Our household has several iOS devices, a soon-to-be-upgraded MacBook and a new Mac Mini Server. Since we're not working with many users (yet), I'd like to get things organized and working before time becomes an issue. The Mini has a local-only account that has the master iPhoto and iTunes libraries (for sharing with Apple TV's, iPhones, iPads, etc) – with iTunes I have a few options:
- Everyone shares the same iTunes library
- Master library is shared, users have their own smaller libraries
- Master library is shared using home sharing, users have their own smaller libraries
The other accounts are networked (with portable home directories). Since mobile accounts will be in the near future, I'd like to avoid number 1 (and I need some sort of sharing to serve to Apple TV's, iPhones, iPads, etc anyway). Number 3 could be an issue since home sharing is limited to 5 devices, and I'd like a solution that could handle around 10. This brings me to three questions:
- Can home sharing work with iPhones/iPads that are connected through a VPN to the Mini Server?
- Is there an elegant way to update the master library whenever a user adds content to their own iTunes library?
- Does anyone with a similar setup have any tips?
Best Answer
I have a similar setup - 5 iPhones, a couple of computers, iPad, etc.
I have the masters on my Pro - it's always on and powerful enough to keep iTunes and iPhoto running in the background.
Each user has their own iCloud account for email, calendars, etc.
We share a single family AppleID for purchases - this is setup on each device for Music, Videos, and AppStore.
Given that all music, videos etc are bought using the same ID, when they're bought on a device they sync into iTunes on the central library Mac automatically. Each device can optionally turn on downloads of purchased items from other devices. That's a per device setting.
Each user controls their own iPhotos - this isn't a problem for the kids. Between my wife and I, put our own photos into our own iPhoto libraries. Both are shared, and we can drag and drop between them as needed within iPhoto. This doesn't sync automatically, but it's easy to tell on the event level what needs updating.
Home Sharing allows all devices to play whatever music and videos within the houses' wifi network, including on the AppleTVs. HomeSharing also (at least used to) allow for automatic syncing between devices to keep everything on one account, if added outside of the store. With laptops for the kids, they can keep their own smaller libraries and stream via HomeSharing in the house, and copy to their own accounts to store stuff for outside the house.
Outside the house because we're using the single account, everyone can play any music via iTunes Match. With the latest Apple update, this now includes movies and TV shows bought through iTMS.