Sharing an iPhoto Library

Hello,
I run an iMac at home and currently do not use iPhoto at all. Part of the reason for this is that my wife uses a Windows PC and I have yet to work out a way to share iPhoto effectively. Anyway, I am close to buying a MacBook Air for her and that will mean (I hope) that I can start to make better use of iPhoto.
I will manage one master library on the iMac - this is where I will download photos to, edit them, manage the folders etc. So my simple question is how do I share that library with the MacBook Air that my wife might be using, so that she sees the latest "version" of a photo that she could then print, or email to someone for example ?
I have seen lots of posts about "just enabling photo sharing" but then lots of subsequent comments about limitations around editing etc. I simply want my wife to see the latest version of a photo. Is that possible ?
Thanks.

Thanks. I find this bizarre as the moving of my entire iPhoto library to an external device seems convoluted at best in order to just share my photos.
I don't want or need anyone else to edit any of the files - I just want them to access, on another iOS device the photos in order to view them, print them, email them etc.
In iPhoto there appears to be a couple of options for sharing:
In preferences I appear to be able to "share my photos" - does that not allow a different iOS device (in this case a MacBook) to access the entire library ?
If I enable Photo Stream is there no way I can define that the "stream" includes all photos vs. just the last 30 days ?
... I'm pretty surprised if I can't do this and begin to wonder if I just stick with Windows, which honestly isn't my preferred option.
Thanks.

Similar Messages

Hello there - I am sharing an iPhoto library across two accounts on the same computer - it works fine EXCEPT for Quicktime movies - they play on one account and claim I don't have the rights on the other - all permissions are on and ok?

Hello there - I am sharing an iPhoto library across two accounts on the same computer - it works fine EXCEPT for Quicktime movies - they play on one account and claim I don't have the rights on the other - all permissions are on and ok?

It should be in the Users/ Shared folder.
Back Up and try rebuild the library: hold down the command and option (or alt) keys while launching iPhoto. Use the resulting dialogue to rebuild. Note the option to check and repair Library Permissions
Regards
TD

Sharing single iPhoto library between 2 users on a single computer

Hello,
I am currently using iPhoto 5 on a Mac Mini with 2 total users on the computer.
I know that it is easy to share iPhoto pictures over a server with other computers, but does anyone know how to share a single library between 2 users on the same computer?
I would like my wife and I to share a single library of pictures so that we can each upload pics from our digital camera of our family and friends and both have access to them. Currently, we each have to have separate libraries and it is difficult to share photos even between us. If this is not possible on iPhoto 5 or 6, this would be a great upgrade for the next version.
By the way, I was able to work a similar problem out with music out so that all users share a single iTunes library of songs by placing the library in the "shared" folder, but this is not possible with the iPhoto library.
Thanks for your help!
Mac Mini - G4 Mac OS X (10.4.6)

Hi mconnor,
Here are all the links I have for sharing an iPhoto Library.
I think you would be interested in the ACL link for your situation. Hope it works for you.
SHARING IPHOTO LIBRARIES
Sharing libraries between users on the same local network
You can also share a library on the same machine between users the same way.
Sharing libraries between users on the same machine...
-both users must have sharing enabled in their iPhoto Preferences
-both users must be logged in and have iPhoto running
-Remember that you can only view the other library. You can't edit the photos or play the saved slideshows or view the made books or burn them to CD or DVD. The books and slideshows will show up as an album. You can play that album as an "on the fly" slideshow. You can drag images from the sharing library to your library in the source column to import them to your library. You can then edit, add to albums, books, slideshow, etc.
Sharing links from Apple....
Sharing your photos between computers
About shared photos
Turning off photo sharing
Looking for shared photos
SHARING ONE IPHOTO LIBRARY BETWEEN USERS ON SAME MACHINE
You can try one of these three methods:
1- Use iPhoto Library Manager-the paid version
The documentation page will give instructions on how it is done.
2- Sharing one iPhoto library between several users on one machine
3- Share an iPhoto Library in tiger Using ACL's
4- I have also read about ShareAlike
There is no other info on the site about how it works.
I strongly urge anyone wanting to try any of the methods for sharing one iPhoto Library folder among more than one user to backup all iPhoto Library folders before attemptin anything.

