How to set up iTunes library on new mac

I have a new mac and I'm wanting to set up my current Itunes library on it. I went from a PC...that is now dead. I do use an Ipad and Iphone that has my music on it...any help as to how to do this?

Copy everything from your backup copy of your old computer to the new computer.
The iphone/ipad is not a backup device. The sync is one way - computer to iphone/ipad. The exception is itunes purchases:File>Transfer Purchases

Similar Messages

How do I point iTunes on a New Mac Mini to an External iTunes Library

I have a 90 Gb (7000 tracks) iTunes Library sitting on a network drive that I want to "relocate" from my Powerbook to my new Intel Mac Mini. Or rather I want to point iTunes on the new Mac Mini to the existing Library.
How can I achive this and still retain all my ratings and other track info (ie count)?
Graham J
Melbourne, Australia

To move your songs from the network drive to the Mac Mini, add them to the iTunes on the Mac Mini, make sure that in Edit > Preferences > Advanced the default location is on the Mac Mini. Finally click Advanced > Consolidate Library. This will move the files to your Mac Mini.
On the other hand, if you want to point iTunes on the Mac Mini to the network drive, change the setting in the above preference location.

How do I move iTunes to a new Mac without loosing my ratings and plays?

I don't have a new Mac yet, but before I buy one I'd like to know how to transfer my iTunes library.
I am really depending on my ratings and plays so I don't want to loose them.
So how should I do it? backup? home sharing?
And another question: I have my iTunes library on my external hd. Could I install the whole iTunes on the external hd and then use itunes on any Mac with the hd plugged in?

paulkreuzer wrote:
so just to get it right: you mean copy the iTunes folder to new Mac INSTEAD of installing iTunes there?
iTunes will be installed on your new Mac. there will be an iTunes folder existing there but it will be devoid of content (just the default files).
by replacing this default iTunes folder with the one from your old Mac, you are copying the +*heart & soul+* of your library to the new machine: the all important *iTunes library file*.
the iTunes library file contains info such as playlists, playcounts, ratings, etc.
click here for information.

How do I transfer itunes library to new hard drive running lion os

I have a Mac Pro with 2 hard drives in it.
Hard drive #1 has Leopard OS and my iTunes library on it
Hard drive #2 has Lion 10.7.4 OS and this is where I want to move my iTunes library to from hard drive #1.
How can I due this insuring that all playlists, etc. transfer seamlessly. I will then only be using the new Lion OS
to run iTunes (and this will also communicate with Apple TV, etc.)
Thanks!

Copy the entire /Music/iTunes/ folder from old hard drive to /Music/ on new hard drive.
Start iTunes.
That is all.
You can also leave it where it it, hold Option, launch iTunes.
Slect Choose library... and select the iTunes folder on the Leopard drive.
This will be your iTunes for both OS, whichever you boot into.

How to reuse old Itunes library in new laptop?

Hi,
I'm kind of new to Itunes. Here is my scenario: I have old computer with Windows XP. I think i have Itunes library installed in My Music folder in the internal HD. All of my music (WAV, MP3, AIFF) are in external HD.
Now i want to move all to the new laptop and still want to use external HD. Also, i have an Ipad 2 which i have been using new Itunes to sync movies. I recognize that new Itunes has folder called Itunes Media and it's different from what i have in the old computer
My question: how can i move from old computer to new computer without going thru all the steps of creating library, playlist again without changing structure in new computer? Do i need to put all in external HD or just the physical music files?
thanks.

Sofrina Hinton wrote:
okay, i found my problem. i had not changed the name of Itunes folder on the new comp so the transferred folder was called Itunes Music.
That was not the problem. Don't rename the iTunes music folder.
The iTunes music folder is inside the iTunes folder.
The /Music/iTunes/ folder is the entire library.
You need to copy the entire /Music/iTunes/ folder from the old computer.

Computer Hard Drive Failure - How can I copy itunes library to new pc/ipod?

