ITunes reset when moved location

Question

I've been reading other postings and can't find the answer I need. Running out of HD space, I bought an ExHD and copied all my disorganized music folders (My Music and iTunes Music) into one iTunes/iTunes Music folder on the ExHD. Then I deleted the now duplicate folders on my computer HD to free up the space. Before I closed iTunes, I reset the location path in Prefs/Advanced to the new ExHD location. However, when I relaunched iTunes, it came up empty, as if it had just been installed. I have made copies of everything on the new ExHD (so I'm not freaking out yet), I just don't know which file will restore the Library (and all my Playlists, Purchased Music etc.) or how to do it. I could resynch my iPod, but I'm nervous about how the changes I've made might affect it. Does anybody know which files I need, and where to place them so I can restore it as it was before?

Answer 1

iTunes operates as a database of information for your music files. The actual music files are stored on your PC, not within iTunes. iTunes keeps absolute references of the music file location and other information in its database file. This allows iTunes to use music files from any location on the PC: different directories/folders on the main HD, another internal drive, an external drive, or a network drive (or any combination of the above).
Each song reference has a specific and hardcoded location (both drive letter & path) so iTunes can find and play (or sync) it. Move the file, change the path, re-map the drive it is on, shut down or remove the Drive, and iTunes will lose the file (giving you the '!' of a ‘Broken Link’). Lose, move or corrupt the ‘iTunes Music.itl’ file and your complete Library will ‘vanish’.
If you delete, corrupt, or otherwise lose your ‘iTunes Library.itl’ file, you will end up with a ‘blank’ Library within iTunes. Nine times out of ten, your underlying music files are still on the PC. They can be ‘re-Added’ via the File==>Add Folder/File menu command, but you will lose some of the music meta-data. Recovering your Library via backup copies of the iTunes database file, or from importing the XML file is always preferable.
Rebuild your Library by 'Adding' the songs back into iTunes, then Import your Library XML file to recreate your Playlists. Here's how:
‘Refresh/Rebuild’ Your iTunes Library
If you changed your music locations by hand (not allowing iTunes to manage the move), want to remove duplicate song references, or just have confused iTunes too much, these steps will re-initialize your Library for you. Read it completely through and do the small trial run prior to implementing the whole thing. You will lose your Playlists, as well as reset your Ratings, Play Counts and Last Played attributes. If these are important, post back and instructions on saving these (as best as your Library has) can be provided::
First, make sure that iTunes is correctly looking in the right Folder for your song files.
--- Make sure you know the current location of your music files (best to confirm this)
--- In iTunes choose: Edit==>Preferences==>’Advanced/General’ tab
--- Select 'Change' and browse to the music folder in your PC drive (if it isn’t already)
--- Click OK to save that setting
-- In iTunes: Edit==>Preferences==>’Advanced/General’ tab.
---- Make sure that the 'Keep iTunes Music folder organized’ box is checked (if you want iTunes to organize your folder structure)
---- Also, that the ‘Copy files to iTunes Music folder when adding to library’ box is unchecked
-- Click ’OK’ to accept and close the Preferences dialogue box.
-- Single click on the "Library" in the Source Pane
-- Single click first track in the Library
-- Select all songs (any one of several ways)
-- Delete – or select ‘Clear’ (yes, delete them all)
There will be 2 dialog boxes that pop up (one at a time). The first one asks ‘Are you sure you want to remove the selected items from the list?’ The second asks if you want the files moved to Recycle Bin or to keep them in the iTunes folder. You DO NOT want to send the files to the Recycle Bin, so select ‘Keep Files’. This will only delete the song reference links (both valid and broken). It will not delete the actual music files on your hard drive.
IMPORTANT:
Perform a small test of this prior to doing it en mass. If you do not receive both dialogue boxes, then stop and see this link prior to continuing. You will need to reset your iTunes preferences and also retrieve the ‘deletion test’ song files from the Recycle Bin. Scott P.: My Source List is missing (or, resetting the prefs)
Also note: 'Deleting and Restoring' the song references will reset the Play Count, Ratings, Date Added, Last Played, Ratings, and EQ attributes (there may be a few others). It will remove all song references from any Static Playlists you have. Also, any Smart Playlists that depend on any of the aforementioned attributes will be impacted. This may be a small price to pay to recover your Library -- or not.... You can ‘Export’ your Playlists to an XML file for ‘Importing’ after the refresh. This can restore your static playlists. The export only saves the song info, not the underlying music files. Of course, exporting your playlists is to be done before you delete any song references within iTunes.
Once your song references are removed from iTunes, this is how to get them back:
1 - In iTunes: File==>Add Folder to Library
2 - Browse to your main iTunes folder and select it
3 - For multiple music file locations, repeat 1 & 2
Depending on how small/large your music library is, the speed of your computer and your amount of RAM, this could take a few minutes to a few hours.
Your library should now be back to normal.
To rebuild your Playlists, search for the original version of the 'iTunes Music Library.xml' file on your PC (not the most recent, current and blank one). If you deleted it, then you are out of luck.
Within iTunes:
- File=>Import
- Browse to the location of the XML file and select it
- Let iTunes do its thing
You should have recreated your Playlists if you picked the right file.