Why does PhotoStructure wait until the rebuild is complete before importing any new files or directories? # Correct asset de-duplication during file imports and syncs require your library’s metadata to be up to date. By updating your library before running any sync jobs, PhotoStructure is ensuring your library stays correct and coherent. Re-launch Photos app and immediately hold down Command+Option keys When the Repair Library message appears in the app “You are about to repair the library “Library Name” – choose “Repair” to start the library repair process.
If a Photos Library should become badly damaged, for example by being stored on a failing drive, and even the built-in Library repair tool cannot fix the library (How to use the Photos library repair tool - Apple Support), we can rebuild the library by downloading it from iCloud to a new, empty library.
If you are sure, that all photos and videos are already in iCloud, try this:
- Simply make a backup copy of your Photos Library on an external volume, just in case something should go wrong.
- Then delete your Photos Library.photoslibrary from your Pictures folder (or wherever you are keeping your Photos Library).
- Now create a new, empty Photos Library. (see: Create additional libraries)
If the Photos app on your Mac is open, choose Photos > Quit Photos.
1. Hold down the Option key and double-click the Photos icon in the Applications folder (or click the Photos icon in the Dock) to open Photos.
2. In the Choose Library dialogue, click Create New.
3. Type a library name and choose a location to store the library.
4.Click OK.
- Make this new library your System Photo Library in the Photos Preferences > General, see System Photo Library overview.
1.In the Photos app on your Mac, choose Photos > Preferences, then click General.
2.To make the current library the System Photo Library, click Use as System Photo Library.
- then make it the iCloud Photos Library in the Photos > Preferences > iCloud and enable immediately Optimize Storage for a speedy download.
Photos will now download your iCloud Photos to the new library and this new library will initially be very small and only have optimised versions. You can later switch to 'Download Originals' if you prefer to have the originals stored locally. .
Rebuild Photos Library Iphone
There is one drawback: The projects will be missing, because iCloud is not storing the projects. And some named faces may be missing. Photos is storing all named faces in iCloud, but I frequently found that manually added faces circles have not been restored from iCloud. So it is essential to keep an archive copy of your Photos Library, before you let iCloud optimise it. You need a local copy anyway, because it is hard to backup an optimised iCloud Library. A local copy is easier to backup.
You can use the same method to migrate your Photos Library to a new computer.
PhotoStructure has several strategies to ensure your librarymatches your filesystem.
🩳 Briefly #
A “sync” focuses on your filesystem. Sync updates your library with changesmade to your filesystem.
Rebuild Photos Library
A “rebuild” focuses on what’s already in your library. Rebuild updates yourdatabase to reflect improved PhotoStructure algorithms.
🔍 Library syncs #
PhotoStructure runs “sync” jobs for the directories in your scanpaths, and if you’ve enabled automaticscanning, all your mounted volumes.
Synchronization has 3 steps:
The directory is recursively scanned for files that might be eligible forbeing imported into your library (see this post fordetails). The progress bar says “Scanning…”during this step.
Those eligible files are individually examined. Only those files (or theirsidecars) that have changed since the last sync will be re-imported. Ifyou’ve opted for automaticorganization, new filesand sidecars will be copied into your library. The progress bar says“Processing…” during this step.
The prior contents of the directory, according to your PhotoStructure’slibrary database, is then scanned, and missing files are handledappropriately.
PhotoStructure is designed to handle very large libraries. Don’t worry aboutstopping PhotoStructure in the middle of a sync! PhotoStructure will pick upwhere it left off as soon as you restart.
PhotoStructure runs a sync for all volumes daily, but you can manually start aresync via the navigation menu.
PhotoStructure also monitors your volumes, and as new volumes are mounted, itwill sync them automatically.
🔬 Library rebuilds #
Your library may be automatically rebuilt when youupgrade to a new version of PhotoStructure that improves heuristics forde-duplication, improves metadata inference, or adds new tagging curators.
Rebuilds are expensive! They may require:
- re-extraction of metadata
- recalculation of image hashes
- regeneration of previews
- re-transcoding of any missing videos
- re-aggregation of assets
Rebuilds should not be necessary except after version upgrades.