Does sharing the iPhoto library really work?

Does sharing the iPhoto library really work?

Yes I've used both apps to open the same library and it has worked. There are some things in each library that do not carry over, books for one and I'm not sure about slide shows.
But the basic functionality works in both programs on the same library. Having wrote that I still believe in the advice we always gave out to new users before this recent change, when the library was not readable by both programs.
That advice was to pick one program and use that one exclusively. Before the recent change the reason for this was more obvious but now that the library can be read by both programs why stick to one? One reason is comfort. Both programs while doing basically the same task do it just differently enough that switching between the two will be confusing. And when you are confused you are more likely to make mistakes. And mistakes in this case lead to image loss.
Second Aperture is a fairly complex program and will require some time to learn it and use it well. If you're switching back and forth the time to learn it will be increased and you may never really get everything out of it.
I think the great benefit of this recent change is that one it makes it a lot easier to migrate to Aperture, two if for some reason you decide that Aperture isn;t right for you there is no problem going back to iPhoto (in the past this was not possible without a great deal of effort and even then data would be lost) and three if other people in your household need to access the images in the library occasionally they can use the simpler iPhoto interface to do this.
So my advice is stiil the same as it was before, pick one of the applications, Aperture or iPhoto, and make that your primary tool. In the long run you'll be better off.
regards
PS in regards to the RAM question, 4gb will work but you'll be happier with 8gb
good luck

Any improvements in sharing an iPhoto Library between multiple users?

It is possible and Apple Approved to share an iPhoto Library between multiple users, but the Library must be stored on a drive or disk image that ignores permissions:
http://tech.kateva.org/2008/10/apple-supports-multi-user-iphoto.html
This doesn't work for me. Has Apple changed anything with iLife '09 to make it easier to share a Library? For example, have they changed from the prior Package format?
Message was edited by: jfaughnan

Alternatives to a trip to the Terminal:
If you want the other user to be able to see the pics, but not add to, change or alter your library, then enable Sharing in your iPhoto (Preferences -> Sharing), leave iPhoto running and use Fast User Switching to open the other account. In that account, enable 'Look For Shared Libraries'. Your Library will appear in the other source pane.
Any user can drag a pic from the Shared Library to their own in the iPhoto Window.
Remember iPhoto must be running in both accounts for this to work.
If you want the other user to have the same access to the library as you: to be able to add, edit, organise, keyword etc. The problem here is that OS X works very hard to keep your data safe and secure from the other users. You're trying to beat what's built in to the system. So, to beat the system
Quit iPhoto in both accounts
Move the iPhoto Library Folder to an external HD set to ignore permissions. You could also use a Disk Image or even partition your Hard Disk.
In each account in turn: Hold down the option (or alt) key and launch iPhoto. From the resulting dialogue, select 'Choose Library' and navigate to the new library location. From that point on, this will be the default library location. Both accounts will have full access to the library, in fact, both accounts will 'own' it.
However, there is a catch with this system and it is a significant one. iPhoto is not a multi-user app., it does not have the code to negotiate two users simultaneously writing to the database, and trying will cause db corruption. So only one user at a time, and back up, back up back up.
Lastly: This method seems a little clunky at first, but works very well. Most importantly, it uses the System to do the job for you.
Create a new Account on your Mac, call it Media. Create an iPhoto Library there. (BTW: This will work for iTunes too.)
Enable Sharing on the Library:(Preferences -> Sharing), leave iPhoto running and use Fast User Switching to open the other accounts. In those accounts, enable 'Look For Shared Libraries'. The Library will appear in the other source pane.
This means that both users will be able to see the pics. If you want to use a pic then simply drag it from the shared Library to your own in the iPhoto Window. This means that each user can have their own edits.
If you want to add photos to the Library: Log into the Media account for that purpose.
To make it all seamless: Set your Mac to log into the Media Account automatically. Set iPhoto to launch on log-in. Then switch to your own account using Fast User Switching.
Net result: a Library that's permanently available to all users but also protected. Each user can have their own versions of the pics if they want.
No partitioning, no permissions issues. Uses no extra disk space. What's not to like?
Regards
TD

Sharing one iphoto library between multiple user accounts

I hav an extensive photo library and would like to share this across multiple users on the one computer. Am I able to do this without having to move the library to an external hard drive?

