How can i delete files not in itunes easily?

Question

i have a lot of music saved on my computer which i dont have in itunes. i dont listen to it and want to get rid of it to free up some space. is there any way of doing this without going through each individual folder?

Answer 1

This may help you.
First, you probably now know that there is a difference between deleting the music file from iTunes and completely deleting it. You should have gotten a message from iTunes asking if you want to send the file to the recycle bin. Choosing yes will delete the file from iTunes AND the directory. It will reside in the recycle bin until you empty it. This is the best way to manage your files if you really want them permanently deleted.
Now here's my tested method: It will depend on how many directories and songs you have in the "Compilations" directory in the "iTunes Music" directory. If you have quite a bit, this may become complicated (although it might not matter, anyhow – if you are careful and deliberate).
If you can take a screenshot of what is in the Compilations Folder, it would help you later to manage it back to its original state.
If you select all your current Library song references (they're all good - right?) - either in total or in piece-part, right-click to "Get Info" and tick off the "Part of Compilation" box and set it to "Yes", iTunes "should" re-order those songs out of their respective directories and into the compilations directory - leaving any unwanted songs behind (or at least song files that are not referenced within iTunes). Confirm that these are files you no longer need.
You can then mass delete the full directories to remove the unwanted songs. After doing this, you would reverse the first procedure, turning the compilations selection back to "No". iTunes will re-re-order the songs back to individual Artist/Album directories, re-creating any needed folders as it progresses.
You should be able to test this out with just one Artist's songs. Pick an artist that you know has several to many "bad" songs in the sub-directory structure. Try a step-wise progression through the above process (looking at the results via Windows Explorer) and see what is happening. If it doesn't work right, you haven't changed that much of you data in the process. If it works, then select more and more groupings of songs and proceed en-mass.
Probably best to sort your main library by artist prior to doing any of this so you are sure to select all necessary songs.
If your songs are not organized that carefully, this may not work. Having iTunes organize your Library is essential to this process. Looking at my directory structure, and with the experiments I performed, it does work for me.
Have backups of your good song data somewhere prior to attempting this solo.
You should perform this process from the main Library, not a playlist.
Here is what I have in my Preferences (Advanced/General):
--- Keep iTunes Music folder organized (on)
--- Copy files to iTunes Music folder when adding to library (off)
Make sure that the location of your Music folder (shown in the "Advanced" tab) is the same location that you are adjusting.