Catalog Preview copy folders?

All,
Quick question. I have two folders in the Lightroom subfolder of the Pictures folder on my Macbook Pro. They are:
Lightroom 3 Catalog Previews.copy.1680lrdata
Lightroom 3 Catalog Previews.copy.1440lrdata
as well as the standard Lightroom 3 Catalog Previews.lrdata
Are those two copy files needed? Not sure how I might have created them. Thanks.
Jay S.

Ian Lyons wrote:
The folders are 100% not of Lr's making. On Mac platform Lr creates a package (lrdata) containing 2 files and 16 top levels folders (1,2,3,.....D,E,F). Each of these folders will contain multiple folder, and within these you will find the actual preview pyramid file for each image. If the image has a VC associated with it will be located beside the master. Each pyramid preview for a real file or VC contains multiple JPEG previews of various sizes (1024, 1400, 1680, 2048...). You need a special application to open the preview file as it is not a conventional JPEG (i.e. drop the preview file onto an app called File Juicer and it will extract all of the embedded previews).
http://echoone.com/filejuicer/
Ian,
Thanks for the link.. I'll look it up.. O.K., so the gaunlet is down. LOL .. I'm positive I didn't create those.. Again, when I was switching within the LR prefernces to different sizes for testing performance on rendering (1440 or 1680) that was the only place I was doing something. If not out of LR, I'm not sure where. It's odd that the two folder mirror the two sizes (by name) I was playing around with. I'm not at my Mac now so I can't test anything. They almost seem like programmed names though.
Again thanks for the filejuicer link.
Jay S.

Similar Messages

Catalog Previews.lrdata folders

I see that in the previews.lrdata folder, there are several folders, each containing about a thousands empty folders. What are all of these folders? Are they really empty, or is it stuff that Windows just will not show. I have "show hidden folders" turned on.

Those folders are where Lightroom keeps it previews. It generates the previews when you import photos or later e.g when you go to Develop;
Are the folders empty? That probably means that they contained full-sized previews that now are empty because the full-sized previews were discarded (as chosen by you on the "File Handling" tab of the Catalog Settings Window.)
If these folders really are empty, then you could delete them, if you are worried about clutter.
I know that Lr will regenerate any missing folders in the previews.lrdata folder, whether it reuses empty ones I do not know.
Even if you delete the complete .lrdata folder Lr will regenerate, but it can take a long time for a large number of images.

Whatever happened to previews.db in Lightroom 5 Catalog Previews.lrdata?

In earlier versions of Lightroom, there used to be a file called previews.db inside a directory called "Lightroom 5 Catalog Previews.lrdata" , but in Lightroom 5.7, I see that "Lightroom 5 Catalog Previews.lrdata" has become a file (no longer a directory) and there is no previews.db. I had a plugin that needed to read previews.db in order to generate thumbnails. Now I don't know what to do. (Rob Cole, you wrote the function that did this, and it worked great while there was a previews.db -- perhaps you know what is up.) If anyone can point me to where a file similar to previews.db can be found (it has to be parseable by sqlite), that would be very helpful. Thanks!

I don't use a Mac, so cannot answer definitively, but perhaps this folder was compressed either via selecting some option on the folder, itself, or by running some maintenance function that automatically compressed folders that were deemed as wasting space. I would think you'd want this to be an compressed folder so as not to use up an inorfinate amount of time to work with the previews contained inside. Can you make an uncompressed copy and then rename the compressed original as something else and rename the copy to the correct folder name?
Here is some info on compressed folders on Macs I found by Googling:
OS X Mavericks: Compress and uncompress files and folders

Lightroom 2 Catalog Previews.lrdata?

I am running into space problems on my C drive (hard to imagine, but I my computer was configured before LR and iTunes). I have moved the iTunes music to another drive, but still need to free up space. LR is using over 3GB in the following location:
C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\My Documents\My Pictures\Lightroom\Lightroom 2 Catalog Previews.lrdata
Under it are folders 0 through 9 and A through F (plus a file called thumbnail-cache.db). These in turn have their own subfolders. Can I remove the whole C:\Documents and Settings\DandJ\My Documents\My Pictures\Lightroom\Lightroom 2 Catalog Previews.lrdata structure? Do I need to change a preference to have this preview stuff go to a different drive in the future? My 'Camera Raw Cache Settings' is now pointing to a different drive, but this doesn't seem to be the same thing.
I would LOVE to have that 3GB+ free for other things (like defragging without having to move stuff back and forth)!
Thanks.

