I can't access iPhoto any more??? This is the message I'm receiving......The iPhoto library is a Time Machine backup, and so cannot be used as the main library. Reopen iPhoto with the Option key held down to choose another library." Help!!!! Please!!!!!

What does this mean? I had my computer restored and now i cant use iphoto..... i had it restored from a back up from feb 2013... my mac is missing a few things since but iphoto is a necessity these days..... Help me.... Help me please.....!!!

SOrry - that is not a result of launching iphoto while depressing the option key - to help you we need to know what you have and the results of this question are important to that
LN

Similar Messages

  • How do I resolve this error message? The iPhoto library is on a locked volume.  Reopen iPhoto when you have read/write access, or reopen iPhoto with the Option key held down to choose another library.

    How do I resolve this error message? The iPhoto library is on a locked volume.  Reopen iPhoto when you have read/write access, or reopen iPhoto with the Option key held down to choose another library.

    Hi j,
    I don't know if this will work, but I'd try logging in to an admin account, going to your main library (not user library), opening it, opening Application Support, selecting iPhoto, hold down the command key and press i, click on the lock in the lower left, entering the password and making sure you have Read & Write privileges for System and Admin.

  • This message shows up when I try to access my auxiliary iPhone library: "The iPhoto library is on a locked volume. Reopen iPhoto when you have read/write access, or reopen iPhoto with the Option key held down to choose another library."

    This message shows up when I try to access my auxiliary iPhone library: "The iPhoto library is on a locked volume. Reopen iPhoto when you have read/write access, or reopen iPhoto with the Option key held down to choose another library."
    What did I do wrong?  I have been downloading all my photos into this same library since Janurary with no problems.

    What version of Mac OS X?
    Click the black Apple icon on the top left of the screen and select About This Mac. The next screen will show the information.

  • The iPhoto library is a Time Machine backup, and so cannot be used as the main library. Reopen iPhoto with the Option key held down to choose another library.

    I recently tried to look up my pictures on my time machine back up on an external hard drive. As soon as I try to open it I get the following message.
    "The iPhoto library is a Time Machine backup, and so cannot be used as the main library. Reopen iPhoto with the Option key held down to choose another library."
    I have tried holding down the option key but still couldn't few the photos.
    I want to know if there is anyway I can actually view these photos. I have over 85gbs of photos on the hard drive.  I have tried googling and looking at pervious forums with the same problem but nothing is working.
    Please help!

    Select Mac Help from the Finder's Help menu. Search for "Restore items backed up with Time Machine."

  • IPhoto won't open.  Says CAUTIONThe iPhoto library is a Time Machine backup, and so cannot be used as the main library. Reopen iPhoto with the Option key held down to choose another library.

    I tries to verify that my photos were being backed up on Time Machine to an external harddrive, because I would like to delete my Camera Roll on my iPhone.  I was not able to view any photos in my backed up photo library, after entering Time machine.  Now, I can't even open iPhoto on my iMac with the pop up box warning me that the library is a Time machine backup....which it shouldn't be, because I'm openning iPhoto on my Mac...NOT the external HD.
    What happened, and how do I access my photos?

    It sounds like you went into the Time Machine hard drive, found a library and "dragged" it to your Pictures folder or wherever on your hard drive.  That's not the way to do it.
    Go to your Pictures folder and enter Time Machine via the TM menu in the menu bar:
    Then follow the instructions in this screenshot:
    OT

  • Rebuild iPhoto library?  I have opened iPhoto with Command   Option keys held down.  I get the Photo Library First Aid window.  When I hit the repair button for the repair permissions command, iPhoto opens and nothing else happens.  What do I do now?

    I have opened the iPhoto First Aid window.  When I press the repair button for the repair permissions operation, nothing happens but my iphoto opens at the place I have been stuck since July 3.  What do I do now.

