Sharing iPhoto library over network between two Macs

I would like to edit/create albums via sharing.
I can easily share photos between my two Macs via sharing, but I can't move photos between albums, can't create new albums, etc. (I would like to be able to use my laptop in our home network to modify the albums on the PowerMac in the basement.)
I don't want to move files from one computer to another; via sharing, I essentially want to be able to modify the host library's albums. I don't want to edit the photos as much as I want to move them. Is this possible?

Hi there,
There are two ways that I have tried to share a Library. The first method was to delete the empty library on my laptop and start iPhoto. The application could not find the library and asked me where it was. I linked it to the library on the other computer over the network. This method works but can be very slow when editing or scrolling (especially when using AirPort). It is also safer to only have one iPhoto accessing one library at a time.
The other way that I have been able to relibaly access and edit an iPhoto library on another mac was by using Virtual Network Computing (VNC). Essentially it provides the user the ability to see and controll another computer on the network from their machine. It does work and is alot faster than the first method but the downsides are that the host computer cannot be used at the same time and VNC software does not resize the desktop when, for example, accessing a 20" screen from a 12" laptop. This means that you have to resize the iPhoto window to fit on the smaller screen.
For the host computer (server) I used Real VNC and for the network client I used Chicken of the VNC.
The software works well and is usefull to access emails on the computer in the office from the living room. I have to say that I have stopped using these methods as they both tend to hogg the network and other users in the family are stuck for long periods of time trying to load a web page.
Hope this helps,
Dan
iMac G5 Mac OS X (10.4.7)

Similar Messages

Sharing iPhotos library accross more than 1 MAC

As I now also own a MacBook Pro I want to have access to my photo library which is based on my Mac Pro rom my MacBook, how is this done?
Thanks
John

John
There are two ways to share, depending on what you mean by 'share'.
If you want the other machine to be able to see the pics, but not add to, change or alter your library, then network the two Macs together, then enable Sharing in your iPhoto (Preferences -> Sharing), leave iPhoto running and on the other Machine, enable 'Look For Shared Libraries'. Your Library will appear in the other source pane.
Remember iPhoto must be running in both machines 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 on both machines.
Move the iPhoto Library Folder to an external HD set to ignore permissions.
On each machine 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 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

Sharing iphoto library on network drive

Hello,
I'd like to use the same iPhoto library on two Macs.
Therefore, I intend to use my time capsule as a network drive. I learned from other posts that I can easily move my iPhoto library to the network share. Using two laptop on the same photo library, however, is not that easy. It seems that if both are accessing the library at the same time , unpredictable behavior might result.
Is it possible to avoid that issue or is there another software for photo management that can work with a shared library?
Thanks
Armin

I learned from other posts that I can easily move my iPhoto library to the network share.
True. Drag and drop is easy.
But it will damage your Library and risks data loss. See this article
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS5168
for more. Note the comment:
“Additionally, storing the iPhoto library on a network rather than locally on your computer can also lead to poor performance or data loss.”
Next:
It seems that if both are accessing the library at the same time , unpredictable behavior might result.
Nothing unpredictable at all. It either won't work or it will corrupt the Library. iPhoto is not a server application. It's a single-user database.
There are server apps, they start at around the $200 mark.
If you want to share the Library between two machines put it onto a portable hard drive, formatted Mac OS Extended (Journaled), and plug it into either machine as necessary.

Best way to share aperture library over network on two computers?

I've read several posts about doing this and most recommend using an external HD and just hot swapping. However, is their not a better alternative? Can I not share my library over the network, or just remote connect to the other computer?
Thanks for the help!

