New iTunes library, same iMac

Hey guys!
Found out there was a glitch in my version of Mountain Lion, by the Geniuses at the Apple Store the other day. To fix it, they reinstalled the OS. But by doing so, I've had to reinstall and reimport my non-iTunes bought music. Now my iPhone isn't synced with with new iTunes library. I don't want to have to reload all my music over again. That's 64gbs worth! Haha What's the work around here? I'm just wanting to add a few new songs from an old cd.
Thanks!

ukimies wrote:
Will iTunes Home Sharing do this
to an extent, yes. home sharing will not bring playcounts and ratings over. also, unless you have embedded artwork manually in the files, it won't copy.
or will I have to do this in some other way?
the simplest way would be to connect the two Macs with a firewire cable, boot the source Mac in _*Target Disk Mode*_, and copy the entire iTunes folder (not just the iTunes music folder) from <MacintoshHD>/users/<yourname>/music on the source (family Mac) to <MacintoshHD>/users/<yourname>/music on the new Mac (overwriting the iTunes folder in place there).
JGG

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"The iPhone is already synced with another iTunes library" same imac but after update Snow leopard now have this problem? HELP

I recently just had to re-install snow leopard on my imac. Thankfully I backed up all my music and re-imported everything from my old install to this one. However, when I go to sync my iPhone 4 I get the message that reads:
"The iPhone is already synced with another iTunes library. Do you want to erase this iPhone and synch with this iTunes library?"
It warns that doing so will erase my current iphone and replace the contents of it with the contents in my new iTunes library.
I manage to back up photo in iPhoto, using iTune I Back up using control click mouse and get the back up button, but when I search my computer for the backup it cannot find it anywhere!!!!I I'm afraid to sync in fear of losing all my images and app data. want all mytext and other things to be safe
please HELP

You are trying to do the same thing as wj talks about in his user tip: https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-3141

Should I create a new iTunes Library on my new iMac?

I have been using a MacPro with multiple hard drives. One such 2TB drive has been the location of my MacPro iTunes library and media files. It takes up about 1.5TB of space with all the music, video and books. I use EyeTV from Elgato to record TV shows/movies, then convert them and transfer to iTunes. I also backup my iPhone and iPad to this iTunes library. I don't use iCloud for this backup.
I then purchased a new iMac with a 3TB Fusion drive. I plan to hang on to the MacPro to use on my home network as a file server, running "headless" perhaps.I plan to continue to use it for recording TV shows/movies in EyeTV and converting the output to iTunes videos.
Now I don't know what I should do about an iTunes library on my new iMac. When I got my iMac I migrated my User over to it. However, when I open iTunes, it is asking for me to either create a new iTunes library or open an existing one.
In my mind I have these options:
1. Create a new library. Setup up iTunes Sharing. This could work for me to access my large library of music and videos. However if I start backing up my iPhone i will then have backups on both computers. I suppose I could dump or ignore the MacPro iPhone/iPad backups and just create new backups on the iMac iTunes? What about new content I want to add? EyeTV will still be adding new content to the MacPro library. My iMac has no optical drive so if I want to rip a CD/DVD I would still need to use the MacPro for this. So from that perspective, this option may work out the best. What am I missing?
2. Open the iTunes library on the MacPro and make it my iMac's iTunes library. This seems problematic. If I understand correctly, I can't open this library on both Macs at the same time as this would likley cause issues. So I'd have to make sure I close out of one Mac's iTunes before the other Mac can open iTunes. This would be a pain given that EyeTV opens it up automatically when it is converting video recordings to iTunes video. For iPhone/ipad backups, I'm not sure what would happen here. Would it still backup to the MacPro iTunes library? I suppose it would. Another concern is the the MacPro would always have to be mounted on the iMac before I could access and use the iTunes library. So this options seems potentially frought with issues? On the plus I think this would retain the star ratings and other meta data, right?
3. What about creating a new library on the iMac but then go into preferences > Advanced and selecting the iTunes media folder that is on the MacPro. This is similar to option 2 above but retains access to the existing library I have on the MacPro. However, I'd lose all my star ratings, and other meta data.
Is there another option? Which way should I go? I am guessing option 1 is the best option. If you agree, please list caveats and downsides of it. If you disagree, please let me know the best strategy I should use and why.
Thanks.

