ITunes cannot find music files, confuses inodes, external drive

I have all my music on an external drive, which is not always connected to the Mac. When I start iTunes w/o the hdd connected iTunes occasionally marks some of the songs as not found. Which is ok so far. BUT if it finds the same inode (of the original file on the external hdd) on the internal hdd it changes the location of the songs to the internal hdd. In my case to files like /Previous System/<some path>/Info.plist. So iTunes thinks the files are still there and cannot play them. After deleting all the Previous Systems files iTunes marks all those files as not found, that is, it does not search for the inode on the external hdd again. Very confusing.
Yesterday I started from scratch with an empty iTunes Library (I moved the original one) and the problem reoccurred instantly after I imported all my music, quit iTunes, disconnected the external HDD and started iTunes again. So some of my songs are lost, iTunes will never find them again w/o me reimporting them. Also the problem might occur anytime in the future and I seem to not be able to cure it, because iTunes tried to be intelligent. But how it can confuse inodes w/o looking at the device ID and why the songs did not return after I removed the /Previous Systems folder I cannot image.
I checked the inodes on the internal and external hdd for some of the songs and they were indeed identical. So iTunes seems reset the path/location in the Library DB if it can find the inode of a song which it cannot find by path. Why it does not look at the device id in combination with the inode# is a mystery.
Some additional details:
iTunes Music Folder Location: on external hdd
The Library files are on the internal hdd at ~/Music/iTunes.
I hope someone can answer that. I do not want to start from scratch every week. I hope my iPod which holds all the songs synchs meta info like play count and rating back as well.
Kind regards, soryu2.

And further....
I went into iTunes to try to download all my purchased music.  Some, but not all, is showing up under iTunes>iTunes Media>Music.  It looks like the library thinks some if the music is there, but it actually is not.
Seems like my library is corrupted (or something). 
Since I have to upload all music from CD anyway, should I delete my iTunes library and start over, first by downloading all purchased music. 

Similar Messages

  • Itunes cannot find music files

    I know I've seen this problem before but can't remember the solution. When attempting to play an Itunes song I get a box saying "song could not be used because the original file could not be found". I've checked under advanced for the proper music folder location and that is correct. Could someone help me again.
    Thanks in advance.
    Dale

    If you hold down the option key when you open iTunes you should be able to point it to the library that you want to open.
    Is you extrernal drive formatted in NTFS? That might be causing an issue with your Mac seeing it.

  • I have exclamation marks and itunes cannot find original file?

    I have exclamation marks and itunes cannot find original file. How do I locate original file?

    Check you have your iTunes settings (Edit, Preferences, Advanced) to keep iTunes library organised.
    Your songs should be in your music library in iTunes, iTunes Media, Music. 
    If they are not, start menu, type the name of a song in the box and the list should show you where that is located. 

  • I lost my music stored in my computer.  I originally bought these from I Tunes.  Now I cannot play because it cannot find music file.  How do I download from I Tunes again?

    I lost my music stored in my computer.  I originally bought these from I Tunes.  Now I cannot play because it cannot find music file.  How do I download from I Tunes again?

    Hey MHallon,
    Thanks for the question. I understand that you need to redownload previously purchased content from the iTunes Store. The following resource should assist you in doing so:
    iTunes 11 for Windows: Download previous purchases from the iTunes Store
    http://support.apple.com/kb/PH12491
    Thanks,
    Matt M.

  • Itunes cannot locate my files on the external hard drive - I changed preferences but still not locating songs?

    itunes cannot locate my files on the external hard drive - I changed preferences but still not locating songs?

    This work for the most part:
    https://discussions.apple.com/message/20361846#20361846

  • HT1751 Why can't iTunes handle a music library on an external drive?

    I put all my music files on an external drive and imported them into iTunes. So far so good. The first time you run iTunes while the drive is disconnected - all your songs suddenly have that dreaded exclamation point next to them. Yes, while the drive is connected, I can still go to any song and double-click it to play; but the vast majority of songs stays "exclamated" and greyed-out. Shuffle ignores them. Even if I use some method to re-recognize all my songs, next time I open iTunes without first attaching the drive, it'll all go down the drain again.
    Apple - this MacBook air is great but it only comes with 256 GB of built-in storage. I HAVE to use an external drive in order to have my music library. Why can't the MacBook recognize the drive, remember it, and know when it's connected and when it isn't?

