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Alexander30733174d3es
Participating Frequently
January 14, 2024
Answered

Can't install classic in Parallels on mac

  • January 14, 2024
  • 3 replies
  • 5935 views

Hi all,

I'm trying to install lightroom classic in parallels (Windows 11) on my macbook pro (M2).  However, creative cloud doesn't give the option to install classic - just lightroom cloud.  Any thoughts?

Many thanks,

Allie

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer JohanElzenga

    So, can you be specific about what you mean by the 'catalog folder'?  Is this the folder that contains the various .lrcat files, and not the subfolders that contain the cache, etc?

     


    quote

    So, can you be specific about what you mean by the 'catalog folder'?  Is this the folder that contains the various .lrcat files, and not the subfolders that contain the cache, etc?

     


    By @Alexander30733174d3es


    The catalog folder is the folder that contains the catalog file (.lrcat) and the other stuff like the previews, smart previews (if you use these), etc. So what you would have to do is place the image folder hierarchy inside that folder too.

     

    3 replies

    johnrellis
    johnrellis
    Legend
    January 14, 2024

    [This post contains formatting and embedded images that don't appear in email. View the post in your Web browser.]

     

    I believe that Adobe officially supports Lightroom Classic (Intel) in a Windows 11 (ARM) guest on a Parallels / Apple Silicon host.

     

    I have run Lightroom Classic that way for a couple years.  (Currently LR 13.1 / Windows 11  Pro Version 10.0.22621 Build 22621 / Mac OS 14.2.1 / Parallels 19.2.1 / Macbook Pro Apple M2 Max 16" 2023.) It's essential for developing my plugins and helping people here.

     

    The Creative Cloud desktop app installs the Intel version of Lightroom Classic and the ARM version of Lightroom:

     

     

    I believe this is officially supported by Adobe. There was a problem installing LR 12.3 in Windows / Parallels, and Adobe employee Rikk Flohr filed a "high-priority bug" report:

    https://community.adobe.com/t5/lightroom-classic-bugs/p-win-arm-only-install-fails-in-ccd-app-when-installing-12-3/idi-p/13743720 

     

    It was fixed 10 days later.

     

     

    johnrellis
    johnrellis
    Legend
    January 15, 2024

    Some troubleshooting steps:

     

    1. Make sure you have the latest version of Parallels (19.2.1) and Mac OS (14.2.1).

     

    2. Run Windows Update.

     

    3. Install the x86 and x64 versions of the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables:

    https://community.adobe.com/t5/lightroom-classic-discussions/creative-cloud-and-lightroom-classic-in-windows-11-parallels-virtual-machine-apple-silicon-mac/m-p/13713068 

     

    (This may not be the cause of your current problem. but they need to be installed for LR Intel to run. So rule this out by installing them.)

     

    4. After getting everything up-to-date, run the Creative Cloud Cleaner tool to purge the Windows 11 guest of all traces of Creative Cloud apps. Reinstall the Creative Cloud desktop app and try again.

      A
      Alexander30733174d3esAuthor
      Participating Frequently
      January 15, 2024

      Thanks John, much appreciated.  I just don't see the option for installing LR Classic on my M2 Max 16" 2023 with 14.2.1 and Parallels Pro 19.2.1 (Win 11 Education is updated).  I'll follow the C++ and cleaner steps to see if that resolves it.

       

       

      Conrad_C
      Community Expert
      Conrad_CCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      January 14, 2024

      (Edit: Try the advice of johnrellis in his later posts below…it sounds like he has actually done this, and I have not. I have only seen the Adobe documents linked below.)

       

      I think the problem may be that on an Apple Silicon Mac, Parallels Desktop can run only the version of Windows 11 for ARM processors (which Apple Silicon is based on). The version of Windows 11 for Intel x86 processors is what the majority of Windows applications support; many Windows applications do not yet run on Windows 11 for ARM. But running the Intel version of Windows 11 in Mac Parallels requires an Intel Mac.

       

      There is an Adobe help article about support for Windows on ARM processors:

      Will Adobe apps work on Windows computers that use ARM processors?

       

      It says:

      quote

      Lightroom (version 4.1 and later) and Photoshop (version 22.4 and later) run natively on Windows computers that use ARM processors. We are testing and optimizing other apps for these new processors.

       

      This is one of those times where the exact naming of Lightroom is important. They’re saying Lightroom…not Lightroom Classic. That probably explains why you saw Lightroom in the installer and not Lightroom Classic, because Adobe is saying that at this time, only Lightroom (not Classic) and Photoshop are currently supported in Windows for ARM processors. I have seen Lightroom Classic running in a Windows virtual machine, but it was on an Intel Mac, not Apple Silicon.

       

      In the last line of that quote, Adobe says they’re working on adding Windows ARM support to more Creative Cloud applications. If you want Adobe to make Windows ARM support for Lightroom Classic a higher priority, you can post a feature request in the Ideas section of this community where it can be upvoted, but you might want to check in case someone else already started that and vote up that one.

       

      Also, just FYI, Adobe does not offer full support for running Creative Cloud applications on virtual machines. If it works, great, but if it doesn’t, you’re on your own.

      Technical support boundaries for virtualized or server-based environments

        P
        Peter_Linz
        Participant
        January 14, 2024

        Why do you want to install it on Windows 11 partition and not use the Mac verson of LrC?

        A
        Alexander30733174d3esAuthor
        Participating Frequently
        January 14, 2024

        well, that doesn't address the question (which is a common issue on forums like this).  To satisfy your curiosity, I sync my pics and library across mac & pc platforms, and the way that mac & pc's differ in their path specifications makes it impossible to use mac & pc installations of lightroom classic with a sync'd library.

        JohanElzenga
        Community Expert
        JohanElzengaCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        January 14, 2024
        quote

        well, that doesn't address the question (which is a common issue on forums like this).  To satisfy your curiosity, I sync my pics and library across mac & pc platforms, and the way that mac & pc's differ in their path specifications makes it impossible to use mac & pc installations of lightroom classic with a sync'd library.


        By @Alexander30733174d3es


        Actually, it is possible, so it's good that somebody was so curious to ask you why you wanted to do this. Normally, Lightroom Classic uses an absolute path to the images, and you are right that these paths differ on Mac and Windows because of the difference in disk names (Mac) versus drive letters (Windows). There is a solution however. If you store the images in a folder (or folder hierarchy) that is inside your catalog folder, then Lightroom Classic will use relative paths (paths that start at the catalog folder rather than the disk). That means that the paths are identical for Windows and Mac.

         

        -- Johan W. Elzenga
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