IPhoto Going Haywire Since Got External Drive

I got a 150GB external drive at an apple store and copied my Iphoto Library to it. I had the G-Drive set as the default drive for Iphoto. I had no problems the first few times I downloaded photos from to my external drive from my camera. However, recently, i would get a pop-up saying i didn't properly remove my external drive when i hadn't touched it at all. Then, i had problems downloading photos to the external drive the other day. First all the thumb nails came up, but when i clicked `Import,' nothing happened and had to restart the computer. After two attempts, i noticed that i had actually lost the most recent download (or was the default Iphoto reset to the hard drive? i never deleted the library on my hard drive so the two are pretty similar). After a third attempt, i was able to download photos from my camera, but then Iphoto froze. restarted the computer and deleted .com.iphoto.pfiles. Still had problems with Iphoto freezing when i had my G-Drive plugged in. i am afraid now to do anything with the G-Drive, as didn't have these problems before i bought it.

Change the cable on the drive, use a different port on the Mac. See if the problem is related to the hardware.
What format is that G-Drive?
Regards
TD

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Be sure the new drive is formatted Mac OS extended (journaled) and drag the library intact from the old to the new drive - depress the oprion key and launch iPHoto and use the select library window to select the new location as the default - be sure to fully test the new location before trashing the old one if you plan to
LN

Iphoto can't see my external drive

Hi,
I want all my photo's from Iphoto to go on an external drive I have. But if I click on Export and have to chose a place then I can't click on my external drive because it's not there on the list on the left side...
Is there an other why to move all my photo's to my external drive?

The question should be 'what's wrong with the external drive'
Can you see it in other programs? can you see it in Disk Utility?

How do I export my images from iPhoto 9.4, to an external drive?

How do I export my images from iPhoto 9.4, to an external drive?
mainly to back them up without using time machine.
Thanks

Just the Images?
File -> Export
This User Tip
https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-4921
has details of the options in the Export dialogue.
To back up the Library: that is images, organisation, edit history etc etc
Most Simple Back Up:
Drag the iPhoto Library from your Pictures Folder to another Disk. This will make a copy on that disk.
Slightly more complex: Use an app that will do incremental back ups. This is a very good way to work. The first time you run the back up the app will make a complete copy of the Library. Thereafter it will update the back up with the changes you have made. That makes subsequent back ups much faster. Many of these apps also have scheduling capabilities: So set it up and it will do the back up automatically.
Example of such apps: Chronosync - but there are many others. Search on MacUpdate or the App Store

Is it better to store iMovies, iPhoto or iTunes on an external drive? I'm running out of space.

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My iPhoto library is on an external drive since the automatic upgrade to PHOTOS I can't open the library

My iPhoto Library is on an external hard drive since the automatic upgrade to PHOTOs i cannot open my library.
It says i do not have permission to write in this library, how do i get it open and retrieve my photos to upload to iCloud/

But forgot to ask then how to transfer/copy my older photos which are on an older external hard drive.
Are these photos in an iPhoto library there or just loose (or in folders) on the older EHD?
OT

(Big) iPhoto Library opening empty from external drive

I need help! I have a new 2014 MacBook running Yosemite, as well as an older MacBookPro. I copied my large iPhoto Library from old laptop (labeled old library "iPhoto Pics 2008-2014", or similar) onto an external drive so that I could access all my photos on this new laptop in iPhoto. I have been holding the "option" key and then opening iPhoto & choosing this 2008-2014 Library to open, and it has been working great. All my 6 yrs worth of pictures immediately populate iPhoto just like it did on my old laptop. HOWEVER, my external drive was accidentally unplugged yesterday without properly "ejecting" it, and it gave me a warning/error message saying something like "your external drive was improperly disconnected". The next time I went to open iPhoto, choosing my 2008-2014 library, it said (something along these lines...) that I had to update the format of the library I was trying to open and it might take a few hours. I had received this message (or similar one) the 1st time I opened this library in my new laptop iPhoto app and so I said yes, for it to fix it. However, it didn't seem to do it properly this time and ended up closing itself. When I tried to open it again, it said some other errors needed to be fixed and I said yes again. Sorry, these details are a bit fuzzy about what went wrong & what messages I got...I just know something didn't seem right as my laptop wouldn't let me close iPhoto and I ended up having to do a force quit to shut down my laptop and reboot.
So now when I rebooted, and I click "option" and open iPhoto, I am able to choose my normal 2008-2014 Library, but it opens with the basic "To get started with iPhoto, do 1 of the following 3 things...", with NO PHOTOS or VIDEOS showing up at all in events, places, albums, etc. It looks just like a brand new Library. However, when I look in Finder and find my 2008-2014 iPhoto Library file, it says the size of it is 171.72 GB, which I think is large and would indicate photos are still in there? These are ALL My photos from the last 6 years. I have most of them still saved on my old laptop (everything before getting my new laptop Nov 20th), just don't have pics I've downloaded to that Library on the external drive between Nov 20th and now. Can anyone help me figure out why iPhoto is opening up an empty library when it should have 6 yrs wroth of pics in it? Did I accidentally erase all the photos in my Library on my external drive??? Thanks in advance for your help/thoughts.

