Recovering ITunes Purchases in Linux

Tools Used for the Below Example:

• Working Ubuntu 8.10 Installation
• HFS Plus (i.e. formatted on a Mac) IPod (also tested with NTFS (Windows formatted) IPod)

Note: Yes, you can do all of the below quickly and easily with the command line. However, many Linux users, particularly newbies, are unfamiliar with the command line. Learning the command line is a major barrier for most newbies and does turn them off Linux. For that reason, all of my guides will rely on the Synaptic Package Manager and pre-packaged installs as much as possible.(Under the Synaptic Package Manager, click Settings > Repositories. Under the Ubuntu Software tab, check all the boxes.)

Step 1: Backup the IPod.

Connect your IPod to your computer. If your IPod is formatted for Windows, it should automatically show up as a usb device. If your IPod is formatted for Mac, like mine was, your computer may or may not recognize it. The latest version of Ubuntu recognizes HFS and HFS plus formatted drives. It loaded my IPod without any problems.

Open the file manager and navigate to your IPod. Click View > Show Hidden Files. Now, open iPod_Control. Select the folders Accessories, Artwork, Device, iTunes, and Music and the file iPodPrefs. Copy these and paste them to another folder.

Congratulations! You now have backups. If, or perhaps I should say when, something goes wrong, you can restore your music.

Step 2: Install Wine and configure drives.

Follow the instructions on Wine’s website to install and configure Wine. When you configure Wine, select Windows XP under the applications tab. Then, go to the Drives tab and click autodetect. Disconnect your IPod.

Step 3: Install User Agent Switcher Firefox Plugin

Install User Agent Switcher in Firefox. Why? Apple’s website registers Linux users as Mac users. Use the plugin to trick their site into thinking you’re a PC.

Step 4: Install Quicktime (without ITunes)

Download Quicktime without ITunes for Windows XP from Apple’s website. Install it.

Step 5: Install ITunes and authorize computer.

Download an old version of ITunes for Windows XP. I use ITunes 7.0 available from CNet’s Download.com. Do not download the latest version of ITunes unless you know how to hack the install! Open ITunes and click Edit. Select Preferences. Click IPod. Under IPod, click the Music tab. Then, turn off Auto Updating.

Now, click Store and authorize the computer using your old ITunes login id and password.

Step 6: Plugin IPod.

Plug your IPod back in. ITunes should detect it.

Step 7: Consolidate Library in ITunes.

Click File > Add Folder to Library. Open iTunes_Control on your IPod. If your IPod doesn’t show up in ITunes, you can use your IPod backup for this, but you should make a spare backup first. Select the Music file and click okay. Click Advanced > Consolidate. This copies all of your music from your IPod to your computer.

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