IPhoto Copy Library

Hello,
I want to copy our main iPhoto Library from my Imac to Mom's Mac. We have a home network so dragging the file over to her machine would not be a problem. I have read this is the way to copy all the photos into her iPhoto application. But, should I delete her library before copying over? or after? or not at all. To confirm, copy the whole pictures folder or just the library?
Thanks for any advice so I hopefully won't screw up to family photos.
ps: why is the file stuck on "calculating size" when viewing in "Get Info" both in pictures folder and library?
Bill

When i try to choose a library to load off an EHD it is shaded and wont let me choose it.
What won’t let you choose it? Moving a Library is the business of the Finder.
No early version of iPhoto can read a later version’s library. Period.
This has been the case since about v2. However, every later version of iPhoto can read any early version Library.
if thats the case apple really is evil and im not amused
Gee, do you know of any app that’s guaranteed forward compatible? And “evil”?
Congrats on the new baby.
Regards
TD

Similar Messages

Iphoto copy library is smaller than master

i've migrated to aperture and have copied my iphoto library to an external disc as backup. in doing so the copied library appears smaller than the original and i fear that some files may not have copied over. any thoughts please?

Well it's pretty obvious that of you just copied over the Library and the size is different then something is awry, no?

Iphoto copy library to time capsule

I want to copy an iphotolibrary from my macbookpro to my extern memory in time capsule?

Are you using the Time Capsule as your Time Machine backup volume? Then no - you can not share the TM backup volume with the iPHoto library (or any dynamic file)
If you are using the TC as simply an external drive then yes - but be sure that you are backing it up after you move it - if you do not always have a good backup then sooner or later your will lose yoru files and your photos
LN

I backed up 6000 photos from Snow Leopard iMac v.10.6 to new Western Digital External Engine "My Book." In attempting to COPY the pictures to My Book in order to free space on HD, I made a mistake. When I first dragged the iPhoto 11 Library folder to My

I backed up 6000+ photos from Snow Leopard iMac v.10.6.7 to new Western Digital "My book" successfully, I think! But when I attempted to COPY my photos to it in order to free up space on my HD, I made a mistake. When I dragged the iPhoto (11) Library to My Book and re-named it to "iPhoto Library.old" nothing happened. So I dragged it again, re-named it again (same name--that was the mistake, I guess!) and then it took about an hour+ to do its thing. When finished and I launched iPhoto by holding down the Option key, the dialog window listed two libraries: "iPhoto Library.old" and iPhoto Library.old (default)". So now what? It seems that I still have the originals when I open iPhoto, and do I have two copies, also? Should I delete one of them and if so, which one and how? Or should I eliminate both of them and start over again? And if so, how do I do that? Right now, neither my HD nor the My Book have changed the number of GB available or free since before I began this process. Will the numbers only change after I actually delete my original Library AND empty the Trash? I appreciate any light you can throw on this subject for me. I could lug it all to the local Genius Bar, but now I'm afraid to unplug anything for fear I'll lose everything! Thank you, you wonderful, bright people. (An 83-year-old Grandma, trying to keep up a little, at least)

Oh my! Obviously, I don't know what I'm doing. But I do know that my goal was to do both---backup AND free some space. My iMAc is old (2006) and I upgraded it a year or so ago to Snow Leopard. I didn't think I had the capability of backing up without an external drive, but maybe I do since I upgraded. Do I?
But I bought this My Book mostly for freeing space because I like to make cards in Photoshop and I'm forever running out of space when I get too many layers (don't really know what I'm doing there, either).
Is there some way that I can rectify my mistakes and start all over?
Thank you so much for beng so prompt with your reply and patient with mine. I tried for so long to see the dialog box with the library listings. When I launched iPhoto, even with holding down the Option key, it kept immediately launching into the full screen. Finally, after an hour of doing it over and over again, it worked when I held the key down for 5 minutes. Then when I was typing my reply, I kept getting a message to "Request Time Out." Didn't know how to do that, so kept hitting the OK button and kept typing for another half minute. Finally, when ready to send, Safari couldn't do it. "Try again" exasperated me until I realized I would have to begin again and use Firefox. When I got there and ready to type, I got the message that my message had been retrienved and did I want to use it?!!
So your kindness is very much appreciated.

