A backup is especially important when you consider the time and money invested in aniTuneslibrary.
To back up your iTunes library, you need anexternal drivewith enough free space to contain the library.
If not, you’ll want to locate your iTunes media folder and consolidate it before backing up.
To back up your iTunes music to an external hard drive:
Close iTunes.
Find your iTunes folder based on the location provided in iTunes.
Drag the iTunes folder to the external hard drive to copy the iTunes library to the hard drive.
The size of your library and the speed of the drive determine how long the transfer will take.
Make new backups regularly.
If you frequently add content to your iTunes library, back up the library weekly or monthly.
Use this backup torestore your iTunes library from the hard drive.
Connect the hard drive to the computer containing your iTunes library.
By default, the iTunes folder contains an iTunes Media folder, which holds your music.
On a Mac, go toiTunes>Preferences.
InWindows, go toEdit>Preferences.
Go to theiTunes Media folder locationsection to find the location of the iTunes folder.
SelectOKto end the window.
To consolidate your iTunes library:
In iTunes, selectFile>Library>Organize Library.
In theOrganize Librarywindow, selectConsolidate filesto move the files in your iTunes Library to a single location.
If available, select theReorganize files in the folder iTunes Mediacheck box.
iTunes consolidates and organizes your library.
