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Question

Impossible to move a file to the destination folder because there is not enough available space

Forum|Forum|2 years ago
January 11, 2024
3 replies
2886 views

Hello, looking for some help. I have been transferring my old jpeg pictures from my iMac Picture folder into Lightroom. I was able to transfer a lot of them and then suddenly I received an error code telling me its 'impossible to move a file to the destination folder because there is not enough available space'. I am on iMac with latest version of OS. Find below the french dialog box with the error code. I have translated it for this purpose. I have 500g still available on my disk so don't think this is the issue. Would really appreciate understanding how I can fix this. Thank you.

macOS

GoldingD

Legend

So, you are moving photos from one folder in your hard drive to another? And you are attempting to accomplish that as part of an Import in LrC? But that is failing.

Have you attempted to use Finder, not LrC, to Move the Photos, and then in LrC, Import them via Add?

And, as to your actual issue and possible solution (but you may have already accomplished this) see:

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Lise34734661z2tyAuthor

Participating Frequently

Good morning, yes that is what I'm trying to do and it worked perfectly well for several hundred photos. Then I suddenly got the text box with the error code. Your suggestion to use Finder means the pictures would be in Finder and in LrC which is what I don't want. I only want the pictures to reside in one place on the drive. Adding makes two copies of the same picture. I have not read your links but will go now. Thank you so much in trying to help me with this error code.

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richardplondon

Community Expert

Add import does NOT make an additional copy of the file, just to be crystal clear. Nor does Move import.

Also in no sense is an image ever physically "in" the Lightroom Classic catalog, regardless of whether Add, Move or Copy was chosen at time of import.

Analogy: a record of you can be included - name, age, street address - "in" a list written on a piece of paper. You (as a person) are still walking around using your name, age and address normally - they have not been taken away, nor do you (as a person) somehow now "live" on the surface of that piece of paper. If years pass but the age originally written on the paper does not change, or you move address subsequently, you have not somehow become immortal - and the address originally written for you on the paper has now become simply wrong. Some information concerning you is present on that piece of paper, and that is all.

The difference between Add / Move / Copy import is (on the same analogy) whether aside from getting added to that listing you stay wherever you currently live / move to a different real-world street address / a clone of you is also created, at a different street address, with this other address then appearing on the piece of paper.

GoldingD

Legend

. I'm using the 'Move' import method as I want to move the photos from the 'Pictures' folder to my Lightroom

This Move, it is from a hard drive folder to another? And not from a SD card?

following applies to Move from an SD card (or similar)

Not a solution to your issue, but a caution point to make. Adobe probably should have never ever included Move. Move can be a dangerous method of transferring files from a SD card or other memory card. If something happens during the Move, you could loose both the originals on the SD card and the hopefully moved files on the hard drive. I would never Move unless I had a backup copy on a hard drive of those photos. I would never remove the photos on the SD card, until at least two copy's exist on hard drives, the working photos, and the backup photos. SD cards and other memory cards are not a safe media to trust, they can fail, they can fail long before a proper hard drive fails. That is part of why Adobe does not allow ADD when a SD or other memory card is used (new CFexpreess cards are an odd beast as OS treats them like a hard drive hence LrC does not know they are not)

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Lise34734661z2tyAuthor

Participating Frequently

Good morning, I only use 'Move' if I want to move a picture from a hard drive folder, such as from Pictures, to my Lightroom catalog. If you use 'Add' the photos will stay in the Picture folder and they will also be in the Lightroom database. Which is what I don't want. I want the photo to reside only in one place.

When I want to transfer photos from an SD card to my Lightroom I use 'Copy'. Once I have loaded my photos to Lightroom, I usually do a back-up and only when this is done do I erase my SD card. So no worries on that front.

Sean McCormack

Community Expert

Just to highlight that at no point are your images 'in' your Lightroom Catalog. They're merely referenced by the catalog at their location on disk. Using ADD does not duplicate the photo. It references it at the current location. Move puts them in the new location and then references them.

Sean McCormack. Author of 'Essential Development 3'. Magazine Writer. Former Official Fuji X-Photographer.

GoldingD

Legend

Do you have more than one hard drive?

If so:

What hard drive is your LrC catalog on?
What import method in the LrC import screen are you using, Copy, Copy as DNG, or Add?
If Copy, or Copy as DNG, what hard drive have you selected as destination?

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Lise34734661z2tyAuthor

Participating Frequently

Good morning, I am currently only using my iMAC 2TB SSD drive. I do not use an external, except for back-ups. So the LrC catalog is on my iMAC SSD drive. I'm using the 'Move' import method as I want to move the photos from the 'Pictures' folder to my Lightroom. Interestingly the selected destination seems to be 'images'. I don't have an option for the Lightroom catalog. I am including pictures hoping this will help. I'm working in French but I can translate what you need. Thank you very much for your help.

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