Sharing iTunes between users on same MacBookPro

Hi,
I have a a MacBookPro working on Mountain Lion. I have just moved my iTunes library and media to the 'shared' folder in finder and repointed iTunes on my user id at the new location. Everything opened up as it should and looked as it did when it was in my personal music folder. Step 1 acheived!
Step 2 was to create a new user where I would have no password for entry. Step 2 acheived!
Step 3 I tried to open the 'shared' iTunes library on this new user account, so that I could leave the mac on when friends are around, and anyone can play with my iTunes library without worrying about personal data files being accessed. This is where I am having trouble. It tells me the iTunes library is locked so I cant access it. I have tried to set all folders in the 'shared' heirachy as read and write for both users ('main' and the new 'shared music' user) and I have exited out of iTunes in the main user. I dont understand why my second user cant open the library. Can anyone advise what to do or where to look?
Thanks
Rich.

Hi Simon,
Any clues in this link?
iTunes: How to share music between different accounts on a single computer
Regards
Colin R.

Similar Messages

  • Sharing iTunes between users - problem

    When sharing iTunes (6.0.4) between users on the same mac some of the mp3 files I have show up in the remote iTunes within Get Info as QuickTime movie files (remote). They will not play. In my home folder they are mp3 files. They are inaccessible to the remote user to change. Any ideas anyone?

    The files probably have the wrong creator.
    Discussions member Charlie Minow wrote a script to fix it and explains what could be the cause on this page
    Hope this helps.
    M
    17' iMac fp 800 MHz 768 MB RAM   Mac OS X (10.3.9)   Several ext. HD (backup and data)

  • Sharing iTunes between user accounts no longer works in iTunes 10.4

    I recently upgraded to iTunes 10.4 (80). Still running Snow Leopard 10.6.8.
    I have two user accounts on my MacBook Pro and my iTunes Media folder is shared i.e. /Users/Shared/ITunes/iTunes Media
    This has always worked with no problems but since upgrading to iTunes 10.4 I can no longer see my iTunes content from both accounts.
    First time I opened it after the upgrade it just presented me with an empty library. I eventually managed to see my iTunes content by deleting the iTunes library and xml files and relaunching iTunes. However when I quit and switch to the other user account I can't open iTunes - it keeps telling me that the library is locked or I don't have access to the files.
    I have to keep manually resetting permissions on the iTunes folder & subfolders in order to be able to launch it but even when I manage to open it from the second user account I just see an empty library again.
    I always used to be able to just quit iTunes in one user account and then launch it from the other; no permissions changes required. Now it just doesn't work.
    Please can someone offer advice or is this a known issue with the 10.4 release?
    Many thanks in advance.

    I've been trying to do this same thing. My wife and I share one computer and she has her own login account to check email etc. I moved all the music, movies, videos to the shared folder. We can now "share" that music without having two iTunes media libraries. However, I want to remedy the situation of adding music from different accounts, adding and deleting playlists. How do I have that type of library data automatically get updated from account to account? I've asked this question in it's own thread about a week ago and it got buried with no responses or solutions.

  • Sharing music between users on same computer

    My wife and I share the same laptop yet have different itunes accounts.  I turned on the home share and can see my daughters music on her computer but my wife cannot see my music when she is signed onto her account.  I can go to my account and copy music into her library but there must be another way that we can see each others libraries.  I tried consolidating my library and that didn't work either.
    How can we keep separate libraries on the same computer yet be able to view them the same way that home share allows us to view music on my daughters laptop?

    Hi,
    isn't there another way to share iTunes libraries between users on the same Mac, i.e. so that they other user can listen to other user's songs but cannot add, delete or change anything?
    To be specific I have my iTunes songs stored in the Music folder under my account (the standard way), but would like my kids being able to access my songs without being able to modify or delete any files. If I would copy my songs to the Public Folder, they would be able to modify or accidentally delete my songs - which I would like to avoid.
    Any ideas welcome - but reading some of the articles in this forum I am not very optimistic that this is possible.

  • Sharing Itunes between user accounts

    Hi all,
    I just came back to the mac and set up user accounts for myself and my wife. She tends to do most of the photo editing and I do most of the music stuff on itunes. I heard that I can set it up so that she is actually using my itunes or library even though she is on her login in. And we could do the same with the iphoto in reverse so that if I download photos it goes into the iphoto on her login. We would like to avoid having some music and pictures separated by the different logins. So my question is, is this the best way to set things up in our situation and how do I actually do it? Are there any hiccups when I sync with my iphone and she syncs with her itouch? Thanks for you help.

