LR 6.14 Keeps on Crashing Face detection License end - work around: change system date

[TechCritic]

Since December/November LR 6.14 keeps on crashing on Win 10 once I change into the face detection mode, after I changed it once it keeps on crashing, even after re-start.

It took my hours to troubleshoot this problem: I suspected Windows Autumn Update or other Windows Updates to be responsible. Therefore reinstalled Windows, reinstalled Lightroom 6.14 multiple times. Also had a quick call with Adobe, who did not know anything about the problem and suspected a faulty Windows as well. 

After some additional hours of searching in the Internet, I found a explanation and a workaround. It seems, as the face detection solutions was licenced by Adobe from a german company. This license expired in November 2020 - causing the Lightroom crashes. There is a workaround if you change the system date to September 2020 Lightroom runs stable again. However, while mostly all of Lightroom (including Facedetection) works - Lightroom then stumbles if you want to sync the meta information (seems, that photos recorded newer then the artificial changed system date cause the sync to stop. So, changing the sys date will let you execute some basic functionality, but the overall software is not fully useable any more. 

What I find a bit upsetting: I would understand, that out of support software will stop working if fundamental changes in the operating system are happening. But this case is a bit differen - the software has with this licensing issue an "expiration date", which was not communicated to the buyer and is also not obvious to the user. Even if I would use an old OS - Lightroom would not work any longer fully.

I really hope, that Adobe will fix this.

Further information can be found here: Lightroom Classic: v6.10 crashes in the facial recognition Modul | Adobe Photoshop Family

{Moved from Lightroom Cloud to Lightroom Classic Forum by Moderator} 

[TechCritic]

There might be also different reasons - the first explanation I found in the internet was pointing towards this licencing issue, which seems plausible when a change of the system date is a work around. ... but maybe there might be something else wrong witht the LR coding.

[dj_paige]

Adobe will not fix this. They stated 3 years ago that LR 6 is unsupported.

[UserChristian]

It can't be that an expiration date is built into the software and thus the customer is forced to buy a new version.

This is not a serious approach by a reputable company. So if Adobe completely refuses to release an update for existing customers, I will definitely not buy an Adobe product anymore.

[dj_paige]

No one is forcing you to buy a new version. But since you have indicated clearly you aren't going to send Adobe any more money for Lightroom by sticking with LR 6, why would Adobe care if you leave?

[UserChristian]

Of course, Adobe forces me to change the program, because parts of the program like face recognition no longer work.
If I don't get any more updates, I can live with that, but if I can't use my program from one day to the next, I'm just disappointed.
I don't know of any other program that resorts to such radical methods.
I realize that Adobe would prefer to run everything in the cloud, but I don't want to do that for privacy reasons.
I hope I'm not the only one who thinks this way, because otherwise I can save the post.
I hope Adobe will see the light and reconsider their approach.

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