3 Quick Ways to Recover iTunes Music

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Trying to recover music files from iTunes? Worry no more, this articles has everything you need to know on how to recover lost music files from iTunes easily with the help of a professional data recovery software- Remo Recover

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Losing music on iTunes is a common thing, which most users experience. When you open your iTunes, you might observe that all your songs, albums, or playlists are deleted or lost from the iTunes Library. But you need not worry!

Most Users spend their time streaming their favorite music on iPhone through Apple Music. However, losing purchased music from iTunes can be really bad. Let us find out different ways to recover iTunes music that is lost from the iPod, iPhone, or computer.

accidentally deleted songs from itunes library
"I accidentally removed songs I have purchased on itunes from library, how to get them back? I tried to access the Purchased section but i cant find them there. The tracks i have purchased is alreadh listed as Purchased but nowhere i can find them in itunes library

How to solve this issue?"

Source: Reddit

How to Find iTunes Media Folder?

To find the iTunes media folder follow the steps below. iTunes folders usually by default reside in iTunes. First, navigate to iTunes from User and go to Music and then select iTunes Media.

If you don't see or find your iTunes Media follow the steps below.

  • Go to iTunes and from the Menu bar choose Preference from the Edit.
  • Go to the Advanced tab.
go to the advanced preferences
  • Look for the iTunes Media folder location.

How to Recover Music from iTunes?

Apart from the iTunes library which holds information to organize your music, iTunes also has a media folder that contains information on music, videos, books, podcasts, etc. Music, albums, or songs you have purchased from iTunes will be available here. Even if you lost iTunes music it can be easily downloaded again from the iTunes application.

iTunes library will just have the information about the music files or playlists you have created. Losing these playlists makes it impossible to recover iTunes music. However, the songs downloaded from iTunes and other media platforms onto Windows or Mac can be recovered using Remo Recover software.

Make use of Remo Recover software for the safe recovery of your lost or deleted music files from your Windows or Mac. This tool is equipped with powerful data recovery programs to restore all formats of music files lost or deleted on Windows or Mac computers.

Methods to Recover iTunes Music

Here are the 3 reliable ways to retrieve iTunes music:

Also Find: How to Recover Music on Mac and Windows using Remo Recover?

Method 1: How to Recover Music from iTunes

If you have bought a new computer or lost any music files on iTunes Library after performing any operations like updating the device, etc. You can make use of the iTunes application to recover music files from it.

  • Go to iTunes and click on the iTunes store.
Open iTunes Application
  • On the right-hand side of the screen, you will find the Music column, under which select the Purchases option.
Click on Store, Choose View Account
  • Now, you will find all the songs or albums you have purchased or downloaded on iTunes on a specific iTunes account.
  • Now, you can either download individual music files which you want to get back or you can download all the available music on iTunes to your iTunes Library.

Most of the time, you might not see the purchased iTunes music files on your iTunes or Music app. This could be due to the hidden iTunes music files. In such cases, follow the simple steps to unhide them;

How to Unhide iTunes Music Files?

  • Open iTunes application
  • Click on the Store button and choose View Account.
  • (Note: You might be asked to verify your account)
Choose view Account
  • On the Account Information window, click on Manage to the right of Hidden purchases.
Click on Manage
  • Now, you can click on the Unhide button below the music file to restore it on iTunes Music Library.

Method 2: How to Recover iTunes Music from Backup

It is a good practice to take regular backups of data on an external storage device. In case you have lost your iTunes music library, follow these simple steps to recover iTunes music from your backup.

  • Connect the external hard drive containing the backup of iTunes music to your Mac or Windows.
  • Click on My Computer (on Windows) or Finder (on Mac) to open the external hard drive.
Click on Finder
  • Find the iTunes folder from the external hard drive, copy the folder to the default location of iTunes on the computer
  • (Note: The default location of iTunes on Windows is My Music folder and Music folder on Mac).
Music Folder
  • If there is an old library folder existing, it will ask you to replace it. So copy the contents of the existing folder into the new iTunes folder. Later, replace it with the new one to avoid losing the old iTunes library.
  • Now launch iTunes by holding the shift button in Windows or the options button on Mac, it will ask you to choose between Quit, Create Library or Choose Library.
  • Click on Choose Library and select the folder that you just copied from the external hard drive.
Click on Choose library
  • Now that you have successfully restored the iTunes music library from the backup, you can restart iTunes and enjoy the music.

Additional Method: Restore Previous iTunes Library from iTunes Library File

In case you are looking to undo the recent changes or revert back to the previous iTunes file you need to follow the steps below to do so.

Note: Usually in case trying to access the previous iTunes files you might receive an error message iTunes Library.itl cannot be read, in such cases don't be upset, as Apple keeps an automatic backup of your iTunes files.