You can move your Lightroom catalogue and the previews to a different drive. The previews always must be in the same folder that the catalogue lives in. After you move them, simply double-click on the moved catalogue file to open it, and away you go.
Hal

Lightroom 2 Catalog Previews

I am running LR3.3.
I am doing some housecleaning, and I've found this folder: C:\Documents and Settings\My Name\My Documents\My Pictures\Lightroom\Lightroom 2 Catalog Previews.lrdata\
It looks like something that was abandoned during an upgrade, and thus it's a candidate for the trash bin. Any thoughts?

Lr 3 creates a copy of the original when you upgraded from an earlier version (i.e Lr1 or Lr2 to Lr3). Therefore, if you can locate a copy for Lr3 then yes it is redundant and can be deleted. The new file may not be labelled Lr3 but the date stamp should still give you a clue as to which is the most recent. That being said, a new copy will be created upon relaunch should you delete the wrong version. Basically, trashing the lrdata file simply means that Lr will need to rebuild a new copy.

Running LR3.3 - can I delete catalog previews from older versions?

I've got three folders on my HD with names like Lightroom 2 catalog previews.lrdata, Lightroom 3 Catalog Previews -2.lrdata and Lightroom 3 Catalog Previews -3.lrdata ... are all three necessary or can I delete the first two (I'm assuming that Lightroom 3 Catalog Previews -2.lrdata is from the version previous to 3.3)? Just trying to determine what's actually necessary to back up since my external drive's running out of space

You can delete any of the previews folders you like with the understanding that LR will rebuild previews, again, for folders you visit in LR, which is less likely for older versions.
You might also check your back folders and thin out (delete in Explorer/Finder) the older periodic backups to one each month or quarter or year instead of one each week the older they are.

Very Large Lightroom Catalog Previews.lrdata File

My Lightroom Catalog Previews.lrdata file is very large, about 12GB; Is this because of my preview settings? I only have about 10,000 photos in my Lightroom catalog and I'm concerned as to how large this file will get as my catalog grows.

I have 129,980 in my lightroom catalog. The photos go back to January 2000 and are only about 350GB but this previews file is over 116GB. This seems excessive.
Is the alternative to simply take a moment to build previews when I go to a folder? Most of my folders are pretty small.

LR previews.lrdata folders

I understand the LRCAT is the main file for a catalog. In LR4, the program is generating a preview.lrdata folder containing thousands of new folders and taking up a lot of hard drive space and a lot of time when syncing drives.
If I delete all of the preview files and folders and reopen the catalog, LR immediately starts generating these folders again.
Do I have something checked (like full size previews) that is causing LR to make all of these folders? I don't remember seeing this in LR3. I've looked around in the prefs and catalog settings for a check box.
Maybe it has something to with the preview size I have selected? I had Catalog Settingst at 1440/Medium/Discard 1:1 after one day. I just set it to 1024/Low/Discard 1:1 after one day.
My main catalog has 170,000 files now and the LRCAT file is roughly 2.63 gigs.
I am using Alwaysync to sync drives on a PC in Windows 7. Having all the folders is requiring extra time to analyze.
Thanks in advance,
M Jackson

Hi,
I'm about to set the same way you do - sync LR catalog on my PC with my NAS server and then with my notebook using AlwaysSync and it works.
You can use exclusion rules --> Job - Properties - your rule - Inclusion and Exclusion filter
beside inclusion rules I have these exclusion onces
\LR Catalogs\*\*Previews.lrdata ... Folders only
\LR Catalogs\*\*.lrcat.lock .... Files only
\LR Catalogs\*\*.lrcat-journal .... Files only
Notice I have one catalog per year and my folder structure for catalog 2013 is
...\Library\2013 - for images (with subfolders)
...\Library\LR Catalogs\2013 ... for catalog

How does installation of CC Photoshop and Lightroom affect my current catalogs, previews, and caches?

I am going to subscribe to the Adobe Creative Cloud Photography Plan. How can I preserve (import?) and use my current catalogs, previews, and caches from my current installation of Lightroom? Or will I have to start over once the new version of Lightroom CC is installed?

