Should You Sync Your iTunes Music Library?

The more we do with our Macs and Windows PCs, the more critical backup and synchronization of files.

Take iTunes. Is your music backed up? Do you share between Macs? How do you keep it in sync?

This may be our week at Mac360 to cover synchronization and backups on your Mac.

Ron and Bambi gave me the assignment because I grumble that nobody backs up. See what you get for having an opinion?

Later this week I’ll do a review on the popular and capable Synk which has an interesting new speeeeeedy backup feature.

Today it’s iTunes backup and synchronization, both Mac and Windows.

I’m the resident Windows user so I’m stuck with the work because I have both machines handy.

Yes, I know what you’re thinking. “Just get me a super sync utility that works well, protects my music, keeps me in sync.”

Sync, sync, sync. It’s all I ever hear here.

On with the show. It’s SuperSync time!! Satisfied?

Simply put, SuperSync lets you compare and synchronize iTunes music libraries on a home network or across the internet.

iPod to Mac. iPod to Windows PC.

I know you’re thinking this: “Why bother to synchronize at all? Can’t you just copy files from one Mac to another, or let iTunes sync to iPod?”

Yes and no. I like to be definitive.

Let iTunes synchronize all your music to your iPod. It’s fast, easy, and it works very well, Mac or Windows PC.

SuperSync becomes a central hub for all your music. It retrieves, organizes, syncs all the different music files across many different machines.

SuperSync contains built-in “client server” software which lets you retrieve a song on your laptop, pay a song from your home computer while you’re at work.

You can even copy your entire music library to a new computer.

It’s an excellent way to back up your music, spread it to other Macs or Windows PCs, and keep it all synchronized wherever you are.

And, when you set up SuperSync correctly, it will play music for you from your central Mac or PC to wherever you are.

That’s cool but comes with a caveat. Or two.

Your central hub Mac will need to be accessible from the internet, which usually requires a static IP address (not easy to obtain for most of us, even with broadband access).

What interests me the most is the music library backup feature.

Apple’s iTunes DRM limits your iTunes Store music to five Macs or Windows PCs.

Backups are critical, certainly, and so is proper synchronization of music between machines.

More and more, we’re becoming multi-PC, multi-Mac families, so being able to move music and data around is important.

SuperSync does a nice job of backups and syncs. There’s the added bonus of serving your music across the internet, something iTunes once did, but does no longer.

The demo of SuperSync will give you a good flavor of capabilities, though not all the features.

The $29 price tag is pricey for just backups, but worthy for synchronization and serving music across the internet.

SuperSync won’t alter any of your music files. It just moves them around, including those bought from the iTunes Store (you’ll need iTunes or an iPod to play the music)

Another caveat has to do with iTunes files that are not music, including TV shows and movies.

SuperSync does music. It even does Windows. Not movies or TV shows; only MP3s, and M4A files in iTunes.

This is just one of many ways to help you synchronize and use important files on your Mac. How are you backing up music from iTunes?