iTunes keeps track of your media content and playlists in a library file. Sometimes you might open iTunes only to find that you have lost all the library content including music, movies, TV shows, apps, songs, and playlists but when you check the path of the files, the music is still in their folders.
ITunes is gone in macOS Catlina, and the new Music app that replaces it is fairly similar in broad strokes. However, some users are having trouble finding how to search their own music library, as. The new Apple Music app is the ultimate music streaming experience on Mac. 1 Explore a library of 70 million songs, discover new artists and tracks, find the perfect playlist, download and listen offline, or enjoy all the music you’ve collected over the years. And find it all in your music library on all your devices.
Losing the iTunes music library is a prevalent problem to some users who have just updated their iTunes applications. Also enabling iCloud Music Library may cause the error of unable to connect to iTunes library. When this happens all the media content previously on your library disappears. So you may be wondering what the effective ways of restoring iTunes library from the backup are. If you are a victim of this annoying and horrible issue, read on, we have a right solution to fix it.
Method 1: How to Fix “Lost iTunes Music on the Computer”
As a precaution, iTunes always keeps a copy of the library that was there before the software update. With the right procedure, one can be able to recover or restore the lost iTunes library by rebuilding it from the old one that was there before the version upgrade. To do this follow the following steps:
Step 1: Close the iTunes application on your Mac or PC.
Step 2: Navigate and locate the folder that contains the iTunes library and all your media files.
- On a Mac: go to Home > Music > iTunes
- On a Windows PC: got to Users > Username > My Music > iTunes
Step 3: Once you open the iTunes folder on your Mac or PC, locate the Library.itl file and then drag it to your desktop.
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Step 4: Open the folder named ‘Previous iTunes Libraries’ and from there locate the most recent iTunes library according to their dates. Find the file called iTunes Library YYYY-MM-DD which appears to be the most recent. YYYY represents the Year, MM the month and DD the date when the library was created.
Step 5: After locating the most recent, select it and then copy it using the keyboard shortcuts. On a Mac press Cmd + C and windows press Ctrl + C. Downloaded mac beta and apps wont open.
Step 6: Move back to the iTunes folder and if using a Mac press Cmd + V. if using windows press Ctrl + V to paste the copied file.
Itunes App Store
Step 7: After the YYYY-MM-DD file is copied to your iTunes folder, rename it to ‘iTunes Library.itl.’
Step 8: Once all that is done, then open iTunes while holding the option key on Mac or Shift on windows. A message will thereafter pop up asking you to choose iTunes Library.
Step 9: Click choose library and select the iTunes library.itl file you have just renamed.
Step 10: Once everything is restored, delete the iTunes Library.itl file you moved to the desktop entirely from your computer.
These steps will help you recover the lost iTunes music on the computer. However, there is a small set back as any modifications you had made to your library after the date on the iTunes library you used will not be included or re-added.
Method 2: Fix “Lost iTunes Music on the Computer” with iMyFone TunesMate
If the steps above did not fix the issue, don’t panic yet. You can restore your iTunes library from your iPhone, iPad or iPod using iMyFone TunesMate.
iMyFone TunesMate is an application that has been designed to manage your iTunes library including backup and restore professionally. It is maintained and regularly updated by iMyFone. The software can selectively autodetect and preview any media content on your iDevices and not on your iTunes library and then copy the new files without deleting the old data.
Key Features:
Steps to get back your lost iTunes music on computer with iMyFone TunesMate
Step 1: Run iMyFone TunesMate on your computer and then connect your iPhone using a USB cable.
Step 2: Click 'Transfer iDevice Media to iTunes' from the Home interface and on the popup window click “Start” to scan your iDevice for all the media content, not on iTunes.
Step 3: Once the scan is done click 'Start' button to begin the transfer process then “Complete' button from the pop-up window after it finishes.
Once done you will have successfully restored your lost iTunes music library from your iPhone, iPad or iPod.
If you want to find out where iTunes stores your library files, the following guide should help you find the iTunes library location on both your Windows and Mac machines. Read on to even learn how to change the locations on your computer.
iTunes Tips & IssuesiTunes Basic LearningiTunes Music TipsiTunes Libary TipsiTunes Connection IssuesOther iTunes Data Issues
iTunes provides you an easy way to add new files and organize existing files on its interface on your computer. The interface lets you view your files, their dates, and other information about your files. However, what you do not see in the list is where exactly your files are stored. iTunes has been quite confidential and it does not directly let users view the location of the stored files.
If you are curious and you would like to find out the iTunes library location on Windows or Mac, we have you covered. The following guide shows you the locations of the folders where iTunes stores your music and other media files on your computer’s storage. Once you’ve found where files are actually located, you can play around with them just like any other files on your computer.
How to Find iTunes Library Locations on Computer
Finding the iTunes files location on a computer is extremely easy. This section should teach you how you find the folder on your PC or Mac computer.
Find iTunes Library Locations on Mac:![]()
Find iTunes Library Locations on PC:
How to Change iTunes Library Location
While the default iTunes storage folders are not that bad, you can change the locations on your computer if you would like. Once you change the location, iTunes will begin to store your newly imported files into your new location on your computer.
1. How to Change iTunes Library Location on Mac
Changing the iTunes files location on a Mac is pretty easy as you can do the task from within the iTunes app on your machine. You just need to modify an option in the settings and your task will be done. Here’s how you do it:
Step 1. Launch the iTunes app from Launchpad on your Mac.
How to Change iTunes Library Location on Mac – Step 1
Step 2. When the iTunes app launches, click on the iTunes menu at the top and select the option that says Preferences. It will open the iTunes settings screen on your Mac.
How to Change iTunes Library Location on Mac – Step 2
Step 3. When the settings menu opens, click on the last tab that says Advanced. Once you are there, click on the Change button given next to the iTunes Media folder location. You should be able to specify a new location for iTunes media files on your Mac.
Add Itunes App To Desktop
How to Change iTunes Library Location on Mac – Step 3
2. How to Change iTunes Library Location on PC
Windows users can also easily change the iTunes storage location and that too from within the iTunes app. The following is how you do it.
How To Search Music In Itunes Store
Step 1. Launch the iTunes app and click on Edit followed by Preferences.
Step 2. Head to the Advanced tab and click on the Change button to change your iTunes media folder.
That’s how you change the iTunes media folder location on your Windows PC.
The Bottom Line
If you have not been able to find the iTunes media folder on your Windows PC or Mac, the above guide should help you find the folder very easily on your computer. It also teaches how you can change the default iTunes folder if you would like to do it.
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