Retrieving cataloguing details

[mahaca]

Hi, I have been using adobe photoshop elements for cataloguing and tagging my photos for around 15 years.

I recently upgraded to the 2018 version and was able to transfer my tags etc from the earlier version. 

Well recently my computer crashed  and although I had backed up my photos (D drive) I lost the program off my C drive. 

If I reinstall the program my question is, 'is there any way I can retrieve my cataloguing and tag details.  Cheers  Warren

[MichelBParis]

mahaca  wrote

Hi, I have been using adobe photoshop elements for cataloguing and tagging my photos for around 15 years.

I recently upgraded to the 2018 version and was able to transfer my tags etc from the earlier version. 

Well recently my computer crashed  and although I had backed up my photos (D drive) I lost the program off my C drive. 

If I reinstall the program my question is, 'is there any way I can retrieve my cataloguing and tag details.  Cheers  Warren

If your backup has been a full backup created by the organizer, there should be no problem. You have to run the 'restore'  process from the same menu.

If it's a simple copy of your photo files tree made by the explorer/finder or another utility software, you'll have to search for your catalog folder. You can't recover the tagging if you don't find that folder. Depending on what happened to your computer, the catalog folder may be there. It's in your 'user' folder. Do a search from the explorer/finder for a file named 'catalog.pse16db'. It is in its catalog folder. That folder may be 'hidden' and you may have to allow the explorer to show 'hidden files and folders'.

I am assuming you are still on the same drive as before the crash.

[sweepling]

Help please! I have just bought the PSE 2019 upgrade disc (from Amazon).  I currently have PSE 2018. I am having problems as there were no installation instructions. 

I installed 2019 via the *.exe file on the DVD and it seemed to install correctly.  However, it was when I tried to import the catalogue (I got the message 'Convert?') and the photo files that I had real problems.

I also had to repair the Catalog (even though no errors were found).  On loading, the catalog was incomplete and held only a couple of photos in each folder (Year folder, and subject specific folders).  I also tried to 'import media' and again got Crash Reports.

I have now uninstalled 2019 temporarily in case I've followed the wrong installation method.  Can anyone help please?  I can't afford to lose my working catalogue. In the meantime, I plan to create a complete new catalogue in 2018 and then try again, hopefully with some Forum advice.

Regards.

[MichelBParis]

Help please! I have just bought the PSE 2019 upgrade disc (from Amazon).  I currently have PSE 2018. I am having problems as there were no installation instructions.

There is no reason to think that your installation was not correct.

My first remark is that installing a new PSE version can't solve your catalog problem with the previous version. The 'conversion' can only convert an old correct catalog into the new format. If the old catalog is not correct, that can create additional issues when opening the organizer. In which case, you have to open the organizer while keeping the shift key pressed, and to choose the menu option to start with a new empty catalog. In the best case, the conversion will produce a working catalog with the same defects as the original, for instance, lots of disconnected files.

On the other hand, you can have both PSE2018 and PSE2019 installed on your computer, but you'll have to solve the old version problem first. No need to uninstal PSE2019, simply ignore it for the time being.

You did not answer directly my questions about your old backup and about the location of your old catalog folder. I assume you don't have an organizer backup and that you have not found the original catalog folder.

However, it was when I tried to import the catalogue (I got the message 'Convert?') and the photo files that I had real problems.

The conversion process looks for the last used catalog folder, which is problematic in your case. Can you describe more in detail what you did and what happened?

[sweepling]

I installed 2019 upgrade via the *.exe file.  2019 looked for my Catalog folder and gave me the note that it needed to be repaired.  I did this, but I then got the message that no errors were found, but  I repaired it anyway. 2019 then offered me the option of 'optimising' the Catalog which I accepted and this was 'Successful'. When I tried to 'Convert' the 2018 Catalog to 2019, the message 'Imported Media' message showed and then I got a 'Crash report'.  Some parts of the Catalog display in 2019, but these are incomplete (only a few images show - I have 25k of family photos).

i am now backing up, to an external HDD, a complete, new Catalog of 2018 and plan to try to 'install' that in PSE 2019 later today.

