I currently have a set up where my default iTunes Library (of ~550 HD movies) resides on a 2TB external HD. I share this library and use it to serve my Apple TV/other LAN devices. The drive is close to full, so I got a 4TB External HD to migrate the Library to.
The default library path is set to /Volumes/MEDIA_2TB
through iTunes Preferences, though all the .xml
and .itl
data still resides in ~/Music/iTunes/
.
I'd like to migrate my current library contents to /Volumes/MEDIA_4TB
while retaining the metadata (ratings, play count, watched/unwatched, date added, etc), as well as set Volumes/MEDIA_4TB
as the new default library.
It seems that the file paths are tied to the metadata files though. If I change the default iTunes Library through iTunes and then "Consolidate Library" will this work? Is there another/better way?
Note that I don't want to create symlinks as in this Q&A: Move external iTunes library files to different location without losing metadata
Best Answer
So I successfully migrated the library without losing the metadata by:
1) Changing the default library under iTunes > Preferences > Advanced > to
/Volumes/MEDIA_4TB
first2) Selecting all the contents of the library within iTunes.
3) Going to File > Library > Consolidate Files
After many hours of copying, I confirmed it worked by right clicking on a movie > Movie Info > File Tab > Location:
/Volumes/MEDIA_4TB/Movies/[Name of Movie]
. I can now safely delete the contents of the old 2TB drive and reformat it.