My iTunes library has been duplicated

Hi I recently moved all my itunes music 33 g and my movies folfer onto my time capsule, I´ve also had the various upgrades in software, apple have sent out but now i have a duplicated music library of around 58 gigs...what can i do to sift out the originals?

How did you accomplish this in the first place?
First, make a backup of your computer. Dealing with duplicates is dangerous and you want to make sure you have a backup so if something happens you don't like you can rescue tracks from your backup. Next, see if the duplicates really point to the same file, or if the media files themselves have been duplicated, or (worst case) a mixture of both. If either one or the other, use iTunes to show duplicates, sort by date added and get rid of everything that occurs on the date when this occurred. If media files were duplicated you can choose to get rid of them when iTunes asks. If both tracks point to the same file on your computer don't get rid of the media file or it will be gone for both duplicate entries.
How to find and remove duplicate items in your iTunes library - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2905
Posts by turingtest2 about different types of duplicates and techniques - https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3555601 and https://discussions.apple.com/message/16042406#16042406 (Note: The DeDuper script is for Windows).
May 2014 post on iCloud duplicates - https://discussions.apple.com/message/25867873#25867873
Show exact duplicates (Mac and Windows) - https://discussions.apple.com/message/16951281#16951281
http://dougscripts.com/itunes/itinfo/dupin.php (commercial)

Similar Messages

My entire iTunes library has been duplicated. How can I delete all duplicates at once rather than each one individually?

My entire iTunes library has been duplicated. Is there any command that will let me delete all duplicates at once, rather than each individual song?

In particular:
Once you have used the Show Exact Duplicates feature* you can set about deleting all but one copy of each duplicate file. If all the duplicates have recently been added into your library then you could sort the list on the date added column, select a range of tracks with SHIFT-click and delete all the recent entries.
* On a Mac hold down Option, then click File > Show Exact Duplicates.
You could also check out Doug's Scripts for useful tools.
tt2

Library has been duplicated, duplicates have no file location. Easy way to remove?

Library has been duplicated, duplicates have no file location. Is there an easy way to remove them?
It's a royal ache going through each one, clicking to see if it will play, getting a 'cannot locate the file' message, delete, etc etc.
Showing duplicates just shows I have a lot to tidy up.
<Edited By Host>

Apple's official advice on duplicates is here... HT2905: How to find and remove duplicate items in your iTunes library. It is a manual process and the article fails to explain some of the potential pitfalls such as lost ratings and playlist membership.
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, 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, this post for detailed instructions, 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.)
The most recent version of the script can tidy dead links as long as there is at least one live duplicate to merge stats and playlist membership to and should cope sensibly when the same file has been added via multiple paths.
tt2

My iTunes library has been replaced with my husband's iTunes library on our iMac. How do I get my iTunes library from my iPhone back onto my iTunes library on the iMac?

My iTunes library has been replaced with my husband's iTunes library on our iMac. How do I get my iTunes library from my iPhone back onto my iTunes library on the iMac? Help!!!

Well, this is a problem, because the only material you can transfer from your iPhone (using only Apple software) is material you purchased in the iTunes Store.
To do that, plug your iPhone into iTunes, then choose File > Devices > Transfer Purchases from iTunes' menu.
Generally speaking, you should restore your iTunes library from your computer's backup.

My old iTunes library has been replaced by a new library, I didn't download a new version or authorize it. I have lost all my music, is there any way of retrieving my old library.

My old iTunes library has been replaced by a new library, I didn't download a new version or authorize it. I have lost all my music, is there any way of retrieving my old library.

