Forgot to tick - Add files to itunes media folder

Hi, im new to itunes and have recently downloaded my cd collection to itunes ( 7000 odd tracks worth)
Ive just realised that i never had the "add files to itunes media folder when adding to library" box ticked.
I would like to know if im am still able to add all my music to the itunes media folder now that they are already downloaded and in my library?
I would like to know this because i would like to use some songs in windows movie maker and when i search for the music using wmm, i can find the itunes media folder but there is no music inside.
Can anyone help on this matter ,
Thanks scott

In iTunes parlance a file is consolidated if it is located inside the iTunes Media folder, and by extension unconsolidated if outside the media folder. The option you refer to, if enabled, ensures that all tracks added to the library thereafter are consolidated, though it won't affect tracks that are already part of the library when you make the change.
Having the files consolidated means that iTunes can, if you wish, also update the file and folder names to reflect changes that you make to tags. A fully consolidated library where the media folder is a subfolder of the main iTunes library folder is also portable making it much easier to backup, restore, move or migrate.
You can consolidate your entire library with File > Library > Organise Library > Consoldiate files, or selected files by right-clicking on them and clicking Consolidate files.
tt2

Similar Messages

How can I move my media files from USB-HD to NAS without having to copy the media files to iTunes Media folder?

I have iTunes on a Mac with the iTunes Media folder stored locally and the music on an external USB-HD. The music files are Not copied to iTunes Media folder when added to the library.
Now I want to move my files from USB-HD to a NAS without losing any information or settings. I want to do the similar to my iPhoto library. I do not want to consolidate my files to iTunes Media folder. The articles I’ve read only discuss how to do if the files are copied to iTunes Media folder when added to the library. Any tips or trix?

I have iTunes on a Mac with the iTunes Media folder stored locally and the music on an external USB-HD. The music files are Not copied to iTunes Media folder when added to the library.
How are you achieving the above? What are your copy setting in preferences? If you are manually overriding the copy-to by holding down the option key while adding media then that won't apply when you import a playlist (as in importing the .xml). When you import a playlist like that you are essentially adding the files to the library again and it will obey the preferences setting since you can't option add them that way.
Correct on the .itl. Only iTunes itself can edit that file.
I think you need to review your basic wants/needs in doing all this. If your reason for not wanting to use the Media Folder settiing is because you do not want it to go on the internal drive, but you don't actually mind if it organizes it as long as it is on the NAS, change the Media Folder preferences setting to the NAS and let it consolidate to there. If you want to move the stuff but keep it organized in your own folder structure you may need to do it as I suggested initially. Once it is on the NAS and iTunes recognize the file locations you can do what you can only do if you manually manage music which is move it around in Finder afterward once it is on the drive and recognized to tweak location to your final wishes.

ITunes consolidation creates duplicate files in iTunes Media folder

Hi,
I recently downgraded from iTunes 11.0.2.26 to 10.7 to get around an AirPlay bug i see starting in 11.0.
As a result I need to rebuild part of my iTunes library and am seeing some strange behavior.
I have some Movie files currently in the iTunes Media folder (where iTunes is pointed for the media) -- when I drag and drop these into iTunes and do "Consolidate Library", iTunes creates 2 files (1 is a duplicate) in the Movie folder. For example, if I have a movie titled "HomeMovie" I see the following folders:
"Movies --> HomeMovie" and within the HomeMoview folder I see the following 2 files: HomeMovie.m4v, HomeMovie 1.m4v
There is only a single listing (HomeMovie) in the iTunes interface, pointing to HomeMovie 1.m4v.
Strange.
I can get around this by deleting HomeMovie 1.m4v. and pointing iTunes to HomeMovie.m4v, but this is not desirable.
"Copy files to iTunes Media Folder" is disabled.
I am also seeing this behavior when dragging and dropping files from an external Hard Drive.
Any suggestions?
Thanks,
Kevin

