iCloud and the System Photo Library
Photographs may be reproduced through a photo lab of the Library's choice, through the Library scanning service or through a scheduled photo shoot. See Order Images for details. For further information about the San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection please call 415-557-4567 during open hours. By default, your System Photo Library is stored in the Pictures folder on your Mac, but you can move it to another location on your Mac or store it on an external storage device. WARNING: If a Photos library is located on an external drive, don’t use Time Machine to store a backup on that external drive.
Delta County Fairgrounds, 403 Fair Grounds. Hotchkiss, CO 81419 United States. 14 July 2021 All day. In Photos, select Photos Preferences, and in the General tab, click Use as System Photo Library. ICloud lets you open other Photos libraries. If you have iCloud Photo Library enabled, you could.
You can use iCloud Photos, Shared Albums and My Photo Stream only with the System Photo Library. If you choose a different library in Photos without designating it as the System Photo Library, the iCloud tab in Photos preferences will be disabled.
If you want to use a different library with iCloud, follow the instructions in the next section to change the System Photo Library.
How to designate a System Photo Library
If you designate a new library as the System Photo Library and then turn on iCloud Photos, the photos and videos in the new library will merge with those already in your iCloud Photos. Additionally, all photos and videos from iCloud will re-download to the device.
- Quit the Photos app.
- Hold down the Option key and open Photos. One of the photo libraries has already been designated as YourLibraryName (System Photo Library).
- Choose the library you want to designate as the System Photo Library.
- After Photos has opened the library, choose Photos > Preferences from the menu bar.
- Click the General tab.
- Click the Use as System Photo Library button.
If Use as System Photo Library is greyed out, the current library is already set as your System Photo Library.
If you open a different library in the Photos app, and you haven't designated it as the System Photo Library, other applications will use photos from the original System Photo Library. Hold down the Option key when you open Photos to see which library is set as the System Photo Library.
Do you need help?
If you're still experiencing issues with Photos, contact Apple Support.
iCloud and the System Photo Library
You can use iCloud Photos, Shared Albums, and My Photo Stream only with the System Photo Library. If you choose a different library in Photos without designating it as the System Photo Library, the iCloud tab in Photos preferences is disabled.
If you want to use a different library with iCloud, follow the instructions in the next section to change the System Photo Library.
How to designate a System Photo Library
Stock Photo Library
If you designate a new library as the System Photo Library and then turn on iCloud Photos, the photos and videos in the new library will merge with those already in your iCloud Photos. Additionally, all photos and videos from iCloud will redownload to the device.
- Quit the Photos app.
- Hold down the Option key and open Photos. One of the photo libraries is already designated as YourLibraryName (System Photo Library).
- Choose the library you want to designate as the System Photo Library.
- After Photos opens the library, choose Photos > Preferences from the menu bar.
- Click the General tab.
- Click the Use as System Photo Library button.
If Use as System Photo Library is grayed out, the current library is already set as your System Photo Library.
If you open a different library in the Photos app, and you haven't designated it as the System Photo Library, other applications will use photos from the original System Photo Library. Hold down the Option key when you open Photos to see which library is set as the System Photo Library.
Need help?
Mac System Photo Library Location
If you still have issues with Photos, contact Apple Support.