Storing iTunes music on an external HDD
What is the best way to go about storing my iTunes music on an external HDD but still be able to play them iTunes etc? I've tried over the last couple of days to fiddle around with this but ended up losing 1,200 of my near 4,000 songs!!!
Can someone perhaps write an idiot's guide to this for me?!
All help much appreciated!
Message was edited by: MarkySharky
Apple's already written the guide:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301748
Just had to refer to it myself when changing up to a bigger external hard drive. Follow the directions exactly and you should be fine.
Best of luck.
Similar Messages
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I have followed the Apple Support Section Article HT 4527 and have moved itunes media onto an external Hard Drive. The complete file is 103GB in size.
I have downloaded the latest itunes onto my new PC.
When I follow the article and try moving the itunes file onto the new PC, I am informed that there is insufficient space on my new PC.
In any case, like my old system, I want to leave my music on the external HDD and just have the music library displayed in itunes when I click on the "Music" folder.
How can I get itunes on the new computer to interogate my external HDD to just list the library and leave the music on the external HDD?you can do this by keeping the external hard drive connected and doing the following
-hold shift key down on computer while opening iTunes and a prompt will appear to choose a library
-select choose library, iTunes should bring up your explorer windows where you can search for the external HD
-after you find the external HD find the iTunes folder you just copied to it
-after opening the iTunes folder look for the file that says iTunes library.itl or if you can't see that extenstion just look for a document looking thing in the iTunes folder that shows up as a database file
-double click the database file and boom iTunes should load your library without having to copy it to the computer
PS: do make sure that if you are going to do it this way, make sure that the external HD is connected at all times, because if you don't then you will get exclamation marks next to your iTunes songs
double PS: if you are unsure how to find out if the iTunes library file is a database file just right click it and choose properties and under the type it should say database file
hope this helps:) -
Can I store the apps in my iTunes library on an external hdd but keep my music on my mac
can I store the apps in my iTunes library on an external hdd but keep my music on my mac?
thanksI don't know if this is me adding files to iTunes when the external wasn't connected
it is.
is it OK to just keep deleting that library on the Air?
i wouldn't - at least not until i
mount the external
point iTunes media folder location back to the external via preferences > advanced
consolidate my library via file > library > organize library
The ntfs hasn't seem to be causing any problems, but I've always wanted to know.
in order for your Mac to write to NTFS drives, it needs some help by installing e.g. the NTFS 3G driver. apparently that or something similar is installed on your Mac already. preferably, it would be formatted for Mac but then windows machines would need to have e.g. MacDrive installed to recognize the drive. -
tried to move the itune folder to an external hdd, (precisely as written above) but after "consolidating, happens nothing
That's because too many people confuse moving media folder with moving the library properly.
iTunes: How to move [or copy] your music [library] to a new computer [or another drive] - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4527 - a somewhat bewildering and not always easily understandable set of options.
Quick answer if you use iTunes' default preferences settings: Copy the entire iTunes folder (and in doing so all its subfolders and files) intact to the other drive. Open iTunes and immediately hold down the Option (alt) key (shift on Windows), then guide it to the new location of the iTunes Library.itl file in the moved iTunes folder.
For the record there's this reference for iTunes 11 but it really doesn't strike me as having the specifics you need. iTunes 11 for Mac: Move your library to another computer - http://support.apple.com/kb/PH12168 -
Using iTunes, MacBook and the external HDD.
Hi there, however much I love iTunes, I absolutely despize the lack of function when it comes to splitting the music library between my MacBook and an external HDD.
I have a rather large Library and it is a real issue when using a HDD limited MacBook.
Why is there no simple function to allow a user to pass data back and forth between these?
iMovie has a very simple and wonderfully easy to use 'drag n drop' function which allows a user to move video between any or multiple external HDD and the HDD on the MacBook.
When connected, the media on the HDD is available to use in iMovie. When it is not connected, only the media on the MacBooks HDD is available.
Would it be conceivable to adopt a similar system whereby iTunes would 'show' an external HDD and allow a user to drag and drop media straight over?
Now THAT would be amazing! Please, it is terribly limiting and self-defeating to have a portable device without being able to EASILY move ones media from a 'home' based large external HDD and the more versatile, smaller portable MacBook HDD.
iMovie does it, can you adapt iTunes to do the same?
Yours,click here and here for information.
also, peruse this user tip:
In iTunes 9.
iTunes prefs -> Advanced.
Set the iTunes media folder location to the external.
Then select the movie files (or any files in iTunes) and right click Consolidate.
This will copy only the movies to the external location.
After it finishes, iTunes prefs -> Advanced and set the iTunes media folder location back to the internal. This will tell iTunes to use the internal drive for new files.
