How do I merge two iTunes libraries?

I have two iTunes libraries on different hard drives on one computer. I choose the appropriate library when starting iTunes.
I now want to merge these libraries but retain the files on their separate hard drives (the files are too large to combine).
How do I do this?

This is indeed an excellent question. I am looking for what seems to be the exact same solution. I have two libraries, where the ratings, checks, and play counts are included in the itunes xml library files. I have found that using synchronization software only compares documents and replaces one with the other. If I modify one computer (in terms of collections, ratings, or play counts), and then don't synchronize before modifying the other computer, then my libraries do not match.
If there were a quick solution to compare and merge libraries, then I would not have to re-synchronize libraries each time I switch computers (assuming I'm not adding/changing mp3 file structure).
I suppose there could be a very long-winded applescript to do this, but I'm not familiar with scripting, nor interested. Any help?
Have any solutions been found?
MacBook Pro 15" Mac OS X (10.4.6)

Similar Messages

How do I merge two iTunes libraries under different profiles on the same MacBook Pro?

I used Migration Assistant to import my music library from an old dell to my new MacBook Pro, however 2 profiles were created and now half my music is on one profile and the rest on the other and neither profile can access the music on the other. Please Help

This is indeed an excellent question. I am looking for what seems to be the exact same solution. I have two libraries, where the ratings, checks, and play counts are included in the itunes xml library files. I have found that using synchronization software only compares documents and replaces one with the other. If I modify one computer (in terms of collections, ratings, or play counts), and then don't synchronize before modifying the other computer, then my libraries do not match.
If there were a quick solution to compare and merge libraries, then I would not have to re-synchronize libraries each time I switch computers (assuming I'm not adding/changing mp3 file structure).
I suppose there could be a very long-winded applescript to do this, but I'm not familiar with scripting, nor interested. Any help?
Have any solutions been found?
MacBook Pro 15" Mac OS X (10.4.6)

How do I merge two different libraries, linked to one account? They're on two different computers but I want them to be on one

How do I merge two different libraries, linked to one account? They're on two different computers but I want them to be on one

This should do the trick
Home Sharing Learn More
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT201976
Best of Luck

Can I merge two iTunes libraries?

Can I merge two iTunes libraries, one on a Dell PC, the other on an attached external hard drive? If so, step-by-step instructions would be appreciated. There is too much work involved to allow a mistake! - jazzeas

Read the post over on the right under the heading, More Like This
Allan

How do you combine two iTunes libraries - my husband I have separate iTunes libraries and want to combine our music

iTunes: my husband and I have two separate iTunes libaries and would like to combine them. I have tried homesharing but as my laptop is not an Apple I can't seem to find advice online with Apple.
Can anyone help.

iTunes- How to share music between different user accounts on a single computer
You cannot merge two separate libraries across user accounts. Photos does not have the function of merging different Photos.library files. If you have Aperture then you can merge the two before migrating over to Photos.

I How do I combine two ITune libraries from my laptop and home computers so I can download the songs to my IPhone?

I have two Itune libraries one on my home computer and one on my laptop. I have been able to download one library to my IPhone (home computer) but not the other. How can I merge these two so I can use both computers or can I???? Help! I called my Apple store for an appointment to figure this out and they aren't even answering the phone!!

Home Sharing:
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3819

How to connect to two iTunes libraries?

I want to connect w two itunes libraries on two separate mac laptops. how do i do that?
Thanks

Homesharing
(iTunes advanced menu, enter the same ID and password on both devices)

HOW CAN I MERGE TWO IPHOTO LIBRARIES

IS IT POSSIBLE TO MERGE TWO IPHOTO LIBRARIES?

If you have Aperture 3.3 or later and iPhoto 9.3 or later you can merge libraries with Aperture.
Otherwise the only way to merge Libraries is with the paid ($20) version of iPhoto Library Manager
It's possible to turn off caps lock too.

How do I unmerge two itunes libraries?

My son and I are both on itunes on the computer. When he added his itunes account to this computer, it merged his library with mine so that now we have one library. I would like there to be two separate libraries. Any ideas?

Hi ajennings822,
So it sounds as if you and your son are using the same user account on your computer and are sharing the same iTunes library, and you want to separate his music out from yours, is that correct?
One way to do this would be to create a new iTunes Library for his use and then move his music into it. Once this is done you can each select the music library you want to use when starting up iTunes. See this article for reference -
iTunes: How to open an alternate iTunes Library file or create a new one - Apple Support
Another way would be to create a totally different user account for your son in Windows. Use the steps in this article under Create a new user account -
iTunes for Windows Vista, Windows 7, or Windows 8: Fix unexpected quits or launch issues - Apple Support
Once the user account is set up, launch iTunes and it will come up with an empty library. He can then move his music into the new library.
Thanks for using Apple Support Communities.
Best,
Brett L

How do I merge two itunes accounts?

