Clearing or resetting Itunes library

I have a question actually, How can I clear and or reset my itunes library itself, So I can start all over and add new music and without having to manually delete songs I dont want on there?

Go into each separate section (music, Movies, Tv shows, Podcasts, etc)
ctl-a to select everything, then press the delete key.
If you want to do it from the menu, it's edit > select all. Then press delete.

Similar Messages

  • Ipod "resets" itunes library

    Hi,
    I have an annoying problem regarding itunes+ipod interaction.
    What happens to me is that when I connect my ipod to my mac almost all the ratings of the tracks in my library disappear. Fortunately i have my "itunes library" file backed up and all I have to do is restore that same file but I can't update my music on the ipod with the correct ratings because if I plug it in, it's as if a reset happened.
    Does this happens to anyone else or does anyone know a solution for this?
    Thanks

    Hi,
    I have an annoying problem regarding itunes+ipod interaction.
    What happens to me is that when I connect my ipod to my mac almost all the ratings of the tracks in my library disappear. Fortunately i have my "itunes library" file backed up and all I have to do is restore that same file but I can't update my music on the ipod with the correct ratings because if I plug it in, it's as if a reset happened.
    Does this happens to anyone else or does anyone know a solution for this?
    Thanks

  • ITunes Library Auto-resets/Disappears

    Every once in a while, while running iTunes, I'll get a "unable to connect to iTunes Library file" error message. The next time I use iTunes, my library will be completely cleared out. The music files will still be on my hard drive, but the library file itself seems to have reset to zero.
    When I look at the My Music/iTunes folder, there will be multiple (+10) Temp files ranging from 2Mb to up to 35Mb. What are these files and can I use them to restore my Library (and playlists)?
    This issue only occurs on my computer at work. We've got a network set up that directs the My Docs folder to a local server here in the office (I think the setting is called "mapped network folder"). Since the location of the iTunes Library data can not be changed from My Docs and since My Docs is not located on this local machine,I'd guess that this is what is causing the overall issue. What I'm looking for a way to repair/restore the Library (and playlists) without creating a new one from scratch.
    It would also be nice to know why iTunes is creating multiple Temp files that appear to do nothing other than take up space.

    Since the location of the iTunes Library data can not be changed from My Docs...
    Sure it can. Install TweakUI and change the location of the My Music folder to somewhere on the local drive. Done and done.

  • After I reset my Ipod (deleted all data and settings) windows 7 doesn't recognize by ipod touch, and it doesn't appear in the itunes library or in the device menu, but it does charge. How can I get my computer to recognize it again?

    After I reset my Ipod (deleted all data and settings) windows 7 doesn't recognize by ipod touch, and it doesn't appear in the itunes library or in the device menu, but it does charge. How can I get my computer to recognize it again?

    Refer to this article:
    iOS: Device not recognized in iTunes for Windows
    http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1538

  • I had to recreate my itunes library and now, when i tried to sync my ipod, i got a warning that everything currently on my ipod would be cleared; how do i sync without losing the information currently on my ipod?

    Recently I was forced to recreate my entire iTunes library.  My computer shut down unexpectedly and when I restarted it, my iTunes library was gone from the iTunes software.  After *finally* receiving some information from iTunes support about restoring the library (which meant I had to do exactly what I was afraid I would have to do--basically click-and-drag the entire contents from my hard drive back into the library), I wanted to update my iPod with the songs I'd added since the last updating.  And this is where more trouble began.
    When I plugged in my iPod to sync it with the library, I got a warning message informing me that the library currently on the iPod would be cleared during the syncing, because the iPod can only be associated with "one" library.  Well, I did NOT want to do that because I wanted to retain the playcount and other information about the songs.  I was also hoping to keep the playlists currently on the iPod.
    So, my first instinct was to contact iTunes support.  The only problem there was that going through the Support pages ended up with my needing to call Apple.  I'd attempted that when I first lost the library and was told by the Support associate that ALL iTunes help and support must be done online.  Ironic, huh?  I can't get iTunes support online until I call Apple support to get a direct web address to take me to the express lane help pages.  And, unfortunately, I made the mistake of uninstalling and reinstalling my AOL software and lost ALL of my e-mails with the iTunes support addresses in the process. 
    So basically, I need to know what to do here.  Is there a way to keep the current iTunes library on my iPod and still syncing with the recreated library or do I just need to accept the loss of the library currently on my iPod?  I may try to call Apple Support and get that iTunes online support address again but I'd really like to get this resolved more quickly.  The last time that I called and then I got the iTunes online help address, it ended up taking 2 days to get that help.

