iTunes on a MacBook Pro

For now I have iTunes on my MBP but since my hard drive is limited in size the movies I'm downloading (legal digital copies before anyone asks) are starting to make a pretty good dent in the space.

What's the best way to offload the movies (or entire library for that matter) to my NAS to reclaim the space but somehow make them available when I take my MBP on the road? Music isn't a big deal...I have my iPhone for that. Should I create a second library on my MBP that I can open just before I leave and import the movies I want to take from the NAS? If I do that, will it move the movie from the NAS or make a copy? Will iTunes even allow me to do that?

Is there a better way?

A bigger drive would be a better way. That, or get an external drive that you don't mind toting along. There are bus-powered USB drives that don't require a power cord.

Thanks, but that's not really a good option for me. After having investing heavily in my NAS (for many other reasons) I can't justify more drives right now...

Yes, you can move your iTunes Library to the NAS. But obviously it will only be accessible if the NAS is mounted once you do that.

That's my point...what's the best way to handle sharing, especially movies with the huge space requirements, on a mobile computer?

Depends, I guess, on where you need to access them.

There's iTunes Home Sharing for libraries that are stored locally but not on your machine.

There are third-party options (which may even be included with your NAS) that make the files available remotely via the internet for downloading or streaming on demand.

I personally think your own suggestion was a good one: have the iTunes library on the NAS and create a second library on your local drive and just import files from the NAS to it as needed. It shouldn't "move" the files, just copy them.*

*note if we're talking about UltraViolet movies here, all bets are off. Horrible, horrible system:
http://www.electronista.com/articles/11/11/17/studios.had.hoped.for.an.itunes.alternative/

Where I need to a access them is on my laptop when I travel, so I'd like to pick and choose before I leave so I only carry those I plan to watch.

My NAS will support DLNA/UPnP....is that what you're referring to? Helps when I'm at a location with fast internet but not on an airplane...

lrd said:

Where I need to a access them is on my laptop when I travel, so I'd like to pick and choose before I leave so I only carry those I plan to watch.

My NAS will support DLNA/UPnP....is that what you're referring to? Helps when I'm at a location with fast internet but not on an airplane...

Click to expand...

Drag and drop off the NAS to your laptop. There really isn't anything else to do. Well actually here's the sole idea I have. In fact, it'll accomplish exactly what you want to do.

You need to set up a user dedicated for this. In iTunes, on that user, make sure it is configured to copy files to the iTunes Media folder, and that the user is sharing iTunes on your network.

When you are ready to go traveling, log in to this special user and add the videos you want synced into iTunes. They will automatically be copied over to your laptop and available in this user's iTunes folder. Once done, you will need to have this user logged in, but not necessarily using it otherwise. With its iTunes library shared, you will see the videos under the Shared section of the sidebar in your regular user's iTunes. Just click that and watch away. You will not need to actually be on wi-fi or any network.

When back from traveling, clear the files out of iTunes while logged in as that user and say yes when it asks if you want to delete the files. It will only delete those on your laptop, not the NAS.

EDIT: I just noticed you more or less considered this, though it wasn't clear if you intended to set up a new user for this (you can have multiple libraries on the same user).

chas_m said:

*note if we're talking about UltraViolet movies here, all bets are off. Horrible, horrible system:
Warner issuing iTunes codes to unhappy Ultraviolet users | Electronista

Click to expand...

Thanks for that link. I recently acquired a disc that has these files. I had not gotten around to setting it up yet. I knew there were complaints but hadn't gotten up to speed on why. This cleared that up nicely.

lifeisabeach said:

You need to set up a user dedicated for this. In iTunes, on that user, make sure it is configured to copy files to the iTunes Media folder, and that the user is sharing iTunes on your network.

EDIT: I just noticed you more or less considered this, though it wasn't clear if you intended to set up a new user for this (you can have multiple libraries on the same user).

Click to expand...

If I just hold option when opening iTunes I can pick a different library...that seems easier than creating another user. But that's a different way.

lrd said:

If I just hold option when opening iTunes I can pick a different library...that seems easier than creating another user. But that's a different way.

Click to expand...

Yah. I've never actually used that capability but am aware of it. I don't know if, by having two libraries like that on the same user, that they are active at the same time. I'm guessing not.

Bleah… I went ahead and tested it. They aren't active together. So you have your answer. Create a new library and drag/drop your media of interest before traveling. They'll auto-copy to your internal drive since the default preferences will apply to the new library even if they are different for the regular one. It's exactly what you appear to be looking to do.