Copy IPhoto 08 library to different laptop for 09?

I have an IBook with Iphoto 08. What is the best way to copy that library to a new MacBook Pro with Iphoto 09 and migrate while leaving the existing Iphoto 08 library in tact on the IBook? I would be moving data across wireless network.
Thanks for any advice.

Just quit iPhoto on both systems and drag the iPhoto library from the pictures folder on the old computer to the pictures folder of the MBP [if there is one there move it (if you have photos to save) or trash it is there are no photos in it]
Launch iPhoto on the MBP and it will convert the library to the new format (you can not use it with '08 after this) and it will be exactly the same as it was before in '08
LN

How do I store part of my iPhoto 08 Library as a local copy on my MacBook?

I have my iPhoto library on my iMac but due to the size (45GB, 10,000 pictures) I only want to store a selection of more recent photos (eg just this year's) on my MacBook for viewing when I am not connected to the shared iMac library.
I have thought of several ways to do this but none is very smart (method 1 - subscribe to published albums; method 2 - copy library and delete 80% of the photos I don't want to view locally; method 3 - use iPhoto Library Manager and create a different library for each year on the iMac and just copy the year I want onto the MacBook).
Has anyone got a better way to do this?

Option 2 is the best way. Other than that, you;ve covered all the options.
Regards
TD

I am trying to move my wife's iPhoto '08 library to my new iMac for iPhoto '11.

I am trying to move my wife's iPhoto (2007) library on a Macbook to my new iMac for iPhoto '11. First, when I opened iPhoto on the iMac it asked me to create a library, which I did. Then I imported her photos via a wireless network to my "new" library. However, when it finally finished importing, it had imported 3 copies of each photo from her library. I deleted the "new" library and started over.
Second, I opened iPhoto on the iMac and chose to use "other library." I chose my wife's shared iPhoto library and it began transferring the photos to the new iMac (or so I thought). This worked beautifully as it only brought over single photos and not 3 copies like discussed above. After editing the new library and adding some photos from an old PC, I shut down iPhoto. A few hours later I tried to open iPhoto on the iMac and it gave me the opening screen again with choices to create a new library or use a different library. As it turns out, my wife's Macbook and been disconneted from our wireless network. I was able to figure out that that unless my wife's Macbook is connected to the network then I cannot access the iPhoto library on my iMac. I was under the impression that I had copied her library to my computer and that the photo files were now on the hard drive of the iMac. So when her computer is offline I can no longer access the imported library. I want her library to stay on the iMac as we plan to sell her Macbook. As you now know, we cannot access her iPhoto library on the Macbook since she is running an older version of iPhoto.
So, what I would like to do is to completely transfer the photos from her Macbook to my new iMac and be able to access them on the iMac regardless of whether she is on the network or not because we plan to sell her Macbook to a friend. Thank you for any help you can provide.

To move an iPhoto Library to a new machine:
Link the two Macs together: there are several ways to do this: Wireless Network,Firewire Target Disk Mode, Ethernet, or even just copy the Library to an external HD and then on to the new machine...
But however you do choose to link the two machines...
Simply copy the iPhoto Library from the Pictures Folder on the old Machine to the Pictures Folder on the new Machine.
Then hold down the option (or alt) key key and launch iPhoto. From the resulting menu select 'Choose Library'
and select the Library that you moved. That's it.
This moves photos, events, albums, books, keywords, slideshows and everything else.
Your first option didn't work because you imported one Library to another. Every version and thumbnail is imported like a distinct photo, you lose all your Albums, Keywords etc., the link between Original and Previews is destroyed, the non-destructive editing feature is ruined and so on. In summary: it's mess.
Your second option didn't work because you simply referenced her library on the old machine.
Regards
TD

