# Smart Previews Missing



## MelissaA (Oct 30, 2014)

I am using LR 5.6 both on a desktop and a laptop and store my catalog on a portable hard drive.  Recently I made smart previews for all of my images so that they would always be available when traveling with my laptop.  My desktop is currently in the shop getting a new hard drive and I am using my laptop for a couple of days.  When I opened LR on the laptop, I discovered that I don't have any smart previews - none.  Where did they go?  Aren't they suppose to be stored with the catalog?  I'm using Windows 7.


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## clee01l (Oct 30, 2014)

Smart Previews are stored in the same folder as the catalog - IF you created them.  The Previews folder is also stored in the same folder as your master LR catalog.  Where is your LR catalog that you used to import all of the images?  On import do you have the check box labeled "Build Smart Previews" checked?  If you did not build Smart previews on import you need to manually invoke the Smart Preview option.  

The Smart Preview option is useful if your catalog is stored locally on a laptop and your master images stored on a removable drive or if you are using your images with LrM on an iPad.  With this setup you can go mobile and leave the removable drive at home and not need the master originals along with you.  If your catalog and your master images are all stored on the removable drive, then you don't need smart previews for the laptop.


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## MelissaA (Oct 30, 2014)

I created most of the smart previews after import.  My catalog is stored on a portable drive, but most all original pictures are stored on a network server (so doesn't ever come with me).  Some, most recent images are stored on a second portable drive.


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## clee01l (Oct 31, 2014)

MelissaA said:


> I created most of the smart previews after import.  My catalog is stored on a portable drive, but most all original pictures are stored on a network server (so doesn't ever come with me).  Some, most recent images are stored on a second portable drive.


Look in the folder on the portable drive and list the contents of the folder that contains your catalog.  There should be a folder for Smart Previews.  If there is not or if it is empty, then the folder got deleted or emptied.  With the NAS available, you can rebuild these smart previews by selecting the images needed and selecting a submenu option in {Library}{Previews}


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## MelissaA (Nov 1, 2014)

OK, I have my desktop back, and my smart previews don't show up there either.  I created them for everything!  The LR folder doesn't show a folder for Smart Previews.  What happened to them???  I don't understand what you mean by NAS?  I suppose this means that I need to rebuild all of them?  How can I be certain that they won't disappear again?  And lastly, I looked again in library>previews, but I didn't see any option for a submenu.


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## clee01l (Nov 1, 2014)

MelissaA said:


> OK, I have my desktop back, and my smart previews don't show up there either.  I created them for everything!  The LR folder doesn't show a folder for Smart Previews.  What happened to them???


If they did exist in the past, somebody or some process selected the folder. 





> I don't understand what you mean by NAS?


 "but most all original pictures are stored on a network server" NAS = *N*etwork *A*ttached *S*torage


> I suppose this means that I need to rebuild all of them?  How can I be certain that they won't disappear again?  And lastly, I looked again in library>previews, but I didn't see any option for a submenu.


Yes, you need yo re build them the Smart Previews folder is missing.  Have you used Explorer Search to look for a folder with a folder name of "[yourCatalogName] Smart Previews.lrdata"? It is possible that you have another catalog somewhere else in another folder (a Backup folder perhaps) and for a time that catalog was the active catalog and Smart Previews were created along side that catalog when it was active.


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## MelissaA (Nov 1, 2014)

OK, I found them.  I think you're right.  It looks like they might be in a recent backup catalog.  Whenever I open LR, it seems to open to the most recent backup.  So, where should these be stored?  I have LR open right now to the backup where the smart previews are located, but they don't show in any of my folders.  I've attached a screen shot of the location.


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## Victoria Bampton (Nov 2, 2014)

That means you've opened the backup at some point since you created it, and carried on working in that backup file.  It's then created a new smart previews & previews folder, but it hasn't got all your previously-built previews in it.

So the question is, have you done any work in that catalog since opening that backup, and since that backup was created on 30/10?

