Re-create iTunes library files?
Hi
The problem is as follows. I have all my itunes (60 GB) on an external hard drive and I have deleted (don't ask!) my iTunes library and xml files. I want to be able to re-create the library without having to copy the songs from the external drive to my internal hard drive - I dont have enough space on the laptop. What do I do?
Verify in Preferences>Advanced>General if the 'iTunes Music folder location' still points to your music folder on the external drive.
Then choose 'Add to Library...' from the File menu and navigate to the folder on the external drive.
The files already are at the designated location, so iTunes will not create copies.
You will have to re-create all playlist, because they were in the 'iTunes Library' file and are now MIA.
Hope this helps.
M
Similar Messages
-
Error -1450 problem occurred creating itunes library file
itunes won't make .itl, the file that apparently necessary for maintaining a music library on itunes. this means my library is lost every time i close itunes. Comes in the form of error message -1450
I know this doesn't help you Bud, but I've had this issue for at least the last couple of versions. If I can ask, what is you enviornment like? Local PC only, libray saved on another PC/Server?
In my case my library is on Windows 2003 server with the share mapped to drive M: This has worked for many years through both XP and Windows 7 until and update a while ago.
Thanks,
Rob -
I just upgraded my mac book to 10.6.8 and downloaded the new version of itunes. When I try to open it and error message appears saying, "The iTunes Library file cannot be found or created. The default location for this file is in the "iTunes" folder in the "Music" folder."
I have tried a few things but iTunes closes right after i click okay. Anyone know anything?Look in your Home > Music folder. There should be an iTunes folder there and it should have a number of files and folders including one called library.itl You want to guide iTunes to that file. If you don't see that file or folder then in your next post you will have to be very specific as to what you do see or how you have your iTunes set up because that's where it should be according to default settings.
-
"The iTunes Library file cannot be found or created..."
I'm getting this error upon opening iTunes:
When I try to open iTunes with the option key, it asks me to find a library. I can navigate to my library and see the file, but it is grayed out and can't be selected. Prior to this i had been getting an error about iTunes not being able to save the library, but I thought it was coming from my backup app.
Any ideas? I can no longer open iTunes or access my music or videos.
Thanks!OK.. I finally found an answer buried among a million other posts.
To fix this, click to open the iTunes app and immediately hold down the "Option" key. This will allow you to either create a new iTunes library file, or point the app to where the library is. In my case, I repointed it to the Music>iTunes folder where my library file was and this worked.
This is the link that helped me figure it out:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1589 -
my iTunes has stopped working on my mac book pro 13" when i try oping it it saysThe iTunes Library file cannot be found or created. The default location for this file is in the “iTunes” folder in the “Music” folder. i dont know what to do i need my itunes back
Hi pgarard1,
If you are having issues with launching iTunes after an update, you may want to take a look at the troubleshooting in the following article:
iTunes for Windows: Doesn't open after upgrading in Windows Vista or Windows 7
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2363
Regards,
- Brenden -
How can I locate my iTunes library files? When I click on my iTunes icon rather than my iTunes files I receive, " The file iTunes Library.itl." cannot be read because it was created by a newer version of iTunes." I have already tried to update my iTunes program.
Had same problem and solved it without having to reinstore any music or movies:
1. Delete old Library file
2. Go to the 'Previous iTunes Libraries' folder and copy one of the earlier files - note, they have a date extension, e.g. 'iTunes Library 2011-11-01'.
3. Paste this file in your iTuners folder and rename file by removing the date extension - 'iTunes Library'
You should have all your music and paylists in tact, unless it was a really old previous file. -
ITunes doesn't create an "iTunes Library" file
I'm desperate - since a couple of days every time I restart my computer iTunes library is empty, I have to move all the content to the library again. And subscribe to all the 39 podcasts again!!!
Next day... everything starts from the beginning!
I've read the support pages for iTunes and found out that my iTunes doesn't save an "iTunes Library" file in the Music/iTunes folder. Instead, it creates hundreds of temporary files (iT 1.tmp, iT 2.tmp, iT 3.tmp, and so on).
It happened before upgrading to iTunes 10 - I upgraded thinking that it could help, but nothing changed.
Anyone had a similar problem? Please help me!Yes, I moved the iTunes folder to the shared folder
Made an alias and moved it to my Users/myhome/music and removed the alias symbol.