Somehow I ended up with two iTunes accounts. This was not by design, but rather because of the convoluted sign-up process and my unfamiliarity with it. I didn't deal with it before now because it wasn't a problem until now. What has caused it to be a problem is that I just got an iPad to go along with my iMac, iPhone, and MacBook Pro (trust me, I never thought I'd see this day, but I needed a system that was integrated).
Since accounts are associated with users, the songs that show up on my iPad are different that what's on my iMac. I could describe the problems and challenges in detail, but I'm sure any knowledgable users can imagine what they are.
Now, in order to use iCloud, I have to move from Snow Leopard to Lion, which is going to be a bear (even moreso since a new back-up drive nearly destroyed my computer, and I have a query about it in another post-- the problems just keep on rolling). How do I associate all my purchases from one account with the other one so I can keep credit for songs and apps? Many thanks for all help. -J.

Hello HEScruggs,
Thanks for using Apple Support Communities.
You cannot merge multiple Apple ID accounts into one. See below for more information.
I have multiple Apple IDs. Is there a way for me to merge them into a single Apple ID?
Apple IDs cannot be merged. You should use your preferred Apple ID from now on, but you can still access your purchased items such as music, movies, or software using your other Apple IDs.
If you are wondering how using multiple Apple IDs relate to iCloud, see Apple IDs and iCloud.
Frequently asked questions about Apple ID
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5622
Take care,
Alex H.

How can I merge two iTunes folder, one with music and the other without?

Two years ago Apple support suggested moving my iTunes folder out of my Home folder to the HD level in order to share it across users. This is no longer necessary. How do I move my music back to my Home folder since now I have an Itunes folder at the HD level (along with application, library, system, users folders) and an Itunes folder under Music in my Home folder. For example both those itunes folders have a mobile application, album artwork, and previous itunes library subfolder as well as itunes library extras.itdb and itunes library genius.itdb. How do I merge them or which ones do I delete? The files in the mobile app folder in my Home folder have a newer "last modified" date. Currenty under Itunes-->Preferences-->Advanced, it says Itunes media location is /itunes/itunes media/ music. I assumes that is the HD level folder. What happens if I hit reset?
I am using Itunes 10.6.3.
Any help tailored to a novice would be great. Thanks.

Thanks for the links, Limnos.
If you are willing to continue helping, here's what I found.
Just to clarify the two iTunes folders I am refering to are:
username-->Music-->iTunes
HD-->iTunes
I am presuming each location has a full set of files as outlined in the above links?
Not all the files are in both locations. Most are.
- The Itunes folder in my home folder does not have itunes library.xml.
- The Itunes folder in my home folder has a subfolder called Mobile Applications (username-->Music-->iTunes--> Mobile application). The Itunes folder at the HD level also has a Mobile Application folder but it is a subfolder of Itunes Media folder (HD-->iTunes--> iTunes Media-->Mobile applications) and has no files in it.
- I do not have an iTunes Media in the iTunes folder in my home folder.
- also the Itunes media folder (HD-->iTunes--> iTunes Media) has subfolders by type (books, movies, itunes u, music etc...) but the iTunes Media-->Music also has some of the same subfolders ( iTunes Media-->Music-->books, iTunes Media-->Music-->Movies, iTunes Media-->Music-->iTunes U). Is this normal repetition?
You say:
/itunes/itunes media/ music
but it is important to note what comes before all that.
There is nothing as far as I can tell before that first forward slash. Since the only iTunes Media folder I have is in the iTunes folder that resides at the HD level (HD-->iTunes--> iTunes Media folder) not the iTunes folder in my home folder (username-->Music-->iTunes) , I assume that's the one that holds the music.
Keep iTunes media folder organized and Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library are both checked on
Does that give more clarity into my problem?

HT1918 how can I merge two itune accounts?

I had an account for itunes and, not thinking, created another one tonight, so I have music under both accounts. How can I merge the two?

Sorry - you can't. You can keep the music from each iTunes account in the same library, but the purchased items will always be "owned" by the iTunes ID under which they are purchased.
My husband and I both purchase music and other stuff on his Mac in iTunes under our own iTunes IDs. Both IDs are authorized to the Mac, and everything is housed in one iTunes library. I can download his music, and he can download mine.
However, if, say, some of the music was removed from the library and we wanted to get it back in there, we would each individually have to go to our Purchased list to download the items that we purchased in order to get them all back into the library.
Hope that explanation helps!
Cheers,
GB

How can I merge two iPhoto libraries stored on an external drive?

