Sync Photos Library Between Macs

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Your Photos library holds all your photos, albums, slideshows, and print projects. If your library is large, and you want to free up storage space on your Mac, turn on iCloud Photo Library and use Optimize Mac Storage, or move your library to an external drive.

  1. Photos Library Mac

Mar 18, 2020 Quit Photos. In the Finder, go to the external drive where you want to store your library. In another Finder window, find your library. The default location is Users username Pictures, and it's named Photos Library. Drag your library to its new location on the external drive.

Before you start, be sure to back up your library.

Prepare your drive

You can store your library on an external storage device, such as a USB or Thunderbolt drive formatted as APFS or Mac OS Extended (Journaled).1 Find out how to check the format of your external storage device.

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.

Move your Photos library to an external storage device

  1. Quit Photos.
  2. In the Finder, go to the external drive where you want to store your library.
  3. In another Finder window, find your library. The default location is Users > [username] > Pictures, and it's named Photos Library.
  4. Drag your library to its new location on the external drive. If you see an error, select your external drive's icon in the Finder, then choose File > Get Info. If the information under Sharing & Permissions isn't visible, click , then make sure the 'Ignore ownership on this volume' checkbox is selected. If it's not selected, click to unlock it, enter an administrator name and password, then select the checkbox.2

  5. After the move is finished, double-click Photos Library in its new location to open it.
  6. If you use iCloud Photo Library, designate this library as the System Photo Library.

This album will automatically sync with all members within your Family Sharing group. Share your photos. To add photos to the shared stream, select them and click the Share button. From there, choose iCloud Photo Library, and select the Family album. The images will then sync over to your family member's device. Oct 24, 2012  The iPhoto library is actually a folder which your Mac shows as a file. It's located in the /Users/username/Pictures folder and it's called iPhoto Library. You can just copy the whole folder onto a hard drive or move it via Ethernet/Wi-Fi and put it in the same folder on your new Mac and it will be there. Dec 18, 2019  Press '+' button in the top panel and choose “Photos” from the plugins list; specify sync parameters (albums or folders on Mac and device, sync direction, etc.). You can tune conversion settings for images if needed. When parameters are set, click “Sync”. It is also the location of the Photos library. The Photos Library is a single package file that contains all of the images within the library in addition to other files and folders that make the library function. It can be synced back and forth between two Macs as long as a few rules are followed: always run the sync when switching Macs. The Photos Library is a single package file that contains all of the images within the library in addition to other files and folders that make the library function. It can be synced back and forth between two Macs as long as a few rules are followed: always run the sync when switching Macs and always run the sync from the same task document.

Delete original library to save space

After you open your library from its new location and make sure that it works as expected, you can delete the library from its original location.

In a Finder window, go back to your Pictures folder (or whichever folder you copied your library from) and move Photos Library to the trash. Then choose Finder > Empty Trash to delete the library and reclaim disk space.

Open another Photos library

If you have multiple libraries, here's how to open a different one:

  1. Quit Photos.
  2. Press and hold the Option key while you open Photos.
  3. Select the library that you want to open, then click Choose Library.

Photos uses this library until you open a different one.

Learn more

If you have a permissions issue with your library, you might be able to resolve the issue by using the Photos library repair tool.

1. You can't move your library to a disk that's used for Time Machine backups.

2. If the volume isn't formatted APFS or Mac OS Extended (Journaled), or has been used for Time Machine backups but hasn't been erased, this checkbox will either not be present, or won't be selectable after unlocking. Erase and reformat the drive for this option to be available.

In macOS Catalina, Apple replaced the iTunes app with three new apps, Music, Apple Podcasts, and Apple TV. If you still use iTunes on your Mac to sync your iPhone and iPad, don't worry. You can still use your computer to perform this task. It's just different on the new macOS.

Where to sync your iPhone or iPad on macOS Catalina

Sync photos library between macs free

Instead of using iTunes to sync your mobile device in macOS Catalina, you'll use Finder:

  1. Click on the Finder app on the Mac Dock.

  2. Select your device on the left side of the screen under Devices.

    Source: iMore

Once you do, you'll see the familiar interface that's been carried over from macOS Mojave. From here, you can restore your device, manage backups, and sync content between your computer and mobile device(s). From this screen, you can also handle file transfers between devices.

How to sync music to your iPhone or iPad on macOS Catalina

If you're using the iCloud Music Library sync on your iPhone or iPad, you cannot sync music using your Mac.

  1. Click on the Finder app in the Mac Dock.
  2. Select your device on the left side of the screen under Devices.

  3. On the right-hand side, click on the Music tab.

    Source: iMore

  4. Check the box Sync Music onto your device to activate Music syncing.
  5. Under Sync, you can select Entire music library or Selected playlists, artists, albums, and genres.