What you mean by 'share'.
If you want the other user to be able to see the pics, but not add to, change or alter your library, then enable Sharing in your iPhoto (Preferences -> Sharing), leave iPhoto running and use Fast User Switching to open the other account. In that account, enable 'Look For Shared Libraries'. Your Library will appear in the other source pane.
Any user can drag a pic from the Shared Library to their own in the iPhoto Window.
Remember iPhoto must be running in both accounts for this to work.
If you want the other user to have the same access to the library as you: to be able to add, edit, organise, keyword etc. The problem here is that OS X works very hard to keep your data safe and secure from the other users. You're trying to beat what's built in to the system. So, to beat the system
Quit iPhoto in both accounts
Move the iPhoto Library Folder to an external HD set to ignore permissions. You could also use a Disk Image or even partition your Hard Disk.
In each account in turn: Hold down the option (or alt) key and launch iPhoto. From the resulting dialogue, select 'Choose Library' and navigate to the new library location. From that point on, this will be the default library location. Both accounts will have full access to the library, in fact, both accounts will 'own' it.
However, there is a catch with this system and it is a significant one. iPhoto is not a multi-user app., it does not have the code to negotiate two users simultaneously writing to the database, and trying will cause db corruption. So only one user at a time, and back up, back up back up.
Lastly: This method seems a little clunky at first, but works very well. Most importantly, it uses the System to do the job for you.
Create a new Account on your Mac, call it Media. Create an iPhoto Library there. (BTW: This will work for iTunes too.)
Enable Sharing on the Library:(Preferences -> Sharing), leave iPhoto running and use Fast User Switching to open the other accounts. In those accounts, enable 'Look For Shared Libraries'. The Library will appear in the other source pane.
This means that both users will be able to see the pics. If you want to use a pic then simply drag it from the shared Library to your own in the iPhoto Window. This means that each user can have their own edits.
If you want to add photos to the Library: Log into the Media account for that purpose.
To make it all seamless: Set your Mac to log into the Media Account automatically. Set iPhoto to launch on log-in. Then switch to your own account using Fast User Switching.
Net result: a Library that's permanently available to all users but also protected. Each user can have their own versions of the pics if they want.
No partitioning, no permissions issues. Uses no extra disk space. What's not to like?
Regards
TD

Sharing one iphoto library between 2 user accounts

Hi all,
I know there are lots of questions on this, so thank you for your patience and assistance. I have spent so many hours on the phone to Apple care with no joy
I made the jump to Mac from PC several months ago, and I really like it, except for this issue. Please forgive me if my Mac tech talk is not up to scratch. It's like learning a new language (kind of).
My wife and I are using iPhoto 11 with one shared library. Computer shipped with Snow Leopard and I set up the shared folder/library using Apple article HT1198. It worked perfectly. We could add, edit, delete photos with the change being visible and fully accessible by the other user.
The day Lion got released, I upgraded. That's when all the problems started. If I add photos or videos, the thumbnails are visible, but you can not open them/view them (Permissions error) and the problem occurs vice versa as well if my wife adds photos.
So, trying to work out a solution, both with the advice of Apple support and from research:
have tried repairing the library
have changed permissions settings on hard drive and on iphoto library file
moved the library to Shared and also to the root directory of the hard drive
I have deleted the mounted virtual disk volume and now have the library file on the Macintosh HD
I have reinstalled Lion (repaired)
I have formatted the Hard Drive, reinstalled Snow Leopard, updates & then Lion - same problem!
I have used Batchmod
I have considered taking too many sleeping pills
So what does work?
When I hold down Command & Option when opening iPhoto I have the various repair options. When I select the Repair permissions option, ALL of the previously non-viewable content becomes viewable. Problem solved? Nope. When I add new material and go to my wife's account, only thumbnails visible again (if I rename an event that shows perfectly well). Close iPhoto, hold down CMD & Option, repair permissions, and again, all content accessible. So I'm assuming the permissions of what we are adding is for some reason being changed to a different setting to that of the library and the hard disk (both set to read write everyone & for each user account).
Is this my only option now? Add content and then repair permissions everytime we open iPhoto?
I'm so suprised that for what is marketed as such a user friendly computer that sharing photos is so difficult, or convoluted at least.
Anyway, I look forward to any suggestions.

