"This library contains no local media content"

[Sir Bobby]

I've always shared my Photos/iPhotos from my computer to the ATV so we can all enjoy them together on a bigger screen.
I haven't done it for a while and now when I wanted to, it doesn't work.
I can share other images but it doesn't work when I choose the Photos app in the "Share" part of the preferences.

I just get the message that there are no files?!
Tried to reboot everything etc. but nothing works.

Any ideas?

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

I don't think you share photos from the Photos app on a Mac to AppleTV. So assuming you see photos in the Photos app (if there are none there, there are none to share (yet) and you need to get them showing up in that app on the computer first)...

If you are using a fairly upgraded macOS, Photo sharing is managed in Preferences/Sharing/Media Sharing, checking a box called "Share photos with AppleTV" and then optionally clicking "Choose" button to select specific albums if you don't want to share access to ALL of them.

If you are using an older Mac or PC, iTunes manages photo sharing, under- I think I recall- File menu, Home Sharing with a submenu that says share photos or something like that. It also leads to a screen in iTunes where you can pick & choose specific albums or share all photos.

Then you access them on the AppleTV with the Computers app... not Photos app.

UNLESS...

...you want to do all this through iCloud (storage of photos) and then use the Photos app on AppleTV. So if your photos are all in iCloud, you open the Photos app on AppleTV and "connect to iCloud" and it should see whatever photos you have uploaded to iCloud.

Since photos/videos can hog a lot of space and I choose NOT to pay more for more than the free 5GB of iCloud, I much prefer the former option viewing them through the Photos tab in the Computers app on AppleTV.

Here's Apple's step-by-step for the non-cloud way using Computer App on AppleTV AND the iCloud way using the Photos app on AppleTV.

FYI: Computers App is also the one for a ripped music collection in iTunes or Music apps, ripped blu-ray/DVD & digitized home movies stored in iTunes or TV app, etc. too. It's a terrific way to make all of the home movies just as accessible as family photos.

 

[Sir Bobby]

I don't think you share photos from the Photos app on a Mac to AppleTV. So assuming you see photos in the Photos app (if there are none there, there are none to share (yet) and you need to get them showing up in that app on the computer first)...

If you are using a fairly upgraded macOS, Photo sharing is managed in Preferences/Sharing/Media Sharing, checking a box called "Share photos with AppleTV" and then optionally clicking "Choose" button to select specific albums if you don't want to share access to ALL of them.

If you are using an older Mac or PC, iTunes manages photo sharing, under- I think I recall- File menu, Home Sharing with a submenu that says share photos or something like that. It also leads to a screen in iTunes where you can pick & choose specific albums or share all photos.

Then you access them on the AppleTV with the Computers app... not Photos app.

I've done exactly this. But instead of choosing a specific album, I've chosen to share images from the app Photos.
But for some reason it doesn't find/show anything on the ATV. If I choose a folder with images it works.
So it has to do with the connection to the Photos app.

Found something here just now: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/250722873

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Again, I don't think Photos is the computer app to share photos with an AppleTV... except for photos stored in iCloud. If you upload some photos in "sharing" so sharing works between say your Mac and iDevices, those photos are in iCloud. If you then use Photos on AppleTV, it will have access to THOSE photos... and ONLY those photos.

However, if you want to have access to up to ALL of your photos and don't want to pay up to upload all of them to iCloud, the way to access them is the ways described in my prior post:

• if on macOS before about Catalina, this is all facilitated in iTunes, File (menu), Home Sharing, "Choose photos to share with AppleTV..." Here's what that looks like...

• if on macOS since about Catalina, that same functionality moved into Settings, Sharing, Media Sharing, check box for share photos with appletv and optionally, click "Choose..." to identify if you want to share ALL photos in your collection or only some albums. Here's what that looks like...

After clicking "Choose..." you get a screen with this at the top...

As you can see, I've selected to share "selected albums" instead of "All photos and albums", so below what you can see in that screen grab, I put check boxes next to albums I want to be available on AppleTV. If I instead chose "All", they would ALL be available on AppleTV.


NOW THIS IS KEY: Neither of these 2 options need iCloud at all. However, you access your photos on AppleTV through the orange-colored Computers app INSTEAD OF the Photos app.

Yes, it seems they SHOULD (also) be visible in the Photos app on AppleTV, but Computers is where they are accessible via either of the above options. AppleTV Photos app seems married solely to iCloud-stored photos.

 

[Sir Bobby]

Again, I don't think Photos is the computer app to share photos with an AppleTV... except for photos stored in iCloud. If you upload some photos in "sharing" so sharing works between say your Mac and iDevices, those photos are in iCloud. If you then use Photos on AppleTV, it will have access to THOSE photos... and ONLY those photos.

