Sharing iTunes Library for multiple users on SAME PC at home.

I am running Windows XP. I want to get my wife a Shuffle for Christmas, and I'd like us to be able to share the same music library. Because of paranoia over what the kids can get to on the net (my oldest is 10) and because my wife keeps here files in a mess, we all have separate accounts on my home machine.
I turned on sharing in iTunes in my account, but none of my music library if visible when I launch iTunes in her account. Is there a way what I want to do?
Buck Surdu

The iTunes sharing is for sharing music between computers on a network.
To share music on a single PC, read this article
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=93195

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Sharing Itunes Library with multiple users on same computer

Several people in my house share the same laptop and we all have our own user id. I am the administrator. How do I set up itunes so that all of the music, the entire library, is accessible to all user id's when each person is logged in? I thought I had it figured out but whenever I download new music the others don't see it, only what was already there. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

Give this ago, This is what I am trying at the moment and is a bit experimental, I haven't Tested it yet with iPhone/iPad/iPods sync yet. (will do this soon and will report back)
1. BACK UP!!! (just in case) Copy your itunes folder normally found under (user - "username" - Music folder) to a usb drive or just copy it into the music folder. (in fact do a full system back up I'm guessing you haven't done it in a while)
2. Create the new user account if not already done so. (I am setting up my other users as a new users with no existing iTunes content.)
3. Move the itunes folder under (user - "username" - Music folder) into (user - shared)
4. Change the read/write access to the (user - shared - iTunes folder) Right click on the folder - +Get Info+ - Under Permissions allow all the users Read & Write, Click the cog and select apply to enclosed items.
5. Make an alias of the "iTunes folder" and move it back to your original itunes folder location +(user - "username" - Music folder)+
6. Remove alias from the name.
7. Start itunes check to make sure every thing is ok, play a few tracks.
Under iTunes preferences - Advance
make sure the itunes media folder location is (user - "shared" - iTunes - iTunes Media)
I also have Keep iTune media folder organized checked
& Copy files to iTunes Media folder checked. (When music, vids, or update Apps for my iPhone/iPod, it should now show up in the other user's account)
8. Close out of itunes User done.
9. Log into user 2's and go to (user - shared) folder Check to make sure this user has read & write permissions. Make an alias of the "iTunes folder" and move it to user 2's music folder +(user - "username" - Music folder)+
10. Start itunes check to make sure every thing is ok, play a few tracks.
Under iTunes preferences - Advance
make sure the itunes media folder location is (user - "shared" - iTunes - iTunes Media)
Make sure Keep iTune media folder organized & Copy files to iTunes Media folder are checked.
Log this user into the iTunes store if need (it shouldn't effect the the other users)
11. YOUR DONE, Unless you have more users, then just repeat steps 8, 9 ,10 (and 11 if needed)
Just note that only 1 user can access the Shared iTunes account at a time so close iTunes if you not using it.
Each user should be running off the same iTunes library now. Once you are happy with the set up and nothing has happened to your music then delete the back ups in step 1.
Hope this helps, Let me know how you get on?
I will let you know how I get on with 2 iPhones and 2 iTunes store accounts under each User syncing.
AND I cant see why this shouldn't work for iPhoto.
Message was edited by: Gmor

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 !

Use 1 itunes library for multiple user accounts

Is there a way to use 1 library for multi-user accounts on mac osx? I have 4 iphones and was previously using the main account only. I'm getting tired of having everyones contact lists downloaded into my main phone. I can't seem to figure out how to sync the music to the same library.

Hi There,
I sync 2 iphones with the same library, and to stop the other iphones contacts adding to mine I have two groups in the address book, one has my contacts in and the other my friends. I then just sync the appropriate address book in the info pane when the iphone is plugged in.
Hope this helps.

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.

How to share Itunes library with multiple users on same laptop

I have a macbook pro and am the administrator. I have a profile for my daughter as well. How can I share my itunes library with her without manually loading all the songs on her profile which would take up more memory. Can someone please send me a step by step guide as I am struggling with this. Thanks. Jasu UK.

Move the iTunes library to a location accessible by all accounts on the computer, such as /Users/Shared/ on a Mac, which can be done from the Advanced section of the iTunes preferences. Next, open her copy of iTunes, turn off the option to automatically copy songs to the iTunes Music folder from the same section of the preferences, and drag the folder into the open iTunes window.
(33546)

Sharing iTunes/iPhoto with multiple users on same iMac

Sorry if this has been asked and answered (if so, could you refer me to the post).
I am trying to set my machine up so that my wife and I have different user accounts but shared access to the same iTunes and iPhoto content. I managed to do this by placing the iPhoto library and the iTunes library in the shared folder and by applying admin read and write permissions to both folders.
The problem is that when I add new photos or music to iTunes or iPhoto whilst logged into my account, when my wife (also an admin on the mac) logs in she doesn't have automatic access to the new content unless I (or she) tediously go through each individual file giving her read and write access so that she can access them in her own account. The converse is also true for her adding new media and me not having access to it.
Is there a way this can be overcome?
Hopefully this makes sense to someone.
Thanks
James Munro

I typed "Share itunes" in the search bar next to "Support" and found:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1203
I typed "Share iphoto" in the search bar next to "Support" and found:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1198
Hopefully these articles will help.

Share iTunes library with multiple users of same computer

I have a new Vista Ultimate 32 computer and copied my existing iTunes library to the administrator acct in Vista. Now I want the family to use the user accts rather than the admin acct when on the computer. How can I get iTunes in a user acct to default to the library that exists in the admin acct?
I don't want to share w/other computers and I don't have a network. This is a single stand alone computer w/multiple accts.
I am stumped so any help will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
PC Windows Vista

THANK YOU! I've been trying to find info on how to do this through the 'help' option. GRRRRR!
So simple, but not at all intuitive.
Thanks again for your help!

