Elements 4.0 Organizer - Catalog Size?

Hey all,
I am about to organize a lot of digital scrapbooking files and I am considering doing it in my current pictures catalog. I will put an old date on them and tag them so they will not interfere with my photos. I am approaching 10,000 items in my current catalog. Is there a practical limit on the number of items in a catalog. I can always start another catalog, but I had rather not if I can get away with it.
Thanks in advance,
Rob Hix

There is no firm limit on catalog size. Most likely, it depends on your computer's memory and speed, and your tolerance for the appearance of speed or the appearance of slowness. Catalogs of 65K have been reported running well.

Similar Messages

Are there practical limits on elements organizer catalog size?

I have 90K items in my PSE11 organizer catalog. I'm running Win8 and I'm getting nervious that catalog size will become an issue. Backing up the catalog is cumbersome since it is 337G. If I need to break it up into smaller pieces, what is the best way to do this? Is there a bridge or link between catalogs? Thanks

See:
http://www.johnrellis.com/psedbtool/photoshop-elements-faq.htm#_Limits_on_the
and:
http://www.johnrellis.com/psedbtool/photoshop-elements-faq.htm#_Splitting_and_rearranging
and:
http://www.johnrellis.com/psedbtool/photoshop-elements-faq.htm#_Merging_Catalogs
The only real problem with big catalogs is what you have found : it's long and tedious to do backups. From the above links you can see that it's a bad idea to split catalogs, unless there is nothing common within them. Contrary to Lightroom, the organizer offers no satisfactory solution to merge catalogs. And the size of the catalog has no real impact on the speed of your organizing.
My suggestion would be to think about alternative backup procedures : anyway, if you want to upgrade to Lightroom, you'll have to choose your own backup system for picture files. LR only offers backups for the catalogs (database).
- Once you know where your big catalog is stored (menu help / system info) it's easy to create a desktop shortcut so that you can save the catalog itself. That's very quick compared to the backup of all your files (several hours).
- Consider using PSE incremental backups. I am not fond of them, but they are acceptable if you master the process : they save the database fully each time and let you restore to a given backup sesssion. Many users rely on incremental backups without understanding the process and are unable to do a complete restore in case of a big problem.
- Consider using external backup tools (as if you were with Lightroom). They can be easier and they offer automatic and periodic backup workflows. I am using Synctoy with Win7 and do periodic clones of my drives with Acronis
- Continue to use the integrated backup procedure when you have to change OS, computer, drives... and migrate all your pictures and catalog.

Photoshop Elements 8 - Organizer - File size too large

I have a new computer running Windows 7 with gobs of RAM and hard drive space. I’ve recently installed Photoshop Elements 8.
I am having the following problem in the Organizer for some 35MM slides that I’ve scanned at 1600DPI. It looks like the pixel size in one example is 9590x6013 = 57,664,670. Based on some reading on the internet it appears that the standard limit in Organizer is 54 megapixels (56,623,104 pixels). Looking over all of my slides I think I will need around 62-65,000,000.
I found an Adobe TechNote, http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/402/kb402760.html, that seems to address this issue for earlier versions. I’ve tried a few times with no luck to follow these notes but there are some differences in my Registry as I’ve noted below in steps 4&5 of the instructions.
I’ve restarted both my computer and Photoshop Elements after making the registry change with no change in the Organizer message. I’ve removed the pictures from the catalog and added them back with no change. They look fine in the Editor. The pictures also look fine in all Windows tumbnails.
The following instructions are copied from the TechNotes. I’ve made two comments in Red where I was a little unsure since my Registry after install of version 8 does not exactly match these version 5&6 notes.
Some instructions I found on your website
To override the maximum image size limit for the Organizer:
Exit the Organizer.
Choose Start > Run.
Type regedit in the Open field and click OK.
In the left pane, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ADOBE\Photoshop Elements\5.0 for Photoshop Elements 5.0 and HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ADOBE\Photoshop Elements\6.0 for Photoshop Elements 6.0. Notice that my Adobe is not under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE it is under HKEY_CURRENT_USER.
Highlight the Organizer folder in the left pane.
I’ve noticed that I have two “Organizer” folders under the Adobe registry.
HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Adobe/Elements Organizer/8.0
HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Adobe/Photoshop Elements/8.0/Organizer
Thus far, I’ve only tried this DWORD in the second option.
Choose Edit > New > DWORD Value, and name the new value MaxImageSize.
Highlight the MaxImageSize DWORD and choose Edit > Modify.
Change the Base option to Decimal.
In the Value Data field, enter the new maximum size for an image in pixels. For example, if you want to change the limit to 24 megapixels, then enter 25165824. (To determine a megapixel value in pixels, multiply the value by 1024 x 1024.) If there is a specific image size you are trying to import, then use the this forumula: width x height x 1024 x 1024.
Click OK.
Exit the registry.
Start the Organizer. If you had previously imported images that were over the limit, then delete them from the catalog and re-import them to display the thumbnail.
Thanks, Tom