    If you mistakenly open iTunes with the drive disconnected, close iTunes, connect the drive, open iTunes, then visit iTunes > Preferences > Advanced and reset the media folder to the external drive.
    Better yet is to move the iTunes library folder into the root of the external drive as <Device>/iTunes, then connect to it by holding down option as you start iTunes. Once iTunes "knows" your library is on the external drive it will complain of a missing library when you try to start with the drive disconnected. Cancel the warning, connect the drive, start iTunes.
    For maximum portability you should set the media folder to <Device>/iTunes/iTunes Media and consolidate the media to that folder. You should then backup the drive to another for security.
    tt2

  • ITunes not finding music files

    iTunes cannot find 90%+ of my music files. I manually linked them together over the last weekend (yucch) and today when I went into iTunes, the links were all broken even though the .mp3 files were in the same directories as before. I can manually find the music files but that's a chore, particularly if I have to do it several times (not!). Any suggestions?
    Inspiron 6000   Windows XP  

    Well, you have a couple options. First shut down iTunes. Then unmount your HD. Then mount your external HD again, then after it pops up on your desktop, launch iTunes. Any files iTunes has that points to your ext. HD should play just fine.
    Or, you can copy all your music to your ext. HD (if you don't already have it there), and simply delete your iTunes library (by removing your data files). You could then add to library, making sure you uncheck "copy itunes songs to music folder). This way, iTunes will only "point" to your ext. drive to play the music. If the drive isn't on, you don't get any music, and the "!" sign. If you have many playlists, this can be tricky.
    As a rule, I don't go crazy with playlists, other than smart playlists. This way, you don't go nuts when you lose your data file, or want to do a clean update of your library. You'd be surprised at the times I thought I kept my library in tip-top shape, only to delete it and add the music again. I often find a song or two that I had hidden somewhere.
    Bryan

  • FYI: How to Fix "iTunes Cannot Find Original File" Error

    Yesterday morning, I opened iTunes and tried to play a file. I got the old "iTunes cannot find the original file" error. I tried another file. Same thing. I tried restarting iTunes, holding down the shift key, and making sure iTunes knew where my Library file was. Yep. Still no dice. So I came here, and did a search for help. I could not find any definitive answers to this question. So I did a Google search and found the fix in an old Metafilter thread. Given that this problem seems a little common, I thought I'd post my solution here, for anyone who has this issue in the future.
    First things first, make sure that it's not just an issue of pointing iTunes to your current library location. Go to your advanced preferences and double-check the library location path. If this doesn't fix it, then it's time to go my route:
    1) Open your iTunes folder in windows explorer. Look for a file called "itunes library.xml". Copy that file to your desktop or somewhere else so that it's backed up...in case something goes wrong.
    2) Open the original XML file in notepad (right-click, "open with", "notepad").
    3) In this XML file, you will see a paragraph of information for every file you have (songs, podcasts, videos, etc.). In each of those paragraphs, there is a file path specifying where the file is supposed to reside. This is how the itunes library.itl file knows where to look. In my case, it should have been "e:/my music/itunes", but instead, it was "e:/my music/itunes/itunes music". The program had created that folder for some reason, and all my files were pointing there.
    4) Check a few of the paragraphs and see if they are pointing to your actual music folder. If so, then you have another problem...sorry. If not, then continue on:
    5) Go to edit->replace (or control-H). In the "find what" box, enter the incorrect file path (in my case, e:/my music/itunes/itunes music"). In the "replace with" box, enter the correct path of your itunes music folder (in my case, "e:/my music/itunes". Then click "replace all".
    If you have a lot of songs, this may take awhile. I have over 25,000 files, so it took at least 18 hours.
    6) When it's done, quit notepad and save the XML file. Open iTunes. If it doesn't automatically start updating your library, then try to play a song. If you get the same old error, then quite iTunes, then re-open it, go to the advanced preferences and select the correct file path for the library location. This should fix it.

    I am also finding many "ghost file" duplicate files (with the exclamation point "can not locate files" message), after pointing Itunes version 8.2.1.6 to my music folder on a separate, networked hard drive. My understanding is that the "Consolidate Files" feature in Itunes is supposed to properly identify all of the file locations, but it only worked for about 1/5 of our 10,000 plus files before it stopped running. (I've read in other forums that this software is buggy, and gets confused with long song titles, etc.)It also leaves you with duplicate "ghost" files to delete, when the music from the separate drive is "added".
    I can not find a file called ituneslibrary.xml to try your suggestion, when I open my Itunes folder. When I do "get info" on the individual music files in Itunes that can't be located, the "where" field = "not available". I have doublechecked the library location in preferences and it is properly pointed to "K:\itunes" which is the correct location.

