tranferring old Bridge preferences on a new Mac

[Regina 7]

I am most concerned dabout retaining labeling on my folders and files in Bridge.  I can see where the preferences are in User>Library>Applifation Support>Adobe>Bridge folder, but I am not sure which one handles this?  Is it possible to replace the ones on my new mac with the old ones to get that labeling back?

I should note, on the old mac all the info including worksspaces is in a folder: Bridge 2025.  On the new mac there is an "Adobe Bridge2025" folder and a "Bridge 2025 Extensions" which does not exist on the old mac. 

Can I just replace the Adobe Bridge 2025 with the Bridge 2025 from my old mac?  Or maybe just the contents?

Any helpful advice would be appreciated. thanks.

[gary_sc]

By far, the easiest way to do this is to use Apple's Migration Assistant Tool. I've been using that since it first appeared, and it does a pretty good job and is far easier and more reliable than trying to remember what to move and where to put it yourself.

As far as Labels and Ratings, those are stored in each file's metadata. So, if you move the file, you'll move the respective labels and ratings with them.

One item of note: IF you shoot raw images and IF you leave them in the native raw format (e.g., CR2 or CR3 for Cannon), the metadata is stored in the .xmp files found in the same folders as the file. So, moving the whole folder around is very important, not just the image file itself. Remember, the metadata not only stores the labels and ratings, but any adjustments you've made in Adobe Camera Raw.

IF you convert your raw images to the DNG format, these, like JPG and TIF files, are container files, and all metadata is stored inside the file.

I hope that helps

[Regina 7]

hey,

Thank you for the reply.  My files are mostly AI and PSD files, I don't shoot photographs. 

I was going to use the migration assistant, but I am moving to a new mac provided by my company vs the old one which was mine.  So I was running into a user conflict while trying to migrate info. Not sure if there is a workaround for that and is why I was asking about specific files/preferences.  I hope that makes sense. thanks.

[gary_sc]

Ah, that can be an issue (user conflict), and I do not have any experience with trying to get past that. If you company has an IT person, you can see if they know.

If you've been organized and all of your files are in organized folders, transferring them to the new computer is straightforward. 

The one thing that will be a bit of a challenge is transferring custom Workspaces and application preferences (now settings). The Migration Assistant made that easy; now, not so much.

For Adobe Illustrator, it should be: locate the preference file in your user library folder on your old computer, then copy it to the corresponding location on your new computer; the file is typically found at: "~/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Adobe Illustrator [version number]/Adobe Illustrator Prefs."

Your Illustrator Workspaces can be found here:
Workspaces are located within your user library, specifically in the "Preferences" folder, under the "Adobe Illustrator [version number] Settings" directory; you can access them by going to "Finder" > "Go" > "Go to Folder" and entering " ~/Library/Preferences/Adobe Illustrator [version number] Settings/Workspaces".

Moving Photoshop is a bit easier:
To move your Adobe Photoshop preferences to a new computer, you can export your preferences and then import them on the new computer:
Go to File > Export > Export Preferences
Set your preferences for format, quality, and destination
Go to File > Export and select Export As
On the new computer, import the preferences

To move your PS Workspaces:
Find the workspace files:
Open Finder (Mac) or File Explorer (Windows).
Navigate to your user directory: "Users/[username]".
Go to the "Library" folder (Mac).
Open "Preferences" > "Adobe Photoshop [version] Settings" > "Workspaces".
You will see files with the extension ".psw" which represent your saved workspaces.
Copy the workspace files:
Select all the ".psw" files you want to transfer.
Copy them to a USB drive or cloud storage for easy transfer.
Paste on new computer:
On your new computer, navigate to the same location: "Users/[username]/Library/Preferences/Adobe Photoshop [version] Settings/Workspaces".
Paste the copied workspace files.
Important points:
Version compatibility:
While most workspaces should transfer between Photoshop versions, significant version changes might cause some compatibility issues.

Hope this all helps

[Regina 7]

thanks again.  yeah, that was what I was afraid of.  I do have all of my files very organized so that is not the issue.  I heavily relied on the color labeling system inside Bridge to indicate completed/approved projects, projects under review and projects working on.  It was very helpful to see these things at a glance.  Not the end of the world, but very useful at making my life easier.

I have found the preference files on my old mac for Bridge, I just don't know which does the things I wasnt it to do.

thanks for the info on Photoshop and Illustrator preferences! That is very helpful and yes, IT is my next stop.  I just thoght (hoped) there was an easy solution of just manually copying what I needed to the new machine.  A girl can dream!

[gary_sc]

Hi, @Regina 7, again, all of the Labels and Ratings are in the Files: Bridge stores nothing for those files. Sneakernet the files to the new computer, and all Labels and Ratings will be there waiting for you.

[Regina 7]

Ah!  I see what you mean.  I have my files in Dropbox.  I just made a few offline and while the folders have lost their color labels, the files contained inside still have them.  A bit annoying to lose the folder color label, but the files are defintiely of superior importance.  Thanks for that info. 

Dropbox was behaving differently on this new M4 mac vs my old intel imac.  files could be made offline through Bridge on the Intel, but on this new M4 I have to do it in Finder, then go to Bridge and view the available offline files.  An extra step I wasn't aware of yesterday when I posed my original question and which caused the confusion on my part.  I appreciate your time and consideration.

[gary_sc]

OK, be aware that Bridge does NOT play well with Cloud files (including DropBox). If you've had success in the past, that was luck and nothing intended by Adobe. Are you using DropBox to share files? That's OK if you only wish to transfer them to others on a permanent basis. But if you're using DropBox as a server, there will be issues, and that is NOT reliable. Please do not tell me that it's been working fine because Bridge was never intended to be used on servers, either. It was designed and made as a single-user, direct connection with hard drives — period. If your company needs a company DAM, they need to find a professional company DAM. DropBox and Bridge will not cut it.

If your Folders lost their color labels, my guess is that you gave them custom names in the Preferences? Custom names are not transferable across a Cloud service.

Sorry for the extra bad news.

[Regina 7]

I have wittnessed issues over the years using Dropbox with Bridge.  Including presently as I mentioned with only being able to offline in the Finder. 

I am the only one using the Dropbox account. I don't use Dropbox to share files, just as a back up to the local files on my external SSD. My company has a server that I upload completed files to (from my SSD) separate and apart from my Dropbox account.

[Stephen_A_Marsh · Accepted solution]

@Regina 7 

Labels, ratings, keywords and other metadata are stored in supported file formats such as JPG, PSD, TIFF, PNG, WEBP, DNG (except for proprietary raw camera file formats, which use XMP sidecar files) – so these metadata entries travel with the file.

The same is not true for a folder/directory, as it isn't a file.

Bridge uses an invisible file/s to store folder related info such as labels and ratings, or custom sort order:

In a quick test, using the Finder to copy the folder copied the invisible file which contains the labels and ratings, as did copying using Bridge.