    Hi. The two user tips both describe a sequence of steps that should get your library from the point where it threatens to wipe data from your device to where it is syncing normally, while recovering as much information as possible. It may still be necessary to wipe and reload the device but this should only take place once all the data that can be recovered has been recovered.
    Doing step 1 of 8 and then complaining things aren't the way you want them to be yet strikes me as premature...
    Since you appear to have all your media content, and we are discussing an iPod classic, not an iOS device, the main worries are already taken care of. What's left is ratings, playcounts, playlist membership and checked status. Since your device holds only part of your library at best you could only recover the missing data for the content that is on the device using third party tools.
    Recreating the previous checked/unchecked status of every track in your library from where you are now may not be that easy. Syncing with selected playlists has many advantages, one of which would have been that you would have a named playlist that could have been retrieved by 3rd party software if you had used this method.
    You haven't explained what caused your problem in the first place, but if you have a Previous iTunes Libraries folder holding old copies of your iTunes database (generated with each iTunes update) then it would be possible to restore the most recent of these and then update the library with any changes in your media folder.
    BTW Apple doesn't offer free support for this kind of issue with iTunes.
    tt2

  • I recently reset my computer and copy my music from an external hard drive to my itunes library.  When I click on a song to play i get an error message that says " the song could not be used because the original file could not be found".  need help

    I recently reset my computer and copy my music from an external hard drive to my itunes library.  When I click on a song to play i get an error message that says " the song could not be used because the original file could not be found".  But when I have my external hard drive plug in the song will play with no problem.  What do I need to do to play my music without having the external harddrive plug in ????????  Please help

    Because the location for each song in your library is on your hard drive.  If the hard drive isn't there, how can iTunes play it?
    You'll have to move/copy the music from your hard drive to your computer's hard drive.
    Basically, EASIEST way to do all this, if you don't care about your play counts, etc...
    -Delete EVERYTHING from iTunes, so that your library is now empty.
    -Go to "Advanced" inside of the "Preferences" window, found in the "Edit" drop-down.  You can also access Preferences by pressing Ctrl+, (Press Ctrl and the comma key)
    -Change your iTunes Media Folder Location to something simple, but on your computer. I use C:/iTunes.  Make sure "Keep iTunes Media Folder Organized" and "Copy files to...." are both checked.  You can close Preferences now.
    -Now, drag and drop your music from your hard drive into your iTunes library.  iTunes will automatically add the music to your library, as you would expect, and also creates a copy of each file to place into that iTunes Media Folder you just created.
    Shouldn't have any more problems...

  • I Get an Error "To Access Your iTunes Library ..." And Other Things Are Wonky Too ... Can't Reset ... Internet Radio Drops ... But Things Look To Be Set Up Okay

