How do I restore Music Library completely from Time Machine backup?

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Level 1

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How do I restore Music Library completely from Time Machine backup?

I have MacOS 11.1 with 650GB of music stored locally on my HD in the standard location. I use the Music app.

I decided to upload the Music folder to Dropbox. Immediately, I started getting the error:

After days of not completing the upload, I killed Dropbox. I had no idea the upload would influence anything on my drive. But now Music loads with zero content, all history and playlists are lost. The default location for content automatically changed to: /Macintosh HD/Users/arif/Dropbox/.dropbox.cache/Media

I have changed it back to the standard location, deleted the cache files, and even completely wiped it all out and restored the entire directory structure to the way it was prior to uploading to Dropbox, but the same behavior continues.

What files exist that I might need to delete in order to completely restore my Music Library to the way it was?

MacBook Pro 16″, macOS 11.1

Posted on Jan 5, 2021 10:22 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

turingtest2

Level 10

278,061 points

Jan 5, 2021 12:04 PM in response to Brewnote

Did you copy the Music folder into Dropbox, or move it? Given that macOS tries to remain connected to files that are moved or renamed you may need to option-start-Music to reconnect to the library. The usual location would be ~/Music/Music/Music Library.musiclibrary where ~ is your home folder.

tt2

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Answer 2

Brewnote Author

Level 1

8 points

Jan 5, 2021 12:20 PM in response to turingtest2

Thanks for your help. I believe I did accidentally move it instead of copying it, and I think I deleted the original folder when I killed the upload. That said, I completely restored the Music folder to a snapshot prior to the event.

I tried option-start on the 13MB Music Library file that existed prior to this issue. It immediately loads and replaces it with a 300KB file that contains no content or playlists. Why would this be happening?

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