Sharing an iTunes Library over WAN?

Sorry if this question has been asked before but my searching of the forum here has only seemed to turn up questions and anwswers on sharing over a local network. Here is my question.
Is it possible to share an iTunes library over the internet? And if so, how? If it isn't I'd like to know so I can stop trying to track down how to do this.
I have a Titanium G4 at home running iTunes 6.01 using a cable modem and router. The router firewall has been setup with the proper ports for iTunes and FTP (FTP works fine). My work computer is a G5 running iTunes 6.01 connected via a DSL modem/router.
I have no other issues connecting to my home computer from work, but I can't see my shared music at home on my work computer.
Thanks for any info.

Issue solved. Here is what I did. I setup my Mac at home so I could connect at work. Inside the iTunes library on my work Mac I created an alias to the iTunes Music folder on my home Mac. Since my library at home and work are exactly the same iTunes on my work Mac sees a local library file but is streaming the music over WAN from my Mac at home.
The are some stops and starts as the connection is over WAN, but it's pretty smooth. Do not know what will happen if I need to add or subtract from the library on either Mac.
Just bringing this to the front in case anyone is interested in trying it themselves.

Similar Messages

  • Accessing and Sharing Common iTunes Library over LAN

    I would like to implement the following: store all of my music on a home server (Windows server for Crestron Compatibility) with iTunes and access it from Mac clients around the house. I would like to buy songs and store them on the server, but so that they are immediately available to very Mac client, so that, if I buy the song from the iMac in the master bedroom, the song gets to the iTunes library on the Windows server and I can see it on the Powerbook iTunes in the kitchen. Is it possible?
    I tried playing around with my two iMacs, and it didn't work so well. As of now, I have the master iTunes library on the new Intel iMac. I went to my G4 iMac and, under the iTunes advanced preference pane I mapped the G4 library to the Intel iMac's iTunes folder. I then bought a song from the G4, and the song showed up in the G4's library, but not under the G4's iTunes folder. Rather, it was correctly stored onto the Intel iMac's iTunes folder. Problem was, it didn't show up in the Intel iMac's library. I had to manually import the song into iTunes to make it show up. So, my guess is that it would be invisible even to the powerbook in the kitchen.
    Do you guys think there is a simple way to map the clients' iTunes library to a common location and make it immediately visible to every client? I think it's something more and more people will want to implement in the near future...
    20" iMac Core Duo   Mac OS X (10.4.4)   1GB ram, 256MB vram, 250GB HD

    Nobody?

  • Sharing my iTunes library over LAN

    So this used to work, PCs on my network could access my iTunes libraries and play songs and videos, and I still can access /those/ computers' libraries, but they can't access mine anymore.
    Every PC has XP SP2 with all other patches, itunes 7.6.1, and this mini is at 10.5.2 and iTunes 7.6.1. This issue was already present under iT 7.6, and I don't know since when, since I don't use this feature all that often. Could have used it yesterday though.
    What seems to be the problem?

    Nobody?

  • ITunes library stored on an external hard drive which is connected to my airport extreme, I wish to share my iTunes library over my network, I can do this with my laptop, but not with my iPad, can anyone tell me if it is possible

    I have my iTunes library stored on an external hard drive which is connected to my airport extreme, I wish to share my iTunes library over my network, I can do this with my laptop, but not with my iPad, can anyone tell me if it is possible

    You can't connect directly to the external drive, but should be able to use iTunes Home Sharing via the laptop.
    http://support.apple.com/kb/PH1453

  • I recently had to get a new windows computer, old one crashed. My tech guy got all my itunes library over to the new one, and all my songs are there. However, some won't play and ask me for the password for the apple id they were purchased under. 2 of the

    I recently had to get a new windows computer, old one crashed. My tech guy got all my itunes library over to the new one, and all my songs are there. However, some won't play and ask me for the password for the apple id they were purchased under. 2 of these ids are obsolete and I have no access to those accts. The songs all played on my old computer without prompting me for a password.
    Any ideas how I can get around this hassle and get them all to play? We're talking about 800 songs that are being obstinate. The new computer is authorized under my "new" Apple id, which I have used for years.