Hi
My old desktop pc hard drive recently crashed due to a critical error so I have invested in a new pc and am considering purchasing a more up to date ipod to replace my old ipod mini. Is there are way I can access, retrieve or transfer my existing itunes library of imported cd / downloaded (purchased) music from my old pc (e.g. from the ipod mini itself or by loading my original software disc on the new pc?) to my new pc / ipod or do I have to start again from scratch and lose purchased tunes etc? If so, Apple may lose a customer, which would be a shame.
Many thanks for your help.
Mike

1). Connect your iPod to your new computer. If it is set to update automatically you'll get a message that it is linked to a different library and asking if you want to link to this one and replace all your songs etc, press "Cancel". Pressing "Erase and Sync" will irretrievably remove all the songs from your iPod.
2). When your iPod appears in the iTunes source list change the update setting to manual, that will let you use your iPod without the risk of accidentally erasing it. Check the "manually manage music and videos" box in Summary then press the Apply button. Also when using most of the utilities listed below your iPod needs to be enabled for disc use, changing to manual update will do this by default: Managing content manually on iPod and iPhone
3). Once you are safely connected there are a few things you can do to restore your iTunes from the iPod. There are a number of third party utilities that you can use to retrieve the music files and playlists from your iPod. You'll find that they have varying degrees of functionality and some will transfer movies, videos, photos, podcasts and games as well. Have a look at the web pages and documentation, this is just a small selection of what's available, they are generally quite straightforward. You can read reviews and comparisons of some of them here:
Wired News - Rescue Your Stranded Tunes
Comparison of iPod managers
TuneJack Windows Only (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
SharePod Windows Only (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iPod2PC Windows Only
iDump Windows Only
iPodRip Mac & Windows
YamiPod Mac and Windows
iPod Music Liberator Mac & Windows
Floola Mac & Windows
Music Rescue Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iGadget Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iRepo Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iPod Access Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
TouchCopy Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
If you have any iTunes Music Store purchases the transfer of purchased content only from the iPod to authorised computers was introduced with iTunes 7. You'll find details in this article: Copying iTunes Store purchases from your iPod or iPhone to a computer
There's also a manual method of copying songs from your iPod to a Mac or PC. The procedure is a bit involved and won't recover playlists but if you're interested it's available on page 2 at this link: Copying Content from your iPod to your Computer - The Definitive Guide
4). Whichever of these retrieval methods you choose, keep your iPod in manual mode until you have reloaded your iTunes and you are happy with your playlists etc then it will be safe to return it auto-sync.
5). I would also advise that you get yourself an external hard drive and back your stuff up, relying on an iPod as your sole backup is not a good idea and external drives are comparatively inexpensive these days, you can get loads of storage for a reasonable outlay: Back up your iTunes library by copying to an external hard drive

How to move an itunes library to new HDD...

Hello,
My Windows 7 pc HDD crashed and I had to replace it with a new SSD. I can access the old HDD via an external drive bay to get files off it and what not, it just won't run windows as it has become corrupted. So, I was wondering if it was possible for me to copy my iTunes library from the old HDD to the new SSD drive? I have a lot of songs in there that I no longer have the CD's for and I don't want to have to spend HOURS trying to import all the others I still do have.
OR, it possible to move the songs on my iphone to the new SSD directly? The only option its giving me now is to "erase and sync" the iphone to the new iTunes installation...but if I do that it will erase ALL my current songs I have on the iphone and replace it with NOTHING, as that's all I have in my new iTunes install.
PLEASE HELP...thanks!
Brian

On Windows 7, it’ll be in \Users\username\My Music\iTunes\ of the internal drive by default. If you can't find it there, search the computer for items with an itl or itdb extension.
(111760)

Switching library from PC itunes library to new MAC itunes library via ipod

I have a pc and itunes and a nano with an extensive library and many playlists. I just decided to switch to mac and got a new imac and plugged my nano in. I can't transfer my music and or my playlists. It gives me a dialogue box saying the nano can only have a music library on one machine and that it can sync the nano to the new machine but will only sync purchased music and will erase the rest!!!! ACCHHH - How do you transfer your music and hopefully the playlists to the new imac itunes library?
Help.

