How to BackUp Restore Large Library "original file could not be found"

I've searched the archives for this with no clear answer, and am reposting to avoid confusing anyone.
I am working on a manual and seamless BACKUP-RESTORE process to manage my large 100-gigabyte-plus iTunes library.
+++++
First, my iTunes folder is in default location:
Boot drive> User> Music
I don't keep any music in this folder.
New music is imported into this folder, copied over to my Music Library, and then deleted from iTunes folder (to keep it and my boot drive clean, and my 100GB Music Library folder meticulously organized).
My iTunes folder is set at default:
iTunes> Preferences> Advanced> Change> iTunes Music folder location
My actual 100-gigabyte-plus music folder is stored on a 2nd hard drive:
HardDrive> Music Library
This setup works perfect.
+++++
BACKUP
To backup, I simply:
1) copy my User> Music> iTunes folder (800mb) to a 3rd hard drive.
2) copy my HardDrive> Music Library to 3rd hard drive
RESTORE
To restore, I simply:
1) copy my backup iTunes into User> Music.
2) copy my Music Library back to 2nd hard drive HardDrive.
3) Relaunch iTunes and every works perfect.
THE PROBLEM
However, if I change the name of my 2nd hard drive (where my 100GB music folder is stored) — iTunes shows everything in place — all songs, art, playlists — but I get following error on every song:
THE SONG NAMED ______ COULD NOT BE USED BECAUSE THE ORIGINAL FILE COULD NOT BE FOUND. WOULD YOU LIKE TO LOCATE IT?
Obviously I don't want to have to do this individually for 30,000 songs and am looking for instructions how to point iTunes database back to my 2nd hard drive> Music Library and complete the restore process.
I am hoping this can be done without changing my work flow — and it is a simple and logical move to tell iTunes where all the original files (missing songs) are stored.
+++++
Previous discussions have noted:
Following this Apple Support Doc
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1589
I was able to Quit iTunes, relaunch iTunes holding Option key, and chose my existing library (from my Music folder) — it works, everything shows up — but iTunes still doesn't know where my songs are (on my 2nd hard drive).
If I point the Option+Open iTunes library prompt to my 100GB Music Library (on the 2nd hard drive), it tells me (logically) there is no library there).
I've also launched and manually verifies iTunes> Preferences> Advanced> Change> iTunes Music folder location — it works, everything shows up — but iTunes still doesn't know where my songs are (on my 2nd hard drive).
I anticipate more complications if I reset iTunes preferences to my 2nd hard drive or start dinking around trying to see what works and what does not work.
+++++
At this point I am trying to make THIS workflow, backup-restore process work — so I am hoping someone else has slugged through this and can take a few minutes to clue me in the right direction (or at least tell me there is no way to do what I am trying).

If I simply rename the second hard drive to the name of the original 2nd hard drive — iTunes is successfully restored.
I am still looking for a better way because I want to change the name of the second HD...

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Error message when trying to play music on computer states The song ... could not be used because the original file could not be found. However, my library shows how many items and the GBs used. How do I locate the files?

When I try to play my iTunes music on my computer, an error message comes up and state "The song (title of song) could not be used because the original file could not be found. Would you like to locate it?
When I click on Locate It, I cannot find where the music file may be located. Does anyone have any suggestions?
This all occurred when I attempted to do a backup to an external hard drive. Unbeknownest to me, the files did not copy over and do not appear on the external hard drive.
When I open my iTunes library, at the bottom of my music list it shows how many songs and the GBs, so it appears that the files are still there; however, cannot be located.
Thank you.

Hi angela dfromtx,
When tracks in iTunes display a it means the file cannot be located; it may have been moved or deleted. You'll have to locate the file manually if it is still available. For more information refer to the following article:
iTunes: Finding lost media and downloads
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1408
Alternatively, if your media was downloaded from the iTunes Store, you may be able to download it again free of charge:
Downloading past purchases from the App Store, iBookstore, and iTunes Store
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2519
Thanks,
Matt M.

