Trying to load catalog after computer crash

[Eagha50]

Some background:

1.  My WINDOWS computer has two SDDs, A 2TB (drive C) and a 4TB (drive D).

2.  My Lightroom Classic program is on Drive C:

3.  My pictures and catalog back ups are on Drive D:

4.  My drive C: had a catastrophic crash and stopped reading or writing.

5.  I had to replace drive C: and reload the operating system and all my program software.

6.  Now when I try to reload my existing catalog from drive D: it says "fixing errors in castalog," and goes into the twilight zone.  The only way to get back to Lightroom, is to restart my computer.

7.  In my back up section of data on Drive D: I have several backed up catalogs.  I'm using the one with the latest date.

8.  In case that one was truly corrupted when the drive failed I even went back to a previous catalog, but still no-go.

I have over 20 YEARS of processed pictures, I would hate to lose hundreds of hours of processing!

Help!

Eddie

[Per Berntsen]

It's strange that the C drive crashing should corrupt catalogs on the D drive.

Maybe you should check the D drive for errors.

Sometimes importing a corrupted catalog into a new one can fix the corruption.

Create a new catalog (File > New catalog), then go to File > Import from another catalog and choose to import from the original catalog.

[Eagha50]

Thanks. I'm assuming the corruption ocurred when C: drive crashed and Lightroom did not have the ability to back up, since the whole computer froze.  Had already tried your suggestion.  See my new post.

[Eagha50]

@PerBerntsen: Turns out you were absolutely right.  The catalog was not corrupt after all.  See my final post on this.

Eddie

[dj_paige]

Now when I try to reload my existing catalog from drive D: it says "fixing errors in castalog," and goes into the twilight zone. The only way to get back to Lightroom, is to restart my computer.

Explain the steps in detail involved in "reload my existing catalog", leaving nothing out.

[Eagha50]

OK, here is where I am now.  The only way I can run Lightroom is as an Administrator.  Every step I mention, I'm running Lightroom as Administrator.  So keep that in mind.  When I say start Lightroom, its as an Admin.

I went to my last back up which was a zipped file.

I unzipped it, and put it in a new folder.  this is two files, the LRCAT file, and an associated folder.

I started Lightroom, and asked it to create a new Catalog.

I called this folder Lightroom 2025 Catalog.  So I now have an empty catalog.

I used the Import Another Catalog command and imported the unzipped previously saved LRCAT file.

It opened just fine and all my photographs were there.  So far, so good.

I have set up Lightroom to ALWAYS back-up every time I close.

I Exit Lightroom, it asks if I want to back up, I say yes.  It closes, I check the Back-up folder, and the new back up is there.

NOW, when I open Lightroom NOT as an Admin, it says file is corrupt, needs to be fixed, and crashes.

Even when I go to the New folder Lightroom Catalog 2025, Right click on the LRCAT file and say open with Lightroom, it crashes.

The ONLY way I can run Lightroom is as an Administrator!

I'm about to tear out what little hair I have left!

Help!

[AxelMatt · Accepted solution]

...

NOW, when I open Lightroom NOT as an Admin, it says file is corrupt, needs to be fixed, and crashes.

Even when I go to the New folder Lightroom Catalog 2025, Right click on the LRCAT file and say open with Lightroom, it crashes.

The ONLY way I can run Lightroom is as an Administrator!

By @Eagha50

It seems you don't have full access right to the appropriate folder in which the catalog is located (including subfolders).

https://v2cloud.com/blog/how-to-change-folder-permissions-on-windows

[Eagha50]

Thank you!  Thank you!  Thank you! 

That was it!  I thought I had granted permissions to all my folders, but there was ONE root folder that did not have read write permission.  Fixed that and boom!

I thank you, and what little hair I have left, thanks you!

Eddie

[Eagha50 · Accepted solution]

OK, new problem.  My original problem is solved, but this might be related so I'm posting it here.  If I need to make a new post, let me know.

So, thanks to @AxelMatt I can now open Lightroom without beeing in Admin mode.  However, when I look at my pictures, all the keywords are missing in each picture.  The full list of keywords is there, but the individual keyword in the pictures, did not import.

Also, I don't appear to have a way to ADD kewwords to individual pictures.  I have a "Klick Here to Add keywords" box, but when I add a keyword it disappears!  Please see attached.

[AxelMatt]

You wrote in a former post that you've import the images from a backuped catalog into a new catalog.

So it's possible that the keywords don't be assgin on import.

And you've done the import as Admin. Now you're logged in as a normal user.

I'm not sure if that can be the issue.

In a first step try to reset the preferences of Lightroom Classic:  How to reset Lightroom Classic preferences (adobe.com)

It's recommended to backup your preferences before you reset the preferences to the default settings: 

https://helpx.adobe.com/lightroom-classic/kb/preference-file-and-other-file-locations.html

The next step should be that you renamed the folder in which the recent catalog is stored, e.g. NameOfTheFolder.old. 

Create a new folder for the catalog. Please be aware of the appropriate access rights!!

Then restore the catalog from the backup. I would try the same as you used for the import. Unzip the file and copy the lrcat - file into the new created folder. Start Lightroom and open this restored catalog.

For restoring a catalog from a backup see also here: https://www.lightroomqueen.com/restore-backups-2021/

I'll hope you're understand the steps and it helps.

[Eagha50]

@AxelMatt , man, you rock!  That worked.  I have my catalog back.  

Apparently Lightroom was giving me an ERRONEOUS message when it told me my Catalog was corrupted, when what it was, I did not have permission for that folder!  Something to pass on to LR Gods?

So now where I need help is with this:

1.  I want to start fresh.  By that I mean I want to save THIS CATALOG in a different location, and give it a different name.

I see where I can RENAME this catalog.  But I don't see how to save it to a new folder so I can start clean, and hopefully delete my mess of back ups and folders that still exist on my computer.

My preferred folder would be Lightroom 2025

Is there a way?

The attached shows you what a mess I currently have.  Quite embarrassing!  I haven't cleaned anything up in a long time!

[Eagha50]

OK figured it out!  Theres actually a box that let's you rename the parent folder.  Did that and then removed all the old catalog stuff from that folder.

Thanks again, for your help!

Eddie

[AxelMatt]

OK. The renaming would have been sufficient for now. But anyway.

Do you have restore the catalog from the backup and open it in Lightroom? What has happened?

Does it work now?

[Eagha50]

Yes.  As I said earlier my catalog was apparently never corrupt.  Lightroom just gave me an erroneous message because I did not have permission, as you figured out.

As soon as I fixed the permissions everyrhing worked. No more massage about a corrupt catalog for the very same catalog.  It opened just fine.  I did NOT need to go back to an older backup.

Thanks again, for your help.

Eddie

[AxelMatt]

@Eagha50  Thanks for clarification.