Now, you want to move that very same library to Dropbox. That’s where problems, issues and incompatibilities will likely arise. After many tests and hours spent trying to figure how iTunes “plays” (no pun intended) with its media files (music, podcasts,ringtones, apps), I’ve come to a conclusion: the best thing you can do if you have enough space on Dropbox is store your entire library. Moving special folders to a Dropbox or OneDrive folder on Windows is an easy process. Simply, open its properties and move it to a new location. The process on Mac OS X is a bit more complicated, requiring you to first move your special folder to the cloud folder and then create a symbolic link from the new location to the old one. Locate your iPhoto Library. Usually you can find it in Pictures folder. It consists the database of your photos and also many other things such as Faces assigned to each contact in your address book. Right-click the library and select Show Package Contents. Find and move the “Masters” folder to the desktop. Yes there are many issues - bottom line is that it does not work - you can move photos to DropBox but not the Photos library - the Photos library must always be on a volume formatted Mac OS extended (journaled) and DB does not meet that - a number of people have tested and all reported tests have failed, none have been successful.
Migration Assistant copies all of your files from your old Mac to your new Mac so that you don't have to copy them manually.
- If your files are currently on a PC, follow the PC migration steps instead.
- If you're moving content from a Time Machine backup, follow the steps to restore your Mac from a backup instead.
Get ready
- Install all available software updates on both computers. If your old Mac isn't using OS X Lion or later, and your new Mac isn't using OS X Mavericks or later, follow the Mountain Lion migration steps instead.
- If both computers are using macOS Sierra or later, place them near each other with Wi-Fi turned on. If either one is using OS X El Capitan or earlier, make sure that both are on the same network.
- On your old Mac, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, then click Sharing. Make sure that a name appears in the Computer Name field.
Use Migration Assistant
You're now ready to use Migration Assistant to move your files from the old Mac to the new one.
On your new Mac
- Open Migration Assistant, which is in the Utilities folder of your Applications folder. Then click Continue.
- When asked how you want to transfer your information, select the option to transfer from a Mac, Time Machine backup, or startup disk. Then click Continue.
On your old Mac
- Open Migration Assistant, then click Continue.
- When asked how you want to transfer your information, select the option to transfer to another Mac. Then click Continue.
Move Mac Photos Library To Dropbox Mac
On your new Mac
When asked to select a Mac, Time Machine backup, or other startup disk, select the other Mac. Then click Continue.
On your old Mac
If you see a security code, make sure that it's the same code shown on your new Mac. Then click Continue.
On your new Mac
- Select the information to transfer.
In this example, John Appleseed is a macOS user account. If it has the same name as an account already on your new Mac, you're prompted to either rename the old account or replace the one on your new Mac. If you rename, the old account will appear as a separate user on your new Mac, with a separate home folder and login. If you replace, the old account will delete and then replace the account on your new Mac, including everything in its home folder. - Click Continue to start the transfer. Large transfers might need several hours to complete.
- After Migration Assistant is done, log in to the migrated account on your new Mac to see its files.
How To Move Iphoto Library To Dropbox
If you're not keeping your old Mac, learn what to do before you sell, give away, or trade in your old Mac.
Automatically download files from one computer to another
There's a two-step process to automatically migrate files from one computer to another. First, you'll download and install the Dropbox desktop app on both computers. Next, you'll use the app to migrate files between computers.
Before you begin
- If you have a large number of files, consider prioritizing them so the files you use every day migrate before archived files
- Also consider migrating your data in batches, or doing the migration overnight or on a weekend
- Be sure that the computer you're migrating files to has enough hard drive space (by default, the Dropbox desktop app keeps a copy of files on your computer's hard drive)
- Check the amount of space in your Dropbox account, and consider upgrading if necessary (by default, Basic accounts have 2 GB of space, while Plus and Family accounts have 2 TB)
- If you want to delete files from your old computer, or if you want to wipe the hard drive entirely, be sure to first sign out of Dropbox on that computer and uninstall the Dropbox desktop app (this will ensure synced files aren't deleted from Dropbox or from your new computer)
Download and install Dropbox on both computers
- Visit the Dropbox install page and download the latest version of the desktop app.