    Downloading past purchases from the App Store, iBookstore, and iTunes Store - http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2519 - enabled with iTunes 10.3 and newer; not available in all countries; apps, books (not audiobooks), music, t.v. shows, and movies (some - not all studios have permitted this). Movies currently available in the USA only. Downloading previously purchased movies and TV shows requires iTunes 10.6 or later.  Discontinued items not available. For items not included in the iCloud list, or locations or computer systems where iCloud is not (yet?) available, you only get one download per fee paid.  Apple notes it is your responsibility to back up your purchases.
    Select the store on the left side of iTunes.
    Click on Purchased on the right side under Quick Links.
    You can re-download your available previous purchases.

  • Who is Sharing my iTunes Library?

    I was wondering if there's a way to find out who is sharing my iTunes library on a local network.

    You can make your copy of iTunes ignore other shared libraries on your network by unticking the checkbox next to Shared Libraries under the Edit > Preferences... > General tab.
    Of more concern might be the network secutity implications if your machine is sharing a network with unknown others.
    tt2

  • I am finally breaking down and getting a new laptop.  My question is how do I move my Itunes library over to the new laptop?

    I am finally breaking down and getting a new laptop.  My question is how do I move my Itunes library over to the new laptop?

    Marion,
    See this Apple support document.
    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4527
    B-rock

  • Sharing (synchronizing) a single iTunes library over multiple computers

    Okay, i've been looking all over for a simple answer to this problem for a while and haven't found a solution that doesn't involve paying for third-party software or a lot of seemingly unnecessary hassle. Here's my situation:
    I have an older 12" PowerBook G4 and a brand new MacBook Pro. I also have a Time Capsule and a 30 gig iPod, but i'm not sure whether they will be helpful or not for my situation. When i got my MacBook Pro, i let Leopard transfer all my info, so now both computers have the same login information, music library, iPhoto library, etc... But not for long, naturally. I want to use my MBP at home primarily and will spend most of my time on it, but i will also frequently be out and will be taking my PowerBook along as it is both more portable and less of a concern if something happens to it. What i want to do is to set things up so that my iTunes library (including playlists, ratings, and other metadata) is kept synchronized across both computers (perhaps via the Time Capsule?) and that any changes made on either mac will at least eventually be mirrored on the other without causing duplicates or loss of any files. I don't need to keep separate versions or sizes of iTunes libraries either; the hard drives are each large enough to hold the entire thing.
    On a side note, the iPod only needs to be able to sync from the MBP, i think, though it would be nice to have the option to sync from either. Sadly, it’s not large enough to hold the whole library, so i can’t use that to go back and forth or anything.
    Also, i wouldn’t mind if the library were only stored on the TC and the PB, since the MBP should be able to access the TC 99% of the time, but in that case the PB would have to compare its own library and metadata to that of the TC, while i’m not sure how the MBP would store its iTunes database on the TC and not its own drive. I imagine that, with the current implementation of iTunes at least, it would have to be all on the MBP and the PB, with the TC version merely a backup. In most cases, i should be able to reach both my TC and my MBP from the road over the internet, but i still want to have the library on the PB hard drive for when i don’t have a connection.
    I wouldn’t mind a “master, slave” type setup either, with the MBP being the master, since with the only working optical drive and a faster connection, it will be doing most of my importing- but it’s important that the playlists and everything are the same and it sure would be nice if i didn’t have to remember not to make any changes from the PB. I don't plan on buying any music from the iTunes store and my entire library is DRM free, so that won't be a problem. Both systems are running the latest versions of all software and operating system (though i hear this may change with Snow Leopard...?)
    And while we’re at it, doing the same or similar to my iPhoto, iCal, Addressbook, Documents, etc. would be nice. Perhaps something can be done with the entire Home folder that would accomplish all of this? I’m not sure if the fact that one is Intel and the other is PowerPC would put a hitch in that method though. There are some settings, such as the totally different trackpads, etc. that will not be the same, plus i’ll be using a lot of programs solely on the MBP, which is why cloning the drive is not an option.
    I’d like to find a way to set this up using just Automator and maybe some Applescripts if possible, but if i do have to bend and go third-party, it would need to be solid.
    I know my situation is unique (I’ve found a lot of people trying to synchronize libraries, say, with a spouse, etc. WITHOUT syncing the metadata- or people wanting different libraries on different computers to feed into the same pool, but those are very different cases, obviously) but i’m sure there are plenty of people out there with several different macs of their own who could benefit from this solution. Any help you can give towards this would be appreciated. Thanks!