Manually migrate iPhoto 8 Library to iPhoto 9.5

Hi, I have a new MBP. Instead of using the Migration Wizard, and I want to manually move documents from my old MBP to the new one. I want a clean system, as there is a lot of cruft on the old machine from many prior migrations from machine to machine.
My first attempt at moving the iPhoto Library did not go well. I got the Unreadable Files error (1300 files) and iPhoto just hung thereafter. So, I want to try again. But, perhaps I'm not clear on the process of how to manually migrate the iPhoto Library. I did the following - is this correct, or should I have done something else?
Carbon Copy Cloner backup to external HD
Copied iPhoto Library from backup HD to /User/Pictures/ folder on new MBP
Opened iPhoto. It started importing and I went to sleep.
Awoke to review iPhoto import: Result was Unreadable Files error and a hung iPhoto
I had the following folders in /Users/Pictures: iPhoto Library_2 (this is what I copied from backup), iPhoto Library.photolibrary
System details:
Old MBP:
OSX 10.6.8
iPhoto 8.1.2
New MBP:
OSX 10.9.4
iPhoto 9.5.1
Should I have followed a different process?
Thanks in advance.

You screenshot does not display for me so I'm answering with the benefit of seeing it.
Opened iPhoto. It started importing and I went to sleep.
Did you try importing the iPhoto 8 library into a new library or just try to open the V8 library directly with iPhoto?
Get a fresh copy of the library from the EHD into the Pictures folder on your new Mac and do the following:
1 - copy the iPhoto 8.1.2 application from the EHD to the desktop, rename it iPhoto 8.1.2.app and place in your Applications folder.
2 - launch iPhoto 8.1.2 with the Option key held down, select the library and try to open. If it opens OK close iPhoto 8.1.2.
3 - launch iPhoto 9.5.1 with the Command+Option keys held down to open the First Aid window. Be sure to follow the circled recommendation in the screenshot.
3 - run Option #4, Rebuild Database.

I just saved my iphoto original library to my external hard drive, now how do i create new space on my hard drive and create a new iphoto library

i just saved my iphoto original library to my external hard drive, now how do i create new space on my hard drive and create a new iphoto library

Trash the copy of the library you just moved. Then Hold down the option (or alt) key key and launch iPhoto. From the resulting menu select 'Create Library'
But do you want to have two iPhoto Libraries? Why not just use the one on the External?

Iphoto 6 : library structure

Greetings ;
I'm new to mac. I've been reading thru the various posts and haven't found a matching situation at least described this way.
i've done what i now know what not to do by somehow through finder altering something in the IPhoto Library.
This is a finder view of the 2006 library structure:
Iphoto 6 Library
Data (this i understand to be thumbnails)
2006
rolls 1 - 13 exist (each populated)
Originals
2006
rolls 1 - 13 exist (each populated)
Iphoto 6 was used to import photos from Canon.
The photos were viewable from within Iphoto 6.
Now they are not.
While in Iphoto 6
Library - has some photos in it
Early Photos (no photos)
2003 (no photos)
2004 (no photos)
2005 (some photos)
2006 (no photos)
Last 14 Months (changed via preferences)
Last 12 Months
Trash
The good thing is Rolls 1 thru 13 (data and original) contain all the images per each download via iPhoto 6 (even tho they are repeats as i was experiencing download problems with my camera and repeated the download about 8 times hence rolls 6 - 13 are partial duplicates of each other.
i created a duplicate of the iPhoto Library in the desktop for now.
by the various posts i attempted the command option iphoto rebuild and selected the all options - it completed ok but the rolls 1-13 in the HD file structure are not corresponding while in IPhoto app.
While in iPhoto app:
i see no rolls and the 2006 year is completely empty.
likewise the 2005 year and the library have some pictures in them but there is no corresponding 2005 or library in the finder view of both the data and the original.
The Finder view of the structure only shows 2006 (rolls 1 -13) for both data and original.
Further : I'm not positive of the sequence here as i'm new to mac and did what i thought was ok but now know otherwise. I created albums and copied/moved (not sure) photos from the library to the albums then moved/ copied from the library to the iPhoto trash (most of which are still there).
I can only tell you where things are now and not exactly how they got this way.
So...
1) So How do I sync up the 13 rolls viewable in finder with something that makes sense while in iPhoto ?
2) What did the rebuild do for me as I hoped it would solve the 13 roll phenomenon?
The per import from camera creating a new roll within iPhoto as I now understand is the way it operates is where i'd like to get back to so I can at least start from ground zero.
Thanks for the assistance.
wb

