Moving to SSD, moving iTunes, overthinking beans

April 4, 2013 11:08 AM

I am adding an SSD as a boot drive in my Mac Pro. I am comfortable installing it, and intend to clone the existing boot drive onto it with SuperDuper! However, I'm confused about how and WHEN to move my documents, iTunes library, etc. in the process. Can you help?

I am adding a 512GB SSD as a fifth drive in the Mac Pro using the spare optical bay. Right now, this is the setup:

Drive 1: 640GB Boot drive, with all programs and documents (inc. iTunes, etc.)
Drive 2: 1TB photo drive
Drive 3: 2TB photo drive
Drive 4: Time Machine.

I'm using about 540GB of the current boot drive, of which about 200GB is iTunes, documents, pictures, and videos. Ultimately, I'd like to separate all of those from the SSD boot drive, either locating them on Drive 3, or the current Drive 1 (which will no longer be the boot drive).

I don't know how to proceed though--I don't have enough room on the SSD to do a straight clone without moving those directories, but I know some of them (iTunes library) can't just be moved willy nilly. (I DO want to keep playcounts, etc.) And, again, to complicate things, I probably would ultimately want them to stay where they are (Drive 1) and just move the boot drive and applications to the SSD.

Would it be better to try to take the time to move everything but the iTunes library to another drive (which could theoretically get me below 512GB (yes, I realize it will be smaller once formatted)), and then clone Drive 1 with the iTunes library where it is, and THEN target iTunes back to Drive 1? Maybe I should just dump everything into Drive 3, which has 1.4TB free?

And how do I move the documents and downloads folders?

Bonus Question: I've been backing up to Time Machine (which I know can back up multiple volumes) and to a SuperDuper! clone on an external drive. What's the best way to use SuperDuper now that I'm splitting off the boot drive from all my documents?

Blerg! Thanks!

posted by Admiral Haddock to Computers & Internet (4 answers total)

If it were me, I think I would dump everything onto Drive 3. Install the SSD. Install OS X fresh on the SSD and go from there.

Make sure TimeMachine is backing up all your data, docs, music, photos, etc just in case.

Choose a new place for your music to live since 200GB of the 512GB on the SSD seems like a bad choice. Import your music collection to the new iTune with the preferences set to NOT "copy files to iTunes Directory" or alternately, change the "iTunes Media Folder location" to the new home you chose for the music files.

A lot is just up to you and you then need to be conscience of your new topology.
posted by humboldt32 at 11:28 AM on April 4, 2013 [1 favorite]

It's fairly trivial to relocate an iTunes library

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1449


Also, make sure you have a bootable backup before you make any changes.
posted by wongcorgi at 11:32 AM on April 4, 2013

Admiral Haddock: (I DO want to keep playcounts, etc.)

The this information lives in the "iTunes Library" files (different from the actual music/movies themselves).
posted by Rock Steady at 11:37 AM on April 4, 2013

I did the same thing a while ago. First, I moved everything I didn't want on my SSD onto a larger spinning platter so the current content of my boot drive would fit onto the SSD. (I have a MBP, so I chucked the optical drive to do this.) ln -s was my friend. Next I connected my new SSD to my MBP via a USB<>SATA device. I used SuperDuper! to clone my spinning boot drive to my SSD. Then I swapped the spinning boot drive with the SSD, turned it back on and I was done.
posted by Brian Puccio at 4:13 PM on April 4, 2013