Hi,
I have been doing some testing on this subject and I agree that PSE does leave unwanted temporary files around.
I checked out PSE 9, PSE 10 and PSE 11 and they all leave the temporary files there. I'm assuming that the files are created as a safety measure for when the main file is updated but as you have found out, PSE doesn't remove them.
By reading other forum threads, I get the impression that Adobe aren't really interested in it as they feel we should tidy up our own file system. It's like taking a walk through the park and dropping some litter - do you pick it up or leave it for the park keeper to pick up. I was always told to pick it up.
I'm not sure whether you are aware, but there is another Adobe forum for bug reports and feeback. I think Adobe may look there more than they do on this forum. I searched that forum and found a similar question asked but nobody has answered. I have added my count and comments with a link to this thread. If you can, it might be good for you to add your count.
http://feedback.photoshop.com/photoshop_family/topics/photoshop_elements_organizer_leaves_ temporary_files
Sorry it's not an answer to your problem, but you are not alone.
Brian

Is consolidating library necessary if you have the "copy files to itunes media folder" box checked?

Like the title, Since I've had iTunes I've always had the box checked for "copy files to itunes media folder"... if I want to backup my itunes folder now, do I still have to consolidate the library? I just copied it over without consolidating and it took like half an hour, so I'm just wondering if I should do it again after consolidating? I'm assuming it's fine. It seems to have transfered all 70G of my music.

Sharing,
What Consolidate does is look thru your iTunes library, and for any track that is not already in your iTunes Media Folder, it puts a copy there.
If you have always had Copy checked, and have never moved your iTunes Media Folder, and have not manually put any files elsewhere, then you probably already have all your files in the iTunes Media Folder, and would not need to run Consolidate. However, it would not hurt.

Attempting to copy files fails(i can't add files to the media folder)

I am using Itunes 10 on windows 7 64 bit and my problem is :
I changed the default storage directoy (because my first HDD is too small )
to the second disk of mine , by going to edit,advanced preferences and changing the path and clicking "Copy files to my itunes media folder when adding to libray"(i need this option)"
Since then whenever i try to add something to the library(it can add to the library its the extra copy feature in whcih it fails) i get the error
"Attempting to copy to the disk "name of the disk" failed.You do not have enough access privileges for this operation."
Please i need some help.Thanks

mmick33 wrote:
Itunes version 10.7 I could drag and drop tunes from Itunes recently added folder to my iphone folder. with upgrade to version 11 when i try to drag and drop it gives me the (/) symbol thus not able to perform this function that I could in old ver 10.7 what changed?
I don't know, but in general I would advise adding content to the library, then adding the content from the library to the device. Syncing with selected playlists is easiest as you can manage the content when the device isn't connected and you'll be able to restore the selections if you need to restore the device.
tt2

ITunes not displaying current files in iTunes Media folder

My iTunes Media folder with all the Music and Applications are there but iTunes does not show all these files
E.g. My iTunes Media folder has 50 albums
iTunes only displays 20 albums.

Hi, welcome to Apple Discussions.
Unlike Windows Media Player, iTunes doesn't automatically scan your media folders for new/changed files.
*Adding new items/removing orphans*
Try iTunes Folder Watch or iTunes Library Updater. Folder Watch is much faster on the adding files front, can be set to run in the background and includes a useful exclusion feature, however it’s slower at removing orphans. iTLU is better for this although for small numbers of files doing it manually after looking at a list of proposed removals generated by Folder Watch is probably faster still. iTLU can also be set to update iTunes when you've used 3rd party tools to change tag info.
You may need to amend the list of file types these programs look for. My list includes:
.mp3 .mp4 .m4a .m4b .m4p .m4v .mov .wav .aif .mid .ipa .ipg .ite .itlp .m4r .epub .pdf
Note the last 7 types may not be recognised as already being in the library so should either be omitted from the search or you can add (at least for Folder Watch) individual exclusions for files you know are already in your library.
tt2

