Question

Two homes with two NAS. Can I duplicate my iTunes library so I can listen with Sonos at both homes?

  • 26 December 2016
  • 22 replies
  • 1072 views

I have two homes. One is a vacation home, the other my main residence. I currently have a large iTunes library database of over 1,500 CDs that I ripped to a rack mounted RAID Network Storage Device (NAS). Sonos works wonderfully with this system at my primary home.
I have many Sonos devices at both homes. So I bought a 2TB portable NAS unit and copied all of my iTunes data onto that device.I carried that device to my vacation home, plugged it into my network, and told my Sonos controller the location of the copied iTunes Database.
Sonos refuses to play the music saying that I don't have permission to access these files.
I own the music. These were not downloaded files. It is all from CDs that I had purchased.
Can anyone tell me how to correct this situation?

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22 replies

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Have you tried other ways of playing the media? (Streaming the library on a computer when it is accessed as a network share, off the media playing software available on your NAS) If you ripped 1500 CDs that you own with iTunes, I don't think the files are DRM'd. If you're able to play the files through other means, it may mean that the media library wasn't properly indexed or you haven't enabled privileges to specific devices on your network.

For me, I also stream Sonos from a NAS. I had to enable user credentials with proper privileges as well as index all of my media files prior to integrating the network share into Sonos as part of my media library.

Did you clone the drives as well as the settings on your main NAS? If you have several user accounts on your NAS, some may not have access to all folder privileges and might explain why you're unable to access the files directly through Sonos.

Also, when you mentioned that "Sonos refuses to play the music saying that I don't have permission to access these files," does that imply that you were able to successfully add the network share into your Sonos music library or are you unable to add the share because your username and password aren't granting you access when attempting to add media to the library? Depending on where you are with this step, we can probably visit various scenarios to determine the cause of your issue.
Thank you for your quick reply.
I set up the same file heiarchy on the copy as the original NAS.
I simply copied the files from one NAS to the other.
I am able to play the songs that reside on the copied drive from my laptop on the network.
Please explain how to enable user credentials with proper privileges as well as index all of my media files.
I am here now at the main residence in the US with both the original NAS and portable copy until Thursday 12-29-16.
Then I leave for the vacation house with the portable NAS in Jamaica for the next 4 months.
I really need to get this working soon.
Oh, I forgot to add that I am able to tell Sonos where the files reside on the NAS. It is able to see the artist and track info. But when I attempt to play a song, it sends an error that I don't have permission.
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Well, for starters, the brand of the NAS will determine where we begin. Most NAS brands have a generic way of setting up privileges dedicated for each user and its corresponding folder/network share access. In theory, if you used the same login credentials to add the network share (folder on your NAS) containing all of your media on your computer as well as your Sonos library, you should be able to access the media fine.

File indexing is conducted periodically by your NAS when you create folders for files you store on the drive. Once the files are properly indexed so that the NAS knows where everything is and can display it on another interface, your next task is to assign privileges to a user or group of users folder access. By default, all folders are generally accessible to every user unless you manually specified otherwise.

Because the files are stored directly on a NAS and not on a computer dedicated to serving your media, it wouldn't seem like a firewall issue.
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Oh! I thought of something that might work, I had a friend that chanced upon a scenario similar to yours. Have you tried completely resetting your Sonos network at the new house and setting it up from scratch. It's possible that because you copied an entire library over, your Sonos system thinks it is still in the main residence when in fact it is sitting at the vacation home in a brand new environment, and so, is having playback issues.
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Something else that I would explore is whether or not your NAS is on a static IP and using that as a way of mapping the share through Sonos

For me, it would be something like this when I add the NAS as a network share on Sonos.

Add media to library

--> Folder is on a network drive

\\192.168.1.x\Music

x being the latter part of the static IP of your choosing, I generally pick a number outside of the DHCP range so that it isn't confused with other devices

Username: ****
Password: ****

And Sonos should in theory find all your files and you should have no problem playing your media.

The interesting part is that Sonos was able to successfully recognize and index your media but fail to deliver on playback.
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I just noticed now that you mentioned you have a RAID setup for your NAS, did you directly clone the data with the manufacturer's software over to new drives or use another method manually? I am going to assume that the two NAS's are identical, if they're not, it could explain why you're having issues with playback.
I am no expert on NASs, but i did run Sonos as two separate households on Sonos with different brands of NAS, without doing anyrhing special. Just put some music files on a NAS, shared the folder, and told Sonos that was the music library and away we went.
I would be very wary of a complete system new set up to resolve such an issue. Bear in mind that this would delete playlists, favourites, etc.
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Are these Sonos playlists or iTunes playlists, if they're the latter, they're tied to the device that is streaming
Are these Sonos playlists or iTunes playlists, if they're the latter, they're tied to the device that is streamingi was referring to Sonos playlists. It is juzt as well to be aware of the consequences of a fresh setup.
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Yup, sounds about right, my playlists are usually on Spotify or saved locally on a device like an iPhone or computer.
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Wondering if it's an iTunes authorization block. Granted you used iTunes to rip media off CDs, it shouldn't lock your files with DRM since you own the CDs.
Wondering if it's an iTunes authorization block. Granted you used iTunes to rip media off CDs, it shouldn't lock your files with DRM since you own the CDs.I don't see how it can have anything to do with iTunes permissions. Sonos does not interact with iTunes itself at all. It may use the iTunes library as the place it gets the music files, but it's just another folder as far as Sonos is concerned. In any case, the OP has stated that he can play the same files when stored on his laptop,
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That's why I had requested that he attempt to do so in the beginning, to eliminate the possibility that the files are locked with DRM. Some files simply won't play for this reason. He's able to access the share and playback the media through another source which means it's a firewall or permissions problem
That's why I had requested that he attempt to do so in the beginning, to eliminate the possibility that the files are locked with DRM. Some files simply won't play for this reason. He's able to access the share and playback the media through another source which means it's a firewall or permissions problemI agree that is very likely.
Both the RAID server at the primary location and the portable NAS are Buffalo brand products. One thing that I noticed is the primary RAID server has an iTunes server built into the firmware and the portable NAS does not. Well I am about to pack the portable and fly to Jamaica on Friday. I will try the multiple sugestions posted when I get there. I just wanted to be able to re-copy the originals to the portable if I had done something incorrectly. Please keep this topic alive and I will try anything to find a solution. Thank you for your assistance so far...
Have you actually fully reindexed Sonos to the new file location? That is, deleted the share that is your "home" NAS and added the share that is your "vacation" NAS and allowed a full reindex? I wonder if when you say it "sees" the artist information etc, it is actually "seeing" your home NAS info? I have to say that I would expect a "file not found" error in that case rather than a permissions thing though.

