Using external HD to hold iTunes Library
OK My iTunes Library is about 55GB in size and I would like to host it on an external drive to ease space restriction on my Macbook Pro. Can this be done and how do I go about it? I've looked but I don't recognize anything to do this.
You can just drag the entire iTunes folder (the entire folder, not just the iTunes Music folder) to your desired location. Then hold down the the Option key in Mac OS X while launching iTunes. You'll be given a dialog box where you can select the iTunes library you want to use. Navigate to and select the iTunes folder in it's new location.
Don't delete the tracks from the old location until you've confirmed that they're working correctly from the external drive. And don't launch iTunes unless the external drive is connected and mounted or iTunes will automatically default back to the internal location in which case you'll have to perform the Option key switch again.
Forum Tip: Since you're new here, you've probably not discovered the Search feature available on every Discussions page, but next time, it might save you time (and everyone else from having to answer the same question multiple times) if you search a couple of ways for a topic, both in the relevant forums, in the User Tips Library and in the Apple Knowledge Base before you post a question.
Regards.
Similar Messages
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How to use external hard drive as itunes library
Just bought a new external hard drive (passport) for mac and would like to know how to use it as my itunes library? thanks
Drag it there from the Music item of the Finder's sidebar, launch iTunes with the Option key held down, click on Choose Library, and navigate to that instance of the library.
(81903) -
How Do I use my External Drive for my iTunes Library without adding anything to my Mac's HD?
I have a new MBP and have transferred all of my music off my old pc (250+ gigs) to a Lacie 1TB thunderbolt external drive. How do I use the external as my primary itunes library with out using any of my Mac's HD? I'm new to mac so I have a few more questions...
1. The initial question above
2. will this work or will there be extra steps every time I disconnect and connect the external (other than ejecting)?
3. Will I be able to access it remotely / home sharing?
4. Would this work with itunes match?
Thanks All !!!DevonC wrote:
I haven't set up Time Machine yet because it wants me to completely format my external hard drive, and it seems to want to use it for TM backups exclusively?
However, I would also like to use it to store stuff that I don't want to keep on my computer, eg tons of photos, videos, stuff from my sister's computer, etc.
Is there a way to do Time Machine but also use the external hard drive for storage? I don't mind temporarily copying the photos etc that are on there to my computer while I format, so that's not the issue. I just don't want my EHD rendered completely useless to everything else.
Thanks!!!
There are several ways to do exactly this.
If you partition the external drive, you can use one partition for TM and the other for anything else.
Even if you do not partition the drive, you can safely store other data in folders on the drive. Just to not use the folder that TM creates for anything. And it's best not to put files directly on the drive, in my opinion, but use folders for storage.
Just remember that whatever you put on the drive takes up room from TM and when the drive gets nearly full, TM will start automatically deleting older files from it's own folder.
I have my Tiger clone on my external TM drive in a separate partition and everything works fine. -
What is the Best External HD for Massive iTunes Library?
Hello,
I recently lost my entire 140 GB iTunes library (along with hours of raw and edited video and audio recordings) when my cheap Iomega 500GB decided to start making a ticking noise and crap out on me. I had my library backed up through iTunes on 9 DVDs a year ago, but i still lost everything I had accumulated over the past year and a half.
I am looking for the best external HD with the fastest transfer rate (USB/Firewire 400). My top priority is reliability and I need my data to be secure and safe, not necessarily disaster proof like ioSafe drives, although I would like it to be able to take a simple fall in case something were to happen while moving it. I just don't want to have to go through this again.
I have also heard about making my own external HD but am clueless about the process. Might this be a better option?
I am also entertaining the thought of buying an Acer One 160GB to use strictly for my iTunes Music (no video) since I would like to make my library more portable. I read an article about moding one to run Leopard, but the directions were a bit over my head. I guess I could put up with Windows (EEEK!) just for iTUnes Music purposes. Help!!!
