jfhadd
Level 1 (4 points)
Photos for Mac

Q: Photo library suddenly empty

I opened my Photos app the the other day and thousands of pics from about 10 years worth of storage are gone.  I tried to restore several different backups of the library via Time Machine and I get these error messages every time when I open Photos while holding option key:

 

An error occurred while repairing permissions

Photos was unable to repair permissions on your library.

 

When trying to just open the backup file directly I get an error that Photos can't open backup libraries from Time Machine.  Not sure what the problem is since I thought this is the point of Time Machine and backing up files so they can be retrieved or opened when something weird happens??

MacBook Air, OS X El Capitan (10.11.3)

Posted on Apr 10, 2016 9:45 AM

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jfhadd

Q: Photo library suddenly empty

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  • by Old Toad,

    Old Toad Old Toad Apr 10, 2016 10:30 AM in response to jfhadd
    Level 10 (141,105 points)
    Mac OS X
    Apr 10, 2016 10:30 AM in response to jfhadd

    First, try repairing the library according to the instructions in this Apple document: Repair Your Library.

    Warning: If you use iCloud Photo Library with Photos, this action will cause Photos to upload all your pictures again (from Fix missing or incorrect thumbnails in Photos - Apple Support).


    Backed up libraries in Time Machine must be restored to the boot driver or other external drive from within Time Machine before they can be opened with Photos. 

     

    If the repair isn't success and to see if you library still contains your original/master image files try the following:

     

    Starting Over From Scratch With a New Photos Library.

    1 - launch Photos with the Option key held down and create a new library.

    2 - open your old library package with the Finder as shown in this screenshot:

    Popen.jpg

     

    3 - locate the Master folder in the old library and drag it onto the Photos icon in the Dock.

    Finder001.jpg

     

    This will create a new library with the same Moments as the original library but will not include the metadata, albums, books slideshows and other projects.

     

    Note:  your current library will be left untouched for further attempts at a fix if so desired.

     

    Once the import is complete verify that the new library has all of your photos. Then you can continue to try to repair the library or start using the newly created library.

    OTsig.png

  • by jfhadd,

    jfhadd jfhadd Apr 11, 2016 2:45 AM in response to Old Toad
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Apr 11, 2016 2:45 AM in response to Old Toad

    Thank you, but this didn't restore my missing photos. 

  • by léonie,

    léonie léonie Apr 11, 2016 3:51 AM in response to jfhadd
    Level 10 (106,958 points)
    iCloud
    Apr 11, 2016 3:51 AM in response to jfhadd
    Not sure what the problem is since I thought this is the point of Time Machine and backing up files so they can be retrieved or opened when something weird happens??

    Yes, that is the point of Time Machine, but it is storing the files distributed - since Time Machine is making incremental backups and only storing the changes between betups, you need to run Time Machine and let it restore the library on a separate drive. all the links in the Photos Library have to be recreated from the backup, before you can use the library as a Photos Library.

     

    Where are you trying to restore your Photos Library to?  To an external drive or your Pictures folder?  Have you run Time Machine to restore the library or simply dragged from the Time Machine drive?