restuart:
Isn't the cache folder titled "iPod Photo Cache"? It has to do with adding photos to an iPod. Even if you don't sync photos to an ipod there'll be that folder if you've ever connected an iPod.
The Data folder contains the thumbnail files for each photo.
Regarding the year folder with the old structure, I believe it's like our appendix, no longer needed. I had a 2005 folder with just photo in it. I moved it to the desktop and opened iPhoto, went to the roll that had that picture in and it was there and useable. I've since trashed that 2005 folder. Give it a try. and see if there's any problems with removing it. Make a backup of the library folder beforehand just in case.
There is some sort of bug with the roll dates. When you import an old folder of files it uses one of the modified dates instead of the captured date on many of the rolls. I haven't figured out how it determines which date on which photo to use. It's easy to change the date of the roll so it is located in the proper chronological position among the other rolls.
The current folder structure is a result of many requests to get iPhoto in line with other more professional image management applications. iPhoto's new capability of being able to use alias files instead of copying the entire file into it's new folder system allows it to be able to use soruce image files that are on another HD/CD /DVD and if the source files are not mounted iPhoto can still see the thumbnails, make and manipulate albums but cannot edit or work with books, slideshow or calendars. Once the photos come back on line iPhoto can use them again. This way users can develop their own folder/cataloging system and iPhoto will construct it's library in accordance with it.

Problem with opening iphoto 6 library in iphoto08

I just copied my old iphoto 6 library into my new macbook, picture folder. Then I opened iphoto08, but iphoto shows no pictures,even though the "new" library is 6,3 GB large...
Any ideas?
The only thing I ca think of is that my old iphoto library seems a bit "messy" when I open it...

Macbubel
What does "a bit messy" mean?
Some things to try:
Hold down the option (or alt) key and launch iPhoto. From the resulting menu select 'Choose Library' and point iPhoto at the library. If it finds a valid library then it will update and open it.
If it doesn't find a valid library: was iPhoto working normally on he old machine? Try copy it over again if it was - maybe a damaged copy.
Otherwise:
Try these in order - from best option on down...
1. Do you have an up-to-date back up? If so, try copy the library6.iphoto file from the back up to the iPhoto Library (Right Click -> Show Package Contents) allowing it to overwrite the damaged file.
2. Download iPhoto Library Manager and use its rebuild function. This will create a new library based on data in the albumdata.xml file. Not everything will be brought over - no slideshows, books or calendars, for instance - but it should get all your albums back.
3. If neither of these work then you'll need to create and populate a new library.
To create and populate a new library:
Note this will give you a working library with the same Events and pictures as before, however, you will lose your albums, keywords, modified versions, books, calendars etc.
In the iPhoto Preferences -> Events Uncheck the box at 'Imported Items from the Finder'
Move the iPhoto Library to the desktop
Launch iPhoto. It will ask if you wish to create a new Library. Say Yes.
Go into the iPhoto Library (Right Click -> Show Package Contents) on your desktop and find the Originals folder. From the Originals folder drag the individual Event Folders to the iPhoto Window and it will recreate them in the new library.
When you're sure all is well you can delete the iPhoto Library on your desktop.
In the future, in addition to your usual back up routine, you might like to make a copy of the library6.iPhoto file whenever you have made changes to the library as protection against database corruption.
Regards
TD

Why don't my albums and book in iPhoto 5 appear in the iPhoto 6 library?

