive to house my music Library which is currenlty installed on a external drive. What is the best way to install and move the itunes library to my C Drive?

I just bought a new PC and now have ample space on my C drive to house my music Library which is currenlty installed on a external drive. What is the best way to install and move the itunes library to my C Drive?

If the entire library is on the external drive then simply copy the iTunes folder into <User's Music> on the new computer, then install iTunes. If you've already installed iTunes you will want to remove the empty iTunes folder in <User's Music> first.
If it turns out you only have the media folder on the external drive then take a look at this post...
tt2

Need a recommendation for the best LP turntable to transfer lps to iTunes library...recieved a SONY that is recommended for windows only. Have a brand new SONY ps-lx300USB recieved as a gift that only says they will not guarentee results w/ mac.Help.

Need a recommendation for the best LP turntable to transfer lps to iTunes library...recieved a SONY that is recommended for windows only. Have a brand new SONY ps-lx300USB recieved as a gift that only says they will not guarentee results w/ mac. Please Help.

Just use that turntable with -> Audacity

Best most efficint way to organize my itunes library on my external hard drives

I was looking at another forum about peoples itunes libraries & alot of them kept their differnt media; ie, books, movies etc, music in a single itunes libary on single large external hard drives.
I just have music in my library now, but if I expand to other media, I may want to change my setup.
I have a single hard drive labeled music, that contains;
1. scanned album art (front covers)
2. all my albums ripped in flac.
3. all my flac ripped albums converted to mp3 - (these I load into itunes, I do not use itunes to rip them)
4. my itunes library in a folder named sossity corby itunes library 1
if i expand my itunes to include books or movies as well as my music, I may want to have a new dedicated hard drive for it, & just label it itunes for all my itunes media.
I would then move my itunes libary folder which is #4 from my music drive over to this new hard drive.
my question is how would I get itunes to locate the music without having to start from scratch reloading all my mp3 albums?
& would I need to have all the original mp3 albums that were #3 from my music drive?

I take it that sossity corby itunes library 1 contains the active iTunes Library(.itl) file and all the iTunes connected media is in an iTunes Media or iTunes Music folder below it. If you are not certain it may be prudent to use the options to reorganize files in the folder "<Media Folder>" (if available) and to consolidate the library before proceeding. Simply copy/move the folder sossity corby itunes library 1 to any new location of your choice, rename it as iTunes (if necessary rename iTunes Library as iTunes Library.itl) and then hold down Option as you start iTunes to switch to the new library. If the media folder was called anything other than iTunes Media, close iTunes rename it to iTunes Media and start iTunes again. It should automatically adjust. This ensures your library conforms to the current default layout.
tt2

Switching to mac, questions on best place to host reference masters

I am getting ready to switch from PC to Mac and have a question I am hoping I could get some advice on (I have a lot of questions actually, but will start with this one).
I have a large library of photos and videos and plan on getting an imac for my wife and macbook pro for me (I do the tagging/organizing and video editing).
Based on what I read, I am planning on keeping the masters on a separate drive and the aperture library on my macbook pro.
Question is, am I better off keeping the masters on the imac and access that folder as an external folder on my macbook pro for the masters, or should I use a NAS drive for them?
I have an older NAS that I can probably reformat for this purpose, but I often run into complications using a NAS (offsite backup issues, connectivity issues, can't use Time Machine, ...) and have read on the forums about people having issues writing to files on NAS's...
I have a buffalo terastation pro ii, it is about 3 years old. It is 2 terabytes. I would get the imac with 2 terabytes and the 256gig ssd drive so the 2 tera could be dedicated to media.
Thanks in advance for any advice, appreciate it.
Peter

