Can Time Capsule host an Aperture image library efficiently?

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Can Time Capsule host an Aperture image library efficiently?

In our household, we have several MacBook Pros with SSD drives, which don't have a lot of storage space. Since we take a lot of high-resolution pictures in .RAW format (app. ~25 MB per file), it would be nice if we could store all of our pictures remotely on the Time Capsule, and access the image library from our laptops, without needing to copy the files to our local harddrives.

So, is it possible to use Time Capsule as the only storage device for our Aperture image library, in a way that we can open and work with the library remotely (wirelessly) through Aperture on several Macs?

I am guessing that this is possibly by simply sharing the files, but there are a few things that I am concerned about, such as:

Will my images files/Aperture library get corrupted/damaged when a computer looses connection to the Time Capstule in the midst of editing?
What will happen if several users attempt to access/modify several images on the Time Capsule at the same time?
Will you get good performance from Aperture with a very large, remote image library?

I have also considered getting an Mac mini with OS X Lion Server to do the same job, but setting it up a bit differently. Possibly setting up a Git repository for the images, but I would much prefer a simpler solution, which is why I'm thinking about doing this with a Time Capsule (using it as a "NAS" of sorts).

Thanks in advance for any help, advice and suggestions.

Posted on Feb 25, 2012 12:44 PM

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Answer 1

3DLeif Author

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Feb 25, 2012 1:04 PM in response to 3DLeif

Of course I found this right after posting my questions...

Also, it is strongly recommended that the Aperture library be stored on a locally mounted hard drive. Storing the Aperture library on a network share can also lead to poor performance, data corruption, or data loss.

So I guess using the Time Capsule is out of the question, but I would still be interested in hearing from you guys if you have any good suggestions on how to work with a large image library in Aperture remotely through the network, if at all possible.

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Answer 2

Feb 25, 2012 2:40 PM in response to 3DLeif

The killer to this is backup IMHO.. the TC has absolutely no way to back itself up.. you can manually do a backup to a USB connected hdd but it backs up the whole disk.

Also remember you have link speed consideration.. the speed of the convoy is the speed of the slowest ship.. the rate determining step is the slowest uplink.. unless you have purchased a copper or fibre connection most broadband is very limited in upload speed.. that means this will run like a dog.. especially if you try and do any amount of work.

It is better to create a library on a real NAS with mirrored drives and rsync backup.. and stick to some simple method on the road.. like just using a stack of sd-cards..

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Answer 3

3DLeif Author

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Feb 25, 2012 2:49 PM in response to LaPastenague

Thanks for the advice. Yes, it seems like TC won't really be an option. After considering a bunch of different options, I think we will either have to go for some sort of NAS or just the cheapest/easiest solution; external harddrives connected via Firewire.

It's just so annoying that there aren't any cheap/easy wireless solutions 😝

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