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A
alistairw72100433
Inspiring
January 23, 2026
Question

Catalog not found

  • January 23, 2026
  • 2 replies
  • 58 views

LR says catalog cant be found. 

The catalog at location (/Volumes/One Touch/ ANW PHOTO FILE SEAGATE MINI/ANW PHOTO FILE/2013-03-27 1924/Lightroom 2 Catalog-2-4-v13-3.lrcat) could not be found.  Would you like to locate an existing catalog or use the default one?

Searched in catalog folder and nearest to it is 

Lightroom 2 Catalog-2-4-v13.Ircat  October 25 2024

But this is dated 2024 and I updated folders and photos in LR several times last year so I dont want to use an old catalog.

How can I find old catalog or what are my options.

Many thanks for any help and guidance.

Alistair

 

{Moved from Lightroom Cloud to Lightroom Classic Forum by Moderator} 

2 replies

A
Community Manager
AlekeCommunity Manager
Community Manager
January 23, 2026

Hi @alistairw72100433, thanks for reaching out.
Could you share a bit more detail about what’s happening? Also, what version of Lightroom Classic are you using?
The path you mentioned (/Volumes/One Touch/ ANW PHOTO FILE SEAGATE MINI/ANW PHOTO FILE/2013-03-27 1924/Lightroom 2 Catalog-2-4-v13-3.lrcat) looks like it’s on an external drive or a network location. If that’s the case, please double‑check that the drive is connected and hasn’t been moved or renamed recently, as that can cause Lightroom to lose track of the catalog.
Thanks!
Alek

*(If you mention me with an @, like @Aleke, I’ll get a notification and can respond faster.)*
    dj_paige
    dj_paige
    Legend
    January 23, 2026

    Use your operating system's search feature to search all folders of all disks for files whose name ends with .LRCAT, then open each one found until you find the catalog you want.

    A
    alistairw72100433Author
    Inspiring
    January 24, 2026
    Thanks very much for the email.
    I have searched all files and the external hard drive where photos and catalogs are stored and it’s not there. Only the version of October 2024 that doesn’t have the last “-3”.
    If I add folders and change position of photos which I did last year and saved that would have been the latest catalog version of the October 2024 catalog. Is that right? Is that how LR shows an update to a catalog?

    Many thanks for any help

    Alistair
    dj_paige
    dj_paige
    Legend
    January 24, 2026

    I have searched all files and the external hard drive where photos and catalogs are stored and it’s not there. Only the version of October 2024 that doesn’t have the last “-3”.

     

    My advice was not to search for the exact file name. My advice was to open each catalog you find via the search, and look in it and see if it has the photos you are expecting.

     

    If I add folders and change position of photos which I did last year and saved that would have been the latest catalog version of the October 2024 catalog. Is that right? Is that how LR shows an update to a catalog?

     

    Adding folders and changing positions of photos is irrelevant here, unless somehow you accidentally deleted the catalog of interest while doing this.

     

    In past versions of Lightroom Classic, the software could append a -3 for an upgraded catalog, but I don't think that happens any more.

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