If you are currently using Lightroom 5 then switching over to the creative cloud is really simple. There are some who say that it isn't necessary to switch to Lightroom downloaded from the creative cloud. But I did. I'm using Windows, so I used the standard uninstall process to uninstall my standalone Lightroom. Then I installed Lightroom from the creative cloud. After the installation was complete there was an icon for Lightroom (just like the previous one because it is the same program) on my desktop. I double clicked on the icon and Lightroom opened the same catalog that I had been using and everything that I had done previously was still in place. You see, the catalog and previews and all those other files are user files generated by Lightroom on your computer. But they aren't part of the Lightroom program. So removing the Lightroom program does nothing to your catalog or previews or preview cache. It's the same program precisely. It's just licensed differently.
If you have been using Lightroom 4 then Lightroom 5 will find the catalog you have been using and will prompt you to allow it to create an updated copy of it that conforms to the new database format. It's no different than upgrading the standalone version. So the short answer is that you shouldn't lose any of your work by switching over.

Running out of space, where to store catalog/preview data?

Hello,
currently my hard drive setup is
(1) SSD 120GB, for OS and APPS
(1) Caviar Black 7200rpm 1TB, for storage (only photos on this drive)
catalog and preview data are stored on the SSD, but as the title mentions, it is running out of space. I need to move them to another HD.
I'm curious about two things:
1) would it decrease performance to move the catalog and preview data to the 7200rpm drive?
-if so, significant?
2) would it be worth it to purchase another SSD for catalog/preview data?
Thanks!
Jeff

I like to keep all my 1:1 previews as well and run a pretty large catalog. As long as it is on a disk with plenty of free space it won't have a negative effect on performance (in fact it has a positive effect in not having to regenerate preview files), hence getting it off the SSD drive is a good idea.
The SSD drive really benefits the OS, cache, swapdisk rather than the catalog. Whilst having a catalog on a second Hard SSD drive may be an idea, I think spending the cash on a couple of decent fast 1 TB drives and spliting everything up, whilst leaving the OS and apps on the SSD will give the best bang for the buck. I am not convinced that significant gains are made by having a catalog on a SSD over a large, fast traditional drive. I would reccomend the Samsung F3
The other thing to consider is keeping all the disks running well. After a series of Hard Drive failures a few years ago, I invested in a copy of Diskeeper. This keeps my disks in tip top condition and system running well.

Can't copy files to a network share but can copy folders...

I frequently use a network share at work. I can view files off of it fine. I can erase files off it. I can copy folders to it.
However, any time I copy any single file I get the following error.
"The operation can’t be completed because you don’t have permission to access some of the items."
This occurs for every file I've tried. From txt files to jpgs to docs. Everything gives that error and fails. I'm at a loss and it's totally killing my productivity.
It's a linux based share and all permissions on that box are correct. My account can easily copy files from other machines. Also, the fact that files and modifications work on this computer seems to prove that as well. I think it's pretty apparent that the cause of this error is on my laptops end.
I've verified my disk permissions. I have no clue what could be causing this.

Look at this thread for discussion of this issue.
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2382501
Search is your friend.

Can Robocopy Be Used To Copy Folders Newer Than A Certain Date?

We've been using robocopy with the /MAXAGE option to copy files newer than a certain date. Can the same be done for folders?
Orange County District Attorney

Hi,
We cannot use robocopy to folders newer than a certain date, the /MAXAGE option is only used to copy files. We could use PowerShell command to copy folders newer than X days.
Get-ChildItem <source folder> -Recurse | where {$_.PSIsContainer -eq "ture" -and $_.LastWriteTime -gt ($(Get-Date).Adddays(-X))} | foreach {copy $_.FullName <detination folder> }
Best Regards,
Mandy
Please remember to mark the replies as answers if they help and unmark them if they provide no help. If you have feedback for TechNet Subscriber Support, contact [email protected]

I am having the same problem I think. With mobileme you simply copy documents to the idisk folder and then synch. I cannot seem to sink that folder anymore. Any idea as to how I can simply copy folders to icloud and then access the MS Word and PDF file

I am having the same problem I think. With mobileme you simply copy documents to the idisk folder and then synch. I cannot seem to sink that folder anymore. Any idea as to how I can simply copy folders to icloud and then access the MS Word and PDF files on my iphone?

