:0 attempt to index a nil value

[MountMatadero]

Release v11.2 of LrC on Win10 suddenly failed with this message when starting - then doesn't finish starting the app (does not provide access to the catalgue. The file menu only shows access to Printer, Page Setup, and Exit. Edit menu does show Preferences as a choice but attempting to use it only causes the app to freeze and/or eventually crash. Since problems have been reported with v11.3, I've not tried to upgrade. None of the few options suggested by previous reports of this error on previous releases seem to provide workable solutions.

Because this seems to me to be a database error kind of message, I'm assuming there is some sort of bug in LrC's handling of some odd condition. I've no idea how to proceed.

[johnrellis]

Try resetting LR's preferences:
https://www.lightroomqueen.com/articles-page/how-do-i-reset-lightrooms-preferences/

LR sometimes soils its preferences file, and resetting it can fix all sorts of wonky behavior. That article explains how to restore the old preferences if resetting doesn't help.

[MountMatadero]

I didn't have a copy of my Preferences (my bad) but I took a similar approach by just renaming them and restarting, letting LrC create its default set (which it did). But I didn't get any further than that as the error repeated. 

Thanks for the idea.

[Todd Shaner]

If resetting the Preferences file doesn't fix the issue you may have a catalog error. First place a backup copy of the current catalog on your desktop then follow the instuctions below. This can sometimes can fix the catalog error.

File > New Catalog > (name it) Create > the new catalog will then open...

File > Import From Another Catalog > (find original catalog) Double Click to open or click Choose > (check box) Import.
Once the images have completed the import see if the issue has been fixed.

[MountMatadero]

I also assumed this was somehow a catalog issue. I pulled out a backup catalog from a week or so earlier (optimized, and zipped when I had closed out of LrC last and then successfully started the most current session a few days later) and replaced the current one (which I saved elsewhere) with it. That did not solve the problem at all. 

I'll give your suggested approach a try. Thank you for the idea. 

[MountMatadero]

Hi Todd,

Thank you again, for the idea. Unfortunately, it just didn't work. I was able to create a new catalog but when I tried to import from the old one, it didn't even get to the point of asking me to point to the catalog I wanted to import from - instead I got the same "attempt to index...." message and it went no further (even though the catalog was completely empty). That made me think that maybe my version of LrC was corrupted, so I backed up to 11.1 and tried again -- no luck. Then I installed 11.2 again, and tried once more with the same result. 

I saw your other suggestion to upgrade to 11.3 and try again but there is a known (for some) Windows systems that causes a crash so I've been reluctant to try it. I think I'll first try to just import some new photos directly to see if I get the same result and if I do, then I guess I'll try the 11.3 idea (at least I now know how to roll back to the prior release). I've already tried re-booting the machine without any change. I'm afraid that my next step will be something like cleaning the machine and reloading everything, including the OS - NOT a preferred approach.

Thanks again.

[Carlos Máximo]

Aconteceu o mesmo eero comigo e resolvi seguir os passos que você colocou aqui e funcionou pra mim. Obrigado!

[GoldingD]

Do you have a Logitech Mouse and/or keyboard, one of the nice ones that has extra buttons that can be used for actions? If so, you may have the LogitechOptions Lr plugin installed. Unfortunately, that plugin is a repeat offender in causing that error statement. Do bot confuse the plugin with the driver(s). If you do not use those extra buttons on the mouse. or the knob on the keyboard (Nest I think) then that plugin has no value. So, if you have it, disable or remove it and see what happens (you would need to restart LrC after doing so)

[MountMatadero]

No, I don’t have such a LR plug-in (and am using a standard wired mouse to operate that computer). I’ve read most of the previous posts about this issue, many going back multiple years to much older releases of LR (as well as a few more recent ones) and have tried to consider each of them in my situation.

Thank you very much for your suggestion. 

[johnrellis]

"I’ve read most of the previous posts about this issue:"

Note that this error message, "attempt to index a nil value", results from a very common low-level programming error, and there have been many separate root causes of the message over the years. You may be tripping over an existing cause or, more likely, tripping over a new bug.

[MountMatadero]

I'm beginning to think you are on to something. I've been trying to get Adobe's attention on this (I managed to get an LrC error response at one point so I provided as much info to that little dialog as I could). And, I assume, they monitor this space as well. 

[Todd Shaner]

Since you haven't updated to LrC 11.3 that may be worth a try. You can always reinstall LrC 11.2 if  you experience any issues.

[Rob_Cullen · Accepted solution]

I am following to see if you find a definitive answer.

I have attached a .DOC file with a collection of forum quotes that all tried to address the error-

Maybe be an answer in the document.

[MountMatadero]

Thank you. It took me a while to get back to this - I was so discouraged after trying one fix after another, I just gave up and worked on other things. In my case, the error came up as soon as I tried to start LrC and basically, LrC would not complete the start-up even after clicking the OK button on the error.

I had tried many of the suggestions you gathered with no luck. Also, backed up to a previous release of 11. Also tried to start with a backup copy of the catalog. Restarting with blank preferences didn't help (I'd already tried that). But your suggestion to clear the LR presets was onr I hadn't tried. When I did try it, it didn't work but then I combined it with blank preferences - WOW! I got a version of LrC with no data. It did NOT ask me to identify rhe catalog I wanted, so I decided to try another idea I saw from someone else at that point.

I had it create a new catalog and then I did a complete import from another catalog (naming my old one). It took a while but it got there. Now I'm in the business of one-by-one restoring plug-ins (not too many) and otherwise rebuilding what the import didn't (couldn't) handle. But the catalog seems to me to be intact with all the edits I've done over the years. I feel like I'm back in business (meaning able to use the tool again) and grateful for the help from you and others on this forum. Thank you, everyone.  

Well, damn! I wrote all this to more fully explain what worked for me but then also clicked the "Right Answer" button and all that I wrote disappeared. So, I recovered this and added this note to try to make clear that I used a combination of answers but it was one of the first in your list that started me down a road that, for me, led to success.