# ircat. file question



## mrgooch (Feb 4, 2012)

How can I get my ircat. file that loads into LR3, current. I show 3 of these files from past upgrades and the  one that loads is an older file which is Lightroom 2 Catalog [1]-2 . If I try using one of the current files it shows no photos.
Can I rename this file to make it current?


----------



## clee01l (Feb 4, 2012)

Each Catalog is a collection of information about the files that you have imported into that particular LR catalog.  One of the most critical pieces of information is the permanent location of those master image files on your Hard Drive. 

What you want to do is consolidate all of the collected information into one 'master' catalog.   You do this by opening a catalog that you designate to be the master catalog and using the "Import From Catalog..." to merge all of the other catalogs into the one you have designated as Master. 

You can set the default catalog that LR will open by designating it in the LR preferences {General} tab by selecting one of the choices from the DropDownListBox labeled "When starting up use this catalog".    Your choices are:

"Load most recent catalog"  which will load the last opened catalog each time .
"Prompt me when starting Lightroom"  which lets you select a catalog each and every time LR opens
OR one of the named catalogs in the DropdownLostBox.  This choice will always open the same catalog each time you start LR.


----------



## Jim Wilde (Feb 4, 2012)

Actually Cletus, I had a different interpretation of mrgooch's issue. I thought he was simply confused by the fact that in most situations an LR2 catalog when upgraded to LR3 retains the Lightroom 2 Catalog name, but with the -2 suffix. The empty (presumably Lightroom 3 Catalogs) I guessed were simply default new catalogs which had been created for one reason or another.

Mrgooch, despite it's odd name, your catalog that opens into LR3 is NOT an LR2 catalog (otherwise every time LR3 tries to open it it would require it to be upgraded as LR3 cannot directly open an LR2 catalog). So if my assumption is correct, then yes you can simply go ahead and rename the catalog to whatever name you want that would be less confusing to you. Note, however:

1. The new name MUST end in lower-case *L*RCAT, and not lower-case *I*RCAT.
2. You will also need to rename the adjacent previews folder, it must have the same name prefix and must end with Previews.lrdata (again that's a lower-case L)....so if you call your catalog something like "My Master LR3 Catalog.lrcat" the previews folder must be called "My Master LR3 Catalog Previews.lrdata". If you fail to get the name correct, Lightroom will create a new previews folder and you'll be rebuilding previews again.
3. Have a look at your startup options as per Cletus' post....if you only use one catalog, suggest you set the preference to open the specific catalog every time.


----------



## mrgooch (Feb 4, 2012)

Before reading your post I did as clee011 suggested and it cleared things up. I was able to delete the unneeded files and it's less confusing now. Thanks


----------



## shira (Feb 8, 2012)

A question...why are the more than ircat catalog and which is the one to use.?


----------



## clee01l (Feb 8, 2012)

shira said:


> A question...why are the more than ircat catalog and which is the one to use.?


There are a number of reasons that a user could end up with several catalog files in use.  

Intentionally creating new catalogs is one reason.
 On exiting Lightroom, it is a good practice to use LR's Backup feature to create a backup catalog on a regular basis.  This backup catalog is a copy of the master catalog with the same name but in a different folder.  Sometimes the user can open one of these intentionally or accidently.  If on start up, LR is set to always open the last opened catalog,  that might not be the master catalog and pandemonium ensues.
Keeping several catalogs around in different folders other than the LR default is sloppy housekeeping that can mushroom into a confused mess. Starting LR by clicking on a *.lrcat file instead of the application icon can mean anything can happen.
Lightroom creates an initial catalog with the really descriptive name "Lightroom 3 Catalog.lrcat"   By giving your catalog a unique descriptive name (Mine is called "Master.lrcat") and setting preferences to always open this catalog on start up, you can avoid a lot of headaches. This is what I do now.  The reason that I can so succinctly enumerate this list of transgressions above  is because I have at one time or another committed these very errors.


----------



## erro (Feb 9, 2012)

Just to clarify:

It is "lrcat" with a small L. (*L*ight*r*oom *cat*alog)

It is *not *"ircat".

This has to be one of the most common misconceptions regarding Lightroom.....


----------