I deliberately upgraded to OX10.4.9 so that I could get iLife 6 with iPhoto 6. Everything seemed fine until I realized that the albums and book I made in iPhoto 5 (but the book was not yet published) were no longer there. I can't find it anywhere in the libraries for my current iPhoto 6, and Spotlight can't find it on the computer. I do have the original photos in the Originals list, but in order to make the book I had to sort and weed out the pictures. Then I made custom captions for the book's pages. I was hoping to publish the book using the upgraded iPhoto6. Now it looks as if I will have to go through the whole process again.
Maybe there is hope because I did a back-up of my whole system on an external hard drive before I loaded in Tiger and the new iLife. But I don't know how to get the photo book out of there and export it to the iPhoto6 library.
What is the best way to get the book back----or is it possible at all?
PowerMac G4 Mac OS X (10.4.9) 733MHz, 640MB of RAM

valtuff:
Welcome to the Apple Discussions. Did you let iPhoto 6 do the conversion of the iPhoto 5 library? Do you still have a copy of the iPhoto 5 library. If so try the following;
1 - move the current V6 library folder to the desktop.
2 - copy the V5 library into your Pictures folder.
3 - download and run BatChmod on the iPhoto Library folder with the settings shown here, putting your administrator login name, long or short, in the owner and group sections. You can either type in the path to the folder or just drag the folder into that field.
4 - make sure you've updated iPhoto to 6.0.6. To do that you'll need to apply the updaters in the following order:
a. run the 6.0.4 updater
b. download and run the 6.0.5 updater (will only run on 6.0.4)
c. download and run the 6.0.6 updater (will only run on 6.0.5)
d. run Disk Utility and repair disk permissions.
That should give you a converted library with the book and albums intact.
The book and albums would be virtual entities and you wouldn't find them in Spotlight. But if they didn't get converted you'll have to recreate them from scratch.
Hint: I use iPhoto Library Manager and create a separate iPhoto library for books. I put the photos I want in the book in an album and then copy that album to the book library with iPLM. If I need more photos I copy them in a new album as the book progresses. Once the book is done and ordered I copy the book library folder intact to a CD. Then at a time in the future if I want to order another book just like it, I can. I just copy that library folder to the desktop, open it with iPhoto and order. It preserves the original book as ordered.
Do you Twango?
TIP: For insurance against the iPhoto database corruption that many users have experienced I recommend making a backup copy of the Library6.iPhoto database file and keep it current. If problems crop up where iPhoto suddenly can't see any photos or thinks there are no photos in the library, replacing the working Library6.iPhoto file with the backup will often get the library back. By keeping it current I mean backup after each import and/or any serious editing or work on books, slideshows, calendars, cards, etc. That insures that if a problem pops up and you do need to replace the database file, you'll retain all those efforts. It doesn't take long to make the backup and it's good insurance.
I've written an Automator workflow application (requires Tiger), iPhoto dB File Backup, that will copy the selected Library6.iPhoto file from your iPhoto Library folder to the Pictures folder, replacing any previous version of it. You can download it at Toad's Cellar. Be sure to read the Read Me pdf file.

Newly imported pictures not appearing in iPhoto '08 Library

So, while I was importing a whole slew of photos today, iPhoto became unresponsive (I think because of two RAW images I inadvertantly left on the camera). I had to force quit iPhoto and when I relaunched it, none of the photos imported show up in my library. They are available if I browse "All Images," but if I try to drag and drop any of them into the iPhoto Library it says they're already there.
Advice?