Yes. Just copy all your music to a folder on your external. Then delete the music on your computers hard drive.
It is not quite that simple. If you do that you will end up with many broken links and will have to re-create your library from scratch . iTunes does not like it when you move or rename files or folders and doing so between drives is guaranteed to result in exclamation marks indicating you have broken the links to all your media files.
If you are content with moving the whole library to an external drive (usually the best thing for most people), try:
iTunes: How to move [or copy] your music to a new computer [or another drive] - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4527
Quick answer if you use iTunes' default preferences settings: Copy the entire iTunes folder (and in doing so all its subfolders and files) intact to the other drive. Open iTunes and immediately hold down the Option (alt) key (shift on Windows), then guide it to the new location of the library.

I want to bring over music from my iTunes library on iMac to an ipod touch with another apple id. please help

I want to bring over music from my iTunes library on iMac to an ipod touch with another apple id. please help. Is this possible. In former versions of itunes this was posible. I can't find the solution is iTunes 11

Perhaps those apps require a newer version of iOS than is compatible with your iPod.

Syncing to new iTunes library without losing app folder organization?

I reinstalled the OS on my PC and after installing iTunes and pointing it at the iTunes folder on my second drive, it nevertheless lost my iTunes library. I was able to re-add all my content by adding the My Music folder to iTunes, but I lost my playlists. I was okay with recreating those, but...
When I chose to sync apps, iTunes said it would replace the apps on the phone with the ones from the libray. And all my folder organization work will be lost.
Is there any way to associate my iPhone 4 with the "new" library but maintain the folder organization I have?

A manual backup will help. Disable autosync in iTunes, connect your phone and right click on it in the device list and choose backup. This will save all settings, data, photos and much more to your computer. More info here: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1766
After that, transfer our purchases the same way, choosing transfer purchases this time. All apps and purchased media fro the Store will be copied to the new iTunes library.
Don't forget to set up at least one contact and event on your PC to be able to merge calendars and contacts after the first sync, which will wipe your phone. But you can restore from the manual backup you made before.

I have all my music on a external HD. How can I run iTunes on my laptop with out my EHD connected? when I open iTunes I get: Afolder containing "iTunes Library" cannot be found, and is required. Please chose or create a new iTunes library.

It also tells me Choose iTunes Library
iTunes needs a library to continue, you may choose an existing library or create a new one.
I have all my music on an external hard drive (ehd) but would like to run itunes with out conecting my ehd. How can i do this? I'm

You need the entire libary on the external, not just media.
What are the iTunes library files? - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1660
More on iTunes library files and what they do - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITunes#Media_management
What are all those iTunes files? - http://www.macworld.com/article/139974/2009/04/itunes_files.html
Where are my iTunes files located? - http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1391
iTunes 9 [and later]: Understanding iTunes Media Organization - http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3847
Image of folder structure and explanation of different iTunes versions (turingtest2 post) - https://discussions.apple.com/message/13025536 and https://discussions.apple.com/message/17457605
Once you get a complete iTunes folder on the external drive, start iTunes with the option/alt key held down and select the iTunes Library.itl file on the external drive. You will also need to do this with your main computer or the libraries will become unsynchronized.
Alternatively you can make a separate library using the same media on the second computer. Start as you have been doing, let iTunes create a new, blank library file which will be on hte internal drive, set the media folder location in preferences to be the one on the external drive, then add the files to the new iTunes library. Unless you are a super-organized individual, or you don't care if your libraries do not have the same content, you are better off using a single library file that is on the external, not setting up separate library files.

How can i connect my iphone to a new itunes library without losing my contacts and photos ?

how can i connect my iphone to a new itunes library without losing my contacts and photos ?

Is the new iTunes library on a different computer, or the same computer?
Are you concerned about photos that you have taken with the iPhone in the Camera Roll, or photos you have synced to the iPhone from your computer?
Contacts should be configured to sync with an app on your computer. You set this up in iTunes on the Info tab with the iPhone connected. You will not lose any contacts if the app on your computer has at least one contact.

ITunes keeps creating a new iTunes Library instead of going to my actual iTunes Library on my external drive.

My old computer died.
Luckily, my iTunes library is stored on an external drive.
My new machine is Windows 8 and my old machine was Vista, but I don't think that should cause any problem.
When I run iTunes, it comes up like a fresh install on a new machine... every time. By default, it creates an iTunes folder in my local drive and as such, has no music in and is a 100% blank slate.
When I point it to my external drive, and then import the library, it does it. All my music shows up -- after a long time, but it all shows up.
If I shut down iTunes or reboot, everything goes back to zero again.
The most disturbing thing about this is that I can't back up properly, because -- although in Preferences it's pointed at my external drive -- it's backing up my iPhone 5 to the local drive in Windows.
Any idea what's going on here?
I've gone through this process 5 times already and it's always the same.

