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Can't open old iTunes library (.itl) on Music - "does not appear to be a valid library"

Hi everyone,


This is my first post on Apple Support, I hope everyone is doing well! I know there are several topics about this issue but I can't seem to find one that's specific to me.


My iTunes library crashed in 2017 and while all my files and metadata were restored, they now all had the same Date Added.  I recently discovered the Previous iTunes Libraries folder in Music—>iTunes, which really pleased me as I could now browse my old iTunes library files (.itl) from 2011-2014, see when I added all my pre-2017 songs, and re-add them back into Music at their rightful date/time.

(I’ve been slowly doing this by going through my files and checking their Date Created info, though I have many mp3s that predate me getting a Mac so they just say December 31 1969)


I don’t need any files, I just want to see the Date Added info on all my songs.


When I open an iTunes library file on my MacBook (2015 MBP, still running Catalina cuz I’m scared to update lol) with the option+click method, but I just get a pop up that says “[file name] does not appear to be a valid library.  Please choose a different library”


I've tried manually renaming an .itl file to .musiclibrary but I still get the same message.


I’ve also tried this on another Mac running at least Monterey and had the same issue.  I’m trying to do this on another Mac because when I tried this on my own MacBook and reopened my current Music library, all my album artwork pre-2021 stopped showing (they’re visible when I go into Get Info, it just doesn’t show at the top next to the song title) and I don’t want to go through that again.


I really would appreciate any info that could help with my issue, thank you so much for reading!!

Posted on Apr 24, 2024 11:49 PM

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Apr 26, 2024 1:38 AM in response to javaliga

Thanks for responding! I went through the page but unfortunately I'm not sure it has to do with what I'm experiencing. It led me to also checking out these pages -

iTunes libraries will not open in Apple M… - Apple Community

https://forums.developer.apple.com/forums/thread/123706


which led me to try -

  • copying my library files into my Mac's Music folder
  • making copies of the library files and renaming the extensions from .itl to .musiclb and .musiclibrary
  • adding .itl to a 2011 file that didn't show an extension in their file name


I was able to (option+click) open an .itl file from 2019, which led Music to ask me to save it as a new Music Library. It was taking too long to load and I don't need to see my 2019 library so I stopped the process, but I was able to save it as a Music Library file.


It's clearer now that my issue is that I can't open .itl files that were created before iTunes became Music.

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Apr 26, 2024 3:31 AM in response to cowboycarter

Hi there,


While iTunes has generally been able to open any valid iTunes library (with or without the .itl extension) made by older versions of iTunes it seems Music really only likes those made in Mojave, or perhaps High Sierra. I've been able to update an older .itl using iTunes installed on Catalina via Retroactive, and the updated library could then be opened by Music. Monterey in particular seems to stall when converting .itl files (but may also happen with later builds of macOS). As a workaround I have been performing an ad hoc iTunes to Music update service via email exchange and have helped around 100 users so far. If you'd like me to try with yours you can find my email address in my profile.


tt2

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Apr 27, 2024 1:35 AM in response to turingtest2

Hi turningtest2, thanks for your response! I've never used Retroactive so I would really appreciate your help, as I feel like I've tried all the suggestions I've been able to find. I just sent you an email with the title of this thread as the subject, thank you so much!

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Can't open old iTunes library (.itl) on Music - "does not appear to be a valid library"

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