    How big is your library?  You should see the following:
    OT

  • IPhoto Library is a Time Machine backup

    As of yesterday I am unable to open iPhoto and get the message ‘The iPhoto Library is a Time Machine backup, and so cannot be used as the main library. Relaunch iPhoto with <option> key held down to choose another library.’
    This may have come about because I recently loaded some irreplaceable pictures on iPhoto and was trying to check that they had been backed up on my external (OneTouch 4) hard drive. I opened the hard drive and double-clicked on various files from the latest back-up. I wasn’t able to identify the photos for certain but assumed that they had been backed up OK. Anyway, I guess this procedure has given me the problem with iPhoto! I should also mention that, several months ago, I put a copy of the iPhoto application on my external hard drive thinking (no doubt wrongly) that it would enable me to view backed up photos. I have never used it but it is still there.
    Doing a search for the latest photos shows that my photo library in general appears to be intact on my iMac (the path is -home folder-pictures-iPhoto library-originals-2010-event-individual photo) and each photo can be opened in Preview. But how do I get them back on iPhoto, please?

    I have no idea -you tell us nothing except for the error
    certainly selecting the correct library is critical - it is possible that that is your problem - it also is possible that something else is the problem - pointing to the correct library can not create any problems so do it
    As to keeping all of your photos together - do nothing and iPhoto will do that - the only way anything else can happen is if you mess with the iPhoto library or create multiple libraries - iPhoto always uses the same library until you direct it to change
    LN

  • When starting up my iMac with Option Key held down, my recovery partition shows 10.9 instead of 10.10.  How do I install the correct recovery partition?

    iMac (27-inch, Mid 2011)
    Yosemite 10.10.1
    When I start up my iMac with option key held down, the recovery partition is shown as 10.9 instead of 10.10 which is the installed version.
    How do I install the proper recovery partition?

    Thanks very much for the quick reply.  I figured it would something that simple.  Like I said, I only know enough to cause trouble.  LOL
    Thanks again,  Guess I need to find a new game to play.  LOL

  • Trying to rebuild my iphoto library from time machine backup and it still says 0 restored with a grey screen and the circle. How can i restore my library?

    I just bought a new Macbook pro and i tried to rebuild my iphoto library from a time machine backup on an external hard drive. Even after pressing command+option when starting iphoto and selecting rebuild library from automatic backup, it still doesn't work with the grey screen with the white circle and a little window that says 'rebuilding library: 0 versions restored'. I also tried to make a copy of my iphoto library but that did not work either. how can i restore my iphoto library or at least gain access to my photos?

    Your question is not clear
    Rerairing or rebuilding the iPhoto library never involves using Time Machine in any way
    TM is a totally seperate program and you can "restore" a file (including the iPhoto library) from the past using TM - you launch TM and go back to the time you want and select the file (or folder or package) you want and click restore - it probably is best to keep the current one until you are sure everything is good
    LN

  • Trouble with restoring an iPhoto library from a time machine backup.

    I'm having trouble restoring my iPhoto library from a time machine backup.
    I have created a new library in my pictures file.
    When I try to restore the library the restore process is trying to copy it to an external drive that no longer exists - it failed and I had to have it recovered and all the recovery (including backups) data is now on a different external hard drive.
    iPhoto had been using that old external drive location to start. iPhoto is now pointed to the newly created iPhoto library in my pictures file on my MacBook Air.
    Is there a way to have the restoration process point to that new iPhoto library that is now empty and not to the old external drive?

    You might try this with the restored library:
    Starting over from scratch with new library
    Start over with a new library and import the Originals (iPhoto 09 and earlier) or the Masters (iPhoto 11) folder from your original library as follows:
    1. Open the library package like this.
    2. Launch iPhoto with the Option key held down and, when asked, select the option to create a new library.
    3. Drag the subfolders of the Originals (iPhoto 09 and earlier) or the Masters (iPhoto 11) folder from the open iPhoto Library package into the open iPhoto window a few at a time.
    This will create a new library with the same Events (but not necessarily the same Event names) as the original library but will not keep the metadata, albums, books slideshows and other projects.
    Note:  your current library will be left untouched for further attempts at a fix if so desired.

