You can make a difference in the Apple Support Community!

When you sign up with your Apple Account, you can provide valuable feedback to other community members by upvoting helpful replies and User Tips.

📰 Newsroom Update

Billie Eilish is Apple Music’s Artist of the Year for 2024. Learn more >

Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

Moving Music Library to a new hard drive

The external hard drive that contains my Music Library is failing. I've purchased a new drive and am attempting to move the library to the new drive.


I am following the steps described on this page:

https://support.apple.com/guide/music/change-where-music-files-are-stored-mus69248042d/1.1/mac/11.0


I've attempted it at least 3 times, but it fails at the end. I select the new location in Preferences, exactly as defined in the article. It seems to function as it should during most of the "Consolidate your files in the Music folder" step. The files are copied to the new drive as they are supposed to do.


But at the end -- it fails to create a new Music Library.musiclibrary on the new drive.


So all of the song files are now on the new drive, but the Music Library.musiclibrary remains on the old drive. What am I missing?


I'm concerned that the old drive is going to fail completely and then I will be in a real mess.


I need help please.



Mac mini, macOS 11.6

Posted on Nov 3, 2021 4:44 PM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Nov 4, 2021 4:43 AM

Does it work if you:

  • Quit Music app
  • Copy the library in the new drive
  • Unmount the old drive
  • Relaunch Music app while holding the Option key – the app should ask you to pick up a library (on your new drive, in your case)

Similar questions

6 replies

Moving Music Library to a new hard drive

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.