LrC User Develop Presets folder has changed

[Selwin]

Lightroom Version Number

12.1

Operating System

1. macOS 12 Monterey

Hey all, not sure if this has been covered before, a search on these forums didn't bring forward any topics.

I am configuring a new Macbook to run Lr. This lightroomqueen.com forum post by member LouieSherwin describes a method to sync presets via Dropbox: Back in the day I selected some presets folders to be centrally stored on dropbox and all computers using Lightroom point to those locations via (Mac only) symbolic links. So in the old days it was just a matter of rebuilding the symbolic links on the new machine and one was good to go.

However, In my current Lr instance I encounter a strange thing: user develop presets are not where they used to be. I'm on LrC 12.1 and although this is new to me, it could be anywhere between old news or scoop as I haven't used develop presets in quite a while. So what I found out:
- default develop presets (a long list): don't know which folder
- new user develop presets: ~/Library/Application Support/Adobe/CameraRaw/Settings
- imported develop presets: ~/Library/Application Support/Adobe/CameraRaw/ImportedSettings

The presets below are where they have always been:
- Export Presets: ~/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Lightroom/Export Presets
- Filename Templates: ~/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Lightroom/Filename Templates
- Import Presets: ~/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Lightroom/Import Presets
- Print Templates: ~/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Lightroom/Print Templates

In Adobe Lightroom Classic Preferences / Presets there is a location section (where one can select to "store presets with this catalog") and to the right now there are two "Show location" buttons instead of one, confirming this change. We will need to use these extra folders to sync the develop presets.

So maybe this could help some folks running into the same issue.

As for something slightly different: does Lr Classic provide a more contemporary method to sync presets? Like via Adobe Cloud? Or is that only for the CC version?

 

[Selwin]

We will need to use these extra folders to sync the develop presets.

On second thought, I'm not sure if syncing the new folders holding the develop presets ("/CameraRaw/Settings" and "CameraRaw/ImportedSettings") is harmless.
Besides the develop presets, there are some files with file names like this: "index_<a long number>.dat

Adobe appears to be using these folders for ACR settings, or at least when I open a Raw file in PS the most recent index... .dat file updates the time stamp.

A better way might be to use an automated file copy tool such as Carbon Copy Cloner to copy the develop preset .xmp files to a central location and distribute from there. Adequate file naming will be more essential than ever before.

 

[Selwin]

One thing I can't get my head around (yet) is whether or not Adobe intended to make Lr custom develop presets available in ACR. Placing them in the CameraRaw/Settings folder instead of the Lightroom folder could suggest that.

By the way even if you should create new "groups" for your user develop presets, new develop presets you add will all end up in the same /CameraRaw/Settings folder, without hierarchy. When examining the contents of a develop preset .xmp file I found that the group path is stored within the file and indeed when I copy the preset to another computer into the /CameraRaw/Settings folder, the group is automatically created upon restarting Lr.

 

[johnrellis]

One thing I can't get my head around (yet) is whether or not Adobe intended to make Lr custom develop presets available in ACR.

That was the main goal of introducing the "new" .xmp format for develop presets in LR 7.3.

By the way even if you should create new "groups" for your user develop presets, new develop presets you add will all end up in the same /CameraRaw/Settings folder, without hierarchy.

Right -- use the free Fix Presets plugin to organize your presets into subfolders that match the groups organization.

 

[Selwin]

That was the main goal of introducing the "new" .xmp format for develop presets in LR 7.3.

Thank you John! So it’s been like this since 7.3? Oops. No scoop then . I really haven’t noticed this change through the updates while using my old machine, so I suppose I don’t use my personal (ancient) develop presets anymore.

Right -- use the free Fix Presets plugin to organize your presets into subfolders that match the groups organization.

Thank you for this. I will give it a go.

 

[Selwin]

I am wondering now why Adobe hasn’t moved my old “pre 7.3” presets to the new Settings folder along the road of updates. They simply went missing. Maybe this is because of the symbolic links I installed to sync them between devices.

 

[Johan Elzenga]

I am wondering now why Adobe hasn’t moved my old “pre 7.3” presets to the new Settings folder along the road of updates. They simply went missing. Maybe this is because of the symbolic links I installed to sync them between devices.

They should have been converted to XMP and then the converted copy should have been placed in the Settings folder, while the original copies were renamed with two tildes in front of the name, so Lrc would know not to convert them again. Symbolic links could indeed have frustrated this process.

 

[Selwin]

They should have been converted to XMP and then the converted copy should have been placed in the Settings folder, while the original copies were renamed with two tildes in front of the name, so Lrc would know not to convert them again. Symbolic links could indeed have frustrated this process.

Ah-ha! That is why I noticed the two tildes in front of every develop preset in my central presets dropbox folder. So following the preset Adobe apparently managed to rename the files with the tildes, then after that failed to copy them over to the Settings folder. Thanks for clarifying that.