iTunes library via Airport Extreme stable?

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Level 1

10 points

iTunes library via Airport Extreme stable?

Do you have a stable connection running iTunes library on an external HD connected to an Airport Extreme? I see beach ball and disconnecting HD several times a day while playing iTunes.

My setup:

iTunes library on an external HD connected to an AE (5th generation)
Run iTunes.app on a MacBook on Wi-Fi
Play music files via AirPlay to an Apple TV

My problem: Several times a day the music would suddenly stop playing. I see beach ball. The HD still appears on the desktop. When I browse its directory, I see beach ball. After a few minutes I see an error message that the HD cannot be reached. HD disappears from desktop. Attempting to mount the HD will time out and fail. About about 5 minutes later, I will be able to mount the HD again and everything is back to normal. This happens several times a day.

No such problem when I connect the same HD directly to my MacBook, iTunes playback is rock solid all day long this way. Also, the rest of the router works perfectly, with Wi-Fi and internet still work through these HD time outs and disconnects. I have Console logs during these discone

MacBook Air (13-inch Mid 2012), OS X El Capitan (10.11.6)

Posted on Aug 25, 2017 3:04 PM

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Answer 1

Aug 26, 2017 7:00 PM in response to derekww

USB disk plugged into Airport Extreme is a pretty poor way to handle iTunes library.. sadly.

If this is self powered drive, I strongly recommend to use a powered hub.

Simple fact is the Gen5 AE is now 4+ years old and maybe more like 6 years. The external power supply will have issues handling the USB power demand for self powered.

Some drives are less reliable than others.. I tried to get a data base of suitable drives going but we did not get a lot of response..

USB drive compatibility with Airport Routers. Help make database.

I was very disappointed with my Touro drives that were fine on earlier AE but suffered similar situation to yours on later model.. it becomes obvious that some drives once they go into sleep mode will not wake up. If you can force the drive to never stop spinning then you might have more luck.

Console info on the Mac is near to useless.. as the issue is the extreme.

You need to invest some money and buy a real NAS.

Edit.. Bob beat me but his recommendation of a mini is also a good one. You can pick up a second hand mini now (buy 2012 model which has USB3 ports) for $200+ and will make a great media server.

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Answer 2

Bob Timmons

Level 10

185,024 points

Aug 26, 2017 5:25 PM in response to derekww

You are experiencing the same issues that a lot of other users have had when they have tried to do what you are trying to do. There are reasons for this:

1) The USB port on the AirPort Extreme is ancient and very slow USB 2.0.

2) The internal processor inside the AirPort Extreme further limits the speed of the USB port to about half of a USB 2.0 port on a computer.

3) The USB port is underpowered, so in most cases you will need to use a powered USB hub with the AirPort Extreme to keep up the voltage that the hard drive requires.

So, at best things are going to be very slow and disconnections will continue.

Possible solutions:

1) Add a Mac Mini to the network using a wired Ethernet connection, and place all of your media on that device, so in effect, this device becomes your media server for the network.

2) Add a true, dedicated media server to your network.....like Synology.

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Answer 3

derekww Author

Level 1

10 points

Aug 26, 2017 7:04 PM in response to derekww

Anyone using non-Apple routers with success? May be ones with USB3 and faster processor? I think some routers explicitly support Time Machine and/or iTunes?

I might try a USB powered hub to see if that helps. My drive with recurring disconnects is a self powered portable Seagate USB3 drive.

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Answer 4

Aug 27, 2017 2:29 PM in response to derekww

Certainly there are other brands of routers that do support Time Machine.

Nether (e.g. R7000 and above), Asus (RT-AC68U and above) models at the very least have instructions for setting up TM.. but do not expect straight forward or easy configurations. Apple uses a very specific disk format and seldom is this used on a 3rd party router.

iTunes not so much.. they will have media extensions but not for Apple. Expect Twonky and media like for TV.

My advice is still to invest the money in a NAS.. synology models still have better Mac compatibility than most. And iTunes server.

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