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gadgetgeek2000
Known Participant
October 29, 2021
Open for Voting

P: Change the process to upgrade the catalog so the names before and after upgrade are the same

  • October 29, 2021
  • 6 replies
  • 1452 views

I have a large library (over 300,000 photos) and my Lightroom catalog folder is over 160GB. This is important for me to backup, but the current process changes the name of the catalog and folders. Once changed, my backup process deletes hundreds of thousands of "old" preview files, and then copies those exact same files back to the target. This is unnecessarily complex, time consuming, and tedious--Lightroom can ensure the catalog name is the same when it completes the upgrade process. Consider those (like myself) that are sending this data offsite for backup--the cost savings, time savings, and bandwidth savings make this change necessary.

 

I am currently performing these steps manually by renaming the catalog file and supporting folders before opening the new Lightroom version, but Lightroom could do that automatically for me without too much extra work.

 

To help the average user, most of the people I teach Lightroom, or help with their workflow don't even know where their PICTURES are, let alone how to manage their catalog. An automated Adobe solution of renaming the old catalog file for backup would be awesome and simplify the process for the user.

 

  1. Install the latest version of Lightroom
  2. Open the default/last catalog file as usual.
  3. Lightroom prompts to confirm upgrade (no naming option needed) in the dialog box.
  4. Lightroom names the existing catalog file the -Vxx which matches the catalog old version compatibility level. (catalog-v10.lrcat) Also rename all the supporting folders to match (Helper, Previews, Smart Previews, Sync, etc.). 
  5. Lightroom upgrades this -Vxx catalog and names it at the current catalog name. (catalog.lrcat). Upgrade as usual, which updates all the supporting folder names, too.

 

The backup program would only see files that changed modified date/time, would copy over the catalog and anything new, and would be quick and efficient. The user who has been opening "catalog" all along doesn't change anything--they still open the same (upgraded) file.

    6 replies

    Rikk Flohr_Photography
    Community Manager
    Rikk Flohr_PhotographyCommunity Manager
    Community Manager
    October 14, 2024

    There is a new Rename Catalog feature in the October 2024 release. 

    Rikk Flohr: Adobe Photography Org
      alexskunz
      alexskunz
      Inspiring
      November 13, 2021

      I have a 5k display and keep only one week of previews for a catalog of ~40k images - my previews folder is 160GB at present. There's no way in hell I'd keep the previews indefinitely anyway, and I do not notice any negative impacts when a folder does not have current previews. I'm not browsing the old crap in my library all the time. 😉

      G
      gadgetgeek2000Author
      Known Participant
      November 13, 2021

      *lost previews, not lost catalog

      G
      gadgetgeek2000Author
      Known Participant
      November 13, 2021

      I appreciate that in a disaster I have my photos and my catalog, but rebuilding previews is not as simple as you'd like to think on a large library. Even just the notion that you would have to read 300000 files, roughly 6TB of data, one-by-one, calculate a preview, and then write that file to the drive. Rebuilding the previews can take many days or weeks in a lost catalog situation.  It's easier to just ensure that previews are included in my backup strategy.

      alexskunz
      alexskunz
      Inspiring
      November 13, 2021

      It would be nice if LR kept the catalog names tidy and not create filenames with sausage-link constructs like -2-2-v1-v11, for sure. Considering the amount of "messy" LR catalog folders that I've seen over the years, and people who have asked me "do I really need all this?", I agree that it is a process that could get some refinement - or at least options.

       

      I like having the version number in the name. With multiple catalogs, it's easier to see which ones have been updated already, and which ones haven't.

       

      Allow me to note though that the largest part of your 160GB backup folder is probably the previews - which are non-critical files that LR can generate again. I excluded the previews folders of all my catalogs from my backups, on purpose. Saves time, space, bandwidth.

      EnigmaJeff
      EnigmaJeff
      Participant
      October 29, 2021

      I've been avoiding upgrading to LR 11 fearing yet another iteration of Catalog "Upgrade." 

      First, upgrade to 2. Then 2-2. Then 2-2-v10. Now I have 5 "Portraits" catalogs. 

      Getting weary of progress. But I suck it up because I am addicted to Lightroom Classic.

      BTW, the name Classic makes me nervous. It sounds like Old and about to be Put Out to Pasture.

       

      GoldingD
      GoldingD
      Legend
      October 29, 2021

      Upgrade of catalog due to SQL engine, database code changes. This is very typical during major upgrades, not during normal updates, and bot at all during minor update/fixes

       

       

       

      So,  v5 to 6,, upgrade,  6 to 7, upgrade,etc.  10.1  to 10.2  no upgrade.

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