iCloud Photos migration issues

[jrcsh6]

I've always used local storage for photos. And back up. I decided I'd try iCloud Photos as additional back up and for the features. I keep storage on an external drive and the file size of the library at the time of turning on iCloud Photos was app 860gb - 75k photos. I began the sync/upload. The next day when I came back to the computer I'm told I don't have enough storage to sync locally. I look on the drive and somehow the Photo library has ballooned up to 1.45TB! I have no idea what the deal is. There were maybe 20 pictures in iCloud prior to doing this when I set up my kids iPad and I forgot to turn off iCloud services. I looked at my newly purchased 2tb iCloud and it's showing 208gb of photos oddly enough. And the icing on the cake... when opening photo's I now get, "Photos was unable to open the library “Photos Library”. (3146)". Maybe I'm an idiot but I'm thinking I may just need to keep doing what I've done and live on physical drives.
Help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[JamesMay82]

I’ve had issues with uploading when I switched over to iCloud. I found the best way is to do it was to do it over a few days and in smaller batch uploads. It’s very frustrating but I’ve just found it doesn’t like you doing it all in one go.

So I’d maybe delete all your iCloud uploads and then start again with a new library and then just drip feed things across

 

[JamesMay82]

Ps if you weren’t using iCloud for photos before, how were you keeping photos on your phone? Were you manually syncing your library back to your phone?

 

[Cyby-CyberDog]

You accidentally assume iCloud Photo’s is a service to backup the media stored in your Photo’s Library.

It is not, it is a service to synchronize the Photo Libraries on your devices, not a backup service.

You can however create regular backups of your Library on iCloud Drive, if you have the needed storage on iCloud Drive!

Just make sure that, when you activate iCloud Photo’s you keep the original files on your Mac, not choosing for optimize storage!
If you use optimize storage, the optimized library is backed up and not all your originals.

The bloating Library is, probably (my assumption! I am gladly corrected) caused by the fact that by optimizing storage, iCloud Photo’s needs more storage space to perform the optimization process.

I have a huge library myself, keeping the originals (in the system photo library) on an external drive with a local backup, and use optimize storage on my iDevices and MacBook.

 

[jrcsh6]

I'm aborting and going to 2 ssd's I'll manage manually. haha

 

[JamesMay82]

I'm aborting and going to 2 ssd's I'll manage manually. haha

Ha! I know the feeling. I was going to go back to manually doing it but I could keep my raw files on the iPad. Whenever I synced it from mac to iPad it would covert them to JPEG! 🤬

 

[jrcsh6]

Right. Moving one to another has been ugly really. Apple makes things so idiot proof that manual work is difficult. But we're known that for ages.
Cloning the old Mac would be the answer but I don't want the baggage.

 

[JamesMay82]

I don’t trust how Apple photos stores them in a container or packaged files as im terrified of the package corrupting. I keep a back up of all photos in finder by date order and then backed up to an external.

Overkill but better save than sorry.. I also keep meaning to print my fave as well but i never do

 

[jrcsh6]

I've found corrupt photos.... I have a google back I'm going to have to cherry pick from... not thrilled.