Started iTunes without external drive where library is located

I accidentally started iTunes without my external hard drive turned on (where my library is).
(Now play lists, etc. are gone even if I option-start iTunes and select the external library.) Any way to go back to the way things were ten minutes ago?

The XML file is not required by iTunes but is there for other applications to examine. If this file only is corrupt you can safely delete it letting iTunes rebuild it on the next run. iTunes uses the *iTunes Library.itl* for it's database. If this file is corrupt iTunes may be able to rebuild it from a valild XML version, although some data such as ratings, playcounts etc. may be losts. In general it would be better to restore a recent backup. If you don't actively backup your library files you may still find a recent(ish) copy in the Previous iTunes Libraries folder.
If you elect to rebuild your library from scratch then you can leave the files in their current locations by making sure the option to *Copy files to the iTunes Music folder when adding to the library* is turned off.
tt2

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Cannot open itunes without external drive connected

Mac os x 10.7.3
I am having serious issues with iTunes.
I dont know what changed but now i can no longer open itunes. It crashes before it even launches it seems like.
this doesnt happen when i have my external drive (where my music is stored). I have changed my itunes media folder to one on the external. Everything worked fine for weeks before this point.
I cannot open it in safe mode
i have tried downloading itunes and installing but that doesnt seem to work. Do i need to full remove itunes?
I also cannot open quicktime player. it says it is damaged or incomplete and theres no actual quicktime icon for the application just one of the incomplete type (similar to the prohibted sign) symbol of icons. I have tried to reinstall quicktime via the optionals install on my snow leopard disk. but no change
here is the error log i get:
Process:         iTunes [1552]
Path:            /Applications/iTunes.app/Contents/MacOS/iTunes
Identifier:      com.apple.iTunes
Version:         10.6 (10.6)
Build Info:      iTunes-10604001~1
Code Type:       X86-64 (Native)
Parent Process: launchd [144]
Date/Time:       2012-03-24 20:03:25.940 -0700
OS Version:      Mac OS X 10.7.3 (11D50)
Report Version: 9
Interval Since Last Report:          52227 sec
Crashes Since Last Report:           33
Per-App Interval Since Last Report: 104514 sec
Per-App Crashes Since Last Report:   33
Anonymous UUID:                      698A0C30-4EF4-4DDD-BBCF-DB27A83CF81B
Crashed Thread: 0 Dispatch queue: com.apple.main-thread
Exception Type: EXC_BAD_ACCESS (SIGSEGV)
Exception Codes: KERN_INVALID_ADDRESS at 0x0000000110e8e194
VM Regions Near 0x110e8e194:
    MALLOC_LARGE           0000000110d6e000-0000000110d72000 [   16K] rw-/rwx SM=PRV
-->
    MALLOC_LARGE           0000000110eea000-0000000110f73000 [ 548K] rw-/rwx SM=PRV
Th

See Recover your iTunes library from your iPod or iOS device.
tt2

Where can I download the iTunes64.msi driver. I can't update my current Itunes without this driver.

Where can I download the iTunes64.msi driver. I can't update my current Itunes without this driver. I can't find it on Microsoft's website or Apple's website.

You can't download the individual .msi files, but they can be extracted from the setup.exe files if required.
For general advice see Troubleshooting issues with iTunes for Windows updates.
The steps in the second box are a guide to removing everything related to iTunes and then rebuilding it which is often a good starting point unless the symptoms indicate a more specific approach. Review the other boxes and the list of support documents further down the page in case one of them applies.
Your library should be unaffected by these steps but there is backup and recovery advice elsewhere in the user tip.
If you are running 64-bit Windows and the above steps haven't helped try installing the version of iTunes that can be downloaded from this support document. iTunes 12.1 for Windows (64-bit — for older video cards)
tt2

I have Elements 13 (I have the hard copy) installed on my iMac using Yosemite. I do all my iPhoto work on an external drive where I have copied my iPhoto Library, can I also install Elements 13 on my external harddrive or drag Elements 13 over from my iMa

I have Elements 13 (I have the hard copy) installed on my iMac using Yosemite. I do all my iPhoto work on an external drive where I have copied my iPhoto Library, can I also install Elements 13 on my external harddrive or drag Elements 13 over from my iMac so that I can do work with Elements 13 via the exteranl hard drive? Thanks tb

Yes you can store images on an external hard dive and have them referenced in Organizer. It’s best to export copies to separate folders/subfolders and that will ensure iPhoto does not get corrupted.
Alternatively you could continue to use iPhoto with the Elements Editor set up in the iPhoto prefs as your external editing app. Then there is no need to use Organizer and no need to duplicate your images.
You can then call up photos directly from iPhoto as normal with the additional option e.g.
Double-click on a thumbnail to edit in iPhoto editor.
Control (right) - click on a thumbnail to edit in the elements app.
http://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop-elements/kb/photoshop-elements-iphoto-mac-os.html

When my MyBook external drive (where I keep my music) is connected to my Mac, iTunes stops responding upon startup. I have to force quit iTunes, disconnect the iBook, restart iTunes and plug the iBook back in.

