ITunes and two computers - windows

I recenlty switched to an iPhone when my Droid died. Love it. But, I added my music from home computer to my iPhone. I added iTunes to my work laptop. When I connect to the work laptop, it deletes all my music on my iPhone that I sync from home. The work laptop only has "purchased" music, not all of my backed up CDs. How do I change the settings on my account so it doesn't do that?

Sync iPod/iPad/iPhone with two computers
Although it isn't possible to sync an Apple device with two different libraries it is possible to sync with the same logical library from multiple computers. Each library has an internal ID and when iTunes connects to your iPod/iPad/iPhone it compares the local ID with the one the device normally syncs with. If they are the same you can go ahead and sync...
I have my library cloned to a small 1Tb USB drive which I can take between home & work. At either location I use SyncToy 2.1 to update the local copy with the external drive. Mac users should be able to find similar tools. I can open either of the local libraries or the one on the external drive and update the media content of my iPhone. The slight exception is Photos which normally connects to a specific folder on a specific machine, although that can easily be remapped to the current library if you create a "Photos" folder inside the iTunes Media folder so that syncing the iTunes folders keeps this up to date as well. I periodically sweep my library for new files & orphans with iTunes Folder Watch just in case I make changes at one location but then overwrite the library with a newer copy from the other. Again Mac users should be able to find similar tools.
As long as your media is organised within an iTunes Music or Tunes Media folder, in turn held inside the main iTunes folder that has your library files (whether or not you let iTunes keep the media folder organised) each library can access items at the same relative path from the library folder so the library can be at different drives/paths on different machines. This solution ensures I always have adequate backups of my library and I can update my devices whenever I can connect to the same build of iTunes.
When working with an iPhone earlier builds of iTunes would remove any file not physically present in the local library, even if there was an entry for it, making manual management practically redundant on the iPhone. This behaviour has been changed but it will still only permit manual management with a library that has the correct internal ID. If you don't want to sync your library between machines on a regular basis just copy the iTunes Library.itl file from the current "home" machine to any other you want to use, then clean out the library entires and import the local content you have on that box.
tt2

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ITunes on two computers, how can I sync from both

I guess what I want to do is sync Itunes amongst two computers.
When I got my Ipod for Christmas, at the outset I set up Itunes on my son's laptop. And up to this point I have been syncing from this computer.
Now I want to start to sync from my own laptop (actually I want to be able to sync from both computers) and not loose any content.
I do have the January software update and it was installed from my son's computer. I don't want to loose this update if I sync with my computer.
To date, my Ipod has worked flawlessly. I am hoping not to create a problem by introducting my Ipod to my laptop and trying to sync the Ipod from both computers.
I am not too technically inclinded, so I would appreciate any response to take this into account when replying. Thanks.

There is also an option in iTunes. Go to File>Back up to disc. It will then give you some options of what type of back up you want to do. And don't forget hat if you have music on your iPod that is a form of a back up as well. If it is purchased music from the iTunes store, and you loose your music from system crash or whatever. You can re-install iTunes and then connect you iPod and go to Store >Authorize Computer > enter password and then go to File> Transfer Purchases. Now if you have ripped music and loose it you can use any search engine and search for Ipod Ripper programs. These are third party softwares, so basically it means that they work but Apple does not endorse or support them. But trust me when I tell you if you get one that you have to pay a fee for they work.

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Hey ChandlerAdaway!
I have an article here that can provide you some guidance for this issue. First, you will want to check for the songs in your past purchases list for your account, if you haven't already:
Downloading past purchases from the iTunes Store, App Store, and iBooks Store
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2519
If the songs cannot be found there, you will want to report an issue with your download by following the directions in this article:
How to report an issue with your iTunes Store, App Store, Mac App Store, or iBooks Store purchase
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1933
Thanks for coming to the Apple Support Communities!
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ITunes on two computers - keeping ratings and file info in synch?

I have my iTunes files on two computers (and thus have used two of the 10 that I am permitted). When I rate a file on one computer, or change the info (to add genre or artist info) on one computer, how can I can duplicate it on the second computer?
I have thought of backing up all of the files on computer 1 and copying onto computer 2, so that the "new" file info will overwrite the "old" file info. But, will I get charged again against my limit of 10??
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Can i use two different itunes and/or computers to download?