If not, you can just navigate to your normal catalog (outside of the backups folder) and double click on it to open it.

If you have done work since then, we need an idea of when, because you could have different work in different catalogs and it'll be a bit more messy to fix.


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## MelissaA (Nov 2, 2014)

Oh Victoria, I think this is probably a real mess!  It looks as though that Smart Previews folder is definitely in the backup from 10-30.  I'm pretty sure that I have worked in that backup folder since the original opening.  In fact, I think that when LR opens, it automatically defaults to a backup.  Is that because I switch between a laptop (when traveling) and my desktop when at home?  Anyway, I never even knew that I should be opening THE catalog.  I just opened LR and had it point to the path of the catalog that is currently open.  It shows it as the backup catalog from 10-3.  When I look at that folder, it also shows a folder with Smart Previews.  But those Smart Previews don't actually show in LR.  

So where is the non-backup catalog located?  

Maybe I should just re-create all of my Smart Previews!  But than, I might still have the same problem?

I have an un-related question.  I use both CS5 and PSCC with LR.  When I click on "edit in", my only choices are for the 32 bit option.  Can you tell me how I can add the 64 bit when it doesn't show in the list of choices?


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## Victoria Bampton (Nov 3, 2014)

No, it's not because you switch between laptop and desktop.  That sounds like you've just opened the wrong catalog at some stage - probably by double-clicking on the wrong thing - and from then on, it's carried on opening the 'most recently used' catalog.

Look in the Lightroom folder, 2 folders up (the Backups folder is inside the Lightroom folder) and see if there's a catalog in there.  If there is, what's the last modified date on that file.

If your desktop's been in the shop for the last few days, chances are we only need to figure out what changed between the backup of 10/30 at 17:20 and the backup of 10/31 at 20:07.  If you didn't do anything important during that time, we can probably just copy the files you've been using out of the 10/30 folder and be back to normal.  But before you do that, just go check the main Lightroom folder to be sure.


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## MelissaA (Nov 3, 2014)

Victoria
I don't totally understand what I'm looking for here, but my catalog is called Lightroom 3-1 Catalog 2-2.  (Dumb name, I know, but it happened over time with upgrades & I haven't bothered to try and change it.)  Anyway, I happen to know that it opens within the backup folder.  That backup folder does show the smart previews.  Anyway, I have included a screen shot because I don't think I see what we're looking for here.


Also, my computer was only in the shop for 2 days - the 30th and the 31st.
Melissa


PS:  I was hoping to have this figured out before I leave on Wednesday morning for 5 days, but looks like that may not be possible...


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## Victoria Bampton (Nov 3, 2014)

Ok, can you check the last modified date on the Lightroom catalog in your screenshot, just to be sure that's not a recent catalog. 

And if your computer's back from the shop, are you using the catalog in the backups folder on both machines again now? Or which catalog opens automatically on each machine? I want to be sure you're not working on 2 different catalogs. 

With th your Lightroom 3-1 Catalog 2-2 that you think you're using... Does it look like its current? You're not missing anything, other than the smart previews?


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## MelissaA (Nov 3, 2014)

Victoria, I don't see a LR catalog other than the ones in my backup.  There's the LR Professional Catalog.  Is that the one we're talking about.  I bet it is because it shows the last modified date of 11/2/2014.  But the catalog currently open in LR is the backup one.  I haven't used the laptop since I got the desktop back, but sometimes when I switch computers, no catalog opens and I have to navigate to one.  I think that's how I ended up using the stuff in the backup folder. No, I don't believe I'm missing anything in the backup catalog.


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## MelissaA (Nov 3, 2014)

I think I already responded to this last post.  I have copied it below.

"Victoria, I don't see a LR catalog other than the ones in my backup. There's the LR Professional Catalog. Is that the one we're talking about. I bet it is because it shows the last modified date of 11/2/2014. But the catalog currently open in LR is the backup one. I haven't used the laptop since I got the desktop back, but sometimes when I switch computers, no catalog opens and I have to navigate to one. I think that's how I ended up using the stuff in the backup folder. No, I don't believe I'm missing anything in the backup catalog."