Today I was in a One-to-One at the Apple Store. I want to merge two i-Photo libraries into one. One library is on my Air, the other is on my iMac. Both libraries have been moved to an external drive. When I try to move one onto the other, they won't go. Yet I am certain that while at the store today, the person there started to merge them. He did not need the library manager software in order to do so. We stopped the merge in order to move on to another issue. Now that I am home, I can't get the libraries to merge. What am I failing to do? Thanks!

The only way to merge two libraryies is to use iPhoto Library Manager which will merge two libraries and keep keywords, titles, faces, places, and other metadata intact.
If one imports one library into another library every image file in the first library, originals, thumbnails, face files, etc, get imported as an original photo. You will end up with a total mess. DO NOT IMPORT ONE LIBRARY INTO ANOTHER LIBRARY!
If you have backup copies of your libraries get them back and use iPhoto Library Manager to merge them.
OT

How do I merge my iTunes libraries and make them accessible from multiple Systems?

Our family has several Macs using several versions of OSX.
My Music collection, mostly converted from my large collection of CDs, is scattered across all the Macs and several hard drives with Systems running OSX 10.6.8, 10.8.5 and 10.9.4.
The older Macs can not be upgraded to either Mountain Lion nor Mavericks.
My most organised library is the latest on the Mac running Mavericks. It is tidy ALAC, and has all the correct metadata such as covers, composers, ISBNs etc. So I have started by organising those onto an external 1.5 Tb Hard Drive in a folder called Central iTunes Library.
I intend to then go through the Libraries on the other hard drives and systems and add them to this central external collection.
1. Will I be able to open the Central Library (created in iTunes 11.2.2) on the older Macs and Systems directly, by plugging in the hard drive?
2. Is there a better way than reopening the files from the other Systems and Hard Drives and importing them all over again into the Central Library?
eg Drag and Drop or File > New or a Dedicated Utility for the purpose
3. Is sharing from my Mac, the only way to let everyone access the library?
4. Will the other Macs be able to add to the Central Library once it is shared from my Mac?
5. How do we manage our various iPhones, iPods and iPads with one central Library?
6. Are there any hazards to watch out for?
7. What is the best way to have a duplicated backup of the library?
Thanks,
Peter

The concept of a central library sounds great (in principle), but unless you can all follow the same rules about handling playlist/ folder/ genre naming it can get into a mess. Are you sure you want to see all of your son's & wife's music when setting up iOS syncing? I also suspect your son & wife may have a different opinion about accessing all your music (with it's larger ALAC file size) - they may be happier not sifting through all your tracks to find the ones they like for use on iOS?
The store authorizes to the Mac not the library - so as you move around on each Mac & use your AppleID to purchase that Mac will get tied to that AppleID. That would be fine accept iTunes has a 90 day limit on changing the Apple ID on a computer. You will have to wait 3 months to switch to using another Apple ID to download music & apps on that device - that also affects apps that sync from iOS for backups.
Personally I think that users need their own Mac with their own library (& each Mac needs to be backed up), especially if they have their own iOS device that needs syncing to a Mac. Home Sharing is ok for moving files that you want to hear from another library - but it can be bad when a client is on wifi.
iTunes is designed to be a single user who can share over the network - it isn't intended to be one large bucket for every family member to store media, the Apple ID issue makes this pretty clear to me.
Your flaky wifi issue sounds like a reason not to rely on anything that requires networking to work too.
You are correct to worry about the library versions, eventually an iTunes update will alter the library format. Only machines that have that version can open the library - this happened from iTunes 10.7 to iTunes 11.
See how many 'old libraries' you have in the Music/iTunes/Previous iTunes Libraries/ folder - that indicates how many times iTunes has backed up & upgraded the library. Is that more than expected? Major iTunes versions will need to be performed at the same time to keep it all working with the 'central music library'.
You may be tempted to access one iTunes library over file sharing on multiple Macs. This can cause problems when one Mac updates something (placing a file lock on the library file). It's hit or miss whether the other Macs can read & write to the library.
PJRS seems to be using a networked iTunes library - I can't understand how it works with iTunes from Tiger to 10.9? What version of iTunes is used PJRS?

How do I merge two iMovie Libraries?

Over time, I created two iMovie libraries - one on my external drive and one on my iMac. I have moved both libraries to the external drive and now I want to merge them into one library. I have not any success with Consolidate.

Hi theforsh,
You can move events and clips between iMovie libraries in order to consolidate them. See this article for further information -
iMovie (2013): Work with multiple libraries
In particular this section - Copy or move projects, events, or clips between libraries or hard disks
Thanks for using Apple Support Communities.
Best,
Brett L

How do I merge two iTunes libraries?

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for