Just want to backup iTunes on an external hard drive
Greetings,
I've been working on this for days without success. All I want to do is back up my iTunes on an external hard drive.
Using iTunes 7.6 on an iMac G4; Music resides on an external hard drive. I want to back up to a different external hard drive.
I've tried moving folders, but when I go to test the data, iTunes can't locate songs. I tried the <option> key to redirect. I just tried adjusting preferences to new drive; then I tried "consolidate" ...took forever 90Gigs.
I just can't get everything right on each of the two drives. The folders are different.
Just when I thought I got it working (iTunes operating perfectly from alternate drive) I can't eject the first drive. I want to put one hard drive in a safe place. No other programs using these external drives.
Drive that is working looks like this:
LaCie
iTunes folder (contains all my artist folders)
iTunes library (database file)
iTunes Library.xml
Other drive that I want to dismount:
Seadisc300
iTunes folder (contains album artwork file, iTunes Library data, iTunes Music Library.xml iTunes Library.xml and iTunes Music folder (artists) plus previous library folders.
Anyone know what files / folders need to be where?
This is frustrating. Any advice most welcome.
Thanks,
Mark
1 - iTunes puts music in \iTunes\iTunes music folder by Artist\Album\song.
2 - Dunno why it's there unless you created a new library and selected that location.
3
When selecting the location under iTunes preferences... does one select a folder or the actual database file inside a folder?
You are not selecting a library. You are selecting a location for the iTunes music folder.
Do I allow iTunes to "organize" after making the adjustment?
I would. This makes iTunes oprganize the songs by Artist\Album\Song based on those fields in the ID3 tags.
4 - ???
The default for iTunes is...
Album artwork folder
iTunes music folder
iTunes library file
iTunes library.xml file
Maybe a Previous libraries folder.
If you choose to have the music folder located elswhere, it won't be in the iTunes folder.
Just a note: To make it easier to understand, don't mix up terms.
*iTunes music folder* is just that. It's where the music is. It is not the library.
*iTunes library* is what you see when you open iTunes. This info is contained in the *iTunes library.itl* file.
*iTunes library.itl* file is the database used by iTunes for all the info about your library - Songs, movies, podcasts, playlists, ratings, etc.
*iTunes library.xml* is created by iTunes for other apps to access th eiTUnes library. iTunes istelf does not use it.
Similar Messages
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I want to move just my movies from iTunes to an external hard drive but not my music
i have a fairly large movie/TV collection in iTunes. i don't need these most of the time so i want to move them to an external hard drive. however, i want to keep my music & podcasts in the current internal hard drive.
is this possible? if so, how?
i've looked at this page & the video that details how to move the entire iTunes library but they do not address my specific issue.
iTunes: Back up your iTunes library by copying to an external hard drive
http://www.cnet.com/videos/move-your-itunes-library-to-an-external-drive-5010991 0/If you have one library, the movies are on another drive and you don't have the external running all the time you will have annoying !=broken link for all your movies until you turn on the drive and restart iTunes. For things you do not want to have to see on a daily basis the best solution is to make a separate library and keep the whole movie library, media and library files, on the external drive. The drive then does not have to be turned on all the time.
Make a new library by starting iTunes while holding down the option/alt key.
If you want to do it all in one library, to move some items:
Sept. 2010, Consolidate selected content - https://discussions.apple.com/thread/2589812 and April 2014, https://discussions.apple.com/message/25414357#25414357
Note, any purchases you make will still automatically go to the media folder specified in the preferences for that library so you will have to relocate files after each purchase.
A slightly neater method than that recommended by bodyxs is to move the file but re-add them by holding down the option key while dragging them to iTunes. That should leave them in the current (the copy on the external) location, overriding iTunes wanting to copy them to the media folder. -
Back up just some music from iTunes onto an external hard drive
I want to move just some of my music from my iTunes library onto an external hard drive (reason? the music cannot be got again but right now I am not sure if I need it all or not).
So I want to move, say, 50 albums from the main iTunes libraray to an external drive and then be able to move some or all of them back again at later date.
Do I have to copy the whole library over to the external drive and then delete the albums there that I did not want to copy over? Or is there a better way?
And how will I copy back just some of the back-up albums at a later date - is it the normal "Add folder/file to [main] library command from the File menu?I want to move just some of my music from my iTunes library onto an external hard drive (reason? the music cannot be got again but right now I am not sure if I need it all or not).
So I want to move, say, 50 albums from the main iTunes libraray to an external drive and then be able to move some or all of them back again at later date.
