Sharing a library between multiple user accounts on the same PC

I have an XP pc setup for the kids and each has their own login so they can have their own bookmarks, shortcuts, desktop, etc. They each have an iPod and use iTunes. I want them to share the same music library so that when one downloads or rips a song, It's available to each of them. Using the default installation, it is currently not working the way I want it to. Is what I'm describing possible? If so, how do I configure it?

You need to have all the music stored in a shared folder.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1203
If you move all the files around with Win Explorer, itunes will lose the paths to the files. It might be best to move everything to the shared folder and have them start over with a blank library (new ratings, playcounts)
The last lines in that article state
+When another user of the computer has imported new music from CD, repeat steps 6 through 8 to add the music to your library.+
You might want to use a little program like "itunes folder watch" to do it automatically for you.

Similar Messages

Sharing iPhoto library between two user accounts on the same Mac

My wife and I each have an iPad and we share the same iMac. We each have our own user account on the iMac. She syncs with her account, and I sync with mine. This works fine in general, but we store all our photos within iPhoto on my account. She is therefore unable to sync the photos to her iPad. The same is true with the music that we keep on the iTunes in my user account.
Is there a way for her to sync so that the photos and music sync with her iPad also?

I have used a program called iPhoto Library Manager (http://www.fatcatsoftware.com/iplm/) for years and it has worked like a charm. The program handles all of the permission/subfolder aspects transparently. Our iPhoto library is stored in my wife's default location, but I have seamless read-write access to it. When I open iPhoto, I see the same thing she does, and I have complete control.
To answer your question about music, there are a couple of approaches. If you turn on Sharing in iTunes, and your wife's iTunes is set to look for shared libraries, she'll be able to have complete access to play anything in your iTunes library (as long as you have iTunes open). I believe she also has rights to copy files from your iTunes library into hers.
That's great for playback on a Mac, but what you can't do is sync an iPod/iPad/iPhone with someone else's shared library, so here's how I do it:
1) My iTunes library is our "primary" library, located in my Public folder (where other users have read-access).
2) In my wife's iTunes, library, I hit keystroke Apple-O to add content to her library, and navigated over to my iTunes Library in my public folder to select it. Once I did this, her iTunes library looked like mine.
3) The key thing is that under her iTunes Advanced Preferences, I ensure that "Copy content to iTunes library" is deselected. Otherwise, it would make a copy of my entire library on her side, and that would chew up a ton of disk space.
Note that I don't think it's entirely necessary to have the iTunes library in the Public folder. It could stay in the default location as long as you changes your music folder to have read-access by other users. I moved mine before I knew any better.
When I add new content to my library that my wife wants, we hit Apple-O from her side and add it to her library. This setup is kludgy, but a) both users can sync the music to iDevices and b) it doesn't require having two copies of everything. Note that unlike the iPhoto Library Manager solution, this is a static thing. You have to manually update the "satellite" library to keep it up to date with the main one.
I'm not in front of my Mac, so some of my notations may not be completely accurate.
Good Luck!

How do I share new purchased itunes content automatically between multiple user accounts on the same computer?

I have 3 different user accounts set up on the same computer. Whenever one of us buys or downloads anything, how can I get that to be automatically available for each of the other users? The main itunes library is stored at users/shared/itunes, but this doesn't seem to help much. As far as I can gather, Home Sharing only works between computers, not between users on the same computer......

camillafromchichester wrote:
The main itunes library is stored at users/shared/itunes
is that the iTunes folder or just the iTunes media (or music) folder ?
what should work is if the entire iTunes folder were in the shared folder and iTunes on each user account would access the same library file
launch iTunes on each user account (one at a time) while holding the option (⌥) key, click on choose library when prompted, and select the iTunes folder you copied to the shared folder.
if user A adds content, this will be available to the others immediately when they access the library, however, only one iTunes at a time can use the library. if you're using fast user switching, user A must quit iTunes before user B can fire it up.

Sharing iTunes Library Among Multiple User's on the Same Computer

OK, so I've followed the instructions in iTunes article HT1203 to set up my laptop to share a common iTunes library but for whatever reason it won't open. Here's what I did:
Backed up the iTunes library to DVD from the old system
Restored the DVD to the new laptop
Located the iTunes folder in \Users\Dennis\Music\
Dragged it to \Users\Public\Public Music
Opened iTunes
Editted the Preference Advanced tab to change the location of the music folder to \Users\Public\Public Music
Closed the preferences
No music is displayed. I know it's there because when I opened iTunes BEFORE I moved the folder it showed all of the music titles I was expecting to see.
I even went out and changed the Security on \Users\Public\Public Music to Full Control for all users (only two) and it had no effect. What am I missing?
Thanks for you advice.

iTunes always uses the last ITL databse file it used from before, unless it can't find it....in which case, it makes a new library ITL file that's blank.
When you dragged the ituness folder to the public foder, I think it confused itunes.
Try a shift-start of itunes and select the ITL file in the public folder.
Press *AND HOLD* the shift key while starting itunes until you see a prompt to choose or create a library. Browse to that public folder and choose its ITL file.

