iTunes Won't Auto-Locate Files on Time Capsule

[mccaffkm]

Ok, so I have a relatively new Macbook Pro 15" and an equally-new Time Capsule. I put all of my 4,500 songs onto the Time Capsule because I only listen to music and home and also because I wanted to save space on my hard drive. While this set up has worked up until now, I am beginning to experience some problems. Right now iTunes says that it cannot locate the file for any of my songs unless I manually show it where those files are on my Time Capsule. I am not worries about losing the files because they appear to be unaltered, however I wanted to know if there was a way to have iTunes automatically search through my music folder and fix the problem. I know there is a way to download all the music from my hard drive to my computer and then back to the hard drive to fix the problem, but I would really like to avoid having to dump all those files onto my pristine hard drive. Any suggestions? And I am sorry if this has been answered elsewhere, I just could not locate a thread with this EXACT problem. Thanks.

 

[GGJstudios]

If you point your iTunes media folder to the Time Capsule, then the only other thing you need to remember is to make sure the Time Capsule is connected before you launch iTunes, not after.

 

[mccaffkm]

I use the Time Capsule wirelessly, so in theory it should always be connected when I am home. I guess it could have gotten messed up if I accidentally opened iTunes when I was not home, but all the same, I do not how to correct the problem. I conceptually understand how it could happen, but have no clue how to fix it. Thanks anyways

 

[waw74]

replace the "iTunes media" folder* (or "iTunes Music" depending on what version you're running) with an alias to the folder where your music is truly stored.

I've had my library on a network share for a few years, and after i learned this trick, never had problems with the library not being able to be found.

*not the whole iTunes folder, just the folder that normally contains the music so "~/Music/iTunes/iTunes Media"

 

[mccaffkm]

Thanks, I will give that a shot. But before I do, what do you mean when you say replace the containing folder with an alias. The folder on my Time Capsule that contains the music is called "Music Database", so are you suggesting that I simply rename the 'iTunes Media' to 'Music Database' or are you talking about something much more involved? Thank you once again.

Wow! I had to admit that I was skeptical of your solution, being so simple, but by simply renaming the iTunes Media folder the problem was entirely resolved. I truly appreciate the heads up on this great tip. I will be sure to pass on the good advice when I inevitably come across someone with a similar affliction. Thanks.

 

[waw74]

not sure what you did, but what i was talking about

Make an alias to the folder that contains your music
*right click, and "make alias"
*place that alias in your music/iTunes folder.


optionally you can alt-command click the folder, and drag it to the music/iTunes folder.

rename the alias you just made "iTunes Media" or "iTunes Music" depending on what version you're using.