Never access photos that are managed by iPhoto in your All Images search. It's a good way to damage your Library.
Surefire fix: restore from back up.
Other than that:
Try these in order - from best option on down...
1. Do you have an up-to-date back up? If so, try copy the library6.iphoto file from the back up to the iPhoto Library (Right Click -> Show Package Contents) allowing it to overwrite the damaged file.
2. Download <a href="http://www.fatcatsoftware.com/iplm/"><b><u>iPhoto Library Manager</b></u></a> and use its rebuild function. This will create a new library based on data in the albumdata.xml file. Not everything will be brought over - no slideshows, books or calendars, for instance - but it should get all your albums and keywords back.
Because this process creates an entirely new library and leaves your old one untouched, it is non-destructive, and if you're not happy with the results you can simply return to your old one.
3. If neither of these work then you'll need to create and populate a new library.
To create and populate a new *iPhoto 08* library:
Note this will give you a working library with the same Events and pictures as before, however, you will lose your albums, keywords, modified versions, books, calendars etc.
In the iPhoto Preferences -> Events Uncheck the box at 'Imported Items from the Finder'
Move the iPhoto Library to the desktop
Launch iPhoto. It will ask if you wish to create a new Library. Say Yes.
Go into the iPhoto Library (Right Click -> Show Package Contents) on your desktop and find the Originals folder. From the Originals folder drag the individual Event Folders to the iPhoto Window and it will recreate them in the new library.
When you're sure all is well you can delete the iPhoto Library on your desktop.
In the future, in addition to your usual back up routine, you might like to make a copy of the library6.iPhoto file whenever you have made changes to the library as protection against database corruption.

Pictures in iPhoto 6 library flash and then disappear but leave a box

OSX 10.5.8 iPhoto 6
pictures in library flash and then disappear but leave an empty box

Try these in order - from best option on down...
1. Do you have an up-to-date back up? If so, try copy the library6.iphoto file from the back up to the iPhoto Library allowing it to overwrite the damaged file.
2. Download iPhoto Library Manager and use its rebuild function. (In early versions of Library Manager it's the File -> Rebuild command. In later versions it's under the Library menu.)
This will create an entirely new library. It will then copy (or try to) your photos and all the associated metadata and versions to this new Library, and arrange it as close as it can to what you had in the damaged Library. It does this based on information it finds in the iPhoto sharing mechanism - but that means that things not shared won't be there, so no slideshows, books or calendars, for instance - but it should get all your events, albums and keywords, faces and places back.
Because this process creates an entirely new library and leaves your old one untouched, it is non-destructive, and if you're not happy with the results you can simply return to your old one.
3. If neither of these work then you'll need to create and populate a new library.
To create and populate a new *iPhoto 6* library:
Note this will give you a working library with the same Rolls and pictures as before, however, you will lose your albums, keywords, modified versions, books, calendars etc.
Move the iPhoto Library to the desktop
Launch iPhoto. It will ask if you wish to create a new Library. Say Yes.
Go into the iPhoto Library on your desktop and find the Originals folder. From the Originals folder drag the individual Roll Folders to the iPhoto Window and it will recreate them in the new library.
When you're sure all is well you can delete the iPhoto Library on your desktop.
In the future, in addition to your usual back up routine, you might like to make a copy of the library6.iPhoto file whenever you have made changes to the library as protection against database corruption.

Moving iPhoto 04 library to iPhoto 09

My girlfriend has spent a lot of time writing descriptions in the comments field in her iPhoto 04 library on her G5 iMac. In advance of her buying a new mac we exported a few images to my iPhoto 09 to see how they looked: one big problem, no comments come into the description field. Will this be an issue when she transfers the whole iPhoto 04 library to a new computer and version of IPhoto?

No, because you won't be exporting them. Iphoto 4 had no ability to export metadata added in the application. That arrived with v6.
To update a library:
Copy it from the Pictures Folder on the old Machine to the same location on the New machine.
Then Launch iPhoto.
That's it.
Of course, you back up first.
Regards
TD

IPhoto Copy Library

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