Local Files won't download

[Dykeules]

So I got my local files in my playlist on my desktop, my phone is connected to the same wifi as my desktop, the files play perfectly fine on my desktop, but when I go to download the playlist on mobile, the entire playlist downloads EXCEPT the local file, which just has a little error symbol (!) where the download symbol should be, so I can't listen to the song on my phone. I've done this over and over again and read and reread all the steps, and I do not know what is going wrong.

[Dykeules]

Hey there,

Thanks for the feedback.

The change was made due to compatibility issues with the sync between devices, especially between iOS and PCs as those are dependent on third-party software. Allowing local file discovery instead of a sync was also a popular request among users.

So this has been implemented to alleviate the compatibility issues which are beyond our control and in accordance with the feedback we received, as we continuously strive to improve the user experience on our platform. 

Hope this clears things a little,

Cheers!

[charltones]

Same here - followed all the guides, checked the steps - phone and laptop are on same Wifi.

Playlists sync and I can see the files in the playlist, but when I slide the 'downloaded' switch it briefly says 'downloading' and then 'downloaded' but all the files are greyed out with a '!' icon. If I edit the playlist, add / remove songs etc. it updates instantly on all devices so they are able to talk to each other.

I see the same behaviour when I try to download the playlist on a second laptop - so sharing from Mac to Linux.

[Alex]

Hey there folks,

Thanks for reaching out about this.

First of all can you try removing your local files from the respective playlists. After that, open both the Mobile and Desktop apps and open that playlist. Then upload the local files from your Desktop device. 

You can check out the Solution from @Katerian in this thread for more troubleshooting options across devices.

Keep us posted if anything made a difference. Don't hesitate to give us a shout if you have more questions.

[charltones]

I tried those steps but it made no difference to me. I've tried multiple attempts at deleting playlists and adding different combinations of local files and normal spotify tracks, then downloading these on two different android devices but without success. I did manage to cause one track to be downloaded _once_ under very specific circumstances but I have not been able to reproduce:
I was trying to follow the above steps and while doing so, Spotify Desktop announced that an update was available. I said yes to the update and the instant the update was complete my playlist (and local file) started downloading on both my Android devices. The track played successfully on both devices. After this though nothing else would sync - exactly the same behaviour as before. I tried exiting and restarting the spotify desktop client but that didn't work.

At this point I'm really dubious this feature works reliably at all given I've seen it work once which means that networking, mp3 protection, software versions and all the other potential failures in the troubleshooting don't apply. I'm left with flaky implementation as the only remaining cause! Really want to be proved wrong but I don't know what else to try.

Thanks

[Mihail]

Hey @charltones,

Thanks for getting back to us with the additional info.

We recommend that you delete the playlists with the local files on all devices. You can then move your files to a different folder and add it as a source for local files in the Spotify app. You can learn how to do this here. After that you can start the whole process from the beginning.

If that doesn't do the trick it's a good idea to perform a clean reinstall using these steps on all your devices. They are more thorough than a regular reinstall and make sure that no damaged leftover files remain that might be causing the issue.

Hope this helps. Let us know how you get on.

[charltones]

I managed to get this working, though not as I expected!

I installed the Linux client on a Linux laptop. Unfortunately the latest Linux client has a problem where it segfaults every time you browse for a local files source, but there is a older release from February available here:

http://repository.spotify.com/pool/non-free/s/spotify-client/

Version 1.1.26 _doesn't_ crash and allowed me to set up local file sharing. This time, the playlists I added local files to _did_ download reliably to android every time.

So it looks like there are issues with the Mac spotify client that are stopping android clients downloading local files, but the Linux client works fine (if you use the older version).

[christinapuah · Accepted solution]

I have been trying an embarrassingly long time to download local files to my phone, but I look through all the solution on the internet and nothing works for me. 

And until recently I found one way that successfully download the song and I haven't seen anyone talk about this method before. 

So, as an Android user, what I did is: (I am using the song name "What More Can I Say" as an example)

1. Saved the songs that I wanted to upload to Spotify on my phone music folder (the most basic music folder that build-in to the phone) 

2. Turn on Spotify app on the phone, go to setting and turn on Local Files (which will allow Spotify to add tracks from this device[phone] into Your Library)

3. Go to Your Library and looks for Local Files

4. Songs will be download with green arrow down button, press on the 3dots to Like song

5. Finally go to Liked Songs and ta-da, the songs are saved under the list and can be played anytime. 

[reasonable_criticism]

Revisiting this because my Spotify iOS app for no reason whatsoever randomly decided to disable the "local files" setting again today, so I had to look this up again. Thanks, incredible software. Thank you for taking our money and delivering all this embarrassment and hassle. Amazing.

[esnguyen]

I've tried everything that was suggested. My local files from my computer used to download and I could play on my phone up until last night. I deleted playlists, tried new folders, and uninstalled and reinstalled apps on mobile and desktop. Nothings working.

[AndresM]

Hey @esnguyen,

Thanks for posting on the Community and welcome. 

Could you send us the make/model, OS version and Spotify version installed on your phone?

Lastly, let us know if the issue started after a recent update. 

We'll be looking for your reply.

[Nanihello]

Same here, I've tried every instruction from you guys(Example like uninstall and reinstall the app, delete locals-files.bnk, use another file to import songs...) -- After the update, I can't download any new songs. Here's an image.

Here you can see that all the songs are there but they're not downloaded. There's a big green arrow which suggests songs should be downloaded, but they aren't: If it's downloaded there should be a small grey arrow below every song title.

Please help us, and a million thanks if you reply to this.

[Nanihello]

Oops really sorry that I put this in the wrong category because this problem occurs on PC. Really sorry.

[Kiril]

Hey @Nanihello,

Thanks for posting in the Community!

We get that you're having issues with Local files on your desktop. Please take a look here, as there was a recent change onto how our Local files discovery feature works now across platforms. 
You can also try to move your music files to a new folder on your PC and then try to add it as a source again to see if this will make a difference. To be able to sync (download and stream them) on any other device - you need to have those devices on the same local network with your PC.

Hope you find this useful. Keep us posted if you have any questions.

[Nanihello]

Thanks for replying to my problem. However, I've tried the method you provided(which imports songs from another file) and reinstalled Spotify again but none of them is working. Hope that we can find a solution. Thanks.

[AndresM]

Hey @Nanihello,

Let us know the format of the local files your adding on your computer (e.g. .mp3, .mp4, .m4a). 

On another note, check if the files aren't DMR (Digital Rights Management) protected. In case you're importing your songs from iTunes, you can check if your tunes are DRM protected tracks here.

Keep us in the loop.

[reasonable_criticism]

revisiting this once again a month later because the exact same thing happened again, very epic! thank you spotify! i love when the "local files" toggle switch in settings automatically turns itself back off every now and then. that's useful! please keep taking my money and fixing nothing

[Nanihello]

All of my songs are MP3. Also song not imported from iTune. Thanks for helping.

[Dian]

Hey there,

Thanks for the replies.

Recently there have been changes to the Local Files feature.

The feature now lets you discover local files, which are already on your device. The is no syncing of files between devices anymore.

In order for your files to be visible in the app on your device, the files must be physically present on that device beforehand.

More on that here.

Hope this helps,

Cheers!

[Nanihello]

So you mean that I can’t sync music from computer and now I have to download the music file in my phone?

[reasonable_criticism]

so spotify is just outright removing the feature to sync local files between devices (in a playlist)? sorry, but for absolutely what purpose at all??? why? that sounds completely atrocious