If you moved the entire iTunes folder and created aliases, that would be the reason that iPhoto and iMovie can't find the proper file. You should only have moved the 'iTunes Music' folder
Many applications don't perform well when files are to be opened and stored using an alias.
I'm pretty sure iTunes creates an updated .xml file every time you make changes, but it's at the wrong location for iPhoto and iMovie to find it.
I tried what you did, by moving my (test) iTunes folder to the Shared folder, create an alias, renamed it to 'iTunes' and put it at ./Users/Username/Music.
Neither iPhoto and iMovie were able to find my (test) music files.
Those apps. will only look at ./Users/Username/Music/iTunes for the .xml file and obviously cannot find it using the alias.
I tried the same procedure using a symbolic link (a 'better' alias) and that worked out alright. You can create a symbolic link by using the Terminal (take a look at this brief tutorial), but it's more convenient to use SymbolicLinker. After installing it, you can then easily create a symlink of a file or folder by control-clicking on it and choosing 'Make Symbolic Link' from the contextual menu.
If you want to know more about symlinks in general, take a look at this Wiki or Google for "Symbolic Link Macintosh" (without the quotes) to find more articles.
While symlinks do work in this case (at least on my system), I will give you the link to the article which describes the 'Apple preferred way' to share your music (in case symlinks don't work on your system).
iTunes: How to share music between different accounts on a single computer tells you two methods. You can use either of them.
M
17' iMac 800 MHz, 768 MB RAM, 200 GB HD, DL burner Mac OS X (10.4.8) iTunes 7.0.2 -
Everytime I open iTunes lately...I get all my music thrown out of the library and this annoying message come up...The file “iTunes Library.itl” does not appear to be a valid iTunes library file. iTunes has created a new iTunes library and renamed this file to “iTunes Library (Damaged) 4”. Is this how an apple works? It doesn't? Why all of a sudden is it doing this? Please help. Thank you.
DavidDid you happen to bring this iTunes library over from a windows machine? You might read this kb article to see if it helps http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1451
-
My itunes library suddenly that the file “iTunes Library.itl” does not appear to be a valid iTunes library file. iTunes has created a new iTunes library and renamed this file to “iTunes Library (Damaged)”. I use an external hard drive for my Itunes.
The library file appears to have been corrupted. You say you use your external drive but is the whole library on it or only your media? No matter, you will have to rebuild the library file:
iTunes: How to re-create your iTunes library and playlists - http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1451 -
Help! I 'm using an old G4 powerbook, Mac OSX 10.5.8, iTunes ver 10. I have multiple iTunes libraries on an external drive. Everything was fine for a while, then all of the iTunes library files, i.e. iTunes Library.itl, xml, itdb, artwork folder, Media folder, etc mysteriously disappeared! Only the music files remain (thank god) So now when I start iTunes w/option key to choose a library, I can't choose any of them because iTunes won't recognize them. Because all the library stuff is missing. So can I re-create the library files? (I don't care if I lose my ratings)
Or should I create a new empty library on the external drive, then manually move all the music files to the Media folder in the new library?
I tried some stupid ideas like creating a new library just to start iTunes, then going into prefs and advanced, then under iTunes Media folder location, selecting the location of the old library on the external, to see if iTunes would then find all the music which is still there, but no workee.
I'm out of ideas, and I searched the archives.
Help! anyone?
ScottI don't know if this is me adding files to iTunes when the external wasn't connected
it is.
is it OK to just keep deleting that library on the Air?
i wouldn't - at least not until i
mount the external
point iTunes media folder location back to the external via preferences > advanced
consolidate my library via file > library > organize library
The ntfs hasn't seem to be causing any problems, but I've always wanted to know.
in order for your Mac to write to NTFS drives, it needs some help by installing e.g. the NTFS 3G driver. apparently that or something similar is installed on your Mac already. preferably, it would be formatted for Mac but then windows machines would need to have e.g. MacDrive installed to recognize the drive. -
How to delete multiple old ITUNES LIBRARY files safely ?
I'd like to clean up my Itunes LIBRARY files, but don't know what's safe to do and not to do. (I have Itunes 8.1 / OSX10.4.11)
MY QUESTION IS TWOFOLD :
(1) how do I create a new Itunes library file now with today's date; and
(2) how do I delete multiple (old) Itunes library files, without risking the loss of what I've got ?