    I've been trying to do this same thing. My wife and I share one computer and she has her own login account to check email etc. I moved all the music, movies, videos to the shared folder. We can now "share" that music without having two iTunes media libraries. However, I want to remedy the situation of adding music from different accounts, adding and deleting playlists. How do I have that type of library data automatically get updated from account to account? I've asked this question in it's own thread about a week ago and it got buried with no responses or solutions.

  • Sharing itunes between users on one computer

    Hi,
    How do you share one itunes library between multiple users on one mac? At the moment each user on our computer has their own library which has lead to a lot of music being duplicated. Is there any way to have this all in one library?!
    Many thanks

    Hi Simon,
    Any clues in this link?
    iTunes: How to share music between different accounts on a single computer
    Regards
    Colin R.

  • Sharing files between users and macs

    My husband and I share an iMac. I have a MBA for traveling and my husband a PC laptop (though he rarely uses for private stuff). We both have iPhones.
    We are looking for a way to:
    - Share our photos (we don't use iPhoto) and some files. We would like to have this in one shared folder, that we can access from both accounts in the iMac, the MBA and ideally (though not a must) the PC and iPhones. We would both need to have admin rights to edit documents, etc.
    - Have access to all the information in my account on the iMac from the MBA. Ideally, same thing for his and the PC.
    - Have access to all the data remotely when traveling.
    - Have all the data backed up locally (we already have a cloud backup, but we'd like to have a local backup too as it's easier and quicker to access)
    We have read a lot about configuration, NAS, time capsule... but we get more and more confused, as we are obviously no tech experts.
    Dropbox is not our preferred choice. We already have a cloud backup system. We'd rather have the files stored and accessed locally for everyday use.
    Using a NAS to store shared folders and backup the rest sounds good, but they either seem very complicated to set up, or they have mixed reviews in terms of stability, especially to access files remotely.
    Timecapsule seems easier and more straightforward, but I'm not sure it would solve the "sharing files between users and macs with admin rights"? It seems to be more focused on backing up the main drive and then providing access to the backed up files. (Though I might be completely mistaken!)
    We just can't manage to have one shared folder between both accounts in the iMac. We need to grant admin rights document by document. We don't manage to make it work automatically so we both have one folder to access with full rights for all the contents inside it. And this seems to me like something that should easily be done...?
    Any help, advice, proposals... would be greatly appreciated!!!

    Move any file you want to the other user to access to the Shared Folder. Anything you put in that folder is available to all users.
    The shared folder is here:
    Macintosh HD > Users > Shared

  • Can I transfer photos between users on same macbook?

    Can I transfer photos between users on same macbook? I've exported them out of iPhoto into a folder on desktop. Would like to move them into other User account on same laptop.

    I did figure this out eventually and am going to record it here so later, when i ultimately forget the twists and turns I took to make this happen, I'll be able to come back and see....For me it was not as simple as John (above) offered...First: Export photos from iPhoto into folder on desktop. Click on the folder and select from the top left corner File - Check info- click the box beside shared folder- scroll down to Sharing & Permission and make sure the other user acccount is added to who can read & write.
    If you haven't done this already go into System Preferences- Sharing- check the box beside File Sharing- click on File Sharing as well and 2 windows will appear- Shared Folders and Users. Select the shared folder you want to use and in the User window add the other user account to who can read & write.
    Next: Open Finder- select Public Folder- drag photo folder into it.
    Now log off and open your other User profile. Open Finder. Select Macintosh HD in the side bar- select Users Folder- select the original User profile you want your photos from- select Public Folder- your photo folder should be there, drag it onto your Desktop or directly into iPhoto. If a block occurs saying you aren't alllowed to see this folder then you missed a step in the whole file sharing business.
    Viola! it worked. Hope this helps someone else

