iLoungeiLounge
  • News
    • Apple
      • AirPods Pro
      • AirPlay
      • Apps
        • Apple Music
      • iCloud
      • iTunes
      • HealthKit
      • HomeKit
      • HomePod
      • iOS 13
      • Apple Pay
      • Apple TV
      • Siri
    • Rumors
    • Humor
    • Technology
      • CES
    • Daily Deals
    • Articles
    • Web Stories
  • iPhone
    • iPhone Accessories
  • iPad
  • iPod
    • iPod Accessories
  • Apple Watch
    • Apple Watch Accessories
  • Mac
    • MacBook Air
    • MacBook Pro
  • Reviews
    • App Reviews
  • How-to
    • Ask iLounge
Font ResizerAa
iLoungeiLounge
Font ResizerAa
Search
  • News
    • Apple
    • Rumors
    • Humor
    • Technology
    • Daily Deals
    • Articles
    • Web Stories
  • iPhone
    • iPhone Accessories
  • iPad
  • iPod
    • iPod Accessories
  • Apple Watch
    • Apple Watch Accessories
  • Mac
    • MacBook Air
    • MacBook Pro
  • Reviews
    • App Reviews
  • How-to
    • Ask iLounge
Follow US

How-to › Ask iLounge

Ask iLoungeiPodiTunes

Restoring iTunes to an external hard drive

Last updated: May 16, 2021 4:58 pm UTC
By Jesse Hollington
Restoring iTunes to an external hard drive

Q: I previously had iTunes installed on a work laptop, and now I have DVD backups of this. The laptop is no more and I want to know if I can install iTunes on an external hard drive and then transfer the backups on the DVDs to the install? We have 3 iPods (touch, classic and nano) in the family that need to be synched to the iTunes install. If I can run the whole of iTunes from the external drive can I then attach this to other computers as and when required? I don’t want to install iTunes to the internal drive of the home computer due to storage issues.

Advertisements

– Anonymous

Restoring iTunes to an external hard drive

A: There are a couple of ways you can handle this. If it’s your intent to run iTunes from a single family computer, then the simplest solution is to just store the content on the external drive.

In this configuration, the iTunes library database remains on your internal drive, but your actual media files are stored and maintained on the external hard drive. Moving the iTunes database is a separate process, and realistically the database itself takes up minimal space as compared to your media content.

Advertisements

In this case, you would simply start off the new library with a media folder pointing to the external hard drive. You can specific your iTunes Media folder location under iTunes Advanced Preferences:

Once you’ve set the media folder to live on the external hard drive, any new content you add to your iTunes library will be copied to that location and stored there. So, as you restore or import your DVD backup, the files should be copied straight from the DVDs to the external hard drive.

Advertisements

Alternatively, you are looking to have an iTunes library on the external hard drive that’s shared between more than one computer, then you will want to move the iTunes database to the external hard drive as well. If you’re starting a new iTunes library, you can place the database wherever you want initially by holding down the SHIFT key (Windows) or OPT key (Mac) while starting iTunes. iTunes will prompt you to either create a new library or choose a library from another location.

 

Restoring iTunes to an external hard drive

If you’re starting fresh, simply choose “Create Library” and point iTunes to a folder on the external hard drive where you would like your library to be created. If you already have an existing iTunes library, then you will need to manually move it to the new location, and then use the “Choose Library” option in this dialog box to point iTunes to the library database in the new location.

Advertisements

Latest News
Apple Pencil Pro
The Apple Pencil Pro is $29 Off
1 Min Read
Apple Maps
Apple Maps updated with ‘Expert Sources’ information
1 Min Read
Android 16
Android 16 ‘Live Updates’ launch
1 Min Read
visionOS 3
visionOS 3 to have eye scrolling function
1 Min Read
Apple AirTag 4 Pack
The Apple AirTag 4-Pack is $19 Off
1 Min Read
Apple
Apple launches new music transfer tool
1 Min Read
HBO Max
Max to be renamed ‘HBO Max’
1 Min Read
Safari
Safari Technology Preview 219 now live
1 Min Read
Beats Solo 4
The Beats Solo 4 is $70 Off
1 Min Read
C1 Modem
The C1 modem gets a security update through iOS 18.5
1 Min Read
watchOS 11.5
New watchOS 11.5 debuts
1 Min Read
visionOS 2.5
visionOS 2.5 comes with Apple TV Vision Tab feature
1 Min Read

iLounge logo

iLounge is an independent resource for all things iPod, iPhone, iPad, and beyond. iPod, iPhone, iPad, iTunes, Apple TV, and the Apple logo are trademarks of Apple Inc.

This website is not affiliated with Apple Inc.
iLounge © 2001 - 2025. All Rights Reserved.
  • Contact Us
  • Submit News
  • About Us
  • Forums
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?