Deleted a Photos Folder After Moving the Library to an External SSD? Restore the Right Copy
TL;DR:
To fix a broken Mac Photos library after accidentally deleting a related folder, hold the Option key to reopen the correct library on your external SSD, designate it as the System Photo Library in settings, and turn on iCloud Photos to sync and restore your images.
● The external SSD must be formatted as APFS or Mac OS Extended (Journaled) and cannot be the same disk used for your Time Machine backups.
● Restore from a Time Machine backup only if the external library package is missing or incomplete, though this backup may lack full-resolution originals if Optimize Mac Storage was previously enabled.
● Resort to file recovery software only for images entirely missing from iCloud Photos, Google Photos, and backups, ensuring you stop writing data to the affected disk and recover files to a different drive.
Ask AI for a summary
ChatGPT
Perplexity
Gemini
Claude
Grok
If your older photos are still visible in iCloud Photos and you made a Time Machine backup before deleting the folder, do not start with disk-recovery software. Reopen the correct Photos library on the external SSD, make it the System Photo Library, and let iCloud restore the library. Use Time Machine only if the library package itself is missing or incomplete.
That is the safest path for this Mac Photos recovery case on Reddit. The user moved a new Mac mini’s photo library to an external SSD, accidentally left another Photos-related folder on the Desktop, later deleted it and emptied Trash, then found that Photos would not open normally. A Time Machine backup existed from before the change, while iCloud Photos and Google Photos still held the pictures.
First, Reopen The Correct External Photos Library
- Step 1
Quit Photos, then hold the Option key while opening Photos. Choose the library stored on the external SSD instead of opening or creating a different local library.
- Step 2
In Photos settings, confirm that this library is the System Photo Library. Apple explains that only the System Photo Library can sync with iCloud Photos.
- Step 3
Turn on iCloud Photos. If local storage is tight, use Optimize Mac Storage while the library reconnects; Apple says full-size originals remain in iCloud and can later be downloaded again with “Download Originals to this Mac.”
Storage Check:
Apple recommends storing a Photos library on an external disk formatted for Mac, such as APFS or Mac OS Extended (Journaled), and not on the same disk used for Time Machine backups. If the external library is on an unsuitable volume, fix that storage setup before rebuilding the library.
Use Time Machine If The Library Package Is Missing Or Incomplete
If the external library cannot be found, will not contain older local-only photos, or iCloud does not have everything, restore the Photos library from the backup made before the deletion. Apple’s Time Machine Photos restore guide restores the library to the state captured by that backup.
If Optimize Mac Storage had been enabled, Apple notes that Time Machine might not contain every original because full-resolution originals can remain in iCloud. In that case, a successful iCloud sync is the better source for those originals.
When File Recovery Becomes Relevant
Only move to deleted-file recovery if a photo was not present in iCloud, Google Photos, or the Time Machine backup. If that missing photo was deleted from a stable local or external disk, stop writing new data to that source and recover to a different drive. Do not install recovery software onto the same storage location you are trying to recover.
For broader Mac library-recovery paths, the Recoverit Mac Photos Library recovery guide covers recovery only after backup-based options have been checked.