.lrcat-data clarifications needed

Question

Hey,Found some contradicting information about the folder, so I wanted the expert's advice &#128578;1) Although the Adobe FAQ recommends backing up the folder, and I got an error message stating that  the data is invalid without the folder, I've seen in this post that LRC should be able to recover this information if the folder wasn't backed up with the catalog.What is true?2) What exactly are the "AI-based edits" the attached error message refers to?Any additional information about this folder will be appreciated. Thank you!

johnrellis · Accepted Answer

"whether Lightroom should be able to recover this data if the folder wasn’t backed up" Yes, LR should be able to recompute the exact AI masks, Generative Remove replacements, and enhanced-profile LUTs if the .lrcat-data file has been removed or not recovered.  LR sometimes corrupts that file, and a workaround is to delete it, restart LR, select all photos, do Update AI Settings, and then wait a long time while LR recomputes everything. A few people have reported that when they do that, they're not getting back the same exact masks and removes, though I'm mildly skeptical of these reports.

Rob_Cullen · Answer

In simple terms-2)  Any edits that you do in Lightroom-Classic that involve AI (Artificial Intelligence) eg. Generative Fill, Generative Remove, etc.1) LrC records the AI edits in the  .LRCAT-DATA folder.  Don't delete the file.If you backup the Catalog using the Backup dialog when you exit LrC, the created ZIP file contains both the .LRCAT catalog and the .LRCAT-DATA file, so nothing further to be done. (Check this out by looking into a ZIP backup file.)And https://www.lightroomqueen.com/community/threads/lrcat-data.51796/-  covered these topics well.

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