1). Connect your iPod to your computer. When you get the message that it is linked to a different library and asking if you want to link to this one and replace all your songs etc, press "Cancel". Pressing "Erase and Sync" will irretrievably remove all the songs from your iPod.
2). When your iPod appears in the iTunes source list change the update setting to manual, that will let you continue to use your iPod without the risk of accidentally erasing it. Check the "manually manage music and videos" box in Summary then press the Apply button. Also when using most of the utilities listed below your iPod needs to be enabled for disc use, changing to manual update will do this by default: Managing content manually on iPod and iPhone
3). Once you are connected and your iPod is safely in manual mode there are a few things you can do to restore your iTunes from the iPod. iTunes will only let you copy your iTunes Store purchases directly from an iPod to the computer, you'll find details in this article: Copying iTunes Store purchases from your iPod or iPhone to a computer
For everything else (music from CDs, other downloads and including iTunes purchased songs and in some cases, videos and games) there are a number of third party utilities that you can use to retrieve the music files and playlists from your iPod. I use Senuti but have a look at the web pages and documentation for the others too. You can read reviews and comparisons of some of them here (you'll find that they have varying degrees of functionality and some will transfer movies, videos, photos and games as well):
Wired News - Rescue Your Stranded Tunes
Comparison of iPod managers
A selection of iPod to iTunes utilities:
Senuti Mac Only (iPod Touch & iPhone compatible)
expod Mac Only (iPod Touch & iPhone compatible)
PodView Mac Only
PodWorks Mac Only
TuneAid Mac only (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
YamiPod Mac & Windows
iPod Music Liberator Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iPodRip Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iPod Music Liberator Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iGadget Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
Floola Mac & Windows
Music Rescue Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iRepo Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iPod Access Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
TouchCopy Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
There's also a manual method of copying songs from your iPod to a Mac or PC. The procedure is a bit involved and won't recover playlists but if you're interested it's available on page 2 at this link: Copying Content from your iPod to your Computer - The Definitive Guide
4). Keep your iPod in manual mode until you have reloaded your iTunes and you are happy with your playlists etc then it will be safe to return it auto-sync.
5). I would also advise that you get yourself an external hard drive and back your stuff up, relying on an iPod as your sole backup is not a good idea and external drives are comparatively inexpensive these days, you can get loads of storage for a reasonable outlay: Back up your iTunes library by copying to an external hard drive

Import iTunes Library to new Mac

My old Mac died. I have a new iMac running Mac OS 10.8.6 with iTunes 10.
I copied my iTunes library from the boot drive of my old Mac to the secondary drive in my iMac.
I then went into iTunes preference to designate the iTunes folder I copied as the "iTunes Media folder location."
Two questions,,,
1. A dialoge box popped up asking me "Would you like iTunes to move and rename the existing files in your iTunes music folder to match the "keep iTunes Music folder organized" preference?". I assume that should be a yes, correct?
2. I thought when I told iTunes where my existing iTunes library is located the library would show up in iTunes. How do I get it to show up?

You should not have needed to change any preferences. Because you did the steps in the second link (I think) it only moved where your media are stored but not everything iTunes uses to produce the window you see when you start iTunes. It left some critical files on your main drive which is why the two folder structures are not identical. You should have just copied via Finder's drag and drop the whole iTunes folder from the first drive to the second, making (as you suggest) an identical copy on the second drive with the same structure. Then start iTunes with the option key held down and guide it to the new library location.
I am not sure of the best way to correct this other than to reverse what you did the first time and then do it using a method outlined in my first link above. You were not very specific as to what exactly you did when you "copied" the iTunes library. Did you do this via the preference settings and consolidate or did you really copy the whole iTunes folder via Finder. Do you have preferences set for iTunes to manage your media for you?

Permissions Issues after Transferring iTunes Library to new Mac.

My intention is to move the library off my old iMac, and keep the iTunes library on the new one, while still keeping the old iMac around. After the transfer i intend to delete the library off the old one, and use HomeSharing to utlize iTunes on both Macs. Also, the old iMac is where our family has synced ever iPod, iPhone, & iPad we've owned... I've been on the support community for almost two days now, and thought I had it figured out, but... i obviously don't. So i apologize if there is a thread that already answers this question, if so, please be kind
in the process of moving my iTunes from my old iMac (iMac7,1 - OS X 10.6.8) to my new iMac (iMac Late 2012 - OS X 10.8.5) i used the instructions on: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4527. It identified how to move the library found in (on my old iMac) VolumeA/music/iTunes. I used the External Hard Drive method, only I linked up the two iMacs with an Ethernet cable (direct connect, no router) and copied the iTunes folder (as described in the instructions) to the desktop of the new iMac. Then I pasted the iTunes folder over the existing folder on the new iMac.
Now I'm having trouble with permissions on the new iMac now. At first iTunes wouldn't even open. It said I didn't have permission, or the library was in a locked file. I thought I had it figured out by going into "get info" in the iTunes folder (on the new iMac) and adjusting the permissions. which worked as far as allowing iTunes to open now (Both computers are running iTunes 11.1 (126)).
Now that i've synced my iphone 5 with the iTunes (on the new iMac) i noticed that some of the songs wouldn't sync because I don't have permission...?
Beginning to think I've screwed this whole thing up...
Also, I noticed that there is another iTunes folder, that wasn't discussed in this article: VolumeA/Library/iTunes - Do i need to copy this one over as well?
I'm such a noob at this that i'm almost embarrased to ask for some help, but PLEASE HELP!! I haven't touched my old iMac's library, and won't until
Thanks in advance for anything you can do!

