· My library isn’t working correctly (local/streaming, importing, or storage access)
Describe the issue
I have had year subscription before and never a problem with my library. Now when looking to get back with 3 month trial I have been trying for almost a week to load my library. Sometimes it says music loading complete and others it says “adding music to library”. It’s ALWAYS scanning so cannot play music as it’s too bogged down.
Describe your network setup
Apple IMac to LaCie external hard drive. Sometimes recognizes McIntosh MA5300 sometimes it doesn’t
From the screenshot you’ve shared, there are two things worth noting:
1. Your library is extremely large and stored on an external USB drive
With nearly 1 million files scanned, the initial import can take a significant amount of time — especially when the drive is connected over USB to the iMac.
This can cause Roon to appear busy or “stuck” in Adding music to library… for long periods.
As @Mr.Flibble suggested, splitting your collection into smaller batches can help Roon process the database more efficiently.
2. Background analysis is currently set to Off
This means Roon is not analyzing audio files unless you play them, which slows down library preparation and may create the feeling that the system is “never finishing”.
To improve performance and speed up your import:
Enable background analysis
Go to: Settings → Library → Background audio analysis speed
Set it to Fast (at least 2 core).
Roon isn’t really designed to support this scale of database and will likely face memory exhaustion or an impossibly bloated metadata processing queue before it ever finishes importing. To provide some context, your music library is approximately 10-15% as large as some of Roon’s partner streaming services.
One option is to use Roon only for a curated library subset, while a different system handles the bulk archive of your music. Split the library into multiple Roon servers and then simply authorize your account between those servers. You can also purchase an additional license to keep another server online simultaneously.
Either way, you’ll need to drastically reduce the library size imported by one single RoonServer. Importing in batches, as advised above, is a good technique.
We’re committed to finding a way to make this library and setup work if you’re interested in using Roon. The team will happily extend your trial as necessary. However, this thread will eventually auto-close without any response from you. Please reach out if we can help. Thanks!