    When I use my Apple TV and try to play music from my computer I get an error: "To access your iTunes library on Apple TV, turn on Home Sharing in iTunes on your computer using 'myname'"
    On my computer n iTunes Preferences / Sharing I have the "Share my library on my local network" checked with "Share entire library" -- no password, no update play counts.  I've turned it off and on again.
    The Apple TV settings show we are "talking to" my WIFI -- it has my network, shows a good signal strenght, all sorts of internet addresses and IP stuff I don't understand ...
    The "Internet" tab works with some of those things I'd never use -- like I see the current NHL standings.
    My TV works and I get an ATV signal and those little chimes / bongs when I hit things in the menu.  And when it works I get audio so the cables and TV are okay.
    In the past I had trouble with the settings for my favourite Internet Radio stations (the provider changed their URL but Apple didn't update the presets for a while) but those are now resolved.
    I had a crappy old G class router and week signal strenght but I have a new N class Cisco router with a strong signal.
    But other things are wonky:
    * I play interent radio and my station will go fine for about five minutes then stop -- the little wheel spins trying to reconnect.  Sometimes it resets but more often than not it won't.  I just tried again four hours later and the same thing.
    * I've unplugged the ATV and plugged it back in but no noticable improvement
    * I tried to do the factory reset from the ATV menu.  It says it will download the latest bla bla bla and after a few minutes tells me "Apple TV can't download latest update right now, try again later" -- I've tried three times today always with the same results.
    * I unhooked it from the power and HDMI and plugged it into a Micro USB cable and plugged that into my Mac -- it doesn't show up in the devices in iTunes.
    * I have a bunch of photos in a folder that I use for my ATV Screen Saver.  A few weeks ago I added two photos to that folder -- they don't show up in the ATV screen show but the others still do.
    * When I started today I checked my iTunes and the airplay icon didn't show in the bottom right (beside the genious icon and the little thing to show or hide the sidebar).  Now I noticed the Airplay icon is there.  When I try to switch from playing through my computer speaakers to my Apple TV I get an error "An unknown error (-15006) occurred while connecting to the Airplay device "Apple TV"" -- the ATV shows that Airplay is on.
    * I see from the ATV settings that I'm running ATV Software 4.4.3 (3323) and when I do a "Update Software" on the ATV it tells me that my software is current.
    * My iTunes is 10.5.2 (11) and my OS is 10.6.8 -- both are up to date.
    Yikes and double yikes!
    Any ideas?

    Hey Chunk,
    I love the idea of the ATV more than I have loved the little black box but ... famous last words ... my ATV seems to be working better these days.
    A big challenge for me was too many variables at play -- new router, new ATV OS / firmware / whatever, changing internet radio presets, a less than perfect physical set up ... and a short attention span from yours truly.
    Here's what I did.  Somwhere in these changes things got "fixed."
    * I unhooked the ATV and did a factory restore by hard wiring the ATV to my computer with a micro USB cable (no external power needed) working through iTunes (I run iTunes 10.5.2 on an iMac with OS X 10.6.8).
    * after the reset I now have ATV (is that an operating system or a firmware?) 4.4.4
    * then I plugged it back into my home theatre and it didn't work :-) but in slightly different ways.  The settings showed that I was connected to my home network but I couln't get connected using my Apple ID and no internet radio.  (it is often counterintuitive -- like why when I want my ATV to talk to my iMac over my local network am I logging in to the iTnes Store with my Apple ID? but there you go.)
    * I booked with the genius bar at the Apple Store and put my ATV in my pocket.  They pulled out a TV, HDMI cable, ATV power source and even the remote -- all I provided was my little black ATV.  We hooked the ATV to their TV and from the Apple Store (using thier WIFI) I logged in using my Apple ID and the thing worked fine.
    * so now I knew that my ATV was up to date and it worked in the Apple Store using their network so it looked like the issue was my network.
    * rebooted my router and noticed that when I had upgraded to the new super dooper Cisco n router we had plugged my iMac direct to the router via ethernet cable.  I unhooked the ethernet and now just run my computer WIFI using AirPort.
    And ...
    It works.  I use my ATV exclusivly for music -- my iTunes and internet radio and AirPlay -- and now both work fine.  The ATV does pick up photos from my iPhoto for the screen saver and all that other stuff -- netflix, youtube, the hockey scores, ... all seem to be there.  And my son played a video off his iPod Touch using AirPlay.
    I know my approach is more scattered than a proper scientific try but ...
    From my experience ... reset the ATV and get it up to date; see if it will work on someone else's network; check your network set up.
    Good luck!

  • My computer crashed, had to reset. I lost my ITunes library, I have my muxsic on my Ipod, just created a new Apple ID, bought 2 new songs, but I cannot sync the new purchase to my Ipod. How can I copy the new purchase to my Ipod and or how can I copy my ?

    My computer crashed. Had to reset totally. Re-installed Itunes, forgot my Apple ID, so I created a new one. Now I don't have my music library. I just purchased two new songs, they are now in the Itune library. But I can't sync them to my Ipod, much less transfer the music in my Ipod to the Itunes Library, could anyone help me with this problem?