Question/Problem Sharing iTunes Library between multiple users

Hello all,
I have a question (potential problem) regarding sharing an iTunes Library between multiple users.
In the past, I had placed the iTunes folder in /Users/Shared, and created an alias to it in the "Music" folder of each user, and it worked fine. However, with a recent upgrade to Mac OS 10.5, only the Home user account can access the library.
I read the Apple Support Document http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1203 uner Mac OS X which specifically states *not* to move the iTunes folder, just the iTunes Media folder (which I don't have, would that be iTunes Music?).
Any recommendations? Should I delete the different alias, move the iTunes folder back to the home user, and then follow the instructions in the support document?
We're also looking to sync music purchsed on our iPod touches, as well as apps (which weren't supported in our privous Mac OS X version.
Any advice is appreiciated.

David Guay wrote:
... iTunes Media folder (which I don't have, would that be iTunes Music?).
yes.
specifically states *not* to move the iTunes folder
*do* keep the entire iTunes folder in /users/shared, however, instead of creating aliases, launch iTunes while holding the option (⌥) key, click choose library when prompted, and select the iTunes folder in /users/shared.
obviously, only one iTunes at a time can access the library !

Using the same photos and music between two user accounts in the same Mac

Hi,
I think this question might have already been asked in the forum.
1. I have one MacBook Pro and two user accounts (One for me and one for my wife)
2. We are having two seperate iPhones with seperate AppleIDs
3. We want to maintain the apps / calendar / mail / reminders / contacts as seperate - Through iCloud (Seperate Apple ID approach) - All this is fine
4. All we want to have it shared is the Music files and the Photo library without duplicating
I have tried the shared folder approach for the music and having the iTunes point to that directory for the libary location in the preferences but unfortunately if she adds a folder to the library mine does not get updated unless I do a add folder to library and vice versa.
Whats the best way to deal with the Photos / Music sharing between two user accounts on the same mac
Thanks
Shas

To give other users read-only access to your iTunes library, use the Sharing features of iTunes. Sharing works over the local network as well as on the same computer. See the built-in help for details.
To give others selective access to your iPhoto library, you have the option of using iCloud Photo Sharing, if the privacy implications don't bother you. The images will be stored temporarily on Apple servers.
If you want to give full read/write access to more than one user, see the support articles linked below.
iTunes: How to share music between different accounts on a single computer
iPhoto: Sharing libraries among multiple users
There is a way to share the library without moving it to a secondary volume. If you really need to do that, ask for instructions.

How do I share photos and music between different user accounts on the same macbook

How do I share photos and music between different user accounts on the same Macbook? i.e. I want all to be able to access family photos when logged into their respective accounts. Same goes for the iTunes library. Hope this is possible...
Thanks!

To give other users read-only access to your iTunes library, use the Sharing features of iTunes. Sharing works over the local network as well as on the same computer. See the built-in help for details.
To give others selective access to your iPhoto library, you have the option of using iCloud Photo Sharing, if the privacy implications don't bother you. The images will be stored temporarily on Apple servers.
If you want to give full read/write access to more than one user, see the support articles linked below.
iTunes: How to share music between different accounts on a single computer
iPhoto: Sharing libraries among multiple users
There is a way to share the library without moving it to a secondary volume. If you really need to do that, ask for instructions.

Synchronizing multiple user accounts on the same computer

We bought a .mac family pack. Synchronizing 3 computers works great. But we cannot synchronize our 5 family member's multiple user accounts on the brand new iMac G5. Can it be true that synchronizing does not work between different user accounts on the same computer? To be able to do this was the prime motivator to buy a .mac family pack. Please someone tell us that we are doing something wrong!?
Cheers, Leo
PowerBook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.3) iMacG5 and G3

Leo,
I seem to be having better luck with what I think you are trying to do. Let me describe my situation.
I have accounts for my wife and I and each of our children on each of our several Macs.
For my wife's accounts (on each of the Macs) and my account (on each of the Macs) I enabled syncing via the preference pane. I did not sync the mail accounts (she has different e-mail accounts) but we did sync the addresses, bookmarks and such. We did not sync the calendars since we each "subscribe" to each others calendar.
On each machine and across the machines our "sync'd" information appears properly synchronized.
Now, here is one difference, I do NOT have a family pack. I only have my single .Mac account and I use that one account as the .Mac account for my wife and I. Now that I think about it, that would seem to be the big difference.
Might I suggest that you go into your wife's account and change her .Mac information to be YOUR information and see if it synchorizes.
Regards,
Tom

Can you transfer files between two user accounts on the same macbook pro?