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Welcome to Apple Discussions!
The reason iTunes does this is because it is illegal to use your friend's music.
If have you two different computers you want to sync your ipod with though...
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btabz

I have a question about downloading and itunes on TWO computers.

Where I work I have really fast internet, perfect for downloading movies, etc. At home, in the sticks, I have slow internet. Is there any way to rent/buy media on my work computer itunes (Win) to take home (say on my iPhone) and sync with my Mac iTunes?
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Bartybar wrote:
I think I've gone Cross-Eyed....
Hmm, not sure this will help, but let's try...
Sync iPod/iPad/iPhone with two computers
Although it isn't possible to sync an Apple device with two different libraries it is possible to sync with the same logical library from multiple computers. Each library has an internal ID and when iTunes connects to your iPod/iPad/iPhone it compares the local ID with the one the device normally syncs with. If they are the same you can go ahead and sync...
I have my library cloned to a small 1Tb USB drive which I can take between home & work. At either location I use SyncToy 2.1 to update the local copy with the external drive. Mac users should be able to find similar tools. I can open either of the local libraries or the one on the external drive and update the media content of my iPhone. The slight exception is Photos which normally connects to a specific folder on a specific machine, although that can easily be remapped to the current library if you create a "Photos" folder inside the iTunes Media folder so that syncing the iTunes folders keeps this up to date as well. I periodically sweep my library for new files & orphans with iTunes Folder Watch just in case I make changes at one location but then overwrite the library with a newer copy from the other. Again Mac users should be able to find similar tools.
As long as your media is organised within an iTunes Music or Tunes Media folder, in turn held inside the main iTunes folder that has your library files (whether or not you let iTunes keep the media folder organised) each library can access items at the same relative path from the library folder so the library can be at different drives/paths on different machines. This solution ensures I always have adequate backups of my library and I can update my devices whenever I can connect to the same build of iTunes.
tt2

How to manage two itunes on two computers and two iPhones

I have a single NAS data server that stores all my music and content.
I have a laptop, and an iPhone and apple account. So does my wife.
What is the best strategy for keeping the music in sync across those devices without keeping it local?
Currently it is very troublesome to keep playlists in sync between the two itunes applications. It is also difficult to keep the music up to date on the two computers, even though they are pointing to the same NAS directory/share.

If you are syncing Contacts, Notes and Reminders, no. That is an account (AppleID) specific function. Backups, however, are another matter and would remain separate since they are device specific.

Choice in how I manage iTunes on iPhone and two computers?

OK - so first off, because as I read the history this appears to be sensitive, I HAVE read a considerable amount of previous threads on this. It's hard to believe that at this point (Apr 2010) there is still no third-party software for this? Apple must have made it virtually impossible!
At any rate, here's my situation:
(1) I have two computers - one iMac which holds my primary iTunes (computer 1), one new MacBook (computer 2), and one iPhone 3Gs.
(2) I also have MobileMe which syncs everything just fine in terms of contacts, calendar, etc.
(3) My iTunes and Music folder for my iMac IS located on an external drive off of my iMac (computer 1) and not on the actual hard drive.
Again, to stipulate, I understand:
(1) iPhone is set up to sync to only ONE computer
(2) I can authorize up to 5 computers. (My issue with this is that I have considerable amounts of my own music imported that will not appear as the "authorized" music. And, I do this regularly so I don't want to have to keep duplicating the MP3 import - I'll quickly become out of sync or lose track of them.)
(3) Trying to sync from iPhone to new iTunes library will wipe out iPhone or vice versa
And, I have read this thread on the code changes that can be made:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=10972003
Plus I read this thread on iTunes library being an external drive:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=11148807
SO, now that I've made my case for being informed, I'm asking for your help in how to make my choice to structure my situation.
My basic desire is to have the same library on all three places - I don't need different things in different places. Same thing. And, I pretty much have access to all three devices all the time (one is not physically located somewhere else). I would, however, like to be able to purchase on any of the three and then have it added to the library for all three - and I think that's where I run into my problem.
Option 1? My iTunes library and entire music library IS located on an External Drive off of Computer 1. So, technically, could I just set my MacBook (computer 2) iTunes to pull from that library? Then, any new purchases would go into that same library, accessible by both? The risk here, I think, is that I cannot try to sync to the MacBook when I am NOT on my home network with access to that external drive? In fact, on my MacBook, should I set it up this way iTunes will be "missing" it's library completely? Second risk - how stable is this plan? Am I likely to corrupt/kill/worse my iTunes library from this set up? (Caveat: It is backed up nightly on a second external)
Option 2? Do the code changes posted in the articles linked in this thread:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=10972003
But my iPhone is not jailbroken, nor do I intend it to be - does that matter? And, how stable is this? Honestly, I don't like the idea of monkeying with iTunes code.
Option 3? Copy my iTunes library from Computer 1 and then set up as iTunes library on Computer 2. Designate one computer / iTunes as the one I both buy music on and sync with my iPhone - then can I manually transfer music added to my iPhone into the Computer 2 iTunes (hit cancel when it says it will delete the library if it's synced. go into iPhone and choose songs to manually transfer?) Not sure this is possible...
Option 4? ? ? Is there something else here I've missed?
I hope this all makes sense - I've spent a lot of time reading about the options and think I understand each, I'm just wondering your advice in terms of which is the best solution.
Thanks!
Message was edited by: akcorcoran

