Re Installing Itunes software deleted my library

I got a new hard drive and re installed XP from scratch.. I got the latest iTunes software and ran the updater.. Everything went ok until I plugged in my iPod (which was loaded with my song library) and the library was overwritten by the empty library on my new PC.. I assume once it was replaced, its long gone.. has anyone else heard of this happening? Unfortunately I only had about half of my purchases backed up to CD..

My understanding of what iTunes is / does?   That once I signed into my past iTunes account that the music, both old and purchased would be in that iTunes library.   You might say that my understanding of the computer age may be flawed?
Thanks guys but it's difficult framing a question about an issue I'm having, when it's possible that don't understand what the real problem is.   But, that day after plugging my iMac in for the 1st time, and fooling around with it a bit, I tried to see if I could play something on my iTunes account. No music, no nothing.
Another day goes by and I plug my old iPod in, and the music that used to be on my iPod, plus several folders, were no longer there. Not really knowing what I did, my purchased music suddenly appeared, and it allowed me to listen.   Several days later I tried to fire up the old iTunes, and no music. My confidence (very little) at this point is fading fast.
I have to admit that the learning process of having to start over is a bit much for me.
I thank you both in you efforts to shooool me but I'm not quite to that level of following advice on a forum.
I appreciate your efforts.
Mac

Similar Messages

HT1349 If I re-install iTunes software, will that affect my current iTunes Library?

If I re-install iTunes software, will that negatively affect my existing iTunes library???

No. Back it up anyway. See this User Tip for an effective backup strategy.
Windows 2000? You can't update iTunes beyond version 7.3.2, but a reinstall of your current build won't hurt the library.
tt2

I cannot install itunes, canot delete bonjour

I CANNOT INSTALL ITUNES, CANNOT DELETE BONJOUR

**** I am having the same problems... and I have GOOGLED everything and done everything possible out there. I'm coming to think that its my computer....BELOW is a photo of what it says when it starts the installation process... if you find any solutions please reply lol. I am desperate. And I will let you know as well...

When I update itunes it deletes the library file, and when I restore that file from the previous libraries or my backup, itunes will run but tell me "the iTunes library file cannot be saved. A folder was specified instead of a file" How do I fix this?

When I update itunes it deletes the library file, and when I restore that file from the previous libraries or my backup, itunes will run but tell me "the iTunes library file cannot be saved. A folder was specified instead of a file" How do I fix this?

Hi there Br0x,
You may want to try rebuilding the iTunes library as an initial troubleshooting step. Take a look at the article below for more information.
iTunes: How to re-create your iTunes library and playlists
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1451
-Griff W.

I recently bought a new laptop, installed iTunes and imported my library during a sync with my iPhone. Now I've noticed that any tracks that were ripped into my library from a CD won't play on my iPhone. They're visible but with a red circle next to them.

I recently bought a new laptop, installed iTunes and imported my library during a sync with my iPhone. Now I've noticed that any tracks that were ripped into my library from a CD won't play on my iPhone. They're visible but with a red circle next to them.

Hi, BartleyBauer.
If the media that you are attempting to sync plays in iTunes, try removing the preference to sync music as this remove the media from the device. Once this is done, try syncing the media again.
iTunes 11 for Windows: Set up syncing for iPod, iPhone, or iPad
http://support.apple.com/kb/ph12313
Cheers,
Jason H.

Can't install iTunes after deleting prior corrupted version of iTunes

Hi there, I'm hopeful someone can help me out with this vexing problem. I noticed after recently installing the newest version of Quicktime several weeks back that my iTunes would crash whenever I tried to open the iTunes Music Store. Growing weary of that issue and not being able to resolve it on my own after fully using Onyx, I decided to delete iTunes 6.0.4 and simply install it again. After I deleted the corrupted iTunes, I checked to make sure my music was still in its library (it was, but the icons had all changed to Quicktime icons) and then installed iTunes from downloading it from the Apple website.
I was able to download iTunes 6.0.4 from the website. I installed it and that seemed to go well and I then restarted the machine and then went into the Applications folder expecting to see the new iTunes icon there, but it was not! I did a Spotlight search for the new iTunes and it could not be found anywhere on the machine! I did not know how to explain/understand its failure to exist since I had gone through the complete installation procedure and then restarted the iMac, but, I thought I will just try it again and see what would happen. This time, I installed it from the iLife '06 DVD and again, the whole installation program ran fine and I then restarted the machine and opened up the App. folder expecting to see it, but, once again iTunes was missing. Spotlight still cannot locate the program. I know that I have correctly installed the darn thing at least twice but I can't seem to locate the program! Moreover, when I click on some of my music icons, the song will play through Quicktime, not iTunes...I just don't know what to make of this, can someone knowledgeable about iTunes please guide me through this mysterious re-installation process? Thank you very much for reading and hopefully lending a virtual had! Cheers, Mike in California
G5 iMac 2Ghz Mac OS X (10.4.6) Soundsticks, iPod mini
G5 iMac 2Ghz Mac OS X (10.4.6) Soundsticks, iPod mini
G5 iMac 2Ghz Mac OS X (10.4.6) Soundsticks, iPod mini