Thanks guys. I did what you said and am about to choose option #4. I cannot really back up this drive before starting rebuild as I don't have a backup of this library exactly, but it is a copy of my entire iLibrary off my old laptop, which I copied over on Nov 20th, so I should have a complete copy of this Library though 11/20 date on my old laptop. I will just potentially lose any photos I've taken and downloaded to external drive since then (luckily not many or any since I haven't downloaded my SLR camera since Dec 5th, so all pics are still on my camera). One last question...is it worth doing the rebuild, or would be be safer (long term...this external library on this drive will be my primary source of ALL my 2008-2014 photos) to just copy over my original library again from my old laptop to this drive?
One additional question though...I just came back to my computer after being away from it for 30 minutes, and again got the "you improperly disconnected your external drive" message. However, my drive is still plugged in and I did not touch it!! So it is disconnecting itself somehow. Any advice on why it's doing this or how to get it to stop? Is it because my computer went to "sleep" or something? Should I not leave my external drive plugged in? Seems like a pain if that is the case as I need to access these pics on my drive often and don't want to be constantly plugging in and then ejecting my drive all the time to keep it safe.

Time Machine issues since adding external drive

System spec:
2012 Mac Mini, quad core 2.3ghz i7, 16gb RAM, OS X Yosemite 10.10.2
Problem:
Today I added an external USB 3.0 1TB hard drive to my Mac Mini - a self powered Seagate one. I want Time Machine (running on another external drive - a mains powered 2TB USB 2.0 Western Digital drive) to back this drive up - so I went into the Time Machine preferences pane and removed the drive from the exclusions list to which it had automatically been added (since TM doesn't usually back up external drives)
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I let this backup and a second backup finish - so at this point I have two backups that have run since adding the external drive. The backups appear in the navigator on the right hand side - but they are greyed out compared to the others. If you try to click on one of these greyed out backups, TM scrolls back to an empty Finder window titled "Waiting: ...." and the time the backup ran.
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While I'm fairly confident the data IS being backed up, this is still going to be a problem if I need to restore. Has anyone seen this before and how did you fix it if so?

Launch the Console application in any of the following ways:
☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)
☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.
☞ Open LaunchPad and start typing the name.
The title of the Console window should be All Messages. If it isn't, select
SYSTEM LOG QUERIES ▹ All Messages
from the log list on the left. If you don't see that list, select
View ▹ Show Log List
from the menu bar at the top of the screen.
Click the Clear Display icon in the toolbar. Then take the action that isn't working the way you expect. Select any messages that appear in the Console window. Copy them to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C. Paste into a reply to this message by pressing command-V.
The log contains a vast amount of information, almost all of which is irrelevant to solving any particular problem. When posting a log extract, be selective. A few dozen lines are almost always more than enough.
Please don't indiscriminately dump thousands of lines from the log into this discussion.
Please don't post screenshots of log messages—post the text.
Some private information, such as your name or email address, may appear in the log. Anonymize before posting.

Iphoto and iphone 5 and external drive

ok here's my issue and i hope someone can help me out. since i've had the iphone 5 i always sync my photos through iphoto. but in the last sync something happened to my iphoto. After organizing some albums and what not some albums disappeared and some are there but blank. anyways, i then went to export all my iphoto pictures to my external drive. my question is how can i sync my current pictures from my iphone 5 to my external drive??? i have an imac if this helps...??? also, sorry if this is not in the correct section.

Punctuation helps other people understand you. So, I'm not really sure I understand you, but here's how to move an iPhoto Library
Make sure the drive is formatted Mac OS Extended (Journaled)
1. Quit iPhoto
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3. Hold down the option (or alt) key while launching iPhoto. From the resulting menu select 'Choose Library' and navigate to the new location. From that point on this will be the default location of your library.
4. Test the library and when you're sure all is well, trash the one on your internal HD to free up space.
Regards
TD

IPhoto '09 Rebuild Library on External Drive Issue

I am trying to rebuild my library with the option + iphoto launch, but i keep getting the window asking me "What photo library do you want iPhoto to use?"
I select the default library on my external drive, which is the only library I have, while still holding down the "option" key, select "choose" and then the same window pops open again "What photo library do you want iPhoto to use?"
Keeps going in circles and never gives me the options to rebuild.
I also tried to releasing the option key when this window opens and the result is just that it launches iPhoto.
What is the issue here? Why does it keep asking what library I want to use? How do I default this window automatically so it knows already the library location and then I can proceed with the rebuild?
When the library was on the local drive months ago, it never did this.
Thanks in advance.

It keeps asking you which Library you want to use because you keep using the keystroke that gives you that option.
If you want to rebuild the Library you need to hold the *command and option (or alt) keys* when launching to get that menu.
Regards
TD

How can I merge two iPhoto libraries stored on an external drive?