Apple never bopthered to explain that this would happen
Your iDisk is still accessible after moving to iCloud in exactly the same way as before. Nothing is deleted until June 30th 2012.
, so I could easily have lost ALL of the files I kept on iDisk.
No, you couldn't. Firstly, nothing was deleted from your iDisk. Secondly, any files stored on your iDisk should never be your only copy. Even if your iDisk spontaneously combusted, you should keep local backups elsewhere.
Does Apple WANT people to move their storage elsewhere and stop paying Apple for it?
Yes. Apple doesn't provide such a service anymore, nor are you paying them for it.
Apple has made no effort to suggest remedies for the problem it has given iDisk users
They've provided instructions on how to download your files from your iDisk. What you do with them after that is your choice.

'Info' file count varies between original and copied folders

Unlike Snow Leopard, Lion and Mountain Lion 'Info' counts hidden files in folders (usually .DS files). However copied folders, often to different locations, computers, etc, do not count to the same total as the original folder. How can I stop 'Info' counting hidden files in a folder, so that I can check acturately folder contents between original and copied folders. I do not want to have to open each folder and check the count at the bottom of the window, this is very time consuming when dealing with many folders
I hope there is an easy answer ??

You can do this simply in Terminal with the command
ls [directory] wc -l
This will only count the files and folders at the top level (i.e., not the contents of folders within it) and it won't count hidden files.
Examples:
if you want to count how many files are in your home user folder
ls -1 ~/ | wc -l
If you want to count how many files are in your desktop folder
ls -1 ~/Desktop | wc -l
If you want to count how many files are in a folder called 'Temp' on your Desktop:
ls -1 ~/Desktop/Temp | wc -l
If you want to count how many files are in your Trash:
ls -1 ~/.Trash | wc -l
If you want more sophisticated counts, such as subdirectories, type
man ls
into Terminal to read the manual on the various options you can use with the 'ls' command.

Copying folders and Subfolders with files using Promises WinJS

Hi,
I have app written in WinJS.
I want to copy a particular folder along with its subfolders and their files. I am so far successful with copying folders. Below is the code for the same.
app.CopyFolder = function (folder, destFolder) {
var replace = Windows.Storage.CreationCollisionOption.replaceExisting;
//console.log("create folder: " + folder.name);
return destFolder.createFolderAsync(folder.name, replace).then(function (newdest) {
return app.CopySubFolders(folder, newdest);
app.CopySubFolders=function(folder, destFolder) {
return folder.getFoldersAsync().then(function (folderlist) {
return WinJS.Promise.join(folderlist.map(function (folder) {
return app.CopyFolder(folder, destFolder);
Now after I have copied all the folders I need to copy their respective files. The problem is I am stuck,I get the files copied but I want to proceed ahead after all the files are written to their respective folders. Below is the code for the same.
app.copyAllFiles = function (fileList, destStorFolder) {
console.log('copyFiles Start...');
var promises = [];
var fileCopied = 0;
var collideOpt = Windows.Storage.CreationCollisionOption.replaceExisting;
return WinJS.Promise.join(fileList.map(function (file) {
return app.copySingleFile(file, destStorFolder);
app.copySingleFile = function (fileObject, destFolder) {
var promises = [];
var fileCopied = 0;
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var collideOpt = Windows.Storage.CreationCollisionOption.replaceExisting;
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return fileObject.fileObject.copyAsync(folderObjectOfLocalFolder, fileObject.fileName, collideOpt).then(function (fileObject) {
console.log("copied single file:" + fileObject.name);
The problem is when i run the folder copy code and apply breakpoint for the success call back of
CopySubFolders(source,destination).done(/*my breakpoint*/)
The folders are created.
But when I try to breakpoint for my copyAllFiles,the files are created only when i pass the success call back.
Can anyone tell me what am i doing wrong? How can I proceed ahead only when all the files are written successfully.
Regards,
Ninad

Hi,
I tried the above solution but what i want is that the action of copying folders and subfolders along with the files should be done with promises and that promise should return only when all folders,sunfolders and their files have been copied. I want to
do it in this way because I want to perform certain second action only when all things are copied.
If I do it the as per the link the function runs in the background and my second action proceed aheads and may cause error if it finds some folder or file missing.
So I came up with following above code,first copy folders then copy. The copy folder works as expected but the files are getting copied only when the file copying code enters the success call back.
Can you please shed light on my code where I am going wrong.
Or is it ok to proceed ahead with the solution you mentioned at the link cause I dont want any runtime crashes.
Regards,
Ninad

Catalog Preview copy folders?

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