I can't help feeling that this is a network or NAS file sharing thing. Worth checking, if your laptop is Windows, that the network is being treated as "Private" rather than "Public", so that network discovery is on (depending on your current settings). Again, I can't really say that this looks iikely on the evidence, but you never know.
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If another device is able to see the NAS, access the designated network containing the specified media and in turn, play the media within the vacation house network, only a few variables exist.

Since other devices don't seem to have a problem locating and playing back the media, one can begin to think the Sonos system may be in a bit of a state confusion where it thinks something is present when it really isn't. Reindexing should in theory, fix the problem once the proper steps have been run through as suggested.
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Have you actually fully reindexed Sonos to the new file location? That is, deleted the share that is your "home" NAS and added the share that is your "vacation" NAS and allowed a full reindex? I wonder if when you say it "sees" the artist information etc, it is actually "seeing" your home NAS info? I have to say that I would expect a "file not found" error in that case rather than a permissions thing though.

I can't help feeling that this is a network or NAS file sharing thing. Worth checking, if your laptop is Windows, that the network is being treated as "Private" rather than "Public", so that network discovery is on (depending on your current settings). Again, I can't really say that this looks iikely on the evidence, but you never know.


I've seen that on one other occurrence where the files that Sonos thinks exists no longer does. A dialog box pops up momentarily and tells you that it can't play a song because access to it is denied, but in reality, the song was either deleted or moved.

Now, given that the OP cloned his media library and took it to his vacation home in an attempt to stream music, Sonos would have trouble finding the old network since the SSID won't match up with the primary residence and prompt a reconfiguration.

That being said, if there really is an iTunes server function built into the NAS, that essentially is another way of serving media (i.e. DLNA Media Server), it isn't crucial that the setting has to be on for Sonos to pick up your music. I have a Synology NAS and it also possesses that function, though mine is switched off. You'll need to create a network share containing your media that can be accessed by devices on your new network in your vacation home. Basically, you'll need to revisit the Buffalo NAS settings and make sure the credentials you have set in place allow for access into the folder(s) containing your music.

From there, you'll want to set a static IP so any device that connects to your NAS can always find it. Think about it this way, if your home address were to always change without notice, your friends and family would have a hard time getting a hold of you, no? The same applies to the NAS. You could in theory use the name of your NAS and type out the rest of the file path, like so.

\\Azure\Music\Bob Dylan
\\Azure\Music\Mozart

HOWEVER, if you have a device (i.e. computer) with the same name as your NAS, "Azure", Sonos will most likely confuse the two and you'll come across the error we have been exploring because though it may see the files, it can't directly access them since it is mistaking one network device for the other. And so, this is why it is generally recommended to use the static IP because it is assigned to each individual device within your local area network.

After a static IP has been set, you'll want to start anew and reintegrate your library because you are on a different network and you will need to teach the system where all of your media is stored, hence the indexing process.

Private and Public discovery within your network shouldn't really matter because you can map the drive regardless if you know the static IP and login credentials that allow access to the network shares. If they're public, they can being readily accessible by clicking them, but if they require credentials, you'll still need them regardless to access the media contained within. Here's an example to support my theory, routers possess the ability to hide SSIDs/WiFi Connections, but that doesn't necessarily restrict use altogether. It effectively removes it from the generic list that populates when a device scans for wireless networks it can connect to. If you know what you're looking FOR and/or have the information needed, it will always be there, just like a secret passageway or in our case, the static IP.

You can enable or disable that function within the NAS, that is, the ability for others to visibly see a specific network share within your network, but that shouldn't have any impact in connecting directly to the folder.
I am here in Jamaica and still have problems. To answer some of your questions: All hardware is Mac no Windows. The Jamaica Sonos system is completely different hardware from the US home. The file folder that resides on the Jamaica NAS was copied with finder from the US NAS. All files are Apple Lossless and were ripped from CDs that I own through iTunes to my US NAS. Then I copied them to a 500GB Buffalo LS-X2.0TL NAS. The strange thing is that I can't even open the Artist folders with finder. I get an error The folder “10,000 Maniacs” can’t be opened because you don’t have permission to see its contents. I have tried everything on the internet to change this permissions issue without luck. This condition is just for the individual artist folders on the NAS. All other files on the disc are accessible.
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Okay, so you're accessing the folder through finder using login credentials that you have previously set up for the NAS correct?

Do these credentials possess administrative rights (read/write) capabilities? Please log in through the Buffalo NAS portal (through its local IP or DDNS if you have set one up) and check to see if the login credentials you used to access your NAS through Finder possess the permissions necessary to read and access files for music artists. It's possible that a network share may or may not have read/write privileges enabled by default. If the share doesn't have assigned users that can access the files, no user will be able to open the folder and they will most also see the same dialog box explaining your lack of permissions.