Lightroom Classic images stored on NAS - OFFICIAL Yes or No?
Hey Folks,
I'm trying to determine the official line on whether you can store photos on a NAS and import them to your Lightroom CC catalog. You'd think this would be a simple enough question, but no...
Some users say you can, while others appear to have constant issues. If you contact Adobe support, they will tell you the answer is NO; you cannot store images on a NAS and import them to your LR Classic catalog.
However, the LR Classic FAQ (here) states, "Can I store or share a catalog on a network? No, you can't store catalogs on a network, but you can store or share your photos on a network."
If you point this FAQ out to Adobe support, their response is a frankly ridiculous claim that by "network," they actually mean "cloud."
Now, I ask you, what company that runs a gigantic cloud storage service would suddenly decide to refer to it as a "network" instead of a cloud in a support FAQ?
There's no way this FAQ was ever written to mean that. Additionally, while you can store LR Classic images in the cloud, they have to be synced from the catalog in the first place, so that excuse doesn't even make sense in a real-world workflow scenario.
To add more confusion to this topic, you have Adobe Evangalist Terry White writing on his website about how he stores all his Lightroom photos on a NAS. You know... the thing Adobe support says is not possible or supported...
Once and for all, I'd like to get to the bottom of this. I understand that a NAS can be a complex thing, and it can introduce many variables to a computer system that makes troubleshooting difficult. At the moment, it seems as though Adobe support simply falls back on the notion that "it's not possible" when they cannot troubleshoot the issue.
I also note that if you explain you are having an issue with accessing NAS-stored images, they will gladly book a time slot with you to take control of your computer and take a look. When they can't figure it out, they fall back on the idea that you cannot store LR Classic images on a NAS. In which case, if they knew NAS image access was the original issue raised, why did they even escalate the ticket to book a call, and then waste time poking around and screen sharing?
I fully expect to get replies from people saying it works fine for them, and others who say it has issues. I'd be particularly interested if anyone has ever gotten any straight answers from Adobe about this issue, or can point to any other online sources (like the FAQ I pointed to) that say it should work.
Thanks all!
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