Can I split a catalogue into two

[Laurence12]

I have 126K images in one catalogue, what I want to do is split the catalogue with all images pre 2015 in one catalogue and all 2015 in another. My problem is that I've worked on loads of the images and don't really want to start on them again.

[ssprengel]

You can select a group of images, in your case a large group of images, and use File / Export as Catalog, which will copy all the LR adjustments to a new LR catalog, then you can delete them out of the current catalog.

I’d make a backup of your current catalog before you split it just in case you delete too many.

[D.A.R · Accepted solution]

‌Yes you can split the catalog easily.

Theres a couple ways you can do this.

1. Duplicate the catalog and previews files on your hard drive to a new location. Rename the files accordingly "2015...." (Your choice)

open the original catalog and select all the images you don't want in it and remove them from the catalog with the delete key-  be sure to select remove.

Open the duplicate catalog files and remove the images (the opposite selection from the original catalog) in the same manner.

OR

2. in the original catalog, select the files you want in a new catalog then from the file menu choose export as catalog. Uncheck "include negative files" or you will duplicate the number of images on your drive.

Choose a a location and name for the catalog.

THen em remove the same files from the original catalog in the same manner as above - making sure you select "remove"

[Laurence12]

Unfortunately neither of these options has worked. I've upgraded to Lightroom 6 and of course the catalogue has changed. The systems takes hours then I just get a message stating that Lightroom has stopped working and that Windows will close it.

[D.A.R]

Well clearly taking hours to open a catalog regardless of version is a bigger issue than the original question.

Do you have any backups of the version 5 catalog you can open (with v5)? Once open you can split a described above then convert each to v6 catalogs.

[Laurence12]

Sorry, the catalogue opens very quickly, it is just the splitting that takes forever before the message comes up

[D.A.R]

Ok. Method one should work just fine if the catalog has no trouble opening.

When it is open try selecting less images before opting to remove.

Your machine seems to have a problem with the export of thousands of images as a catalog (hence the desire to reduce the catalog size) so giving it les work to do should help.

[boknows]

used second approach. works perfectly. even knows where all the original files are. thanks.

[afotografy]

Hi,

Quick question here. I'm facing same problem here, but have a question.

- How do I find where are the previews for my files

- If my photos are scattered on separate hard drives, would this work by removing photos from catalogue?

Thanks.

A

[JP Hess]

All previews for the catalog are contained in a single folder that will be located in the same folder alongside the catalog. It will have the same name as the catalog, naming convention [Catalog namePreviews.lrdata].

[boknows]

Works great. Thanks.