I have a Macbook 2GHz Intel Core Duo and 2 GB DDR2 SDRAM and use an 8GB iPod Touch. (if this makes a difference)i know this isn't exactly what you are looking for but it REALLY works for me & covers a few ( if not all..) of your requisites.
i have 2 WD 2Tb My Book external drives for my iTunes library : one is the library , the other is the back up & is usually disconnected just in case....
then i have the very same set-up for video/movies. the whole shebang connected through Logitech USB powered hubs & i NEVER have any hiccups during music/video playback. then my iMac is connected via an external USB sound card - M-Audio.. - to my stereo & via mini-DVI to HDMI to my plasma display. how well does it work ? bloody amazing, i'm done with DVD players & CD players.
although it has faster data transfer rates, i think you don't REALLY need to go FW- a lot more expensive drives... - & if 2Tb drives are a little too much , check out WD range, they do have smaller drives although i have found that the 1Tb drives have the best capacity/price/performance ratio, at least here in Portugal
maybe you could set up something static at home with a beefier ( capacity wise..) drive & then have a smaller , both capacity & size wise to go on the move ?
best wishes -
How do I use a song in my iTunes library to record with in garage band on my iPhone?
How do I use a song in my iTunes library to record with in garage band on my iPhone? Like music from my library I want to use invGarageBand to record over.
Short answer:
Click Hide Song(s), it is what you wanted to do...
Long answer:
iTunes in the Cloud is a feature of your iTunes store account that allows you to redownload or stream your past purchases. When you delete a purchased track that is downloaded to your computer (like the first one shown here) you are asked if you also want to hide the song from iCloud. This would remove it from the computer and also stop it showing up with the iCloud symbol as the other tracks from that album (which are not downloaded) do.
If a track shows with the cloud symbol you can play (stream) it by double-clicking the title, or click the cloud symbol to download a local copy to your library. If you try to delete one of these tracks you get a slightly different message confirming that you want to hide the track. Clicking hide will remove the listing from the library and any other device that shows your past purchases.
Should you want to retrieve any item hidden in this way at a later date use Store > View My Account > iTunes in the Cloud > Hidden Purchases > Manage.
To hide all your previous purchases that are not downloaded to your computer use Edit > Preferences > Store and untick Show iTunes in the Cloud purchases.
tt2 -
I have an existing mini mac and 4 tb external drive.
My iTunes library exists on the external drive under /itunes...
I have purchased a new mini mac and I want to leave the library where it is on the external drive but move to new mini mac and have it show as it did on the old mini mac..
what do i need to do ?
I have found multitude of articles about moving itunes to external drive or other similar things but I don't want to move itunes from the external drive, just change mini mac machines and have everything in itunes the same..
ThanksI had already tried that one and got this...
below is screen shot of what is on the new mac mini
and what is on the external drive now connected to the new mac mini..
There are no media files on the mac mini just the library files and on external just media files..
Do I need to copy anything over from the old mac mini ? xml files ? .. the itunes folder on old mini is about 840mb in size which looks to have artwork ect ? .. I am fairly computer literate, but this one has me stumped.. ?
thanks for help -
how can i move a vlc movie held on my external drive onto my itunes library (so i can then load it onto my ipad to watch?
That is the only logical conclusion. There is an easy solution. On the Mac app store download a free app called smartconverter. It is free. You just drag and drop file into app and it will convert to any file u want. I hope that foxes your issue
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I have an iMac and I am running out of disc space. I am considering an external drive to house my iTunes library. If I buy a second drive to operate as a back up will time machine back up the disc on the IMac and the external drive with the iTunes library?
If you have a considerable photograph and/or movie collection you may want to consider off loading those to the EHD too. Here are Apple's article showing how handle iTunes & iPhoto libraries.
iTunes: library on EHD
iPhoto: How to move the Library to EHD
Roger -
How to use external hard drive and iTunes together?
how to use external hard drive and iTunes together?
Yes I did get to that part.... I went trough external to retrive itunes folder... When I selected the folder, it said that it was locked, choose another folder... I then went to my external again to my itunes folder and and used command I to see if folder was locked and it wasn't.... it was suggested on another forum to reboot.. which I did and still same problem... All I want to do is link my external hard drive that has my itunes playlist from another Mac to my new one.. and to also use the external as the main source for adding new songs to my playlist...