    Call Apple Care for your country and request that they assist you in resetting the security questions.
    To authorize/deauthorize a computer, go to the Store dropdown menu in the iTunes app.

  • My  iTunes Library cleared out after the forced shutdown, how to recover it?

    So here is the thing, yesterday as usual, i was adding songs to my 10,000 tracks library's super organized as i do most of the time. Then i decided to shut down the computer  instead of just putting in of just hibernating him as i always do.. So my habit was to just close the laptop, this time i had it clicked to shut down but then i closed it before it really turned off. That means today when i opened it back it still was asking me if i really wanted to force quit the applications i had still opened, i said 'yes' and then the computer truly shut down. Then i restarted it again, opened browser, and when i open iTunes ALL my library was simply gone!
    I know that i didnt trashed any of the .itl or .xml files the day before so i really shocked when i saw it I dont know why did it happened, i wasnt updating iTunes or anything else..
    I went to 'iTunes' Folder in 'Music' folder, and there were the 'iTunes Library' .itl and a 'iTunes Library (2)' files along with the usual Extra, Genius .itl files and the .xml too.
    So ive searched on the thrash that by casualty still had files from TEMP folder i had erased a few weeks ago, and there only Extra and Genius .itl files but no iTunes Library .itl file... So it was not a thing happened by my manual deleting.
    I've tried re-installing the latest version of iTunes i found on the site (it was just a 'repair' since the version was up to date) and opened it again and there was still nothing :/
    I checked 'Previous iTunes Libraries' folder and f****! The newest file was from March this year (2012), i knew that ive added hundreds of new songs since that date and one other thing, i knew that date was not the latest update ive done to iTunes, the last one was for sure way after that kinda something in May or June so i dont know too why did it not appeared that .itl file.
    So i tried opening that 'iTunes Library (2)', and from my 10k songs it would only show ~8900 and then i tried the 'iTunes Library' from March and it would only show 9000 songs, So i guess im ****** up by 1000 songs difference... That is a lot a still, since they were all organized by Name, Artist, Album, Genre, Year, Rate, Times Played, Artwork,etc..
    So now i have serious problems..
    Do you have any suggestion on ways i could follow in order to find my 'Yesterday' Library infos and songs? With all the stuff it had? Like rewinding in time?
    Even if you dont, and presuming i would want to add those 1000 missing files from the iTunes Music folder where, dont know why, says i have 14k songs, which is very strange since i always delete to recicle bin all the songs i want to clear out from the Library so they wont stay in folder and not in iTunes, so how could i add those missing 1000 without adding those other 9000 that would be repeated??
    Please, somebody help me with this, because at this moment im really out of solutions and my Library and its organization are "my babies" and it would be a devastating loss to me if i have to ruined this way :S

    Reinstalling iTunes won't ever repair damaged libraries or find lost files.
    Unlike nearly all Windows software double-clicking an iTunes Library file does not necessarily open the selected database. Rather, iTunes opens the last database it successfully opened, or if that was in the "normal" <User's Music>\iTunes location, but is missing, it will create a new empty library.
    You can open an alternate library file, or create a new one, by holding down shift as you start iTunes. Although you can open the library files in the Previous iTunes Libraries folder this way, your library will perform better if you restore the archived library database to the main iTunes folder in the way that I have described.
    Your most recent library may be present in the main iTunes folder as a .tmp file, or recoverable via a file undelete tool, however either of these files, if found, may be partially corrupt getting you no further forward.
    The two most recent releases of iTunes were June 11th and March 28th 2012..
    Yes I read your post, but I don't know if you know all of the above. If you had a full backup of your library you could just restore that. It is possible that what you've tried so far hasn't yet brought back the most complete version of your library that is available to you. As a last resort you will have to work with what you have and add in whatever media is not in that version of your library, accepting the loss of recently added ratings, playlists & play counts.
    You can simply add the entire iTunes Media folder using File > Add Folder to Library folder which should ignore everything already in the library and only add new (to that database) stuff. If there is any chance that your iTunes media folder contains .m3u playlist files the import process will also import all of those, which may not be what you want. iTunes Folder Watch would then present a better approach.
    tt2

  • When my ipod is plugged into my computer music disappears, sometime it tries to upload songs, clears my playlists, and can't locate the songs files. All the same songs are in my Itunes library on my computer. What can i do?

