Sharing an iTunes library between two computers?

Feek · 27 Mar 2009 at 09:32

I want to be able to use the iTunes library on my main Mac from the laptop, I don't mean the 'Share my library on the local network' option, I mean proper sharing.

So this is what I've done.

Created a shared folder on the Mac Pro which is my iTunes directory.

On the laptop, I've used 'connect to server' to mount the share, and then I dragged the shared drive to my users Login items to ensure it's mounted each time I boot the laptop.

I then opened iTunes while holding down the Option key, this allowed me to select the library and it works, I can access the library on the Mac Pro perfectly.

However, I have a problem.

The screen on my Mac Pro is much larger than that on the laptop. Hence when I open iTunes, I can only see part of it!

Is there a way to do the above but have both copies of iTunes running with their own independent window sizes and positions?

Feek · 30 Mar 2009 at 20:08

Nobody? It makes me sad that nobody knows :sad:

Feek · 30 Mar 2009 at 21:42

There's a good chance that both machines would be on at the same time with iTunes open, yes.

Feek · 31 Mar 2009 at 19:10

I think I have a solution.

The main machine with the library on an internal drive is working as normal, organising and storing the music.

On the laptop, I've unticked the two boxes to organise the library and copy files. I then opened a new empty library and have dragged the files in from the shared directory.

So I'm accessing the remote music. If I add anything to the library on the main Mac I just need to rescan the library on the laptop for the files to appear.

It means each machine has it's own playlists and play counts, but that's fine. The music is shared between them properly.

At least, that's how I think it'll work, I'm currently scanning the library on the laptop for the first time

I see no reason why it won't work.

Feek · 31 Mar 2009 at 20:50

1) The iTunes library on the Mac Pro is nearly 600Gb, thhe hard drive on the Macbook Pro is 320Gb
2) Why duplicate when one can share?

Feek · 31 Mar 2009 at 22:55

Firefox is my main browser, I sync bookmarks from Firefox to Safari using Foxmarks. Safari then syncs bookmarks to the mobileme cloud so they're picked up on the laptop and I also have Firefox on the lappy which also has the Foxmarks extension installed so it gets them that way.

You can sync between computers with just Safari using Foxmarks, no need for the mobileme cloud, despite the name it does work cross browser.

Feek · 1 Apr 2009 at 21:03

Absence of album art, inability to change the way everything is displayed. I really don't like the look of it.