  • I am trying to upgrade from Tiger to Snow Leopard.  When I insert the disk and install starts, it states "This disk is used for Time Machine backups" and Mac OSX can't be installed.  Does anyone know how to correct this (since Tiger doesn't have Time Mach

    I am trying to upgrade from Tiger to Snow Leopard.  When I insert the disk and install starts, it states "This disk is used for Time Machine backups" and Mac OSX can't be installed.  Does anyone know how to correct this (since Tiger doesn't have Time Machine)?

    http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2986

  • I restored a Macbook Pro from a Time Machine backup and now none of my passwords are working (and I know they are the correct passwords).  What can I do?

    I restored a Macbook Pro from a Time Machine backup and now none of my passwords are working (and I know they are the correct passwords).  What can I do?

    First, make sure caps lock is not on.
    Another reason why the password might not be recognized is that the keyboard layout (input source) has been switched without your realizing it. You can select one of the available layouts by choosing from the flag menu in the upper right corner, if it's showing, or cycle through them by pressing the key combination command-space or command-option-space. See also this support article.
    If the user account is associated with an Apple ID, and you know the Apple ID password, then maybe the Apple ID can be used to reset your user account password. In OS X 10.10 and later, this option also works with FileVault, but only if you enabled it when you activated FileVault. It's not retroactive. Otherwise, see below.
    Note: If you've activated FileVault, this procedure doesn't apply. Follow instead these instructions.
    Start up in Recovery mode. When the OS X Utilities window appears, select
              Utilities ▹ Terminal
    from the menu bar at the top of the screen—not from any of the items in the OS X Utilities window.
    In the window that opens, type this:
    resetp
    Press the tab key. The partial command you typed will automatically be completed to this:
    resetpassword
    Press return. A Reset Password window opens. Close the Terminal window to get it out of the way.
    Select the startup volume ("Macintosh HD," unless you gave it a different name) if not already selected. You won't be able to do this if FileVault is active.
    Select your username from the menu labeled Select the user account if not already selected.
    Follow the prompts to reset the password. It's safest to choose a password that includes only the characters a-z, A-Z, and 0-9.
    Select
               ▹ Restart
    from the menu bar.
    You should now be able to log in with the new password, but the Keychain will be reset (empty.) If you've forgotten the Keychain password (which is ordinarily the same as the login password), there's no way to recover it.

  • Cannot restore iphoto library correctly from time machine backup

    Hi all,
    Yesterday I had to reinstall my mac with no particular reason. Suddenly the startup screen with the "circle" went on indefinitely for 10+ minutes before shutting down the system. Yes, the power cord was plugged in. No, I didn't manage to start it in safe mode...
    I thought it wouldn't be a big deal since I regularly back up my mac on an external drive by Time Machine. So I reinstalled and restored the system.
    I could log in fine, but here's the catch:
    1) only 3 iPhoto events out of 30 are restored
    2) for all other events I seem to have the thumbnails but not the original or modified files
    3) trying to browse into the Pictures folder shows that:
    - the iPhoto library file does not appear with the usual icon
    - if I examine the package, for all events that don't show up in iPhoto, the event hierarchy (e.g. 2008/eventxyz) exists but the folders are empty in both the "Original" and "Modified" hierarchies
    - same if I click on the same file in ANY of the 4 backups I have on the time machine disk
    By the way TM restored the system to MacOSX 10.5.2 even if I'm sure I had a later version. In fact, I can't open iTunes either because it says the library has been created with a later version of iTunes. But what really worries me is that I can't even find the .JPG original files.
    Can somebody please help? I relied on Time Machine and there's 6 years of memories there...
    Thank you

    I have the same symptom, but as the result of an external hard drive failure. My Time Machine backups from June 2009 - August 2009 contain the iPhoto library. When I restore the iPhoto library (pick any random backup date) I can see the thumbnails or a blank dashed outline of the old photos. When I click on the thumbnail I can get the metadata (photo location, photo date, etc...) but the photos are gone. When I am in iPhoto the lower left corner of the interface shows the library size is 42Gb, but the restored library package is only about 3Gb. My guess is the difference in file size is equal to the size of the original (and modified) files that didnt get backed up. None of my iPhoto library packages in Time Machine are larger than 3Gb.
    I brought my backup drive to the folks at the Genius Bar. They were perplexed. They suggested I bring in my Mac Mini so they could look at the console. I took a look at the console at home and searched for "Time Machine" and found nothing out of the ordinary.
    Not sure why Time Machine would appear to run so smoothly yet selectively not back up my original photos. I can restore everything else from my Time Machine backup to my new external drive just fine.

