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split catalog strategy

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11 comments

  • NN635399196184276250UL
    It would be my approach.
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  • JohannesR
    My approach would be:
    1. make a backup of your actual catalog
    2. inside your catalog make a folder for each new smaller catalog
    3. put the albums you like to be in the new catalogs in the corresponding folders
    4. export each folder to a new catalog
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  • peter Frings
    I believe that the export strategy looks best. I did this myself to split off some parts of the main catalog. I selected a top-level collection (a group), ensured that there was no extra filter active and then exported that group as a catalog. Do not check the 'include images'; that would make the the exported catalog contain the images, rather than referencing them.

    Works find, and the exported catalog only contains the selected user collection and corresponding folders and files.

    Cheers,
    Peter.
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  • Bob Weber
    I broke up my very large catalog the way you suggest. I worked very well and each of the smaller catalogs are much quicker and easy to use. I only wish there was a way to export parts of each of my catalogs directly to a catalog I am calling final images. I know I can export a folder into a newly created catalog I could call "final images. However, I want this catalog to include "final images" from other catalogs. Now, I am exporting the images to my desk top and importing them into the final images catalog. It works, but I find it a little crude.
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  • NN636274225804497206UL
    Thanks for the replies, I'm a bit confused on the Export approach by JohannesR and Peter.F.

    I have imported images into a referenced folder structure on my hard drive. Many images are not necessarily in albums, but I find them in the folders. The structure is like this

    DATAHD2 (hard drive name)
    \2016
    .......\201601
    .................\20160115 - Gymnastics meet at location xyz\ (contains 1,000 images)
    .................\20160116 - Portrait Session - Smith\ (cantains 150 images)
    ........\201602
    ..................\20160208 - Gymnastics meet at location zzz ..................\20160214 - Family Portrait - Jones .

    Images were imported as referenced into the third level (e.g folder " \20160115 - Gymnastics meet at location xyz") So I have approximate 100k images as I said and I have 12 years of folders.

    If I were to go this export route, am I right in understanding that I'd have to create a series of albums and then put the albums in a new folder, then export that folder as a catalog?

    I'm trying to figure out if this approach is in fact easier for me vs cloning the entire catalog 4 times and deleting the reference folders I don't want to keep in each catalog....
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  • peter Frings
    Hi CorsairVelo

    OK, so I take it that you do not use user collections in your catalog, and that the only form of organisation is based on de folder structure of the images on disk. Correct?

    Based on that, there are a few things you can consider.

    1. You can export a folder in the "Folders" section as a catalog. Unfortunately, you can't select multiple folders at once, so in your case you would be able to export every year as a single catalog.

    2. To overcome this, you could make albums per group you want to export: e.g., 2004-2007, 2008-2011, 2012-2015, ... and then you add the images to those albums. To do so, select the "All images" collection, and use the filter to filter the images and then drag them to each album.

    3. Sick to your original plan. 😊 Given that you don't have an album-based organisation, this might indeed be the simplest thing to do.

    Success,
    Peter.
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  • NN636274225804497206UL
    Peter.F,
    While I'm waiting for an external drive to arrive to facilitate my splitting, wanted to ask a question.

    You said "1. You can export a folder in the "Folders" section as a catalog. Unfortunately, you can't select multiple folders at once, so in your case you would be able to export every year as a single catalog. "

    But I think you could export a bunch of small catalogs, then import them into the end-state catalogs... something like this:

    1) export pieces of the existing giant catalog into a pile of "subset catalogs" . Let's say 50 for sake of argument

    2) Create "n" new blank catalogs (my future state "end-state", let's say there will be 5)

    3) use the "import catalog" function to bring in the various "subset catalogs" appropriate for each of my new master catalogs.

    In other words, export 50+ sub-set catalogs from my current master catalog and import those 50 into 5 new "end-state" catalogs. This would get around the can't select multiple folders problem.
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  • JohannesR
    should work as you described it. For me creating collections from the folders seems to be easier, but your way should also work.

    Regards Johannes
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  • peter Frings
    Hi CorsairVelo,

    I guess your 'divide and reassemble' strategy will work. It's easy enough to try with a few folders first, no?

    Success!
    Peter.
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  • NN636274225804497206UL
    Just to close the loop. I finally got around to splitting up my 97k catalog into three smaller ones.

    I wrote up my process here:
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  • Gillian Carroll
    [quote="CorsairVelo" wrote:
    Just to close the loop. I finally got around to splitting up my 97k catalog into three smaller ones.

    I wrote up my process here:



    Many thanks for the process, very well laid out 😊
    1

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