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Warning: Users still using iPhoto considering upgrading to Catalina

If you're still using iPhoto 9.6.1 and are considering upgrading to Catalina I suggest you do the following:


1 - run iPhoto First Aid on the library: Repair Library Permissions, Rebuild Thumbnails and Rebuild Library Database. This is to give Photos the cleanest iPhoto library to migrate.


If you're on Mojave or High Sierra where you can migrate to Photos do so and check to see if all of your albums, projects and photos are migrated correctly. If you have problems you can open the iPhoto library with iPhoto and check its integrity and try migrating again.


If you're on an earlier system, Yosemite, El Capitan or Sierra, they had versions of Photos which still had bugs. You can try migrating and checking to see if the migrations went OK. Then when you upgrade to Catalina you can upgrade the Photos library and if it isn't to your liking try migrating your iPhoto library.


Hopefully this pre-upgrade preparation will provide you with a smooth and accurate iPhoto to Photos migration.


Here are some user tips from Photos for Mac  User Tips that will help you in your transition from iPhoto to Photos:

Notes on Migrating an iPhoto Library from iPhoto to Photos for Mac
Moments in Photos are the New Events.
External Editors in Photos Are Here
Photo Editing Extensions for Photos for Mac
Post 9/30/2018 Printing Options for Photos - Apple Community
Ordering Books and Calendars on a Mac that cannot be updated past El Capitan 
Use Project Extensions to order print products in Photos after September 30, 2018 - Apple Support
Create and order print products in Photos with Project Extensions - Apple Support

Good luck with your migration and upgrade.


Posted on Oct 9, 2019 1:46 PM

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Posted on Oct 9, 2019 4:07 PM

This would make a nice user tip, OT.


Two more things to consider:

  • Photos can only open iPhoto Libraries from iPhoto 8.x.x or newer. Older iPhotoLibrary versions need the iPhoto Library upgrader tool, that is not compatible with Catalina. The libraries have to be prepared on an older system, that can run the tool.
  • Photos 5.0 on Catalina may not be able to work with Photos Libraries containing legacy media files. Not all codecs are supported by Catalina, that have been supported in earlier system versions. Legacy media files should be removed from the library while still running a system taht supports the tools to convert these media to a supported format. Here is a list of media formats that will work on Catalina: About legacy media in iMovie for macOS - Apple Support


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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Oct 9, 2019 4:07 PM in response to Old Toad

This would make a nice user tip, OT.


Two more things to consider:

  • Photos can only open iPhoto Libraries from iPhoto 8.x.x or newer. Older iPhotoLibrary versions need the iPhoto Library upgrader tool, that is not compatible with Catalina. The libraries have to be prepared on an older system, that can run the tool.
  • Photos 5.0 on Catalina may not be able to work with Photos Libraries containing legacy media files. Not all codecs are supported by Catalina, that have been supported in earlier system versions. Legacy media files should be removed from the library while still running a system taht supports the tools to convert these media to a supported format. Here is a list of media formats that will work on Catalina: About legacy media in iMovie for macOS - Apple Support


Warning: Users still using iPhoto considering upgrading to Catalina

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