Stream music from iCloud or iCloud Drive

Question

Level 1

8 points

Stream music from iCloud or iCloud Drive

My iTunes music library includes albums purchased from iTunes, albums ripped from CDs, and (believe it or not) albums converted from vinyl. All of this music appears in my iTunes library on my computer, but only albums purchased from iTunes appear in the iTunes app on my phone for streaming in the car. I put a test album in my iCloud Drive, but I can't locate it in the iTunes app on the phone. I can see the album in other devices, like iPad, but only by opening Drive, iTunes can't find it. Or it's just that I can't figure out how to tell iTunes where it is.

Am I doing something wrong? Is there another way to accomplish the same objective? Can it be done? The library is too big to download, I would like it to be available to stream.

Windows, Windows 6

Posted on May 14, 2024 8:26 AM

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Answer 1

muguy

Level 9

76,969 points

May 14, 2024 1:54 PM in response to mgilberg

So long as your music is in Apple Music, there is nothing to do. You cannot link to files stored in iCloud. Your music, personal and purchased, is kept in your music library in Apple Music (or iTunes). If you have files elsewhere, import those into Apple Music App, they will then be matched to tracks in Apple Music Streaming Service and/or upload to your account in Apple Music.

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Answer 2

muguy

Level 9

76,969 points

May 14, 2024 8:29 AM in response to mgilberg

You can sync your library to your device, that's the only way to get your media installed. Connect your device to your computer and open Apple Music or iTunes to sync your library or albums.

If you subscribe to Apple Music or iTunes Match, then you can sync your library to the cloud for streaming on any device.

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Answer 3

mgilberg Author

Level 1

8 points

May 14, 2024 1:30 PM in response to muguy

Thanks for that quick response, but I'm not clear on what to do. I do subscribe to Apple Music, but I don't see how to link to the iCloud library from Apple Music, either. I don't find any option or setting in Apple Music that indicates linking to any external source. Can you provide more insight?

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Answer 4

mgilberg Author

Level 1

8 points

May 14, 2024 3:15 PM in response to muguy

I appreciate your patience, but you've said a few things I simply don't understand. Maybe I can give you a bit more info and you'll be able to fill in the blanks.

I have music on my computer that I've organized using iTunes. The music is from various sources, including some original material not elsewhere available. I can play any of the music on my computer. I also subscribe to Apple Music, the app is on my phone. I can stream tons of music using Apple Music on my phone. But when I go to Library in Apple Music it only shows the music I purchased directly from Apple, none of the other music, including original material, is available to stream on the phone.

What I'm trying to do is somehow let Apple Music have access to all the music on the library on the computer. I thought that if I synced the files to iCloud that Apple Music would be able to get to it. That seems to be wrong.

In your message you said "... so long as your music is in Apple Music..." and "... upload to your account in Apple Music." I do not understand what you mean by "my account in Apple Music." What am I missing?

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Answer 5

muguy

Level 9

76,969 points

May 15, 2024 6:58 PM in response to mgilberg

Your music in iTunes (Apple Music App) is what will match through Apple Music to be played on any device. If you music that you have purchased outside of the iTunes Store, those tracks will be digitally fingerprinted and matched to songs in the entire Apple Music catalog. If no match is found, the track itself is uploaded. You can see the current status by right-clicking on the column headers in the column view and adding iCloud Status. This will show you your music sync status.

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Answer 6

mgilberg Author

Level 1

8 points

May 16, 2024 6:04 AM in response to muguy

Thanks for staying with me. I spent some time with Apple support, and the agent suggested this setting in iTunes:

Edit > Preferences > General > iCloud Music Library

It worked. All of the music is now available in the Apple Music app on my phone.

I added iCloud Status to the column view and I found an interesting discrepancy in the file management. A handful of songs (about 50 out of about 10,000) are listed as in the cloud even though they are actually on the computer. The computer version is listed as an error, can't find media, even though it's in the same place it was yesterday. Otherwise the project was a success.

Thanks for your input!

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Answer 7

mgilberg Author

Level 1

8 points

May 15, 2024 7:28 AM in response to muguy

One more try. I searched on line for "upload to Apple Music," but all I find is how to upload my original material for others to purchase. I'm still in the dark. Any insight? Thanks again!

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