         When I plug my Ipod into my computer it shows all my songs on it as reloading onto the device,
    and sometimes it can't locate the files or they are just gone. All my songs are in my Itunes library
    on my computer, and I do have it in my settings not sync the Ipod with my computer so I can
    manage the content myself. It has happened multiple times.
          I have cleared my Ipod off as well as my computer, and put all the music back on without seeing
    any improvement. And as of today when I tried again it shows some songs on there but with 3 copies
    of the same song trying to upload onto my ipod. And have of my playlist where empty. I am getting
    frustrated and don't know what to do. Help.

    See these previous posts on dotted circles
    https://discussions.apple.com/message/20813679#20813679
    https://discussions.apple.com/message/20792130#20792130
    https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5524609?tstart=0
    https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4643160?start=15&tstart=0

  • I want to sync the songs on my Mac to my iPod, but it says An iPod can be synced with only one iTunes library at a time. Erasing and syncing replaces the contents of this iPod with the contents of this iTunes library.' Will this reset my iPod completely?

    I want to sync the songs on my Mac to my iPod, but it says, 'An iPod can only be synced to one iTunes Library at a time. Erasing and syncing replaces the contents of this iTunes Library.' Will this reset my iPod completely (my iPod is 4th gen)?

    Was your iPod associated with a different mac or pc previously is all. And was it backed up or sync'd on this mac with iTunes previously.
    http://www.apple.com/support/itunes

  • What should I do if I got my ipod reset and now it won't show up in my itunes library

    What should I do if I got my ipod reset and now it won't show up in my itunes library?

    Place the iPod in recovery mode and then restore the iPod via iTunes on your computer. For recovery mode:
    iPhone and iPod touch: Unable to update or restore

  • I'm sorry for repeating this, but i have not found a clear answer. i have a macbook wit iTunes library, an iMac, and a time capsule. how can i transfer my itunes library from TC backup to the iMac? thank you -

    i'm sorry for repeating this, but i have not found a clear, step-by-step answer in several hours.
    i have a macbook with iTunes library, a new iMac, and a new time capsule. how can i transfer my itunes library from TC backup to the iMac?
    (sharing the iTunes library between the macbook & iMack requires both machines and seems silly ...)
    thank you -

    No.

  • I keep getting the message @itunes library cannot be read because it was created by a newer version of Itunes - I had to reset my computer due to a printer failure to an earlier version...

    I keep getting the message'Itunes library cannot be read because it was started by a later version' - I had to recently reset my computer to an earlier version as I had a printer problem

    Then you either need to upgrade iTunes again, or fish out the older version of your library from the Previous iTunes Libraries folder (inside <Profile's Music>\iTunes) that corresponds to the older version of iTunes you are now using. You can rename the current .itl file as say iTunes Library (10.5).itl and then rename the copied file as iTunes Library.itl.
    tt2.

  • "Date Added" gets reset when importing iTunes library

    I have recently made the switch from a PC to a MacBook. I copied my previous iTunes Music Library.xml file over and followed the Apple instructions to import all my music ratings, playcounts, etc. in to the new iTunes library (deleting the iTunes Library.itl file and importing the old library through Library>Import Playlist). Everything copied over fine except the "Date Added," which resets to today's date. I also tried copy & pasting the old library text into the new iTunes Library.xml file, and it still reset itself once I opened iTunes. I have used this process before in switching to a new PC and it kept the "Date Added" information.
    Does anyone know if this is an issue with the new versions of iTunes? The version is 8.0.2. Or is it an issue with switching from PC to Mac? More importantly, does anyone have any ideas on how to keep my "Date Added"? I use it regularly for sorting music and for Smart Playlists.
    Any help would be appreciated!

    I'll second the question! I just moved my music from my MBP to my new iMac, and the date added is today's date for all of the songs from my library on my MBP. Please post if you find answer redhead828. Thanks!

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