When my MyBook external drive (where I keep my music) is connected to my Mac, iTunes stops responding upon startup. I have to force quit iTunes, disconnect the iBook, restart iTunes and plug the iBook back in.

mattbeardall wrote:
Is there an option that someone knows about that would keep this from happening?
no, if iTunes can't find its drive/folder, it defaults to creating one within your Home directory's Music folder.
If anyone knows a way I send a product suggestions to apple please let me know, as I have a few that would like to suggest.
under the iTunes menu choose the Feedback menuItem.

If i move itune to external drive does time machine still have backup?

if i move itune to external drive does time machine still have backup?
I just moved my itunes off my macbook pro because it was taking up too much space and put it on an external hard drive. i have a second external hard drive that i use for time machine. when i update time machine next will my itunes files be removed from the backup since they are no longer on my internal hard drive (what time machine backs up?) basically, i want to make sure i have a second copy of my itunes besides the one on my first external hard drive and i was wondering if time machine will still have all of that data (on the second external hard drive).
i cant find this answer anywhere!!! thanks so much!!!

Check to see whether or not it's excluded in the Time Machine pane of System Preferences.
Items deleted from the hard drive won't be deleted from the backup until the backup location runs out of space.
(63157)

Adding Music when away from external Drive where Itunes Library is stored

I have a macbook and an Ipod 60gb. I have come across a slight frustration in Itunes. I have limited space on my internal drive and as such have my iTunes music stored on an external hard drive. I frequently am away from this drive when I import a cd into itunes. The problem, itunes switches where my library is stored from the external drive to the internal drive. Is there an option that someone knows about that would keep this from happening?
I have a suggestion for itunes, why not make an option to add music to a briefcase folder, and when connected to the external drive add it to the main library. This would allow for music to be imported to the computer and then be added to the main storage source when available.
If anyone knows a way I send a product suggestions to apple please let me know, as I have a few that would like to suggest.

mattbeardall wrote:
Is there an option that someone knows about that would keep this from happening?
no, if iTunes can't find its drive/folder, it defaults to creating one within your Home directory's Music folder.
If anyone knows a way I send a product suggestions to apple please let me know, as I have a few that would like to suggest.
under the iTunes menu choose the Feedback menuItem.

I accidentally unplugged an external drive where I keep my photos and got this: There was an error opening the database for the library "/Volumes/iTunes LaCie/Aperture Library 2.aplibrary".

My external drive accidently unplugged and I got this message: There was an error opening the database for the library “/Volumes/iTunes LaCie/Aperture Library 2.aplibrary”.
Can someone help? My external drive is called "iTunes LaCie"
THANKS!!
I already repaired the disk...

Open Aperture while holding down the option and command keys and run Repair Library

Problem using external drive as library for iTunes

I am using iTunes on a Mac, with a linked hard drive as the library for my music. Using the "add to library" feature, I am able to link the music on the external drive to iTunes (given the size of the library, I don't want it added to the Mac hard drive). This works perfectly until I need to reboot the Mac. After rebooting, all the songs in iTunes are displayed with an exclamation point and iTunes needs to be individually directed to their location. Basically, I am forced to add the entire library (and remove all the old songs) every time I reboot the Mac.
Is there a better solution to this? In addition to being inconvenient, it also causes me to lose all my old playlists, so I would like a more efficient solution to keeping the library after rebooting.

It sounds like the locations of your music files is not the same as the location identified within iTunes. In Preferences / Advanced, make sure "Keep iTunes music folder organized" is checked and verify that the location of your iTunes music folder is the same folder where your music files are located. If it isn't, you are going to want to change the location to the folder on your external HD and then consolidate your library. The next time you start iTunes, you won't have to re-add your music to your library as iTunes will be able to find it.
Click this link for clear direction on the necessary steps.

Recently got a new computer and installed itunes from external drive - all music shows up in the library, however when i click on a song i receive this message "the song could not be used because the original file could not be found". What do i do?

I recently got a new computer and installed itunes from which had been saved onto an external drive - all music shows up in the library, however when I click on a song I receive this message "the song "abc" could not be used because the original file could not be found". What can I do?

I was given the option to locate the file where the song is held. If so select "locate" and direct it to the folder / file where the song is and open it. itunes then will give you the option to use this process to update all of your library. OK that as this will do it automatically instead of doing them one by one. I hope this helps.
Martin

Was able to transfer itunes music from an external drive to a computer, but cannot listen to it without external drive being connected. There are "!" next to the transferred music.

Was able to transfer itunes music from external drive to computer, but they won't play. There are "!" marks next to all transferred songs and a message reads "Unable to locate songs". How do i get the transferred songs to play without having the external drive connected.

