The Photos app on macOS lets you store all your photos and videos in one place. However, if your Mac’s storage starts to fill up, you may want to move your photo library to an external hard drive.
In this article, we’ll show you how to move your photo library to an external hard drive.
How to move your photo library to an external hard drive
To move your photo library to an external hard drive, you’ll need to do the following:
1. Make sure that your external hard drive is connected to your Mac.
2. Open the Photos app.
3. Click on “Photos” in the menu bar, and select “Preferences”.
4. Click on the “Advanced” tab.
5. Under “Copy files to”, select your external hard drive.
6. Click on “OK”.
7. Select all the photos and videos that you want to move, and drag them to the external hard drive.
The Photos app will start copying your photos and videos to the external hard drive. When it’s finished, your photo library will be located on the external hard drive.
Contents
- 1 How do I move my photo library from Mac to hard drive?
- 2 Why can’t I move photos from Mac to external hard drive?
- 3 How do I move iCloud photo library to external hard drive?
- 4 Is an external hard drive good for storing photos?
- 5 How do I export my entire apple photo library?
- 6 Why do I have 2 photo libraries on my Mac?
- 7 Why can’t I add things to my external hard drive Mac?
How do I move my photo library from Mac to hard drive?
If you have a Mac computer with a large photo library, you may find that it becomes difficult to manage the library as it grows. One solution is to move the library to a hard drive. This article will show you how to do that.
First, you will need to determine how much disk space your photo library takes up. To do this, open a Finder window and click on “Applications”. Then, open the “Utilities” folder and launch the “Disk Utility” application. In the “Disk Utility” window, select your hard drive from the list on the left. Then, click on the “Usage” tab at the top of the window. The size of your photo library will be shown in the “Photos” section.
If your photo library takes up more than 50% of the available disk space on your hard drive, you should consider moving it to a different hard drive.
Once you have determined the size of your photo library, you will need to copy it to the hard drive. To do this, open a Finder window and click on “Applications”. Then, open the “Utilities” folder and launch the “Terminal” application. In the “Terminal” window, type the following command and press Enter:
sudo cp -R /Users/USERNAME/Photos /Volumes/HARDDRIVE/
Replace “USERNAME” with the name of the user who owns the photo library and “HARDDRIVE” with the name of the hard drive.
You will be asked to enter your password. Type it in and press Enter.
The copied photo library will be located in the “Photos” folder on the hard drive.
Why can’t I move photos from Mac to external hard drive?
If you’re trying to move photos from your Mac to an external hard drive, you may run into problems. In some cases, you may find that your Mac doesn’t recognize the external drive, or that you can’t copy the files to the external drive.
There are a few possible reasons for this. First, make sure that your external drive is formatted as Mac OS Extended (Journaled) and that it’s using the correct file system. If it’s not, you may not be able to copy files to the external drive.
Another possible issue is permissions. In some cases, you may need to give your Mac permission to use the external drive. To do this, open Finder, select the external drive, and click Get Info. Under Sharing & Permissions, make sure that the Allow box is checked next to your username.
If you’re still having problems copying files to the external drive, try restarting your Mac and the external drive. If that doesn’t work, try reformatting the external drive.
How do I move iCloud photo library to external hard drive?
Apple’s iCloud Photo Library is a great way to keep your photos and videos organized and accessible across all of your devices. However, if you have a large library or limited storage space on your device, you may want to move your iCloud Photo Library to an external hard drive.
There are a few ways to do this. The first is to use the built-in iCloud Photo Library Migration tool. To do this, connect your external hard drive to your computer and open the Finder. In the menu bar, select Go > Applications. In the Applications folder, open the Utilities folder, and then open the iCloud Photo Library Migration tool.
In the iCloud Photo Library Migration tool, click the “Select Library” button and select the iCloud Photo Library on your computer. Then, click the “Choose” button. Next, select the external hard drive from the “Destination” drop-down menu and click the “Migrate” button.
The iCloud Photo Library Migration tool will copy your library to the external hard drive. When it’s finished, you can disconnect the external hard drive and use it to store your iCloud Photo Library.
If you don’t want to use the iCloud Photo Library Migration tool, you can also move your iCloud Photo Library to an external hard drive by manually copying the files. To do this, connect your external hard drive to your computer and open the Finder. In the menu bar, select Go > Applications. In the Applications folder, open the Utilities folder, and then open the Terminal application.
In the Terminal application, type the following command and press the Enter key:
cd ~/Pictures
This command will change the directory to your Pictures folder. Next, type the following command and press the Enter key:
cp -r iCloudPhotoLibrary ~/Pictures
This command will copy the iCloudPhotoLibrary folder to your Pictures folder. When it’s finished, you can disconnect the external hard drive and use it to store your iCloud Photo Library.
No matter which method you use, be sure to back up your iCloud Photo Library before moving it to an external hard drive. If something goes wrong and you lose your photos or videos, you’ll be glad you have a backup.
Is an external hard drive good for storing photos?
When it comes to storing your photos, there are a lot of options to choose from. You can store them on your computer, on an online service, or on an external hard drive. Each has its own benefits and drawbacks.
Storing photos on your computer is the most convenient option. Your photos are always with you, and you can easily access them whenever you need them. However, your computer’s hard drive has a limited storage capacity, so you may eventually run out of space.
Online photo services, such as Flickr and iCloud, offer a lot of storage space and are a great option for people who want to share their photos with others. However, if you lose your internet connection or someone hacks into your account, your photos could be lost forever.
An external hard drive is a great option for storing photos. It has a lot of storage space, and it’s easy to access your photos whenever you need them. However, external hard drives can be expensive, and they can be a hassle to carry around.
So, is an external hard drive good for storing photos? The answer is yes. An external hard drive is a great option for storing your photos, and it offers a lot of benefits.
How do I export my entire apple photo library?
To export your entire apple photo library, follow these steps:
1. Open Photos and click on the File menu.
2. Select Export Library.
3. Choose a location to save the exported library and click Export.
4. In the Export Library dialog box, make sure the Export Selected Photos and Videos option is selected.
5. Click the Export button.
6. In the resulting dialog box, make sure the Export to Album option is selected.
7. Click the Choose button and select an album to export the photos to.
8. Click the Export button.
Why do I have 2 photo libraries on my Mac?
If you’re like many Mac users, you may be wondering why you have two photo libraries on your computer. You may even be wondering if you can delete one of them. So what’s the story?
The answer is that you likely have two photo libraries because you have two different photo applications installed on your computer. The first photo library is associated with the first photo application, and the second photo library is associated with the second photo application.
If you want to get rid of one of the photo libraries, you can do so by uninstalling the corresponding photo application. Alternatively, you can merge the two photo libraries into one by using a photo management application such as iPhoto or Aperture.
Why can’t I add things to my external hard drive Mac?
If you’re unable to add items to your external hard drive on a Mac, there are a few potential causes.
One possible reason is that the drive is formatted for Windows and not Mac. In this case, you’ll need to reformat the drive to a Mac-compatible format.
Another possibility is that the external drive is not properly connected to your Mac. Make sure that the drive is properly plugged into an available USB port, and that the drive is turned on.
If you’re still having trouble adding items to your external hard drive, try restarting your Mac.