Hi Tom,
I'm having the sampe problem. Did you ever resolve this issue?

Update to Elements 9.0.3 messed up Organizer Catalog

I recently updated my installed copy of Photoshop Elements 9 to version 9.0.3 using the link imbedded in my copy of Elements 9 . Shortly after I moved to Elements 9 with a successful transfer of my image catalog from Elements 8, I updated to version 9.0.2 without issue. This time, updating to version 9.0.3 went fine except that imported images (from Canon's ZoomBrowser) now show thumbnails in the Elements Organizer Browser screen with all of the RAW/CR2 thumbnails being grouped together, followed by all of the JPEG thumbnails being grouped together. I shoot all of my images both as JPEG and RAW files. Since I started with Photoshop Elements 5, several years ago, my image files that always imported into the Organizer's browser with the JPEG thumbnail showing directly adjacent to the RAW thumbnail. This is desirable because as I convert and edit a RAW/CR2 image and save it in a stack in the Organizer catalog, I can quickly and easily compare the edited RAW image with the unedited JPEG image.
How do I edit the Elements Organizer, version 9.0.3 to make image thumbnails reside as they did previously (up through version 9.0.2)?
I would uninstall the update, if I could, but I don't see that this can be easily done. Deleting Elements 9 totally and starting over would cost me my entire image catalog. I need real help. Can someone help me?
Thanks.
Bob Krause

Sorry, at 73, figuring out how to do screen shots is a little beyond my experience. I will try to clarify my situation with words.
I see no Auto-Analysis setting under "Preferences" in the Organizer menu. I did find Auto-Analysis under the Organizer Edit menu. I selected my recent Organizer Catalog additions (post update to 9.0.3), checked Auto-Analysis and ran the analysis. The catalog did not change except that the little Auto-Analysis icon now appears on each of the new Catalog thumbnails. It does not appear on previous Catalog additions. Apparently, Auto-Analysis has not previously been run.
All previous Catalog thumbnails have markings of "Version Set" on the RAW thumbnails that reside adjacent to their JPEG thumbnail "versions". The post update (version 9.0.3) Catalog thumbnails bear no such "Version Set" markings, indicating that the update is not recognizing Version Sets. That, apparently, is what I need to fix. How do I tell the Organizer to establish Version Sets?
When I import ("Get Photos") photos into the Photoshop Elements 9.0.3 Organizer/Catalog, I see three "check box" choices:
Get Photos from subfolders (This is checked)
Automatically Fix Red Eyes (This is NOT checked)
Automatically Suggest Photo Stacks (This is checked)
These are currently my only choices when getting photos from Files and Folders.
Thanks for any suggestions you can offer.
Bob Krause

Converting Organizer Catalog created for version 8 to Elements 11 errors out. Help?

The conversion of the Organizer Catalog version 8 to use with Elements 11 errors out. It asked me to repair the old catalog. I went back to 8, repaired it and optmized it as other articles mentioned, and still did not work. would somebody please help me?

