2

I'm running OSX Mavericks 10.9.2 and iTunes 11.1.5 on a 2012 Macbook Air. My iTunes library is, due to its size, stored on an external drive which is connected to my Time Capsule.

The problem is that every time I close iTunes (and sometimes even when I haven't closed it) the computer appears to forget where the library is stored. Sometimes it will revert to the default location on my SSD, but most of the time it just goes blank, with no file location stored at all.

It's easy enough to re-set iTunes so it can find its library again, but given the library's size it's rather time-consuming for the computer to scroll through everything and tag its file address. And I might end up having to do that every couple of hours while iTunes is running.

I've already ruled out the strength of my wifi connection as a possible cause. Has anyone else ever heard of this? If so, how did you resolve it?

Thanks in advance... :-)

1
  • I apologize for the ambiguity here. iTunes is working normally except for one issue: periodically the library file address window in Preferences->Advanced goes completely blank, with no file location saved at all. When this happens, anything I try to do in iTunes results in a "File cannot be found" error and a bunch of exclamation marks on the files I tried to play. Re-entering the library location in Preferences solves the problem, but only temporarily. Sorry, everyone, I should have been more clear the first time around ... :-( May 7, 2014 at 18:57

1 Answer 1

1

Mavericks has a new external-hard-disk power management system in place which would turn off the hard-disk (only concerns external drives) if it's not used for a certain amount of time.

I suspect this is what's causing the lag rather than iTunes forgetting the location of the library.

3
  • 1
    Thank you for the info, I didn't know about that power management feature. :-) My apologies, I wasn't very specific about the problem. There isn't actually any lag involved. What's happening is, if I just open iTunes and try to play something, I get a mssg stating that the file cannot be found, and the item gets an exclamation mark. When I open Preferences, the window with the library location has either reverted to the default location on my SSD, or (more frequently) it has gone completely blank, with no file location stored at all. As soon as I re-enter the location of the library, it works. May 7, 2014 at 18:43
  • In this case, why don't you try doing the following? 1. Open iTunes 2. Drag and drop the entire folder where your song track files are located to the open iTunes window. Jul 21, 2014 at 12:41
  • I have the arm issue but am using a sinology disk station. So the power management explanation doesn't seem to fit the situation
    – user101289
    Nov 18, 2014 at 17:20

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .