Using Lightroom Classic on Multiple Laptops with Cloud-Based Catalog and Photo Storage

OneDrive is out of the question, it doesn't work well with LrC.

It is possible with Dropbox if you take extreme care, and follow some rules strictly.

Failure to follow these rules will lead to issues, and there's a high risk of catalog corruption.

I use Dropbox myself with two desktop computers in different locations, and I am the only user.

I get the impression that you are the only user of these laptops – if there are several users, I would not recommend using Dropbox – the probability of something going wrong will be too high.

If you want to try this, I recommend starting with a test catalog with some unimportant images.

Here are the rules:

• In Dropbox Preferences > Sync, Save hard drive space automatically must be turned off.
• In Dropbox Preferences > Sync, Default sync state for new files must be set to Available Offline.
• The path to Dropbox must be the same on all computers, which also means that the drive letter must be the same. I use D:\Dropbox. If you have different drive letters, your photos will be missing, and you'll have to reconnect them. This will be easier if all the folders are inside a parent folder, and you will then only need to reconnect the parent folder.
• Before launching LrC on any of the computers, Dropbox must have finished syncing.
• Since version 14 it has also become necessary to pause syncing before launching LrC, it can be turned back on as soon as LrC is up and running. (failing to pause syncing can lead to the error message An error prevented Lightroom Classic from opening this catalog.)
• When you have finished an editing session on one computer, close LrC, and wait for Dropbox to finish syncing before you turn the computer off, or use LrC on a different computer.
  Never leave a computer running with LrC open while working in LrC on a different computer.

This works for me currently, but changes to Dropbox or LrC in the future could cause it to stop working.

Keep an eye on the Dropbox sync settings, I have seen at least once that they have changed, probably after an update of the Dropbox application.

And make sure to make frequent catalog backups.

It's theoretically possible to do this and in the past many people used that without problems, but there are lots of error reports recently by people who try this. A lot safer option is to store the catalog and images on a fast external drive, that you switch between the computers.