ITunes not storing files in iTunes media folder location

A number of years ago I wanted to move my itunes media files to an external drive. At the time an article was posted that explained how to do such that. Additionally the article explained how to put the media files in one folder on the external file server and all the itunes definition files in another folder on the same external file server. It worked perfectly! All seemed well. Of course since making this change there have been many many updates to iTunes and the OS.
Recently, I was scanning through the folders of the external file server and noticed some media files that appeared in the iTunes application listing were missing in the physical iTunes media folder (folder A). After a little searching I found the media files were in the iTunes definitions folder (folder B). Initially I thought somehow I had changed the folder location under the iTunes advanced tab. I checked it stilled pointed to the ORIGINAL folder A location. Yet iTunes had for a while as it turns out had created a whole new media folder tree and was adding the media files to that media tree (folder B). This is the folder the original only contained the iTunes definitions.
Thinking I had made a mistake somewhere sometime ago, I copied all the media files to the proper folder (folder A) and reset the iTunes Media folder location to point to folder A. All was fine.
Today I added some new media to the iTunes library and once again, iTunes created a new media folder tree in folder B were only the iTunes definitions are supposed to be stored. So once again I moved the media files to the proper folder.
There is no question THIS IS A SOFTWARE BUG. It does NOT matter what folder location is specified in the Preferences->Advanced->itunes media location is specified, iTunes will either CHANGE the folder location to wherever the definitions files are located or begin putting the media files where the definitions files are located even though the iTunes media location is setting to a different folder.
when this started I do not know. I have been using itunes for a number of years and once I had my external file server set up never had reason to check it.
One might ask why put the media files in one location and the definition files in another location. That is because there was a time when iTunes for some reason would think it definition files were corrupted and start to do nasty things to the media library. Once I lost a number of songs it is then when I found a note in this forum that suggested putting the definitions in one folder and the media in another folder. It was great idea. Is there a work around of a fix for this bug?

Some additional information.
When I click the apps tab in iTunes, some of the applications listed are actually songs (the songs are also shown in the music list and point to the proper location), when I click Get Info on some of the apps, it points to a song, and some apps that actually exist in the Mobile Apps folder are shown to located in a song folder. Bottom line the apps database is corrupted.
When I consolidated the music files I did not touch the mobile applications folder. As best I can tell all the movies and songs are fine (about 3000 items in total).
When I export the library it does not include the apps in the xml file. So deleting the iTunes DB and re-importing the .xml will not work.
To recap. All the songs and movies are in one folder (folder A). This is the folder listed in the Preferences->Advanced->Itunes media location. The apps folder is located in a different folder (folder B) where the iTunes definition files are located. How they got there I do not know.
How do I fix the apps tab and have the app icons (and physical applications) to point to the proper location? Also to remove the songs listed in the apps list without removing the song from the iTunes library.

Files in itunes media folder but itunes cant locate

All my music is in my ITunes Media - Music folder, but there is exclamation points beside 4,000+ songs. How can i locate all the files at once? (When I use the locate the rest of the media option, it says it can't find the files!) Help!!!

I was hoping to compare an actual path with where iTunes thought the file should be but you haven't supplied a correspondiing location. Typically when all music can't be found the cause is that iTunes has the layout of the library wrong. Here is an older thread on the topic..
From what you said earlier it would seem the tracks are where they are supposed to be... One trick that might work in such circumstances is to change the media folder under Edit > Preferences > Advanced to say the iTunes folder, DO NOT CONSOLIDATE, then change it back to iTunes/iTunes Media, again DO NOT CONSOLIDATE.
If that still doesn't work you can see what luck my FindTracks script has in locating the elusive files.
tt2

ITunes doesn't play files stored in iTunes media Folder

Hi, have this problem:
I had deleted my files from iTunes media folder, but as luckily I had the same files located in other place I just copied them to the iTunes Media but iTunes rejects to play them (in my iTunes Library). I'm only able to play them if I go through the procedure as followings: Play - "iTunes unable to open this file because the original file not found. Do you want to find it?" (or smith like that) - Find - Open and then it plays, but I have to perform these actions with every file separately and I have quite a lot of them. Oh, and after that first popping-up window the next one appears "Would you like iTunes to find other missing files from the same location as [the file's name]?" But when I click on "Find" it says "iTunes were unable to find other missing files". Why? How do I accomplish the same task but with all my albums at once without necessity to add them one by one? Does there some way exists to tie the tracks from my albums with original files without importing them to my iTunes library?
Thank you