  • I have my iTunes Library on and external hard drive.  I have a new computer and want to use iTunes and KEEP my files on the external drive.

    My iTunes library is on an external hard drive, and I was able to access / add to the library from my windows laptop.
    I now have a new laptop, and want to be able to KEEP the library on the external drive while being able to use iTunes from the new laptop.
    I have selected "choose library" in iTunes, and have chosen the iTunes Library.itl file on the external drive.
    My media populates in iTunes on the new laptop version of iTunes, but when I click on a song iTunes says that it cannot locate the song.
    Your help is kindly appreciated!

    Thanks.  Were the settings shown in your last screenshot in force when you added the song that's shown on being on the C: drive?  It is also possible that at some point you ran iTunes with the external drive disconnected, in which case it will have defaulted to the library on the C: drive, or that you've run iTunes without explicitly selecting the library on the E: drive.  To make sure the latter is the case, hold down SHIFT while starting iTunes, then when you get this prompt:
    click on Choose Library..., navigate to the location of your current iTunes Library.itl file, and click Open.
    Part of your issue may that its not obvious where that current database file is located.  The folder layout on your E: drive isn't the one that's most easily managed - so its possible that the database file could be in:
    E:\xxxx\Files\iTunes
    E:\xxxx\Files\iTunes\iTunes
    E:\xxxx\Files\iTunes\iTunes 1
    I suggest that a lot of your issues can be addressed by reshaping your library into the reliable "portable" layout as described in tt2's Make a split library portable user tip.  Comparing your screenshot with the equivalent on my system (where I have a "well-formed" library on an external drive):
    where:
    there is just one iTunes folder with everything used by iTunes inside it
    all media is held within subfolders of the iTunes Media folder
    The way you have yours set up, where the iTunes Media Folder location is set to E:\xxxx\Files\iTunes rather than E:\xxxx\Files\iTunes\iTunes Media is probably why some of your media is not being located correctly - the extent to which iTunes can correctly resolve locations is, to an extent, reliant on the folders for the different media kinds (Music, Audiobooks, etc.) being inside the iTunes Media media folder.  One common misunderstanding (not helped at all by Apple's documentation!) is that the iTunes Media Folder location setting in Edit > Preferences > Advanced does not tell iTunes where to find anything; rather it determines where iTunes will put new additions to your Library, in conjunction with the Copy files to iTunes Media folder ... flag:
    I would definitely take the time to work through the steps to bring your library into the "portable" shape - there may be few remaining issues with broken links when that's complete but this will be much easier to fix if your library is in a more standard structure.

  • Linking music files on an external drive to a new mac

    Hi,
    I have recently bought a new macbook, replacing my old ibook, all my music tracks are on an external hard drive, I want to keep them there, but I want to be able to play them on my new macbook, how do I do this?
    I have changed the folder so itunes is looking at the right one, but my new itunes is empty. do I need to copy the track listings somehow into the new library?
    I can only find instructions for physically moving the media, which I don't want to do.
    I had wanted to be able to hook up the hard drive to both computers, is that possible?
    thanks very much
    vbw

    You should be able to do a File -> Add and then point to the iTunes music folder on your external drive and it should fill in the iTunes library for you. Since you are already telling iTunes to use that location, there shouldn't be any copying or moving of files about.
    As to hooking it to two different computers, while you can probably get away with it, each iTunes treats the library as its own, so you could end up in trouble when one library alters the library somehow that the other one might not be happy about.
    Patrick

  • Get new pc and iTunes to populate music library from an external drive

    Hey! any help on this would be appreciated.  My PC died.  Luckily my music was on an external drive.  I got a new PC.  I downloaded the latest iTunes.  I can't get iTunes to populate all the music from my hard disc.
    I can get as far as preferences > advanced > change location.  But when I point it to the music folder on the external drive it does nothing - instead of magically populating all my music into iTunes.

    jimmyfox wrote:
    I've tried pointing it to a couple of different folders in preferences > change location.
    That only tells iTunes where to put new items in the future.
    Turingtest2 who posts in these forums, has written a few scripts for Windows.
    Check out FindTracks scripts here
    -> http://samsoft.org.uk/iTunes/scripts.asp
    FindTracks
    A script that attempts to locate missing tracks that have been misplaced within your library, either as a result of a third party program reorganising the media or as a result of attempting to move the library/media to a new location. Enter the location of the media folder the files should be in and the script will try to systematically fix every broken link.

