- #Where is itunes music stored windows how to
- #Where is itunes music stored windows mac os
- #Where is itunes music stored windows tv
Tracks copied into the iTunes Media Folder effectively become “Managed” files iTunes will manage the location and naming of these files (subject to the “Keep organized” setting above). When you import new content with this option disabled, iTunes simply “references” the file from wherever you’re importing it, rather than making a copy of it in your iTunes Media folder. If this option is disabled, then files within the iTunes Media folder will be left with whatever name and sub-folder they were placed in when you first imported them, regardless of changes to the tag information within iTunes itself.Ĭopy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library determines whether files that you add to your library are automatically copied into the music folder, or left in their original location. With this option enabled, iTunes will move and rename files within the iTunes Media folder as necessary into sub-folders by media type, with music organized in an ARTIST\ALBUM subfolder structure and each file named by its track name from the iTunes library. Keep iTunes Media folder organized determines whether tracks in your iTunes Media folder are automatically organized based on the track information found within each file. Whether all of your content is located in this folder is going to depend upon the next two settings found on this screen: Remember that this only includes the media content and not the library database itself. The first option, “iTunes Media folder location” indicates where your iTunes media content is stored by default. The first step to this process is to review your storage settings under your iTunes Advanced preferences, which can be found by selecting Preferences from the Edit menu (Windows) or iTunes menu (Mac), and then selecting the Advanced tab: Now that you’re armed with a basic understanding of how iTunes stores its media content, and knowing that you cannot simply move files around and expect your iTunes library to be able to find these files, it’s important to look at how your library is currently setup in order to understand what your options are. Standby to Prepare to Move: Checking your Preferences By comparison, the iTunes Library Database is much smaller and is usually best left in its default location. Generally, when trying to optimize disk usage, the iTunes Media Folder is what most users will want to move, as it contains the bulk of your library. In iTunes 9 and later, these folders are now stored in the iTunes Media folder along with your other media content. Relocating your iTunes Music folder did not change the location of these items. These were stored in sub-folders relative to the iTunes database location, specifically in folders named “iPod Games” and “Mobile Applications,” respectively. Prior to iTunes 9, click-wheel iPod Games and iOS applications were a special case. Note that if you’ve upgraded an existing library from a version of iTunes prior to iTunes 9 this folder will still be called “iTunes Music” and organized the original way unless you’ve specifically asked iTunes to convert it to the new iTunes Media organization.
#Where is itunes music stored windows tv
In iTunes 9 this was renamed “iTunes Media” to acknowledge that more than just music gets stored here and the subfolder structure was also reorganized accordingly, with Music placed in a subfolder alongside other content types such as Movies, TV Shows and Podcasts. Note that prior to iTunes 9, this folder was called the “iTunes Music” folder although despite the name it still just about every other type of media content managed by iTunes as well. By default this is a sub-folder under the iTunes Library Database folder, but can be changed to any location you prefer via your iTunes Advanced Preferences.
The iTunes Media Folder contains your actual media content.
#Where is itunes music stored windows how to
How to change this path is discussed a bit later in this article.
This path cannot be changed in your iTunes preferences, and in fact could not be easily changed at all prior to iTunes 7.
#Where is itunes music stored windows mac os
By default this is stored under a sub-folder named “iTunes” in your personal “Music” folder (this is named “My Music” on Windows XP and simply “Music” on Windows Vista/7 and Mac OS X). This database itself is a file named “iTunes l” with several other supporting files stored alongside it.
The iTunes Library Database contains the actual index of your media content. iTunes: The Database versus the ContentĪnother important point to understand: There are really two components that we are concerned about in this process, and these are somewhat distinct from each other in terms of where and how they are stored. Fortunately, if you understand this and use iTunes and its related tools the way they were designed, you can ensure a smooth migration of your iTunes library to an external hard drive or even a completely new computer with minimal problems.