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Help with new internal hard drive.

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hman

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Premium Classic Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2012
Messages
92
Location
West Chester, PA
Lightroom Experience
Beginner
Lightroom Version
Lightroom Version Number
9.2
Operating System
  1. Windows 10
Just installed a new internal SSD drive as prior drive crashed. Photos are safely stored on external drive. How do I re-install Lightroom Classic, files, etc. Creative Cloud app installed on new internal drive. Options from CC app are install Lightroom (Classic), which gives me a new LR with nothing in it. Thanks in advance!
 
Is this a replacement disk for C:? Or an additional internal drive?
Lightroom Classic (the app) is usually installed in the apps folder (Programs (?)) on C:\. The Catalog file (where you imported metadata data resides)is usually stored in sub folder in the Pictures folder. This catalog file may contain a path pointer to the individual image files stored on a EHD.

First thing you need to do is find your original catalog file and open it. It will look for the imported images in the EHD if that is where they were when you last opened that master catalog file.

I need more information before proceeding.
 
It's a replacement internal SSD drive; prior drive failed. I am waiting for Backblaze restore files. New drive has nothing about LR. I did install Creative Cloud app but only option is to install and takes me to import as though it's a new install. Catalog backups as well as images are on operating external drive. Thanks. Hope this helps.
 
Catalog backups as well as images are on operating external drive.
That's all you need. Copy the latest catalog backup to a 'Lightroom' folder in your Pictures folder, unzip it and start Lightroom by double clicking it. You should now see all your images. Initially the images will not have thumbnails, but Lighroom should start to rebuild these one by one. You only have to start Lightroom this way once, so it knows where the catalog is.
 
Or wait for Backblaze to restore the catalog, if you had it backing up. Depends on whether your last catalog backup on the EHD was current or if the Backblaze backup is more current. You want to get the most recent if they differ by any significant amount.

Did you use presets, profiles, etc? Those are not stored in the catalog but may be on the backblaze backup (or not). This document may be helpful:

Lightroom Classic File Locations | The Lightroom Queen
 
That's all you need. Copy the latest catalog backup to a 'Lightroom' folder in your Pictures folder, unzip it and start Lightroom by double clicking it. You should now see all your images. Initially the images will not have thumbnails, but Lighroom should start to rebuild these one by one. You only have to start Lightroom this way once, so it knows where the catalog is.
Thanks so much. Am awaiting restore of C:\ drive.
 
Or wait for Backblaze to restore the catalog, if you had it backing up. Depends on whether your last catalog backup on the EHD was current or if the Backblaze backup is more current. You want to get the most recent if they differ by any significant amount.

Did you use presets, profiles, etc? Those are not stored in the catalog but may be on the backblaze backup (or not). This document may be helpful:

Lightroom Classic File Locations | The Lightroom Queen
Thank you. I won't get restored C:\ until Tuesday.
 
That's all you need. Copy the latest catalog backup to a 'Lightroom' folder in your Pictures folder, unzip it and start Lightroom by double clicking it. You should now see all your images. Initially the images will not have thumbnails, but Lighroom should start to rebuild these one by one. You only have to start Lightroom this way once, so it knows where the catalog is.
 
Double clicking on the most recent, unzipped catalog does nothing. This backup is on my J:\ drive along with My Lightroom Photos. From the CC app, I installed LR Classic 9.2.1, as my LR is no longer on my PC. I then tried to open this catalog and nothing. How can I do this? Thanks.
 
Double clicking on the most recent, unzipped catalog does nothing. This backup is on my J:\ drive along with My Lightroom Photos. From the CC app, I installed LR Classic 9.2.1, as my LR is no longer on my PC. I then tried to open this catalog and nothing. How can I do this? Thanks.
Can you show a screenshot of the folder with the unzipped catalog?
 
Some details: hard drive installed 5/22/20. I restored C:\ from the failed drive via BackBlaze and saved it. Nothing in there helped me with Lightroom. Looks like the newest backup catr was 4/19? That's the one that opened either Luminar or Adobe Reader. I know I can install a new LR Classic 9.2.1 as I've done that and deleted it because I couldn't open that catalog. I believe I can re-import images but likely lost collections, etc. It's a mess.
The guy that installed the new SSD HD said it looked like I had 2 operating systems (I believe he meant duplicate drives and folders.

Thanks again- it's a mystery. Maybe I should call adobe. Also, I lost Photoshop and the CC app shows no programs installed!

here's the screen shot:
Capture 01.PNG
 
You shouldn't have removed LR.

PLease take this as constructive but you need to slow down a bit and debug the steps recommended rather than creating new.

The screen shot above does not show a catalog. That's partly because Microsoft is "helping" you and supressing the file type in the display. I recommend you turn that feature off (control panel, File Explorer options, View, Advanced, un-check "hide extensions for known file types", while there you might want to also show hidden files, not hide empty drives, not hide merge conflicts, not hide protected files). note none of these things is your problem but may be lending to the confusion.

You need a FILE that is of type .lrcat. It is perhaps inside the folder shown above, if that is where you unzipped the zip file. If you click on a folder it will not invoke lightroom (who knows what it will invoke). Find the file. Better still, find the backup restored from Backblaze if you indeed had it backing up the catalog. April 2019 is REALLY old. You must have a newer one, right?

Install LR 9.2.1 again.

When it starts it will start with an empty catalog, likely, or something old from the default name. Ignore that. Go to File, Open Catalog, and find the catalog with the .lrcat file type that is the latest.

Tell us what happens after those steps.
 
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