MB's library management

[WildIsTheWind]

I'm a new user, and would like some clarification about how MusicBee manages its library. Are changes made within the program (say, downloading album art, or changing metadata like album number) applied destructively to the original music files in their original location?

I ask because one of the source folders for my library is the downloads location for a torrent tracker that requires me to seed what I've downloaded. Some of the files need adjustments to their metadata, but I don't want to unintentionally alter the original files in such a way that the tracker will no longer recognize them.

If there's any way to set this up without having to keep duplicate copies of every album I torrent, please let me know.

[psychoadept]

Short answer: what you want isn't possible.

MusicBee will directly update the files OR you can make them read only and they wiil not be altered, but you won't be able to update the main metadata, only custom tags marked as "save to musicbee database only". (You can save album art and lyrics as external files, though.)

[WildIsTheWind]

Well, crap. I don't know if my storage space can handle a duplication of my music library, so I guess I'm back to square 1.

Thanks for the response, though. And if anyone happens upon this post who has figured out a workaround for the same problem, please message me.