  6. Under Options, you can choose to include videos, voice memos, and automatically fill free space with songs.

    Source: iMore

  7. Select playlists, artists, albums, and genre, where applicable.
  8. Click Apply.

  9. Click Sync to sync music files between your Mac and mobile device.

    Source: iMore

How to sync movies between your iPhone or iPad on macOS Catalina

  1. Click on the Finder app in the Mac Dock.
  2. Select your device on the left side of the screen under Devices.

  3. On the right-hand side, click on the Movies tab.

    Source: iMore

  4. Check the box Sync Movies onto your device to activate Movies syncing.
  5. Under Sync, click the Automatically include box.

  6. Use the pull-down menu to select all content or make another choice from those listed.

    Source: iMore

  7. Click Apply.

  8. Click Sync to sync movies between your Mac and mobile device.

    Source: iMore

How to sync TV shows to your iPhone or iPad on macOS Catalina

  1. Click on the Finder app in the Mac Dock.
  2. Select your device on the left side of the screen under Devices.

  3. On the right-hand side, click on the TV shows tab.

    Source: iMore

  4. Check the box Sync TV Shows onto your device to activate TV Show syncing.
  5. Check the box to Automatically include.
  6. In the pull-down menu, select all unwatched or make another choice from those listed.

  7. In the next pull-down menu, select all shows or selected shows.

    Source: iMore

  8. If selected shows were chosen, check the boxes next to the shows you want to sync.
  9. Click Apply.

  10. Click Sync to sync TV shows between your Mac and mobile device.

    Source: iMore

How to sync podcasts to your iPhone or iPad on macOS Catalina

  1. Click on the Finder app in the Mac Dock.
  2. Select your device on the left side of the screen under Devices.

  3. On the right-hand side, click on the Podcasts tab.

    Source: iMore

  4. Check the box Sync Podcasts onto your device to activate podcast syncing.
  5. Check the box to Automatically copy.
  6. In the pull-down menu, select all unplayed or make another choice from those listed.

  7. In the next pull-down menu, select all podcasts or selected shows.

    Source: iMore

  8. If selected podcasts were chosen, check the boxes next to the podcasts you want to sync.
  9. Click Apply.

  10. Click Sync to sync podcasts between your Mac and mobile device.

    Source: iMore

How to sync audiobooks to your iPhone or iPad on macOS Catalina

  1. Click on the Finder app in the Mac Dock.
  2. Select your device on the left side of the screen under Devices.

  3. On the right-hand side, click on the Audiobooks tab.

    Source: iMore

  4. Check the box Sync Audiobooks onto your device to activate audiobooks syncing.
  5. Check to sync All audiobooks or Selected audiobooks.

  6. Select your audiobooks to sync, when applicable.

    Source: iMore

  7. Click Apply.

  8. Click Sync to sync audiobooks between your Mac and mobile device.

    Source: iMore

How to sync books to your iPhone or iPad on macOS Catalina

  1. Click on the Finder app in the Mac Dock.
  2. Select your device on the left side of the screen under Devices.

  3. On the right-hand side, click on the Books tab.

    Source: iMore

  4. Check the box Sync Books onto your device to activate books syncing.
  5. Check to sync All books or Selected books.

  6. Select your books to sync, when applicable.

    Source: iMore

  7. Click Apply.

  8. Click Sync to sync audiobooks between your Mac and mobile device.

    Source: iMore

How to sync photos to your iPhone or iPad on macOS Catalina

If you're using the iCloud Photo Library sync on your iPhone or iPad, you cannot sync photos using your Mac.

  1. Click on the Finder app in the Mac Dock.
  2. Select your device on the left side of the screen under Devices.
  3. On the right-hand side, click on the Photos tab.

  4. Determine the files to sync.

    Source: iMore

How to sync files to your iPhone or iPad on macOS Catalina

Sync Photos Library Between Macs
  1. Click on the Finder app in the Mac Dock.
  2. Select your device on the left side of the screen under Devices.

  3. On the right-hand side, click on the Files tab.

    Source: iMore

  4. Click the files you wish to sync using the pull-down menus for each applicable app.
  5. Select Apply.

  6. Click Sync to sync files between your Mac and mobile device.

    Source: iMore

How to backup your iPhone or iPad on macOS Catalina

You can manually backup your iPhone or iPad on your Mac:

  1. Click on the Finder app in the Mac Dock.
  2. Select your device on the left side of the screen under Devices.
  3. On the right-hand side, click on the General tab.

  4. Click Back Up Now next to the Backup and Restore section.

    Source: iMore

How to restore your iPhone or iPad on macOS Catalina

You can manually restore your iPhone or iPad on your Mac:

  1. Click on the Finder app in the Mac Dock.
  2. Select your device on the left side of the screen under Devices.
  3. On the right-hand side, click on the General tab.

  4. Click Restore Backup next to the Backup and Restore section.

    Source: iMore

Final questions and comments

If you have any questions about the new syncing process with macOS Catalina, let us know below.

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