Can you transfer files between two user accounts on the same MacBook Pro?
Specifically, I used the Migration Assistant to move music and photos from my old PC to my new MacBook.
Somehow, I missed the fact that it was creating a new user account when it was doing this. So none of music and photos are in the user account I originally set-up. Instead, all these files are now in a different account.
I'd like to consolidate all my files on the one user account and delete the other one.
Is this possible and, if so, how do I do it?
Thank you.

you can crop files from one account to another using the Public Dropbox which every user account has. Log into the user that has the files you want to move, then drag the folder you want to the new users' dropbox:
I suggest a small scale test on a few files first before moving gigabytes of files.

Sharing iPhoto Library between Two User Accounts

Is there any way to fully share a single iPhoto library between two user accounts on one machine (iMac 2.0GHz dual core Intel, 10.5.1, iPhoto '08), without using an external drive (because I don't have one)? By share, I mean each user has full rights and priveledges to the entire library, regardless of who uploaded the pics. Holding down the option key on iPhoto startup does not work because my wife can't access the pics I loaded even though she's pointing to the shared library in a shared folder.

If you want the other user to have the same access to the library as you: to be able to add, edit, organise, keyword etc. then:
Quit iPhoto in both accounts
Move the iPhoto Library Folder to an external HD set to ignore permissions. *You could also use a dmg*.
(Some people have had success putting the library in the Users/ Shared folder. If you do this make sure the file permissions are set to allow read/write access to everyone. But that's unlikely to work on 10.5 because of the way that the permissions have changed with the new OS.)
In each account in turn: Hold down the option (or alt) key and launch iPhoto. From the resulting dialogue, select 'Choose Library' and navigate to the new library location. From that point on, this will be the default library location. Both accounts will have full access to the library, in fact, both accounts will 'own' it.
However, there is a catch with this system and it is a significant one. iPhoto is not a multi-user app., it does not have the code to negotiate two users simultaneously writing to the database, and trying will cause db corruption. So only one user at a time, and back up, back up back up.
Regards
TD

Share iTunes purchases between two user accounts on the same Mac?

I have a Macbook Pro, for my bride and I, and a Macbook, for our kids. Both Macs are authorized on my iTunes account.
So, how can I share an iTunes Store purchased song on my account with my wife's? I understand how to turn on sharing and she can see my songs in iTunes on her account, but she cannot synch them to her iPod.
Now, I'm allowed to authorize an iTunes account on up to five Macs. I have two. But I have four accounts. Either way, I won't be exceeding five copies, but can't find a way to get a song I bought in my iTunes to my wife's iPod.
We use the same iTunes account but don't want to have to buy things twice to get them on her iPod. Just seems weird that I could put it on five machines but not two user accounts on the same one.
Message was edited by: Sky Guy

On my Mac Pro I moved the entire library to "Macintosh HD/Shared/iTunes". Changed the Folder location in iTunes Preferences->Advanced->General to point to that location. Then in each user change the Music/iTunes folder to be an alias or link pointing to the Shared/iTunes folder. You will likely need to change the permissions on that folder to give everyone the ability to read and write. Do that via "Get Info" on the iTunes folder using Finder. I'd suggest backing everything up before you do this.

HT3819 How to use homesharing between different user accounts on the same iMac?

I find plenty of articles about homesharing on iTunes between computers, but not between two different user accounts on the same iMac. Any advice or direction to an existing artical is greatly appreciated. I'm knew to the Mac and still have Windows on the brain.
I am trying to share iTunes music and movie purchases between my user login and my wife's.
Thanks

Hello careymp1017,
This can be achieved, but will not utilize HomeSharing. Further information and steps can be found in the following article.
iTunes: How to share music between different accounts on a single computer
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1203
Cheers,
Allen

Sharing one iphoto library between multiple user accounts

I hav an extensive photo library and would like to share this across multiple users on the one computer. Am I able to do this without having to move the library to an external hard drive?