Do I have to copy the whole library over to the external drive and then delete the albums there that I did not want to copy over? Or is there a better way?
And how will I copy back just some of the back-up albums at a later date - is it the normal "Add folder/file to [main] library command from the File menu? -
Want to upload itunes playlists from external hard drive.
Have all my music, but now want to import the playlists I had created. Thanks!
Hi Jim
I've recently upgraded to a macbook Pro and I copied all data, profiles etc across from my old macbook. I have also created a second account in my mackbook Pro. I am able to play my iTunes music from the external HD in the 'old' account, but not in the 'new' account, despite trying what you've said above. On the external HD, there are two folders: iTunes music and iTunes media. I have tried selecting each of these, but both times, I get this message: "An iTunes library file could not be found in the folder "iTunes Media". Please choose a different folder." ... Please can you help?
Many thanks in advance! -
I have a just bauht a new laptop as my old one was packed up. I use my external hard drive to store all my itunes music. I had baught a few albums on itunes . I attached my external hard drive and consoldated them to my external hard drive but my itunes is all in icloud not only that my ipod does not have the new tracks that I baught on it. What do I need to do. all I want is when I attached my external hard drive that itunes knows this and that they dont be in icloud and that my ipod puts my new albums on to it.
Did you put the library on the external drive, or just the media folder. See this migrate iTunes library post for the way this ought to be done and recovery tips for when it is no longer possible.
tt2 -
I am trying to backup my Itunes onto my external hard drive. I am at the step where I on Itunes, click on File ->Library ->Organize library. I am suppose to check mark both boxes there, the first being "Consolidate Files" & the second being "Reorganize files in the folder 'Itunes Media'. I am able to checkmark the first box but It won't allow me to check mark the second box, why? How can i fix this? Please help!
Well you must have made a mistake somewhere. The last instruction of step four reads:
When you've found your iTunes library folder, drag that folder to your external hard drive. This will begin the iTunes backup. The amount of time the backup will take depends on the size of your library. When the transfer is done, your backup is complete and your external hard drive can be disconnected.
Normally dragging content from to a new location on a different drive will result in a copy action which is what you were supposed to do. At a guess you somehow managed to move the iTunes folder. Then when you started iTunes it created a new blank library for you assuming it had just been installed rather that raising a warning.
Close iTunes. Rename the iTunes folder on the internal drive as iTunes (Empty) then copy the iTunes folder from the external back into the User's Music folder. Start iTunes. All should be well.
When you've made sure it all works please read my User Tip and use that method to backup in future. Since you already have a folder with the backup in place you can skip the "Make New" operation in the fourth step and simply choose the external folder.
tt2 -
Backup and restoring itunes library from external hard drive?
is there a way to backup and restore my itunes library to external hard drive and not through the internal itunes backup utility cos i have over 20gbs of music and i want to keep my album art and renamed songs etc. because i will be reformating my pc and dont want to go through painful task of manually adding stuff again.
Try this...
*Fast backup for iTunes library (Windows Only)*
Grab SyncToy 2.0, a free tool from MS. Use it to create a backup copy of your iTunes library & any other media folders onto another hard drive or network share. After making the initial backup copy use SyncToy to periodically synchronise the backup copy with your library and only the changed files will be copied saving lots of time.
When the time comes to reformat your PC, do a final sync, then open iTunes & deauthorise the PC, reformat & rebuild Windows, copy the backup folders back to the same location as they were previously, install iTunes and it should all work perfectly.
tt2 -
how can i save my individual playlist on itunes on my external hard drive because i want to buy a laptop and install itunes and move all my music and playlist thats on my desktop to my laptop and almost all of my music is from a bunch of cds i own
Hello ryane84
The easiest and most efficient way to copy your music is to follow the steps under the External drive section. Make sure that you have organized the iTunes library first before you copy it over. Then put the copied iTunes folder in the same Music folder on your computer.
iTunes: How to move your music to a new computer
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht4527
Regards,
-Norm G. -
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In iTunes 11 uncheck the preferences setting in in the iTunes Preferences panel "Advanced > Copy Files to iTunes Media folder when adding to Library"
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I just bought a MBA and I need to move my photos and itunes to an external hard drive (from my old MacBook Pro) because they won't fit on the Air. I got the photos moved fine and I followed an online tutorial to move the necessary files for itunes, but it didn't work. The files copied fine, but when I tell iTunes on the Air to look at the external drive for the library, it doesn't find anything. What I copied was the entire iTunes Media folder. So, how do I move the necessary iTunes files from my old Pro to a external drive so I can access them from my new Air? Whew!
iTunes- How to move the library to an EHD
After you move the library you need to open iTunes by first depressing the OPTION key then launching iTunes. You will be given a choice of which library to use. This can then be made a permanent change, if you wish, in the Advanced section of iTunes preferences. -
When I plug in my ipad it automatically tires to back up and download all the contents to the C drive - the PC is too full and I have iTunes on an external hard drive, how do I tell the system to do the backup to the hard drive please?
