Upgrading Hard Drive causing Catalog/File Location Problem

[rth30]

Because my 500GB hard drive (my E: drive) was filling up, I recently upgraded to a 2TB hard drive. I cloned the 500GB HD to the 2TB HD, and after cloning I renamed the old 500GB HD to the Q: drive (which I want to just keep as a backup drive) and named the new 2TB HD as my E: drive, and I intend to add all new files, including pictures, to the E: drive. After I did this and went in to Photoshop Elements 13 looking at the Folders screen in the Organizer, it is showing all my picture files in the Q: drive, which was the old E: drive, and not showing any pictures in the new E: drive (clicking on the E: drive in PSE shows the message “No files from this folder have been imported into Elements Organizer”).. Yet the PSE Manage Catalogs dialog shows the catalog as being in the E: drive, and Windows File Explorer shows it in the E: drive as well. As I mentioned, I want to add all new pictures to the E: drive, but since the Folders screen in PSE has the pictures residing in the Q: drive, If I start adding new ones to the E: drive it seems like all the new pictures will be residing in a different spot than the old pictures. How can I get PSE to recognize in its Folders screen that all of the pictures are now in the E: drive?.

[MichelBParis]

rth30  wrote

Because my 500GB hard drive (my E: drive) was filling up, I recently upgraded to a 2TB hard drive. I cloned the 500GB HD to the 2TB HD, and after cloning I renamed the old 500GB HD to the Q: drive (which I want to just keep as a backup drive) and named the new 2TB HD as my E: drive, and I intend to add all new files, including pictures, to the E: drive. After I did this and went in to Photoshop Elements 13 looking at the Folders screen in the Organizer, it is showing all my picture files in the Q: drive, which was the old E: drive, and not showing any pictures in the new E: drive (clicking on the E: drive in PSE shows the message “No files from this folder have been imported into Elements Organizer”).. Yet the PSE Manage Catalogs dialog shows the catalog as being in the E: drive, and Windows File Explorer shows it in the E: drive as well. As I mentioned, I want to add all new pictures to the E: drive, but since the Folders screen in PSE has the pictures residing in the Q: drive, If I start adding new ones to the E: drive it seems like all the new pictures will be residing in a different spot than the old pictures. How can I get PSE to recognize in its Folders screen that all of the pictures are now in the E: drive?.

Cloning disks often create problems in catalogs.

In the database, the drive is identfied by two criteria: the letter drive and the internal serial number of the drive.

Read this help file from John R Ellis:

psedbtool (Photoshop Elements Database Tool)

Usually the 'cloning' will assign the same internal number to the cloned drive, so that should work... unless you are also using the old drive with another letter assigned. In that case, with two drives with identical serial numbers, the organizer is totally fooled.

The first thing to check (with the tips in the above link) is the serial number of both drives.

If they are different, it's normal that the organizer searches on the old drive, the serial number taking precedence over the drive letter.

In that case, assign the old serial number to the new drive and change the serial number of the old one.

If they are the same, you should assign a different serial number to the old drive (see the link).

[rth30]

Merci, Michel.  I will read over the help file, download the tool and give it a try, and I'll let you know what happens.

[MichelBParis]

rth30  wrote

Merci, Michel.  I will read over the help file, download the tool and give it a try, and I'll let you know what happens.

Don't download, the tool is no longer compatible with recent versions.

Instead, look for the links to the ways to:

- read the serial numbers in Windows

- change the serial numbers in Windows.

[rth30]

I ascertained the serial numbers of the drives, which were different. I renamed the Q: drive (the old E: drive), then renamed the new E: drive with the number of the old E: drive (the now Q: drive).  The renamings were both successful. I then went into PSE but the same situation I explained in my original question remains.  The Folders screen still shows no pictures in the E: drive and all the pictures in the Q: drive.  I'm wondering if I should just go into Windows File Explorer, delete the photos in my E: drive, then go into PSE and in the Folders window move all of the pictures from the Q drive to the E: drive.

[MichelBParis · Accepted solution]

rth30  wrote

I ascertained the serial numbers of the drives, which were different. I renamed the Q: drive (the old E: drive), then renamed the new E: drive with the number of the old E: drive (the now Q: drive).  The renamings were both successful. I then went into PSE but the same situation I explained in my original question remains.  The Folders screen still shows no pictures in the E: drive and all the pictures in the Q: drive.  I'm wondering if I should just go into Windows File Explorer, delete the photos in my E: drive, then go into PSE and in the Folders window move all of the pictures from the Q drive to the E: drive.

It was too late to attempt this repair... your catalog had already several incorrect entries in the "volume" table of the database.

Trying other ways to reconnect will probably fail.

Did you make an organizer backup previously?

It seems that you are still able to work with the photo files recognized as being on the Q: drive.

I would attempt to do the recommended process to migrate to a new drive or computer:

Move Elements Organizer catalog

Try a full backup on an external drive.

Try a restore on custom location on the E: drive (after deleting the files as you suggested).

I am not sure that will correct your catalog completely...

I am afraid that only using an sqlite tool to edit the database would work.

[rth30]

When I originally tried this it didn't work.  I then deleted all the database and picture files from the Q: drive. Then I tried uninstalling and reinstalling PSE. I opened PSE and it loaded the catalog (remember the catalog file was always in the E: drive) and even the pictures appeared (under the Q: drive in the Folders screen) despite the fact that I had deleted them from that drive.  I then made a full backup to a different drive. Finally I restored the backup to the E: drive (I had not deleted the files from the E: drive as I had stated above I planned to do). To my great surprise, the catalog was restored into the E: drive and the Folders screen shows the pictures being on the E: drive and nothing in the Q: drive.  Seems to be working properly as far as I know so now I should be able to add all my new pictures into the newer, bigger, faster E:drive which was my original intention. 

Thanks for all you help Michel.  Much appreciated!

[MichelBParis]

Thank you for the feedback!

I am very happy you have solved your problem.

The bottom line is that it's best to use the recommended backup and restore process.