xmp files

[Roscoe17]

I have a question about these sidecar files. I think I read somewhere that xmp files are a duplicate of what's in the catalog. So, if I have an issue with moving files in the catalog, can I create xmp files, remove them from the catalog, move the files, then reimport them, then delete the xmp files...without losing any info?

I'd rather not keep xmp files as a permanent workflow because I don't want all those files cluttering my OS X Time Machine. Looking for a temp solution...

 

[Kiwigeoff]

I'm not sure what you mean by moving files in a catalog. You can use the catalog to move them on disk. I use DNG so no xmp files to worry about.

 

[Roscoe17]

I wasn't planning on expounding on a side issue...but I use a NAS that has both CIFS and AFP protocol enabled (CIFS is for Windows, AFP for Apple). Apple OS X can read both protocols however (Time Machine requires AFP) so in OS X Finder I see two storage units. So does Lightroom. Problem is if I import photos to LR sometimes I goof and select the storage location identified with the wrong protocol. That results in seeing two drives of pictures. I'm too anal to accept that...problem is they are really the same drive viewed via two different "windows". If I try to use LR to "move" the pictures from one drive to the other, I get an error because the files already exist. The only solution I have found is to remove them from the catalog and reimport properly.

I don't use DNG files because every photo edit will change the file and Time Machine has to back them all up. I don't have enough Time Machine storage for that strategy to make sense.

 

[Kiwigeoff]

Well I'd say your storage isn't working for you really. :surprised:

 

[Roscoe17]

No kidding

Problem is after spending a large sum of $$ on the NAS, I can't really afford to start over.

 

[MarkNicholas]

I have a question about these sidecar files. I think I read somewhere that xmp files are a duplicate of what's in the catalog. So, if I have an issue with moving files in the catalog, can I create xmp files, remove them from the catalog, move the files, then reimport them, then delete the xmp files...without losing any info?

I'd rather not keep xmp files as a permanent workflow because I don't want all those files cluttering my OS X Time Machine. Looking for a temp solution...

You could do what you are suggesting but you won't find many on this forum in support. The xmp files do not contain everything. They will have your last edit state and keywords, ratings etc. but won't have the history or virtual copies or flagging. I keep my xmp files as a second tier back-up.

 

[clee01l]

If you have two volume entries for the same volume in LR,
Rename the top level folder in the one you want to keep in LR. When you do this, your (same) top level folder in the other drive will show as missing.
Right click on this missing folder and choose "Update Folder Location" Navigate to the renamed folder in the correct volume entry and select it. Your folder panel should resolve into one volume designation for the folders on that volume.

FWIW, I don't think you even need to rename the top level folder on the volume that you want to keep. I can't say this method won't work too..

 

[Jim Wilde]

Cletus, I think you're correct in thinking that you have to generate a "missing folder" condition before you can effectively 'merge' the two apparently different structures, but IIRC the method suggested by Dan Tull some while back was a little different. Not saying yours won't work (it's a difficult problem to create in a test environment for me), but Dan's method is:

1. Make sure the parent folder of the 'incorrect' structure is showing in the folders panel.
2. Use the "Update Folder Location" right-click option to redirect that parent folder to any existing folder on an internal drive. You can create an empty one first if preferred, it doesn't matter, the whole point is to fool Lightroom into forgetting about that other path to the NAS. It also doesn't matter that there are no actual picture folders under the folder you choose to use.
3. When that's done, the Folders Panel will now show only the one path to the NAS, but the internal drive will also now show up. The dummy parent folder will be there, as will all the sub-folders from the 'wrong' NAS path, but the latter will obviously be 'greyed out' with the '?' marks.
4. Now, select the 'dummy parent folder' and again do the "Update Folder Location" right-click option. Now direct the folder back to the NAS, but using the correct parent folder in the correct path. Because parts of the folder structure are likely to exist in both NAS paths, you'll likely get a "Do you want to Merge" question, to which you should say "Merge", keep fingers crossed and you should end up with just one folder structure and no missing folders.

Obviously a catalog backup BEFORE starting would be a sensible idea....

 

[LouieSherwin]

I wasn't planning on expounding on a side issue...but I use a NAS that has both CIFS and AFP protocol enabled (CIFS is for Windows, AFP for Apple). Apple OS X can read both protocols however (Time Machine requires AFP) so in OS X Finder I see two storage units. So does Lightroom.

Hi Roscoe,

You should be able to use the software control panel that came with your NAS to turn off CIFS or AFP depending on whether or not you need to have Windows access the NAS. That should remove the duplicate view of your images.

Regarding XMP sidecar files. I would not worry about the effect on your Time Machine backups. They are very small compared to the image data and Time Machine handles them very efficiently. However, you don't really need them unless you need to use other applications that read raw files and you want your basic IPTC metadata to be seen.

Also regarding using them as backup, keep in mind that they do not contain all the information from your catalog. Collections for example are not stored in XMP and would therefor be lost if you rebuilt your catalog just on the basis of XMP sidecars.

-louie