plampione wrote:
I am about to buy the macs, so both the desktop and macbook pro will be fast. I plan on buying the fastest processor, 8gig of ram on the macbook, debating 8 or 16 on the imac, though from the previous thread sounds like it should be 16, and ssd on both (imac with 256 ssd + 2 TB HD, macbook with 512 sad).
I suggest ordering both Macs with the minimum RAM and adding 3rd party RAM yourself. The task is trivial and will save you heaps. I bought my iMac with 4GBs (that's two 2GB modules plus two empty slots), and then added two 4GB modules into the empty slots. So I have 12GBs. My plan is to try to live with just 12GBs until 8GB modules become affordable, and then replace the two original 2GB modules with two 8GB modules, bringing it to 24GBs. If needed, I'd ultimately go to 32GBs by replacing the two 4GB modules I have just installed.
I think the MacBook Pro (MBP) still has only two slots, so using 4GB modules, you are limited to 8GBs. If the architecture of the MBP supports it, you may be able to go to 16GB when 8GB modules become affordable. But you'd need to check this.
- using an attached harddrive on the macbook pro - Definitely a reasonable idea, but I was hoping to be able to bring up the library from anywhere in the house. I do have gigabit ethernet throughout the house and can wire in as needed, but again, was hoping to be able to sit on the sofa and do some tagging.
Another way to achieve this still has your Aperture Library and Masters on the iMac as I recommended above. You could use the MBP to share the screen of the iMac. It's a standard OS X function, no software to buy. You enable sharing on the iMac and log in from the MBP. That way you have the function on your sofa, but the power and capacity of the iMac for your actual work. This works fine over wifi for me via an Airport Extreme using 802.11N
- Backup - by putting the masters on the imac i was planning on using time machine to back them up onsite, and crashplan to backup offsite.
Good plan. TM and Crashplan are good products and free.
I'd also recommend making a second onsite backup by cloning to a pair of external drives, and periodically send one of these drives offsite. You may find that Crashplan for offsite backup over the internet is too slow if you have a big photo shoot.
What if I plug into the gigabit ethernet whenever I am going to run aperture? Would that allow the imac/macbook model to work? Concerned about the performance issues described above though, even for the machines themselves. Would copying the library nightly to my wife's computer work? How big does a 20+k library get with referenced masters?
Size of the library depends on many factors such as choices for previews, and the amount of editing (adjustments) you do, but here is a data point. I have 47K images, many RAW and the Library was about 60GBs, the referenced Masters another 280GBs. I say "was" because I have let it grow by importing recent images into it.
Today we are on PCs and I use windows live photo gallery and tag all my photos, which are stored on a NAS, my wife also runs WLPG and can see all the tagging I do. This works pretty well and is simple, I just import from the camera, show all 'untagged' photos/videos, and tag them. I also move them to a basic folder structure to be safe.
I understand this is not as feasible on mac, and if you are wondering why I am switching, it is because I have been having a lot of stability problems with the pc's and have had enough. I use iphones, ipads, and apple tv's. Recently got a macbook air and really like it. Just need to figure out how to manage the photo/video library.
A lot of my concerns about your plan are because I'm impatient. On my MBP, it was taking about 5 seconds to render each image as I reviewed them. I typically take a very short time to tag the images, so the computer was slower then me. Now, with the iMac, I'm the slow link in the chain.
It may be that you are used to a leisurely tagging process, but I have no experience with WLPG.
The great things about Aperture that I really love, having come from a Photoshop background are that Aperture is always non-destructive in its editing and it is non-modal in the UI.
There is a price to be paid for non-destructive editing. Aperture often has to go back to the Master and then apply your adjustments. This takes resources. But it saves you time. And you don't have to muck around creating another external folder structure yourself, as it seems you do with WLPG. I just import my images into "Projects" in Aperture (the Masters are Managed), and when I want to selectively change Managed Masters to Referenced Masters, I just tell Aperture to do this and that it should utilize my Project structure as the external folder structure. Aperture does all the folder creation for me, yippee!
Finally, you may even find that the MacBook Air is good enough to do the tagging on with the shared screen approach I mentioned above, and then maybe you don't have to buy a MBP.
HTH. Happy to discuss further

What is the best way to move part of my iTunes library to an external drive?

After many years of collecting iTunes content on my Mac, I'm starting to get low on internal hard drive space. I'd like to move my movies and tv shows to an external drive while keeping all other content where it is. I have found numerous explanations on how to do this, but they vary widely in their methods and most of them are at least a couple of years old.
Could anyone with recent experience share with me the best practices for doing this? In addition, I'd love to know this: Although I have a firewire external drive, but I don't keep it connected at all times and would prefer to put the files on my Time Capsule, since it connects to the Mac wirelessly. Would that work?
Thank you!