Your i-device was not designed for unique storage of your media. It is not a backup device and media transfer was planned with you maintaining a master copy of your media on a computer which is itself independently backed up against loss. To use a device with a new computer you transfer the content from the old computer (or its backup) directly to the new computer, not the device to the new computer. Media syncing is one way, computer to device, updating the device content to the content on the computer, not updating or restoring content on a computer. The exception is iTunes Store purchases which can be transferred to a computer.
iTunes Store: Transferring purchases from your iOS device or iPod to a computer - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1848 - only purchases from iTunes Store
For transferring other items from an i-device to a computer you will have to use third party commercial software. See this document by turingtest2: Recovering your iTunes library from your iPod or iOS device - https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-3991

My mac air want shut down, had to force shut after computer freezing in itunes, box with saving itunes library has been up for 30 mins

I have had a day of it. wanted to join my new pc computer to my itune account. one problem to many devices on my account and two are ones that got broken and couldn't be deauthrise. sooo i deauthrised all computers. my mac air was sitting beside me so i thought i will authrise it again, was that a mistake as my computer became very slow when i went into itunes. it froze and not in the spinning disc way, in the was doing nothing way. held power button in, after waiting 10 mins and it went to gray screen with itune boxs saying "saving itunes library". its been doing this over 30 mins now and will not shut down or anything esle because when i try power button again it says i have not logged out of itune and should do this before it can shut down. not happy!!!! this is after 2 hours prior apple tried very hard sale to get me to buy there tech support for £100. I have never had a problem before, doesn't that seem strange?

shelbell508 wrote:
I tried to run the disk utility and it wouldn't run properly
Exactly what did you do to run Disk Utility and exactly what happened up to the freeze?
I called some place to ask for advice and they said it could be my logic board???
That's an easy answer to give but not necessarily the correct one.
If you have the system restore disc that came with your Mac, boot with that disc in the Mac while holding down the "D" key. That will invoke hardware diagnostics. Run those several times to investigate the possibility that your Mac has a hardware flaw.

My iTunes library has been erased from my macbook

my itunes library has disappeared on macbook - still available on iPad and iPhone. How do I get it back on the Macbook please?

(I realize this post is very old, but for anyone who comes looking for a solution, I hope this helps!)
I haven't done it in a while, but I believe it can be accomplished by the following (this is for a Windows computer...I don't know about on a mac):
1. Make sure you can see hidden files and folders on your computer. (look for "Folder Options" in your control panel)
2. Connect your iPod (but don't let it sync!)
3. Navigate to your iPod through My Computer.
4. Find and then copy all of the folders containing music to your computer. Then copy/move them to Music/iTunes/iTunes Media/Automatically Add to iTunes, or click File>Add Folder to Library in iTunes, and select the appropriate folder(s).

Laptop troubles and now my entire iTunes library has been deleted.

My laptop is old and I regularly have troubles with it. Tonight it was being particularly stubborn, crashing, not starting up. Mostly caused by a virus I had resolved about 4 years ago and a worn out battery and charger. Well I was just downloading music I was then going to add to iTunes and after several hours of arguing with my laptop I'd finally gotten it all downloaded and properties filled in. When I went to open iTunes it said I was logged out. Naturally I logged in but when I did it told me that I had absolutely nothing in my library. First thing I did was check iCloud but there was nothing in there for my music, what I bought on iTunes and old files that I uploaded to iTunes. Next thing I did was select scan for media but it kept telling me that I don't have the authority or something to save them to iTunes. So I'm utterly lost at that to say the least and first part of my question is this permanent? With my laptop history it could be may laptop playing up but I feel it's unlikely that that's the case. But is there a chance if I signed on with another device, another laptop, could it be there?
My second part of this is regarding the music I wanted to add. I'm not great regarding apple products but my gut tells me that as soon as I plug my iPad into my laptop to add the new music I'm going to lose everything else, aren't I? And does that affect my images I added via iTunes also?
(P.S. Before anyone says it, and I've been told by multiple people this evening already, I am getting a new laptop. Until now it did what I wanted and iTunes worked, so did the Internet and Microsoft for my university work. But I think it's officially come to the end of its days.)
Thank you for all your help in advanced. This has ruined my evening to say the least.

See Empty/corrupt iTunes library after upgrade/crash.
tt2

My itunes library has been erased

When I connected my i-Pod to my laptop, it said there was a problem with this disc and suggested I repair it. Now EVERYTHING has been deleted from my library and i-Pod! How can I restore it?