You can open a command prompt by hitting the start button and typing CMD<Enter> in the search box that opens up.
To move the current backup folder from C: to D: type in this command and press <Enter>
Move "C:\Users\<User>\AppData\Local\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup" "D:\Backup"
Where <User> is your Windows user name.
To make iTunes look for the data in the new location type in this command and press <Enter>
MkLink /J "C:\Users\<User>\AppData\Local\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup" "D:\Backup"
If your external drive has a different letter or you already have a folder called "Backup" then edit "D:\Backup" accordingly in both commands.
tt2 -
put all my itunes folder on external hard drive, now I want to put it back on the mac how do i do this.
Drag the entire iTunes folder back to /Music.
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I am trying to free up space on my pc and moving itunes files to external hard drive. I have followed instructions and believe I have file copied to new drive, but I am having trouble moving file to recycle bin as the instructions say. I am getting the following error message: cannot delete ituneshelper.dll:access denied, make sure disk is not full or write protected and file not in use. I know the file is not in use when trying to move. Any help would be most appreciated. I am on Windows XP.
Yes. And you should not have moved that folder. Put it back. To move your iTunes library move the folder from User's Music.
tt2 -
I just backed up my mac to an external hard drive using Time Machine. What would happen if I turn Time Machine off and then plug the external hard drive back into my computer?
What I am ultimately wanting to do is make more room on my computer by backing up all of my files onto the external hard drive and then deleting them off of my computer. However, neededing to be able to retrieve them from the external hard drive later down the road.
From what I have read and am trying to understand, is that I probably shouldn't have used time machine. I need to use the external hard drive like a basic flash drive where I can put things on and get things off without having it automatically update through time machine everytime I connect it to my computer.
Not tech savvy at all and barely understand basics. I need very simple and easy to understand explanations.sydababy wrote:
and then deleting them off of my computer.
BIG BIG MISTAKE ..... youre making a linchpin deathtrap for your data trying to shove everything on a single fragile HD.
Dont suffer the tragedy other people make, buy another or 2 more HD, theyre cheap as dust.
The number of people who have experienced terror by having a single external HD backup is enormous. One failure that WILL HAPPEN, and kaput,......all gone!
Dont do it, its all about redundancy, redundancy, redundancy.
follow here:
Methodology to protect your data. Backups vs. Archives. Long-term data protection
Deleting them off your computer is fine....having only ONE copy is extremely BAD.
The Tragedy that will be, the tragedy that never should be
Always presume correctly that your data is priceless and takes a very long time to create and often is irreplaceable. Always presume accurately that hard drives are extremely cheap, and you have no excuse not to have multiple redundant copies of your data copied on hard drives and squirreled away several places, lockboxes, safes, fireboxes, offsite and otherwise.
Hard drives aren't prone to failure…hard drives are guaranteed to fail (the very same is true of SSD). Hard drives dont die when aged, hard drives die at any age, and peak in death when young and slowly increase in risk as they age.
Never practice at any time for any reason the false premise and unreal sense of security in thinking your data is safe on any single external hard drive. This is never the case and has proven to be the single most common horrible tragedy of data loss that exists.
Many 100s of millions of hours of lost work and data are lost each year due to this single common false security. This is an unnatural disaster that can avoid by making all data redundant and then redundant again. If you let a $60 additional redundant hard drive and 3 hours of copying stand between you and years of work, then you've made a fundamental mistake countless 1000s of people each year have come to regret. -
How do I back up my itunes to an external hard drive and restore from same if necessary
How do I back up my entire itunes to an external hard drive and restore from same if necessary.
ThanksThis is where iTunes stores backups for different operating systems: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4946
I do not use a Windows machine, have a Windows Vista Dell I rarely startup now. But, from what I remember with Win boxes is, you will have to create on the external hard drive a file system like that one iTunes normally uses, and then in the iTunes preferences or control panel edit the location for the storage to specify the name of the external hard drive, or its letter code, with the name of that file system you created on the exernal drive.
I would also move all of the files from the internal file system to the external since you have now told iTunes that is where they are...before deleting from the internal drive, test iTunes to see that it goes where you want it to go.
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