Lightroom classic catlog size

[Flash and Flicker]

I am using LightRoom classic on iMac and my catlog sizeis 114GB. I set option AUtomatically Discard 1:1 Previews after 30 days. But still catlog size is not decresing.

[kglad]

in the future, to find the best place to post your message, use the list here, https://community.adobe.com/

p.s. i don't think the adobe website, and forums in particular, are easy to navigate, so don't spend a lot of time searching that forum list. do your best and we'll move the post (like this one has already been moved) if it helps you get responses.

<"moved from cc desktop">

[JohanElzenga]

How many pictures does your catalog contain? Depending on that number of images in your catalog, 114 GB is not extreme. The 1:1 previews are not (only) what is causing this. You also use a very large size for your standard sized previews (5120 pixels), so that influences the size of the previews a lot too. You can use 'Limit Preview Cache Size' if the catalog folder takes too much space.

[Flash and Flicker]

I have imported 49734 photographs in my catlog. I edit photogarphs and delete folders from my hard drive but keep it in my backup. So actively only few  thousands are on disk. Now I changed it to Limit Previoew cache size to 50GB but still my LIghtRoom is very slow. 

[JohanElzenga]

I never suggested that this would improve the speed of Lightroom, and you never asked. You only mentioned the size of the catalog folder, so I explained how you can reduce that size if needed.

[GoldingD]

Are you referring to:

The actual catalog, the .lrcat file

or

The Library previews folder

or

The entire base folder containing the catalog, the library previews, any smart previews, any photos, etc.

An annotated screenshot might help

[Flash and Flicker]

I am new and have to find differences in .lrcat and ibrary preview. 

[Conrad_C]

In the screen shot you attached, the size of your catalog is not shown. 

What it shows, as labeled, is the size of the Preview Cache, which is the file with the name that ends in …previews.lrdata that’s stored in the same folder as the catalog. So what’s 114GB is the preview cache.

The question is the same, though: Why hasn’t the preview cache gone down in size? There are multiple possible explanations:

• Maybe the preview cache still contains many 1:1 previews that are less than 30 days old, so it isn’t time to purge them yet. 
• Maybe the preview cache contains a large number of previews that are not 1:1 previews, such as thumbnails or standard previews. Any previews that are not 1:1 previews are, of course, not subject to the 1:1 previews purge schedule. 

If you really need that space back, you can just delete the …previews.lrdata file. This is safe to do because Lightroom Classic will simply start rebuilding the preview cache again from zero, and it will grow again as you browse more photos.

Adobe recently added that new Limit Preview Cache Size option that isn’t selected in your screen shot. I use that now, to prevent the previews cache from continuing to grow. However, if you start using that limit, be aware that it will not always be as small as the limit you set because it tends to hang on to previews less than 30 days old in case you need them. But it does work. I set a size limit of 20GB, and for a while it was around 40GB, but I just checked and it's now down to 23GB.

[Flash and Flicker]

Thank you for reply. where can I find .lrdata file?

[Ian Lyons]

You'll find it in the same folder as the catalog (.lrcat) file. I've attached a screenshot that might help.