unlinking photos
If the pop-up asking if you would like to delete the photos does not appear? I unchecked the photos, but they are still on the Mac book.
MacBook Air 13″, macOS 10.15
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Not if you have disabled Icloud photos on the mac - then it will stop syncing, and you can do anything you like on the mac and it will not be replicated.
In any case if you delete the library itself (rather than do the deleting inside the photos app) that is not an action that would be replicated. (Icloud photos only syncs things that are done in the photos app)
However, before you delete everything off your mac, think about how you will back up your photos. If they are only on the phone, you have no protection if you accidentally or unintentionally delete them. (Or if someone else does).
Your other option is to completely move the library to external storage with the disadvantage that you must have the external storage connected whenever you want to use photos. You can then still use the photos app to view, manage and edit your photos.
To correctly prepare the external drive:
- It must be formatted APFS or MacOS extended (journaled) (preferred for spinning drives)
- It Must not be (or have been) used for time machine. (A time machine drive can be used if re-formatted)
- It must have the 'ignore ownership" checkbox ticked.
- It should not be on a memory stick, SD or similar.
It stands to reason that if you want any sort of reasonable performance it should be a fast drive with a fast connection.
It must also not be a network drive (a direct connection is required - eg USB or Thunderbolt). File sharing services such as iCloud Drive, Drop box, Onedrive etc are not compatible with Photos libraries.
See