Since copying that last post to you I closed LR on my desktop and reopened it.  It automatically opened to the 10/30 backup.  Than I opened LR on my laptop and it opened to the 10/29 backup - not the 10/30 backup.  I don't think I have been working in different catalogs, but it is possible I have worked in different backups?


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## Victoria Bampton (Nov 4, 2014)

I was looking at that huge Lightroom icon in that folder - Lightroom 3-1 Catalog-2.lrcat.

And what is in the LR Professional Catalog folder, now you mention it?

Your different backups that you've been working on ARE different catalogs.  They came from the same beginnings, but then they went off in different directions.  Imagine you've taken 2 photocopies of a document, and one you mark 10/29 and another you mark 10/30.  Then one day you start highlight one copy, and another day you start highlighting another copy.... now none of them have all the information on.  My concern is we not only don't know what you did on each computer since 10/29, but we also don't know which catalog you were working on before that 10/29 backup was created in the first place. So you could have "highlighting" on 3 different copies, none of which are complete.

On both computers, go to the Collections panel, press the + button and select Create Smart Collection. Set it up like this:





Then tell us the results from each computer - how many photos there are in that smart collection on each computer and what you remember about editing those photos.


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## MelissaA (Nov 4, 2014)

OK, first the "LR Professional Folder".  I finally remembered that it is a catalog I created several years ago for some pictures I took that were actually for PAY.  It is something I haven't accessed for a long time, and I believe, not relevant to the current problem.  There are not many pictures in that catalog - probably only 25-50.  But, I still don't understand where the original catalog is - why am I always using a backup?

Now on to your questions:  I opened LR on both computers.  On the desktop, it opened to the 10-30 backup, and the smart previews collection yielded 167 photos.  On the laptop, it opened to the 10-28 backup, and the smart previews collection yielded 145 photos.  I than closed and re-opened LR on the laptop with the 10-30 backup and it yielded the same 167 photos as on the desktop.  Those smart previews were ones that I created a few days ago because I wanted to see if they would still be there going forward.  The original smart previews that I created sometime within the last 10 days (can't remember exactly when because I did it over several days & created several thousand of them), well, they seem to have disappeared entirely.  Does this help?

Also, what is the catalog and where is the catalog that I should be using?  Can I assume that the backups are not to be used as the main catalog?


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## Victoria Bampton (Nov 4, 2014)

Ok, probably not the LR Professional one then.

But I can't tell you why you're not using the original catalog or where it is.  It's your computer!

It would be worth looking in some of the other backup folders to see if there are previews in there too.  You might have done the same before.

In terms of fixing it, try this:

1. Close LR
2. COPY the Lightroom 3-1 Catalog 2-2.lrcat file from the 10/30 backup folder into the Lightroom folder higher up.
3. Move the previews and smart previews up to the Lightroom folder too.
4. Open the catalog from the 10/28 backup.  Select the photos in that smart collection we created and go to File menu > Export as Catalog.  Set it to drop on the desktop, uncheck the other checkboxes at the bottom.
5. Open the Lightroom 3-1 Catalog 2-2.lrcat file that's now in the Lightroom folder.
6. Go to File menu > Import from Another Catalog and navigate to the small catalog on the desktop.
7. It should recognize there are existing files - if it gives you the option, select the 'create virtual copies' option, just in case you edited the same photos in both versions of the catalog.
8. Press OK/Import.
9. Select any photos you want Smart Previews for, and go to Library menu > Previews > Build Smart Previews to rebuild them.

You should then be back up and running.  On BOTH machines, make sure you double click on the Lightroom 3-1 Catalog 2-2.lrcat in the Lightroom folder to ensure you're opening that one rather than one in a backup folder.


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## MelissaA (Nov 4, 2014)

I started to copy the LR 3-1 catalog 202 file from the 10/30 backup folder into the LR folder higher up and got an error message.  I did click on the try again box, but same thing happened.  See attached.


