Migration from PC to Mac issues with media stored on WHS 2011 server

[agouldtdc]

Lightroom Version Number

13.2

Operating System

1. macOS 14 Sonoma

I have just spent the day trying to migrate my LRC catalogue on Windows 10 to a new Macbook Pro (Sonoma 14.4.1) by following the LRQ 'Moving to a new computer' PDF and run into issues with my photos that are held on my Windows Home Server 2011 server.

On the PC my workflow is to import locally then once edited the files are moved within LRC to the WHS 2011 server. This is backed up with rotated HDDs.

The problem is that I cannot point the parent folders in LRC e.g. '\\WHS2011\Myfolder01' to the WHS2011 server mounted on the Mac ('WHS2011' is my equivalent to 'Data NAS' in the guide). If I select one of the subfolders and then "Find missing files", when I select the folder in the requester I get "An internal error has occurred. Invalid path".

I have tried Adobe support, to be told I might need to try using SMB or AFP protocols to mount the server.

What am I doing incorrectly? I am a novice with Macs, so hopefully this is not too difficult to solve. I would have thought Adobe would have been able to resolve this.

Thanks,

Andrew

 

[clee01l]

[QUOTE="agouldtdc, post: 1332008, member: 83213"…
I have tried Adobe support, to be told I might need to try using SMB or AFP protocols to mount the server…[/QUOTE]. This is probably what you need to do. I don’t remember which SMP or AFP protocols I used on the Server but when I am next to at my computer and server, I’ll check.

For now you need to go into the Networking section of Finder and mount the NAS volume. Once you are able to navigate to the image folder and read the files in Finder, you should be able to do so in the folder panel of LrC.

Two other things that need attention. In Mac Preferences there is a section on security that you need to expressly give Lightroom Classic permission to all files and folders. The Other is that you need to make sure the volume is automatically mounted and available when you start LrC.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[agouldtdc]

Thanks Cletus.

I did mount the NAS volume and access the files from Finder, but LRC gives the error.

Unders Privacy & Security>Files and Folders, LRC has access to Documents Folder and Removable Volumes.

Adobe directed me to Apple who sent me back to Adobe and I have spent nearly the whole day with their support. I can import from the NAS shared folders but cannot remap the existing folders in LRC. I added Full disk access for LRC but that does not help either.

Six plus hours on in the chat and I was told that LRC does not support the use of NAS drives for media storage, although on its support page it states the opposite. I can import from the NAS shares but I cannot remap the existing folders.

The problem appears to be that on the Mac the UNC path i.e. '\\WHS2011\Myfolder01' has the prefix 'smb:' and for some reason LRC does not take this into account. Adobe have told me to get Microsoft to fix the problem so the shares work on MacOS! I would think this is an issue that LRC should be able to manage but does not.

A screenshot in 'Moving to a new computer' shows a NAS volume offline, but this is on a Mac. Having seen this I must have assumed that moving a catalogue on a PC with files on a NAS would work.

I will go back to the PC, copy over all the folders with their files from the WHS 2011 server to the PC, transfer to the Mac and then copy them back to the NAS. In theory that should work. Otherwise I will have to change my workflow and work from an external drive, only using the NAS for backup, or ditch the Mac and buy a Windows laptop.

 

[clee01l]

I have both AFP and SMB protocols active on my ASUStor server. Time Machine requires SMB

In the LrC folder panel, I clicked on the (+) in the Folder panel header to add a new folder.
In the Finder dialog that opens I navigated on the left section to Network and chose the SMB mount for my NAS. After a lot of disk churning on the NAS, and spinning beach ball on LrC , the folder could be selected and did appear in my LrC Folder panel.

 

[agouldtdc]

Thanks for checking.

My issue is not adding files from the NAS (Windows Home Server 2011) to the catalogue on the Mac, which I can do, but updating the path to the NAS from a catalogue moved from the PC. I have to able to do this to retain all the metadata and edits.

I think I have now resolved the matter. The solution is:

1. In the LRC catalogue on the PC, move the files from the NAS to a local drive (can take some time).
2. Copy the catalogue following the instructions in the LRQ guide to the Mac.
3. Copy all the media files to the Mac (can take some time).
4. Open the catalogue on the Mac and update the paths.
5. Connect to the NAS on the Mac
6. Within LRC on the Mac, move the folders to the NAS (can take some time).

If I want to run the same catalogue on the PC:

1. Copy the catalogue back to the PC
2. Update the paths. Unlike on the Mac, the PC will find the files on the NAS.

I will file this with Adobe and hopefully the Mac version will be able to fix the problem finding the path. I consider this a bug in LRC on the Mac. I am just amazed that nobody else has reported this. Maybe I am the only person still using WHS 2011!

So I hope this might help anyone else moving from PC to Mac who has files on a NAS. Perhaps this only affects devices using Windows servers.

I have only just started to use LRC on the MBP now, but it is faster than my Ryzen 3900X PC and certainly a lot more portable

I am looking forward to being a lot more productive with the MBP.