Broken Hard Disk, lost iTunes library

Recently my hard disk stop working. So I lost my iTunes library. It was practically empty since I manually managed all songs.
So now I have to create a new library but when I try to check the option "Manually manage music and videos" iTunes ask me to format my iphone.
Why should it delete the iphone content? Will I loose all my apps?

iTunes Store: Transferring purchases from your iOS device or iPod to a computer - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1848 - only media purchased from iTunes Store
Sync transfer is one way, computer to device, matching the device content to the content on the computer (except purchased content as mentioned above). For transferring other items from an i-device to a computer you have to use third party commercial software. Examples (check the web for others; this is not an exhaustive listing, nor do I have any idea if they are any good):
- MusicRescue - http://www.kennettnet.co.uk/products/musicrescue/ - Mac & Windows
- Sharepod (free) - http://download.cnet.com/SharePod/3000-2141_4-10794489.html?tag=mncol;2 - Windows
- Snowfox/iMedia - http://www.mac-videoconverter.com/imedia-transfer-mac.html - Mac & PC
- Post by Zevoneer: iPod media recovery options - https://discussions.apple.com/message/11624224 - this is an older post and many of the links are also for old posts, so bear this in mind when reading them.
Syncing to a "New" Computer or replacing a "crashed" Hard Drive - https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-3141
In general do not regard your i-device as a reliable unique storage for your media. It is not a backup device and everything is structured around you maintaining a backup of your media on a computer backup.

Similar Messages

Hard disk faild, iTunes library gone

I had move all my library to a external hard drive but it broke down. tryed to have it repair but it was imposible. the sad thing is that the hard drive was supouse to be my back ut. is there a way i can get my songs and apps back without me having to buy them allover again?

Yes, all your purchased music and apps can be recovered. Once you get your new computer (or hard drive), simply sign in to iTunes using your Apple ID and password. From iTunes' help:
Download previous purchases from the iTunes Store
You can download many types of content previously purchased from the iTunes Store to your devices and authorized computers. This way, you can add items to your devices and computers without having to sync or copy files. It’s also useful if your iTunes files are lost or deleted for any reason.
Previous purchases may be unavailable if they are no longer on the iTunes Store.
Note: Some types of previously purchased content might not be available in some countries.
HideDownload previous iTunes Store purchases to an authorized computer
Click iTunes Store near the top of the iTunes window.
Click the Purchased link at the right of the iTunes Store homepage (below Quick Links).
In the page that appears, select a category.iTunes shows you which of your purchases are available for download. You can view all of your past purchases, or just the ones not currently in your iTunes library. Items already in your library aren’t available for download.If you select Music, you can view your purchases by song, artist, or album. If you’re viewing by album, click an album to see which songs on it are available for downloading.To search for an item, type its name or a keyword in the search field, and then press the Return key to view your search results.
To download an item, click its Download button .To download all available items, click Download All.
You can also download previously purchased music, movies, and TV shows by clicking the Download button next to an item in your iTunes library.
To hide previous purchases you haven’t downloaded yet, choose View > Hide Music in the Cloud. This also hides any iTunes Match songs you haven’t downloaded.
You can download previous purchases on a total of up to ten devices and computers, combined. You can authorize up to five computers at a time with an Apple ID.
To find out how to download previous purchases to your iPod touch, iPhone, or iPad, see the documentation for your device.

How transfer exact arborescence from my music folder on Hard Disk to iTunes ?

Hello All i'm French
How transfer exact tree from my music folder on Hard Disk to iTunes ?
I'm Dj, i use my Mac for that. I'm new on Mac.
On my Pc, i have create many Folders and sub Folders for my music (sample : House/march2010/House Club)
This tree is very important for me and i need to conserve this on Hard drive Mac in the same place.
I Want copy the same tree on Itunes but if i create that myself, it's to long !!
Help me please !
(arborescence in french, tree in english)

iTunes doesn't have any automatic way of re-creating your directory structure in terms of folders and playlists in iTunes. You will have to drag each music folder to a playlist and then arrange these in folders inside of iTunes (which I warn you can can slow down iTunes a lot). I guess the once chance of speeding this up will be if somebody has written an Applescript to do it, but I don't remeber seeing any anywhere.

My itunes won't launch even after reinstalling. Looked in itunes folder and somehow lost itunes library? HELP!

My itunes won't launch even after reinstalling. Looked in itunes folder and somehow lost itunes library? HELP!

