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User profile for user: jinet
jinet Author
User level: Level 1
46 points

Question about "Music Library.musiclibrary" file in Monterey

Is the file "music library.musiclibrary" still used in the latest Music app (Monterey version)?


I keep my music (songs/albums) elsewhere than in the default Music folder. I recently got a new MacBook and transferred manually the music plus some existing Music Library.musiclibrary files (I seem to have produced several over the past few years).


Today I imported my music files into the Music app. But I do not see any Music Library.musiclibrary file that has today's date. Isn't it automatically produced or updated whenever you do create a fresh library through this process?


My Music folder location is set to the location I want (not the default location). "Keep Music Media folder organized" is checked. But I see no .musiclibrary that shows today's date.


Thanks.



MacBook Pro 14″, macOS 12.1

Posted on Dec 21, 2021 8:33 PM

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User profile for user: Marco Klobas
Marco Klobas
User level: Level 6
8,255 points

Posted on Dec 22, 2021 12:52 AM

I keep my music library on an external drive as well and it's still named "Music Library.musiclibrary". Its date is updated every time I use Music app.


Check if during the transfer the Music app hasn't created a new library elsewhere.


You can select/switch a library during the Music app launch as described in this Apple's guide: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210230

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User profile for user: Marco Klobas
Marco Klobas
User level: Level 6
8,255 points

Dec 22, 2021 12:52 AM in response to jinet

I keep my music library on an external drive as well and it's still named "Music Library.musiclibrary". Its date is updated every time I use Music app.


Check if during the transfer the Music app hasn't created a new library elsewhere.


You can select/switch a library during the Music app launch as described in this Apple's guide: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210230

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User profile for user: jinet
jinet Author
User level: Level 1
46 points

Dec 22, 2021 8:56 AM in response to Marco Klobas

Thanks. Found it. Now, another two questions. I inadvertently clicked "Copy Files to Music Media Folder when adding..." which created a near-duplicate (not quite identical in the organization). That is, I noticed that the organization in that folder is different from the source folder; but the referenced files remain in the source folder. Can I safely delete the new Music Media Folder? It seems like needless duplication. On the other hand, it does make some interesting (rational) organizational improvements. (I assume because of what happens in the second question below, re: "Keep Music Media Folder organized".) But these seem to be purely cosmetic changes.


I suppose I could delete the source folder and keep the new Music Media folder as the new source. But, the music is referenced to the original, so that could mess things up entirely—unless I were to assign the new folder as the reference/source and reimport the music from scratch. Is there any (other) advantage to making the New Music Media folder as my new source/reference folder?


Second, I always have checked "Keep Music Media Folder organized". But if you don't copy music to that folder, this would appear to have no functionality. Is that the case?


Thanks.


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User profile for user: Marco Klobas
Marco Klobas
User level: Level 6
8,255 points

Dec 22, 2021 9:41 AM in response to jinet

The "Copy files to Music Media folder when adding to library" should affect only newly imported songs (either by dragging them into Music app or through CD ripping).


The "Keep Music Media folder organized" option automatically organizes song files in subfolder structures as you have noticed.


Now, it seems that you have indeed duplicate Media folders.


Try to select an old imported song and see where it's located (right click -> Show in Finder). Repeat it with the newest song imported. Just to have a real evidence of where is Music app picking songs: both should be placed in the same main Media folder.


You can rename the main (parent) folder where you think it's contained the duplicate copy of your library to test if Music app is still making use of it. After renaming it the path changes so Music app shouldn't be able to reach the enclosed files.


As far as I remember, when the Media folder is changed, Music app should copy everything in the new destination: a process that is noticeable by the user, especially if the library is quite populated (not tiny small).


If you aren't sure how/where is Music app currently picking the song files, you could consider to choose again a new (third) destination making sure that Music app copies and organizes everything in the new Media folder and then delete the current two copies.

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Question about "Music Library.musiclibrary" file in Monterey

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