However, if you want to have access to up to ALL of your photos and don't want to pay up to upload all of them to iCloud, the way to access them is the ways described in my prior post:

• if on macOS before about Catalina, this is all facilitated in iTunes, File (menu), Home Sharing, "Choose photos to share with AppleTV..." Here's what that looks like...

View attachment 2016008​

• if on macOS since about Catalina, that same functionality moved into Settings, Sharing, Media Sharing, check box for share photos with appletv and optionally, click "Choose..." to identify if you want to share ALL photos in your collection or only some albums. Here's what that looks like...

View attachment 2015993


After clicking "Choose..." you get a screen with this at the top...

View attachment 2015995

As you can see, I've selected to share "selected albums" instead of "All photos and albums", so below what you can see in that screen grab, I put check boxes next to albums I want to be available on AppleTV. If I instead chose "All", they would ALL be available on AppleTV.


Now this is key: Neither of these 2 options need iCloud at all. However, you access your photos on AppleTV through the orange-colored Computers app INSTEAD OF the Photos app.

View attachment 2016013​

Yes, it seems they SHOULD (also) be visible in the Photos app on AppleTV, but Computers is where they are accessible via either of the above options. AppleTV Photos app seems married solely to iCloud-stored photos.

Thank you.
This is exactly what I've done. And this is supposed to share the images from the Photos app on my computer to the ATV.

When you choose "Photos" in the settings "Share photos from" (as shown in the picture), and then choose "Selected albums", do you see anything in the list then?

Mine is empty. Can't choose which album to show:

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Yes, set up exactly as your picture, all of the albums I have created in photos is listed in space below the search box... line items for each album with check boxes like this...

When you open Photos, do you have albums set up? These would appear in the left margin of Photos under a header called Albums... like this (I added the red outline around albums)...

If you have no Albums in Photos, I would expect that window to look like it does in your screen shot. If you DO have albums in your Computer, Photos app, that seems to be some bug.

If so, what happens when you select "All Photos and albums" instead of "Selected Albums"? Try that and then check the Computers app on AppleTV to see if it is offering you access to all of your photos. If so, the relationship between Photos and AppleTV is working through Sharing but Albums are not being "seen" so you can select only some albums.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Five more things if that doesn't work:

• on your computer, open the Photos app, Photos (menu), Preferences, General (tab). Is "Use as System Photo Library" (button) grayed out (which means it is selected) like this...

If it is not, click it to make this your system photo library. Then try the above again.​

​

I actually have a couple of individual libraries that I swap as needed: one for business photos, one huge photos library compiled by another member of the family that includes very distant relatives I don't even know and my main one. If the system was using one of the others as the "use as system photo library" and it doesn't have albums, it might look like all is right when I'm looking at my main photos library but the system is "thinking" the other is the one for sharing. If that one has no albums, it would look like your screen shot.​

• be sure BOTH Mac and AppleTV are on the SAME network. I've had plenty of "fun" with accidentally having one connected to one network and the other to another in the same house and pulling some hair out at all of the logical deducing steps I'm taking to try to resolve this kind of thing. If AppleTV is connected to- say- "guest" and Mac is connected to "main", I don't think home sharing works between them.
• be sure BOTH Mac and AppleTV are sharing the SAME AppleID.
• be sure the MUSIC app on the Mac is open.
• be sure home sharing is turned on on your AppleTV (see the link below)

Here's details straight from Apple: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202190

 

[Sir Bobby]

Five more things if that doesn't work:

• on your computer, open the Photos app, Photos (menu), Preferences, General (tab). Is "Use as System Photo Library" (button) grayed out (which means it is selected) like this...

View attachment 2016046​

If it is not, click it to make this your system photo library. Then try the above again.​

​

I actually have a couple of individual libraries that I swap as needed: one for business photos, one huge photos library compiled by another member of the family that includes very distant relatives I don't even know and my main one. If the system was using one of the others as the "use as system photo library" and it doesn't have albums, it might look like all is right when I'm looking at my main photos library but the system is "thinking" the other is the one for sharing. If that one has no albums, it would look like your screen shot.​

Did this and hoped that was it.
App crashed and now I can't open it :/

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Did this and hoped that was it.
App crashed and now I can't open it :/
View attachment 2016251

Did you reboot your Mac? If not, reboot and try opening Photos again.

If that doesn't work, here's some suggestions from Apple: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204967

The good news is that if the "system photo library" button wasn't grayed out, that explains why you were not seeing any photos on AppleTV in the Computers app... nor albums to select in the Sharing screen. With that virtual button pushed, the system should now know it is your photo library for sharing to AppleTV.