There are two main components to the iTunes library. The media folder which you can adjust via Edit > Preferences > Advanced, and the database file iTunes Library.itl which is normally found in <User's Music>\iTunes. You can choose or create a new iTunes library by holding down shift as you launch iTunes.
In some cases third party software can interfere with the way iTunes updates its files meaning that either iTunes forgets the previously chosen location, or that the active database is deleted. AVG anti-virus and Sony VIAO Entertainment Platform typically interfere with the database. McAfee has been implicated in the corruption of iTunesPrefs.plist.
See Empty/corrupt iTunes library after upgrade/crash for more details on how you might recover after the library vanishes.
You may get some improvment by hosting your entire library on the external drive not just the media. E.g. Create a library at X:\iTunes where X: is the drive letter, then move the media into X:\iTunes\iTunes Media before adding it to the library. This will make it easier to backup the library to a second drive and move it between computers when the time comes.
tt2

Can music already on an ipod be added to a new iTunes library ?

Hi Everyone - I recently purchased a laptop but have a dilemma with my iTunes libraries and iPods. My Nano was synched to my iTunes library on desktop PC, then I synched new classic iPod to same library, therefore both iPods had same music on them. I then set up iTunes on laptop and added some new music into the new library but then tried to merge Classic iPod (with old music) with new music in new library, but all it would allow was to synch them. This caused the problem I need help with as when synching, old music is erased and replaced with new music.
Is there any way of adding old music on an iPod to a second (new) iTunes library on a different computer ??
If there is, can you tell me step by step how to, as I'm still a novice with these things !!
Many thanks,
SC

This is copied from another thread. I think it is pretty clear. Here is the link to the thread as well. You will need to do this for each device if they all have different content on them.
https://discussions.apple.com/message/11527071#11527071
1) Without connecting your iPad to your laptop, start iTunes. Click on Edit. Click on Preferences. Click on Devices. Check the box next to "Prevent your iPod etc. from automatically syncing." Click OK.
2) Now connect your iPad to your laptop and start iTunes.
3) When iTunes starts, right click on your iPad under Devices in the left column. Select Transfer purchases etc.
4) After it finishes transferring all your apps to your new laptop, right click on your iPad and select Backup your iPad.
5) After it finishes backing up your iPad, right click on your iPad and select Restore etc.
6) After it finishes restoring, left click on your iPad , then click on the Apps tab on top, and check the box next to Sync Apps, then click on Apply below.
If everything on your iPad looks good after the sync, go back and click on Edit / Preferences / Devices and UN-check the box next to Prevent your iPod etc. The only other thing you may want to check is if your contacts, bookmarks, etc. are syncing correctly now. If not, go to the Info tab after connecting and make sure you indicate which features you want to sync with what sources.
If you have more questions, post back.

How do I consolidate a song into an album, each purchased separately, in my iTunes library? iMac OSX 10.8.5. iTunes Help has been no help.

How do I consolidate a song into an album, each purchased separately, in my iTunes library? iMac OS X 10.8.5. iTunes Help has been no help.

However, my troubleshooting issue is that I also want the songs in my concert playlists to go in order of how they were performed at the concerts.
Give them a track number.
Each time I number them within the playlists the song's number also changes within the Library Music list.
And? I'm not seeing the problem.
However, I can not figure out how to make true copy. I've already tried dragging the song to my desktop, then dragging the new copy back into iTunes. I've even tried renaming the duplicate copy and dragging it into iTunes. Why won't my iTunes make an individual duplicate copy of a song?
How do you have iTunes manage your music? If you drag a song to the desktop it may just be moving the file to the desktop.
Command+R to reveal the file in Finder. Command+D to duplicate the file in Finder. Drag the duplicate to iTunes to add the second copy. Not that I totally understand where the issues lie and feel this is likely not the best remedy...

Creating a new iTunes library

hello,
My iTunes freezes a lot since last December and it's really annoying and frustrating when it happens now. I get the whole beach ball thingy and sometimes need to Force Quit applications and still sometimes that doesn't seem to alleviate the problem. So a friend suggested to create a whole new iTunes library and see if I get the same issues of freezing on this newly created library. I thought I may as well give it a shot as I don't know what else to do to solve this issue. I can't even watch movies as it gives slight pauses when watching movies off iTunes.
Can someone provide me some info on how to create a new Library and/or if you have had experience in solving the iTunes freezing issue then I would be most appreciated for your help. I have Apple Care protection but I thought I would try the forums first to get some support. Thanks in advance for sharing any info that will provide a resolution to this annoying issue.
Macthemini

Thanks for the quick responses.
Limnos. Yes I'm running the latest version of iTunes. Free space on hard drive is 258 GB.
Model Name:          Mac mini
Model Identifier:          Macmini4,1
Processor Name:          Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed:          2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors:          1
Total Number Of Cores:          2
L2 Cache:          3 MB
Memory:          2 GB
Bus Speed:          1.07 GHz
Boot ROM Version:          MM41.0042.B00
SMC Version (system):          1.65f2
I was considering upgrading my RAM but it seems I have a lot of space at the moment.