The first thing I'd suggest is to get a good antispyware checker and give it a go at your system. Some recent spyware has been reported by other users to shut down iTunes or prevent it from launching. From user reports, Ewido seems to be the best at catching it. You can download a free version of Ewido here.
If that doesn't cure the problem, try deleting the iTunes preference files:
C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Application Data\Apple Computer\iTunes\iTunes.pref
and
C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Local Data\Application Data\Apple Computer\iTunes\iTunes.pref
You might have to turn on "show hidden files" to find them. (Right click "my computer", select open, select Tools menu -> Folder Options. Select View tab, "show hidden files" radio button is in the center scrolling panel.) Delete them or if you want to be able to put them back if it doesn't help, drag them to some other location. This will force iTunes to run the setup assistant the next time you launch iTunes. Note that you'll have to go back and set any preferences you've changed from the default.
If that still doesn't work, try this:
Bugie: Perform a Thorough & Complete Uninstall and Reinstall of iTunes/QuickTime.
Hope this helps.

My X301 with solid state Hard disk lost all data

Hello all people, excuse my poor english i try to explain my problem.
1.- I have a Lenovo x301 (type 2776-TMU) with a 128 Gygabites solid state hard disk (Samsung MMCQE28G8MUP-0VAL1)
2-The sympton is: Lost all data of the hard disk and apears 0 partitions and 0 bytes used.
3.- I run all type of diagnostics and all pass OK.
4. I restore windows,aplications etc. and all work fine, but in any random time, the hard disk lost all info and another time apear 0 Partition and 0 bytes used.
5. I try to install, bios, firmware or any update of the lenovo web, and no resolve my problem.
6.- In a last chance install via dvd a fresh instalation with oem windows 7, and present the same sympton of point 4.
7.- I change parameters on the bios setup of the SATA interface (ochi or compatible) with the identical result of the 4 point.
How you understand, i have a big problem and desesperate, but i not sure if my hard disk is of the problem, or the mother board, any firmware, etc.
Any have idea in how attack o determine exactly the origen of my problem?
Thanks and regards all people.
atn, Miguel Angel Borbolla Bonomi
Moderator note; e-mail address removed to stop the spambots getting it

Sounds like a faulty SSD. Return for warranty repair/replacement.
T61p, T400
formerly x23, x40

TS1967 When trying to recover a lost iTunes library file, the programme moved all the normal contents of iTunes folder to the desktop. Now what must I do?

When trying to recover a lost iTunes library file, the programme moved all the normal contents of iTunes folder to the desktop. Now what must I do? There is no iTunes Library.itl file. On the desktop it is labelled iTunes Library.xml. Several others files have appeared there too including iTunes Music Library.xml
Before I can use the programme is it necessary to take another step?
Thanks for advice.

Don't worry. I'm all for caution. I guess I should have asked a little more about what steps you took while trying to recover your lost library?
The permissions thing may be a red herring, but if there is a problem with file access rights to the designated media folder iTunes has been known to place files on the desktop instead since it can access this location. The most common cause for such problems is working with a folder on an NTFS drive via a differnt account or on a different computer. In the normal course of events folders created inside user profiles have limited rights for other users.
Here are the typical layouts for the iTunes folders:
Normally the iTunes folder will be created at <User's Music>\iTunes with the media folder inside it. The library files should all appear in the same place so your comment about there not being an iTunes Library.itl file is confusing. Is it just the case that the .itl extension is hidden? The two .xml files makes sense from the above and indicates that the active library is not in <User's Music>\iTunes, but you have a recovered file from when it was.
If, in fact, the situation is that your desktop is acting as the main iTunes folder, and contains the library file, Album Artwork, iTunes Media and (optionally) Previous iTunes Libraries folders, with all other content being inside the iTunes Media folder, then it should be relativly easy to rearrange your into the correct shape and move them to the correct location.
If things are more complex, with something other than a library folder containing a media folder, then reestablishing the normal order is more complicated. The iTunes consolidate function is used to bring copies of files stored outside of the media folder into the media folder. It may sometimes be needed as part of the process of tidying up, however it leaves behind originals. There are circumstances where there isn't room for two complete sets of the media files on the same drive which is why I suggested the script might be useful as it produces the same results for the library without leaving the originals for manual clear up.
I think before you do anything however, we should get a clearer picture of exactly what is where. Could you perhaps take a screenshot of the desktop and post it here? Take a look at this post on making a split library portable. The same techniques I outline there can be used to lick your library into shape, it is just a question of working out which to use in which order for the best effect.
tt2

Hard Drive Failure, so I've lost ITunes Library. Ipod more up-to-date how do I transfer music from IPod to library?

