need help setting up Lightroom2 on "Deep Freeze" protected computer w/thaw space

[niteowlgary]

hi,

I'm setting up Lightroom 2 on several computers at our middle school and I have forgotten what all I need to move off of the C: drive.

Our school runs a program called Deep Freeze on all student computers which reboots to original configuration each time discarding all changes made during the session. There is a "thaw" space that can be used that will retain any files saved to it. I remember moving files to this drive (T:\) when we set this up last year, but now can't remember which ones. I moved files from the Documents and Setting\username\adobe\lightroom\etc. folder to the thaw space, but on restarting Lightroom2 they were recreated on the C:\ drive in the default directory.

We are running XP Pro SP2. Ideally I need to set this up to run under a limited profile that we are calling "Photography", and it is password protected.

I install the programs, but only have a basic understanding of how they work.

Any help appreciated.

thanks,
niteowlgary

 

[Brad Snyder]

The Lr catalog database file, (*.lrcat); the preview cache, (the *.lrdata folder tree); and the original image files will have to reside on the writable T: drive. If created and then moved from another drive, there's a procedure for telling the catalog database file where to look for its associated image files.
Unfortunately, the location of \Documents & Settings\ configuration, presets and templates files is fixed, to the best of my knowledge. It may be possible to spoof that with subst: or similar, but I've never tried it.
That shouldn't present a huge problem, if you can get the orginal Deep Freeze restore template to restore the appropriate suite of presets and templates (if any) for your students.

There may be an additional complication with getting Lr to remember to open the Thawed T: drive catalog by default each time. I believe that's stored in the preferences file, which would end up restored each day.
I'm sure there're additional details I've overlooked, but that should be the broad strokes....

 

[Victoria Bampton]

Hi Gary, welcome to the forum!

That's an interesting proposition. I'd always wondered how schools managed that! How do you work it with other programs that need to retain user preferences?

So are the students going to keep their own catalogs on usb sticks or something?

 

[niteowlgary]

[quote author=Victoria Bampton link=topic=76'5.msg52'61#msg52'61 date=125'927218]
Hi Gary, welcome to the forum!

thanks, it's been a while since I was here.. (the last time I was setting this up.) LOL

That's an interesting proposition. I'd always wondered how schools managed that! How do you work it with other programs that need to retain user preferences?

we tell them not to change anything. as it will be lost on reboot. If it is a glaring issue, I'll thaw the machine and make the changes for them.

So are the students going to keep their own catalogs on usb sticks or something?

actually this project is the school yearbook, so I believe it's a community folder/catalog. but I'm just the tech, not the teacher. [/quote]

 

[niteowlgary]

[quote author=Brad Snyder link=topic=76'5.msg52'48#msg52'48 date=125'9'682']
The Lr catalog database file, (*.lrcat); the preview cache, (the *.lrdata folder tree); and the original image files will have to reside on the writable T: drive. If created and then moved from another drive, there's a procedure for telling the catalog database file where to look for its associated image files.
Unfortunately, the location of Documents & Settings configuration, presets and templates files is fixed, to the best of my knowledge. It may be possible to spoof that with subst: or similar, but I've never tried it.
That shouldn't present a huge problem, if you can get the orginal Deep Freeze restore template to restore the appropriate suite of presets and templates (if any) for your students.

There may be an additional complication with getting Lr to remember to open the Thawed T: drive catalog by default each time. I believe that's stored in the preferences file, which would end up restored each day.
I'm sure there're additional details I've overlooked, but that should be the broad strokes....
[/quote]

That sounds familiar, I will take this with today and see if it works... I've decided to install this under an administrative profile so I can keep it isolated. LR2 insisted that an administrator be the one to install, so, this way I can keep it isolated from all except those few students who need to be working on this. but I still need to move the catalogs and such to the Thaw space.

It seems I do remember on first opening LR2 it asks where the catalog is located, and then I had to change some settings in the preferences to point it to the T:\ drive... wish I made better notes last time... and I've already wiped the laptops that had it on before. :\ ah, planning!!

 

[niteowlgary]

[quote author=niteowlgary link=topic=76'5.msg52'72#msg52'72 date=125'96'319]
[quote author=Brad Snyder link=topic=76'5.msg52'48#msg52'48 date=125'9'682']
The Lr catalog database file, (*.lrcat); the preview cache, (the *.lrdata folder tree); and the original image files will have to reside on the writable T: drive. If created and then moved from another drive, there's a procedure for telling the catalog database file where to look for its associated image files.
Unfortunately, the location of Documents & Settings configuration, presets and templates files is fixed, to the best of my knowledge. It may be possible to spoof that with subst: or similar, but I've never tried it.
That shouldn't present a huge problem, if you can get the orginal Deep Freeze restore template to restore the appropriate suite of presets and templates (if any) for your students.

There may be an additional complication with getting Lr to remember to open the Thawed T: drive catalog by default each time. I believe that's stored in the preferences file, which would end up restored each day.
I'm sure there're additional details I've overlooked, but that should be the broad strokes....
[/quote]

That sounds familiar, I will take this with today and see if it works... I've decided to install this under an administrative profile so I can keep it isolated. LR2 insisted that an administrator be the one to install, so, this way I can keep it isolated from all except those few students who need to be working on this. but I still need to move the catalogs and such to the Thaw space.

It seems I do remember on first opening LR2 it asks where the catalog is located, and then I had to change some settings in the preferences to point it to the T: drive... wish I made better notes last time... and I've already wiped the laptops that had it on before. : ah, planning!!
[/quote]

Just an update to let you all know what happened...

First - I actually found one of the laptops that still had the LR2 installed... so I was able to simply copy the settings I had from before...

Here's what I did:
-Install LR2
-copy the default folder tree from it's location (C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\Adobe\Lightroom) to where ever you want it, in my case it went to T:\Lightroom including the *.lrcat file.
-open LR2 by double clicking the .lrcat file, and because I work with "frozen" computers, I chose the Manually update option.
-open the preferences (Edit/Preferences), on the General Tab, change the Default Catalog to my preferred catalog,
T:\Lightroom\lightroom 2 Catalog.lrcat
-On the "File Handling" tab, change the "Camera Raw cache" to T:\Lightroom\cache
-all the rest of the settings were left at their defaults
-click ok, and you're done.

I tried moving the original default Lightroom folder to the T: drive, I also tried deleting it, but each time the computer booted up, those folders reappeared, so basically you aren't deleting them you're just telling LR2 to ignore them by making another folder tree your default.

I also created a "lr2_originals" folder on the T:\ drive to save images in, I don't remember where but there is a place to enter that info about where to save files to.

Hope that helps someone else. I appreciate your responses...

thanks,
gary