Where is djay getting local music from?

Questions
1

NOTE: Please use the search function above before posting to avoid creating duplicate topics.

  • Device model : iMac 2015
  • Version of operating system : MacOS Monterey 12.7.6
  • Version of djay : 5.2.3
  • Hardware/controllers used Reloop Buddy

Hello Algoriddim Team,
First : congratulations for this amazing software.
I have a yearly subscription.

Disclaimer : Before posting, I first looked everywhere, but still couldn’t find an answer.

Question:
I have an Apple Music subscription - All is clean and ok in the streaming library in Djay Pro
But in the local library of Djay Pro, I find very old stuff from years ago that do not exist in my Apple Music Library anymore.

What I have already done:
I have deleted and reinstalled Djay Pro.
I have tried this procedure : defaults delete com.algoriddim.djay-iphone-free.
I have deleted any old .itl (iTunes libraries).

I have done all the above multiple times, and erasing the Bin every time, deleting Djay Pro, closing Apple Music, Reopening, Reboot… everything.

But everytime I find these old libraries or (playlists ?) back in Djay Pro local libraries on my Mac.
Where is Djay Pro getting this ? How to clean reinstall Djay Pro.
I have the feeling the cleaning procedure is not complete, and something is still remaining there.
I should have absolutely nothing in local music.
This whole thing should be empty.

Thank you !!

Screenshot 2024-09-12 at 15.40.13
Screenshot 2024-09-12 at 15.40.13828×556 43.5 KB

1 Like
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Dear @Slak_Jaw,
We all due respect, I do not think this answer is complete.
I have a similar question that I posted yesterday and is currently flagged as spam and awaiting your clearance. My issue in only with the Djay Pro local libraries.

In my post, I explain that

  • I deleted the old iTunes library (.itl),
  • I deleted the Music library (.musiclibrary),
  • I deleted Djay Pro,
  • I applied the “defaults delete com.algoriddim.djay-iphone-free” Terminal command suggested in some other post
  • I emptied the Bin
  • I Rebooted the Mac

Then reinstalled while preventing Djay Pro to access the cloud, so that it could not use other data.
I even did not re-enter my Apple Music Subscription plan.
But the local libraries are still re-appearing in Djay Pro.
I cycled this process many times. Also dully checked there was no other hidden .itl libraries somewhere.
But the problem comes back every time.
And when I enter the Apple Music Subscription it doesn’t change, the local libraries in Djay Pro were there before, and still remain after.

So, there must be a place where Djay Pro has stored this information during the very first install, and is not cleaning properly during un-installs and re-installs

Can we have the complete list of files and folders (including hidden folders) that Djay Pro is creating, like the tild/library/x.com.algoriddim… folder.

There must be other ones where Djay Pro keeps information from the first installation and need to be deleted (but this is currently not done).
Unfortunately, it is difficult the find these folders using the Finder, because they are hidden. They can only be found using the direct “Go To” command, but therefore we need to know where they are upfront (as they cannot be found).

So, it is definitely not only a iTunes problem, as deleting everything iTunes and Music library doesn’t solve it. Djay Pro is keeping memory from the first Djay Pro install somewhere. Something is missing in Djay Pro uninstall and reinstall process. So we need your info to do it manually.

Please help, this is driving people crazy, especially when these legacy libraries have the names of ex-girlfriends… doesn’t help with the harmony in the house…

Thank you.

4

Hi @Davidv100, I found your post in the spam folder and have released it to the public community. I have also moved your post from the other thread to here so we can keep this discussion focused.

I have shared all of your information above with our engineering team and will report back when I have more news. Thanks!

6

Thank you already @Slak_Jaw.

A possible root cause on Mac Computers / MacOs" might be that Djay Pro is messing with the old legacy “.itl” iTunes Library, whereas this has been replaced by the “.musiclibrary” (Apple Music), on MacOs (if my understanding is correct).

Totally discarding the “.itl” iTunes library would prevent the issue from happening in the first place.
So, a possible improvement for further Djay Pro versions might be to ask whether the user wants to use the former iTunes library or not.

But it doesn’t explain why these very old forgotten playlists are reappearing even when I delete the “.itl” file and try a clean reinstall of Djay Pro. So there might be several issues here, as Djay Pro seems to keep a memory of the first install.

Note : In my specific case, all these “Ghost Playlists” are empty, meaning I have not broken files in them. But I want to get rid of the playlists.

7

Additional information.
This is my Apple Music Streaming Playlists structure in Djay.
The “Ghost Playlists” do not appear there.
Although I would like to also get rid of the “Favourite Songs” playlist, which is also an iTunes legacy, but this is slightly less annoying.
Screenshot 2024-09-14 at 12.49.22

1 Like
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And this is my “Apple Music” library and playlist, as it appears in the the Apple Music App of my iMac (same devise as the one used for all the above).

As you see, here there is absolutely no pollution. Only one Playlist : “DJ”.
This is how it should appear in Djay Pro.
Meaning :

Thank you.

10

Thanks for all of the additional details @Davidv100. This is very helpful! I’ve passed everything onto our engineering team for further review and will report back here when I have news.

1 Like
11

Hi @Davidv100, I posted this in the other topic already, but wanted to share it here as well.

I spoke with engineering again and this is what they had to say after reviewing everything you’ve shared:

We don’t manually read or edit any of the iTunes related database files, be it via the legacy .itl files (iTunes) or the new Music Library.musiclibrary (Apple Music). All our data comes via the system iTunes Library framework - ITLibrary | Apple Developer Documentation. We have no control over what data is returned via this framework and don’t have access/permission to modify it.

