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In Apple Music Cloud Library how to handle with "Removed" status

I recently subscribed to Apple Music and then turned on “Sync Library” in the Music app on my Mac. I have Sync Library turned ON on my iPhone but turned it OFF on my iPad. After the sync process was complete I have now have the various descriptions in the Cloud Status column such as Purchased, Uploaded, Matched, Apple Music, Duplicate, etc. which I understand.


However, I have a couple of hundred songs marked “Removed” in the Cloud Status column and I’m having a hard time understanding the significance of this. Apple resource Identify cloud status icons in your music library on your Mac or PC - Apple Support (IN) states: “You have multiple computers that have Sync Library turned on and a song was deleted from one of those computers. Songs that you delete from your music library are immediately removed from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, but stay on other associated computers until they're manually deleted.”


OK, but not terribly helpful in deciding what to do with these files. When I click on the status I get the option to “Delete Song”, “Keep Song”, “Add to Music Library”.


If I “Delete Song” what is it deleted from? The message panel says it has already been deleted from my cloud library. If I “Keep Song” apparently nothing changes. (OK).


Further to the curiosity is that these “Removed” songs all have a duplicate song marked as “Purchased”, *and*, have not been downloaded to the Mac. So here’s what happens: If I click on the “Removed” song and choose “Add to Library” I end up with just one song instead of two and it shows “Purchased”. But if I first download the (Undownloaded) Purchased song, and then choose “Add to Library” to the “Removed” song I end up with two songs, one of which is labeled “Duplicate”. Argh!


I would really appreciate it if someone has an explanation about the behavior of these “Removed” tracks as I am trying to decide whether I should do something with them, or just leave them alone. Although it seems like they are taking up additional memory on the Mac.


I have tried to research this on the Internet but the “Removed” status designation is ambiguous with other topics of Apple Music songs being removed, so I have found no useful information.


Thanks,

Marc



MacBook Pro Apple Silicon

Posted on Jul 16, 2022 2:11 PM

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Posted on Jul 18, 2022 8:10 AM

Hey there, Marc429.


Yes, if you add the song back to your music library (on a device with Sync Library enabled), it should sync to other devices that have Sync Library enabled for Apple Music.


As previously mentioned, if you delete a song that is "Removed," it would only be removed from your Mac, as it has already been removed elsewhere. If you wish to keep that song, you would want to keep it and/or add to Music Library to allow it to sync back to your other devices, like your iPhone. If the songs were purchased from iTunes, you could always download those again as seen here:


"Redownload music from the iTunes Store in the Apple Music app on your Mac

Before you can redownload music that you purchased from the iTunes Store, you need to authorize your Mac using your Apple ID.

  1. Open the Apple Music app.
  2. From the menu bar at the top of your screen, choose Account > Purchased. If you use Family Sharing, you'll see Family Purchases instead of Purchased.
  3. Find the music that you want to redownload. If you use Family Sharing, choose a family member next to Purchased to see their purchases.
  4. Click the download button Download button next to a song or album.

 Don't see the music that you purchased?"


Those steps are from this article: Redownload music - Apple Support


We hope that helps.


Take care.

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Jul 18, 2022 8:10 AM in response to Marc429

Hey there, Marc429.


Yes, if you add the song back to your music library (on a device with Sync Library enabled), it should sync to other devices that have Sync Library enabled for Apple Music.


As previously mentioned, if you delete a song that is "Removed," it would only be removed from your Mac, as it has already been removed elsewhere. If you wish to keep that song, you would want to keep it and/or add to Music Library to allow it to sync back to your other devices, like your iPhone. If the songs were purchased from iTunes, you could always download those again as seen here:


"Redownload music from the iTunes Store in the Apple Music app on your Mac

Before you can redownload music that you purchased from the iTunes Store, you need to authorize your Mac using your Apple ID.

  1. Open the Apple Music app.
  2. From the menu bar at the top of your screen, choose Account > Purchased. If you use Family Sharing, you'll see Family Purchases instead of Purchased.
  3. Find the music that you want to redownload. If you use Family Sharing, choose a family member next to Purchased to see their purchases.
  4. Click the download button Download button next to a song or album.

 Don't see the music that you purchased?"


Those steps are from this article: Redownload music - Apple Support


We hope that helps.


Take care.

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Jul 17, 2022 11:37 AM in response to Marc429

Hi Marc429,


Is this issue occurring with songs that you originally purchased from iTunes before subscribing to Apple Music? If so, then it sounds like one is purchased from iTunes and one is the one from the Apple Music library which essentially makes it a duplicate due to the different versions of how they were originally acquired.


For your deletion question, you would be deleting it from the Mac itself.


Best regards

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Jul 18, 2022 7:52 AM in response to K_Wall44

K_Wall44,


Thank you for the reply.

Yes, all these songs were Purchased prior to turning on Apple Music with Cloud Sync.

I agree that when I "Delete" the "Removed" song it deletes that copy from the Mac. And also agree that it seems to be a duplicate of the Purchased song but I'm still unclear about what this means. The Apple description says "Removed" songs have been deleted from another one of my devices. So if I choose "Add to Cloud Music Library" is it putting that song back on the list for, say, my iPhone to be able to stream it? I am still looking for a detailed explanation of the "Removed" status category.

Thanks again,

Marc


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Jul 18, 2022 8:32 AM in response to Marc429

Your iCloud Music Library should include all of your unhidden purchases, along with any other tracks that are matched or uploaded. If you have local copies of purchases that show as removed then I would right-click and use Add to Library. As you noted;


So here’s what happens: If I click on the “Removed” song and choose “Add to Library” I end up with just one song instead of two and it shows “Purchased”. (Good outcome) But if I first download the (Undownloaded) Purchased song, and then choose “Add to Library” to the “Removed” song I end up with two songs, one of which is labeled “Duplicate”. Argh! (Bad outcome)


tt2

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In Apple Music Cloud Library how to handle with "Removed" status

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