I know that there are some disconnected files (some odd mp3 and video files).  I'm happy to accept the old Catalog with its faults converted to 2019 standard.

I can't tell you the location of the Catalog as the HDD Back-up process won't let me access the file explorer at the moment.  However, I found the Catalog yesterday evening and I am assuming that the one being backed up is the current one.

Many thanks for advice so far; I'll get back to you asap (later today).

Regards.

[sweepling]

Found the Catalog trail:

C:\ProgramData\Adobe\Elements Organizer\Catalogs\My Catalog

[sweepling]

Backup of catalog completed to HDD.  I have just checked the current Catalog on the PC: My Catalog, and there were no errors found .

[sweepling]

Michel, Many thanks for all of your support.  I have now recovered my full folder structure and all tags for PSE 2019.  Following much of your advice here's the process I followed since I last signalled my need for help when you suggested that I needed to 'clean' my files.  I had tried to restore my Catalog from 2018 into 2019 whout success.

- I kept getting a 'Crash report' when trying to restore the Catalog, but only when I reached the bit where 2019 was trying to import upload my old pic.  The process seemend to stop repeatedly at a series of movies from an old, old phone of mine, with the suffix: 8.3gp . When I deleted these through Win 10's File Explorer, and removed some duplicated folders, and Temp files in the overall folder structure, then I was able to import images to a newly created Catalog. However, all of my Tags were in one long list with no structure, so:

- I opened 2018.  Backed-up my 2018 Catalog to a clean extnl HDD.  Closed 2018. Opened 2019. Restored the new back-up from the extnl HDD (found the *.tly file). Selected a new folder (J:\Pictures\PSE 2019). Hit the 'Restore Original Folder Structure' button and away it went, with the following notifications:

'Converting Catalog'. 'Optimising Thumbnail Cache' 'Catalog Converted Successfully '. 'Prepairing the Catalog'.

The, miracles, the LHS folder structure and the RHS Tags etc were restored to the 2018 structure.

Many thanks for all your help.  Whenever I have a problem with PSE, I always search for your input.

Best regards.

[sweepling]

Michel, Many thanks for all of your support.  I have now recovered my full folder structure and all tags for PSE 2019.  Following much of your advice here's the process I followed since I last signalled my need for help when you suggested that I needed to 'clean' my files.  I had tried to restore my Catalog from 2018 into 2019 whout success.

- I kept getting a 'Crash report' when trying to restore the Catalog, but only when I reached the bit where 2019 was trying to import upload my old pic.  The process seemend to stop repeatedly at a series of movies from an old, old phone of mine, with the suffix: 8.3gp . When I deleted these through Win 10's File Explorer, and removed some duplicated folders, and Temp files in the overall folder structure, then I was able to import images to a newly created Catalog. However, all of my Tags were in one long list with no structure, so:

- I opened 2018.  Backed-up my 2018 Catalog to a clean extnl HDD.  Closed 2018. Opened 2019. Restored the new back-up from the extnl HDD (found the *.tly file). Selected a new folder (J:\Pictures\PSE 2019). Hit the 'Restore Original Folder Structure' button and away it went, with the following notifications:

'Converting Catalog'. 'Optimising Thumbnail Cache' 'Catalog Converted Successfully '. 'Prepairing the Catalog'.

The, miracles, the LHS folder structure and the RHS Tags etc were restored to the 2018 structure.

Many thanks for all your help.  Whenever I have a problem with PSE, I always search for your input.

Sorry that this message is duplicated, I pressed the wrong button (as usual).

Best regards.

[mahaca]

Hi Michel

This a reply to your response above to question 1 on 27Sep 2018.

I finally found the 'pse..db' file and was able to get the tree of tags.  However there no photos attached to the tags.  If I try to open a tag I get the following message "No media available. Please clear applied filter and try again".

Any help would certainly be appreciated as the thought having to re-tag every photo for the last 15 years does not appeal.

Cheers

mahaca (warren frank)