Can't sync iPad or iPhone - new iTunes library wants to erase contents!

Hi,
I have an iPhone, iPad & iPod touch & all are synced using my iMac. I have the latest version of iTunes and for some reason, I am unable to sync my devices because I'm getting a pop up window that says that the devices are synced with another iTunes library. I can sync with the current library but the contents of the device will be erased.
I looked in my iTunes folder: User ->music -> iTunes and found the following folders: Album Artwork, iTunes Music, Previous iTunes Libraries (imported to this iMac from my other 20" iMac but both library folders indicate they were created on Dec 8 2010 ... bought the iMac in Sept) & iTunes Media.
There are also a couple of icons in the iTunes folder: iTunes Library, iTunes Library Extras.itdb, iTunes Library Genius.itdb and iTunes Music Library.xml.
Everything synced just fine until recently. I added a couple of mv4 format movies to iTunes and can watch them in iTunes. I'd like to transfer them to my iPad so my kids can watch the movies while travelling. The syncing issues started AFTER the movies were added to iTunes so I don't know if this did anything to the original library. In the summary panel in iTunes (when looking at the info of the device connected) I have generally had the box checked off to manually manage music & videos. The box is no longer checked. Any attempt to check it and apply the change also results in the prompt that I'm dealing with a new library.
I don't have a lot of photos, music, apps on my devices so if I have to start over using the new library fine ... just can't figure out where things went wrong.
Is there a way to let me revert back to my old settings/library without messing things up????
Thanks for your help.
Brent

Thanks for the suggestion on the Time Machine ... it's on my list of items to get.
I've noticed under my iTunes preferences -> advanced that the iTunes Media Folder Location window has both boxes checked (Keep iTunes Media folder organized & Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library) and the file path is users/name/music/iTunes/iTunes Media. Also, in the preferences -> general window the library name is the default name ... there's no other iTunes library that I can see so I have no idea as to where this "new" library is located.
I really don't want to lose any music, apps or photos by going with a new library. All my other settings in my iPad have been preserved & my music in iTunes on my iMac is fine and I can even watch the blasted movies that I added to iTunes ... just can't seem to get anything to sync without having to use this new iTunes Library ... getting frustrated here.
Take care,
Brent

Error new iTunes library

Just downloaded latest update....now get error message saying: "New iTunes Library." when I try to open iTunes.

Yes, I got this error too (New iTunes Library) when I was rolling back to Version 10, I found that you have to 'repair' iTunes under the windows control panel (Programs) to get it to work properly, or at least that was my experience. Here is a copy of a post I made earlier on how to fix this issue.
<snip...> however If you have the same experience I had you are likely to get an "New Library Error" msgbox with just an OK button on it. You press ok and nothing happens. Not promising- but there is a fix.
Next step is to go to the control panel - programs (where you would if you wanted to manually uninstall a program) and find the entry for iTunes. Right mouse click on it and choose Repair.
Now Windows will go off an do it's thing - this took about 3 minutes for me.
Now you can open iTunes. You wil notice that all your music and lists are now gone, but don't panic. Close iTunes.
Go to the iTunes folder on your c drive and find > iTunes > Previous iTunes Libraries > ......
find the file "iTunes Library YYYY-MM-DD.itl" that has the latest date BEFORE you update to iTunes 11 if you are reinstalling v10, I would think you should use a later version if you have this issue with V11. Don't use a version 11 dated library for Version 10, or visa versa or it won't work, copy this file into your iTunes folder (so up one folder level) and rename it "iTunes Library.itl" (replacing the existing file - I usually rename it iTunes Library_OLD.itl)
Now restart iTunes and all your music and lists should be restored.
That is what worked for me. As always - approach with care. Your milage may vary.

New itunes library error. How do I fix this?

When I try to open itunes up on my laptop the "new itunes library" error message pops up. When I plug in my itouch/iphone, itunes still doesn open. The same message pops up. I downloaded another itunes and installed it without doing anything to my original itunes, but then I get an error message stating the older version cannot be removed. HELP!?!