I don't think it is easy to move part of a collection unless you don't care about the metadata such as date added, etc. You can copy the files to the other drive, delete in iTunes the references to the copies still on your computer, then hold down the option key while dragging the files on the external to iTunes so it doesn't copy them back to your internal but just references them where they are. You have to remember to do this each time. Either that, or set preferences so iTunes does not automatically copy any file to your media folder when added but leaves them all where they land on your computer. You can move them by hand around the computer, but not between drives.
You could try Dougscript "Move Files To Folder" but I don't know if this enables iTunes to track items moved to a different drive. iTunes doesn't really like using multiple drives.
As for using Time Capsule, I have seen various takes on this. I recall reading somebody saying it isn't a good idea to have a backup drive competing for dual purposes. My take on it is, TC is a backup, period. If you keep your movies on it and the TC drive dies, you lose your only copy of the movies.
How often do you really watch these movies? Yes, it is nice having them appear in iTunes, but unless you are watching them every day then it isn't a huge burden to have them on another drive. Frankly, if I had iTunes movies I would probably make a whole different library for them and start from it with the external drive turned on when I was in a movie mood.

Using same iTunes library with external hard drive (EHD) on different PCs

I know some of the issues related to this question have been touched on in different discussions but I don't think I have seen a clear yes/no and if yes, here's how, answer to my queries, so here goes.
Like another member, I would like to take my iTunes library with me when I'm away on holiday so that I can (for example) use an Apple TV with Home Sharing to watch movies in my library or pay albums in my music library while on holiday, in the same way as I am able to at home. I have a Samsung NC 10 notebook running Windows XP (which I would take with me with a Samsing Story EHD) and a Dell desktop. My iTunes media folders are now on the EHD and I think I have iTunes library files on the Dell and on the Samsung. Of course, if iTunes Match covered movies as well as music, I would use that and just take my Apple TV with me ... but it doesn't and seems not likely to.
By messing around and not properly understanding some of the discussions about this topic, I think my iTunes library looks as I expect it to be, on my Dell - though I have yet to test this by doing a synch with my iPad or iPod Touch. However, when I plug the EHD into the Samsung and open my library, I am missing at least one movie and I don't have any artwork showing for any of the movies. This is inspite of clicking Get Album Artwork, Consolidate Files and clicking to add, as a file (or folder) to the library, the missing movie which is on the EHD in the Movies folder of the iTunes Media. In iTunes on the Samsung "Preferences>Advanced", the iTunes media location (on my EHD) is correct.
I have obviously messed something up trying to replicate my Dell desktop iTunes library on the Samsung. So:
can/should I start again (if that is the best thing to do) with getting my iTunes library properly on to my Samsung notebook? And, if yes, how do I do that?
is it really possible to have all that you need to run and use iTunes on an EHD (i.e. both media folders and the various iTunes library files (.itl, .itdb, .xml etc.)) so that whenever I plug the EHD into my Dell or Samsung I can access my iTunes library in the same way and via the same files? Or, do you always have to have the library files (at least) located on the PC you are connecting your EHD to (showing my ignorance here! )?
if you can have all the library files as well as media on the EHD (i.e. all of your iTunes library), I assume there is more to moving these from the C drive in my Dell to the EHD, than just cutting and pasting them into the EHD and then deleting similarly named files in C drive in the Samsung?
if all of my iTunes library can be located in the EHD, would I just access that (i.e. open my iTunes library) - whether on my Dell or the Samsung - by pressing the Shift key when clicking on iTunes as a programme on my Dell or Samsung, or - and I appreciate this is more basic computer knowledge than iTunes query - does the fact that I would need to access iTunes via some form of link on the relevant PC indicate why some iTunes library files would always have to reside on the PC rather than the EHD?
if the iTunes library files have to stay on the relevant PC, how can they be kept in synch - i.e. the more portable Samsung offering the same access and picture of my iTunes library as the Dell does - or is iTunes just not set up to do this, in which case I might as well ignore trying to replicate my iTunes library on the Samsung?.
Apologies for this long list of questions. Any pointers to where the answers lie or even better specific answers themselves would be very much appreciated.
Many thanks.

