Drobo/Droboshare iTunes files "locked", can't share Library/Music files

[Murph]

Anybody out there using Droboshare? I've got 3 Macs in different parts of the house that I'd like to share a single Library/Music File with...but when I try to add a second Mac to the shared files, it tells me the files are Locked or I don't have permission to access them. Two of the Mac's are ethernet-attached and the other is via wireless.

 

I can't find a definitive fix for this issue

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

Hi Murph - Can you provide a little information about what exactly you are doing?

 

[Murph]

Sure, I've got the entire iTunes folder (which includes the iTunes Library and associated files and the iTunes Music folder etc.) residing on a Drobo/Droboshare. I've pointed iTUnes on the iMac next to the Drobo to this file, and everything works fine. Then I went to my Mac Mini (music server) and used the Cntrl-click to open iTunes and choose the same file on the Drobo to be the Library. I get the error message that the disk is locked. I also tried it on a Macbook just to see if would work, and I got the same message. The iMac and the Mac Mini are hard-attached via ethernet, and the Macbook via wireless.....

 

does that help troubleshoot?

 

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

OK now I get where you're at.

 

Have you tried closing iTunes on all machines and just opening it on one at a time?

 

[Murph]

I tried that at some point, and it still didn't work. The weird thing is earlier, when the Drobo was in a mixed shared environment(PC and Macs) and was formatted in FAT32 I could connect the other Macs, but the Mini Mac was dropping out when playing files from it. So I removed the PC from the equation and reformatted the Drobo for a purely Mac environment, wrote the music file to the Drobo from the iMac (just to ensure it was an all-Mac format etc.) and now have the sharing issue.

 

Since the Drobo seems to be the common denominator in the various problems I've been having (excepting myself of course ! ) I'm thinking about using a small(1 Tb) external hard drive, connect it to an Airport extreme and use the disk-sharing capability of the router to share the Music file amongst the 2 macs on the NW (via gigabit Lan). Does this work well? If I do that, is there anyway to back up that drive (a shared network drive) across the network to the Drobo? (which will also be on the network) I don't think Time Machine works backing up drives across the network and particularly to a NAS-type device.

 

[Murph]

Chris, this afternoon I was able to connect to the iTunes files if I closed iTunes on the other machines sharing it. However, the original problem I had on the Mac Mini reappeared...it drops out intermittently if playing from the Droboshare. The iMac, which is also ethernet-attached to the Drobo plays fine. I don't know if it's how the Mac Mini is configured, or what. I also moved the library to an external disk firewired-attached to the Mini, and it plays great. So I'm about at the point of giving up on the Drobo to share the library and using it as a backup device. Even if I can solve the drop-out issue, I don't relish the idea of having to shut down iTunes on every system I'm not currently listening to. So I guess I'm looking for a software solution that will back up or synce the external device to the Drobo over a Lan.

 

[barron]

I'm a Drobo user; I have six of them. The issue you have may be due to the Droboshare (device that sits under a Drobo to make it a network drive). I've had many problems with my Droboshares (2) and stopped using them. I don't believe Drobo even sells them anymore and has (had?) a promotion where they would buy them back for credit against a new Drobo.

 

The two solutions that work for me are...

1) I connect my Drobo directly to a Mac Mini and make that available on my home network.

2) Upgrade to the newer Drobo FS (network Drobo). Works very well for me and is accessible from my Macs and PC. I'd like to move all my stuff over to Drobo FS's!

 

Barron

 

[jackrinse]

Hi Murph

I am going through a similar issues at the moment and have been talking to apple for many hours over the last week or so.

You cannot officially access iTunes from more than one computer at a time.

I spoke to a senior advisor who tried to help and when his "fix" failed after trying for over an hour he said oh yeah sorry doesn't work!

I watched a video earlier from Chris at Computer Audiophile where he seems to have worked it out but I don't think it is supported.

As I am a bit of a dullard I did not try his fix as I know I would need to maintain it through software updates etc.

I am going to share the library from one mac to the next and see how that works.

Good luck

 

[Codifus]

is there something wrong with using the sharing capability built into iTunes? You access playlists and all.

 

Admittedly, using that function you don't see the album art on the Macs remotely accessing the library.

 

CD