  • Can't share iTunes between Users

    Trying to share iTunes between users on a Powebook 15" 1.6 Ghz running Leopard.
    I followed the instructions in this link:
    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1203?viewlocale=en_US
    As instructed I moved the administrators iTunes Music folder to the computer / Users / Shared folder.
    Then I changed the Preference in the admin's iTunes to choose the new location of the folder as instructed. (I chose the Shared folder as the location, not the iTunes Music folder itself)
    Then I got a dialog box asking if I wanted iTunes to organize the files and I clicked Yes.
    (then I rebooted iTunes)
    Then I looked in the Shared folder and was surprised to see that the Shared folder was full of lots of folders of artists names which contain music files. Also in there was the iTunes Music folder which contained a few folders of artists names.
    Is this correct? Should all the artist folders be inside the iTunes Music folder?
    Lastly the sharing does not seem to have worked. When I log in as one of the other (non admin) users, and change their iTunes Preferences to locate their ITunes Music folder as the computer Shared folder, then reboot iTunes, the music is NOT accessible to them. (no music showing in their library)
    In the link instructions it says to "follow the above steps for all users who want to share their music"
    Well, as mentioned I changed the non admin users iTunes Preferences to specify the new location inside the Shared folder
    but if I also try to follow the step of moving the non admin users iTunes Music folder to the computer Shared folder it asks me if I want to replace it - so I assume I should not duplicate this step.
    PHEW !!
    Also I noticed in the admins home folder there is also a Shared folder which seems to be a different one to the computer Shared folder. (this one contains other music files)
    PLEASE HELP
    thanks
    Pete
    London
    UK

    I am having a similar problem, but between macs and PCs. The PC (1 vista and 1XP) can share between themselves, and the mac can share between users, but neither PCs or mac sees the other. I have checked all sharing (itunes and systems prefs) and both indicate they are on but no one is connected. Both PC also have sharing turned on. By the way, this worked a week ago. I have not changed anything that would cause sharing to be affected.

  • Sharing folders/files between users on same imac Intel

    Hello,
    Hoping the Gods of OSX can help me. I'm a recent convert from PC to iMac Intel. My wife and I both use the imac so we set up two different users (both have admin priv). I was able to network the imac and our PC together and pull stuff off the PC onto the mac (music videos, documents).
    The Question:
    We want to be able to share alot of stuff between the two users. for instance, If I were to login then connect my Digital camera and import in iPhoto then fast switch to my wife's account I want to be able to see those photos that were just imported. What are the steps (if any) to make folders synced/shared.
    If anyone can help it would be appriciated.

    The easiest way is to put the files you wish to share between users in the Shared folder (this is the Shared folder located in the Users folder.) All files placed there can be accessed by all users.
    If you want to go a step further it's possible to set up multiple-user iTunes and iPhoto libraries:
    Share iPhoto Library with Multiple Users
    Share iTunes Library

  • File sharing between users on same macmini

    Hi.  I just set up different user accounts for my two kids.  My account has some files on it that I would like to transfer to their accounts (school stuff, photos).  How do I share files between users?

    Finder > help menu. Enter file sharing!
    "Sharing files with others who use your computer
    You can share files with others who use your computer by placing the files in the Public folder in your home folder. Anyone with an account on your computer can read or copy the items you put in your Public folder (except for your Drop Box folder, which only you can open).
    To share files using your Public folder:
    Copy the files you want to share into your Public folder, inside your home folder.
    To give a copy of a file directly to another person, copy it to their Drop Box folder (inside their Public folder), where only they can see it.
    Related Topics
    Sharing files with others using a drop box"

  • Sharing iTunes between wired and wireless Macs

    Hi,
    I have a Mac laptop connected wirelessly to an Airport Express -- which is wired to a desktop Mac Mini. I'm trying to share music but cannot. I've done all the proper settings in the iTunes preferences and the same in System Preferences -- I think -- on both computers, but on neither computer is anything showing in the Sources window. It says that there are no users online.
    Is there something in the System Preferences box that I'm missing? Should I turn the firewall off (I shouldn't need to, since I've checked the iTunes Sharing box)? Is the main problem here that you can't share music between a wired and wireless computer? (This would be a bit strange to me, but you never know.)
    One other thing. I was trying out the network and I can only get access to the wired Mini's Public folder as a Guest, not as a Registered User. Is there something very badly wrong here?
    Any suggestions welcome. Thanks.

    Thanks for the rapid response. All of those preferences, however, are already set properly (i.e., as you said) on both computers. When I try to go to the Network, I can access the wired desktop Mini's hard drive, but when I try to do it on the mini to get into the laptop's it can't find the afp. It just keeps searching but then says it doesn't exist. Not sure if this network-connectivity problem is relevant or not for this particular issue of iTunes sharing. Grateful for any advice.

