P: AI Masks Require updating and/or disappear

[Shelemiah]

Hello,

I recently had a call with Adobe support with no luck. I have found some threads on this but nothing presents a solution and it seems hard to find what the actual issue is.

If I edit a client gallery and use any healing brush tool or AI masking tool, the mask or healing brush/generative AI will get a red dot underneath after going back to the start of the gallery, my AI edits are gone....

I also noticed this happens 100% of the time when I quite and reopen lightroom, I can fix the mask, update ai settings but it just resets each time I open lightroom.

We tested a new catalogue, we tested a bunch of things with no luck. 

We really need a fix on this Adobe it is killing workflow, not sure what broke this setting. I can't revert to an old version because I have lots of photos (I do 1 catalogue per year) and can't go back weeks of client work.

Also this catalogue was started at the begining of 2025 so there is no version 13 of this catalogue to revert to and test.

PLEASE HELP ADOBE!

[johnrellis]

@michelleg7073996: "What does moving [the <catalog>.lrcat-data file] to the desktop do?"

Moving the <catalog>.lrcat-data file that's inside the catalog folder to the Desktop is just a convenient way of moving that file out of the catalog folder so that the next time LR starts, it will rebuild a new one. You could delete it to the Trash / Recycle Bin, but sometimes that confuses people if they want to move it back.

Note that you're not moving anything else inside the catalog folder, including the <catalog>.lrcat file.

[michelleg7073996]

I don't want a new catalog. Why would that even help? I am clearly missing something. But since my topic is merged I will go take a look at the other thread i guess.


Sent from my Galaxy

[johnrellis]

@michelleg7073996: "I don't want a new catalog."

Why do you think those steps give you a new catalog? As mentioned before, they delete the previously computed AI data, forcing LR to recompute it. That is time consuming, but you won't lose your edits.

Again, there are two files in the catalog folder:

<catalog>.lrcat is the main database storing all your metadata and Develop settings.

<catalog>.lrcat-data stores the computed AI data for masks, AI remove, denoise, raw details, super resolution, and lens blur. That's the file that can get corrupted.  By moving it out of the catalog folder or deleting it entirely, that forces LR to rebuild it using all the settings stored in the <catalog>.lrcat file.

[michelleg7073996]

The previous instructions said that moving the catalog file to desktop would mean it wasn't in my catalog location and would create a new catalog. I just said I don't want a new catalog. Nor do i want to recompute everything again. Something is lost in translation. I simply asked why i was having to do that update task every time i used denoise.



Sent from my Galaxy

[johnrellis]

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@michelleg7073996: "The previous instructions said that moving the catalog file to desktop would mean it wasn't in my catalog location and would create a new catalog."

The instructions most certainly did not say that. They said:

These symptoms can occur when LR can't write the .lrcat-data file for some reason, either because LR has corrupted it or there is a permissions issue. LR stores computed AI settings in that file. Try these steps, which help many but not all:

1. Do the menu command Help > System Info. If you're not on the latest version (currently 14.3.1), do Help > Updates.

2. In LR, do Edit > Catalog Settings > General > Show. That will open Windows File Explorer / Mac Finder on the current catalog folder.

3. Exit LR.

4. Move the file <catalog>.lrcat-data to the Desktop.

5. Start LR.

6. In Library Grid view (not Loupe view), select all photos and do Photo > Develop Settings > Update AI Settings. That will recompute all the AI masks, which could take a while.

Following those instructions, here's what you'll see at step 2, in Mac Finder:

Windows File Explorer looks similar.

[michelleg7073996]

From previous reply:


[Adobe Product Community] Adobe Product Community


johnrellis (LEGEND) mentioned you in a post! Join the conversation below:

________________________________

[Lightroom Classic Discussions]<> Re: Why am I having to update each photo every time I denoise? What am I doing wrong?<>

@michelleg7073996<>: "What does moving [the .lrcat-data file] to the desktop do?"

Moving the .lrcat-data file that's inside the catalog folder to the Desktop is just a convenient way of moving that file out of the catalog folder so that the next time LR starts, it will rebuild a new one. You could delete it to the Trash / Recycle Bin, but sometimes that confuses people if they want to move it back.