It’s possible that something has gone wrong with a macOS process that manages the sync between the Music Library.musiclibrary and Apple Music. We recommend that you contact Apple support with all of the details you’ve shared in this topic to see if they can help to resolve it.

I hope that helps.

1 Like
12

Thank you @Slak_Jaw,
I’d like to say:

  • I think Djay Pro is a fantastic tool,
  • I very much appreciate your (and your team) reactivity.
  • I agree the root cause is within Apple framework.
  • I have indeed posted a question is the Apple Community forum (awaiting reply).

Digging a bit deeper, I have found where these “ghost local playlists” come from.
They are old iTunes playlists that do not show up anymore in the Music App on my iMac.
But I see the Apple Framework has still a trace of them.
They do appear when going into Apple Menu → Preference Settings → Sharing → Then clicking on the “Guest Options”, I see the infamous old Playlists (as illustrated on the Screenshot below).

Screenshot 2024-09-16 at 14.16.12
Screenshot 2024-09-16 at 14.16.121306×1054 112 KB

They also do appear on my iPhone and iPad Music App when I activate “Homesharing”. But I cannot remove them as they do not appear in the Music App on my iMac (which is the master for this).

So, at least, this explain where they come from, and it is indeed mainly an Apple issue (not a Djay Pro issue). For people interested in this, my question to the Apple Community is here

How to delete Homesharing music playlists… - Apple Community.

I still have one question and one suggestion for the Djay Pro team.

  • Question : Can you confirm Apple Djay doesn’t store a copy of these ghost playlists names in some hidden file (as I have done some cleaning in the Apple infrastructure, I would like to be sure nothing is still “stuck” somewhere in Djay Pro hidden files - Alternatively, if Djay Pro does store this info in some hidden file, where is it ? Answer would be helpful - Thanks.

  • Suggestion : These old iTunes files, mainly used for “homesharing”, are probably a pollution in Djay Pro for other people than me. It would be nice to offer a Djay Pro setting to Discard these local files.

Thank you again for the excellent work, @Slak_Jaw and Djay Pro Team.

13

Hi @Davidv100, thanks for the positive feedback - always appreciated! Also, thanks for the additional info - this is very helpful. I have passed your Question and Suggestion onto the engineering team.

14

Thank you again @Slak_Jaw.
Again, I totally totally agree the core issue is on Apple side.
But my latest question and suggestion should ease the cleaning process once I have fully understood the problem on Apple side (with expected help from the Apple community and Apple support).
Also, I see lots of people having similar issues with Apple Music (unrelated to Djay Pro).
Apple Music is globally great, but there are some issues dating back to the iTunes times and migration. Unfortunately, these silent issues re-appear when adding a program like Djay Pro who is pioneering the connection to Apple Music (which is great, congrats. Big selling point for Djay Pro).

So, your team is certainly not losing time with my latest question and suggestion (as it is not just me). Other people might come with the same issue on the path of further expected Djay Pro adoption.

Thanks again.

1 Like
15

For other people having the same issue with the local files (ghost playlists from old iTunes).
I have found out they can also be seen this way :
In the Apple Music App → Menu Bar → Files → Import.
Then you see a ‘Finder’ like window, and at the bottom of the side bar, you will see “Media” then “Music”. The ghost playlists appear there too.
But I have no idea how to reimport them into Apple Music App for deleting, or other deleting ways.
So, again, it is not a Djay Pro issue. It is a iTunes → Apple Music App migration issue.

Screenshot 2024-09-17 at 13.08.51
Screenshot 2024-09-17 at 13.08.512514×1886 326 KB

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Hi @Davidv100, I spoke with engineering regarding your question and suggestion above.

Can you confirm Apple Djay doesn’t store a copy of these ghost playlists names in some hidden file

We don’t store any copies of this. All data is read fresh via the iTunes framework.

Suggestion: These old iTunes files, mainly used for “homesharing”, are probably a pollution in Djay Pro for other people than me. It would be nice to offer a Djay Pro setting to Discard these local files.

Unfortunately we won’t be able to do this as we don’t own this data/files.

18

Ok, thank you for your reactivity anyway.
As I said several times, I understand the root cause is at Apple side (not at Djay Pro side).
I understand this is where the real solution must come from (Apple).

So, I agree your final message is the solution -as there isn’t much to be done at Djay Pro side.
Also, thank you for having confirmed Djay isn’t storing anything : clean and good to know.

Thanks again.

19

You’re welcome @Davidv100

20

For what it’s worth, I’ve been having this issue as well with ghost playlists and have been going back and forth with support. I have no problem with viewing the right synced playlists in the iPad, but the Mac version still sees it. I can confirm that I also see the playlists using the Import dialog as @Davidv100 suggested.

It’s a bit of a bummer because I was looking for way to go between using Serato or Djay, depending on the situation. By the way, I think Lexicon is considering a feature to Sync for Djay with other Libraries. That may be a nice way to avoid the Apple library issue, but we’ll see what they figure out.

2 Likes
21

Hello @konigi,
Yes thank you for reacting - exactly same issue : iPads and iPhone are fine, but the problem does appear on Mac… But again, I am sure it is not an Algoriddim issue. If you follow my link to my post on Apple forums, you will see tons of people having similar issues (no one answered to me, tho, but I understand : I am just one among many describing iTunes to Music migration issues).
Everything seemed fine for years. I like Apple a lot - everything is Apple at home), the problem actually only appeared using Djay (but again, the root issue is not DJay, as I can see the problem independently of Djay).

Anyway, Thank you very much for the Lexicon suggestion - but in my own case, I want to keep things simple tho, not adding other stuff in the mix, but that’s just me).

1 Like