Moving to iCloud photos

[adam9c1]

Currently I store my photos in several Photo libraries as well as some folders.
Over time I have managed to make duplicates everywhere.

I know if I upgrade to Photo library hosted in iCloud, it will de-dupe.
I will need to buy their 2TB plan (at least temporarily once de-dupe is done).

Pleas help me how iCloud photos work.
If at a future date I want to go back to Mac hosted Photo library is that possible? If so how?
If I have lets say 32GB phone but the photo library is larger what happens then? Do photos not get stored on the phone at all?

Thanks.

 

[Brookzy]

If at a future date I want to go back to Mac hosted Photo library is that possible? If so how?

You can just turn off iCloud Photo Library. You will be asked if you want to download all your photos before turning it off. Then you can just use a local library as normal.

If I have lets say 32GB phone but the photo library is larger what happens then? Do photos not get stored on the phone at all?

If you have more photos than you have storage space, you can turn on Optimise Storage in Settings > Photos. This will store thumbnail versions of your iCloud photos on your phone, with the originals staying in iCloud. When/if you view or use these photos on your phone, the high resolution copy will be downloaded on demand.

 

[adam9c1]

If I want to turn off iCloud Photo Library I should do it on iOS devices first, then macOS right?