applex2
Level 1 (132 points)
iLife

Q: Why did Photos create two libraries

I was wondering why I have no space on my iMac.  I looked in the Pictures folder and found two (duplicate) libraries. One was iPhoto and one was Photos.  Why did Photos create another library? How do I merge and trash the duplicates?  Thanks in advance.....

iMac, Yosemite

Posted on Aug 23, 2015 6:39 PM

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applex2

Q: Why did Photos create two libraries

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  • Helpful answers

  • by Niel,

    Niel Niel Aug 23, 2015 6:43 PM in response to applex2
    Level 10 (314,451 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 23, 2015 6:43 PM in response to applex2

    1. Because its library needs to have a different structure than the iPhoto one.

    2. You can’t merge them, and deleting the iPhoto library won’t free up nearly as much space as it looks like it will. You’re probably better off looking for other things to delete and/or moving files to an external drive.

     

    (132260)

  • by applex2,

    applex2 applex2 Aug 23, 2015 6:47 PM in response to Niel
    Level 1 (132 points)
    iLife
    Aug 23, 2015 6:47 PM in response to Niel

    Thanks for the quick reply.  So, I can't us third party software to merge and then delete the duplicates?

  • by Niel,

    Niel Niel Aug 23, 2015 6:49 PM in response to applex2
    Level 10 (314,451 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 23, 2015 6:49 PM in response to applex2

    No, you can’t.

     

    (132261)

  • by applex2,

    applex2 applex2 Aug 23, 2015 6:56 PM in response to Niel
    Level 1 (132 points)
    iLife
    Aug 23, 2015 6:56 PM in response to Niel

    Ok. Thanks. Sorry to be a badger.... but, if I look at the libraries differently (show contents), the files are identical except when Photos was created. I thought this meant that there was 2 files (photos) that are the same.

  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN Aug 23, 2015 7:10 PM in response to applex2
    Level 10 (85,668 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Aug 23, 2015 7:10 PM in response to applex2

    No duplication, hard links to the original photos and previews in each (this looks exactly like they were duplicated but they are not) - Photos saves disk space by sharing images with your iPhoto or Aperture libraries - Apple Support -  deleting either will save very little space and deleting the iphoto library makes it difficult to go back if your want or need it - best to not do anything for a few months when you are sure of your desires and needs

     

     

    And it is not possible to merge them nor would you want to since there is no different information in them at this moment

     

    And Photos did not create two libraries - it migrated the iPhoto library creating the Photos library leaving the Photo library using hard links untouched and exactly like it was prior to the migration

     

    How much free space do you have on your hard drive?

     

    LN