Uninstalling and reinstalling Lightroom

[DonLafontaine]

At some point (and I don’t know how), my Lightroom Classic folder structure became configured in a way that doesn’t work well with Lightroom Classic. I tried to solve this problem via a ticket on this Forum, but Lightroom Classic still always seems to have issues (the current issue is it won’t sync and won’t backup upon closing).

I’d like to uninstall Lightroom in its entirety, then reinstall. Once I have the default Lightroom file structure back, I’d look to place all my photos back into Lightroom via restoring files/folders from Time Machine backups. Then, I’d import all the photos into Lightroom from the correct, defualt location.

Are there any issues with this plan? Thanks

[cmgap]

If you have backups and there is a backup that reflects the Lightroom Classic catalog before the file structure changed that may be more effiecient. If you are able to take that path - restore that catalog and move forward with the rest of your plan to uninstall and reinstall Lightroom. Take care to see if you can identify what happened so that you won't end up in the same scenario.

[DonLafontaine]

Thanks for this, I don't have a backup that pre-dates the change in file structure, so I'm out of luck there. I'll restore the picture folders, but don't know where TM will place those folders as the current structure will be different from the old one.

[DonLafontaine]

Also, will restoring photos in this way preserve all the edits I made to RAW files? Thanks

[cmgap]

Can you be more specific about what's happened to your folder structure? If you are using a yyyy-mm-dd file system - a TM version of your catalog will show you what you need to recreate.

[DonLafontaine]

Yes, generally I’m using a yyyy-mm-dd file system. The problem with my folder structure seems to be complex (for a hobbyist like myself) and I tried to address this problem a while back via this ticket (https://community.adobe.com/t5/lightroom-classic-discussions/using-synced-photoshop-lightroom-photos...).

I’m really looking for a way to start anew versus fixing the file structure problem. Would it work to export the extent of my catalog as DNG files, then reimport them to a reinstalled instance of Lightroom?

Does Adobe or anyone else reputable have a paid service that someone can fix this problem hands on?

Thanks so much

[cmgap]

If you are looking for additional support for Lightroom/Lightroom Classic training you can direct message me or other experts that answer your post with the same message.

[Lumigraphics]

Reinstalling Lightroom won't fix problems with your photo folder setup. You'll need to fix that, since it isn't a problem with the Lightroom app.

[dj_paige]

This is a great reply from @Lumigraphics . Re-installing will not affect folder structure.

But also @cmgap makes very good point as well, we need to need more about your folder structure issue. Please show us screen captures of how things appear now in the LrC folder panel and also provide more specific information about what you would like to see.

[GoldingD]

Some links to look at:

• Help! My Photos Are Completely Unorganized and Lightroom is a Mess. How can I just start all over?”
• Cleaning Up Your Mess in Lightroom Classic Tim Grey's Master Course for Cleaning Up Your Mess in Lig...
• Cleaning Up Your Mess in Lightroom Classic CC
• Reorganize Your Photos and Folders Using the Lightroom Folders Panel
• LIGHTROOM CATALOG A MESS? HOW TO ORGANIZE ALL YOUR PHOTOS IN LIGHTROOM
• 7 Powerful Tips to Organize Lightroom Folders

[DonLafontaine]

Thanks so much for the great feedback @cmgap, @Lumigraphics, @dj_paige and most recently @GoldingD

For someone who’s not too familiar with (and has apparently caused the malfunctioning of) the Lightroom Classic file structure, I feel like trying to remedy the file structure problem will be quite difficult/time consuming for me.

I took a look at the first link from GoldingD and this type of migration looks achievable for me, with the very minor inconvenience of re-labeling a number of folders to reflect the dates of photos contained therein. In any case, I’ll review the rest of the links as well for some thoughts on this and thanks again for them.

Should one of those approaches not work for some reason or another, I’ll revisit the forum and post my actual file structure per the comments of dj_paige.

Best