Hi,
I had a hard drive failure on my old PC and I couldn't retrieve anything. I have purchased a new PC and downloaded itunes (Version I'm not use to which isn't helping) and signed in however it only has my purchased songs on the cloud which I need to download into my library from cloud. However I have thousands of songs that I imported into my old library from CD's etc which is no lost apart from all the data held on my ipod.
So my Ipod is more up-to-date then my library now. When I look to sync my ipod it says everything will be removed and will be replaced with content from the library. I've had a look around and I can't see a way to get my music from my ipod to my library.
Is there anything I can do, please help?
Thanks

See:
Syncing to a "New" Computer or replacing a "crashed" Hard Drive: Apple Support Communities
or
Recovering your iTunes library from your iPod or iOS device: Apple Support Communities

New hard drive on pc lost itunes library

i have just had to put a new hard drive on my pc which has lost my itunes library?how do i get this back because it only shows up new songs ive put on.

Hello, a1p2r3.
Thank you for visiting Apple Support Communities.
There are a couple options available to you to transfer purchased media to your computer. Below, I have included a couple articles that outline this process.
iTunes Store: Transferring purchases from your iOS device or iPod to a computer
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1848
Please note that this feature works only for items that were purchased on the iTunes Store. Any items imported from audio CDs or acquired from other sources will not copy from your iPod to the iTunes library.
Download past purchases
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2519
Cheers,
Jason H.

Lost ITunes library in Windows XP Home Edition

Hi:
It took close to 10 hours reconverting all my music from an external hard drive to a new installation of ITunes on a new laptop so I can put the music on a new IPod. All the music got converted--my husband and I both saw it. Then I went to my husband's desktop and the music was not in his ITunes library--so I changed the folder to look in--still no luck. When I returned to my desktop, the music was gone!! Can someone please help me--I cannot see the music anywhere. I tried uninstalling and reinstalling ITunes with no luck. Don't know what the heck is going on

The faster way would be to just move the files from the 'My Pictures' folder into the 'My Music' folder. Then just do a 'FIle=>Add Folder'. No need to delete them. Too late now...
After you convert the files to an acceptable iTunes form, make sure you know where they are located on the PC.
Here's some general info on iTunes and its music organization:
iTunes operates as a database of information for your music files. The actual music files are stored on your PC, not within iTunes. iTunes keeps absolute references of the music file location and other information in its database file. This allows iTunes to use music files from any location on the PC: different directories/folders on the main HD, another internal drive, an external drive, or a network drive (or any combination of the above). Each song reference has a specific and hardcoded path so iTunes can find and play (or sync) it. Move the file, change the path, re-map the drive it is on, and iTunes will lose the file (giving you the '!' of a ‘Broken Link’). Lose, move or corrupt the ‘iTunes Music.itl’ file and your complete Library will ‘vanish’.
If you delete, corrupt, or otherwise lose your ‘iTunes Library.itl’ file, you will end up with a ‘blank’ Library within iTunes. Nine time out of ten, your underlying music files are still on the PC. They can be ‘re-Added’ via the File==>Add Folder/File menu command, but you will lose some of the music meta-data. Recovering your Library via backup copies of the iTunes database file, or from importing the XML file is always preferable.
The iTunes music information (meta-data) is stored in two places: the actual individual song files themselves, and the iTunes Library database file (‘iTunes Library.itl’). There is a corresponding XML file that is created by iTunes, but not directly used. See: What are the iTunes Library files?.
Song attributes stored directly in each music file are as follows: Artist, Album, Song Title, Year, Comments, Compilation tag, Lyrics, Genre , Grouping, Composer, BPM, Album Artwork, Bit Rate & Kind (Both not tags - inherent to the file itself).
Song attributes stored in the iTunes Library database file only are: Playlists, Ratings, Play Count, Last Played, Date Added, Date Modified, Equalizer, Volume Adjustment.
Changing (or designating) the 'iTunes Music folder' location in the Preferences does not instruct iTunes where to look for existing songs it currently knows about. It directs iTunes where to store any new songs it Imports, or 'Adds' and copies to its Library organization (if that attribute is selected). This is an important distinction.
See: About the Add to Library, Import, and Convert functions

Cracked Hard Drive, Lost Music Library.