Hi Terence and Leonie,
You can run several Aperture on the same computer as long as all Aperture are using distinct libraries.
What Aperture does is to create a simple lock file in <your Aperture library>.aplibrary/Database/apdb The lock file contains the PID of the process. So not two Aperture could open the same library (although I don't know how good they have manage the concurrent creation, locking, verification of this lock, this is a typical and difficult software engineering problem)
Anyway, I have not said that Aperture supports concurrent editing. That a file is a database or a simple text file, you have basically the same issues on network or in concurrent environment. So if the folder structure holds simple, flat text file or xml object or databases, it is still a bunch of files (this is a UNIX system by the way ).
Aperture contains more than one SQLlite file, there are some at the root folder, some under Database/apdb etc. there are also XML files that could be used as database.
Anyhow, editing a file (SQLlite, XML, txt, doc, etc.) either on a share or locally is plain similar. The drive can fail too, although much less likely than the network.
Network file edition can have a few shortcomings, but nothing that when known can be blocking.
Locking files over the network can however be tricky and depends largely on the network protocol used (NFS, SMB/CIFS or AFP just to name a few). In addition, if you import files from /Users/foo/Photos in Aperture (without copying them within Aperture), they might not be visible from another computer or only the previews, as the path /Users/foo/Photos is not "visible" from the other computer.
What really is a problem when you put a file not locally is the file system type and its features. HFS+ supports extended attributes (metadata), many other file systems support these but the API (how the software, such as Aperture, access this feature) might not be similar, in addition the amount of metadata or their structure might differ from file system to another. And this is where you might lose information.
A tool like Dropbox is pretty good at maintaining the metadata across different computers, and it has been adapted to do so for OS X specifically (and also for Linux and Windows).
The second problem is if you would have a Mac and share via SMB (the Windows share network protocol, aka CIFS on recent Windows versions) the library, SMB might not support the reading and writing of HFS+ metadata, thus data loss might occur.
Apple is just warning us of all these shortcomings, and advise to use local storage formatted as HFS+. Because even a local external disk formatted as NTFS or other file system could be a problem.
However, power users who understand the risks and limitations of a network share (in general) can create a disk image on a share (even if it is SMB). As for OS X, once the disk image is mounted, it is just like any other local hard disk, it is just "slower" especially latency wise. OS X supports perfectly disk image mounted on a share, it takes care of properly synchronising it.
Of course, due to the nature of the link between the application data and where they are stored, in case of application or OS crash, the amount of data loss could be greater than when the data are held locally.
I hope this clarify better my post.
Note: another shortcoming of having it on the network is: Aperture lock the library by creating a file with a process ID. If the same library is opened from another computer on the network, this other Aperture instance might see the lock file and could perhaps not find the corresponding running process. This Aperture instance might then decide to ignore the lock and proceed with opening the library. This might have some consequences.
But I haven't developed Aperture so I don't know how it would behave

Lightroom 3.5 - Library automatic syncing between two Macs?

Hey there you Lightroom-Masters!
I am diggin' deeper and deeper into Professional Photography and am now using two Macs two develop my my .DNG RAWs.
In my Livingroom stands a 27" iMac, which is great to develop them further, and when I am on the road I am using a 15" MacBook Pro.
Thing is: the iMac has a Library of roughly 40.000 Pictures, the MacBook Pro is mostly used when I am not home for editing. Is there
any way I can sync my Librarys via Ethernet to each other? That way I wouldn't need to re-edit my shots again on my iMac, or export my
whole catalogue and push them around via my own network...
I hope one can understand my problem, if not I'll try hard to explain it further...
Greetings from germany,
Moritz Schwertner
// Head of Photo Odyssey
// www.photoodyssey2011.com
// www.photoodyssey2012.com
// www.moritzschwertner.de

Given the amount of images and the idea to stay portable (I am carrying around 10kg of Equipment + the MBP) it is not an option to keep the catalogue saved on a portable FireWire (or Thunderbolt Drive). I just need a solution to sync the processed images with my iMac, best would be via my home network (as I don't need to sync it when I am abroad or else). Simple as that...
The second idea from you, Hal, is more feasible for me. I'll test that out as soon as I can.
I am still wondering why Lightroom hasn't got that function right away... I can't believe that I am the only one wanting such a feature?
But thank you very much, Hal!
- Moritz

Help sharing files over internet between two Macs

Hi,
I'm trying to share some files with my sister over an internet connection and cannot get it to work! Basically, I'm trying to have her connect to my computer and get the files out of my public drop box folder, where I've put them. I turned on File Sharing in System Preferences, gave her my IP address, she attempted an AFP connection, and keeps getting errors that the connection was refused. Since I use a wireless router, I disabled ALL the firewall functions of it to see if that would help, but still no dice. I tried turning on sharing via FTP and having her use an FTP client to log in, but that didn't work, either...AARGH!! Can someone help me or give me some ideas, please?? I'm using OS X 10.4.7 and she's using OS X 10.2.something.
Thanks in advance!
Evan
1.5 GHz powerbook g4 15 Mac OS X (10.4.7)

