iTunes: multiple users on one iMac and (ideally) one Library

[Alex McF]

Hi,

 

Another not-so-smart-but-it-might-help-others-as-well-as-me question: I have ripped half my CDs onto my library under my user account on my iMac. This is easily accessed via Remote on my iPod Touch (my sofa springs are all the worse for it!) but only as long as iTunes is turned on. So far so good. However, my ten-year-old (lots of hyphens in this post!) son does like to exercise his God-given right to log on to the iMac under his name. Result: my iPod Touch cannot find my library. So no music! How can I get his account on the iMac to use the same library as me? Plenty of stiff on Apple Help about multiple libraries but having just the one would suit me best!

 

Many thanks.

 

Alex

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

Hi Alex - This isn't terribly difficult to accomplish. What you need to do is store the music files in a location you can both access. I would create a folder on the root of your Mac HD called Music and make sure when you both login you can access this folder. Then move everything in your personal Music folder to this new Music folder. It's likely you just have to move your iTunes folder to this new Music folder that both of you can access. Once everything is in the new location you both will have to tell iTunes to open the new library and make sure the iTunes Music Folder within iTunes Preferences points to the new location of the Music folder.

 

Hold down the Option key when you open iTunes and it will ask you to choose a library. This is where you will browse to your new Music folder and select the iTunes library. From now on iTunes will open this library. Do this for both user logins and you'll be all set.

 

On a high level what you're doing is moving the your music to a location both of you have access to and then pointing iTunes to the new location for both users. That's all. Let me know if I can help further.

 

[ade_compaud]

I'm a mac newbie and looking to achieve something similar. If I setup multiple users and one library would it be possible for any of the users to change or delete tracks in the library?

 

What I'd like is to have one library that only I can change or delete, other users can use the library but are only allowed to write. Is this possible?

 

Thanks

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

Hi ade_compaud - I won't say that your idea can't be done, but it may be monumental to configure and certainly can't be accomplished within iTunes. On the other hand you may want to look at using a shared library. This would allow you to add music and the others to only playback music from this library.

 

[FelixLeiter]

I am in the same boat as the above poster. However, I have another question. If 2 iTunes accounts share the same library and one person adds a file to the library will it be recognized by the other person's account?

 

Also, I have 2 separate iTunes libraries on 2 machines (20gb and 35gb). Can I amalgamate them and how do I get rid of the overlap (probably 10gb) without "showing duplicates" and manually deleting?