Page setup issues with multiple catalogues

[Rufus2015]

I have 14 catalogues to use with LR, and have had no issues up till now.

Some catalogues will not allow me to change paper size or any other printer setting, or rather I can change them in the printer properties dialogue box, but they are not updated in LR.

My current work around is to import the pictures I want to print into a catalogue that does allow you to set up the printer, and print from there.

This has only just happened, and so must be down to the latest update of LRCC.

Any helpful suggestions ?

[Todd Shaner]

First thing to try is reset the LR Preferences file:

https://www.lightroomqueen.com/articles-page/how-do-i-reset-lightrooms-preferences/

The other possibility is that some catalogs may have the below option checked and the ones not working do not. Do use any custom presets in the Print module?

[Rufus2015]

Unfortunately neither of those suggestions work.

I have been through all the catalogues, and 5 have the problem, very strange.

I think I will try creating 5 new catalogues to replace the faulty ones.

I don't understand how this problem can exist.....

[Todd Shaner]

There are numerous things that can cause a LR Catalog to become corrupted, which is why it's important to keep backup copies of the LR Catalog file. In addition the vast majority of people use one (1) LR Catalog for their entire photo/video collection or at most two (2) Catalog files (Personal, Business). I suggest making backup copies of ALL your LR Catalog files before proceeding any further. Next I would suggest "merging" some or all of those Catalogs into a single (1) new Catalog. Before doing that it would help if you can explain specifically why and how you are using multiple Catalogs and perhaps we can come up with a better solution.

Merging Individual Lightroom Catalogs into a “Master” Catalog « Julieanne Kost's Blog

[Rufus2015]

Hi,

I print reproductions of Artists work, and each artist has their own catalogue.

I don't use presets, as a rule, and use the custom print package option.

My main printer is an HP Z2100.

I do make back-ups of the catalogues, from time to time.

The problem is that when I go into the printer preferences to select the paper size etc the paper size does not change in LR, and if you go back into the printer preferences the selected paper size is as selected, but other settings (show preview, application manages colour) are not selected. I have also tried changing the default settings (via Windows) and these do not affect the settings when go in via LR.

This only happens in some of the catalogues. I would have assumed that these settings would not be part of the catalogues, but part of LR. In the catalogues that are functioning normally, changes made in one catalogue (in the printer preferences), are still there if I change to a different functioning catalogue.

The paper size seems to be stuck on A4, printer manages colour, and do not show preview are also stuck.

I have been through all my catalogues now, and in those that I have not used for a while, the paper size is as previously used, but if I go to change this it goes to A4 regardless of the selected size.

[Todd Shaner · Accepted solution]

"I would have assumed that these settings would not be part of the catalogues, but part of LR."

That is correct, but something inside these five catalogs is "breaking" the normal behavior of the Print module to Print Driver interface. You can try loading an updated printer driver, close everything, restart the system, and see if that resolves the issue.

If that doesn't work you can merge each of the catalogs with this issue to a new blank catalog. This will sometimes "fix" issues in the old catalog. Create a new catalog with the same name as the current catalog, but add something like OLD CATALOG NAME-NEW to the name. Then follow the procedure here to merge the single old catalog into the new catalog: Photoshop Lightroom catalog FAQ

[Rufus2015]

I don't think this is going to be a good week.

I just had to re-register LR, and it no longer gives me the catalogue choice window when I open it.

I have opened one of the 'corrupt catalogues' and that is as it was, then opened my catalogue, and it appears to be empty.

Not sure what is going on, but I hope it will get better, soon.

[Rufus2015]

Ooops.

I always start to panic when something starts to go wrong, and stop thinking.

My catalogue is fine, everything is there.

I will try merging the corrupt catalogues now, and see what happens.

[Rufus2015]

OK, success.

I tried it with one catalogue and it works.

Do you want a copy of a corrupt catalogue to examine?

[Todd Shaner]

Glad that resolved the issue. No need to examine the catalogs. Most likely the five catalogs with the issue were created in an older version of LR than the other nine catalogs and then not reopened for some time. For some reason they have become incompatible with the current version of LR. Merging them into a new catalog apparently over-writes the incompatible area with newer code that does not cause the printer issue.

If it were me I would give serious consideration to merging ALL 14 client catalogs into one master catalog. Make sure the client image files are in separate top-level folders and add the CLIENT NAME as a Keyword to each image file before merging so you can isolate them with the Filter bar if necessary. Backup the 14 catalog files and then merge them ALL into a single new master catalog. You can use a separate catalog for your personal files. This will help prevent the same thing from happening again (i.e. older catalogs may become incompatible in newer LR version due to multiple LR updates between editing sessions). Just another good reason on why NOT to use multiple LR catalogs. Make sure to back up the LR catalog frequently after every import and/or major editing session. Good luck!

[Rufus2015]

They were all older catalogues, but not all the old ones were corrupted.

I will look into merging all the catalogues.

Thanks for you assistance.

Ian