  • Sharing libraries between user accounts question

    After many years of having one user account on our iMac, I have decided to segregate user accounts for me and my wife. I'm doing this because I have an iPhone and she is going to get one soon. When we sync our respective iPhones, we want to keep iCal and and Address book information unique to each user account. What I'm trying to figure out is how to share iPhoto and iTunes content between user accounts. I know there is a share preference that will allow the master libraries in these applications to be shared, but the photo albums and playlists created on the original user account are not "shared". Would it be possible to have playlists from iTunes and albums/events from iPhoto to be shared between user accounts? This would enable my wife to sync all her iPhone data from her user account. Thanks in advance.

    I have an idea that uses a different approach. I haven't done this for this purpose, so if you decide to try, please do it one step at a time so you can undo it. I'll explain it for iTunes.
    Instead of using the Sharing preference in iTunes, put the iTunes Music folder in a location that can be accessed from both accounts. You might use an external drive, or the <hard drive>/Users/Shared folder.
    iTunes should NOT be running. Go to /Users/<username>/Music/iTunes folder. In that folder is the iTunes Music folder. Copy this folder to a location on the external drive or to the Shared user folder. Rename the original iTunes Music folder another name, such as iTunes Music Old. Make an alias of the new iTunes Music folder (in the shared location) and put it in the user's iTunes folder (where iTunes Music Old now resides). Rename it "iTunes Music" if necessary (you are making the alias take the place of the actual iTunes Music folder). * It is very important that the name be exact.
    Start iTunes. All of your music and other media should be accessible as if the iTunes Music folder is where it used to be. To prove to yourself that the files are being accessed from the new shared location, do a Get Info on a couple of songs in iTunes. "Where" should show the file to be in the new location. To prove to yourself that you can add new content to the new location, download a free song from the iTunes Store (or a Podcast) or rip a CD. Then do a Get Info on the new item.
    Up to here, I'm confident it will work, because I have done it. The rest is "theory"...
    Copy the old user's /Users/<username>/Music/iTunes folder (except the now duplicated iTunes Music Old folder) to the shared location. You are only doing this step so that it will be available when you log in as the new user (your wife's account), which is the next step.
    Log out and log in to the new account.
    Copy everything in the old user's iTunes folder (that you just put in the shared location) to the new user user's /Users/<username>/Music/iTunes folder. Replace any duplicated items. You want the new user's iTunes folder to look exactly like the old user's iTunes folder (except for iTunes Music Old). Hopefully, that iTunes Music alias will connect to the actual iTunes Music folder at the shared location. Try it. Run iTunes as the new user. Hopefully, everything looks like the old user's iTunes. Do the tests like before to prove it.
    At this point, the two iTunes "looks" will start to diverge. But at least the starting point will be the same.
    If something does not work as expected, log in to the old user's account. With iTunes NOT running, go to /Users/<username>/Music/iTunes folder. Delete the iTunes Music alias. Rename the iTunes Music Old folder back to iTunes Music. Everything should be back to the way it was.
    If it works to your satisfaction, you can eventually delete that iTunes Music Old folder.
    I don't use iPhoto, but if iTunes works, you can do the equivalent steps for iPhoto.

  • How to share programs between users on same machine?

    I'm sure there is an easy answer to this and as a proud five year Apple user, I'm kinda embarrassed to ask. But now that I am sharing a computer with new fiance, I need to know!
    How can we share software between users on the same machine without downloading it under each user?

    The difficult question isn't sharing programs (which almost always are shared by default) but how to share data. In particular, music in iTunes, photos in iPhoto, videos in iMovie, they all resist sharing because those apps were not designed for it. In general, to share data you can use the "Shared" folder. Go to your home folder, and go up a level to Users, then select Shared. You might want to drag it to the places list on the left in the finder so you can get to it easily. You can put your iTunes and iPhoto libraries in Shared. To select the shared versions, hold down the Option key while launching iTunes or iPhoto. Video files can also be stored in Shared, however iMovie seems to be hard connected to an individuals Movie folder.

  • Moving iTunes between User Accounts on home Computer

    Hi all - I'd appreciate some advice please. When my son set up iTunes on our home XP computer he did so in his own user account. This cannot be accessed by my daughter in her user account or in the general family account. How do I move the base set up between user profiles on the same computer?
    Regards
    Phil

    My advice is to consolidate your son's library to a shared folder.
    Then everyone can access the music from their accounts, yet keep separate ratings & playcounts, etc.
    If you just move things around in windows, your son will either lose ratings & playcounts, or the paths to the music. Here is how to consolidate:
    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1364
    Here is some light reading
    Multiple users, use Method 1:http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1495
    Sharing files on same PC: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1203
    This is important so you don't get duplicates files and fill up your hard drive.

Maybe you are looking for