This all stems from exploring Itunes as a result of a problem I had today... when trying to import mp3's from my terrabyte drive, after about 150 successful mp3 track imports, Itunes froze and everything else on my MAC froze as well (constant spinning colored wheel). After many failed attempts to force quit Itunes, I turned off my MBPro. On restarting, Itunes tooks ages to "import" files. Eventually Itunes opened but with only half of my original tunes (1500+ songs 8.11GB) and had nothing from today's import.
I found a post suggesting to hold down OPTION while starting Itunes. Then I selected a file from my hard drive > me > music > Itunes > "Itune library" with the most recent date and shezam, Itunes once again has all my songs, as before. Nothing I imported from the terrabyte drive today appears however, but no matter.
In my "Itunes" file there appear MULTIPLE Itunes libraries ! such as Itunes library, Itunes Library (damaged), and as well a folder called "Previous Itunes Libraries" which itself contains multiple Itunes Library files and multiple "previous Itunes Library files" with dates back to 2007. These I want to clean up and delete .... should I ? ... Can I ?
I really could use some words of wisdom from the wise ! Thanks in advanceWhenever you install a new version of iTunes and run it teh first time, iTunes will create a backup of the current iTunes library file and copy it into \Music\iTunes\Previous iTunes libraries, then update the iTunes library file in \Music\iTunes\ for the current version of iTunes.
-
I purchased 'Avatar' The Special Edition with the included Extras with a gift card. I had enough money in my account to cover this purchase. I only got to watch the 'Extras' for one or two times, and now, they have vanished! They no longer appear in my iTunes library or anywhere on my computer! Where are they and how do I regain access? The movie, itself, is still in the library...only the downloaded 'Extras' are gone!
Visibility of the Podcasts section is controlled from within the Edit > Preferences dialog.
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.
Missing tracks
Typically this can happen because a file or folder is accidentally shunted to the wrong location. iTunes can also get confused if it expects to be talking to an external drive which isn't there. If will often reset the default media folder location and may have trouble finding files in the old folders.
Select one of your tracks that is missing in action. Press CTRL-I to Get Info. Cancel when asked to try to locate the file, then look at the location given on the summary tab. This where iTunes thinks the file ought to be? Now find out where it actually is. Post back the two locations for comparison. I should be able to give you some steps to reconnect everything once I can determine which of the things that might have gone wrong is most likely in your case.
When you get it all working make a backup!
tt2 -
ITunes library file corrupt after updating?
Just the other day I updated to the latest iTunes software. This is the first time I've tried to use it and it keeps freezing (the swirly rainbow icon) until I eventually have to give up and force quit. My iTunes library is on an external hard drive which has admittedly been taking longer and longer to boot up each time I connect it, I don't know if this is related.
After doing some research on here I created a new test iTunes library on my hard drive and it worked perfectly, so it must be a corrupt library file? I followed the advice on an old thread and replaced the corrupt library file with an older one from December.
It worked....but here's the complication. Since that last backup in December I started using iTunes Match. When I opened the older library file, I saw that iTunes Match wasn't turned on, so I turned it on and it was saying that none of my library had been uploaded to iCloud except for iTunes purchases. I quickly exited, because frankly I couldn't bear the thought of all my library having to be uploaded to iCloud again (it took days and days...and days!). The music is still on the iCloud, but if I open that older version of my iTunes library it doesn't seem to think that it is.
Any idea what I should do?
Thanks for your helphmmmm. perhaps try running a chkdsk over the drive on which your iTunes library file is stored:
How to perform disk error checking in Windows XP
does that find/repair any damage? if so, do you still get the same message from your itunes? -
ITunes Library File Not Valid! What the Heck?
I have 11,500 songs in my music library and am running iTunes 7.0.2. My iTunes Library file from time-to-time becomes corrupted, on probably at least a weekly basis. I have no idea what's causing this.
Here's the typical scenario ... iTunes works fine, I quit it, and the next time I open it it shows the dialogue box that says, "Importing 'iTunes Libray.xml'..." Then it organizes the files and a dialogue box indicates "iTunes Library" does not appear to be a valid iTunes Library file ... Renamed damaged file ..."
When it's finally all done, I get my music library back minus all my playlists as well as EQ and volume settings.
This happened today and my most recent backup (done earlier in the day) was also corrupted. This is why I've learned to keep a set of four recent backups just to insure I have a reliable and useable one not more than a couple of days old. But it seems a very unnecessary hassle and I'm always losing adjustments made to my database!
