Deleting files from iTunes but keeping them on AppleTV

[Mightee]

This has maybe been covered in another thread already, but I couldn't find it.

My question is simple: If I download a movie or TV show from the iTunes store and then sync it to my AppleTV, can I then delete the file from my computer and just keep it solely on the AppleTV drive? I don't want to suck up the hard drive space, which includes my backup drives. I just want to watch the shows on my TV when I feel like it.

Thanks!

 

[Cuthbert]

You can... But you are asking for trouble. You can and will lose those shows at some point. It won't be a question of "will," but of "when."

please refer to this thread:
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/867094/

 

[Darth.Titan]

Don't do that. That's not what the AppleTV is intended for.

 

[potatis]

Just turn off automatic syncing and then you manually click the checkbox next to each movie in TV after you added a file to your iTunes library. Then you can delete the actual file. That way iTunes won't check if you deleted it.

 

[VTMac]

Just turn off automatic syncing and then you manually click the checkbox next to each movie in TV after you added a file to your iTunes library. Then you can delete the actual file. That way iTunes won't check if you deleted it.

That way iTunes *SHOULDN'T* check. The reality is that software has bugs, and it's quite possible that a given iTunes update may reset this setting and you will lose your files. This has happened in the past and it's likely to happen in the future. As someone else said. It's not a matter of "if", it's a matter of "when".

 

[smoked]

Just turn off automatic syncing and then you manually click the checkbox next to each movie in TV after you added a file to your iTunes library. Then you can delete the actual file. That way iTunes won't check if you deleted it.

Plus the way syncing works is a little funny, it seems if you change any of the sync settings it will erase everything on the tv except for content you purchased on the tv but not transferred back to iTunes. (I've been playing with sync settings.)

 

[gcmexico]

not true...you just have to know what to delete, and how to set syncing, set it for manual syncing, and let it sync everything you want...now you can get rid of the movie from HD and keep it in your ATV, just delete the actual movie file, don't delete it from itunes itself, find the actually movie file in the itunes folder (users/music/itunes/itunes music/movies...as long as you keep those movie icons in itunes, it will not delete it from your ATV...in any case, always back up your data...if your media is growing, it might be time to get an external drive and connect it to your mac, set the library to your external and you're set

 

[smoked]

All I can say is what I've seen the past couple of days messing around with it. A couple of times I changed the sync settings (not just changing what shows/movies) and both times it erased everything on it except stuff it hadn't transferred back to iTunes yet, then proceeded to re-sync my selected content. Maybe it depends on the version.

Yeah, deleting the file from the disk but not from within iTunes would work, but that seems to be more of a pain and risk to manage than just getting an external drive. One wrong step and poof...