    I have a similar problem. Wish I had an answer but am struggling with a similar problem. My situation is this: I have a Imac and a Macbook Pro. I have the same 4 accounts on both and I sync them through '.mac'. It works fairly well. My goal is to get one Itunes library accessible from the 2 computers and the 4 accounts per computer. I am also using Time Capsule/Machine as well. I currently keep the Itunes library on an external drive (not TCapsule). So, my problem is this:
    1. How to update from multiple accounts accross the two machines?
    2. How to access Itunes store from all of the accounts on machine 2?
    I am now trying to set up individual Itunes libraries for each account on machine 1 and share to machine 2.
    In any case, this is not pretty and needs to be reachitected to support a multiple user environmet.

  • Sharing an iTunes Library across multiple user account and a network.

    Sharing an iTunes Music Library across multiple user accounts.
    Hello Everybody!
    Firstly, this was designed to be run in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger. It will not work with earlier versions of Mac OS X! Sorry.
    Here's a handy tip for keeping your hard drive neat and tidy, it also saves space, what in effect will be done is an iTunes music library will be shared amongst multiple users on the same machine. There are advantages and disadvantages to using this method.
    • Firstly I think it might be worthwhile to state the advantages and disadvantages to using this approach.
    The advantages include:
    - Space will be saved, as no duplicate files will occur.
    - The administrator will be able to have complete control over the content of the iTunes library, this may be useful for restricting the content of the Library; particularly for example if computer is being used at and education institution, business or any other sort of institution where things such as explicit content would be less favorable.
    - The machine will not be slowed by the fact that every user has lots of files.
    The disadvantages to this system include.
    - The fact that the account storing the music will have to be logged in, and iTunes will have to be active in that account.
    - If the account housing the music is not active then nobody can use the iTunes library.
    - There is a certain degree of risk present when an administrator account must be continually active.
    - Fast User Switching must be enabled.
    Overview:
    A central account controls all music on the machine/network, this is achieved by storing iTunes files in a public location as opposed to in the user's directory. In effect the system will give all users across the machine/network access to the same music/files without the possibility of files 'doubling up' because two different users like the same types of music. This approach saves valuable disk space in this regard and may therefore prove to be useful in some situations.
    This is a hearty process to undertake, so only follow this tutorial if you're willing to go all the way to the end of it.
    Process:
    Step 1:
    Firstly, we need to organize the host library, I tidied mine up, removing excess playlists, random files, things like that. this will make thing a bit easier in the later stages of this process.
    Once the library is tidied up, move the entire "iTunes" folder from your Home directory to the "//localhost" directory (The Macintosh HD) and ensure that files are on the same level as the "Applications", "Users", "Library" and "System" directories; this will ensure that the files in the library are available to all users on the machine (this also works for networks)
    Optionally you can set the ownership of the folder to the 'administrator' account (the user who will be hosting the library.), you may also like to set the permissions of 'you can' to "Read & Write" (assuming that you are doing this through the user who will host the library); secondly you should set the "Owner" to the administrator who will be hosting the library and set their "access" to "Read & Write" (this will ensure that the administrator has full access to the folder). The final part of this step involves setting access for the "Others" tab to "Read Only" this will ensure that the other users can view but not modify the contents on the folder.
    Overview:
    So far we have done the following steps:
    1. Organized the host library.
    2. Placed the iTunes directory into a 'public' directory so that other users may use it. (this step is essential if you plan on sharing the library across multiple accounts on the same machine. NOTE: this step is only necessary if you are wanting to share you library across multiple accounts on the same machine, if you simply want to share the music across a network, use the iTunes sharing facility.
    3. set ownership and permissions for the iTunes music folder.
    Step 2:
    Currently the administrator is the only user who can use this library, however we will address this soon. In this step we will enable iTunes music sharing in the administrator's account, this will enable other users to access the files in the library.
    If you are not logged in as the administrator, do so; secondly, open iTunes and select "Preferences" from the "iTunes" menu, now click the "Sharing" tab, if "share my library on my local network" is not checked, the radio buttons below this will now become active, you may choose to share the entire libraries contents, or share only selected content.
    Sharing only selected content may be useful if their is explicit content in the library and minors use the network or machine that the library is connected to.
    If you have selected "share entire library" go to Step 3, if you have selected share "share selected playlists" read on.
    After clicking "share selected playlists" you must then select the playlists that you intend to share across your accounts and network. Once you have finished selecting the playlists, click "OK" to save the settings.
    Overview:
    In this step we:
    1. Enabled iTunes sharing in the administrator's account, now, users on the local network may access the iTunes library, however, users on the same machine may not.
    Step 3:
    Now we will enable users on the same machine to access the library on the machine. This is achieved by logging in as each user, opening iTunes, opening iTunes preferences, and clicking "look for shared music". now all users on the machine may also access the library that the administrator controls.
    This in effect will mean that the user will not need to use their user library, it will be provided to them via a pseudo network connection.
    As a secondary measure, I have chosen to write a generic login script that will move any content from the user's "Music/iTunes/iTunes Music" directory to the trash and then empties the user's trash.
    This is done through the use of an Automator Application: this application does the following actions.
    1. Uses the "Finder" action "Get Specified Finder Items"
    1a. The user's "~/Music/iTunes/iTunes Music" folder
    2. Uses the "Finder" action "Get Folder Contents"
    3. Uses the "Finder" action "Move to Trash"
    4. Uses the "Automator" action "Run AppleScript"
    4a. with the following:
    on run {input, parameters}
    tell application "Finder"
    empty trash
    end tell
    return input
    end run
    IMPORTANT: Once the script is adapted to the user account it must be set as a login item. in order to keep the script out of the way i have placed it in the user's "Library" directory, in "Application Support" under "iTunes".
    Overview:
    Here we:
    1. Enabled iTunes sharing in the user accounts on the host machine, in effect allowing all users of the machine to view a single iTunes library.
    2. (Optional) I have created a login application that will remove any content that has been added to user iTunes libraries, this in effect stops other users of the machine from adding music and files to iTunes.
    Step 4:
    If it is not already enabled, open system preferences and enable Fast User Switching in Accounts Options.
    Summary:
    We have shared a single iTunes library across multiple user account, while still allowing for network sharing. This method is designed to save space on machines, particularly those with smaller hard drives.
    I hope that this hint proves to be helpful and I hope everybody will give me feedback on my process.
    regards,
    Pete.
    iBook G4; 60GB Hard Drive, 512MB RAM, Airport Extreme   Mac OS X (10.4.6)   iWork & iLife '06, Adobe CS2, Final Cut Pro. Anything and Everything!!!

    how to share music between different accounts on a single computer

  • Can two computers share same ITunes library over Airdisk?

