PhotoSettingsCache constantly expanding plau what is in there
I know this has been asked before but I can't find a solution, only the question. My PhotoSettingsCache in PR 2019 is constantly expanding on my main drive. There doesn't seem to be a way to clear it or move it. When I look in it the largest files are tifs and they seem to be masks. Now if those masks are are ones I've created (and I can see no reason to doubt that) are they required to re-edit the original raw file? If so, then the .on1 file is not the only file required to re-edit a raw photo. Also, after editing my photos I move them and the .on1 file to another place - how is on1 PR tracking this? If I clear out PhotoSettingsCache that suggests to me I won't be able to re-edit my photos. What if I delete the file I edited with a mask from windows explorer - surely the mask in PhotoSettingsCache is going to be left around and hence the PhotoSettingsCache will expand forever (which is what appears to be happening).
Also, it is called "cache". This implies it is a file which is temporary and goes out of date but that would seem to contradict some of my observations. If it really is a cache, why is here no option to clear it?
Hope someone can shed some light on this.
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The .on1 file has never been the only file required, it has always been a backup to the On1 database that contains your edits.
You can even turn off the sidecars and On1 will work just fine without it, but you won't have a backup and you won't be able to move files around because when you move a photo with it's .on1 sidecar, On1 doesn't need to track it, it will use that file wherever it finds it, to update the Database
This article has the best info on how it works...
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Thank you Rick but I don't think that article answers my questions.
- it does not mention the PhotoSettingsCache
- it does not address the issue of TIF masks in the PhotoSettingsCache (are these required to re-edit an image with a mask)
- is it a cache (temporary and deletable)
- why does it only grow and never shrink, can it be shrunk
- it doesn't seem possible to move it off your system drive
I'll do further experimentation of my own with masks and moving images.
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Ok. Simple experiment. Edit a photo in PR 2019. Select a filter (e.g. black and white), invert the mask and create an AI mask, select done and go back to browse. A directory appears in the PhotoSettingsCache\Files directory. In this directory is a 161Mb TIF which looks like the mask. The on1 sidecar file is 436Kb file.
Switch on1 to a different folder and copy (with windows explorer) the photo raw file and the on1 sidecar file to another directory. Browse the new directory in on1 and open the copied raw file. Switch to effects and you can still you effect and the mask. So this seems to confirm the on1 sidecar file contains the mask because we moved the raw file somewhere else.
Now delete the original photo raw file and on1 sidecar file (in windows explorer). The large TIF mask remains in PhotoSettingsCache. You can browse in PR the folders where the photo was deleted and even exit and startup again and go to the photo and the large TIF remains. There is nothing in the PR settings to clear this dir out. So it would seem this directory and only grow and there is nothing I can find to clean it up. It also seems the large TIF isn't required to re-edit the photo so what is its purpose.
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Plus, you can delete the large TIF in PhotoSettingsCache and it does not effect re-editing the photo.
If you rename a raw file and on1 sidecar file (outside of PR) you lose your edits as the original filename is in the sidecar file. If you rename in PR, all is ok.
So it would seem from my small experimentation that you might be able to delete directories in PhotoSettingsCache. I wish the manual explained what this directory was used for and how to empty it so I could be sure as every mask I create seems to create a huge tif file that never disappears.
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These are questions best directed to support Martin. You're talking with other users here and we don't know the answers to those questions either.
One thing I might point out is that cache doesn't necessarily mean temporary, ready to be deleted when no longer needed. It can also mean a place where things get stored for later use. (I used to live in Cache Valley, named for the location fur trappers used to store their furs until they had enough to make a trip back into civilization to trade them.)
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Thank you Brian. I am aware this is a user forum but there seem to be quite a number of knowledgable people on it so I thought it was a good first port of call.
Whether it really is a cache or not is really neither here nor there if it just keeps growing and we have no control over it or information on what its purpose is (especially when it is on a system disk and cannot be moved). After I've done more investigation I may ask On1 support.
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Hi All - I regularly delete the photorsettingscache (AppData\Roaming\ON1\ON1 Photo RAW 2020\PhotoSettingsCache) and providing the side car files are there it appears to make no difference and actually seems to make the programme more responsive for a bit - it appears to store bits of masking as you go along and various versions so realy not required. I also tend to delete the Fastbrowse Cache and the Fastbrowsedb as sometimes once again clearing this away gives the programme a new lease of life - I should mention being careful to not delete stuff that would take a long time to redo, catalogs etc however the fast browse is fast enough without saving a large database of thumbnails when the original files may already be backed up elsewhere and not likely to be seen again for quite some time.
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To add a bit to my postings above. It also appears if you use the clone/stamp tool, TIF images are created in the PhotoSettingsCache.
Also, if you edit a jpeg file and use the clone stamp tool tifs are created in PhotoSettingsCache. If you then close PR and delete these files then reopen PR, and edit the kpeg again, the TIFs are recreated.
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