  • Go to the iTunes Library.
  • For Mac users: Navigate to the Music folder by searching in the Finder menu bar.
  • For Windows users: Navigate to the location \Users\username\My Music\iTunes
  • Now back up the current iTunes library and rename the file from iTunes Library.itl to iTunes Library.itl.bak.
  • Go to My Documents and navigate to My Music and select the Previous iTunes Libraries folder.
  • Select the latest library file and copy it.
  • Go to the My Documents folder and select the music and paste the copied file.
  • Finally, rename the file back to iTunes Library.itl.

Method 3: Restore iTunes Music using iPhone

If you are an iPhone user who uses iTunes on both computer and iPhone. Then, it is simple that you would be having a backup of the iTunes music library on your iPhone even if you have lost it on Windows or Mac. Here is how to recover iTunes music using iPhone

  • Connect your iPhone to the computer where you want to recover iTunes music.
  • Once connected successfully, iTunes notifies you to sync or set up the device again.
  • (Note: Do not sync or set up the device again which will erase everything on your device).
  • Use the transfer purchases option on your iPhone to copy everything you need to restore to the computer.
  • (Note: The transfer purchases option allows you to transfer all the purchased items like songs, podcasts, etc. to other compatible devices.)
  • To do that go to File > Devices > Transfer Purchases from [device name].
  • You will have to re-authorize the connected hard drive or computer with iTunes to be able to play the content on iTunes.
  • Once, you have completed transferring all the data from the iPhone to the computer, you can set up the iPhone to sync with your computer again.

Recovering iTunes music from your iPhone can only help you recover your lost iTunes library. To recover all other music files that cannot be accessed from iPhone or backup you need a reliable data recovery software like Remo Recover.

Note: Regardless of the efficiency of file recovery software, it can only work if you have lost iTunes music files after saving them to Windows or Mac.

Quick Note: iPhone and iPod Touch from the 5th generation is not supported.

How to Recover iTunes Music Files using Remo Recover software on Windows and Mac?

Utilize Remo Recover, a user-friendly tool designed to recover more than 500 file formats like music files, videos, Office files, photos, raw images, etc. including deleted iTunes backup files. Remo Recover is compatible with all the latest versions of Windows and Mac operating systems including Windows 11 and macOS Ventura.

Recover Music Files from Windows

  • Launch the software, Select the drive on which you have lost or deleted your audio files, and click the Scan button to start the scanning process.
select the drive from where you want to recover lost music files
  • After the scanning process completes, all your lost or deleted files including iTunes music files will be recovered.
  • Finally, select the iTunes music files which you want to recover and save them to any location of your choice.

Recover Music Files from Mac

Download and install Remo Recover For Mac ;

  •  Launch the software, and select the Drive and click on Scan option.
home window of the Remo Recover
  • Once the Quickscan is completed, click on Dynammic Recovery View to see the initally recovrered data, and locate the recoved data in Lost and Found and Deleted Files.
locate the recovered data.
  • Double-click on any file to preview it and if you are satisfied with the preview click on Recover to save the file on your preferred location.
preview and recover the data

Also read: iTunes Hacks to Boost Your Experience

Conclusion:

If you are a music lover who has cherished and accumulated a vast collection of music files, losing your iTunes library can be devastating. However, when it comes to recovering your precious iTunes music, the simplest and most effective solution is Remo Recover.

Recover your iTunes Music files that you cherished and enjoy your favorite tunes once again :).

Frequenlty Asked Questions

1. How to Recover Music from Inaccessible iTunes Library?

Follow the steps below if you are unable to access the iTunes Library.
1. Create a new iTunes library, open it and navigate to the File and select Add Folder to Library. 
2. Now Browse the location of your Inaccessible iTunes library and select the iTunes music folder. 
3. Now you can import the music from the inaccessible iTunes Library to the new iTunes library.

2. Is it possible to recover deleted music from the iPhone from iTunes?

In case you have synced your iPhone with iTunes then you can recover your deleted music from the Sync Music folder. To recover the music, connect your iPhone to the computer and open iTunes and go to the Music tab from the selected device. Go to the Sync Music folder. This will restore the previously synced music. 

3. Can we Recover Music that has been Purchased from the iTunes Store but not Backed up? 

Yes, you may still restore the music you bought or downloaded from the iTunes Store without backing it up. Open iTunes on your computer, and choose "Purchased" or "Purchased History" from the "Account" menu. You can then access your previously downloaded or paid music and redownload it to your iTunes library from that point.

About the Author: Molly Owen

Molly is the Lead Technical Specialist with distinguished knowledge and understanding of Mac computers and operating systems. Being a veteran photographer and video recovery specialist, Molly’s expertise in video formats and file repair has helped restore a lot of videos and cherished memories of users. As a technical specialist, she also believes in learning and…