It’s often a question of needing full permission settings and the easiest way to make it work is from an administrators account directly from the desktop which bypasses the welcome screen background processes.
Make a shortcut for organizer as follows:
On Windows right-click anywhere on the desktop and choose New >> Shortcut
Browse to Computer OS C:
Find the PSE Organizer application in Program Files or Program Files (x86) on Windows 7 - 64 bit.
C: >> Program Files (x86) >> Adobe >> Elements 11 Organizer
Within the Elements 11 Organizer folder find the application PhotoshopElementsOrganizer (not Photoshop Elements 11.0)
Select (highlight) PhotoshopElementsOrganizer and click Next
Then click Finish.
Now right-click on your new desktop icon and choose “Run As Administrator” Then authorize by clicking yes in the User Account Control dialog.
From the Organizer menu click:
File >> Manage Catalogs
Then click the “Convert” button
Select your desired catalog from the list of previous versions of PSE to highlight it then click the “Convert” button down below it
You should receive a message when the conversion has been successfully completed and your earlier catalog will be automatically re-named. Choose the new name from the list and click the “Open“ button and you are good to go.

Can anyone demystify the PSE Organizer catalog backup options?

I need to backup my catalog--preferably just my catalog, not all my pictures (the picture files themselves are already backed up). More accurately, I would like my automated online backup service (Carbonite) to back up my PSE Organizer catalog for me, just as it has already backed up my pictures. But the catalog is in some caddywompus location that Carbonite doesn't back up by default. I think I can manually override Carbonite's default settings and tell it to back that location up anyway, if I only knew where and what files to look for.
If I click on Help > System Info..., PSE tells me my catalog is located in C:\ProgramData\Adobe\Elements Organizer\Catalogs\clayscatalog. It doesn't go all the way to the file level, just down to that last folder, which shares the name of my catalog. But I have no idea which file inside of that folder is my catalog, or what to backup. Inside that folder called clayscatalog, there are the following items:
BreezeData(folder)
CAXMPFiles(folder)
syncdb(folder)
backupCt.dat
catalog.pse9db
collstatus.dat
face.thumb.9.cache
itemData.mk4
rmf.3.cache
tagstatus.dat
thumb.5.cache
watch.2.cache
Which of these files/folders should I be targeting for backup, all of them? And which would I browse to find in order to restore my catalog if my computer ever crashed and I needed to do a restore? Assuming all my photos are backed up and able to be restored to the same folder hierarchy, I assume one of these files/folders is going to have that information and be able to restore everything easily, preserving all my photo ratings, captions, tags, etc., right?
It would seem to make sense for the PSE to offer the option when you choose Backup from the file menu to back up all your catalog data only, as opposed to only having the option to backup everything, including all the picture files. Because I'm sure many people, like me, already have their picture files backed up and don't have need for that. Any guidance on this would be much appreciated.
Clay

First, short answer : the catalog consists in the whole folder you found. All those files are used in the organizer, but the .cache files which may have a big size will be regenerated by the organizer if they are deleted. The problem is this operation may be very long, so you will be better if you save everything;
If you use the backup and restore feature in the Organizer, you'll only have only to tell the restore process where your backup (of everything, files and folders) is located.
http://www.johnrellis.com/psedbtool/photoshop-elements-faq.htm#_Backing_up_your

Moving the organizer catalog to a new computer

I am upgrading from Photoshop Elements 9 to version 12 and loading it onto a new computer running Windows 8.2. To move the Organizer Catalog I have tried several time to create a backup on an external hard drive from version 9 so i can restore it on the new computer with the upgraded software. Each time i run the backup the process stops and displays an error message "Error encountered while writing files". This occurs when the process is approximately 75% complete. There are 12,326 items in the catalog, the estimated "media size" needed it 142,891.30 MB, i have 339 GB of free space on the external hard drive. Any recommendations on how to proceed?

Hi,
Please try repairing and optimizing your catalog before taking backup.
You can do this by:
File > Manage Catalogs and click on Repair and Optimize buttons
Thanks,
Anwesha

How to switch Organizer catalog from one hard drive to another?

