How did my catalogue end up with so many files?

[NZPhoto]

Hi, 

I have been using lightroom for a little while now, and have noticed there is now more files here than when I started my catalog. What must be kept, and what can be deleted?

Note: The green ticks are created by my Synology device which syncs my catalog.

Thank you for your advice. 

[Todd Shaner]

It appeears you have two LrC catlog files, Personal Catalogue-NEW and Personal Catalogue-NEW_Lance. You need to keep ALL Of those files if you want to have access for editing both catalogs.

[Rob_Cullen · Accepted solution]

As per advice from @Todd Shaner 

I have re-arranged the files to make it more visual-

[NZPhoto]

Hi Rob,

Thank you for the detailed image. That really helped me to understand.

I am now backing up to my Synology and not on my HDD 🙂 

[Todd Shaner]

Is there a reason why you have created two LrC catalogs? Best advice is to use only one (1) catalog.

Concerming what files and folders to backup the Previews.lrdata and Smart Prveiws. lrdata folders do not need to be backed up since they can be recreated if you have a drive corruption. Use the below LrC Catalog Setting to prompt for catalog backup on every closing of LrC. I suggest using this backup method after every editing session that would be painful if you had to redo them. More on LrC backups at the below link. You also need to backup your image files to a drive dedicated for backups only as LrC does NOT do this for you.

https://www.lightroomqueen.com/backup-lightroom-files/