How can I move my iTunes database and files to a NAS drive?

[Mr Jolly]

I've currently got all my MP3's on my desktop, but have just bought a QNap NAS drive which will let you run iTunes from it, but I'm not sure of the best way of doing it.

I want to be able to access the iTunes database and music from both my desktop and laptop, (and am also getting an Airport to play back on my main stereo) so need all the iTunes database files and music files on the NAS. How do I do it? Should I consolidate itunes first, then just tell it to relocate them, or is it not that straight foward? I'm just running a backup of my MP3 partition just in case it goes arseholes! Not risking losing 100gig of music!

Cheers guys!

[jagooch]

I just did this :
1) Moved iTunes folder
2) Consolidate library


Then I turned on "let itunes managed files" .


It worked pretty well, Just note that if you have anything that isn't music, it looks like iTunes does not copy it to the new location.

[levytv]

read this thread.
NAS - iTunes locked

[S2_Mac]

Make sure you back up your current "iTunes" folder as well! (It's in your user account's Music folder.) That folder contains your actual library, without which none of the music files will make sense.

Your first step should be to clearly understand your NAS -- exactly where you can put files so that multiple users have read and write access. In this example, let's call that location "NAS:\Shared". Here's the steps:
1) Create a folder named "iTunes" inside the NAS:\Shared folder; and inside that "iTunes" folder create a folder named "iTunes Music"
2) In iTunes Preferences -> Advanced, set the "iTunes Music folder location" to NAS:\Shared\iTunes\iTunes Music
3) In iTunes File menu, choose Library -> Consolidate Library; this will copy all files that iTunes knows about into the "iTunes Music" folder on the NAS, and update the iTunes Library with all the new paths for those files.
4) When consolidating is done, copy everything in your current "iTunes" folder -- except the "iTunes Music" folder -- into the "iTunes" folder on the NAS
5) Quit iTunes. Now launch iTunes with the Shift key down (Option key on Macs); a dialog will ask if you want to Create a library or Choose a library -- click Choose, then navigate to the file "iTunes Library.itl" on the NAS

That's it -- your entire iTunes music collection and library are now running from the NAS; everything is just like it was, from downloaded album art to playlists, ratings, counts, etc. When you're satisfied that everything's right, you can delete the "old" music files (there's no good purpose served by deleting your "old" iTunes folder -- leave it alone). Repeat Step 5 for each computer that will also use that library & music.

Note that only one computer at a time can use the "iTunes Library" file -- if two or more try to use it, it will p'bly become irreperably corrupted. So make frequent backups of the "iTunes Library.itl" file!!

(Another way to do this is to set each user up with their own "iTunes" folder on the NAS, with their own copy of the "iTunes Library.itl" file -- each user taps into the same music files, but uses their own copy of the library. Every day, or week, or whatever, you replace every user's "iTunes Library" file with a "master" library. It's more of a pain, but it keeps the library files from getting blitzed.)