As far as a little background, i have just finished two high definition projects in Premiere Elements, the last one being 73 projects combined into 6 blu rays. It had completely filled up my 1TB hard drive, so i have purchased an additional 2TB internal hard drive, in hopes of being able to switch all my photoshop to the larger internal hard drive. I am also archiving the old stuff as i finish each project to an external hard drive to free up space.
But i am PETRIFIED at the possibility of trying to move my Elements Catalog because of all the stories i have heard about having the majority of the photos needed to 'reconnect' after switching it to an external hard drive and I assume the same thing will happen to me if i move it to another internal hard drive???????   I have had several computer smart gentleman who have often helped me out when i had a problem and one refused to even venture how to successfully move the catalog and other guy's suggestion is to backup the entire Catalog and then restore it on the new drive.   Steve Grisetti said this morning on his webpage that i should cut and paste the file from one drive to the other but not quite sure how easy that is going to be, because when i have searched out the "move' option, it does not allow me to do anything there. Could that be because i have files that need to be 'reconnected' first before i could accomplish that 'move.'    Steve suggested i come over to this Forum to get some opinions, which is what i have done. That sounds like being more complicated than just cutting and pasting one folder with 16,000 photos. What is the safest way to accomplish this without losing anything, and avoiding the need to 'reconnect' 16,000 files which i am not looking forward to.
So that is my first and foremost question about the Elements Organizer, but i do have some other related problems with the 'reconnect' problem, some of which i have figured out, but not completely. After finally completing these two big projects, my next goal was to clean up my files, get things organized better, and i seem to be finding more and more problems to address. The list of problems decreases with each project but i am still able to find new ones. I am not a computer whiz, and probably shouldn't be trying to accomplish what i am doing with the basic Photoshop programs, something i know the majority of you would be using other more advanced Photoshop programs and much more easily, but i am starting to get this program down, and i don't need more challenges right now.
So i have 3 additional concerns and questions if anyone can help me out to prevent future problems with the next high definition project for Premiere Elements to burn onto blu rays.
1. Because i ran out of space totally on my old internal hard drive, i set up a temporary file on the new drive for the blu ray projects, and I was able to finish the remaining mpeg2s for the final 2 blu rays from Premiere Elements. But when i finished, i started to clean up the files, and realized that the catalog was not recognizing any of the mpeg2 files that i had used to assemble the first 4 blu rays, which was the time i set up the new file on the new internal hard drive, and had copied and pasted my blu ray files. It all seemed to go well, and i was able to finish the final 20 something projects and 2 final mpeg2s for the final blu rays which i prepared and burned on Sony DVD Architect. . But when i went back and was looking at the final mpeg2 files for the previous 4 blu rays, they all needed to be 'reconnected', and i assume it was because the last 2 were on a different drive. And after some effort, i was able to reconnect everything i think successfully. And i am assuming that this will not continue to be a problem if i can get the entire Catalog on the same hard drive. So write that one off to experience.
2. But i hadn't taken the time before doing the blu ray project to label my pictures completely, so the next project i started was renaming the filenames, which quickly presented a new problem, and that made for more 'reconnect' problems again for every picture that i renamed that was used in any of the Premiere Elements Project, so i was back to where i started but even worse off; however, the good news is that my photos were the best organized they ever have been. So all the mpeg2's on the catalog once again asked for 'reconnect' and came to the conclusion that it must mean any name change in the 'filename' also makes it not recognizable. With my first big Premiere Elements project which ended up with 4 blu rays, i made the very big mistake of organizing and moving files in windows, and that is problem #3. So i have come to the conclusion that it doesn't matter, but lots of effort is not obtainable, but i guess i am wondering if it was really worth saving in working condition anyway?? The good news is that the individual photos are fine for the most part, but it is all the mpeg2 files that i combined the original photos into 73 projects, making a mpeg2 of each, then combining about 10-15 of the mpeg2s together and adding music to it, and forming the final mpeg2 which is what i then prepared to burn to blu ray in Sony Architect Studio. The finished product is still present in the Sony Architect software, and i even burned a copy of them again to make sure that was possible, So my gut feeling is just to delete all the mpeg2 files in my organizer, and forget they were ever there! Does that make sense?????    I am not sure that i would ever use them again anyway, but what i am asking is obviously that something as simple as change in the filename screws up the catalog once again????? Yes, i have learned my lesson, and they will all be finalized with the filename ever before i start the next project. Just like with the first project, i learned to stay out of windows all together, and now i only use albums which i found no problems using at all.
3. Last problem is the oldest one, but one i still cannot solve. It was from the first blu ray project when i was doing stupid things like moving folders, and photos from one folder to another to make it better organized. And that was super-organized, and there was absolutely no need to change filenames!!!!! I have two separate problems. Some of the 'reconnects' do not have a picture but the gray square and the ?. I have been able to find most of the files that i had 'displaced' and have recovered them, and knew where they were, and were able to change file names, and it looks like they are back in the catalog. There was also a big file of photos that i found in a file that was the original download file for a given date which is how i NOW download my photos into Photoshop in the first place. But i have not been able to reconnect any of them successfully. They are there and i have renamed them, but the catalog still does not recongize them as being in the Catalog. The other group are photos where the picture shows in the catalog, but there is a ? to reconnect, but i cannot find the photos anywhere. These are of a trip of a once in a life time variety, so i have refused to just press delete, and i thought i had perhaps somehow deleted them all, but i have either found them in another file or the photo is present but i can't rename, i can't reconnect, and for all practical purposes they don't seem to be there. Any suggestions at all? Do i have any other options other than just to delete those whole period of my trip?
I am longwinded, but i wanted to try and give enough background information. The problem seems simple, but i just want to confirm the problems i have run into are for the reason i think they are, and any help on how to successfully move the catalog to the second internal hard drive will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance for any comments and or suggestions.
Ron

