With iTunes local media sharing, you can easily share your media files with your friends and family. All you need to do is connect your computer to the network, create an iTunes Library, and share it with everyone.
What Exactly Is iTunes Library Sharing?
The iTunes library sharing feature in the iTunes app on both Windows PC and Mac machines lets you share your existing content in the app with other users that are on the same network as you. This feature is useful if you have a lot of content in your iTunes library and want to make sure that everyone who wants to see it has access to it.
The app enables you to share media with other users using the iTunes app. This means that other users can access your music and video files on your computer or mobile device. This feature should work on both wired and wireless networks. There is no need to purchase any additional hardware or software to use this feature.
Are There Any Restrictions?
Sharing an iTunes library is a legal way to share your content because of the way it works. ..
If you’re sharing content from a computer on your local network and the computer receiving the content isn’t on that network, you won’t see any shared content. Both computers should have the iTunes app installed. Get it for your Windows PC or Mac if you don’t already have it. The receiving computer can’t import or copy the content and they can only stream it.
How To Share an iTunes Library From Your Computer
The app makes it easy to set up a feature that allows you to connect your machines to the same local network. You just need to enable an option in the app and you’re good to go.
- Open the Start menu and type “cmd”
- Type “netstat -an”
- If there is a line that says “eth0”, then eth0 is up and running
- If there is a line that says “eth1”, then eth1 is up and running
Open the iTunes app on your computer.
In the iTunes settings menu, click on the General tab and then on the App Store. On the App Store, under the App Store name, select your Apple ID and password. Under the Apple ID and password section, enter in your name and email address. Click on the Edit button.
If you want to be in the General tab by default, you should do so. This screen will show the name of your library next to the Library Name field. You can edit this name if you want as this is what will appear on the receiving computer.
Once you’ve changed or left the library name as is, click on the tab that says Sharing at the top. This is where you get multiple options to share your iTunes library. Checkmark the box that says Share my library on my local network and you’ll activate the two options beneath it. Here’s what each of those two options does. Share entire library – as the name implies, this option lets you share your entire media library on your local network. Only choose this if you’re comfortable with all of your iTunes content being available on another computer. Share selected playlists – this option lets you only share the chosen and specific playlists on your network. You can manually select the playlists you want to share in the provided list. Require password – this lets you add a layer of security to your content sharing. You can specify a password here that the receiving computer will need to enter before they can access your content. It’s up to you if you’d like to use this option. Finally, click on OK to save the changes. ..
Your iTunes media library has been successfully shared on your local network. It’s now the time for the other computers on your network to access your files.
Accessing iTunes Shared Content
If you have shared content with others on your network, you can easily stream that content to other computers on your network by using the iTunes app. ..
To see the shared library, open the latest version of the app and look in the left sidebar. If the sidebar isn’t visible by default, click on the View menu at the top and select Show Sidebar. ..
How To Disable iTunes Library Sharing
If you’d like to turn off media sharing on your iPhone or iPad, you can do so from within the iTunes app.
In the Sharing tab of the iTunes app, select the option to share your library with other Apple devices on your local network.
How To Fix Connection Related Issues
If you’re having trouble connecting to your iTunes library on another computer, you can try changing your firewall settings. ..
- Open the Start screen and type “iTunes” into the search bar.
- Click on the “iTunes” icon in the top left corner of the screen.
- In the “Connection Settings” window, click on the “Advanced” tab and then click on the “Firewall Settings” button.
- In the firewall settings window, select “Allow incoming connections from any computer” and then click on the OK button.
To open the Control Panel, press the Windows key and type “control panel” into the search bar. Click on the Control Panel result that appears to open it. ..
Windows Defender Firewall: Ensure you’re viewing the panel in either large or small icons mode. Then find and click on the option that says Windows Defender Firewall to open your firewall settings.
Windows Defender Wireless will allow the app or feature to be used through your wireless network.
To add an iTunes track to your playlist, first select it from the list. Next, check the box next to it and click on the OK button at the bottom. ..
Apple has added support for iTunes to work with firewalls, so that the receiving computer will not have any issues getting access to your shared iTunes library.