After installing iTunes 10.5 update i get the following message when trying to play any song in my Library "The song could not be used because the original file could not be found. Would you like to locate it?" how do i fix this??

I have an iPod Classic and work on Windows 7.
i recently installed iTunes 10.5 update and since then i cannot play any of the songs in the Library - i get the following message
"The song could not be used because the original file could not be found. Would you like to locate it?"
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Please help - i do not want to spend another week downloading all my cd's onto my computer !!!!!

Try my script FindTracks. Select a few of the missing files to start with then run the script. Choose No at the first prompt so that you can check how it works track by track, then confirm or edit the location of the media folder where your files are. Once you are happy with how it behaves let it process larger numbers of tracks automatically.
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by following this document here:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=93313
and then doing something else at the end.
I followed the instructions from 1-6:
Then rather than importing the XML file I open iTunes, selected "Add to Library" from the File menu then navigated to the itunes library on my external disc then let it do its work.
I guess something got fragged when I changed computer but it's all ok now.
This worked on a Mac I don't know about Windows

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It would help to have more background about your iTunes collection such as if you keep it on an external drive, or if you have moved or renamed anything recently. iTunes is very sensitive to you renaming or moving files or folders involved with your media. iTunes only keeps a reference to where a media file is located and then goes to look for it when you try to play it. If you have changed things since it was added to itunes then it's like me sending you to look for a friend in my addressbook but that friend has moved.
The other possibility is your computer is starting to lose files. Again, the computer uses a reference database to tell it where on the drive to look for a file. If that database gets corrupt then it starts losing files. Use Dsk Utility's first aid to verify your hard drive.

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tt2

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Library Lost - Please HeIp I tried updating my old ipod & now all 10,000 songs in my library have an ! next to them and I get the error message "song " " could not be used because the original file could not be found" on every song I try to play

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This "original file cannot be found" thing happens if the file is no longer where iTunes expects to find it. Possible causes are that you or some third party tool has moved, renamed or deleted the file, or that the drive it lives on has had a change of drive letter. It is also possible that iTunes has changed from expecting the files to be in the pre-iTunes 9 layout to post-iTunes 9 layout,or vice-versa, and so is looking in slightly the wrong place.
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Alternatively, as long as you can find a location holding the missing files, then you should be able to use my FindTracks script to reconnect them to iTunes .
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-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...

This is a new notification coming up with iTunes, why and how do I fix it? The song "Penny Lane" could not be used because the original file could not be found. Would you like to locate it?

This is a new notification coming up with iTunes, why and how do I fix it?
The song “Penny Lane” could not be used because the original file could not be found. Would you like to locate it?
Max

Hey xxCreepyFiaxx,
First, I would try the following suggested steps for when you don't see content in iTunes after updating:
Quit iTunes.
Download and install the latest version of iTunes.
Use the Finder (Mac) or Windows Explorer (Windows) to go to the iTunes folder that contains the iTunes library files:
Mac OS X
/Users/username/Music/iTunes/
Microsoft Windows Windows XP and Windows 2000
\Documents and Settings\username\My Documents\My Music\iTunes\
Microsoft Windows Windows Vista and Windows 7
\Users\username\Music\iTunes\
Drag the iTunes Library file from the above location to the Desktop.
Open the Previous iTunes Libraries folder in the iTunes folder.
Locate the file named iTunes Library YYYY-MM-DD where YYYY-MM-DD is the date you upgraded iTunes (Year-Month-Day).
Drag this file to the iTunes folder (the enclosing folder).
Rename this file to iTunes Library.
Open iTunes.
You should now see your missing content in iTunes.
via: No content shows up in iTunes after updating
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1967
If that doesn't resolve the issue, then I'd go through the steps in here:
iTunes: Finding lost media and downloads
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1408
Have a good one,
Delgadoh

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When selecting a song to play from iTunes library, I continually get an error message indicating the original file could not be found. Then asks, would you like to locate it? Does anyone know how to fix this? I'm not even able to play the songs I purchased due to this error message. Any ideas how to remedy this problem?
Thanks

It would help to have more background about your iTunes collection such as if you keep it on an external drive, or if you have moved or renamed anything recently. iTunes is very sensitive to you renaming or moving files or folders involved with your media. iTunes only keeps a reference to where a media file is located and then goes to look for it when you try to play it. If you have changed things since it was added to itunes then it's like me sending you to look for a friend in my addressbook but that friend has moved.
The other possibility is your computer is starting to lose files. Again, the computer uses a reference database to tell it where on the drive to look for a file. If that database gets corrupt then it starts losing files. Use Dsk Utility's first aid to verify your hard drive.