Anyway ... would anyone among our distinquished and experienced iTunes geeks out there have a clue as to why this is happening OR any suggestions as to what I might do to help alleviate the problem?
Is anyone aware of a program that will search for corrupted files within your music library? I suspect this might be part of the problem.
Thanking you in advance for your help!
PowerBook G4 17" | 80GB Video iPod Mac OS X (10.4.5)It seems like the ITL file is not being properly written after iTunes closes. Then when you re-open iTunes, it cannot load the ITL file and creates a new one. Forcing you to recreate your Library manually, again and again.
Several things to check:
-Double check to see that the ITL file or the folder it resides in is not read-only.
-Using Windows Explorer, right-click on the file (or folder) name, go to Properties.
-If it is, then close iTunes, change it, and reopen iTunes.
See this thread to reset the iTunes preferences: http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=1216090#1216090
And see this post to use TweakUI to check the location and validity of your My Music 'Special Folder': http://discussions.apple.com/click.jspa?searchID=487067&messageID=1197027
Once the main cause of the inability to save the ITL file is corrected, you'll need to recreate your Library one last time to finally save it. No way to resurrect the original one, unless you had backup copies of the ITL file. -
Why can't iPhoto, Pages, Numbers, Keynote and iMovie access my iTunes Library files and Pages, Numbers, Keynote and iMovie access my iPhoto Library files now that I upgraded to '11?
Examples of what is going on:
1. In Pages, Numbers & Keynote, when I go to the media browser the Audio section reads "Open iTunes to populate this list" even after iTunes has been opened, .xml file has been replaced/repaired, etc AND Photo section reads "Open iPhoto to see photos from your iPhoto Library in this list" even after iPhoto Library has been replaced and new default library created.
2. In iMovie, similar thing ... when I go to add photos or music to a movie the iTunes files aren't present and the iPhoto photos are missing with similar messages as in #1.
3. In iPhoto, similar thing ... when I go to add music to a slideshow it says to "Open iTunes to populate this list".
It is shocking to me that Apple would let something as simple as a pathway link to associated library files get this messed up on an upgrade, but what's even more surprising is that with the number of people who seem to be having this particular issue (and I can tell from all the research that I've done for weeks online that there are a lot of them) that there doesn't seem to be a single clear answer to fixing it anywhere on these community support forums. Most of what I've seen is rehashed advice from outdated issues. What I need is a simple answer to how do we get these programs to look for the correct location of the photo and music files because I sure can't seem to find any logical place to do that through the programs' preferences files or the system preferences window?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
P.S. Here's the details on the software/hardware:
MacBook Pro
Mac OS X
Version 10.7.5
2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
8 GB 1067 MHz DDR3
iTunes 11.0.4 (4)
iPhoto '11 9.4.3 (720.91)
iMovie '11 9.0.9 (1795)
Keynote '09 5.3 (1170)
Pages '09 4.3 (1048)
Numbers '09 2.3 (554)I have the same problem on a new MacBook Pro. I have not been able to access the iTunes library from iPhoto since I got this computer. I looked in the Preferences file and deleted the com.apple.iApps.plist but there was no com.apple.iApps.lockfile so I just deleted the iAPPs.plist and rebooted the computer. Still no iTunes available in iPhoto.
All my music is in iTunes and plays. After reading the above I brought up Pages and I was able to access music and insert a track into a document.
Do you have any suggestions.
Maybe you are looking for
-
How can I transfer my iPhone apps to my ipad
I'm really far in some of my apps and I don't want to have to start all over again
-
Getting error while starting the server.
I am getting the following error while starting the server. Please help trc file: "C:\SAP\JP1\JC00\work\dev_jstart", trc level: 1, release: "710" sysno 00 sid JP1 systemid 560 (PC with Windows NT) relno 7100 patchlevel 0 patchno
-
Hi everyone! I don't know anything about computers! I bought a used X40, and now I am hearing strange beeps every now and then. It seems to be coming from the hard disk. I say "seems" bc I have read that HDs don't beep. Well, all I can say is that it
-
Few days ago untill now, i want to buy some application from my iphone4s. Unfortunely, everytime i want to buy it, i must verify my account payment and fill the blank for security code, expired month & year of the credit card that i use. After i fill
-
Please help. I have set up iCloud successfully on my MacBook Air. When I try to set up on my iPad, I follow all the instructions in Settings, but when I go to iCloud on Safari on my iPad, it does not give me anywhere to sign. It just directs me to th