You can then delete the movies from \Music\iTunes\ on the internal to free up space.
To copy a movie back to the internal, simply right click - Consolidate (since you pointed iTunes back to the internal).
just edit these instructions to meet your needs.
JGG -
ITunes Music on an External Hard Drive
Sometime ago I put, or as you will see, thought I'd put, all my itunes music on an external hard drive, I used the instructions as outlined on the Apple website, and it all SEEMED to work fine, except that when I choose "organise library" or as it used to be known "consolidate", itunes copies about 300 or so tracks and thats it, but I have over 10,000 songs, vids and podcasts. Also if I go into Spotlight/Finder, there are a lot of iTunes files on BOTH the external hard drive AND in the itunes folder on the INTERNAL hard drive, now I'm worried about copying one from the other in case I lose some stuff, any ideas?
apple-lovin-it wrote:
Sometime ago I put, or as you will see, thought I'd put, all my itunes music on an external hard drive, I used the instructions as outlined on the Apple website, and it all SEEMED to work fine, except that when I choose "organise library" or as it used to be known "consolidate", itunes copies about 300 or so tracks and thats it, but I have over 10,000 songs, vids and podcasts. Also if I go into Spotlight/Finder, there are a lot of iTunes files on BOTH the external hard drive AND in the itunes folder on the INTERNAL hard drive, now I'm worried about copying one from the other in case I lose some stuff, any ideas?
check if iTunes is pointed to the desired location in preferences > advanced like so -
I perviously transfered all my iTunes music to an external hard drive. But now when I connect the external hard drive and try to play a song, I get an error message saying that I need to "locate" my music. I don't how to find it on my external hard drive. Please help for I am not that computer savy and don't want to mess anything up.
Thanks!I called Apple Support and they walked me through it. They told me to basically copy and paste my music to the external hard drive. (I think.) Or maybe it was they had me transfer a folder to the EHD. I don't exactally remember it was a few years back. But I tried to plug in the EHD before starting and...nothing. Still says same thing, "locate file."
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How can I put part od the iTunes music library of iTunes music on an external drive in order to free up disk space?
see this
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4527
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1364
Peace, Clyde -
ITunes Library: Keep 2 external HDDs in sync with same music files
I am trying to run iTunes with 2 external HDDs, keeping in sync with each other. One large one for my desktop and a second portable one to take away from home when I need to travel. What is the best way to do this?
What I have done so far is changing the location of my media library via iTunes advanced preferences to the other ext HDD and then consolidating my library, but I noticed that it tries to re-copy the entire library or at least part of it so I end up with music files like:
Back in Black.mp3
Back in Black 1.mp3
I'm sure this has been thought of before and an obvious solution should be available, but I've never been able to find one, so I'd be really glad if someone could tell me how to do this!Jef Van der Voort wrote:
There are lots of sync and backup solutions but they always require the 2 hard drives being connected at the same time.
did you have a look @ ChronoSync ?
JGG -
How to manage music from an external hdd on iTunes?
Hello everyone.
I will try to keep it simple in order to be easy to understand...
I have my entire music on an External Drive: WD MY PASSPORT.
I found around here that, if I press OPTION while I move a music folder to itunes, it doesn't copy the music to the itunes folder which was great. Then I found that was an option on properties that allowed me to unable the "auto-copy" of the music I load on itunes to the itunes folder. So that was pretty useful.
BUT the problem I am facing now is the fact that, if my music files doesn't have the right information on them, they load in a disordered way on itunes and I can't modify their info from itunes because it is shown as blocked.
SO! how can I manage my music (manage = modify their info in order to arrange them in the right albums) without copying it to my mac??
I need to do this because, I still having a macbook pro with a 750gb hdd but I am looking foward to get an SSD, so I can't have it loaded with all my music
Thanks!!To import music into your iTunes library on the computer go to iTunes>Help>iTunes Help>Add items to iTunes and follow the instructions
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My partner and I travel a lot in our motor home and don't always have access to the cloud, otherwise I wouldn't really care. However, we have over 200 movies purchased, as well as television shows that we watch while on the road. A note: I do have all of my music on my iPod Classic, is there a way to transfer it from her to my external HDD?
I don't know if it was coincidence, but it all happened when I did the iTunes Match...
Any help would be much appreciated.
FredDownload previous purchases from the iTunes Store - Support - Apple
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Trying to setup a Belkin N750 between Mac & Win 7 to share Itunes Library on an external HDD
Hello all,
Please excuse my complicated question. I really cannot fathom out how to resolve this technological nightmare. I have a 50gb Itunes Library stored on an External HDD in MAC format (HFS+) I want to share this library with the Windows 7 Laptop, i have enable home sharing on both computers. Sadly the Windows laptop cannot see the itunes library.