Time Machine prefers to have a disk to iself, you'll find. You could, however, partition the disk.
That said, having the Library and it's back up on the same disk is unwise. If the disk fails - and that's one of the more common issues - you have no library and no back up.
Regards
TD

Sharing an iPhoto Library over an external drive with multiple Macs

I have a library of photos that is around 30 GB. All of the photos are already on an external drive, which is accessed through Xserve, and I have begun creating an iPhoto library on that same external drive. I have seen mixed opinions on whether or not an iPhoto library is able to be shared with multiple users (we have about 6 other Macs that we want to have full access to this). Unfortunately, none of us are on the same iPhoto version, so we have not been able to test this out yet, as they have been incompatible with each other so far. Is this something that is possible?

1 - sharing in a very limited sense is possiible - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1198 - IF and only if all versions of iPhoto that will access it are the same version
2 - since you have different versions of iPhoto on different systems you can not share amoung them - only amoung ssytems using the same version of software
3 - I have no idea what XDrive is - but note tha tthe iPhoto library must always be on a volume formatted Mac OS extended (journaled) and should be on a drive that is directly connected with a wired connection
LN

HT1198 Sharing an iPhoto library between multiple users on a single Mac?

Can anyone help me solve this problem? I want to share an iPhoto library that holds all the family pictures across three other users who have separate accounts on the same iMac.

What do you mean by "share"?
If you want the other user to be able to see the pics, but not add to, change or alter your library, then enable Sharing in your iPhoto (Preferences -> Sharing), leave iPhoto running and use Fast User Switching to open the other account. In that account, enable 'Look For Shared Libraries'. Your Library will appear in the other source pane.
Any user can drag a pic from the Shared Library to their own in the iPhoto Window. Remember iPhoto must be running in both accounts for this to work.
If you want the other user to have the same access to the library as you: to be able to add, edit, organise, keyword etc.
Quit iPhoto in both accounts. Move the Library to an external HD set to ignore permissions (or a Disk Image or even partition your Hard Disk.)
In each account in turn: Double click on the Library to open it. (You may be asked to repair the Library Permissions.) From that point on, this will be the default library location. Both accounts will have full access to the library, in fact, both accounts will 'own' it.
However, there is a catch with this system and it is a significant one. iPhoto is not a multi-user app., it does not have the code to negotiate two users simultaneously writing to the database, and trying will cause db corruption. So only one user at a time, and back up, back up back up.

Sharing the iPhoto Library

i have read with interest the discussions here regarding the iPhoto Library. I have picked up some good pointers, but none seem to answer my basic dilemma.
I share the MacBook with my wife and we have separate user accounts to keep our stuff separate. But we want to share the iPhoto library. I moved the library in to the Shared folder in the Users folder and I navigated to it with iPhoto in my user account and it works fine. But when we try to access the library from my wife's user account, I can navigate to it, but I cannot open it because it is "greyed out" in the Select Library window. We have set the share photos preference in the iPhoto preferences to allow sharing but it does not seem to work.
Can anyone help?

