ITunes duplication maze

First off, I think (think!) some of this may have happened when I went to iTunes Match this summer. I have several hundred duplicates in my iTunes library. I went to the standard "Show duplicate items" in the iTunes menu and that revealed, maybe two dozen. I eliminated the duplicates, but I still have several hundred left. Why won't "Show duplicates" show those as well. I understand that some songs actually have different artists or, for some reason, is a few seconds longer, but that is just a small percentage. I'm hoping there is a way I can glean these duplicates without spending a couple hours walking through this.

"Editing the track information..."  Apologies in advance. Techno-impaired. "I coulda had a V8!" What I do notice is that some duplicates do not include the artist or album. Some have a different upload date. All are still a mystery as in not leaving off artist or album or uploading same song. Yes, for sure, it could happen with a few (uploading same song), but not 200+. Anyway, many thanks on this. I feel sure thats the issue.
So, probably one mystery solved and four more added:
1. Why the different upload dates?
2. Why "blank" artists?
3. Is there a way I can "comb" these duplicates without one at a time?
4. When I do this, do I also check the box to eliminate from Cloud?

Similar Messages

  • ITunes duplication (sorry)

    Hello
    I have seen some threads about this but it's really confusing. Could someone give me a simple explanation of what to do for this?
    I have the most recent iTunes for Windows and all my files are on an external hard drive linked to iTunes.
    When I did a reinstall recently I think I must have copied and dragged all the old folders into iTunes, I have the 'keep iTunes Media Folder organised' checked and it saved every single mp3 in the same folders with a '1' at the end. ie. I have both 'Queen/Greatest Hits 1/Bohemian Rhapsody.mp3' and 'Queen/Greatest Hits 1/Bohemian Rhapsody 1.mp3'
    It seems that all of the files in my iTunes are linked to the *1.mp3 files. How can I delete all the duplicates? To be honest, I would prefer having the non *1.mp3 files on my hard drive and those linked to iTunes.
    Sorry to be a pain
    Nathan

    If you physically delete the files from Windows Explorer that match that pattern then you'll break iTunes connection to the file, and it may be that attempting to reimport the media folder will simply cause another round of duplication.
    Physical duplicates like the ones you describe normally only happen if iTunes wants to call an imported file <Filename>.<Ext> but there is already a file with that name, so iTunes calls it <Filename> 1.<Ext>. If the files that are being imported are already inside the designated iTunes Media folder then iTunes shouldn't need to create copies. Since you are only seeing some of the files as duplicates I suspect something odd has happened, perhaps surrounding security permissions with the relocated drive.
    Repair Permissions
    Right-click on your media folder and click Properties, then go to the Security tab and click Advanced. If necessary grant your account and SYSTEM full control of this folder, subfolders and files, then tick the option to replace permissions on child objects which will repair permissions throughout the library. This is the XP dialog but Windows 7 shouldn't be too different.
    If it won't let you change the permissions use the Owner tab to take ownership from an account with administrator privileges.
    Once you've checked that, in iTunes go to Edit > Preferences > Advanced and untick Keep... and Copy... then use File > Add Folder to Library to import the media folder again. This time Show Exact Duplicates should show both copies of each track. Sort by Date Added and delete the most recent imports, sending to the recycle bin. You can then turn Keep... & Copy... back on, and the files should be renamed properly.
    The advice tobackup the library and/or media folder before deduping still stands. The above steps ought to work, but a backup would ensure that if you do anything too drastic you can at least restore the status quo.
    tt2

  • Itunes duplication of songs when moved from one computer to another.

    I moved all my music and itunes from one computer to another. I now have most of my artist that have duplicate songs and sometimes three copies of the same song for some reason. Some artist it didn't affect at all but that is a minority. How can I clean this up without going through every line in my folder and deleting the copies? I have like 25K songs. I hope someone can help.
    Thanks

    Have a look at Teridon's iTunes Scripts. There's a script in there for dealing with duplicates that might be of some help to you: Teridon's iTunes for Windows Scripts

  • Itunes duplication

    Hi,
    I've seen all the other threads about songs being duplicated in the iTunes library and how to delete duplicates. However, I can't see anywhere that allows duplicates to be deleted in one go rather than having to delete each one individually which will take HOURS! Can anyone help?
    Thanks
    Lisa

    Use Shift > View > Show Exact Duplicate Items to display duplicates as this is normally a more useful selection. You need to manually select all but one of each group to remove. Sorting the list by Date Added may make it easier to select the appropriate tracks (you can select the first track of a range, then press shift and click the last track to select all in between) however this works best when performed immediately after the dupes have been created.  If you have multiple entries in iTunes connected to the same file on the hard drive then don't send to the recycle bin. Use my DeDuper script if you're not sure, don't want to do it by hand, or want to preserve ratings, play counts and playlist membership. See this thread for background and please take note of the warning to backup your library before deduping.
    (If you don't see the menu bar press ALT to show it temporarily or CTRL+B to keep it displayed)
    tt2

  • HT2905 iPad iTunes duplication

    I downloaded from iCloud last night all my songs to my iPad. Now I have a mess of about 80% of my iPad library full of duplicate songs. How do you get rid of the duplicates?

