# Lightroom Classic and Lightroom CC on same laptop?



## williec (Sep 6, 2019)

I have been using LR since the 0.99 beta days and currently use Classic (8.4) for my photo business.  I also teach college classes and have used Classic in all classes since it came out.  During the summer the college IT crew went full CC and tossed Classic off all machines.  They won't allow any changes to software in the labs.  
Can I install and use CC in my classes and continue to use Classic for my work?  Are there any issues I should look for?  Can I keep catalogs separate?  Thanks for any help.


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## Victoria Bampton (Sep 6, 2019)

Yeah, having both is fine. Just don't import photos into Classic from Cloudy's folders, as they may go missing. Anything you sync to the cloud from Classic will appear in Cloudy.


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## clee01l (Sep 6, 2019)

You can install both versions on the same machine.  I have that here on this machine.   I Keep my master catalog on the Classic app.  On the "Cloudy" app I use it like I would Lightroom on any mobile device.   I sync Collections to the cloud and not every image in my master catalog. However every image that I add via the Cloud version will sync back into my Master catalog.  
The Classic Catalog file is not "interchangeable" with the Lightroom "Cloudy" catalog (called the "Managed Catalog.mcat") The Lightroom "Cloudy" local data is hidden inside a "package". like Apple used for iPhotos, Photos  or Aperture and called a Library.   In Lightroom "Cloudy", you have an option to store the master images locally.   I would not recommend doing this since the images sync'd to Classic will be stored locally and duplicate those in Lightroom "Cloudy"


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## Califdan (Sep 6, 2019)

Raise hell with your College IT department


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## williec (Sep 8, 2019)

Been raising hell with them for 12 years!  Never gets me anywhere.  Machines are ratcheted down s tight students can't even save work on them...never seen anything so rigidly controlled.


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## clee01l (Sep 8, 2019)

Califdan said:


> Raise hell with your College IT department


I was about to suggest that.  How does one Print , manage hierarchical keywords, publish to third party  websites and any of the other Classic features not in  the Cloud version of Lightroom?


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## williec (Sep 8, 2019)

Exactly.  Maybe I am biased because I have worked with LR since the public beta team days, but I find the Cloud version quite limiting as well as counterintuitive in structure.  We spent months giving and getting feedback about the "workflow" structure of LR in the beta phase, only to have it seemingly ignored in the recent Cloud version.  Also interesting to note a number of "copycat" programs which use the classic format in their structure.


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## Victoria Bampton (Sep 9, 2019)

williec said:


> We spent months giving and getting feedback about the "workflow" structure of LR in the beta phase, only to have it seemingly ignored in the recent Cloud version.



Classic is still being developed for traditional photographers who prefer the classic format (er, except for your school!), but Cloudy's looking ahead to the future. It's still very early days for Cloudy, so it is limiting at the moment, because it hasn't had as many years of development. By the time everyone thinks that way of working is the norm, it should have caught up.


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## johnbeardy (Sep 9, 2019)

Or by the time everyone thinks that way of working is the norm, people will not expect to do so much.  



williec said:


> We spent months giving and getting feedback about the "workflow" structure of LR in the beta phase, only to have it seemingly ignored in the recent Cloud version.



In my view it's more a case of Adobe, like Google and Apple, seeing an opportunity to charge for cloud-based storage by integrating it with the lowest common denominator of image editing and management features.

John


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## JimL (Jun 19, 2020)

Just came across this thread. So there is no problem having classic and cloudy on the same machine? I was under the impression that it isn't a good idea but I wasn't sure why. 
Jim


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## johnbeardy (Jun 19, 2020)

Because there's really very little value to be gained in doing so, and a lot of people will only get confused if they do.


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## Conrad Chavez (Jun 20, 2020)

JimL said:


> Just came across this thread. So there is no problem having classic and cloudy on the same machine? I was under the impression that it isn't a good idea but I wasn't sure why.


It’s “no problem” only if you have a thorough understanding of how both LR Classic and LR cloud-based work, and the specific consequences of doing that. Because  Lightroom Classic stores originals locally, and Lightroom stores originals in the cloud and caches locally, and because they do not seamlessly sync all types of data, things can get messy fast. One potential consequence is getting confused about where originals are, and why drive space is disappearing so fast (there are many ways to end up with duplicate images by using both on the same computer).

This article is good reading for anyone considering using both Lightroom Classic and Lightroom:
Migrating from Lightroom Classic to Lightroom CC, and the Controversy Over Using Them Together: An Exclusive Adobe Q&A

The way I use them is Lightroom Classic is my primary application on my main computer (MacBook Pro), and I Lightroom on other computers or devices as convenient editing “terminals” to the images I’ ve synced from Lightroom Classic to the cloud “mainframe.” But I don’t use Lightroom on the same computer as Lightroom Classic. For me, that keeps things nice, tidy, and predictable.


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## JimL (Jun 20, 2020)

Makes sense, thank you. I will stick with my original plan  of Classic on my iMac and cloudy on my laptop and other mobile devices,


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## Victoria Bampton (Jun 20, 2020)

JimL said:


> Just came across this thread. So there is no problem having classic and cloudy on the same machine? I was under the impression that it isn't a good idea but I wasn't sure why.


The original reasoning was that some people who installed both would try to set them both to look at the same "originals" folder and create havoc in the process. 

Just having both installed isn't an issue, for example, if you wanted to upload your presets to the cloud for use on your other devices, you'd need cloudy installed on a desktop somewhere in order to upload them. That doesn't have to be a different machine.


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## JimL (Jun 20, 2020)

Great, thank you. That makes sense.


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