Welcome to the Apple Discussions.
The Users folder version of Sharing is deprecated in 10.5.
There are two ways to share, depending on what you mean by 'share'.
If you want the other user to be able to see the pics, but not add to, change or alter your library, then enable Sharing in your iPhoto (Preferences -> Sharing), leave iPhoto running and use Fast User Switching to open the other account. In that account, enable 'Look For Shared Libraries'. Your Library will appear in the other source pane.
Remember iPhoto must be running in both accounts for this to work.
If you want the other user to have the same access to the library as you: to be able to add, edit, organise, keyword etc. then:
Quit iPhoto in both accounts
Move the iPhoto Library Folder to an external HD set to ignore permissions. You could also use a Disk Image or even partition your Hard Disk.
In each account in turn: Hold down the option (or alt) key and launch iPhoto. From the resulting dialogue, select 'Choose Library' and navigate to the new library location. From that point on, this will be the default library location. Both accounts will have full access to the library, in fact, both accounts will 'own' it.
However, there is a catch with this system and it is a significant one. iPhoto is not a multi-user app., it does not have the code to negotiate two users simultaneously writing to the database, and trying will cause db corruption. So only one user at a time, and back up, back up back up.
Finally: If you’re comfortable in the Terminal, and understand File Permissions, ACL’s etc., some folks have reported success using the process outlined here . (Note this page refers to 10.4, but it should also work on 10.5). If you’re not comfortable with the terminal, and don’t know an ACL from the ACLU, then you’re best doing something else... Oh, and the warning about simultaneous users still applies.
Regards
TD

HT1198 Has anyone used this method of sharing an iPhoto library? Does it work when the library is stored on a OS X Server?

We have a Mac Mini Server for our small office running OS X Lion. Currently, we store our company photos in a folder on the shared drive of our server.
Some of our employees would like to use iPhoto to manage / edit photos, but there is no way (that I know of) to share a single iPhoto library among different machines. I read the knowlege base articel HT1198, but I don't bellieve that it is a solution for our setup.
Any guidance or input?

Give Media Pro 1 a look. You can keep the source files on a server and each user can have their own catalog file of those photos that will give them their own "library" of those photos.
However, when editing a photo it will edit the source photo and that will affect all users so be sure to have backups. You probably can set the source files to be read only if you don't want every one to be editing them. Or edit and always to a Save As to the individuals Mac. You can add IPTC metadata annotations to the source files,
rename files, and catagorize the photos with labels, catalog sets and keywords.
The catalog contains preview photos (up to 640 x 640) of each photos that can be viewed even if the source files are not online or otherwise available.
Media Pro is available for both Macs and PCs and as a demo version to try out. For other candidates visit the The DAM Forum (digital asset management).
OT

Need help with File Sharing and iPHOTO Library sharing........

I recently upgraded my imac and my macbook pro to Mavericks.
I have some problems now.
Previously using iPHOTO when running I was able to see the other computers iphoto library on the left side bar. I was able then to access the other computers iphoto library. This is no longer showing the other computers library from either computer.
When I try to access the other computers files using file sharing I get a message that permisions are missing.
It then asks if I want to fix permisions , I say yes....it will run for an hour and do nothing...I need to force quit.
I really dont want to use the cloud to do this sharing....why should I upload into the internet when I have the computers on same network.
Is there any place I can go to find how this is now done? Before I didnt need to look up a thing....was just intuitive . Now Im running into walls every way I try to share the iphoto libraries across computers.

The iPhoto sharing that was in the previous version doesn't seem to exist. There is now iCloud Photo Sharing.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5902
I don't know about the file sharing issue.

Sharing my iPhoto Library?

Is it possible to share my iPhoto Library?
Both my wife and I have an iMac, both of which are connected via our LAN on a Timecapsule.
We'd both like to use the same iPhoto Library.
Is this possible and if so how?
Thanks
-Mike
P.S. I've attempted to just copy my current iPhoto Library in MyMac/Pictures/iPhoto Library to the Timecapsule but always get the following message: "The Finder can’t complete the operation because some data in “iPhoto Library copy” can’t be read or written.
(Error code -36)", even though I've completely shut down iPhoto. Odd.