Today I was in a One-to-One at the Apple Store. I want to merge two i-Photo libraries into one. One library is on my Air, the other is on my iMac. Both libraries have been moved to an external drive. When I try to move one onto the other, they won't go. Yet I am certain that while at the store today, the person there started to merge them. He did not need the library manager software in order to do so. We stopped the merge in order to move on to another issue. Now that I am home, I can't get the libraries to merge. What am I failing to do? Thanks!

The only way to merge two libraryies is to use iPhoto Library Manager which will merge two libraries and keep keywords, titles, faces, places, and other metadata intact.
If one imports one library into another library every image file in the first library, originals, thumbnails, face files, etc, get imported as an original photo. You will end up with a total mess. DO NOT IMPORT ONE LIBRARY INTO ANOTHER LIBRARY!
If you have backup copies of your libraries get them back and use iPhoto Library Manager to merge them.
OT

Fix for iPhoto lost thumbnails on an external drive

I've had a few times when iPhoto seems to have lost all my thumbnails and pictures. I finally figured out what caused it and how to solve it. I thought others might be interested.
The problem occurs because of 2 things:
1. I store my iPhoto Library on an external drive.
2. While running iPhoto, the external drive becomes disconnected by mistake (usually because I kick the power cord)
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0. Quit iPhoto. Make sure you have a current back-up of all your files (don't you always
1. Write down the name of the drive where you store your iPhoto library on the external drive:
I'll use <drive> in the remainder of this description. Replace that text with the name you just wrote down.
2. Open the "Terminal" inside "Applications/Utilities/"
3. Type "cd /Volumes". This is where Mac connects external drives to your UNIX filesystem. "cd" means "change directory" to the "/Volumes" drive.
4. Type "ls". You should see the name of your drive there. "ls" means "list" the contents.
5. Eject the <drive> from you Mac via the Trash Can and turn it off as normal.
6. Type "ls". Normally your drive should disappear from this listing. However, you'll notice that the drive still appears there. The problem is that there are really 2 directories there, one gets over-written when you attach an external drive. But having 2 causes lots of problems.
7. With the drive off, you want to move the 2nd directory out of the way. To do this, you will need to become a root user for a moment. This is done with the "sudo" which means "switch user and do something then switch back". The first time you use it in a terminal you will be required to type the administrator password. It's a very powerful command, but keeps you from getting into the wrong mode forever.
8. Type "sudo mv '<drive>' '<drive>.wrong'". This switches users, "moves" the bad directory to another directory name (ie. rename for UNIX). Make sure to use the single quote (') in case the name of your drive has spaces in it.
This doesn't remove the bad files, just moves them out of the way. That way if this doesn't work, you can just move it back with the reverse command "sudo mv '<drive>.wrong' '<drive>'".
9. Now turn your drive back on.
10. Type "ls". Your <drive> should now re-appear in this listing.
11. Restart iPhoto. It may ask you to locate the Library again.
Please note that these instructions are only provided to help other users running into the same problem. Also, I am not responsible for any lost data by following these instructions.
Also, if anyone finds this doesn't work, or has way to improve these steps, please feel free to post a reply.
eMac Mac OS X (10.3.9) iLife 06

It would be much easier if you make frequent backup copy of the Library6.iPhoto database file and when you have a disconnect like you did, just replace the damaged file with the backup version. It is important to have a "recent" backup so you can get back where you were. So I've created an Automator application that will copy the file to the Pictures folder, label it orange, any time you click on it. So you can backup after any import, or work on a book, slideshow,etc. You don't need to close iPhoto to do it. Just don't be writing the the database file. You can download the application at Toad's Cellar.
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.
G5 Dual Core 2GHz, 2G RAM, 250G HD; G4 Dual 1Ghz, 1.5G RAM, 80G HD, QT 7.1.3, Mac OS X (10.4.9) 22 LCD, 250G/200G/160G FW HDs, Canon: SD700IS/i850/LIDE 50, Epson R200, 30G iPod

Storing iPhoto 8 Library on an External Drive

I have some data on storing (moving) iPhoto 2 to an external HD. Does this apply to iPhoto 8? Can there be more than one Library stored? Any practical suggestions on doing this?
Thanks
Mike

Mike,
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Regards.

How do I tell iPhoto 11 to use an external drive

I have a dual drive (HD and SSD) configuration on my iMac and would like toget iPhoto to use the photos on the HD and not the SSD, how do I do that? Thanks

Moving the iPhoto library is safe and simple - quit iPhoto and drag the iPhoto library intact as a single entity to the external drive - depress the option key and launch iPhoto using the "select library" option to point to the new location on the external drive - fully test it and then trash the old library on the internal drive (test one more time prior to emptying the trash)
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LN

I tried to copy my iPhoto library to a second external drive and now the pgm, running on an iBook with 10.5.8 does not open the original library on launching?

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OT

IPhoto Going Haywire Since Got External Drive

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