I think that's yes, yes, yes, yes, and not necessary...
Make a split library portable
Here are the typical layouts for the iTunes folders:
In the layout above right, with the media folder (everything in the red box) inside the library folder, the library is considered to be portable. A portable library can be moved from one path to another without breaking the links from the library to the media, and being self-contained it is much easier to backup and restore. (You do backup, don't you?).
You can rearrange things to make a split library portable by taking a number of small steps which don't break the library.
Before you start any media files that are outside of the media folder will need to be consolidated. If the library is in the old style layout then it should be upgraded to iTunes Media Organization (Library > Organize Library > Rearrange files in the folder <Media Folder>) to ensure that iPod Games, Mobile Applications etc. are brought inside the media folder, otherwise the links to these won't survive changes in the path of the library.
The basic non-fatal manipulations are:
You can create or connect to an alternate set of library files by holding down Shift (Win) or Option (Mac) when starting iTunes. (Note iTunes will continue to use this library until you use the same method again.)
You can move the library files to a new location and connect to it there as long as the media stays put.
You can move the library files and the media together if the media folder is a direct subfolder of the library folder.
If you have already moved/copied the media content from a subfolder of the library folder to a different location then you only need to copy the library files for it to appear as if you have moved the entire library in the way allowed above. I.e. just copy the library files into the parent folder of the media folder.
You can rename the media folder to iTunes Media (if it isn't already) if the media folder is inside the library folder.
iTunes uses the name of the folder holding the library files as the window title. Having made a library "portable" you may need to take a final step of renaming the library folder to iTunes or, if the library files have ended up at the root of a drive, moving all of the library files and content folders into a new folder called iTunes.
IMPORTANT: After each change you need to open, test and close the relevant library before attempting another change. If a change broke the library, undo it or revert to using the previous set of library files.
In essence all you need to do to join up a split library and make it portable is copy the library files into the parent folder of the media folder on the external/secondary drive and use the hold-down-shift/option-when-starting-iTunes method to connect to it. Other manipulations may be required to normalize the library so that the library and media folders have standard names.
tt2

HT1751 Hello, can you help? I have backed up iTune library to an external hard drive, but want to set up periodic back ups every month. Do I have to follow the "Consolidate file" procedure every time I back up, and does my original back become over writte

Hello can anyone help? I have sucessfully backed up my iTuines library to an external hard drive, but when backing up in the furture (Monthly) do I have to follow the same procedure again, and will this place an additonal copy of my iTunes library on my hard drive, so duplicating the back up and so rapidly fill my hard drive.
Ideally what I would like, is for the lateset back up to over write the original so saving space on my external hard drive. Many thanks ......Steve

The "consolidate" command has nothing to do with making backups. You use that command when you have had content in multiple places and you wish to have it now all in a single iTunes folder. If all of your content is already in the iTunes folder, then the "consolidate" command will be of no use to you. You will make further backups using whatever method you normally would use to make backups of your data in Windows.
Regards.

Migrating my Itunes Library from An External Harddrive to a NAS

I have a 20" IMAC and currently store my 350 GB Itunes library with roughly 6400 tracks on a 1 TB external Harddrive. I just purchased a 5 TB Network Attached Server that is attached to my wireless network. What is the best and fastest way to migrate my Itunes library from my external harddrive to my NAS? I am concerned that if I do it over my wireless connection it will take forever. I am also concerned that Itunes will get confused in trying to locate the files on the NAS. I have successfully used the consolidate library function in the past but am worried that it will not work with a NAS over a wireless connection. Should I try using a direct ethernet connection with the NAS hooked directly into my IMAC and then re-connect the NAS to my router? I would appreciate any advice. Thanks.

