iTunes setup with peripheral drive

@ Istanbulu... Don't know if you've figured out your problem or not. If not, this may help:

First, you don't state (but I figure you know) that you can't simply move music files out of your MacMini to your external hard drive. If you do, iTunes won't "know" where your music files are; the pointers in iTunes will still look for the music files on your Mini, but the files won't be there anymore. In other words, the music files "in" iTunes are Managed while the music files on a different drive are Referenced.

Because of the way the iTunes database and content are handled (no, they're not the same thing) it's a little different to move music files that are already on a drive other than your main hard drive -- but that doesn't sound like your situation.

What you're trying to do is turn your previously Managed files into Referenced files. You can do this within iTunes, but not with Finder.

The answer (as you suggest) starts with iTunes Preferences - Advanced from the iTunes menu. Change the iTunes Media folder path to the (new) location you want. Then, from the menu bar, select File, Library, Organize Library and check the Consolidate Library box.

You are now getting to the "point of no return". To proceed, click Continue and your files will be copied to the new location AND the iTunes pointers will be changed. Not moved, but copied, and iTunes will now look for them according to the new path. Also, this process will only change files that were in iTunes to begin with; any other content files are still in their same location, and you'll have to use Add to Library later.

When it's done, make sure your content files really are in the new location. (You haven't moved the iTunes Library database, just the content.) If the files have been copied successfully you can delete the originals from your 'puter and reclaim the hard disc space.

This should take care of it for you.

Thank you everyone. When it created a partial library (why partial I have no idea), I updated the library using the usual functions under "file" to do so, and for whatever reason, it did it.

I have done this procedure many times, but for some reason (still unknown to me) it did not function easily and successfully as before.

Everyone's posts and emails are sincerely appreciated. Thanks... a really great community here on Audiogon.

:) listening,

Ed

I've switched drives a few times. My way of doing it is to copy the music to the new drive. Point iTunes to the new directory, as you have done. After that I just delete the current library, then I add library and point it to the new folder.

Update:

Now, for reasons unknown, it has created the Library Music list: but only part of the total series of music files: all the A albums, and part of the Bs... and then stopped.

I have Pure Music as a software... of course, not booted, but it's on the computer. I have only iTunes booted for this task.

Help!

Ed

Followup description of what I've done and what's not happening:

I have followed the iTunes directions and it won't "consolidate" the library as it should.

In iTunes' Preferences I have selected "Advanced" and under "iTunes Media folder location" I have iTunes pointing to the accurate file folder in my peripheral drive; that's the first task according to the rubric.

Then, as iTunes help directs, I have gone to File, Library, Organize Library, and clicked on Consolidate (which is what I'm supposed to do, and nothing happens, even after 20 minutes).

If I go to File, Library, Organize Library, Add to Library, it just wants to copy files to my Mini HD... which is what I do not want.

Help!

Ed