Sharing ITunes Library with 3 users on same computer

I am having a hard time figuring out how to share the I-tunes library amongst different users on the same computer. I purchase the songs on one userid but my kids each have a separate login and would like to be able to listen to songs with whomever is logged in. I'm sure this is easy - I just can't figure it out today

See if this helps: iTunes: How to share music between different accounts on a single computer

Sharing library for multiple users on same computer

I have 2 non-administrator accounts and an administrator account on one Mac. (G5 running Tiger). I have tried various ways of sharing songs between all of these accounts. What I am trying to do is have the 3 accounts show the same songs when they open iTunes. I want to be able to add songs to any of the individual accounts, and have it show up in all 3. I do not want to make 3 copies of each song. I can't seem to get this to work. I had this working before I upgraded to itunes 9. Now no matter what I do, can't get it to work. Can someone let me know how I can set this up?

Use tweakUI, google on it to get it and install it.
More details are here or do a search discussions for "TweakUI" if you need more.
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=1175181&#1175181

Sharing itunes library with additonal user on same PC

My husband and I both have separate itunes accounts on the same PC and log on to Windows 7 as different users (I am the administrator).
How can we share our itunes libraries with each other? Home sharing only seems to work for more than 2 PCs!
Also, how do we switch between users and both be able to open itunes at the same time without one user having to log off?

I am afraid two users cannot have iTunes open at the same time.
As you say home sharing is designed to work between PCs on the same network, it does not work across accounts on one PC.
The way I share music is to have a single iTunes Music folder in the shared music folder.
Then you have the option of having a single library database in shared music which both accounts access or separate library databases in you own accounts accessing the same pool of music files but keeping counts, ratings and playlists separate.

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 I use one itunes account for multiple users and multiple devices

Can I use one itunes account for multiple users and multiple devices?

The iTunes EULA, as I understand it (I'm not an attorney )for Apps is basically that one person can use an App multiple devices, or multiple people can use an App one device..so one to many or many to one, but not many to many....

Sharing iTunes Library with two users on the same computer

I have all of my music stored on a external hard drive.
Both users on the same computer have the iTunes music location folder as the external hard drive. How do I see music added in one persons log-in? For example: I just purchased two albums under one log-in. The second log in can not see that music unless I manually add it.
Both Libraries point to the same file location.
I have over 40GB of music and I am looking for a way to manage my music files more effectively and I want to make sure that both log-ins have the same music.
I followed the instructions in article HT1203 from the apple support site.

lafdengine9 wrote:
Both users on the same computer have the iTunes music location folder as the external hard drive. How do I see music added in one persons log-in? For example: I just purchased two albums under one log-in. The second log in can not see that music unless I manually add it.
The reason you are having this issue is because you have a shared library but private databases. What you have on the external drive is the collection of media files (library) that each account is set up to access as the source for media. What you have not done is set up a shared iTunes database, so each user accesses the same library differently.
When each user opens iTunes, iTunes access the database on their account (~/Music/iTunes/iTunes Library). Therefore, their settings, views, playlists, etc., are private. When they add songs to their library only their database file is updated to reflect those additions; simply having files in the music folder does not mean that iTunes will recognize them, hence the reason iTunes asked you if you want to move the file to the trash when you delete it from your library.
The confusion here is the double use of the term library. The contents of you music folder most definitely constitutes your media library, as it is the collection of your media files. What you see as your library in iTunes is not your library but, for the most part, the content stored in a database table maintained by iTunes in the iTunes Library file in your iTunes folder. iTunes does not access your actual media files unless it is absolutely necessary. The general assumption is that what is shown in your iTunes “library” will actually mirror what is in your music folder.
So the missing step in your setup would be to switch to the account that has the most current iTunes library—that is the one reflects the actual contents of your music folder as of now—and follow this procedure.
1. Quit iTunes.
2. Move the iTunes folder to the Shared folder (./Users/Shared).
3. Launch iTunes, but immediately hold the option key to invoke the Choose Library window.
4. Select the database (iTunes Library file) now located in the shared folder.
5. If you do not see your content, go to iTunes’ preferences and reset the location of the music folder to the external drive.
6. In the other accounts, re-launch iTunes and change the library according to steps 3 and 4.
Now all users will have access to the same iTunes database as well as the shared library. The downside of this is that each user will have full access privileges. If you have iTunes 8, then to avoid the disadvantages that come with this type of set up, see [this thread|http://forums.macworld.com/thread/105366?tstart=0] over at Macworld.

Shared Photo & Music Libraries for Multiple Users on Same Machine

I've setup multiple users on a single machine and I'm trying to have a common shared folder for photos (w/ Adobe PSE) and music (w/ iTunes). First, on photos:
-Tried setting up a folder on /users/shared/pictures. How can I "share" the main folder and have permissions carry down to all subfolders and files?
-I've given the other user permission, but when logged on, Finder window only displays icon, not preview of image? In cover flow mode, image shows up, though?
-Is this the best approach or is /me/public the better way or /me/pictures (shared) a better way?
And then on music:
-recommendations on best approach to have a single library with multiple users and multiple iTunes accounts.
Thanks in advance

The iTunes sharing is for sharing music between computers on a network.
To share music on a single PC, read this article
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=93195

Sharing iTunes Library for multiple users on SAME PC at home.

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