My basic desire is to have the same library on all three places - I don't need different things in different places. Same thing. And, I pretty much have access to all three devices all the time (one is not physically located somewhere else). I would, however, like to be able to purchase on any of the three and then have it added to the library for all three - and I think that's where I run into my problem.
Short answer:
I'd suggest a variation of your option 3, but use "home sharing" to greatly simplify the process of keeping them in sync. If you really need to sync the iPod with different machines, then maybe your option 2 is best, but I share some of your apprehension about that solution.
Long answer:
I have a similar issue: three desktop machines, one PC in my office, one Mac in my wife's office, and one Mac connected to the audio system in our living room. I have an iPhone, and so does my wife. I also roam the house with my Macbook. We keep all three desktop machines synchronized in terms of the basic collection of music, and my wife and I synchronize our individual iPod devices to our respective desktop machines.
My solution was to (despite the many complaints about this feature) employ "home sharing". Basically, not only do we share our libraries, but we've also enable home sharing on all three machines, all registered using the same Apple ID. We further more have set the "home sharing" options so purchases are automatically purchased.
It's wonderful. If I buy something at the iTunes Store on my PC, we've configured "home sharing" so it magically shows up on the other machines, with no intervention on my part, just as do purchases that my wife makes on her Mac. And on those occasions where I rip a new CD, while "home sharing" won't magically transfer it for me, it does have feature that you can (a) look at another computer's library, showing only those tracks that don't exist on the current machine; and (b) you can drag and drop music, right in iTunes, from one machine to another. Thus, in comparison to the nightmare of my pre v9.0 manually synchronizing of libraries, "home sharing" has made this much easier.
And in this set-up, my wife and I can each maintain our separate playlists for determining what's sync'ed to our respective iPods. Yes, playlists and ratings are not synced between the three PCs, but it makes it possible for us to take advantage of this to make our own playlists. (This feature is probably less of an issue for you than for us, but it's very useful for us.)
The only problem I see is that it sounds like you want to sync your iPhone with multiple computers, whereas I've explicitly decided I want to sync with a single computer.
I'll answer some of your questions below, but this is a configuration that we use, doesn't involve working around any iTunes features (like the manual manipulation of the iTunes library ID) or problems with file contention. We also have a built in backup of our iTunes library, so if one machine dies, at least all of the media files themselves are safe. (Having said that, I do backups, as well, so I've got a double redundancy.)
Option 1? My iTunes library and entire music library IS located on an External Drive off of Computer 1. So, technically, could I just set my MacBook (computer 2) iTunes to pull from that library? Then, any new purchases would go into that same library, accessible by both?
That might work, but you'd have to think about, in addition to your media files (the mp3 and other audio and video files), whether you'll put the library database file itself (the separate file that keeps track of what media files are available to iTunes, where they are located, the playlists, rankings, play counts, etc.) on that shared drive, too. If just the media files are there, then I suspect that might work, but anytime you add or remove content, you'd have to update the other library, at I think it would be more cumbersome than the "home sharing" approach.
If you decide you want to keep the iTunes library on this shared drive, too, that might eliminate the need for the syncing process, but you might run into trouble if you're not careful about ensuring that the references to that external drive are identical on the two machines. Also, if you try running iTunes at the same time on the two machines, I can imagine that you might have file contention issues on the library database itself.
Bottom line, might work, but seems that you would have the choice between a cumbersome solution and a fragile solution.
Option 2? Do the code changes posted in the articles linked in this thread ... But my iPhone is not jailbroken, nor do I intend it to be - does that matter? And, how stable is this? Honestly, I don't like the idea of monkeying with iTunes code.
You don't need to jailbreak your phone to do this. And I suspect that it's reasonable robust solution as I've seen CNET training videos that advocated for precisely this solution.
This seems like an acceptable work-around if you're trying to sync phones in disparate locations (home and office). But it seems unnecessary if the machines are on the same network, and like anything where you're trying to tweak software behind-the-scenes, I'd worry about it being susceptible to it breaking on new updates to iTunes. Apple isn't going to ensure that some hack like this won't be broken in future releases. I'd be shocked if they tested this scenario in future releases.
Option 3? Copy my iTunes library from Computer 1 and then set up as iTunes library on Computer 2. Designate one computer / iTunes as the one I both buy music on and sync with my iPhone - then can I manually transfer music added to my iPhone into the Computer 2 iTunes (hit cancel when it says it will delete the library if it's synced. go into iPhone and choose songs to manually transfer?) Not sure this is possible...
As I described, I'd suggest a permutation of this option, where you use "home sharing" to keep the machines in sync. I'm not sure if I follow your thought process on "hit cancel when it says delete library...", though. Were you thinking of using the iPhone to sync the machines? If you have a home network, that's not necessary. Or are you saying that it's important to sync the iPhone with multiple computers for some reason that I'm not understanding.
By the way, if the issue is that you want to be able to manage your iPhone from either machine, what I do is I've designated one of my computers as my "iphone sync" computer. When I want to manage this (e.g. download apps for my iPhone, etc.) when I'm not at that machine, I "remote" into that machine from wherever I happen to be sitting. (I use Mac "screen sharing" to access my wife's Mac from my Macbook, I use Microsoft "Remote Desktop" for Mac when I want to access my PC from my Macbook, and I use a free VNC client when I want to manage my Macbook or my wife's Mac from my desktop PC.) Yes, when I sync I have to plug in the iPhone into the cradle in my office, but because I can access that desktop PC from wherever I happen to be, I find that to be a manageable solution (e.g., I'll update apps and podcasts on my desktop my Macbook in the basement, and then walk up to my office and just drop my iPhone into the cradle when I want to sync). I'd love remote syncing, but Apple ain't there yet.
Message was edited by: Rob Ryan

