nakcheese
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Q: Can I save my iTunes playlists when transferring to a new computer?

I have an early 2009 MacBook running OS X 10.5.8. A vintage machine. I'm upgrading to a new MacBook Pro soon, so I know I'll have to move my iTunes Library from iTunes 10 (my current version) to the new version. This means I'll lose my super-carefully curated playlists, and this makes me sad.

 

So, I want to preserve my playlists when I transfer my iTunes library.

 

Ideally, I'd love to save each playlist as an album and then have those in my iTunes library as albums. The only way I can think to do this is to burn them onto CDs and then re-import these CDs into my iTunes. That's wasteful and WAY too much work.

 

I've heard about saving playlists as XML files and then importing them into another library. Can I do that with my own iTunes library - for example, can I save a playlist as an XML file in a different folder, transfer my iTunes Library to the new computer, and then import the XML files into the new library?

 

What's my solution here? Is there any way to preserve these playlists on the new machine?

 

Thank you!

MacBook, Mac OS X (10.5.8)

Posted on Dec 12, 2015 5:06 PM

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nakcheese

Q: Can I save my iTunes playlists when transferring to a new computer?

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  • by roaminggnome,

    roaminggnome roaminggnome Dec 12, 2015 5:35 PM in response to nakcheese
    Level 10 (97,316 points)
    Dec 12, 2015 5:35 PM in response to nakcheese

    Why would you use your playlists?

     

    I have never lost anything moving to a new computer.

     

    Just migrate everything to the new machine 

  • by Chris CA,

    Chris CA Chris CA Dec 12, 2015 6:12 PM in response to nakcheese
    Level 9 (79,636 points)
    iPhone
    Dec 12, 2015 6:12 PM in response to nakcheese

    As suggested, just migrate to at the new computer.

    All your data will be there.

     

    See this -> Move your content to a new Mac - Apple Support

  • by Kenichi Watanabe,

    Kenichi Watanabe Kenichi Watanabe Dec 12, 2015 6:14 PM in response to nakcheese
    Level 8 (39,573 points)
    Mac OS X
    Dec 12, 2015 6:14 PM in response to nakcheese

    Of course...  You can preserve "everything."  The solution is to move your complete iTunes library from your old Mac to your new Mac.  iTunes should not have a problem with your old iTunes being an older version, because the library will get updated when you use it with newer iTunes.  Since you are moving your complete iTunes library, all of your content and supporting data will be there.

     

    You may be able to use the Migration tool to do this, but since your OS X is several releases older than current, you may want to do it manually. You are basically taking the iTunes folder (in the user account Music folder) on the old Mac, copying it to an external drive, and replacing the equivalent iTunes folder on the new Mac (iTunes should not be running when you do this).  After that, when you run iTunes on the new Mac, it uses your iTunes folder from the old Mac, and it looks like iTunes running on your old Mac (with all the content and supporting data such as playlists, play count, ratings...).  This document has the detailed procedure; keep in mind the short summary I gave above when you read it.

     

    How to move your iTunes library to a new computer - Apple Support

     

    NOTE:  If you know how to set up File Sharing between two Macs, you can do the transfer that way instead of using an external drive.

     

    If you do not keep your iTunes Media folder at the default location (in that same iTunes folder), please post back.  Depending on where your media files are located, the move may be simpler (or more complicated).