Understand how iTunes works. iTunes does not actively look for files. When you add a file to iTunes the location of that file is saved in the iTunes database (library file). When you try to play a track iTunes looks in its database for where the linked file is to be found and tries to play the specific file it has listed in that location. If you deleted the file then it no longer exists. I think even if you replace it with one that is identical, iTunes is still looking for that specific file. You can link the track listing to a new file using the process you have done. In theory iTunes should be able to find others but the files have to have been organized by iTunes in the past because it will be working on the basis of how it thinks they should be arranged. Additionally the files you replaced have to have exactly the same name as the ones you deleted because iTunes will expect them to be named how it would name them when they were first entered into your library

Automatically add files to iTunes not processing mp4 files on Windows 8.1

I have iTunes 12.1.1.4 install on a Windows 8 (x64) system. I have been using iTunes for quite some time and my library is located at c:\Music. On earlier versions (version 10 of iTunes for example) I would drop an MP4 file into c:\Music\Automatically Add to iTunes" directory and iTunes would process this file and add to either the movies or TV Shows section.
I have not used this feature in some time but now have started to. Currently, if I place the mp4 in that directory, iTunes does not do anything with the video. I have gotten to using "Add Folder to Library" and iTunes will then process the directory. I do have "Keep iTunes Media folder organized" and "Copy Files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library" checked.
How can I get iTunes to recognize that a file has been placed in this directory and process it?

Two possibilities:
iTunes has processed the file but has categorized it as "Home Movies" rather than other video kinds - in this case you'll be able to find it under that heading in iTunes. Note that there's a bug in iTunes 12 where even if you then change the media kind - for example, to "TV Show" or "Movie" - it will be shown in the new category in the iTunes UI but the files will still be in the "Home Movies" folder under iTunes Media
If iTunes has not been able to process the file, you should find within a Not Added folder under Automatically Add to iTunes - the most likely cause of this is that the MP4 files are using a codec that is not compatible with iTunes.

ITunes adds duplicate songs when importing but not making copies in the iTunes Media folder?

This is an irregular problem and does not happen at every new import, but every now & again iTunes is creating duplicate files entries for the same song when I import my music folder.
Now I know many people post a similar problem, but before we start can I state that both the 'Keep iTunes Media folder organized AND "Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library are turned off, and always have been.
Right clicking on duplicates of a particular song proves that iTunes is not copying the file into it's own media folder and adding that to the library.
All listed entries for a particular song iTunes direct you to the same file in the same location in the finder.
I am currently just having to delete the duplicates everytime it makes them, although this is VERY time consuming!
Any ideas on what is causing it or what will fix the problem would be great!

Nevermind...I figured out my issue. The problem is that I'm an idiot.
When dragging my folders in, they not only had MP3 files, but a M3U file as well. iTunes was importing the M3U playlist, then the MP3s...that's how I was getting my dups.
=\

What's the difference between the music in the iTunes Media folder and music folder

I've noticed that the music in my iTunes folder has two copies -- one in the 'iTunes Media' directory and another copy in the 'iTUnes Music' directory. Can anyone tell me what the difference is between the two, or what they're used for? When I click on a music file in the Music folder, iTunes opens up and plays, but the same thing happens when I click on the file in the Media directory. I have noticed that the file in the Media directory has the icon for the album cover next to the file name, while the icon for the file in the Music folder just has a couple of eight notes next to the file name.
It seems to me that it's a waste of space two have copies of the same file. Or am I missing something?