    Hi all,
    I have a Macbook and a PowerPC G5 and a Drobo (external hard drive) hooked up to my AEBS with only ITunes music stored on it.
    I want to be able to edit and browse my ITunes library from both my G5 (which I can already do) and my MacBook (which I can't). When I try to change my ITunes library location from within my MacBook, nothing shows up. It's a blank library, even though I can edit and browse the Drobo (as an Airdisk) through the finder. How can I edit and browse my ITunes library from my Macbook if my G5 is also using the same library? Two more quick points...
    1) I have tried the "sharing" feature and don't want to use it. It doesn't allow editing of my library and won't show cover art.
    2) The above situation happens whether my G5 ITunes is open or closed.
    Thanks everybody for your help.

    Ziatron wrote:
    Yes, two computers can share the same library.
    I periodically copy my iTunes library from my Mac Pro to the Mac Mini.
    They aren't using a single library. Each computer is using its own copy and you have two sets of library files.  It can certainly be done that way but if between copy sessions you edit a bit of each library then it is a bit of a muddle trying to make sure your versions are synchronized with each other.  For example, ratings are stored only in the .itl file, so if you rate a song on your second computer it will get lost the next time you copy over from your first.

  • Sharing an iTunes library with another user

    My wife and I both got iPad2's recently.   I would like to add some of my photos from iphoto and some of my music from iTunes to her iPad.
    I have one iTunes account.   I have built it over the years and it recognizes my iPhone and my iPad. 
    Can she sync content (photos, music, movies) from my iTunes account on to her iPad?
    I am really confused about how iTunes deals with multiple users on the same iTunes library.
    Hopefully this is enough information for someone to give me an iTunes 101 lesson on multiple users (with different Apple ID's) and sharing of one iTunes library, and syncing photos, movies, etc.... with each user's devices.
    Both my wife and I are in the cloud, but we really haven't done anything for her to access content in the cloud.  I am fully set up for the cloud with my iMac, iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV2.
    Appreciate any help offered or references to help me understand the link between one iTunes library and multiple users.

    how to share music between different accounts on a single computer

  • I bought a new computer and i'm trying to switch my itunes library over and cant'

    need some help, i'm trying to switch my library over to a new laptop. tried to "share" both computers. it works on the old one and shows the "sharing" line on the left side. but when i turn sharing on to the new computer it says that "sharing" is on but doesn't show it on the left hand side. does that make any sense to anyone?????

    Where are my iTunes files located?
    How to use your iPod to move your music to a new computer
    Downloading past purchases from the App Store, iBookstore, and iTunes Store
    iTunes: How to move your music to a new computer

  • How to move Mobile Applications folder while sharing an Itunes library

    For reasons that would be long and hard to explain, I decided some times ago to open a second user on my Book Pro dedicated to my music collection. The collection required to be stored on an external HDD, so the second user's Itunes folder links to a folder where all music is stored, and I put it with all library files (xml etc) in the Shared folder. Now I have decided to let the primary and mostly used user to share the same music of the secondary one. I easily succeeded in doing this, just simply opening the primary ITunes and ask it to link to the Itunes folder under the Shared folder. I have got my entire library also from the primary user, with covers and so on.
    The trouble is that I use to manage an Iphone with the primary ITunes, and since I have not moved the Mobile Application folder (and what more?) into the shared ITunes folder, I cannot see anymore all data and applications into my IPhone section under ITunes, and I do not want to run experiments, doing a sync and just running the risk to lose all. How can I share the same ITunes library between two users, but to allow one of those still to see the IPhone data that was originally managed only from her ITunes, that now addresses to the ITunes folder under Shared folder that addresses to a HDD?.....

    Still misspeaking. Further use reveals that while the users iTunes use the shared file, when the phones add new apps their iTunes recreates its iTunes Media directory in the users home folder. This time I can exit iTunes, move the apps to the shared Mobile Applications, delete and empty trash the original apps/ and folder, then the users iTunes will find the app in the shared folder when it restarts. Clearly not very tidy...