Note that you're not moving anything else inside the catalog folder, including the .lrcat file.


Sent from my Galaxy

[johnrellis]

Precisely right -- I repeatedly referred to the .lrcat-data file inside the catalog folder, which stores computed AI settings.   Nowhere did I call it "the catalog" and nowhere did I say "the catalog" would be rebuilt.

[emmamariephoto]

I am actually so frustrated with this. It is distrupting my workflow so badly. I need to edit a photo and basically save it right away. I have a wedding gallery of 1,000 photos, I edited 300 just to go back the next day and see all my edits gone and I can't even go through and update them. All the masks are saying " needs to be recomputed" so I have to start all over again.  In my busiest season, 9 months pregnant trying to get these off to clients I am about to loose my marbles. 

[johnrellis]

@emmamariephoto, see here for a workaround that helps many but not all:

https://community.adobe.com/t5/lightroom-classic-discussions/p-ai-masks-need-updating-constantly-eve... 

Follow the steps precisely. You won't lose your existing edits or catalog.

[marion25155790ji34]

Bonjour à toutes et à tous,

Depuis plusieurs semaines, je rencontre un gros souci en mode développement sur Lightroom Classic.
Quand je retouche mes photos avec les outils IA de suppression et/ou de masquage, tout fonctionne au début, mais dès que je reviens sur une image, un message s’affiche : "Certains paramètres de suppression doivent être mis à jour"

Un petit point rouge apparaît sous "Masquage" ou "Suppression", et Lightroom me demande de mettre à jour les paramètres IA.
Je clique donc sur le bouton de mise à jour, je continue à avancer sur mes photos… mais le problème revient sans cesse sur les précédentes.

C’est juste ingérable, surtout en pleine saison de mariages, car je dois mettre à jour chaque photo une par une, ce qui bloque complètement mon flux de travail.

J’ai déjà testé plusieurs choses avec le support Adobe :

• Création d’un nouveau catalogue

• Mises à jour du logiciel Lightroom et de mon Mac

• Création d’un nouveau dossier dans le catalogue (ancien et nouveau)

• Renommage et déplacement des images

Mais rien n’y fait…

Si quelqu’un a déjà rencontré ce bug ou connaît une solution, je lui serais vraiment infiniment reconnaissante 

Merci d’avance pour votre aide !
Marion

[Aleke]

Hi @marion25155790ji34! Welcome to the community, and sorry you're experiencing this frustrating issue.

Lightroom Classic stores AI masks in the 'Catalogname.lrcat-data' file. Sometimes, this file can get corrupted or have incorrect preferences, causing masks to need constant updates.

To test this, move the file out of your catalog folder and start Lightroom Classic. You'll see a dialog about the missing data; just click 'Continue'. Lightroom Classic will recreate the file. Now, try updating one of the masks and see if it sticks this time. If it does, you'll need to update all your masks, but hopefully only this one last time.

Good luck! Let me know if this helps.

Alek

[CMass]

Hey @marion25155790ji34, 

Just checking in to see if what @Aleke suggested helped. Let us know. 🙂

^CM

[Alexandra_SERVAIS9885]

Bonjour Marion,

Je rencontre exactement le même problème et en pleine saison des mariages c'est très compliqué !

Avez-vous trouver une solution à ce problème ?

J'ai même essayé d'installer une version antérieur mais le problème persiste, j'espère que Adobe nous apportera rapidement une solution !

Alexandra

[Sameer K]

Hey, @Alexandra_SERVAIS9885. Welcome to the Lightroom Community. I'll help you figure this out. 

Please update Lightroom to the latest version available via the Creative Cloud and check if the issue exists. If it does, please follow @Aleke's steps above and let us know how it goes. 

Thanks!

Sameer K

(Type '@' and type my name to mention me when you reply)

[Alexandra_SERVAIS9885]

Après avoir tout essayé, mise à jour de Lightroom, déplacer le fichier 'Catalogname.lrcat-data' le problème revient toujours ! 

la solution a fonctionné quelques temps puis le problème est revenu !