Here are typical layouts for the iTunes folders:
If you have upgraded from version 8 (or earlier) to iTunes 9 (or later) at some point, then your media folder (everything inside the red outline) may still be called iTunes Music instead of iTunes Media. The extra Music folder inside the media folder is used if you have allowed iTunes to Upgrade to iTunes Media Organization (iTunes 9) or used File > Library > Organize Library > Reorganize files in the folder "<Media Folder>" (iTunes 10). Depending on your choices for Keep iTunes Media folder organized and Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library plus a little bug in which one build changed the name of the file storing the choice of layout it is quite easy for some of your files to be organized according to one layout and some the other.
In your case it seems you also have both media folders structures sitting side by side with music in each. It is probable that everything in iTunes Music has a duplicate in iTunes Media, but if you are not sure then you could add it all in, then remove duplicates. (Steps 6-12 below)
Assuming you're happy letting iTunes organize your files the following steps should tidy things up:
1. First make sure under Edit > Preferences > Advanced that the current media folder is given as .../iTunes/iTunes Media. If not then in the following steps you need to swap the words iTunes Music for iTunes Media and vice-versa
2. Select File > Library > Organize Library... > Tick Reorganize files in the folder "iTunes Media" and click OK. Ignore this step if the option is greyed out.
3. Select File > Library > Organize Library... > Tick Consolidate files and click OK. This will bring any files currently organised outside the designated media folder into it.
4. Select Edit > Preferences > Advanced tab, uncheck Keep iTunes Media folder organized and click OK.
5. Select Edit > Preferences > Advanced tab, check Keep iTunes Media folder organized and click OK. This triggers iTunes into reorganizing everything.
6. Select Edit > Preferences > Advanced tab, uncheck Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library and click OK.
7. Use File > Add Folder to Library. Add iTunes Music. This may take some time.
8. Hold down the option key and click File > Show Exact Duplicates.
9. Sort the library on Date Added, select everything added today and delete it.
10. Click Display All at the bottom of the screen to show all files again.
11. Select File > Library > Organize Library... > Tick Consolidate files and click OK.
12. You have now confirmed that everything inside iTunes Music must be a duplicate copy of something in the iTunes Media folder and made sure your library is connected to the copy in iTunes Media. Delete the iTunes Music folder...
tt2

How to Share One iTunes Media Folder on a Windows Laptop and Mac Laptop

I have an HP EX490 Home Server setup. I want to use the Music Share volume to act as the home for all of our music. I am using a MacBook Pro and my wife is using a Dell Windows Vista Laptop. I have my iTunes pointing to the iTunes Media Folder on the Music Share. The iTunes Library resides on my laptop in Music/iTunes/Library. I used the consolidate library feature and it moved all the music to the appropriate iTunes folder on the Share. Now I want to do that with the Windows Vista Laptop. I have the Vista laptop pointing to the Share for the iTunes Media folder location. The question is how do I add the files to her library? Do I "consolidate library" again or just "add folder to library"? Also do I keep the boxes checked "Keep iTunes Media folder organized" and "Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library" under the Advanced Tab in Preferences? Would greatly appreciate the help. Lots of music/videos and only want to do this once.
Thanks in Advance
Tom

Tom DePrenda wrote:
I used the consolidate library feature and it moved all the music to the appropriate iTunes folder on the Share.
Good!
I have the Vista laptop pointing to the Share for the iTunes Media folder location.
Good!
The question is how do I add the files to her library?
Go to your File menu and use the command Add Folder to Library. When the dialog comes up, point it to the Music folder in the Share area. But read on first...
Also do I keep the boxes checked "Keep iTunes Media folder organized"
You must turn off the "Keep..." option. Otherwise, when one of you changes a tag, iTunes will re-"organize" and the other person's iTunes will lose the link.
The "Copy..." option should also be turned off. As you add new music, put it where you want it. Then you must "Add File to Library" from each iTunes.

How to split up a large iTunes Media folder onto different drives?

Hi everyone. Not too long ago I committed to digital-only media, which i am very happy with. The problem i am running into now is that my iTunes media folder is now only 100GB or so shy of the 2TB mark, so it will soon outgrow the largest of hard drives available. I have considered getting a RAID card for my Mac Pro to setup a RAID 0 with two 2TB drives, but I don't think i should have to drop $700 just to get my iTunes media organized onto any of the four 2TB drives i already have.
Ideally i would like to move my Movies folder (650GB) to one drive, TV shows(850GB) to another, and everything else to yet another folder. The problem i foresee with this strategy is that iTunes will no longer "Keep iTunes media Folder organized" or "Copy files to iTunes media folder when adding to library". It would be a huge pain to have to manually manage the file structure of such a huge library.
I have also tried leaving an alias ("Movies" for example) that points to my movies folder on a separate drive, but iTunes doesn't seem to want to follow the alias.
Anyway, i figured this scenario has to have come up before, and there may be some other solutions out there. Any help would be most appreciated.
Message was edited by: acosmichippo54