It helps to know which instructions you are following. Some people follow the wrong instructions and just move media, not the whole library which consists of many files and folders. You do not do it with changing preferences.
iTunes: How to move [or copy] your music to a new computer [or another drive] - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4527
Quick answer if you use iTunes' default preferences settings: Copy the entire iTunes folder (and in doing so all its subfolders and files) intact to the other drive. Open iTunes and immediately hold down the Option (alt) key (shift on Windows), then guide it to the new location of the library.

How can i transfer itunes library from a mac to a pc?

do you have to use an external drive or are there other ways of accomplishing this?

iTunes: Back up your iTunes library by copying to an external hard drive
Also see:
iTunes: How to move your music to a new computer

Manually Copied iTunes Library to new Mac -- Will iPhone sync be messed up?

Hi. Apologies in advance if this has been addressed elsewhere in the forums. I have found no clear answers though in my relatively thorough search.
I just bought a new Mac to replace my old one. I decided to start as cleanly as I can by only migrating documents.
After reading a thousand different ways to copy my library from my old Mac to the new one (and maintaining playlists, ratings, etc.) I ended up copying the full contents of my music folder from old to new via Firewire and then I option-clicked to tell iTunes to use the Library I just copied over.
A few questions for all of you:
1. Is this a decent method for recreating my prior iTunes experience on my new computer? Any pitfalls of which I should be aware? I'm going from 8.2 to 8.2 by the way.
2. What will happen when I try to sync my iPhone with the new computer? I want to make sure I'm not about to wipe it clean or otherwise mess it up. Again, I copied the full contents of the Music folder in my user account, so assuming my iPhone settings, backups, etc are in there, they hopefully will still work?
iTunes looks like it did before, but I'm nervous I might be deluding myself.
Thanks for the help and suggestions!

You got most of it, but you missed your backups which are in ~/Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup. If you don't copy them, iTunes will make a new backup.
Also the software update files are elsewhere, but iTunes will download them again if needed for a restore. If you really want to move them, they are in ~/Library/iTunes/iPhone Carrier Support and iPhone Software Updates (but you don't need them unless your internet connection is dial-up and you don't want to wait for iTunes to redownload them).
BTW, the ~ symbol indicates your home account.

Migrating iTunes library to new Mac

I recently used Migration assistant to transfer just my iTunes library file from an iMac to my MacBook Pro (both running snow leopard with latest versions etc). However after completing the process I cannot find the files on my new Mac anywhere. I know they are there because my available hard disk space is about 125GB lower but ITunes does not have any music content and I cannot find any files on the system that large. Please help!

Migration Assistant copies the files into the same accounts on the new computer.
If your username is not the same, it will create the old username account on the new computer.
Likely you are logged into a different user account on your MacBook.
Go to System prefs -> Accounts and see if there's another account.
If so, log into that account (should be same username and password as on the iMac) and drag the \Music\iTunes\ folder to the Shared directory.
You can leave iot there if you wish.
Log back into the account your are using now, hold Option and launch iTunes.
Select *Choose library* then select the iTunes library file in the \Shared\iTunes\ folder.
Or simply drag the \iTunes\ folder from the Shared folder to your current \Music\ folder, replacing what's there.

How to "share" your itunes Library with a mac, apple TV and Ipads?

I am looking for an easy way to have my Itunes library on an external drive and be able to access it from a Mac (able to sync an iphone), an Apple TV, and Ipads. I don't want to leave me computer on so I think I am looking for an NAS drive.
Would I need a NAS drive with "itunes server"?

Hey jimyam,
Thanks for the question. If you wish to access your music library from multiple devices, anywhere, It sounds like iTunes Match may be the right service for you:
Apple - iTunes - Match
http://www.apple.com/itunes/itunes-match/
With iTunes Match, all your music can be stored in iCloud — even songs you’ve imported from CDs. You can access your music from all your devices and listen to your entire library wherever you are. And you'll also be able to listen to iTunes Radio without ads.
iTunes Store: Subscribing to iTunes Match
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4914
Thanks,
Matt M.

How best to restore iPhoto library to new Mac mini

So I have a brand new Mac Mini and my iPhoto library from my old iMac is backed both on Time Machine and via CCC on different external HDs. I want to transfer my iPhoto library(>200 GB) to the new Mini. Is there any reason to restore from Time Machine versus CCC? Are there advantages to using one versus the other? I would like to keep my events, albums, etc. if possible. I made the CCC backup just to have an extra backup.
Thanks in advance.
Jim

You can use the one you prefer because it's the same. With Carbon Copy Cloner, you just need to go to the folder of the external disk with the library and copy the library to Pictures folder, and with Time Machine, you can use Time Machine UI to restore the iPhoto library

How to set up iTunes library on new mac

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