    Krista Maki1 wrote:
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    The space allocation bar in my Mac iTunes shows that the iPad has Gigs of music. How do I get to it?
    On the iPad music is played with the iPod App (not iTunes). You will find the icon for the iPod App at the bottom right of your home screen. Your playlists will be found there.

  • 1:1 iTunes duplication

    Hi there,
    I'm using a dual-boot system with XP and Vista. Now I want to start synchronising my iPod with Vista instead of the old XP. But there is one problem: Although I was able to bring my music to Vista-iTunes, it did not work with the album covers. Some are there, some aren't. How can I get everything properly to Vista?
    Thx in advance!

    Was this artwork downloaded from the itunes store? If so, it's stored in 2 folders on XP
    The default for them in XP are
    C:\Documents and Settings\ username \My Documents\My Music\iTunes\Album Artwork\Download
    C:\Documents and Settings\ username \My Documents\My Music\iTunes\Album Artwork\Local
    So maybe moving them to the similar default place in Vista will get your artowrk back. Since I don't have Vista, I haven't tried that.

  • ITUNES DUPLICATION ON KARAOKE CDG's FORMAT

    I have iTunes and Toast 8 and cannot duplicate my karaoke discs. Music CD and DVD's are no problem. Any suggestions on this topic would be helpful.....Peace

    You need a cd burner and software that supports CD-G.

  • Icloud and Itunes duplications

    I downloaded my purchased music on my iPhone and then later synced the iphone up to itunes.  Now the music that I purchased is on my iphone 2 times though is only on itunes 1 time.  This is only the music that I downloaded from the "cloud" that is duplicating.  How do I remove the duplicates from my phone?  This is driving me crazy, to be polite about it.

    iCloud and itunes match are different services.  iCloud really has no impact on iTunes match.  When you set up itunes match, I assume your itunes music library was synced up to the match cloud.  You other devices list all the music but don't have it physically on the device until you download it.
    You might post over at the itunes match forum where users there are more knowledgeable than most here.
    https://discussions.apple.com/community/itunes/itunes_match

  • I've moved iTunes to an external hard drive now have massive duplication of albums

    Recently moved my iTunes folder to an external hard drive. Used the Itunes preferences to transfer the itunes folder to a new location. Didn't transfer it manually or by drag and drop! Followed this - I hope correctly - by using the iTunes/File/Library/Organise Library tool. May have got this bit wrong....
    Result?.........
    Here we see, in the second column, that I have both an 'iTunes Music' folder and a folder simply called 'Music' (Highlighted in red). You'll have to take my word for it but these folders have different amounts of music in them. Some is duplicated, some albums are split across the two folders. Howwever, most empty folders are in the 'iTunes Music' folder, whereasost complete folders are in the 'Music' folder! In addition, There's a 'Compilations' folder within the 'iTunes Music' folder (highlighted in blue with a red arrow) which has a small number of compilations most of which I've never selected as compilations.
    Note the repetition of folders called 'Automatically add to iTunes' in both the 'iTunes' folder and the 'iTunes Music' folder. There's another one of these in the 'iTunes Media' folder.
    Going further in.....
    Here we have the 'Music' folder in the 'iTunes' folder. It has its own 'Compilations' folder which is even larger and more irrelevent than the previous one. It also has way more album folders than the 'iTunes Music' folder itself.
    If I use the  iTunes/File/Library/Organise Library procedure the splash screen that comes up allows me to choose the first optiuon but the second one is greyed out.
    One of the results of this is duplicated albums on my iPhone, another is randomly missing tracks in my collection. In addition, my iTunes screen saver now has duplicate album covers and many album covers that I know I've downloaded at high resolution have just gone missing making my iPhone look like its been populated by a chimp! (no offence to our cousins) Where I've discovered a missing track I've used the 'File/ Add to library' procedure. In one case it copied an album folder from the 'iTunes Music' folder where I found it into the 'Music' folder on another occasion exactly the same procedure left the album precisely where it was.
    BTW, I have another iTunes folder on my Mac with all the normal stuff in it but only music that I had to add whilst nopt connected to my hard drive.
    How can I remove this massive duplication safely?
    How can I consolidate my files efficiently without having to go through each folder separately?
    How can I remove all these albums from 'Compilations' and prtevent other albums being added?
    How can I get all my album artwork back in sync?
    Phew!
    Thanks!