What you mean by 'share'.
If you want the other user to be able to see the pics, but not add to, change or alter your library, then enable Sharing in your iPhoto (Preferences -> Sharing), leave iPhoto running and use Fast User Switching to open the other account. In that account, enable 'Look For Shared Libraries'. Your Library will appear in the other source pane.
Any user can drag a pic from the Shared Library to their own in the iPhoto Window.
Remember iPhoto must be running in both accounts for this to work.
If you want the other user to have the same access to the library as you: to be able to add, edit, organise, keyword etc. The problem here is that OS X works very hard to keep your data safe and secure from the other users. You're trying to beat what's built in to the system. So, to beat the system
Quit iPhoto in both accounts
Move the iPhoto Library Folder to an external HD set to ignore permissions. You could also use a Disk Image or even partition your Hard Disk.
In each account in turn: Hold down the option (or alt) key and launch iPhoto. From the resulting dialogue, select 'Choose Library' and navigate to the new library location. From that point on, this will be the default library location. Both accounts will have full access to the library, in fact, both accounts will 'own' it.
However, there is a catch with this system and it is a significant one. iPhoto is not a multi-user app., it does not have the code to negotiate two users simultaneously writing to the database, and trying will cause db corruption. So only one user at a time, and back up, back up back up.
Lastly: This method seems a little clunky at first, but works very well. Most importantly, it uses the System to do the job for you.
Create a new Account on your Mac, call it Media. Create an iPhoto Library there. (BTW: This will work for iTunes too.)
Enable Sharing on the Library:(Preferences -> Sharing), leave iPhoto running and use Fast User Switching to open the other accounts. In those accounts, enable 'Look For Shared Libraries'. The Library will appear in the other source pane.
This means that both users will be able to see the pics. If you want to use a pic then simply drag it from the shared Library to your own in the iPhoto Window. This means that each user can have their own edits.
If you want to add photos to the Library: Log into the Media account for that purpose.
To make it all seamless: Set your Mac to log into the Media Account automatically. Set iPhoto to launch on log-in. Then switch to your own account using Fast User Switching.
Net result: a Library that's permanently available to all users but also protected. Each user can have their own versions of the pics if they want.
No partitioning, no permissions issues. Uses no extra disk space. What's not to like?
Regards
TD

Syncing iTunes Library between multiple user accounts

Is it possible for iTunes to automatically sync music libraries between two user accounts on Windows XP?

If I understand your question correctly , you can have identical libraries (contents, playlists and all) if you set each user's account to reference the same .itl file.
Have a look at this article in the Apple Knowledge Base for details on how to do so.
By using the Choose Library option and linking the accounts to the same .itl file, the libraries will be the same and changes made to one will be reflected in the others.
Post back if you need any further details.

File sharing across multiple user accounts on the same machine

Hello,
I try to figure out how multiple users (my wife and I) on the same mac can have equal access to files on the local drive without granting that access to all users on that machine or even the rest of the world.
My research sofar hasn't come up with a satisfying solution. Here are the solutions that I am looking at:
1. Enable a permission system that ensures access to both users in all cases (file/directory creation, copy and move).
I only found a suitable solution for creating and copying files/directories but not for moving them.
See the following articles for reference:
https://discussions.apple.com/message/20787617#20787617 Setting up a shared structure that works e.g. for iPhoto Library but not for moving files to and from
https://discussions.apple.com/message/4005647#4005647 Helpful information on POSIX Permissions, ACL's an Permission inheritance
This would be my first choice if I can get around the problem of moving files...
2. Disk Image
Create a disk image which ignores persmissions and set permissions for the file that contains the image instead.
Read this article to get further details: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1198
This solution will work but has a few disadvatages:
There's no mutual access from multiple user accounts since an image may only be mounted by one user at a time.
One has to create a startup script that mounts the image upon login which would create a first come first serve for access to the image content.
3. Using a file sharing protocol (e.g. afp or smb) locally.
The idea behind it is to have a server providing the files mutually to multiple users one the same machine. At them moment this seems to be the most promising approach to me.
Unfortunately I can get acces from another machine but not from the same machine. Has anyone ever tried to access the file sharing (afp or smb) from the same machine on which the server is located?
Has anyone got some helpful hints for me?
Thanks in advance.

Sorry, but you didn't specify details, and it was worth checking whether or not you had overlooked this approach.
The problem you're having (as I suppose you already know) is that any new disk item inherits the permissions of the folder it is originally created in in. These permissions (sensibly enough) need owner or administrator permission to change once they've been established; that will happen when you copy a file to a new location (because that's essentially creating a new file) but not when you move it. any of the following would work:
changing the permissions on newly created files for both users so that they all explicitly give r/w access to a particular group.
writing a droplet that would change the permissions of files dropped on it and move them programmatically to the shared folder
set up a folder action or launchd job that would watch the shared folder and automatically convert permissions on files placed in it.
The last would be the approach I would take, but... which appeals to you?

Sharing a library between multiple user accounts on the same PC

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for