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1 Apple TV - 1 Mac - 2 iTunes Libraries

F

fstfrwrd

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jun 6, 2008
186
0
Belgium
ok, i got 1 macbook pro with 2 itunes libraries on there.

one of them, i'd like to stream to the Apple TV.
i don't want to stream the other one.

is this possible with apple tv?
can you specificy WHICH itunes library you stream, or does it just stream the one currently in use?

thanks in advance
 
Assuming that the two libraries are in separate user accounts, then the AppleTV will only work with a library that you explicitly set up to sync/stream with the AppleTV.
 
BaldiMac said:
Assuming that the two libraries are in separate user accounts, then the AppleTV will only work with a library that you explicitly set up to sync/stream with the AppleTV.
Click to expand...

no they aren't in two separate user accounts.
 
I believe that the only supported way to do what you want would be to move one of the libraries to another user account. Only a currently loaded library could be streamed through iTunes.

Out of curiosity, is there a reason that you want to keep them under the same user?
 
Hi I have the same problem 1PC, 1ATV and I want 2 libraries from the 1 user account. This way my shared/streamed library could remain "secret". I could turn it on and off.
When I move from the streamed library.itl back to the Synced library.itl it will not recognise apple tv, and requires re-authorisation and resyncing.
Using 2 user accounts can be painful, with file permissions etc.
 
hi mstrze

I want 2 libraries- 1 for photos music- it has been synced.
The second library is on a Guest account for movies. If I disconnect this in iTunes by right-clicking Apple TV then I can turn off streaming, then the content is not visible to 3rd parties using ATV.

The problem is when I open my 1st library again (music photos), ATV disappears from Device list an Prefs. The library is greyed out on ATV under "Computers".

I can switch from sync(lib 1) to stream(lib 2) mode but not back again. I have to reauthorise and resync. lAll help appreciated. Is this a DRM issue?

RE: Apple Documentation- "Apple TV does not count as an iTunes computer authorization. You can sync 1 iTunes library, plus stream up to 5 iTunes libraries at one time".
"Photos can't be streamed to Apple TV if the client computer is setup for syncing".
 
Sorry, I don't have a solution to your dillema unfortunately, but I was just wondering about your setup. How are you able to create 2 iTune libraries under one user account. This is something I might want to do myself...
 
Your problem is not how you setup the ATV but how you want to access your iTunes libraries.

You can set up your ATV/iPod/iPhone etc to sync with one of the libraries and not with the other. However, the difficulty is that you can only access one library at a time through iTunes.

You can have two libraries but you can only 'see' one at a time.

What I would try is creating another user account and log in to it and set up an iTunes library there. Use that for syncing. Keep it open with live user switching running in the background. Stream from your normal user account and iTunes library.

Try that and see if it works.
 
hi bbb

Thanks for reply, I DO have 2 user accounts.
I access the Guest *.itl via "Shift + iTunes", then select from "open library" dialog, (as I am administrator). I stay under my account.
The issue is when I want to switch back to "syncing *.itl", ie. quit iTunes and open 1st (syncing) library- different user account.
iTunes cannot find ATV anymore, it's stuck in streaming mode (Prefs, ATV tab), despite the correct *.itl (library) being opened. Even a reboot, restart of PC/Bonjour/ATV does nothing.
I can stop streaming by disconnecting or right-click ATV in Devices. However, this does not then switch back to syncing mode. ATV disappears.
I have tried several different orders of switching with no luck. I really would like to be able to switch off streaming library without losing my whole syncing library. Why does iTunes need to recreate the library from scratch, it is supposed to be synced- can it not tell that the content already exists on the ATV- the library name and IP is unchanged. :confused:
 
So what '3rd parties' are accesing your libraries that you want to be able to disconnect? It seems that the need to disconnect these 3rd parties is your problem because then you have to jump through hoops to re-sync the ATV. Don't allow these 3rd parties access to begin with. :confused:

And I guess I am still not sure why you need two libraries. :/

But since you do, Bye Bye Baby's solution of setting up another user account with the stuff you want synced to ATV seems the most doable.
 
hi again mstrze

I was hoping to hide certain "movies" from the missus.
I did find out what my problem was. It was that the "shared library" was
"accessed" from the same account as the "sync library". It was stored/created in a different account. But unless I "switched user" did it function, even though there was only ever one instance of iTunes open (+ 1 library).
I did also find the "sync" library needed music to be synced as there was missing metadata/artwork, and even half some playlists. Means I lose the ability to stream photos, sync all instead unsync secret ones.

I can however still stream 720p with only a 2 second buffer, and ability to f fwd virtually real-time. I knew when buying this I should have shelled out for the Mac mini. but bought lots of other toys recently for Project Studio. Wanted to wait for the 2nd gen one at the time. Thanks for the help, and u2 bbb for confirming it works.
 
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