Q: Aperture Library and Masters question

Into where, and how have you initially imported the images, such that apparently they are somewhere on your iMac disc?

How then are you "sending" them to the external?

Ernie

Hi Don,

There are two issues here that I think best to examine independently:

- bettering your workflow to end up with all Images' Originals on your external drive

- backing up your Library and your Originals.

I use a separate disc to keep all the masters on so that I do not fill up the iMac disc. Is there a way to have this done automatically and if so can some tell me how ?

Yes.  When you import any file, tell Aperture to store that file (on import, it becomes an Image's Original) on your external drive.  On the "Aperture Library" section of the Import dialog, select your external drive from the drop-down "Store Files", and select the radio button "Move Files".  You will end up with newly-imported Images in your Aperture Library, each of which will have an Original on your external drive.

That may resolve your "duplicate masters" problem.  ("Master" is the older term for "Original".  They are synonyms.)

When you back up your system, be sure to include your external drive.  If you use Time Machine, it should be included automatically (all connected drives are by default), but you should check your Time Machine settings to make sure, and then check your back-up to be even surer  .

Your follow-up question might be:  "How can I tell which of these files is an Original of one of my Images in my Library?  If so, let us know.

HTH,

--Kirby.

Don,

Was not able to reply until now.  What you are doing may not be the most standard form of import.  Specifically, one choice at Import is to have the imported originals put in your Picture folder, rather than the Aperture Library.  When you do this, they are not Managed Originals in the Library, but rather they are Referenced, but on your boot drive in a folder named by each year.  Your comment about Year makes me think this may by your case, and if so, then when you tell Aperture to Move the Originals/Masters to the External Drive, there would be an option to either Remove them from their current location (your boot drive), or to leave them while copying to the External.  The latter would seem to match what you describe as creating Duplicates.

Ernie

Re: Aperture 4:  Those who know, can't say; those who say, can't know.

Here is what I suggest as a means of getting control of your Originals and removing unused files left by duplicating your files when you imported them into your Library:

• In Aperture, select the "Photos" container, and select all Images.
• Move the Originals of all Images to your external drive using "File➞Relocate Originals".
• At this point you know that _no_ files on your system drive are Originals of any Images in your Library.  (If you have more than one Library, you will have to relocate Originals for each Library.)
• Just to make sure, still with the Photos container selected, filter using the Rule "File Status" set to "managed".  There should be no Images that have managed Originals.
• We still need to check on more thing.  Close Aperture.  Eject your external drive.  Open Aperture.  Now filter the Photos container using the rule "File Status" set to "on-line".  Here, too, you should see no Images.
• It is now "safe" to delete any files on your system drive that you think are Originals to Images in your Library.  They are not.  I put "safe" in quotation marks because I mean only that if you delete those files you won't be deleting anything relating to your Aperture Library.  I have no way of determining whether they are important to you in another way.
• When you are done, back up.  Then -- just my personal advice -- run "Repair Database" once to deburr the pipes.

Good luck.  Let us know how it goes.

--Kirby.