Automatically add files to iTunes not processing mp4 files on Windows 8.1

Question

Level 1

0 points

Automatically add files to iTunes not processing mp4 files on Windows 8.1

I have iTunes 12.1.1.4 install on a Windows 8 (x64) system. I have been using iTunes for quite some time and my library is located at c:\Music. On earlier versions (version 10 of iTunes for example) I would drop an MP4 file into c:\Music\Automatically Add to iTunes" directory and iTunes would process this file and add to either the movies or TV Shows section.

I have not used this feature in some time but now have started to. Currently, if I place the mp4 in that directory, iTunes does not do anything with the video. I have gotten to using "Add Folder to Library" and iTunes will then process the directory. I do have "Keep iTunes Media folder organized" and "Copy Files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library" checked.

How can I get iTunes to recognize that a file has been placed in this directory and process it?

iPad Mini, iOS 8.1.3

Posted on Mar 5, 2015 9:08 AM

Reply

Answer 1

hhgttg27

Level 5

5,591 points

Mar 5, 2015 9:13 AM in response to Rusty.Stone

Two possibilities:

iTunes has processed the file but has categorized it as "Home Movies" rather than other video kinds - in this case you'll be able to find it under that heading in iTunes. Note that there's a bug in iTunes 12 where even if you then change the media kind - for example, to "TV Show" or "Movie" - it will be shown in the new category in the iTunes UI but the files will still be in the "Home Movies" folder under iTunes Media
If iTunes has not been able to process the file, you should find within a Not Added folder under Automatically Add to iTunes - the most likely cause of this is that the MP4 files are using a codec that is not compatible with iTunes.

Reply

Answer 2

Rusty.Stone Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 5, 2015 9:45 AM in response to hhgttg27

Thanks for the reply but both possibilities are not true in this case. iTunes appears to not even attempt to scan the folder. The mp4 files are not placed in either TV Show or Movie sections. The mp4 simply remains in the folder "Automatically Add to iTunes" indefinitely. The "Automatically Add to iTunes" directory is in the library folder so I believe it is in the correct location. In fact, iTunes actually allocated the directory during startup.

I have been manually processing these files by using the "file->Add Folder to Library" and selecting the "Automatically Add to iTunes" directory/folder. At that point the movies are moved into the "TV Show" directory and removed from the "Automatically Add to iTunes" directory.

Reply