Although it looked like iTunes was installed, I doubt it was.
Your Spotlight search does confirm that.
Open ./Library/Receipts and trash the 'iTunesX.pkg' and the 'iTunesX 6.0.4.pkg' files.
Try installing iTunes again.
If you only install iTunes, there's no need to restart or even to log out and in.
After the installer is ready, take a look in your Applications folder.
I'm confident you will find the iTunes.app there.
Hope this helps.
M

Can I delete iTunes without deleting the library?

I want to delete iTunes and install a previous version without deleting my library.
Is there a way?

Some of this will depend upon how far back you want to revert. Some iTunes upgrades irrevocably change your library file so it will no longer work with earlier versions. I don't know how this goes in the recent versions of iTunes. The media files will work, of course, but you then have to start with a blank library and repopulate it, losing some things like date added, play count, etc.

How do I stop itunes from deleting my library. I have a custom built pc. Running xp pro

How can I stop I-Tunes from deleting my library everytime I turn off my pc. I have a custom built PC running windows XP Pro SP 3. I have uninstalled Sony software as this has been suggested as being a sauce of conflict. but it still keeps deleting all my music.

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. Note that in iTunes 11 an "empty" library may show your past purchases with links to stream or download them.
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.
Alternatively, depending on exactly when and why the library went missing, there may be a more recent .tmp file in the main iTunes folder that can be renamed as iTunes Library.itl to restore the library to a recent state.
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!
Should you be in the unfortunate position where you are no longer able to access your original library, or a backup of it, then see Recover your iTunes library from your iPod or iOS device.
I've noticed more of these missing library posts of late and a common factor to most since I started asking is AVG Anti-Virus. It seems in some cases it might be at least part of the reason why the library file disappears. Try excluding the iTunes folder from any AV scanning process.
tt2

Installed ITunes 8 - entire music library lost - hangs if I try to add fold

I just installed iTunes 8 after having been prompted to do so.
When I first opened it the app started to render my album covers, and then stopped.
I was curious about the genius feature, so I enabled that, and it said it was active, but then nothing showed in my music library at all -- no covers, not a single track.
I tried re-adding the folder where I store my music, I get a processing message, but then it just hangs.
I ended the task, tried adding a single song -- that song added successfully, so I added one more -- also OK, and they could play. So I tried adding the whole folder again - hangs.
End task again.
Re-open - the songs I added manually aren't there anymore. Every time I add a song, it shows temporarily, then when I exit and go back in the whole list is erased again.
At the file system level the folder where it stores all the info about music is COMPLETELY EMPTY: \\server\users\myusername\my documents\my music\itunes\itunes music\
That folder used to have hundreds of folders and files? What the heck happened? Where are my files?
Is this a bug or just some weird issue on the x64 version of Vista that happens when you have my documents folder re-direction turned on? This wasn't a problem with v7.x

Copying the old iTunes Library (from the "Previous iTunes Libraries" folder) didn't work for me. iTunes went through its typical "Updating iTunes Library" routine the next time I launched, and any attempt to add a folder of files to my library still returns Error 13014.
Message was edited by: iphone-pwner

HT1364 How to install iTunes, but access music library from external drive?

I tried to install iTunes (11) on a new computer with Windows 8. I keep the iTunes library on an external drive. I tried to move the media files over to the newly installed iTunes within the hard drive program files, but it doesn't seem to work. The relevant threads in the forum are a bit over my head (I am brand new to Windows 8, having leaped over from XP). Is there some simple way to straighten out the paths on iTunes so that it will properly play songs from the external drive, show my old songlists, etc?
I've now uninstalled iTunes from computer. Would like to reinstall without too much headache ...