The TC is designed for use as a back up disk. While you may be able to do this using it, it's not what the thing is for.
Yes it is possible to share the iPhoto Library.
For iPhoto 09 (version 8.0.2) and later:
What you mean by 'share'.
If you want the other person to be able to see the pics, but not add to, change or alter your library, then enable Sharing in your iPhoto (Preferences -> Sharing), leave iPhoto running and move to the other Machine. There, enable 'Look For Shared Libraries'. Your Library will appear in the other source pane.
Any user can drag a pic from the Shared Library to their own in the iPhoto Window.
Remember iPhoto must be running in both machines for this to work. Obviously the reverse works too - the other person can also share their library with you.
The advantage to this is that the library is perfectly safe. There is no way for the other user to damage it, or even the photos. Each person can have their own set of edits as well.
If you want the other user to have the same access to the library as you: to be able to add, edit, organise, keyword etc.
Quit iPhoto in both accounts. Move the Library to a disk that both machines have equal access to. Set it to ignore file permissions and ownerships. (You can do this in the Get Info window.)
A strong warning: If you're trying to edit the Library (that is, make albums, move photos around, keyword, make books or slideshows etc.) or edit individual photos in it via Wireless be very careful. Dropouts are a common fact of wireless networking, and should one occur while the app is writing to the database then your Library will be damaged. Simply, I would not do this with my Libraries.
On each machine in turn: Hold down the option (or alt) key key and launch iPhoto. From the resulting menu select 'Choose Library' and point it at the Library. From that point on, this will be the default library location. Both machines will have full access to the library, in fact, both machines will 'own' it.
However, there is a catch with this system and it is a significant one. iPhoto is not a multi-user app., it does not have the code to negotiate two users simultaneously writing to the database, and trying will cause db corruption. So only one user at a time, and back up, back up back up.
Regards
TD

View shared iMac iPhoto library on iPad?

This would be one of the reasons for me to buy the iPad: if you could view all the photos that are in iPhoto on my iMac. Syncing doesn't make sense, just doesn't fit. And there is wifi, so should be possible... Simplify Photo used to do this I think, but they closed shop....
Any ideas? Maybe I'm missing something, and it's just a standard feature. Would make sense....
Thanks!
J

iMerlin wrote:
Does that make it any less relevant? Has this issue been resolved in the last 9 months?
No, it just probably means that the OP has long since moved on.
You know you come to a forum and post a new topic and get hammered for not searching. You search for a topic and resurrect and old one and get hammered for posting in an old one.
No one was "hammering" you. It gets suggested that people search the forum to find answers to their questions before starting a new post. I've never seen anyone suggest that you go looking for dormant posts and answer them, though you are, of course, free to do so.
Most people here are pretty polite and that's enforced by the Hosts. However, it's still good policy, in my opinion, to assume that people didn't mean to be rude, rather than immediately getting defensive. I find it makes my time here much less stressful.
Best of luck.

Sharing iphoto library on the same computer between different users

Can anyone tell me how (without having to write my own code) I can share photos easily (so I can teach my parents, who know nothing about mac, how to do it) between different users on the SAME COMPUTER?
I am so frustrated! You can share with anyone else in the world, but when it is on the same computer I can't figure out how to share!

Hi Mereditty,
Here are all the links I have for sharing a couple of different ways.
SHARING IPHOTO LIBRARIES
Sharing libraries between users on the same local network
You can also share a library on the same machine between users the same way.
Sharing libraries between users on the same machine...
-both users must have sharing enabled in their iPhoto Preferences
-both users must be logged in and have iPhoto running
-Remember that you can only view the other library. You can't edit the photos or play the saved slideshows or view the made books or burn them to CD or DVD. The books and slideshows will show up as an album. You can play that album as an "on the fly" slideshow. You can drag images from the sharing library to your library in the source column to import them to your library. You can then edit, add to albums, books, slideshow, etc.
Sharing links from Apple....
Sharing your photos between computers
About shared photos
Turning off photo sharing
Looking for shared photos
SHARING ONE IPHOTO LIBRARY BETWEEN USERS ON SAME MACHINE
You can try one of these three methods:
1- Use iPhoto Library Manager-the paid version
The documentation page will give instructions on how it is done.
2- Sharing one iPhoto library between several users on one machine
3- Share an iPhoto Library in tiger Using ACL's
4- I have also read about ShareAlike
There is no other info on the site about how it works.
I strongly urge anyone wanting to try any of the methods for sharing one iPhoto Library folder among more than one user to backup all iPhoto Library folders before attemptin anything.
Lori

Sharing an iPhoto Library

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