Thanks for your suggestions, i knew i had overdone it when i wrote the entire story. Just a couple direct questions based on your response!!
Just a couple of questions, i am assuming all the reconnection problems have to be taken care of either by connecting or deleting before the catalog can be moved. Correct?
The reconnect problems i have were not renamed outside of Photoshop, and the renaming does not seem to be an issue except for mpeg2s that are in the catalog that were used to generate the blu rays but i think it was me screwing things up when i didn't know better and was moving folders and photos in folders (Window type) .   Since the blu rays are in the Sony software complete and ready to reburn easily, i assume it would be okay to delete all those that are in the catalog, that need to be reconnected for whatever reason. Plus the individual photos of most of them are just fine. I am talking 376 'reconnect problems' counting all those mpeg2 files which are at least the majority of the 376. Probably would be nice to have, but is there any reason i have to keep them since the photos are okay and the blu rays are burned and still in the Sony Architect program intact?
What i don't understand is the important photos that are worth trying to save seem to be in the proper folder, which is what is stated in properties, but the photo is in the catalog, but with the ? and cannot do anything with it at all, without just going to reconnection, and when i try to identify the folder, it says it is empty, which those are NOT.   If it takes 'forever', then albeit, at least for these few pictures. I really don't want to delete those!
And is it possible to do what my computer tech is telling me that it will all transfer accurately and completely if we backup the entire catalog and then restore it to the new drive?. It seems like after i complete the reconnects one way or another, it might be an easier process that can be completed totally within Element?    Since the catalog is on c drive, i guess i can't do what you suggested buy why?
I kept to those tips you gave me. It seems like an impossibility to save these pictures, but these were from my very first efforts with Premiere Elements and blu rays. Other than the renaming the changing and affecting the Premiere Elements projects in the second one, i have no other problems, and have no recconect problems. So i guess i am moving in the right direction. I just don't need to keep finding ways to make more problems for myself.
Ron

Elements 6.0 Organizer won't open

When I try to open the Elements 6.0 Organizer from the desktop icon, the Elements Welcome Screen, or from within the Editor, I get a message saying that the Adobe Photoshop Organizer has stopped working, and that Windows will shut down the program. I have tried resetting the preference files and registry for the Organizer. I have tried opening the catalog repair by holding alt/ctr/shift while clicking on Organizer in the Welcome screen. I have tried downloading and applying the licensing patch. When I check the log.txt in Word pad, the last item listed is OLS initializing.
The problem began after I tried to upload a series of photos to Shutterfly. The process stalled after loading 4 out of 21 photos.
I have been using Photoshop Elements 6.o for a year with Windows Vista with no problems previous to this one.

