Catalog backup sync issue

[cy_andyd]

So I have a somewhat sloppy backup system that I know I need to tighten up, but in the meantime, I have one specific issue I haven't been able to figure out. Basically, I keep a catalog on my HD for a few years so I can work directly off of that on my 2016 MacBook Pro. I keep copies of every 3 years of catalogs (2010-2013, 2014-2017, etc) on a separate RAID1 EXHD, keeping only the latest 3 years on my HD.

I do this by using the "import from another catalog" option into my backup EXHD catalogs to constantly add to my backup as I make changes to the active HD catalog (this is definitely not the best and I know I probably should switch to some program to auto-sync but haven't ever figured that out).

Somehow along the way I overlapped a set so I have 2017-2020 and and 2020-2023 (I blame COVID, 2020 was rough). And now I have 2 sets of 2020 backed-up on my EXHD and I can't tell what I have synced when.

Is there anyway to compare the data to know exactly what is different between the two (like which has more metadata tagged on it or combine the tags) or to just choose the most recently edited? I am mostly just a hobbyist, with the occasional pro shoot, but I shoot 1,000's of photos a year so I want to automate the solution if possible. Thanks for any help!

[dj_paige]

Is there anyway to compare the data to know exactly what is different between the two (like which has more metadata tagged on it or combine the tags)

Yes, you open the two catalogs and compare them yourself, visually. I am not aware of an automated solution.

Alternative: you can merge the two catalogs (or just the 2020 part of each catalog) into one catalog and then select the option to keep both sets of edits, which you can go through one-by-one and decide which to keep.

Additional comment: these problems would not happen if you use one catalog for all your photos. In general, I recommend one catalog for all your photos, the drawbacks are very few and the benefits are many.

[cy_andyd]

Thanks, yeah I figured it might be a manual task, I've heard that once a catalog gets too bloated it will slow down, and I've definitely experienced that. Or do you mean back the files up differently versus transferring the files from catalog to catalog?

[Ian Lyons]

There are users with catalogs containing more than 1 million files who experience no performance issues. There are other users with catalogs containing 20-30k of files who complain that working in LrC is like wading through molasses.