HT1933 I bought six songs using my itunes gift card in February but I cannot play the songs or downlaod them to my ipod because I get an error saying the original file could not be found. I have used the gift card previously with no issue. How do I fix

I bought six songs using my itunes gift card in February but I cannot play the songs or downlaod them to my ipod because I get an error saying the original file could not be found. I have used the gift card previously with no issue. How do I fix it?

Have you moved or deleted those tracks on your computer (the gift card has got nothing to do with it) ?
You might be able to re-download them via the Purchased link under Quick Links on the right-hand side of the iTunes store home page on your computer's iTunes (re-downloading isn't possible in all countries) - if those songs appear there then delete the entries from your iTunes library (where you are clicking on them to play them and gettinf the 'original file' error), and they should then get a cloud symbol against them for re-downloading.
If they don't appear in that link then have you got them on, for example, an external drive ?

I get the following message on certain songs in my library: the song could not be used because the original file could not be found

I get the following message on several songs in my library: the song could not be used because the original file could not be found. How can I download these songs to my new iPod?

This "original file cannot be found" thing happens if the file is no longer where iTunes expects to find it. Possible causes are that you or some third party tool has moved, renamed or deleted the file, or that the drive it lives on has had a change of drive letter. It is also possible that iTunes has changed from expecting the files to be in the pre-iTunes 9 layout to post-iTunes 9 layout,or vice-versa, and so is looking in slightly the wrong place.
Select a track with an exclamation mark, use Ctrl-I to get info, then cancel when asked to try to locate the track. Look on the summary tab for the location that iTunes thinks the file should be. Now take a look around your hard drive(s). Hopefully you can locate the track in question. If a section of your library has simply been moved, or a drive letter has changed, it should be possible to reverse the actions.
Alternatively, as long as you can find a location holding the missing files, then you should be able to use my FindTracks script to reconnect them to iTunes .
tt2

ITunes tells me "Could not be used because the original file could not be found. Would you like to locate it?" I can locate it and all my other music, but can only open one song at a time. How do I set it to open all my music whenever I want it?

iTunes tells me my song selection: "Could not be used because the original file could not be found. Would you like to locate it?" I can locate it and all my other music, but can only open one song at a time. How do I set it to open all my music whenever I want?
Message was edited by: Woildbill

I just spent several hours dealing with this when switching to a new PC. It was extremely frustrating as I knew my files were on my external HD but no matter how many times I copied my old iTunes folder over the files were still missing...because dummy me had forgotten to "unhide folders" on my new PC and my old files were actually stored in a hidden folder created long long ago.
This is how I did it on Windows 7 with iTunes 10
1. Look in iTunes Advanced Preferences to see where iTunes is saving files. (Edit, Preferences, Advanced)
Example: C:/Users/Woildbill/My Music/iTunes/Music
2. Ensure you are able to see hidden files - Control Panel, Folder Option, View, Show Hidden Files
3. Use Your Computer's Search Function to Locate the Missing File (Start, Search, type name of song - I started my search in "My Music" folder but be sure to expand to entire Computer if not found right away)
4. In Search Results, right-click found folder and select properties. This will tell you where the file is actually stored.
5. Use Windows Explorer (right-click start) to navigate to the location of the file. It is likley your other missing files are in the same location.
6. In Windows Explorer, copy the newly located files to the iTumes location from Step 1 and everything should work again.
Hope this helps!

How to BackUp Restore Large Library "original file could not be found"

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