This one is a bit of a doozy, and was previously left unanswered months ago. So far, it seems I've exhausted all that the Apple Support and Google searches can offer. My goal, as stated in the title, is to get a set of old music onto a old replacement hard drive and my iPod Touch.
The conflict that started it all was the hard drive that held my music cracked and failed to recover any data. Since then, I have had to replace the hard drive in my MacBook Pro with an older hard drive that currently is running OS X 10.6.8
To add insult to injury, my disc drive is incapable of reading my CDs, probably due to the damage the computer took in the same instance as the cracked hard drive.
The only remaining files I have for my music lay in my very outdated, very low-charge 30GB iPod Classic that I cannot use unplugged. What I thought I needed to do is mount my iPod Classic onto the desktop and replace the iTunes library with the one in my iPod as the official support recommends. However, whether it be the outdated iPod model or that I am running 10.6.8, I cannot see or find a disk mounted anywhere on the computer.
If anyone has any helpful pointers, it would be greatly appreciated to let them be known to me. Thanks in advance, and if any other spec details are needed, I can offer them at any time.

[Discussion: Zevoneer's post on replacing music downloaded from iTunes music Store|http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=8794716] - basically it is up to the individual to ensure their music is backed up against loss.
Actually your music is still around, it is on the old hard drive. Do you still have that?
Purely at Apple's discretion they may possibly allow a one time second download, but you have to contact them about that.

Moving songs from external hard drive to Itunes library

I have a bunch of songs on an external hard drive, but my itunes library is on my pc.....I tried to add some of these songs to my library (i played the songs and they were automatically added to the library)....but when i inplugged the external hard drive from my pc and tried to play the songs from the library, it would not let me play them.....an error message came up that stated that the library could not find the device from which the songs came from....why is this?....is there another way to add these songs from the hard drive????

why is this?
The Windows version of iTunes doesn't copy content to the iTunes Music folder when importing from another hard disk by default. Connect the drive and choose Consolidate Library from th Library section of the File menu.
(36713)

Damaged hard disk = erased music library?

Oh god, oh god, oh god, my hard disk's been damaged and I'll slit my throat if my music is gone. I will. Please help! I don't know if it'll erase my music, or f it does, if there's any way to get it back. I don't have iCloud or anything like that so please, for the love of god, HELP.

See Recover your iTunes library from your iPod or iOS device.
tt2

Lost itunes library..what to do now?

Ok I am very confused! I have an ipod mini, and have my itunes library on my computer. Well something is wrong w/ my computer. Now my question is. Can I login into itunes from another computer or something to still get music and stuff? Or do I have to wait until I get my computer working again and find my itunes on there.
Or if I can't get my old itunes library back, what should i do from here? I have ALL of my songs that were in my library on my IPOD, so I dont know what my best bet is. I do not want to loose my songs on my ipod because i paid for alot of them. Please help guide me!

I am experiencing the same problem. My computer crashed and ALL of my songs (over 500!) were deleted and are irretrievable. They are still on my iPod and I know that there is some way to transfer the songs from your iPod to your computer by converting it to a hard disk but I have no idea how to go about doing that. Anyone know?

Adding music folder from hard disk to itunes causes the original music to vanish

what is causing itunes to delete original music folder from hard disk when selecting add folder to itunes

iTunes doesn't have any automatic way of re-creating your directory structure in terms of folders and playlists in iTunes. You will have to drag each music folder to a playlist and then arrange these in folders inside of iTunes (which I warn you can can slow down iTunes a lot). I guess the once chance of speeding this up will be if somebody has written an Applescript to do it, but I don't remeber seeing any anywhere.

How do i get itunes 11 to stop adding music played from external hard drive to itunes library

I use itunes 11 to play music from my external hard drive and when i am finished using the hard drive and disconnect it the artist and songs appear in the itunes libary and when i click on it to play them it cannot locate the file and i assume this is becuse under the advanced prefrences tab i unchecked the auomaticly add played music to itunes library. I do not want my external hard drive music to be added to itunes library which at this point it does not but it is still showing the music in the library even though it cannot be played this is very fustrating please help. how do i get the artist and songs played from the external hardrive from appering in the itunes library.

Do you have a working copy of the library anywhere? The key file is called iTunes Library.itl and normally exists inside <User's Music>\iTunes. This is the file that knows what is in your library and each of the playlists, and holds ratings, play counts etc. Changing the media folder path in preferences tells iTunes where you'd like it to store media in future. It doesn't magically connect iTunes to any media that might already be there, or fix links to media that has been moved, or make it pick up a non-existent library file. If the worst comes to it you will need to import the media into the new empty library.
See Recover your iTunes library from your iPod or iOS device if you have any of these to recover ratings, play stats and playlists, and to associate your device with the new library.
tt2

Broken Hard Disk, lost iTunes library

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