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Can I create a radio station using the music in my iTunes library?
I have iTunes 12 installed on my 2014 MacBook Pro and late-2008 aluminium unibody MacBook. My husband and I share the MacBook and he wants to access my iTunes library because his is empty.
A friend told me that the easiest way to do this in iTunes 12 is to create a radio station using my music in my iTunes library. My iTunes music folder is just over 35GB in size (if that's relevant). Almost all of the music (>95%) is from my CDs that I've copied into iTunes over the years.
I would be really grateful if someone could tell me how I go about doing this because I'm afraid that I haven't been able to find any instructions on just how I go about this.
Cheers
TriciaHere are other ways to share your library but it only works if you're both on the same network: Enable Home Sharing under iTunes/File Menu and read the iTunes Help entry for Home Sharing for additional info. It will allow up to 5 computers on your network to play and download items from your iTunes Library. Alternatively, you can enable "Share My Library On My Local Network" under iTunes Preferences which allows up to 5 computers to play any content in your library but without the ability to download them.
I assume you keep your iTunes Library synchronized on both computers. If you have it also on the MacBook, this Apple support document will explain how to share your iTunes Library with multiple users on the same computer. This is by far the easiest and always available without using the network. -
I have been trying to figure out if I can use the songs in my itunes library as ringtones but am having no luck. I downloaded an app that is supposed to make it possible but can't get that to work either. Does anyone know how to do this? Would appreciate any input. Thanks.
It is possible to create a ringtone with a designated 30 seconds or less section of a chosen song as long as the song or music was not purchased from the iTunes Store - or with music purchased from the iTunes Store that does not include DRM protection.
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Can i use a song from my itunes library as a ringtone?
can i use a song from my itunes library as a ring tone? If so, how do I do is?
Yes you can. Try this process. You have to do it in iTunes if you want to do it for free. Or there are a number of apps you can buy that will do it for you.
http://www.igeeksblog.com/how-to-create-custom-iphone-ringtones-in-itunes/ -
Hi Apple, Is there a way to move some of my less frequently used music out of my iTunes Library to free up some space on my full hard drive but with the option to re-add it later?
Hi Apple, Is there a way to move some of my less frequently used music out of my iTunes Library to free up some space on my full hard drive but with the option to re-add it later?
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Using old external hard drive as iTunes library on new macbook pro
Recently purchased new macbook pro with 256 GB of memory. I have an older external Passport for Mac hardrive with close to 1 TB of music. I would like to use this external hard drive as my itunes folder. I opened itunes on new computer, went to preferences - advanced and chose new location /Volumes/JP KAF/Itunes Media/Music and select OK but no music is available. How do I connect my external hard drive and direct my new computer to use it as my music library. I tried the starting itunes and holding Left shift key but that does not open an option of creating a library - Again, this is the newest macbook pro with retina screen. Please help.
No not do it changing preferences. That does as it says; it just relocates media, not the whole library which is more than media.
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. -
What are the steps to using an external HD to save itunes library for ipod?
I just got the new ipod(30GB) that plays videos,etc. I have the itunes/ipod installed to my IBM thinkpad, but I dont want to use all my internal space for downloading music. Is there a way to use an external hard drive that will recognize my ipod and allow me to update music(library) and save my space on my internal drive. I first tried to install the itunes software to my external HD and moved my library there, but then when I plug in my ipod, my computer wouldnt recognize the usb connection? What steps do I need to follow. Right now, Im back to my old way of downloading music to my internal hard drive. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!
For waht purposce?
For purchases go to Settings>iTunes and App Store and tap athe signed in ID and sign out and sign in with other ID
Note:
- Apps are locked to the account that purchased them.
- To update apps you have to sign into the account that purchased the apps. If you have apps that need updating purchased from more than one account you have to update them one at a time until the remaining apps were purchased from one account.
The ID is also used for
Settings>Messages>Send and Receive
Settings>FaceTime
Settings>GameCenter
and Settings>iCloud
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