my music is already on an external drive

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my music is already on an external drive

I already have my music on a 1T drive (LaCie), and switching over to using iTunes on my laptop as my desktop crashes all of the time. I cannot get iTunes on my laptop (MacBook Pro 2012, OSX 10.10.2) to build the library listings. I have specified the library on the external drive but am afraid to use the "Consolodate Library" function as I do not need to copy the files into a new iTunes folder. How do I get iTunes to rebuild a library listing on my laptop?

MacBook Pro, OS X Yosemite (10.10.2), iTunes

Posted on Aug 3, 2015 3:05 PM

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Answer 1

Niel

Level 10

727,163 points

Aug 3, 2015 3:07 PM in response to thomreddy

Move the entire iTunes library, not just the iTunes Media folder, to the external drive, launch iTunes with the Option key held down, and choose that library.

(131204)

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Answer 2

thomreddy Author

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Aug 3, 2015 5:08 PM in response to Niel

Thanks for your response! My whole library is already on the external drive, as I was previously using the drive with my desktop. I did try the Option-key relaunch and selected the folder on the drive, but nothing changed. If I select a music file and play it, it lists that song subsequently in the iTunes library (on the app). How can I get iTunes to list all of the media in my library so that I can play them via iTunes on this computer? (Note: my computers are not synched. My desktop is a 2007 iMac, and it crashes all of the time to the point that I don't even turn it on anymore, so I have never explored synching them up.)

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Answer 3

Niel

Level 10

727,163 points

Aug 3, 2015 5:21 PM in response to thomreddy

You need to choose that library from the Option-key dialog, not by changing the settings in the iTunes preferences.

(131206)

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Answer 4

Aug 4, 2015 7:34 AM in response to thomreddy

I'm making a guess here, but it sounds like maybe your iTunes music files are on the external drive, but the library database -- the master file that iTunes uses to keep track of everything -- is still on your desktop computer. (My own library is set up this way.)

Look on the computer for a document called iTunes Library.itl (or possibly just iTunes Library) in the folder Music > iTunes. If you find it, check the Date Modified info. If the date corresponds to when you were last using iTunes on the desktop computer, then this is your master library file.

Maybe an expert can provide more precise guidance on how to proceed here. My approach would be: Make sure everything is backed up. Quit iTunes. Move the iTunes Library.itl document from the desktop computer to the Music > iTunes folder on the laptop, replacing the version of this file that's currently there. Then I'd double-check to be sure the external drive is mounted, and start iTunes again. (If it still opens an empty or nearly-empty library, I'd start again with Option-click and select the newly-moved file.)

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