  • Transferred my iTunes to a new computer cannot find music files

    Recently I got a new PC laptop. I backed up my iTunes from my old laptop to an external hard drive and transferred them to the new computer. Although the song information appears in my iTunes window, when I try to play them I get a message that the file cannot be found and would I like help locating it.  Any suggestions on how to fix this?

    Something whet wrong with your migration process, that much is clear.
    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. It may be possible to simply slide the media folders into the location that iTunes expects them to be.
    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

  • Original file cannot be found for most music files, w/large external drive

    Hello.
    I am getting the error message "original file cannot be found" most times that I play a song in iTunes 6, though I am always able to locate the music file in my iTunes Music Folder. This is infuriating!
    My music collection is large -- 90.08 GB, and is on an external FireWire drive.
    Can somebody help me?

    mgallope,
    welcome to Discussions.
    Everytime you turn your ext hd off, iTunes reverts your library to its original location, which is within your mac HD.
    In order to locate the music files, turn your ext hd on, plug it into your mac and wait it be recognized in Finder. After that, open iTunes Preferences>Advanced and change the location of your library from the original location to the new one. Wait until iTunes reorganizes the library and try playing any song.
    Unfortunately, you´ll have to do this every time you shut your ext hd off.
    Hope this helps.
    Cheers,
    Paulo

  • ITunes cannot locates music files

    I recently purchased a new Asus with Windows 8 and successfully (or so I thought) transferred music from my i phone 4. The computer is authorised. My phone recently became full as I have a lot of music, so I unticked some music and attempted to re-sync. All the files in ITunes then got an '!' symbol by them which means it could not locate files and removed everything from my phone.
    After wasting many hours, I have managed to download all the applications and some music that I have purchased via ITunes - although most STILL has the ! by them and the store says I have downloaded them and won't let me do it again.
    I have also changed the preferences to locate files from various copies I have made on external drives still with no success.
    Strangely, when I have the I phone plugged in to the computer and as I'm syncing, it shows all of the audio files on the blue bar but just as it finishes syncing it reverts back to about 6 GB with the items in para 2 above.
    Any ideas on how I get I Tunes to find the files??? I have loads of music loaded from CDs over the years and really don't want to spend the rest of my life reloading them.
    Thanks in advance for any ideas. oh, I've also updated both ITunes and my phone to current software versions.
    Debbie

    Hello 2305deb,
    We have an article to help find your missing media. Named iTunes: Finding lost media and downloads it can be found here http://support.apple.com/kb/ts1408.
    Resolution
    Follow the steps below to locate your missing iTunes media.
    Resume any interrupted downloads
    Choose Store > Check for Available Downloads from the iTunes menu. Click Resume if any downloads are listed as unfinished. For more information see How to resume interrupted iTunes Store downloads.
    Check your iTunes media folder
    For Mac OS X
    For Windows 7 and Windows Vista
    For Windows XP
    Check your Trash/Recycle Bin
    Check the Trash (Mac) or the Recycle Bin (Windows). If you're able to find any of your missing items, you can re-add them back to your iTunes library.
    Mac OS X: Control + click (or right-click) on the item and choose Put Back.
    Windows 7 and Windows Vista: Right-click on the item and choose Restore.
    Windows XP: Right-click on the item and choose Restore.
    If after restoring the item from the trash your media doesn't reappear in your iTunes library. You will need to locate the restored file in your iTunes Media folder and drag the item into your iTunes library window.
    There are different instructions depending on the version of windows you have.
    It is possible that you may need to re create the iTunes library and IF that is the case then here is an article to assist with that
    iTunes: How to re-create your iTunes library and playlists
    http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1451
    Take care,
    Sterling

  • Itunes cant find music files

    Seems to be some discussion on this problem where as itunes will not play the music on the computer and says it cant find the music files. I found that the block for using itunes as default audio player has to be checked. This is in preferences under the advanced tab. Seems to come unchecked at times and stops the player. Also my music location, also under advanced will go back to default at times. (My files are on an external hard drive) Hope this helps.
    dlj

    Try one of these solutions already posted to this forum or use the "Search Discussions" for many more:
    http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=4358684&#4358684
    http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=4123245&#4123245
    http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=4090531&#4090531
    http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=3960710&#3960710
    http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=3950754&#3950754

Maybe you are looking for