New PC - does match bring in your play counts?

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New PC - does match bring in your play counts?

Normally when I get a new PC I download iTunes and then copy my entire music folder library from the old PC over Ethernet to the new one. Works perfectly every time. However if we get a new machine I thought rather than doing that it might be easier to download iTunes and then sign in and enable iCloud music library. That way my entire match library should hopefully appear (I only subscribe to match not Apple Music) with the cloud icons next to them so I can download them that way. My question is, are my existing play counts stored/tracked in the cloud library so this will also appear on the new PC when I sign in. I am quite fastidious about my play count history and want it to be showing the same numbers as my old PC. Or does this info only exist in the library files stored locally on the PC? If the cloud doesn't have this info then I guess I will just have to do it the old traditional copy the whole folder over the network way.

cheers, Wayne

Posted on Feb 11, 2016 12:38 PM

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Answer 1

Feb 11, 2016 4:00 PM in response to Scottyboy99

Hi,

Yes but it would be more appropriate to copy your existing library and files as you have done in the past.

Jim

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Answer 2

Feb 11, 2016 6:28 PM in response to Scottyboy99

When iTunes Match started, the concept was for iCloud Music Library to be your primary computer's music library shared online, to allow your other computers and devices to access it. After iTunes 12, in the current implementation of iCloud Music Library, the concept is reversed. The iCloud Music Library is now considered primary. ALL computer's and devices associated with your iCloud Music Library are using the same music library, including supporting data such as play count. I have an older Mac connected to my TV. It does not have any song files stored locally, but it uses the same iCloud Music Library as my main Mac, which has a local copy of all songs. My iPod touch also uses the same iCloud Music Library. In effect, I don't have separate music libraries accessing iCloud anymore. My computers and devices are (equally) accessing the same iCloud Music Library.

However, iTunes is more than music. iCloud Music Library does not include movies, TV shows, podcasts, audiobooks, etc. And there are also items in a particular computer's music library that are not eligible for iCloud Music Library. For example, music videos, songs encoded at low kbps, the "booklets" that come with some purchased albums, etc. If you want your new (primary) computer to have everything in your iTunes library on the old computer, you should transfer the complete iTunes folder from one computer to the other computer, and THEN associated your new computer to your iCloud Music Library.

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