Using itunes on two computers -- my Desktop and my Laptop

I would like to be able to copy the content of my iTunes Library to my Laptop and then be able to play music while away from my Desktop. Exporting / Importing doesn't seem to do this -- all I get is a small XML file.
I must be doing something wrong.
Suggestions?
Steve

Probably the most straightforward way to get iTunes onto your new computer is to network it and the original one and copy over your iTunes folder. This works fine if you have been using iTunes to completely manage your music and all your songs are in iTunes Music not in different folders.
Copying the whole folder brings with it the iTunes Music folder and also the iTunes Library (iTunes Library.itl in Windows) database file which holds all the information about your songs (Playlists, Ratings, Play Counts, Last Played, Date Added, etc). You'll get more information including the Folder/File structure in this article: What are the iTunes library files?
On the PC you'll find the iTunes folder in: \Documents and Settings\Username\My Documents\My Music\ copy the iTunes folder to the same location on the second computer. When you open iTunes on the second computer it will be the same as on the original one Songs, Playlists, Play Counts, Ratings etc. When I moved iTunes a while ago for my daughter I was also using the same version of iTunes, not sure how important that is but it's probably worth keeping them the same.

Can you listen to iTunes on two computers at the same time?

If I've got iTunes playing on one computer, is it possible to listen on another computer on the same network what's playing on the first computer? I've often got two computers on the go over two floors and it would be smart if they were playing the same music at the same time. Thanks for your help.

Hi Andy, if you want to listen through remote speakers connected to an AirPort Express you can choose the remote speakers (or computer) from the pop-up menu at the bottom of the iTunes window
However, to the best of my knowledge you can only listen to iTunes through one set of speakers at a time.

ITunes and two computers - windows

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