  • Help Incomplete Time Machine Backup and I can't set ownership options

    Two days ago my iMac HD stopped working and I decided it was time to upgrade my machine so I purchased a new iMac with Mavericks installed. I seem to only have a partial Time Machine Backup located on my NAS drive, so I read various threads about how to manually retrieve files from the .inprogress file. I was able to browse the package contents and when I navigated to Macintosh HD the folder was greyed out and when I attempt to open the folder it looks empty. When I select get info the Macintosh HD folder shows almost 80GB and over 160,000 files inside. I tried copying the folder onto the desktop which failed and also onto an external drive formatted the same way as the NAS - Mac OS Extended (Journaled, Case Sensitive). Everytime I try it says something along the lines of me not having the ownership rights to copy the file over.
    I tried going to the NAS drive and the mounted sparsefile and couldn't figure out how to get the ignore ownership on this volume option. When I go to Disk Utility it says Owners Enabled Yes, I can't figure out how to turn that off to let me copy the file over. I tried some recommendations about creating an Alias to Macintosh HD and also setting up Automator actions Get Selected Finder Items > Get Folder Contents > Open Finder Items > Copy Finder Items (to desktop or external drive) both of these failed.
    I also don't understand why I can't view the files inside the greyed out Macintosh HD as get info shows many files inside. The sharing and permissions already says everyone can read. Is there anyway I can recover some of the files? It would be so great!
    Thanks for helping me.

    I solved the problem and I hope this solution can help others with incomplete Time Machine Backups.
    1. I made sure hidden files were shown by pasting the following line into Terminal:
    defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles -boolean true ; killall Finder
    2. On NAS drive I have a folder called Time Machine Backup and inside that folder it lists the different users with Time Machine Backups. I double clicked the user with the incomplete time machine backup to mount it.
    3. Once mounted there should be a folder called backups.backupdb > machine name > dateandtime.inprogress. I right click that .inprogress file and selected show package contents. This lead to another folder randomly named with numbers and text. Inside that folder you should see a greyed out Macintosh HD folder. The date of the greyed out Macintosh HD folder might read something like January 24th, 1984. This appears to be the date that the Macintosh 128k was first introduced. I read on another thread that the creation date of the folder is incorrectly set after a crash resulting in the greyed out folder.
    4. Due to the NAS having ownership issues I was not able to drag either the greyed out Macintosh HD or the folder above it to an external drive or the desktop of my new computer. Automator didn't work either. Here is what did work: I trashed the folder with the greyed out Macintosh HD inside from the NAS and dragged it from the trash onto my desktop. The move took a few hours to complete and the files were now all successfully on the new computer.
    5. Once on the desktop the Macintosh HD folder was still greyed out. The solution was to select in the finder: View > Show Path Bar, then search for any file you remember inside your backup. For example I searched the word download and files inside the greyed out Macintosh HD folder showed up. Left clicking the file confirmed the path, that it was from the greyed out Macintosh HD folder. Now you can simply right click one of the folders in the Path Bar and open in new tab if you have Mavericks. I still couldn't directly open the Macintosh HD folder in a new tab, but I could open any of the subfolders inside in a new tab, including the users which lets you access all the backup files. I tested in Mountain Lion that you can also choose Open in Enclosing Folder by right clicking the file that you searched for or right clicking the folder in the bottom of the Path Bar.
    6. Once I was done organizing backup files, I turned off hidden files by pasting this line into Terminal:
    defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles -boolean false ; killall Finder
    This took me days to figure out how to make use of an .inprogress file and greyed out Macintosh HD folder.
    Hope this helps!!!

  • How do i import an iPhoto library from a time machine backup?

    how do i import an iPhoto library from a time machine backup? I did a back up and i formatted my machine. How do i get iphoto to be the same?

    This screenshot shows how to restore a library from Time Machine.
    There is NO importing necessary.  One should never import one library into another.  Just restore it to your Pictures folder and launch iPhoto.
    OT

Maybe you are looking for