Empty/corrupt library after upgrade/crash
Hopefully it's not been too long since you last upgraded iTunes, in fact if you get an empty/incomplete library immediately after upgrading then with the following steps you shouldn't lose a thing or need to do any further housekeeping. In the Previous iTunes Libraries folder should be a number of dated iTunes Library files. Take the most recent of these and copy it into the iTunes folder. Rename iTunes Library.itl as iTunes Library (Corrupt).itl and then rename the restored file as iTunes Library.itl. Start iTunes. Should all be good, bar any recent additions to or deletions from your library.
See iTunes Folder Watch for a tool to catch up with any changes since the backup file was created.
When you get it all working make a backup!
tt2

Resync iPad 2 to a new iTunes "library" file

I got an iPad 2 as a gift to my mom over the weekend. Alas, as my mom isn't exactly tech savvy, I was going to just manage downloading apps and other things for the iPad on the same computer as my iPhone 4.
Unfortunately, while I was out of the house, my dad decided to charge the iPad on my computer. That synced the iPad 2 and the iPhone to same library and that caused me a few problems. For now, I am not auto syncing new apps on my iPad. However, I can see that managing both devices on one library might be problematic.
I saw that there is a way to have two library files using iTunes (using Option - Shift or something when I open iTunes).. It'll be a hassle but I think that might be the best way. However, I saw that iTunes said that I would "lose data" that I already had on the iPad if I synced to a new library file. Can anyone tell me what this means? Do i have redownload all the apps I purchased on my iPad?
I appreciate any thoughts on this.

Assuming that all of mom's content and all of your iPhone content is in the same iTunes library now .... and If you are purchasing all of the apps for mom's iPad with your Apple ID and iTunes account - and you are doing the all of the syncing - there is absolutely no reason why you can't do it all from one iTunes library.
coach41 wrote:
I got an iPad 2 as a gift to my mom over the weekend. Alas, as my mom isn't exactly tech savvy, I was going to just manage downloading apps and other things for the iPad on the same computer as my iPhone 4.
That is probably a good idea. Mom is lucky to have a fine and caring "coach".
Unfortunately, while I was out of the house, my dad decided to charge the iPad on my computer. That synced the iPad 2 and the iPhone to same library and that caused me a few problems. For now, I am not auto syncing new apps on my iPad. However, I can see that managing both devices on one library might be problematic.
Tell dad - thanks but don't touch. Geez ... parents today what are we gonna do with them! If you have set iTunes to not sync when the iPad or iPhone is connected you will be fine. You can sync multiple iDevices to the same iTunes library without problems.
I saw that there is a way to have two library files using iTunes (using Option - Shift or something when I open iTunes).. It'll be a hassle but I think that might be the best way. However, I saw that iTunes said that I would "lose data" that I already had on the iPad if I synced to a new library file. Can anyone tell me what this means?
It means exactly what it says. If you create a new iTunes library - and sync to that - it would be the same thing as syncing to a new or different computer - you will lose all content - and app data - but you can transfer the app purchases first - before you sync. Connect the iPad to the computer and launch iTunes, right click on the device name on the left side and select transfer purchases. You can also do this from the iTunes menu. Go to File>Transfer Purchases from Mom's iPad. That will transfer the apps into the new iTunes library. But you must do this before you sync, so if you are not syncing automatically you should be fine doing this.
Do i have redownload all the apps I purchased on my iPad?
If you create a new library, you can transfer the purchases from the iPad into the new library like I described above. Remember - it must be done prior to syncing.
I sync my wife's iPod Touch, my iPod Touch and my iPad to the same iTunes library. You can select exactly what you want to put on each device and do it all from the same iTunes library. When you sync mom's iPad, just remember to select only the apps, music, videos, photos, TV shows, books etc. in iTunes that she wants to put on her device and you do the same when you sync your iPhone.
This is what I do and have done from day one.
Launch iTunes on the computer
From the menu at the top Go to iTunes>Preferences>Devices
Check the box at the bottom of the devices pane to prevent the devices from automatically syncing.
Quit iTunes.
Connect either device to the computer and launch iTunes (if it doesn't start on it's own)
Click on the device name on the left side under Devices.
In the summary tab - in the main iTunes window on the right - select Sync Only checked songs and videos.
I also uncheck - Open iTunes when iPad (or iPhone) is selected. (optional step)
If you do all of this, iTunes will not start on its own when you plug in your iDevices and it will not sync automatically - you said you aren't auto syncing anyway. Now you control everything. You just select the apps and so - all of the content by choice - that mom wants on her iPad and then you sync. iTunes will remember mom's iPad set up the next time you sync. You do the same thing for your iPhone and all is good. iTunes will remember what you have on your phone and what mom has on her iPad.

New iTunes library, same iMac

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