rareexample

So you have multiple computers, a delightful library of music in iTunes but want to play and sync the library across your Macs and Pc’s.  Not the most obvious thing to do is it, after all that’s how you’ve ended up here.

Before you proceed, please be aware that you can only have one instance of iTunes using the library at a time, if you have iTunes open on multiple machines, you’re gonna get f’d in the a. Again, do NOT have 2 instances of iTunes open at the same time.

Setup a library on the Mac

So what I’ve done is set my main library up on the mac. Get all your songs, album art and all that good stuff ready on the mac.

1. In iTunes, click Itunes, Preferences and go to the advanced tab
2. Note the Itunes music folder. You’ll need to go to that location after.
3. Check off “Keep iTunes Music folder organized“
4. Check off “Copy files to iTunes Music folder when adding to library“
5. Click OK
6. Click file, Library, Consolidate Library (This will organize all your tunes into the folder you noted earlier.)
7. Wait for that to finish then close iTunes
8. Remember the iTunes music folder I told you to note in step 2? Go there in finder
9. There’s a file named iTunes Library, rename that to iTunes Library.itl. Don’t ask questions, just do it!
10. Now option click iTunes to open her up. (hold the option key on your keyboard, while holding the option key click on the iTunes icon)
11. iTunes is going to ask you which library to open, open iTunes Library.itl
12. Let iTunes rebuild your shit, then close iTunes (closing iTunes is IMPORTANT).
13. Take a break, sacrifice a lamb.

Setup iTunes on windows

1. Shift click iTunes (hold the shift key and click the iTunes icon to open)
2. iTunes will ask you which library to choose
3. Browse to your mac on the network into the folder noted earlier in step 2 of the mac setup and finally, open the library
4. Let iTunes rebuild your shit

Cheers and thanks for macosxhints’ crazor for the original inspira