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Sgniappo
Participating Frequently
March 29, 2023
Question

Updating 'copy of original' in Lightroom

  • March 29, 2023
  • 1 reply
  • 1476 views

Hello!

I use Lightroom cc, and store all copies of originals on a NAS. When uploading, all is good - a copy of the photo uploaded is created where i want it to be.

 

I have done some major work inside LR to update location tags, over a few thousand photos. The issue i have is that when i update GPS locations on photos inside of LR, my originals on the NAS do not get updated (i.e. for what i see 'create local copies of originals' is not a sync, but it does exactly what it says: it creates a local copy of the original during upload, and then leaves it there).

 

I would presume that the same applies also on photo edits: if i upload, then edit the photo, the original remains as it was.

 

To fix this, i see two options:

1. remove my local archive, and then export all the (>60k) photos back to the same location. Tested and I know this would work, it's just a load of work, and which i would then need to repeat regularly (not an option);

 

2. go in lightroom, remove the option of 'store a copy of all originals', change the location, and re-enable it - will it recreate the local archive? for what i seem to read in the manual, this will not re-create it but only change the location where originals will be stored from then on (do i read it right?)

 

Or, is there any better option?

 

Thanks in advance,

g

This topic has been closed for replies.

1 reply

Jim Wilde
Community Expert
Jim WildeCommunity Expert
Community Expert
March 29, 2023

The "Store a copy of all originals" option is purely designed to facilitate offline working, i.e. using the locally stored originals to edit images while the master in the cloud is unavailable, working with the local version of the catalog which contains the edit data. As such that local copy only contains original unedited data only.

 

If the user wants a locally stored copy of their originals with edits and associated metadata, they need to either use the "export as original" option to create a separate independent "backup" or they could periodically run the Adobe Lightroom Downloader (but that has some flaws which in my opinion would make it unsuitable for this task).

 

I don't think there is any other suitable option.

 

    S
    SgniappoAuthor
    Participating Frequently
    March 30, 2023

    Thanks much for the hint Jim. I have recently done the manual import process, and i hope i never have to do something like that again :).

     

    The Adobe Lightroom Downloader (checked the page, seems rather straight-forward) seems to do the trick though, and even if it takes it a day to run through the process once / month i could leave the PC do to its thing... i'd be interested in the structure / hierarchy of the downloaded files, but for that i can start the process and see what they look like.

     

    I never used it, may i ask what flaws you you feel would make it unsuitable?

     

    Thank you again,

    g

    S
    SgniappoAuthor
    Participating Frequently
    March 30, 2023

    Tested the downloader and the file structure is the usual: year / date.

     

    Just seen one issue: when i run the downloader it seems to name every picture as OriginalName-edited (DSCF1111-edited), even if i only changed the GPS locations. I presume that's for photo integrity and keeping the original AND the edited version. But for me that will be an issue, as it will create duplicates (i presume) in every situation (like, if i upload the same picture in LR, in Google Photos, etc. etc. the comparison is usually on file name + date, and the file name just changed...)

     

    Will check if export has the same issue, as it seems to be the last option available...

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