LR changes location catalog

[GeVe01]

Yesterday I imported some photos, and after importing and making previews i quit LR.

This morning lightroom is empty on start up: It changed to the default catalog location.

When i switched back to the last catalog I did get the message that the catalog needs to be upgraded to LRcc, which I use from the start and  keep upgraded. There are more than 100K photo's in my catalog, and it is now synchronizing (counting........). Takes a long time in which i cannot work om my photo's

Can anybody explain this, advise me about do's and don't's  to avoid this?

Thanks in advance, GeVe

[cmgap]

Hi GeVe,

Please check your preferences and change the setting from Load Default Catalog to Prompt me when opening Lightroom. That way you can see which catalog is opening every time.

You can turn off syncing in the activity center. Hover your mouse over your name in the upper left corner and a white drop down arrow will appear. Here you can turn off syncing and turn it back on when you are ready to use that feature for syncing collections with Lightroom Mobile.

[GeVe01]

Hi cmgab thank you, as i use only 1 catalog i know where to find it. I do use it again,,but i don't understand why it needs to be upgraded. The catalog last change date was yesterday, but I have to import all my directories again, which  will be running throuhg the night. I trust it will be ok, but I do not want LR to do it again. Why does it change the location of my catalog to its default  and prompt me to upgrade the catalog to cc which I use with this catalog fromthe start? Any idea what can be wrong?

[GeVe01]

Hi Just shoot me, thank you, but as i explained to cmcab I'm wondering why LR changes these settings to default. All other preferences are unchanged.

[Just Shoot Me]

GeVe01  wrote

Hi Just shoot me, thank you, but as i explained to cmcab I'm wondering why LR changes these settings to default. All other preferences are unchanged.

Is the version of LR you are currently using the only version of LR that has ever been installed on the computer your are using?

If not, If you have some other version of LR installed before you installed the current version you are trying to use then you have more than one catalog on your drive.

LR 5 needed to upgrade the catalog file from any previous version of LR. Again LR 6 needed to upgrade the catalog from any previous version and the same goes for LR Classic CC V7.

Every time LR upgrades the catalog file it first makes a Copy of the previous version catalog and then upgrades that copy. So what you end up with is at least 2 catalog files on your drive. One from a previous version and one that got upgraded to work with the current version of LR you have installed.

If you have problems with the LR Preference file, like it is corrupted or somehow got deleted, LR will create a brand new Preferences file and that will reset all preferences back to the Default. Including where the catalog is stored and or which catalog file it is supposed to open.

[cmgap]

Hi GeVe,

The screen shot you've posted shows 0 images which leads us to believe that this is not the last catalog you had open.

When you updated Lightroom a second Lightroom catalog file was created. If you navigate to your Pictures/Lightroom folder you should see a .lrcat file and a -2.lrcat file.

Can you confirm this and if you have a -2.lrcat file please open that file.

Also take note of whether or not you have two Lightroom icons in your dock.

[GeVe01]

Hi cmcap anD juist shoot me

I have 2 recent catalogs indeed:  The last one on the location I normally use (wich is still syncing!-day and night, nearly all week!) It stopped this morning (still 698 to do) and a lot of folders are half empty. And the the new default catalog on de default place which was created bij LR and was empty.

Your other remarks and questions: (

I use LR since version 2, i delete backups 1-ce a year. at the moment I have about 20 back ups on my drive (yes i need to clean up  🙂

This is what i've installed now, i think that that is ok, I delete the older versions  when installing a new one, and switched to CC in I- think 2015?

Tried this last week: :

i've tried to open the last backup, unzipped it, and  opened it LR would't accept it. It needed something (i forgot).  LR, on checking integration, reported the catalog needed repair, later that it could not be reapaired. So, so far back ups.

Thats why I tried the last days  to sync all folders to a new catalog. That did not work out well, a lot of folders dit not show al the files in it.

I'm now trying  a backup from 2 months ago (Jan 21'18) and this seems to work

I stil do not know what went wrong and how to prevent it the next time, but it is working again,

Any tips from you side?

Thank you

[Just Shoot Me]

Adobe screwed up the naming of LR when they came out with a Cloud Centric Desktop version. They called that version LR CC. When just days before the Desktop Focused, Traditional, version was called LR CC and calling the upgrade to the Traditional version LR Classic CC.

I see from your second screen shot you have LR CC and LR Classic CC listed. So the first question I have is that listing for Lightroom CC is that the older traditional version of LR or have you installed the newer Cloud Centric LR CC on your system.

I don't have the previous version of LR CC 2015, the Traditional version of LR, installed on my system anymore but IIRC it was called Lightroom CC 2015 in the Program files.

So I suspect you have in stalled the Cloud Centric version along with the Traditional version. Do you really want that?

Neither of those screen shots is showing any catalog files.

In all honesty I can't, right now, decipher your last post.

Two things to think about.

1) Do you have the Cloud Centric version of LR installed and Do you REALLY want that version installed.

If not then you should uninstall it. You can still sync collections from LR Classic to the Mobile and Web system for LR Classic. You do NOT need to have LR CC (Cloud Centric) installed to do that.

2) In my opinion these types of problems pop up because of some type hardware malfunction. Could be a failing hard drive, bad RAM or some other hardware problems like overheating.

In the 10+ years I have used LR I have never had a catalog be corrupted. Never lost a catalog. Never opened LR and had LR either open some other catalog other than the one I've been using for 10+ years and never lost the Location of where that catalog is stored. And I never lost any images.

[JP Hess]

I agree with JSM. Are you aware of the difference between Lightroom Classic CC and Lightroom CC? And, are you aware that they are two different versions of Lightroom, not just different versions but completely different programs? I have both versions installed on my computer. Lightroom Classic CC is my program of choice. But I experimented a little bit with Lightroom CC, which is the new cloud-based Lightroom which stores master images in the cloud rather than in folders on your computer. If you are aware of this, I apologize.

[GeVe01]

Hi, sure, just like you,   i've installed both versions, Classic and CC, just to get the feel of posting some pictures in the cloud. Normally I use classic cc, import and proces my pictures with it and sync with my mobile devices etc

I've checked my hardware (checkdisck), no faults

I keep my catalogfiles and backup in different places not in the defaults.

Maybe a bit too much details in the second art of my previous post. I just pointed out that LR did not accept the catalogs it  last used and also not the last backup it made, I had to go back 2 months; that backup LR accepted.

Although it won't finish its syncing with CC now, when I activate  syncing I get the message that I have to  start up again to start syncronising, but that doesn't  work, and on making a back up LR hanged in optimizing the catalog. I have to figure that one out,

But... before this I also never had any problems. When this is solved I hope it stays that way  🙂 ! Thanx for your advices, appreciated!

[Just Shoot Me]

You seem to have 2 problems. LR is using a New catalog for some reason and when you think you are opening the most current catalog it is an older one from a previous version of LR and need to be upgraded.

Use the File Manager for your OS to search for .lrcat. Make a note of where all of them are and try opening each one until you find the catalog that has all your images in it.

All you have to do is Double click on the .lrcat file for LR to open and then load that catalog. Have LR closed before clicking on any opf them and in between clicking on them. If any come up with this catalog needs to be upgraded just cancel out of that and go on to the next.