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?

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How to import itunes library from a mac book pro to a new mac air?

How do I go about accessing my itunes library from a new mac air?
CD's and downloads were originally used to create my library on a mac book pro. Can I now access this on my new mac air?

If there is space on the Air, you can use Migration Assistant to transfer the data. (Go into Applications/Utilities, and run Migration Assistant from there - it will tell you what options you have for data transfer). If you wish to keep both laptops, you might look at using iTunes Match, which will make all your music available on the Air but not necessarily download it.
Matt

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 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

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.

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

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.
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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.
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Restoring itunes library to new mac

I used Time Machine to back up everything from my 2008 MacBook to an external drive (via USB). When I restored the info to my New MAcBook Pro, all files are restored, except for the music library in iTunes and photos in iPhoto. I can't find an explicit restore function under Time Machine that navigates one to selectively restore specific items. I am stuck and not sure how to proceed. can anyone help?

Hey JPXMAC,
The following document is a step-by-step guide on how to restore specific items back up with Time Machine. I'd give it a read and see if following those instructions help you restore your songs and pictures:
OS X Mountain Lion: Restore items backed up with Time Machine
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH11103
Cheers,
David

Importing iTunes library from a Mac to PC--File name too long error.....

Hi...
Hope someone can help. Ive been forced to use a PC at work (Win7) and am trying to install my 84 gig library from my Macbook Pro to the PC. During the course of the import, i get an error stating that a file is too long, and then the whole process aborts....any suggestions?
thanks in advance!
yp

Log into the migrated account, find the content, choose Go to Folder from the Finder's Go menu, provide /Users/Shared/ as the path, drag it there, and access it from the new account.
(100256)

I accidentally synced my mum's brand new iPad to my mac book air. A few days later I realised that my iTune library on my mac is completely gone. So is my iPhone 4s after I synced it with my mac. How do I get my old iTunes library back? Please help!

I accidentally synced my mum's brand new iPad to my mac book air. A few days later I realised that my iTune library on my mac is completely gone. So is my iPhone 4s after I synced it with my mac. How do I get my old iTunes library back? I tried using icloud on my iphone but it stated that I have never back up my phone before. So I guess my iCloud data is gone too? But I have back up my mac in my harddrive using time machine. So how do I get my old itune library back? Please help! Thanks!

1) ensure iTunes is authorized for your iTunes store account(s)
2) connect your device and right-click or control-click it in the iTunes Source list, then choose transfer purchases from the shortcut menu that appears.
3) sync the device
iTunes will wipe the iPhone but, since you transferred your purchases in the previous step, your content will be in your library and you can re-populate the iPhone with it.
above works for purchases from the iTunes store. for everything else, check out this post by Zevoneer.

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.

Why is apple this stubborn about not creating a new iTunes library in my Mac without telling or asking me? Does it think i'm that ignorant?

Why is apple this stubborn about not creating a new iTunes library in my Mac without telling or asking me? Does it think i'm that ignorant?
After consulting all the forums, I see that Apple is not answering this simple question: so disrespectful!
Please do something about it! All it takes is to write a little code: in the "Advanced Preferences (advanced????) give us an option that just asks you IF you want to create a replacement iTunes library before doing it! is this hard for you Mac guys????? To me, and to others, many, this arrogant attitude is just disrespect. Do you know the difference between making love and rape?

OK, OK,
I read a little. I just tried the "Music alias" thing. It seems to work!!!
Thanks to whoomever wrote this.

Importing iTunes Library from Mac to PC

I am going on extended travel and want to move my itunes library from my Mac Desktop to my PC Notebook. How do I transfer my library from the itunes MacOS environment to the PC Windows XP Pro environment?

Welcome to discussions, new Mac convert! I've been a convert for about 7 months now & I think you will be very happy. Anyway, there are 2 database files associated with your library that contain all your ratings, playlists, counts, etc. that must be transferred also, so that you can recover everything. The following link explains about these 2 files, .xml & .itl, & they are contained within the iTunes folder. Hope this helps!
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=93732

I brought my itunes library onto a mac from a windows machine and now i have two separate libraries. How can I merge them?

I moved to Mac from a Windows machine where I had downloaded all of my CDs into iTunes. When I got my Mac it only put my purchased items into my library. So I merged my windows library and it created a whole new user account with that on it. I now have two libraries and can only sync music with one account or I lose all of my imported CDs. Help! How do I merge them.

The easiest way is to get both computers on your home network and copy the files over the network. It's easier than you think
Check this earlier thread:
[How do I move my itunes library to new computer|http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=7937172&#7937172]
That thread mentions Target Disk Mode, which won't help moving from a PC to a Mac. But you can use file sharing to copy the files.
As the articles all say: don't forget to de-authorize your PC before you get rid of it.

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.

Import iTunes Library to new Mac

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