Carla,
>When I check the log.txt in Word pad, the last item listed is OLS initializing.
Look at the information here to reset the Organizer's online services state.
http://www.johnrellis.com/psedbtool/photoshopelements-6-7-faq.htm#_Reset_the_Organizers

I have downloaded Photoshop elements 5.0 to a new PC. I recieve error message: "Your Adobe Photoshop Elements user name, organization, or serial number is missing or invalid. The application cannot continue and must now exit."

I was referred here by customer service. I have downloaded Photoshop elements 5.0 to a new PC. After accepting the agreement I receive an error message saying "Your Adobe Photoshop Elements user name, organization, or serial number is missing or invalid. The application cannot continue and must now exit." There is no place to enter the serial number.

All your pictures will remain safe even after uninstalling the program. Your pictures are saved to your system in form of catalog present at C:\ProgramData\Adobe\Photoshop Elements\Catalogs\<your catalog><br />When you reinstall the program you can open this catalog and view all your photos again.

Premiere elements 10 and organizer

I have the premiere elements 9 and photoshop9 which came as a bundle with organizer. If I buy premiere elements 10 will organizer 9 work with it?
I am using Mac Lion.

Not really. But Premiere Elements 10 comes with Elements Organizer 10, which should update your Organizer 9 catalog.

Photoshop elements 7.0 (organizer) has stopped working, how do I fix this?

photoshop elements 7.0 (organizer) has stopped working, How do I fix this?

Start PSE to get to the Welcome screen.
Hold down the Ctrl, Alt, and Shift keys and click Organize. Keep holding down the keys until you see the Catalog window.
Select your catalog and click Repair. Select “repair anyway” even if PSE doesn’t find problems.
Then for good measure, click Optimize.
If repairing resolves your issue then fine else repeat the above steps, but click New to create a new catalog. If you’re able to import photos into the new catalog and the Organizer works fine, then problem can be old catalog.
In that case you can try regenerating the thumbnails. Do Show All, Edit > Select All, and then Edit > Update Thumbnail.
http://kb.adobe.com/selfservice/viewContent.do?externalId=kb402592&sliceId=2
-Garry

Organizer/catalog problem

getting: "a problem accessing Organizer catalog. It may be in use by another process or a disk error occurred". Can you help? Sorry - I'm using Elements 5...

From: photodrawken
Sent: Thursday, May 17, 2012 2:39 PM
To: Ermineglen
Subject: Organizer/catalog problem
Re: Organizer/catalog problem
created by photodrawken in Photoshop Elements - View the full discussion Much thanks to you - appreciate it. Glen...

PSE 8 Catalog Size?

Can anyone tell me if there is an optimal catalog size in PSE 8? I just started using the software and I've imported my 26,000 images (20% raw / 80 % jpeg) and I'm wondering if I should break that up to get better performance on my PC.

Thanks,
I did not import (upload) so many images to PSE8 in organizer yet. I did de-activate the auto-analynizer, optimized and repair the cataloque as you mentioned. However the organizer just shut down or react so slow or even jam, don´t work. So I have to close the organizer. Somehow I found it is not a easy organizer to use. Too many functions that I do not need and some I need, but not provided. I like my thumbnail showed as my ordered filename. And it ordered them by date (oldest or newest). I would prefer a simple organizer instead of such useless monster.

How many photos are in Organizer Catalog

How many photos are in my Organizer Catalog?

Sorry if you already know this but I feel it is worth repeating. There are no photos "in" the organizer - the photos are where you put them or have told the organizer/editor to put them.
The organizer database only contains links to your photos which is why you should NOT rename, delete or move a photo by external applications like Windows Explorer of Finder. The organizer does hold a small preview image of very low quality which it uses in the grid view.
If you want to know how many photos have been cataloged, then try going into the thumbnail grid view and ensure that all images are being viewed - i.e. no Back button or Show All button at the top of the grid. There is usually a status line at the bottom of the window which contains a count of images.
If you tell us which operating system you are running on and which version of Photoshop Elements you have, we may be able to help you more.
Brian

Elements 4.0 Organizer - Catalog Size?

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