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## MelissaA (Nov 4, 2014)

I should add, that after I sent the last post, I opened the 10-28 backup to check for the smart previews.  There isn't a folder in the 10-28 backup with smart previews.


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## Victoria Bampton (Nov 4, 2014)

Did you quit Lightroom first?  If it still won't work, try rebooting your computer and then try again.


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## MelissaA (Nov 4, 2014)

I'm sorry.  I should have looked at all of this before I sent the previous post.  I looked in the 10-29 backup and there is a smart collection there.  I think that might be the one we're talking about?


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## Victoria Bampton (Nov 4, 2014)

Ah yes, that's the one.


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## MelissaA (Nov 4, 2014)

Victoria - that smart collection is now showing up in the 10-30 backup, and it has 175 images in it.  Maybe because I've worked on some things since we started this conversation?  The 10/29 backup has 145 photos in it.  Should I still proceed from step 4 with the 10-29 backup or should I use the 10-30 backup?

When I finish all of this and get it right, will it be OK to delete those things in the LR folder (like the older previews from a former catalog) that don't seem necessary anymore?


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## Victoria Bampton (Nov 4, 2014)

Ether way round is fine - you should end with both sets of edits in whichever catalog you pick, if you follow the instructions carefully. 

And yes, you can clean up afterwards. Just make sure you've got everything sorted first!


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## MelissaA (Nov 4, 2014)

Well, I'm a bit stuck again.  Everything was fine until I got to the "import dialog" box.  It won't let me do anything, except maybe hit the cancel button (which I assume I don't want to do).  I clicked on check all, but nothing happened. The import box is grayed out.  What am I suppose to do?


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## MelissaA (Oct 30, 2014)

I am using LR 5.6 both on a desktop and a laptop and store my catalog on a portable hard drive.  Recently I made smart previews for all of my images so that they would always be available when traveling with my laptop.  My desktop is currently in the shop getting a new hard drive and I am using my laptop for a couple of days.  When I opened LR on the laptop, I discovered that I don't have any smart previews - none.  Where did they go?  Aren't they suppose to be stored with the catalog?  I'm using Windows 7.


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## MelissaA (Nov 4, 2014)

I forgot to attach the screen shot to the last post - darn!

Here it is.


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## Victoria Bampton (Nov 4, 2014)

Screenshot is good. 

In the top section, check All Folders. 


Then in the Replace pop-up select metadata and develop settings (from memory)


Then import.


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## MelissaA (Nov 4, 2014)

Yay!  It looks like it worked.  Now a couple more questions.  The "Smart Collection" in the new catalog ended up with 254 pictures - started out with 174 or 5 - can't remember which.  Why is that?  Do I need to keep that Smart Collection, or can I delete it?  Also, I don't see any of those thousands of smart previews that I originally built.  Can I safely assume that I need to re-build all of them?


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## Victoria Bampton (Nov 5, 2014)

You can delete the smart collection now - it was just an easy way of working out which photos you'd edited in the other catalog so we could transfer that data.

Yes, you'll need to rebuild the smart previews, since you can't figure out which catalog you built them for.


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## MelissaA (Nov 20, 2014)

Victoria
I should have sent this much sooner, but life got away from me!

Mainly, I wanted to thank you so much for helping me and "talking me off the ledge" with my LR problems!  You are such a gift!

Than, I had an unrelated question about external editing.  I edit in both PS5 and PSCC.  They seem to be set for 32 bit and I would like to add or change that to 64 bit.  However, it doesn't come up as an option in the external editing window, and I can't find a place to browse to that option.  Any suggestions?


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## Victoria Bampton (Nov 20, 2014)

You're welcome!

If you open the 64-bit Photoshop first, it should use the open version. Or you could use these instructions to change where it's pointing: http://helpx.adobe.com/x-productkb/multi/edit-photoshop-command-missing-photoshop.html


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