Please don't repost the same thread
http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=7786712#7786712

Transferring/Copying iTunes library from desktop computer to laptop

What is the best way to move my current desktop iTunes library to my laptop?
I have the latest version of iTunes on the laptop, which has moved music from it to iTunes. There are about 50 songs on this laptop library, but on my desktop computer there is much more.
I want to make sure that I add the current iTunes library contents to the laptop library. Is there a simple solution to this question?
Thanks for any assistance.
PC Windows XP

Have a look at this User Tip, it should give you a few pointers: Migrating iTunes for Windows to a new PC
If you can network the computers there is also this one: Copying songs over a network to use with iTunes for Windows

Mystery of vanishing itunes library

My entire library has vanished, music, podcasts, playlists the lot! even though the files are still on my hard drive and in preferences itunes is still looking to the right place. I have a virgin itunes library when I open it up. Is this a virus issue. I don't just want to repopulate from my hard drive as i'll lose all the artwork I spent hours downloading. My sons itunes, on the same computer. is unaffected and when i plug my ipod in it tells me that its associated with another account and do I want to over write it (with nothing). Doh!
Somebody please help me
Dell Windows XP Pro

It looks as though you have suffered from empty library syndrome, unfortunately no one has worked out why it happens although it does seem to particularly affect people with large libraries and external drives.
You may be able to recreate your library using the method here:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=93313
If not you can just add your iTunes Music folder to your library with "Add Folder to Library", but this loses all playlists counts etc.
If you keep your library files on an external drive there may be another alternative.
It is a good idea to back up your library files from time to time to aid recovery:
Backup the iTunes Library Files
The library files are in:
My Documents\My Music\iTunes
Close iTunes and wait about 30 seconds.
Copy iTunes Library.itl and iTunes Music Library.xml somewhere else e.g. into the Previous iTunes Libraries folder.
To restore, with iTunes closed drag the current itl and xml file from the iTunes folder to the desktop, then copy the backup iTunes Library.itl into the iTunes folder. The xml file isn’t necessary but can come in handy if the library needs to be recreated and the itl file is causing problems.

Best place to keep iTunes database...internal vs. external drive?

My new iMac has a much smaller internal hard drive than my old iMac, so I plan to move my actual iTunes content (songs, videos) to an external hard drive. Is it better to have the iTunes Library Database (iTunes Library.itl) on my computer's internal drive, or with the iTunes content on the external hard drive?

Usually it is best to relocate the whole library to the external unless you are connected to the external by a slow connection which also has a high amount of data traffic (rarely the case for most people). iTunes frequently reads and re-writes the database file which could slow things down if it has to wait for other things.
Moving a library: Quick answer if you use iTunes' default preferences settings: Copy the entire iTunes folder (and in doing so all its sub-folders and files) intact to the other drive. Hold down the option (alt) key (shift on Windows) and open iTunes. At the prompt to create or choose a library choose the copied iTunes folder.

When my old PC died I had the tech guy place my iTunes library on an external hard drive. Just set up my new iMac

When my old PC died I had the tech guy place my iTunes library on an external hard drive. I just set up my iMac and I cannot get my library on the external hard drive to import to iTunes. I authorized my computer and had the "purchased" songs downloaded from iTunes directly, but I have 3,000+ songs from other sources that I cannot seem to get to. Help! What's the trick?!

maggiedoodle wrote:
When my old PC died I had the tech guy place my iTunes library on an external hard drive. I just set up my iMac and I cannot get my library on the external hard drive to import to iTunes.
Don't import anythiong.
Simply copy the entire /Music/iTunes/ folder from the external to /Music/ on the internal.
Launch iTunes.
That is all you need to do.

Despite my best efforts, I am unable to remove iTunes 11.1.4 from my PC, this being made necessary because the original installation had a flaw and did not load properly. Effor to use the control panel, deleting dll. files, etc. all failed. iTune out??

Despite my best efforts, I am unable to remove iTunes 11.1.4 from my PC, this being made necessary because the original installation had a flaw and did not load properly. Effor to use the control panel, deleting dll. files, etc. all failed. And, of course, on startup, a window opens with the error and tells me find QTMovie.dll and delete it because this may be the source of the hangup. Also, in trying to delete iTunes, I get the additional message that I must get approval from the System Administrator to take this action. I am the System Administrator.
Any ideas would be welcomed.
Thank you.
James
<E-mail Edited by Host>

Thank you for asking this question. I'm having the same issues.
Liz

Best place to host my 47,000+ iTunes Library?

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