Hello there FunkyMuzak,
iTunes can be set to use the library on the external drive, and save new content.
To have iTunes open the alternate library on the drive use this option:
Steps to create or choose a different iTunes Library file
If iTunes is running, quit iTunes.
If you are using Windows, hold down the Shift key and from the Start menu and choose All Programs > iTunes > iTunes.
If you are using the Mac, open iTunes and immediately hold down the Option key.
You should see one of the following screens:
From: iTunes: How to open an alternate iTunes Library file or create a new one
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1589
And to tell iTunes to save your new media when you buy songs or movies, etc., use this part of our article named Where are my iTunes files located? found here http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1391
Discovering and changing the iTunes Media folder location
Note: You would usually only change the iTunes Media folder location to share music between accounts on the same computer. See this article for specific steps on how to accomplish this. Also, see this article if you want to know how to move your music to a new computer.
Mac OS X: Click the iTunes menu and choose Preferences.
Windows: Click the Edit menu and choose Preferences.
Click the Advanced pane. iTunes displays the location of your iTunes Media folder.
You can then:
Note where your media folder is, such as for backing up your media.
Use the Reset button to reset it's location to the default (which is the iTunes folder).
Click the Change button to select a folder for a new location. Once you change this location:
If you make a new or alternate iTunes library, the new location will be used by that library.
Existing files will not be moved unless you choose File > Library > Organize library and choose the option to "Consolidate files."
Cheers,
Sterling

ITunes keeps deleting my library

When I launch iTunes i get an error stating that my iTunes library is damaged and then deletes all my movies, music and podcasts from the library. If I plug my ipod in iTunes then deletes everything from it. This is driving me to insanity!!! Can anyone help?

I've just reloaded everything onto the library and imported a couple of new CD's without a problem so it's certainly not every time I try.
Have called a mate who's a system's man so he's going to have a look at the PC itself tomorrow or Tuesay. If it's a problem with the PC he should be able to sort it, if not we'll have to look at iTunes again. Either way I'll post here in a couple of days and let you know mate.
Cheers

My itunes is deleting my library extras and genius.

Ever since I downloaded the new version of itunes, I keep loosing all my music. I download it again and as soon as I close itunes it throws my library extras an library genius in the trash and I have to start all over. I have an ipad and iphones and am affraid to sync them. No idea what went wrong, I don't know how to fix it. I've never had problems with an apple product so this is frustrating.
Thanks, Emily

Check out this Apple article -> iTunes creates an empty library file in Windows
Do you have the Sony VAIO Entertainment Platform installed and running on your computer? If you do, it might be conflicting with iTunes.

Installed iTunes 6 but my library shows as empty

Hello,
I installed iTunes 6.0 and assumed, based on previous updating experience, that my library would be imported from iTunes 4.x. not so. How do I now access old playlists, etc, as my older version of iTunes is no longer accesible, please?
Do i have to reimport all my songs into itunes from the hard drive? I have not yet synched my iPod with new iTunes becuase i don't want to overlook some random yet critical step, such as i'm afraid i might have done with the upgrade, and have the songs stripped off of it.
thanks for your help

Does this article help?
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301895

Installing itunes software on os 9.1

Hello, my daughter just recently picked up an ibook clamshell. We are having difficulty installing the itunes software. Will itunes run on the os 9.1?

Are you trying to install the latest iTunes version 6 from the iTunes website? I don't think it works with OS9.
But recently I was very pleased to learn that an older version of iTunes (2.0.4) does work for OS 9. I found it here:
http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macos/9688
I find version 2.0.4 perfectly functional for playing music as I work on my older machine. However, I'm not sure what special functions this older version lacks compared to the latest. Hope it has what you need.

HT5100 Sync iPod (Shuffle) with newly installed iTunes; songs deleted? :(

My music from my ipod (shuffle) is not on my ipod anymore after my newly installed itunes on my PC asked me to sync my ipod music, where did it go? My itunes library did not have any songs which is why I thought the songs wouldn't be replaced. I need help ...

- Transfer iTunes purchases to the new computer by:
iTunes Store: Transferring purchases from your iOS device or iPod to a computer
- Transfer other music by using a third-party progtam like one of those discussed here
Copy music
- WHen everything is on your computr connect the iPod to the computer and make a backup. Do that by right clicking on the iPod under Devices in iTunes and select Back Up
- Restore the iPod from that backup
Note that the backup that iTunes makes does not contain synced media like apps and music.

Re Installing Itunes software deleted my library

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for