1. Make sure FTP Access is unchecked in System Preferences.
2. Install PureFTPd (http://jeanmatthieu.free.fr/pureftpd/index.html?http&&&jeanmatthieu.free.fr/pure ftpd/download.html) on your Mac. It's free.
3. Forward Ftp port number 21 through your router to your Mac's local IP address.
4. Create virtual users in PureFTPd and you're rocking.
Your problem might also lie in your ISP blocking your port 21 - double-check it's OK.

How can I set up a wireless network between two Mac Mini's (media centres)?

I've just received my second mac mini (core duo, 1.83, 1 Gb ram)and want to set up a wireless network to link this with my original mac mini (PPC 1.42, 512MB) and my Belkin wireless router (g std).
I'm using both as media centres in different rooms and want to keep all my media (films, photo's, music etc.) on one mini (connected to a 640GB external drive) and access it over the wireless network. Sort of a more felxible Apple TV setup??
I've got the wireless network working no problems with both mini's connected to the internet over the network but I'm stuck at how I get the two mini's to see each other. I've tried "the Missing Manual" and these forums but no success so far.
I know it can be done but would really appreciate any suggestions/directions on what to do?
Thanks in advance<<br>
MacMini PPC and MacMini Core Duo Mac OS X (10.4.9)

Jona11-
Greetings and welcome to the Apple boards.
This document should be very helpful.
Luck-
-DaddyPaycheck

Sharing an external hard drive between two macs

Could someone please give me step-by-step instructions on how I can share an external hard drive between my powerpc(running 10.4.11) and my macbook air(running 10.5.6)? I would like to do this with out any external software.

Anthony1900 wrote:
Could someone please give me step-by-step instructions on how I can share an external hard drive between my powerpc(running 10.4.11) and my macbook air(running 10.5.6)? I would like to do this with out any external software.
Simply connect the drive to one of the two computers and there you are!
Use your network and turn on file sharing. It's that simple.

Sharing a Time Machine backup between two Macs

Hi
So I was running my music production software on a first gen Mac Mini. I would store all of my project files on an external drive and backup that external drive to a second external drive using Time Machine. I had Time Machine set so that it excluded everything on the Mac Mini except my original external drive.
Now I've stepped up to the latest and the greatest Macbook Pro 15 inch. I'm running the same music production software on it and loading up all my files from the same external drive. When I go to back it up with Time Machine, it wants to start a separate backup for the Macbook Pro, even though it is only backing up the same stuff from the Mac Mini. The thing is that there aren't any system specific files being backed up, just my project files. For the life of me I can't get it to continue the original backup. I plan on using both Macs for music production and plan on using the same drive for both. I would like to back up every time I finish a session on either computer.
Is there anyway I can get Time Machine on each computer just continue one backup??
I know I can access the backup from each computer by "Browsing Other Time Machine Disks", but I want to backup, not restore.
If not, is there any other software you can recommend? Although I would hate to lose the backups that I already do have...
Thanks!
jg

That's probably a good option for you. It's not easy to keep a 3 way sync.
If you really want to keep certain files synced on your Mac Mini, you might want to look at ChronoSync. It appears it's a good backup-sync program. Don't know if will keep synced between the 2 computers and external drive without a little manuel effort, but would be easy to sync at least 2 devices, such as MacBook to Mac Mini, or MacBook to external.
If you don't need to keep synced files, then best option is to do a full TM backup of both computers. Since you have 2 externals, use one for each. You can still use TM to access files if you need, and if you have a hard drive failure, it's an easy replace drive and restore the whole computer from TM.
And don't overlook the option of File Sharing between the 2 computers to access each others files or a shared folder. That's a real easy way just to copy a few files when you need them.
Anyway, Good Luck and Happy Holidays

Sharing the iweb website creation between two macs in the same house?

I have an imac. Just purchased a macbook for the wife that arrives tomorrow. She wants to be able to update our website using her imac (a website I've started and maintained on the imac).
My question is...is it possible to "sync" the iweb application or to otherwise let her have access to the same info I see on the imac so she may update the site as well from her own mac?
We are connected in the house via a wireless network.
Thanks.

