Very Slow Synching of Photos after changing external disk drive

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Level 1

8 points

Very Slow Synching of Photos after changing external disk drive

Hi all

I have been using Photos as my main product for many years now but recently had a SDD issue so had to move the library from a back up to a new drive (which worked fine). I have now been trying to complete the iCloud synch process for nearly 2 days. I use a MacBook Air (fully upto date on SW etc) with Photos V10, and have around half my 2TB of Cloud storage free. The photos library on iCould looks fine, and the library size on the SDD is around the same, but with a few less photos showing (probably due to some recent phone photos not yet synched due to this issue). I have around 33,000 images, mainly RAW files, stored and some video. The counter currently sits at "Synching 25,900 items to iCloud" and seems to run at around 150-200 per hour on a 900mbps download/100mbps upload connection.

I remember when I went to the MacBook from my desktop (which is too old to support the latest RAW file formats) it took a while to get everything synched but that was over a 25mbps down/8mbps connection, this is taking ages. And only seems to really progress after a shut down and restart.

Any suggestions?

MacBook Air (M3, 2024)

Posted on Oct 14, 2024 3:58 AM

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Answer 1

Oct 14, 2024 7:47 AM in response to BigBlueEagle

I think 2 days may be too soon to worry. It's not just downloading the pictures, but it has to re-scan them all for duplicates, faces, and all that sort of stuff.

The usual suggestion is to keep the MacAir plugged in, turned on, with Photos either inactive in the background or closed.

The is a caution in keeping your Photos Library on an external drive: since the MacAir is a portable, you will want to unplug the SSD when you're on the move. Having Photos shut off and reconnect with the Library may cause problems. I keep many other files on an SSD, and I keep my Photos Library on the laptop's internal drive. My "System Library," the one connected to iCloud Photos, is smaller than yours, because I keep only my Favorites on it-- I maintain other Libraries for archiving pictures that I want to see less often, and those can be on an external drive.

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Answer 2

Oct 15, 2024 6:35 AM in response to BigBlueEagle

BigBlueEagle wrote: … I didn’t realise that Photos kept synching when it wasn’t open as an app?

Is that the case?

The Photos app stays busy even when it's closed, and connections continue with iCloud as long as there's internet available.

…I’ve not had any issues moving it around etc this far. I do like the concept of just one library for all images.

That's often the case. But tiny corruptions can creep in, finally causing the Library to have real problems. Things are getting more complex with each update.

It does create pressure to keep a back up drive updated as well though.

Right-- Time Machine is great for automatically doing incremental backups. I do Time Machine, and then I also do a monthly (more or less) copy of the whole Library to a separate drive.

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Answer 3

BigBlueEagle Author

Level 1

8 points

Oct 14, 2024 8:37 AM in response to Richard.Taylor

Thanks for that, I didn’t realise that Photos kept synching when it wasn’t open as an app? Is that the case? The disk certainly stays active. My image file has been on external drives for a long time, as it is way too big at 1TB for the internals. I’ve not had any issues moving it around etc this far. I do like the concept of just one library for all images.

It does create pressure to keep a back up drive updated as well though.

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Answer 4

Old Toad

Level 10

210,301 points

Oct 14, 2024 9:10 AM in response to BigBlueEagle

How is the new drive formatted?

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Answer 5

BigBlueEagle Author

Level 1

8 points

Oct 14, 2024 9:46 AM in response to Old Toad

APFS, correct Apple format.

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