Select a single song with a broken link, press CTRL+I to Get Info, cancel when asked to locate the track and take a look at the Summary tab. Post back where iTunes is looking for the file. It begins file://localhost
Where is it really?
Please post back both paths so that I can make suggestions. Full paths please, exact spellings, you can replace your user name with <User> if needed.
tt2

Crashed external drive where iTunes was stored?'s

Had everything conolsodated on an external drive which crashed. I have it stored on another system so I can easily get a new drive and put it on there.
My questions are:
I have around 200gbs of music, the extensions or whatnot are on the iMac drive, but the bulk of the music itself was on the crashed drive.
I'd like to clean up the huge selection of songs when I copy to the new drive...
So say I copy half of it to the new drive...obviously all the extra extensions and whatnot will still be on the iTunes on iMac...Is there an easy way around this, meaning to get all the extra/old itunes extensions out of iTunes without wiping iTunes completely? Or will I have to manually delete all unwanted xtensions and so forth?
Also, maybe 100 sings were purchased through the iTunes Store (the rest was from years of CD collecting), those were on the crashed drive as well. I think I can, but want to double check...am I able to redownload those directly from the iTunes store? All software and such are up to date running Snow Leopard.
Walk me through it as best as you can.
Thanks for your help!

Your use of the word "extension" is really confusing me. An extension in iTunes is a small program that adds functionality to iTunes, perhaps an Applescript or something. Some people don't even have any. I am not sure what you really mean by extension. If you mean library files, there ideally should be only one, not many all over the Mac. Do you really mean library files, and if so, how many do you have?
Depending upon how you had iTunes set up, your library file will either have been on the old drive that crashed, or it may still be on your computer in your iTunes folder.
What are the iTunes library files? - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1660
More on iTunes library files and what they do - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITunes#Media_management
iTunes 9: Understanding iTunes Media Organization - http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3847
Image of iTunes folder structure Dec. 2011 - https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3547807
see also:
Image of folder structure and explanation of different iTunes versions (turingtest2 post) - https://discussions.apple.com/message/13025536
I believe you can selectively consolidate items if you highlight them and then select to consolidate to a new location.

Relocating Image Folders to External Drive where LR library resides...

I have 12,500 images on my main drive in my Pictures Folder (MAC), and the LR library/catalog file (also on my main drive) automatically looks to that folder when I open LR. But I just moved my LR Folder (library, etc.) from my main drive to an external drive. When I opened LR again and chose the library on the external drive, what shows up in FOLDERS down the left side is my PICTURES folder and all my RAW file folders from my main drive. I've already made a physical copy (by drag/drop) of each of those RAW folders onto the external drive, but how to I get LR to recognize/access those, and not the PICTURES folder on the main drive?
Thanks for your help,
Brenda

The easiest way is to "loose" the images and then "find" them again. You could remove the images from the drive so LR fails to locate the images, but it's easier just to rename to folder on the main drive that contains all your images.
Then start Lightroom. All your folders will be in red. Right click on the main folder and click "locate missing files" then point to the new location.
Gordon

How do I use Itunes from external drive as main sync for Iphone 4

I apologize if this is obvious but I have searched for quite awhile without finding result.
I currently have my iTunes synced to my Macbook Pro. I purchased a Macbook Air for ease in travel. I would like to move sync of my material on iTunes to my Air as I carry it more with me.
I was told at an Apple Store to purchase a Time Machine and an external hard drive. Both I purchased. I then read for a few hours how to move my itunes to the external drive. The only way I could finally get it to work was to physically connect a USB between the MacBook Pro and the External Drive. Once my Pro recognized the External Drive I dragged my Itunes and watched it copy all the data.
Unfortunately, when I am on the Air I cannot locate within Finder the External Drive. I do see my time Machine but cannot figure out how to get my itunes data from the external drive through the time machine.
You still with me?
So, can someone help me understand how to go the next step. As I understand from reading this forum I would then go into my Advanced Properties in Itunes (on the Air) and choose to relocate where the iTunes sync occurs. Then I can use my Air for syncing as it wont be dependent on the limited space and once I've changed the properties location for where to find my iTunes data I wont be dependent on the Pro.
PS: Yes I've downloaded all of the newest product software updates (iTunes, iPhone OS, Macs) as of the date this is posed 3/20/2011

try this:
hold the option key and launch iTunes. at the prompt, click on +choose library+ and select the iTunes folder you copied to the external.
obviously, the external holding your library must be mounted on your desktop for iTunes to find it.
if the drive is connected but doesn't show up on the Air's desktop, go finder > preferences > general and check if +external disks+ is check marked under +show these items on the desktop+.

Using iTunes on external drive with new computer

My mac died a few weeks ago but I had my iTunes library on an external drive.
Trying to point my new mac at this same external drive so that I can get iTunes running again but can't seem to make it work.
Is there any way around this without reimporting everything?

ldav wrote:
I had my iTunes library on an external drive.
what exactly do you have on the external ? the entire iTunes folder or just the iTunes music (or media) folder ?
Trying to point my new mac at this same external drive so that I can get iTunes running again but can't seem to make it work.
that tells iTunes where to put newly added content, not where the current content is.
JGG

Started iTunes without external drive where library is located

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