Clayton ~ These links may help:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=303045
http://iwebfaq.org/site/iWebTwocomputers.html
And click on the thumbnail to check out ChronoSync:

Error Message Trying to Network Between Two Macs, help!

Hi
I dug through the forums but didnt find an answer that solved my current little problem.
Trying to get my MacBook (10.5) to via home wireless network connect to my Imac (10.4). Was able to do this in the past many times. Now I get this error message when I press "Connect" on the Finder menu. I have double checked the 192 number but no luck after doing that.
"The server may not exist or it is not operational at this time. Check the server name or IP address and your network connection and try again" Error Code 36.
Your thoughts pls!
Thank you

bump

How do I share iPhoto libraries between two Macs?

Hi! I would ideally like to have one iPhoto library to share between two different Mac laptops. Is there some way I can set it up so that the same library can be shared, edited, and updated? Or if not, is there a way I can see the other Mac's iPhoto library? Both computers share the same Wifi and both using Mountain Lion OS (but I can upgrade if that would help).
Thanks!

The only way to do what you want is to put the Library on an external disk formatted Mac OS Extended (Journaled). Then connect - a wired usb/firewire/thunderbird connection - the drive to each machine as required.
What you're describing is a media server. They start at the $200 mark.

Can I sync iphoto library between two Mac's?

I have two Macs (an iMac and a Macbook Pro) and want to sync the iPhoto (6.0.6) library between the two so whenever I change one the other is updated. I thought about using iDisk but my library is apx 5gb. I am new to Macs- is there a utility built into OSX 10.4.9 or hopefully some freeware or very-cheap ware... preferably automated. Thank you very much.

brettjbyers
No you cannot sync an iPhoto library between two macs. If you do you will corrupt the iPhoto Library file. iPhoto is a consumer level app, and this feature is not supported.
What you can do is share the photos but not the library. Each machine will need to have it's own library file.
The easiest way to do it this is to enable sharing (in the iPhoto Preferences) on both machines (one sharing the library, the other looking for the share). When you do this the shared library will appear in the Source (or left-hand) pane and pics can be dragged from that to the library in the other machine.
Regards
TD

Sharing external FireWire drive between two Mac Pros

I know that sharing an external FireWire drive between two machines (i.e. both connected at the same time) is a very bad things as both will assume that they have exclusive write access to the drive and quite quickly write over what the other machine has just written.
Would it be possible though to mount the drive as read-only on the first machine and in read-write mode on the second? Would this preserve integrity as the second machine would in fact have exclusive write access or would other problems arise?
Thanks for any responses to a stupid question!
Peter

Mmm, Connect the drive to the private secure network Mac. Connect the two Macs by FireWire and create a network over the firewire connection, configure it to use class C addresses, ie. 169.x.x.x manually and then share the firewire drive to the other Mac (also on a class C network address over firewire).
Both macs will still have their own ethernet network addresses and each network will not be visible from the "other" network (unless you choose to share your internet connection over firewire).
The only caveat here is that the firewire drive will be visible to every other Mac on the secure network that you allow to connect to it (which is why I chose that one, rather than the public Mac). Or can you restrict sharing to only one network ..... didn't think so.

How do I share files between two Macs on my wireless network?

I have an iMac G4 and an ibook G3 on a wireless network. I have "file sharing" activated on both computers. (Also Appletalk, which may or may not be a misguided move, but I got the idea from OSX "Help.")
When I try to get from either computer onto the other, my computer is recognized by name (another alternative is to log on as a "guest"). I'm prompted for a password. None of the passwords I use works. I've tried the administrative passwords for both computers.
How do I get beyond this hurdle to share files? I've posted elsewhere to no avail. This must be an easy one. How do you share files between two macs on one network?

Do your accounts on the machines have the same short name? It's an issue I've seen a few names.. one machine with bsmith, the other with bobsmith, but the long names for both being "Bob Smith". The login windows would confuse users because it showed their names, but because the short names didn't match, it wouldn't work.
The password you should use is the administrative one, so I don't know why you're not having luck.

Sharing iPhoto library over network between two Macs

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for