Moving catalogs to new disk: tips, tricks, and warnings please!

[vonBobo]

Hi all!

I currently have:

1TB hard drive, which contains my OS and three catalogs

2 750gb drives, currently used as internal and external backup for my pictures.

I will be adding a 250gb SSD and install a fresh OS on this drive.

I will then use the 750's for internal raid storage, and the 1tb for external storage of both my C and Pics

During this transition, I want to keep two separate copies of my pictures on separate drives, and I think I can work that out just fine. But I am more worried about moving the pictures and losing my catalog data, links, etc.

Can anyone offer some advice? I don't even know where to start and I'm stressed that I will look back and think... man I wish I would have done that differently.

Thanks for your time and insight! Peace to you all!

Jeff

[cmgap]

Hi Jeff,

Good to ask before and not after! Do you have a cloud based backup service like super duper or backblaze? Do you have a Time Machine backup?

If your mother board ever fails an internal backup will be non-existent and any backup on your local drive will be irrelevant. This is a primer on the 3-2-1 backup strategy from Backblaze. Backup Strategies: Why the 3-2-1 Backup Strategy is the Best

The 3-2-1 backup rule means you should: Have at least three copies of your data. Store the copies on two different media. Keep one backup copy offsite. If you haven't created a Time Machine backup of your system, you'll want to do that first.

Before you start moving your files around take a look at this information from Backblaze and have a plan. Time spent up front will save you heartache in the long run.

With respect to your catalogs - you'll want to remember to move file locations from within Lightroom so it can keep track of where you are moving them to. If you move files at the finder level (outside of Lr) you will see ?'s and ! on your images because Lr won't know where you've moved them to.

This is not the worst problem to have... easily solved as long as you don't delete any of your original image files.

[dj_paige]

you'll want to remember to move file locations from within Lightroom so it can keep track of where you are moving them to.

I disagree with this, you want to use your operating system to do the move (better yet, as I explained above, do a copy) and then reconnect in Lightroom. This is by far the better approach, it is SAFER. Why? There are far too many reports of photos simply disappearing when the photos were moved in Lightroom. See Moved files within Lightroom, 2/3 flat out disappeared?!

[vonBobo]

thanks gap!

You mention:

"If your mother board ever fails an internal backup will be non-existent and any backup on your local drive will be irrelevant."

Why would losing a MB cause my internal back ups to be irrelevant? I would think the MB can be swapped out and things would be back to normal???

[dj_paige]

Good point, vonBobo.

If the motherboard fails, your hard disk and all of the files on it are probably intact and usable, all you have to replace the motherboard with a working motherboard (or move the hard disk to a new computer).

So I disagree with a second part of cmgap's advice.

[dj_paige]

Instead of moving your photos, copy them to the location you want, reconnect the folders to their new location in Lightroom using the Update Folder Location command, and once you are 100% sure that you have done it properly and everything is working, then you can delete the copies in the first location. The details are in "Part 2 -- Updating Folder Location" of this document: Adobe Lightroom - Find moved or missing files and folders

[vonBobo]

Thanks dj!

So here is my current design:

BEFORE

C(2tb): OS and pictures

AFTER

C(new SSD): OS

E (new 1tb): pictures

F (old 2TB); scratch disk / back up of C and E

Cloud backup of E

So my plan is to:

Copy my pictures to the new 1tb

Here is my first decision- should I reconnect the catalogs now, then back up my catalogs before installing new C and OS? If yes, how do I reconnect my files when they are not currently missing?

Now that I have moved my pictures, LR is knows the new locations, new catalogs have been made, now I can proceed to install a fresh OS on the new C drive.

Install LR on C.

Import catalogs and I am running again???

(Then I will cloud back up E, then reformat my old C and begin using it as the internal backup for everything)

Sorry this is a lot to follow, I really do appreciate you taking a look and offering any advice.

Thanks!

Jeff

[cmgap]

Hi Jeff,

Yes - I reread that and meant internal hard drive - not mother board. This past year first my internal hard drive crashed and was unrecoverable. Three or four months after replacing the orginal HD with an SSD the video card on the mother board failed and needed to be replaced. My error.

As to how to proceed - I stand by first make sure you have a Time Machine back up for your system, something like Dropbox for you documents, a copy of your photos on a second external drive (and a cloud based service) before deleting anything... and yes moving your files from one location to another within Lr.

What I wanted to mention is that if you don't move your files from within Lr and you have to locate the new drive it is easily done. Question marks and exclamation points aren't the problem... losing your original files by deleting them before you have them fully backed up is what you don't want to happen.

Good luck!

[vonBobo]

thanks!

[dj_paige]

Here is my first decision- should I reconnect the catalogs now, then back up my catalogs before installing new C and OS?

I don't think it matters. You're going to have to reconnect the catalogs to the photos on the new 1tb drive at some point, it doesn't matter when you do it.

Install LR on C.

Import catalogs and I am running again???

No importing! No importing of photos! No importing of catalogs! No importing! No importing!

Just place the catalog file(s) where you want it to go, and then double-click on it to open it.

[dj_paige]

Forgot to answer this question:

If yes, how do I reconnect my files when they are not currently missing?

Right-click on the top level folder, select Update Folder Location.