Storage

Storage

Overview

In Roon, Storage refers to the location(s) of your local library. Below, you will find a handful of popular storage locations along with their descriptions.

Local Folders

On first launch, Roon will find the default music folder on your respective operating system and allow you to import what's inside. On Windows, that's:

C:\Users\<Your Username>\Music

and on Mac, it's:

~/Users/<Your Username>/Music

Many people forget these default folders exist, and create new local folders where they store their music. By creating a local folder, you are allocating space on your internal hard drive for your music. Wherever your computer goes, your music goes with it.

iTunes

iTunes has been the frontrunner in digital music collection management for over 15 years, so we understand that many of our customers come to us from a background in iTunes.

Most iTunes collections are stored in local folders in a default location determined by iTunes, but some iTunes customers have saved space on their internal hard drives by moving their iTunes collections to non-standard locations.

We've built Roon to handle both scenarios, and you can read more about iTunes storage and how to import your iTunes library here.

NAS Devices

NAS is an acronym for Networked Attached Storage. Consumer NAS devices are plugged into a router or network switch, are accessible by devices on the same network, and have hard drives for storage. They allow for the storage and retrieval of data from a centralized location for authorized network users.

A NAS is like having your own private cloud, and more powerful NAS devices can run Roon Server - a headless version of Roon. This alleviates the need to have Roon running on a laptop, Mac or PC. If Roon Server is running on a NAS device - which are typically left running 24x7 - that you use to store your music, you can simply launch a Roon control on your phone, tablet, or laptop and start listening.

To get started using music from a NAS drive, give this a read.

USB Disks

USB Disks are probably the most common form of storage behind local storage. They can be cheap and portable or hefty and expensive, but they're always a great way to extend disk capacity beyond the limits of an internal hard drive.

USB Disks are just as the name suggests - hard drives that attach to your computer via USB. On Windows and OS X a USB disk will show up as an ejectable drive, and they generally act the same way a local folder would.

Roon also treats USB disks very similarly to local folders, but keep in mind that there can be added instability when using a USB disk. USB ports can degrade and no longer work, wires can come loose, spinning drives can fail, etc. If your computer can't see the USB disk, then Roon won't be able to see it either. If you launch Roon and notice music missing from your collection, make sure your USB disk is running properly first!


    • Related Articles

    • Nucleus Internal Storage

      Nucleus supports placing an HDD or SSD into its case, to create a fully contained solution. If you chose to use an SSD here, the system will stay fully silent. The drive needs to be formatted using the Nucleus web administration interface before it ...
    • ROCK: Storage Basics

      ROCK offers a few different options for storing your music, each with advantages and disadvantages. Whatever storage configuration you're using with ROCK, you'll want to read this article about importing your music into Roon. If you are using ...
    • Formatting ROCK Internal Storage

      To start, let's connect to your RoonOS Web Interface. Next, confirm that your drive is shown. If an HDD or SSD is attached to the ROCK's internal SATA connector, you will see the "Internal Music Storage" section in the Web Administration Interface.   ...
    • Formatting Nucleus Internal Storage

      To start, let's connect to the Nucleus Web Administration Interface. Next, confirm that your drive is shown. If an HDD or SSD is attached to the Nucleus's internal SATA connector, you will see the "Internal Music Storage" section in the Web ...
    • Installing Nucleus Internal Storage

      These step-by-step instructions will walk you through the process of installing an HDD or SSD for internal storage in Nucleus. Step 1: Make sure you have everything 2.5" HDD or SSD with a drive height of 7mm or 9mm for Nucleus Rev A and up to 15mm ...
    Visit the Roon Community!
    Need help? Thousands of Roon subscribers and audio enthusiasts are chatting over on our community site right now, join them! You don't even need a Roon subscription to sign up.