Catalog after network changes

[heathers22758439]

I have a large catalog of photos with locations on our company server across many files and directories.  We are about to move to cloud based servers and our file structures will not remain the same.  Will my catalog be useless? Or is there a way that I can make it redirect to the new file structure?

[Ralf F]

Please have a look at this link.

https://www.lightroomqueen.com/how-move-lightroom-to-new-computer/

Some of these inforamtion will apply to your situation, I don't know what you will move with the new server layout.

Ralf

[heathers22758439]

Thank you Ralf for your reply.  I was not very clear in my initial inquiry.  Here is more info.

ON our network we currently have 3 different drives that we have files on. Each drive has a different folder for each  corresponding job numbers for each job. When they move to cloud based systems all of those will go away and everything will be on one server/drive. So right now I have some photos on the M: drive and Some on the L: drive and Some on an E: drive.  When you import photos into Lightroom it asks for the location of the files.  So because of the network changes this changes the location of the files, be cause now they will all be on the J: drive. So the path to every single photo I have imported into lightroom will be changing.

I am just sick thinking of all the work i put into my catalog to be able to find photos and tagging etc that is going to go down the drain when they do the switch. Not to mention ALL the broken links in every freaking document i have ever created in Indesign....

[dj_paige]

You can re-connect entire folders or an entire hierarchy of folders in one action, as long as this hierarchy doesn't change. It seems as if you just have to re-connect the M: drive hierarchy of folders, and then reconnect the L: drive hierarchy of folders and then reconnect the E: drive hierarchy of folders. That's a total of 3 steps. Hardly a terrible situation.

[heathers22758439]

That makes me feel so much better!  Thank you sop much for the info!  I will stop worrying about it and just lean into the change when it happens.

Have an awesome Easter weekend.

[dj_paige]

Glad to help @heathers22758439 

Make sure the hierarchy of folders remains unchanged, that is an important element here. (The folders can be on a different disk, as long as the hierarchy doesn't change)

[Ralf F]

Glad that I could help

Here are two different options for moving your photos:

Moving them within Lightroom Classic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yl5oH_shX08

Moving them outside of Lightroom Classic and then reconnect them:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSYIIrvMxek

There are long discussions about the right way to do it, many people say the save way is to do it outside of Lightroom Classic and then reconnect. 

In both cases you should do a clean backup before you move your photos, but I assume that you do backups anyway.

Ralf