    The folders and files are all normal to a basic iTunes library. They would be there even if you didn't have a single media file.  Until you start up with the option key held down, iTunes will keep on looking for your library on the internal drive and will repopulate that folder with those basics if you delete them.  You should have a similar folder with contents on your external and that is the one you want iTunes to use.  As long as you keep it all intact while copying from one drive to the other, iTunes will be internally consistent and you won't even have to change preferences.
    Preferences window
    iTunes Media folder location: Just that; where iTunes keeps media. This is not necessarily where the library files (which are what ties the whole thing together) are to be found.
    Keep Media Folder Organized - put all your files in folders according to type and name and album etc.
    Copy Files to iTunes Media Folder - put it this way, if you didn't have that checked itunes would leave the files wherever you had them when you added them to the library. this one makes sure there is a copy (though not necessarily the only one, but the only on iTunes uses) in your media folder.
    What actions take place when itunes "consolidate library" is used?
    When you consolidate iTunes looks at all the files you have listed in iTunes and puts them in the location indicated by your media file preference.  I don't think it hunts around your drive looking for things that aren't in the library, it just places a copy of those that are innto your media folders.  If you want a searching tool you'll have to use a script that does that kind of job.
    Your original images are not showing for me so I can't tell what exactly you are seeing.
    Again, what I would do given what you have told me is I would make sure iTunes is using the library on the external by holding down the option key while starting iTunes (you only neeed to do that once).  If you find there are files on your internal drive that are not in the library on the external then add those and iTunes will place a copy on hte external if you have that "copy files..." preference checked.  You'll lose a few things such as playcounts, ratings, on those.  If you absolutely must keep those there are a few tricks that can be performed but that's another very long post.

  • Why can't I delete songs on my ipod 5th gen in itunes? Why is there a duplication that's grey?

    Problems
    1. One of the albums I have on my ipod is duplicated, the duplication is grey and it will not let me delete it although it does not play on my ipod or on itunes either
    2. I cannot delete songs off my ipod from itunes, I have to go on my ipod and manualy delete them

    Try:
    - Reset the iOS device. Nothing will be lost
    Reset iOS device: Hold down the On/Off button and the Home button at the same time for at
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    - Unsync all music and resync
    - Reset all settings      
    Go to Settings > General > Reset and tap Reset All Settings.
    All your preferences and settings are reset. Information (such as contacts and calendars) and media (such as songs and videos) aren’t affected.
    - Restore from backup. See:                                                
    iOS: How to back up                                                                                     
      - Restore to factory settings/new iOS device.

  • Duplication Issues with Photo Sync via iTunes/iPhoto and Photo Stream/iCloud (Detailed Scenario Given)

    Hi Everyone,
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    Other folks have resolved similar issues by trashing  the iPod Photo Cache.
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  • Duplications during itunes music folder transfer

    I followed the steps detailed on this Web site for the transfer of the iTunes music folder from my laptop to an external hard drive. I then moved all my music files from another location into the folder, then did the "add folder to library" command. But during that final step, every song on my hard drive, now in the newly created iTunes music folder, was duplicated, and the duplicates showed up in the iTunes panel. I had the box marked "copy files to iTunes music folder when adding to library" unchecked. I've since reloaded iTunes and am beginning with a clean slate. Any ideas how to avoid the duplication problem during the next attempt?

    Hey cheekycherub,
    These instructions may be of assistance:
    http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=93063
    http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=93366
    http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301748
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    Generik
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  • App duplication in iTunes library shared across two accounts on same iMac

    I'm sharing media across two user accounts on a family iMac running Yosemite. The shared content is distributed across folders (Audiobooks, Music, Mobile Applications, etc.) inside Users/Shared/iTunes Music. Both accounts have read and write permissions, and family and home sharing are both turned on and linked to one primary Apple ID. In both accounts iTunes preferences point to the same shared folder. The problem: Updates to mobile applications in one account do not carry over to the other. After updating mobile apps for account A, when I switch to account B, I get the same list of apps awaiting updates. If I update for each account, I find duplicates for each updated app in the shared Mobile Applications folder.
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    For iPhoto 09 (version 8.0.2) and later:
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    Quit iPhoto in both accounts. Move the Library to the Users / Shared Folder
    (You can also use an external HD set to ignore permissions, a Disk Image or even partition your Hard Disk.)
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  • HT1386 How do to avoid duplication of contacts when syncing over I cloud with iPad and also on iTunes with a PC?

    I sync my iPhone with a MAC, an iPad and a PC (contacts and calendar). Some contacts are getting duplicated in the proces. Is there a way to avoid this duplication?

    Hi davidforner!
    I have an article here that I believe can help you accomplish your goals. That article can be found here:
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  • Cleaning up duplication mess from Shared iTunes Music folder

    I'm helping my sister clean up a mess on her Windows Vista computer. In the process of cleaning up one mess, I may have made another.
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    Unfortunately, you're going to have to delete those duplicate files by hand.
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    +Hold down the Shift key while you open iTunes (from the Start menu, choose All Programs > iTunes > iTunes).+
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    +To create a new library, click Create Library.+
    +To choose a different library, click Choose Library.+

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