How to Easily Move or Copy Your iTunes Library to Another Computer or Mac
- 1). Open iTunes. Select "Preferences" from the "Edit" menu, or choose "Preferences" from the "iTunes" menu if using iTunes for Mac. Click the "Advanced" tab in the Preferences window and check the "Keep iTunes Media Folder Organized" option.
- 2). Copy the "iTunes Media folder location" for reference and press "OK" to apply the changes.
- 3). Select "Library" from the "File" menu and choose the "Organize Library" option from the sub-menu to access the Organize Library dialog. Check the "Consolidate Files" box in the Organize Library dialog and click "OK." Wait while iTunes copies your entire music collection to the iTunes Media folder.
- 4). Close iTunes when the consolidation is complete. Connect your portable hard drive to your computer. Create a folder called "iTunes" on your portable hard drive.
- 5). Navigate to the "iTunes Media folder location" created in Step 2. Select all files and folders in this directory. Press "Ctrl+C" to copy the data. If you are using an Apple computer, press "Command+C" to copy the data.
- 6). Open the iTunes folder on your portable hard drive. Press "Ctrl+V" to paste the copied data into this folder. Wait for the transfer to complete. If you are using an Apple computer, press "Command+V" to paste the data.
- 7). Disconnect your portable hard drive from your old computer and connect it to your new computer. Open a file browser and select a location for your music library.
- 8). Select the iTunes folder on your portable hard drive and drag it from the hard drive to the selected location on the new computer. Wait while the file transfer completes.
- 9). Open iTunes on your new computer. Select "Preferences" from the "Edit" menu, or choose "Preferences" from the "iTunes" Menu if using iTunes for Mac. Click the "Advanced" tab in the Preferences window and click the "Change" button next to the "iTunes Media Folder location" to access the "Open File" dialog box.
- 10
Use the Open File dialog to navigate to the location of your copied iTunes folder. Select the folder and click "Open." Click "OK" in the Preferences window to apply the changes.
Source...