- Note: you don't need to re-install the desktop app if you already have it on one or both of your computers
- Once the installation finishes, sign in to your Dropbox account or sign up for a new one.
- After signing in, click Open my Dropbox.
Notes:
- Be sure to sign in to Dropbox using the same account on both computers (this ensures that the files in your Dropbox account on one computer migrate to the other computer)
- If the install is successful, you'll see a Dropbox folder on the hard drive of both computers, and the Dropbox icon will appear in your taskbar (Windows) or menu bar (Mac).
Migrate files from one computer to another
- On the computer you're migrating from, open File Explorer (Windows) or Finder (Mac) and navigate to any files or folders that you want to migrate. Drag-and-drop these files or folders to the Dropbox folder on your hard drive.
- As long as the computer you're migrating from is connected to the Internet, these files and folders will then upload to your Dropbox account in the cloud.
- These files and folders will also sync to your new computer, provided both of the following are true:
- The computer you're migrating to is connected to the Internet
- You're signed in to the Dropbox desktop app with the same Dropbox account on both computers
The migration is complete when a green circle with a checkmark appears beside the files and folders in the Dropbox folder on your computer. The Dropbox icon in your taskbar (Windows) or menu bar (Mac) will also say Up to date. You should then see the files and folders on both computers.
During and after migration
- The amount of time it takes for the migration to complete depends on the number of files you're migrating, and on the speed of your internet connection (you can control bandwidth as needed)
- Don't sign out, change settings, or turn off either computer during the migration process (the desktop app can only sync when you're signed in)
- If you lose Internet access during the migration, Dropbox will simply pause syncing, and resume once you're online again
- You can check the sync status at any time using the desktop application
- If you want to delete files from a computer, or if you want to wipe the hard drive entirely, be sure to sign out of Dropbox on that computer and uninstall the Dropbox desktop app (this will ensure synced files aren't deleted from Dropbox)
Copy files manually
The other way to migrate files is to copy them manually from a portable storage device (like an external hard drive) to the Dropbox folder on your computer. The Dropbox desktop app will then scan the files, and see that they're the same files in your Dropbox account.
On your old computer
- Update the Dropbox desktop application to the latest version.
- Wait until syncing has finished, as indicated by the green circle with the checkmark on the Dropbox icon in your menu bar.
- Once syncing has completed, copy the contents of your Dropbox folder to your portable drive (such as a USB drive or external hard drive).
On your new computer
- Install the latest version of the Dropbox desktop application and sign in to your account when prompted.
- The application will create a Dropbox folder and begin downloading files from your account. Stop the download immediately by clicking the Dropbox icon in your taskbar (Windows) or menu bar (Mac), and selecting Pause Syncing from the menu.
- Copy the files from your portable drive into the Dropbox folder.
- Resume syncing by clicking the Dropbox icon in the taskbar (Windows) or menu bar (Mac), and selecting Resume Syncing from the menu.
Default location for the Dropbox folder
Note that the default location for the Dropbox folder is different for each operating system:
- Linux: /home/yourUserName/Dropbox (such as /home/name/Dropbox).
- Mac: /Users/yourUserName/Dropbox (such as /Users/name/Dropbox).
- Windows: %HOMEPATH%Dropbox (such as C:UsersnameMy DocumentsDropbox).
Once you've completed these steps, the Dropbox desktop app will begin scanning the files in your Dropbox folder. If all of these files are the same as the files in your account online, scanning will finish. However if, in the middle of this process, a file has changed in your account (for example, someone else has updated a file in a shared folder), Dropbox will generate a conflicted copy so that both versions of the file are preserved.
Learn more
- By default, Dropbox will try to download all of the folders in your account. If there are folders you don't want taking up space on your computer, you can use selective sync to store them only in the cloud. However, you may need to wait until Dropbox has finished its initial sync of your files before the selective sync option becomes available.
- If you're going to copy files manually, you may want to temporarily leave shared folders. You can then copy your non-shared files to the Dropbox folder, and then re-add the shared folders and let them download to your computer. This will prevent Dropbox from generating conflicted copies of files if other people have changed them, as described above.