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Wireless Hard drive

Is it possible to run my photos library from a wireless hard drive Now that speeds are faster?

MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2014), OS X El Capitan (10.11.2)

Posted on Sep 29, 2018 12:57 AM

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Posted on Sep 29, 2018 1:44 PM

No. The speed of a wireless drive has never been the problem, it is the network access to the library that is not supported by Photos. This is still valid: Move your Photos library to save space on your Mac - Apple Support


To prevent data loss, Apple doesn't recommend storing photo libraries on external storage devices like SD cards and USB flash drives, or drives that are shared on a network.
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Sep 29, 2018 1:44 PM in response to Suirsam

No. The speed of a wireless drive has never been the problem, it is the network access to the library that is not supported by Photos. This is still valid: Move your Photos library to save space on your Mac - Apple Support


To prevent data loss, Apple doesn't recommend storing photo libraries on external storage devices like SD cards and USB flash drives, or drives that are shared on a network.

Sep 30, 2018 1:14 AM in response to Suirsam

It is for different reasons. You cannot use a network share, because the software does not support it. You would risk data loss, because syncing errors may damage the library. It is really a no-go to put the library onto network share.


The reason why Apple advises against using SD Cards and USB flash drives is the hardware. SSDs still store data in electrical charges, which slowly leak over time if left without power. If you keep the card continually in the slot it may work, but do not remove the devices for a longer time. Another problem are the limited write cycles.

Wireless Hard drive

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