C'est un enfer en pleine saison des mariages !!! j'espère que Adobe va trouver une solution fiable et durable !!!

[Elisa_Alloa Casale4973]

Buongiorno, da un paio di settimane ho lo stesso problema e, nonostante abbia seguito la procedura consigliata da @Aleke , il problema persiste.

[Aleke]

Hi @Elisa_Alloa Casale4973! Welcome to the community—great to have you here!

Sorry to hear you're running into the same issue. Could you share a few more details, like which version of Lightroom Classic you're using? A screenshot of the issue would also be super helpful if you’re able to share one.

Thanks so much!
Alek

[Elisa_Alloa Casale4973]

Certo @Aleke, ecco tutti gli screenshoot che possono essere utili!

E' un problema che sta divendando invalidante perchè rallenta notevolmente il mio workflow

[Aleke]

Hi @Elisa_Alloa Casale4973! Thanks so much for sharing the screenshots and extra details — super helpful.

Just to confirm, you mentioned you already tried the step I suggested earlier about moving the .lrcat-data file, right? If that didn’t do the trick, the next thing I’d recommend is resetting your preferences. This will return the app to its default settings, which can sometimes clear up any internal hiccups. Here’s how you can do that: https://adobe.ly/4lkLfEX

If that still doesn’t solve it, could you let me know a bit more? For example, did this start happening after a recent update? Is it affecting every mask on every photo? Any extra context like that would be great.

Thanks again!

Alek

[Elisa_Alloa Casale4973]

Buongiorno, @Aleke . Ho provato anche a reimpostare le preferenze, ma ho lo stesso problema. E' iniziato con l'uscita del nuovo aggiornamento, però prima di installarlo! Si verifica sulle maschere generative (soggetto, cielo, sfondo) e con la rimozione IA. Il processo di editing sta diventando molto lungo e faticoso per colpa di questo malfunzionamento

[Aleke]

Hi @Elisa_Alloa Casale4973! Sorry to hear you're still running into this issue.

It looks like you're not the only one seeing the "Attempt to index a nil value" error when using Denoise. When you get a moment, could you take a look at this thread?

It would be super helpful if you could post your System Info there. You can find it in Lightroom Classic by going to Help > System Info. Just copy that into a text file and attach it to your reply, or feel free to share it with us through Google Drive, WeTransfer, or any file-sharing service you prefer. That’ll help us confirm the bug and dig into it further.

Thanks so much for your patience
Alek

[Cynthia38510193zeju]

A t-on une solution pour ce probleme? il m'arrive exactement la meme chose apres la mise a jour de lightroom et j'ai un reportage à livrer demain. C'est l'horreur!

[bastien_nicolas0900]

Même problème de mon côté. Seul solution : mettre à jour les paramètres AI et enregistrer les photos une par une. En pleine saison des mariage je suis ravi... J'ai déjà dû annoncer du retard sur mes prochaines livraisons.

[bastien_nicolas0900]

A t-on trouvé une solution?

[johnrellis]

@bastien_nicolas0900 ,

A fair number of people have reported this issue. These symptoms can occur when LR can't write the catalog's .lrcat-data file for some reason, either because LR has corrupted it or there is a permissions issue. The .lrcat-data file stores AI settings computed for masks, remove, denoise, raw details, super resolution, and lens blur. (The main catalog database is in a different file, the .lrcat file.)

Try these steps for rebuilding the .lrcat-data file without losing your edits; these steps have helped many but not all:

1. Do the menu command Help > System Info. If you're not on the latest version (currently 14.4), do Help > Updates.

2. Post the entire contents of Help > System Info here, to help narrow down possible causes.

3. In LR, do Catalog Settings > General > Show. That will open Windows File Explorer / Mac Finder on the current catalog folder.

4. Exit LR.

5. Move the file <catalog>.lrcat-data to the Desktop.

6. Start LR.

7. In Library Grid view (not Loupe view), select all photos and do Photo > Develop Settings > Update AI Settings. That will recompute all the AI settings, which could take a while.