acosmichippo54 wrote:
ok, after reviewing those tips, these problems still bug me:
Macyourself: +"Any time you want to add a new movie or TV show to your library, move it over to the appropriate folder on your external hard drive, hold Option, and drag it to iTunes.+
i agree this involves a little more +user interaction+ but once you get into a routine, it is really quite simple to manage. for example, i keep all my *Apple Lossless* tunes on an external USB drive. i add newly ripped CD's to that external, then option drag the folder into iTunes and have iTunes convert those tunes to AAC 256 (which are thus kept in the main library).
machintsandtips: +"This does involve a couple of extra steps for movies and TV shows I automatically download from the iTunes store, since I have to move that media to the external drive, and then move it back into iTunes."+
again, splitting your library across various drives does involve more user interaction. your only alternative would be e.g. a 4 gig (or more) Drobo or similar. however, in order to have a backup, you would need another, equally sized, Drobo which you would need to keep +in sync+ with the primary one.
Everything you linked to will definitely resolve the problem for my current library, but as soon as i start adding media, it seems like it will get quickly disorganized.
i humbly disagree. it all depends on what you want: dish out $$$ for bigger sized drives or split your lib across various (already available) drives - whichever path you decide on, you'll be more involved in maintaining your library - i consider that a plus coz it let's me manage things as i want.
however, there are tools that could help you manage your split-lib, one of which being TuneSpan.
best of luck !
JGG

ITunes Media Folder Frustrations

Hi,
I hate, hate, hate the way that iTunes sorts the library for you into Artist/Album/Song. While this is useful if you have many tracks for an artist but three folders for just one song is ridiculous and results in songs that you know, being squirreled away under artists that you have no idea even existed.
So, I have sorted my library in Windows Explorer into genres, i.e Breaks, Chillout, Orchestral etc. These folders are then sorted into artist/album if I have alot of that artists music, or if the artist only has a few songs the individual songs are left in the genre folder.
Now to listen to my music on my computer I simply add whatever genre to Windows Media Player or VLC. However I now want to update my ipod!
In the Edit-Preferences-Advanced section I have changed the location of my iTunes Media Folder to the external hard drive that all tracks are on. I have unselected 'Keep iTunes Media Folder Organised' and 'Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library'.
When I import songs I have been using 'Add folder to library' for each different genre. For some iTunes still creates a Artist/Album version of the songs. I think it MAY be the songs that it converts, but am not sure. Is there a way to stop iTunes doing creating Artist/Album folders and simply follow how you have set up the directory?
Thanks!!

Gentleman Fox wrote:
In the Edit-Preferences-Advanced section I have changed the location of my iTunes Media Folder to the external hard drive that all tracks are on. I have unselected 'Keep iTunes Media Folder Organised' and 'Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library'.
When I import songs I have been using 'Add folder to library' for each different genre. For some iTunes still creates a Artist/Album version of the songs. I think it MAY be the songs that it converts, but am not sure. Is there a way to stop iTunes doing creating Artist/Album folders and simply follow how you have set up the directory?
If you have unchecked both "Keep..." and "Copy..." then iTunes does not move or rename the files. It leaves them where they are, and creates an iTunes library entry that points to the original location, which is what you want.
The only exception will be if you add a WMA file. iTunes converts it to the designated format that you specified in IMporting preferences. The newly converted copy is added according to Artist/Album, which is exactly what you don't want.
If you are using your music across platforms, you must avoid WMA. The one format that is useful across almost every player program and phone is MP3. If you rip the CD in another tool, make sure you set it for MP3. You can add the MP3s to iTunes and keep your own folder structure, as I described above.

Forgot to tick - Add files to itunes media folder

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