Bug Report: Keywords Trigger Metadata Write Errors Despite Disabled XMP Auto-Write

Summary

Adding keywords to images causes metadata write error symbols (exclamation marks) to appear, even when "Automatically write changes into XMP" is disabled in Catalog Settings.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Disable XMP auto-write: Catalog Settings > Metadata > Uncheck "Automatically write changes into XMP"
2. Import a test image (any format)
3. Make basic edits (exposure, contrast, etc.) - no error symbols appear
4. Close and reopen Lightroom - still no error symbols
5. Add a keyword to the same image
6. Result: Exclamation mark symbol immediately appears on thumbnail

Expected Behavior

• With XMP auto-write disabled, NO metadata should be written to files automatically
• Adding keywords should NOT trigger write attempts or error symbols
• Keywords should be stored in catalog only (as per user setting)

Actual Behavior

• Exclamation mark appears on thumbnail after adding keyword
• Clicking the symbol shows error dialog: "An unknown error occurred when trying to write metadata for this photo. Try again?"
• Dialog options: "Import settings from file carrier", "Export metadata again", "Cancel"

Environment

• Software: Adobe Lightroom Classic (multiple versions affected)
• OS: Windows/macOS
• File types: Occurs with JPG, RAW, and other formats
• Storage: Internal hard drive (confirmed not a permissions issue)

Configuration Details

Catalog Settings > Metadata:

• ☐ "Automatically write changes into XMP" = DISABLED
• ☐ "Include develop settings in metadata inside JPEG, TIFF, PNG and PSD files" = DISABLED
• Other metadata settings = disabled

Impact

• Consistency Issue: Keywords behave differently than other metadata changes
• User Confusion: Error symbols appear despite correct XMP settings
• Workflow Disruption: Users must repeatedly dismiss error dialogs

Technical Analysis

The bug suggests that keyword operations bypass the XMP auto-write setting check, attempting to write metadata even when explicitly disabled by user preference.

Workaround

Click "Cancel" in the error dialog - keywords are still properly stored in the catalog and function normally for searches, collections, etc.

Reproducibility

100% reproducible - occurs consistently across different:

• Image file formats
• Lightroom Classic versions
• Keyword types (single words, multi-word phrases)
• Storage locations

Expected Fix: Keywords should respect the "Automatically write changes into XMP" setting like all other metadata operations.