The error was with the iPod, and when I say everything, I mean EVERYTHING. It's as if I have just purchased a new iPod, and it's empty--no music, no playlists, nothing.
However, there has been a new development. When playing around the other night, I found the music I had purchased, and a few other ones. However I am unable to sync. I gave up and decided to just start fresh and copy all of my music from my portable HD into my iTunes library and when I started to sync it said this iPod is already synced (or something like that) to another library; do you want to erase and sync to this library. I was desperate and said "yes", but no realize I probably shouldn't have.
I just wish there was somewhere I could go and have someone fix this for me! I don't have a mac so probably couldn't go to an Apple store, but there has to be somewhere, no??

Laptop has been repaired and for some reason itunes library has been wiped. Ipad still has all the music on, is there a way i can repopulate itunes?

My laptop has been repaired and for some reason my library on itunes has been wiped. Didn't pay attention and synced my iphone so have lost all the tunes off that now too. Ipad still has all the music on, is there an easy and free way to repopulate itunes from the music on the ipad?

See Recover your iTunes library from your iPod or iOS device.
tt2

Only minority of Itunes Library has been put on Itunes match.

I've just downloaded Itunes Match for my Mac, Iphone 4 and Ipad, and have it turned on on all devices, however only a small minority of my Library has gone to the Cloud, whereas preferably I'd like all of it due to limited space! Any ideas?

Hi,
Availability of your music on your iOS devices is not instantaneous.
You need to let match complete its scan of your iTunes library. This may take some time depending on the size of your library and the number of tracks that need to be uploaded.
Jim

My iTunes library has been corrupted. Can I restore it from my iPod?

My iTunes library was corrupted by my corporate IS back-up process. Is there any way to restore it from my iPod?

(I realize this post is very old, but for anyone who comes looking for a solution, I hope this helps!)
I haven't done it in a while, but I believe it can be accomplished by the following (this is for a Windows computer...I don't know about on a mac):
1. Make sure you can see hidden files and folders on your computer. (look for "Folder Options" in your control panel)
2. Connect your iPod (but don't let it sync!)
3. Navigate to your iPod through My Computer.
4. Find and then copy all of the folders containing music to your computer. Then copy/move them to Music/iTunes/iTunes Media/Automatically Add to iTunes, or click File>Add Folder to Library in iTunes, and select the appropriate folder(s).

My itunes library has been compromised. How do I unistall itunes and then reinstall intunes from na back-up copy?

We could not locate some files on iTunes. We asked a friend to help and now almost all of our library is gone, apps, books, downloaded songs, etc. The only items in our library are purchased songs. We don't even have an updated version of iTunes.

See Empty/corrupt iTunes library after upgrade/crash and Troubleshooting issues with iTunes for Windows updates.
tt2

I can't sync my old iPod to my iTunes library has been transferred in iCloud

I have an old ipod (bought in 2007) which I've always sync'ed up to the itunes library on a PC without problem. After purchasing a Mac, forcing my old relic of PC in retirement, I've transferred my music library to iCloud. While attempting to sync up my old ipod to the library that was transferred, the ipod only recognized the tunes that I had purchased over the last 5 years. I'm not sure, but prior to attempting to resync my ipod, must I download the icloud matches first? If so, how do I do this? Thanks for your help!

Found it! I need to download the tunes before synching. First, highlight the tunes that you want downloaded then right click and hit "download". Or, you could download the tunes individually by clicking on the cloud icon. Unfortunately, I no longer have my entire music library on my old standby ipod, but that's ok. I'll just download my favourite playlists.

My Itunes library has been deleted, yet I am left with all my music saved to 'my music' on my PC. How do I restore my old library with my playlists and artwork back? I have already installed a new library and have managed to get all my purchased songs.

Please help, Im at the end of my tether with this!!

See this older post from another forum member Zevoneer covering the different methods available for copying content from your iPod back to your PC.
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/2452022?start=0&tstart=0
B-rock

My iTunes library has been duplicated

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