Once you are able to open Photos (app) again, all is likely to work as you wish. If not, check that button again to be sure it is grayed out. The crash might not have stored that click.

 

[Sir Bobby]

Five more things if that doesn't work:

• on your computer, open the Photos app, Photos (menu), Preferences, General (tab). Is "Use as System Photo Library" (button) grayed out (which means it is selected) like this...

View attachment 2016046​

If it is not, click it to make this your system photo library. Then try the above again.​

​

I actually have a couple of individual libraries that I swap as needed: one for business photos, one huge photos library compiled by another member of the family that includes very distant relatives I don't even know and my main one. If the system was using one of the others as the "use as system photo library" and it doesn't have albums, it might look like all is right when I'm looking at my main photos library but the system is "thinking" the other is the one for sharing. If that one has no albums, it would look like your screen shot.​

This did the trick!!! Thank you so much.
You're the only one having a solution after trying on several Mac-support-forums

Thank you again. Wish you a nice weekend!!

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Glad I could help. Enjoy that easy access to your photos.

AND, notice that the Computers app can also bring so much more to your AppleTV too. For example:

• Rip your DVDs/Blu Rays to have your movie collection on demand
• Digitize your home movies to have all of those on demand
• Rip your CD collection into Music to have your music collection on demand

And so on. Loaded up with the right assets, its one of the very best apps of all... the second most used app on my AppleTVs scattered throughout the house... right behind one that basically functions as my source of regular television called Channels. And it doesn't have to use a byte of "the cloud" so it doesn't have to cost anything to have easy access to all of that... even in unusual times when the Internet connection may be down.

 

[Sir Bobby]

I got a Synology NAS that I use for our home movies, but thank you for the tip!!

 

[SpecFoto]

....

AND, notice that the Computers app can also bring so much more to your AppleTV too. For example:

• Rip your DVDs/Blu Rays to have your movie collection on demand
• Digitize your home movies to have all of those on demand
• Rip your CD collection into Music to have your music collection on demand

@HobeSoundDarryl

I had been using iTunes (on Mojave) for watching my media on my iMac and with the Apple TV, but I recently upgraded and now with Monterey this is all kaput. I just use QTP to view on my 27" iMac the TV and Movie files that are stored in the iTunes Media folder while deciding how to proceed. I would like to be able to watch again on Apple TV (4K), but I read on MR that the new Movie/TV app reclassifies all your ripped movies to home movies and I don't want this (over 500 movies I have put movie data into) so using the Computers app might be the best way. Could you point me to a post of yours where you might give basic details on how to set this up?

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

I did not experience much of that ripped movie reclassification to "home movies" in the jump from iTunes to TV app but there was some. However, that's easily fixed. Within the TV app left navigation bar, go into the "home movies" tab. Select all of the ripped movies there that you want to show in the "Movies" tab instead. Control (Button), Right click on them, Get Info. It's going to ask if you are sure you want to edit information for multiple items. Click Edit Items (button).

In the window that opens, click "Options" tab, media kind, choose Movie and click OK. This will basically (re)tag the selected files as "Movie" files so they show in the Movies tab in the left nav bar. Basically this switches them from "Home Movie" default to "Movie." After this completes, those movies will be shifted to the Movies tab in the left navigation. If you selected ALL of the movies that were in Home Movie and did this, they will all now seem gone... but that's because the tag change has moved them to "Movies." Check that tab and you should see they are now there.

Over in AppleTV, Computers app, the same list of movies in Movies tab in the TV app on your Mac should now be in the Movies tab. If you have some tagged as (media kind) "TV Show" they will be in the TV Shows tab on your Mac and in the TV Shows tab in Computers (app) on AppleTV.

Basically, that ONE thing- media kind- drives where your own files display on both the Mac and AppleTV.

Otherwise, it seems to me to work pretty much as it did when it was all stored in iTunes on pre-Big Sur macOS. It should feel pretty familiar once you re-tag "home movies" to either Movies or TV Show. AppleTV Computers app simply follows the lead of how things are set up back on the Mac.

Also, while QTP is fine for watching movies on your Mac, you can also simply play them by double-clicking the one you want to watch in the TV app.

I hope this helps you.

 

[SpecFoto]

Awesome HobeSoundDarryl thank you for the quick response!

 

[Sir Bobby]

Even though this solved the main problem there are still a weird one left.
Some videos from Photos app is not visible on the ATV, but some are (so it's loading videos, but not all).
Is there some kind of limit or something that makes this problem?

Edit: Seems like videos filmed with an iPhone can be viewed at the ATV, but not the videos from the iPad which we used to take the pictures with.