I have a Belkin N750 wireless router which has a USB port and LAN connections on the back. I bought this on the understanding i could plug my HDD into the router and it could then be accessed by both Mac and P.C. Annoyingly the HDD cannot be seen by either laptop! I am assuming this is because of the file format??
Does anyone know of any way i can share my HDD to both Mac and P.C so the Itunes library can be shared and playlists can be made by each user?
Thanks in advance
Any ideas are welcome as it would stop me throwing the whole lot into the garden and going back to Vinyl and tape decks!
Ian
P.S: I also have access to my music library via iCloud, i have logged into iCloud on the windows laptop and the Itunes library can be seen but cannot be edited (Playlists added or deleted)
P.P.S: HDD has just died so i have the oppurtunity to buy a new HDD so can format it before adding Itunes Library back to the drive. (Just had to pay to get data back off dead HDD which will come back on DVD's so the assumption is to copy data onto new drive)
Again, thank you for reading and i hope someone has any bright ideas to help me.Hello,
The iTunes library is installed and added to my Mac with no issues. I just want to share the whole library with a Windows laptop.
As mentioned the 'Enable home sharing' does not seem to work. I am assuming it is the file format of the HDD which means the home sharing cannot be done on a Mac?
Thanks
Ian -
Restoring iTunes files from an external HDD?
I recently began receiving S.M.A.R.T. warnings of imminent failure from my hard drive, running XP SP3. I copied my Music folders and iTunes folders to an external drive just before my computer failed. Checked the external drive and everything was there...Audible books, iTunes Audiobooks, music (both purchased and ripped from CDs), TV series and quite a few movies. So I was feeling fairly confident that I had saved my extensive and expensive iTunes multimedia Library.
Purchased a new hard drive and installed Vista, SP1 64 bit Home Premium on two WD drives striped in RAID 0 without incident, installed iTunes and began the task of moving my collection from the external HDD back to my computer. I used the "Add Folder to Library" choice in iTunes as my preferences were set to manage my manually manage my downloads.
All went well and after quite awhile I had most of my collection moved into iTunes on the new hard drive. Then the rot set in. I disconnected and removed the external hard drive and settled down to play some music. Instead of music, I received an error message. An exclamation point appeared in front of the track I wanted to play and the message in a box said, "The song (title inserted) could not be used because the original file could not be found. Would you like to try to locate it?" I hit cancel and tried several other titles until it sunk in that while the titles appear in iTunes, they won't play. Also much of the information in "Get Info" is grayed out, however, the size and type of the file is displayed along with bit rate and sample rate, but no music will play.
Next, I reattached my external hard drive where I had stored the files before the hard drive failure and magically, every single song, book and movie played perfectly.
So...I need some help in how to move not only the titles but the content from the external drive to the new install of iTunes. First post, I hope I'm in the right forum. If not, please direct me there. Thanks and all the best, DaisyI did not rear all but the "add to library" is where the problem resides. You should have just copied your files to the hard drive (assuming this is the SOURCE you want itunes to point at) then use "add to library.
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Greetings,
I have a macbook pro purchased in 2009. I run the current Yosemite OS X on it, and have over 12, 000 iTunes music tunes stored on an external hard drive (Glyph 3TB). Recently iTunes does not load up on my computer. I've ran disk utility and repair, etc and it says everything is fine, however i can't seem to get iTunes to come up and play music. My questions:
what can i do to fix this?? Is my macbook pro too old that i need to seriously consider purchasing a new one?? If i purchase a new macbook pro, can i hook up the Glyph 3TB to the new one and have it play my music without problems/?
Thanks,
RichClick here and follow the instructions.
(37765) -
How do I move my iTunes Music to an external hard drive? Please help!
I bought an external hard drive and moved the iTunes Music folder from my local hard drive to the external hard drive and now the iTunes library appears empty. I moved all my music back into the local hard drive and the libarary is now full full of music again. How can I move all the files to the external drive and have iTunes retrieve the music from there?
Thanks!
PaulaThis article tells you the proper way to move your music:
iTunes: Moving your iTunes Music folder
After a successful move, always connect your external disk, before running iTunes.
Failing to do so will iTunes cause to reset the 'iTunes Music folder location'.
That means your next ripped CDs will be stored on your internal disk.
If that happens, just set the proper location again in the preferences.
Hope this helps.
M
17' iMac fp 800 MHz 768 MB RAM Mac OS X (10.4.6) Several ext. HD (backup and data)
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