  • Multiple users sharing one itunes library

    i have multiple users on my mac, but i'd like us all to be able to access the same itunes library. when i go to itunes prefs on one of the other users accounts and redirect their music library to my folder, it says it is doing it, but itunes still goes to their own music folder instead of mine. i can share my library with the sharing pref, but while they can now listen to my music, they still can't use it in imovie. is there any easy way around this problem??
    thanks for your help.

    I wrote a simple shell script that executes each time a user logs in (well, actually, each time I log in, coz' it's not really applicable to other users). It syncs my work and home addressbooks and iCal calendars to one another.
    I named it "sync". Then I read somewhere that if you wanted to make it double-clickable (to launch it from the Finder), I appended a ".command" filename extension (so it's now named "sync.command"). I also did a chmod 755 to that file so that it had execute privileges. Depending on whether you give each user their own copy of this thing, or keep a single copy in, say, the /Users/Shared directory, you may have to play around with chmod. Whatever, just so long as the user that has just logged in has execute permissions to the file, and to the entire path to the file, you should be good.
    Then, in SysPrefs > Accounts > Login Items, I added that "sync.command" file to the list. So, really the only difference is I'm not wrapping mine inside an Automator script like you are.
    I had tried adding it to ~/Library/LaunchAgents and make a launchd plist for it, that would kick it off at login. But I didn't get that to work. Don't know why. But just adding the double-clickable executable unix script to the Login Items list did the trick. Whether the plist has to hang out there with it, I don't know. I still have it there, though, in case I ever get motivated to figure out what's wrong with my launchd plist file. So, if just adding it to the Login Items list doesn't do it for you, you could try making a (functional?) launchd plist for it and plopping them both in ~/Library/LaunchAgents, too. That's how I am now, and, like I said, it launches at user login as that user's process (not as a root process like the above referenced article said how login hooks worked -- although, you may want it to run as root since you want this to work with multiple users...in which case, you might want to listen to Cole and not me...).

  • Sharing one iTunes library across multiple accounts on the same Mac

    Hello, I've poked around at some of the posts dealing with sharing one iTunes music library across multiple accounts on the same Mac but it seems like this can only be done if the libary is moved to a shared folder. I realize this can be done but I was trying to share it the way it is described in a post on Apple support (See link below.). That post seemed to imply that you don't have to move the library from its original location (owned by account A, e.g.), rather just make a couple preference changes in the accounts, use fast user switching and voila. That doesn't seem to work. So my question is this: Is the only way to share one iTunes music library across multiple accounts on the same Mac to move it to a shared folder? I'm running 10.4.8 on an Intel iMac. Thanks in advance!
    http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=93195

    After reading this and several other related threads, I am becoming thoroughly confused about all of this. I have a situation similar to the one that pokerpal described in the post dated January 7 at 8:06 pm, except that the music files on my system are located on an external hard drive. Everything else is pretty much the same though - I am the admin user (and the main iTunes user and maintainer) and my girlfriend is a standard user who has no music in her own iTunes library. She can see and listen to and make playlists from and sync her iPod with the music in this library from her account, and I can do the same thing, independent of her, from my account. And if I make a change to information within a song, she doesn't see it, and vice versa, and I understand that. What I don't understand is why when I add a song or an album to the music files by importing a CD or downloading something from the iTunes Music Store, she has no way of knowing that unless I tell her, and then she can add it to her library by using the "Add to Library" function. Is there no way of automatically updating her library files to add the new song(s)? We have almost 15,000 songs and videos in that library, and I don't even want to think about what might have to happen if the answer to my question is "no." Interestingly enough, if I put an update to a Word document in the same exact location (on the hard drive), we can update that and pass it back and forth all day - why is that such a difficult task for iTunes to accomplish?
    Sorry I went on so long, but this has been building up for some time, and none of the solutions I've read about here have really been of any help, so I'm a bit frustrated and, as I said at the beginning, confused.
    iMac G5, MacBook   Mac OS X (10.4.8)  

Maybe you are looking for