Save a copy of all files locally

[Skippermark]

Currently not a subscriber but thinking about signing up so I don't know exactly how this works.

I saw that a copy of all files can be saved locally onto a hard disk. I like that because I'm old school and will want a copy to back up myself.

1. Will the local copies be unedited originals just like in LR Classic with the modifications of what was changed stored somewhere in the cloud?
2. If I want to move them off my internal drive to an external to save space, can that be done or would the program try to re-download them from the cloud because it doesn't see them saved locally?
3. How are the files stored when they're saved locally? Are they just dumped into one big folder?

I like the idea of the cloud and having all my files stored online, but I also like having control over my files, so I'm not quite sure how I'd make this work for me. Thanks!

[Jim Wilde · Accepted solution]

1. Yes, they will be unchanged originals. Edits will be stored both locally (in the LRCC local library) as well as in the cloud.

2. In the LRCC Preferences, on the Local Storage tab, you can elect to store all your files locally, AND you can choose a different location (but not a NAS drive yet). If you subsequently decide to store them somewhere else, when you change the location in Preferences, LRCC will automatically move any existing stored originals to the new location.

3. They are stored in a dated folder hierarchy in the format YYYY/YYYY-MM-DD.

[mikebrodt]

There is one key difference. Saving to an external drive with Lightroom CC, adds a second drive, however that drive is part of the global sync process. If you delete an image from Lightroom CC, it deletes it globally, including that external drive. It isn’t a completely independent backup.

One trick to try is to reverse the import process. If you import from camera or SD card to your internal or ex hard drive first, then import to Lightroom CC, that initial backup is independent of the global Lightroom sync process.