tonyjag Loc: Bolton, Ma.

In the past, there has been advice here on UHH regarding extra care when migrating to a new computer, particularly regarding LR Classic and its catalog. It was recommended to do it manually, not via migration assistant. But what about all of the other apps and files?

Current MacBook Pro: mid 2014, OS 10.14.6 Mohave
Intel Core i7, 2.8 GHz, 4 cores,
16 GB Memory, 1 TB SSD (only 50 GB left). LR Classic catalog resides there.
backed up to USB drives via Time Machine.
I plan to keep this system intact because it supports many aps, including Aperture, that Apple has abandoned.

My new MacBook Pro is ready to be picked up now, complete with an SD slot and magsafe power (though different form the 2014). It has 2 TB SSD, an Apple M1 Max chip with 10-core CPU, 32-core GPU, and 16-core Neural Engine. Genius bar would need both old and new computers for several days to do migration so I am going to do it myself, with help from AppleCare if needed. Should I run migration assistant first, then deal with getting LR to work?

rgrenaderphoto Loc: Hollywood, CA

On your old system, select everything and do Export as Catalog to an external drive. Then download the Creative Cloud app onto the new M1 Mac and get all your applications up and running. Open Lightroom and perform an Import from another catalog.

mdoing

When I moved everything to my M1 IMac the Apple guy recommended that I move stuff over by copy/paste rather than migrate so that I would have a clean installation and not bring along years of problems. Download and install new versions of your programs. Seemed to work well.

BurghByrd Loc: Pittsburgh

I just finished that myself, migrating from an intel based macBook to the M1 MacBook. I ran the full back up but used the migration assistant to transfer the files and apps to the new machine. By and large I had no problems with it. Lightroom came across clean with no problems as did the native software (e.g. pages, numbers etc. although some updated to the version that runs more efficiently on the ARM hardware. Some of those updates were very slow so plan on it finishing overnight. I had the following issues, most of which were not significant. The passwork assistant did not transfer the usernames or passwords; that had to be done manually but it wasn't too difficult. The only significant problem I've had is with Parallels which creates a virtual machine that Windows can run in. I have two third party applications that are only available for the Widows envirionment, one is the shop service manual for a BMW K1600 motorcycle. It will not run in that environment and Parallel's tech support is only good for blaming Windows so for now I'm stuck keeping the old Mac as a motorcycle shop manual.

In summary -
The transfer was relatively trouble free although some automatic software updates were a bit slow - allow overnight for this.
Lightroom came across without any problems.
Parallels (if you use it) updated OK and created a Windows environment but it doesn't appear to be as robust as I was led to believe. Older legacy 3rd party software my never run there.
The machine is very very efficient, the battry lasts a long long time and the machine produces almost no heat. You will like it.

jbk224 Loc: Long Island, NY

I traded in my 2018 MB Pro for the 16" M1. I made sure that my Time Machine backup was up to date and everything was seamless, including my Capture 1 catalogs. Just make sure that you have a complete list of your login IDs and passwords for everything. You may need some to complete your set up of apps.
Interesting you mentioned Aperture. I understand why you are keeping your old laptop. I had done the same. I imported some Aperture catalogs into Capture One about 4 years ago. Now I am working out to import the balance of my catalogs and referenced files so that everything is available to me in Capture One. This is a whole other story. Good luck and you will be over the moon with your new MacBook Pro.

BebuLamar

Are the M2 coming soon?

jbk224 Loc: Long Island, NY

M2 right now coming in 13" MacBook Air. Can be ordered. (5nm chip-same as M1)
While performance will increase over the M1 Pros...there may be a difference in the display and Pro Motion.
Word is that newer M2 3nm chips will come out later in the year. New 13" Air looks to be great.

InFocusFl Loc: Kennedy Space Center, FL

I have also kept a legacy 27" iMac running High Sierra so that I could keep Aperture running while I learn Lightroom or On1. I tried to use Retroactive, but was disappointed in the performance and stability of the application. It would sometimes corrupt an image or just crash out of nowhere. Not helpful when I'm processing tons of images from a wedding.
Exporting your current library from it's native application, then importing it into the new machine when everything is re-installed and stable sounds like the best idea. :)

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

I tried migrating a 2013 iMac setup to my M1 MacBook Air. It didn't work. Apple Support told me to start over, re-format the drive and install a brand new system, then install all new, fresh copies of my applications, then migrate data as needed. The "export as catalog" advice is good. Be sure the files you want to move are at the exact same paths they were on the old machine, or you will have to re-link them.

tonyjag Loc: Bolton, Ma.

Thanks to all who replied. Please clarify the following per [ ]:
"On your old system, select everything and do Export as Catalog to an external drive.
[In Mac Migration Assistant?]
[All of my files and apps or just those relevant to LR and Creative Cloud?]
[If just LR, should I migrate all of the other apps and data before or after doing what you suggest?]

Then download the Creative Cloud app onto the new M1 Mac and get all your applications up and running. Open Lightroom and perform an Import from another catalog.
[The one on the external hard drive?] "
http://rgrenaderphoto.com

Help much appreciated.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

On your old system IN LIGHTROOM CLASSIC select all and export as catalog.

For best results DO NOT migrate applications — only data files. You really get the best results by starting with a clean operating system, updated to the latest version. Then install all the latest versions of your applications (have license information in hand!). This will ensure that Universal and Apple Silicon Native apps are installed, rather than older apps for Intel hardware. It also gets rid of the crud that builds up over time on your old machine (orphaned files from older applications, code that won't run on M1, cache files you don't need, and all the other digital detritus that gets in the way of smooth and efficient performance.

For Adobe Apps, download a fresh copy of the Creative Cloud App. Sign into your account with Adobe ID and Password. Then download your applications for whichever plan you use. Finally, import the Lightroom Catalog, being sure to have your images at the same paths they were on the older machine, unless you don't mind using the "locate and re-link" functions in LrC.

Getting a new computer is always more work than expected. Managing where your files will be is often a challenge.

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

I migrated my LR catalog and images from a PC to a MacBook M1. There was no easy way to do it because I couldn't preserve the path to the photos. The PC and the Mac have incompatible paths. Got it done but it took a while.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

It's definitely more tedious, but if you understand that LrC only stores paths to files, then you realize they will let you change those paths when needed.

LrC wants to find your files where you put them in the first place, but it will let you go on a chase to find them if they're moved. Lots of folks don't get that, and think they've lost all their files after a migration!

Laramie Loc: Tempe

Once you have everything moved to the new Mac, delete some stuff. 50M out of 1T doesn't sound fun.