Understanding Camera Raw Cache In Lightroom

The Camera Raw Cache in Lightroom is a temporary storage location that improves performance by storing previews of images you are working on. When you view or edit images in the Develop module, Lightroom generates high-quality previews, using the original image data as its foundation. If the original image data is in the Camera Raw cache, Lightroom can skip early stage processing, making the process faster. The size of the Camera Raw Cache can be adjusted in the settings, and it is recommended to set it to a size equivalent to the average number of images you work with. However, if you are experiencing slowdowns in Lightroom, increasing the Camera Raw cache size can help improve performance.

How to increase the Camera Raw Cache size

Increasing the Camera Raw Cache size in Lightroom can speed up the generation of previews of those images. By default, Lightroom sets the Camera Raw cache to 1 GB, but this can be increased to 20 GB or more.

To increase the Camera Raw Cache size, follow these steps:

• Go to 'Preferences' in Lightroom. This can be found under 'Lightroom' in the menu bar on a Mac or 'Edit' on Windows.
• Click on the 'Performance' or 'File Handling' tab. The location of the Camera Raw Cache settings may vary depending on the version of Lightroom you are using.
• In the Camera Raw Cache Settings area, experiment with a Maximum Size of 10.0 GB or more. It is recommended to set this to at least 20 GB for optimal performance.
• To further speed up the cache, ensure that it is stored on a fast hard disk. You can specify the location of the Camera Raw cache by clicking on the 'Choose' button and navigating to the desired location.

How to improve Lightroom performance

Hardware

• Use an SSD for your operating system and program files.
• Exceed the minimum system requirements for Lightroom.
• Use a fast hard drive with at least 12 GB of RAM and a large enough hard drive with enough free space.
• Update your graphics driver and run Lightroom in 64-bit mode.
• Use a high-resolution display.
• Use a desktop with expansion options for additional hard drives, processors, and graphics cards.

Software

• Update Lightroom to the latest version.
• Pause syncing with Lightroom while making edits.
• Render 1:1 previews before editing.
• Keep standard-size previews small and 1:1 previews for as long as possible.
• Keep the catalog and preview cache in the same folder.
• Pause XMP writing when editing.
• Pause address and face lookup.
• Use smart previews for editing.
• Increase the Camera Raw cache size and store it on a fast hard disk.
• Optimize your catalog.
• Minimize the histogram.
• Use optimal settings during the import process and choose an appropriate standard preview size.
• Turn off XMP unless needed.
• Free up your hard drives and run disk defrag.
• Look through Adobe's checklist for other reasons why Lightroom might be running slow.

How to delete Camera Raw Cache folders

Deleting Camera Raw Cache folders can help free up space on your hard drive. The cache files are temporary storage locations for software applications like Lightroom and Photoshop, which use them to improve performance.

To delete the Camera Raw Cache folders, first ensure that Lightroom and Photoshop are not running. Then, simply delete the folders from your hard drive. You can find the Camera Raw Cache folders by navigating to the following locations:

• C:\Documents and Settings\[User Name]\Application Data\Adobe\CameraRaw\Cache
• ~/Library/Caches/Adobe Camera Raw

Once you have deleted the folders, empty your Trash or Recycle Bin to fully remove the files and free up the space on your hard drive.

Note that deleting the cache folders may slow down the browsing of photos that have been modified in Lightroom or Photoshop. Additionally, if you delete both cache folders, Lightroom or Photoshop will create a new cache folder as needed. Therefore, there is no risk of deleting a cache that is still in use, except for the potential degradation of performance.

If you are unsure about deleting the cache folders, you can try renaming the folder first and observing if everything still works as expected in Lightroom or Photoshop. After a while, you can permanently delete the folder if there are no issues.

How to change the Camera Raw Cache location

To change the Camera Raw Cache location in Lightroom, follow these steps:

• Go to the “Edit” menu and select “Preferences” (on Windows) or go to the “Lightroom” menu and select “Preferences” (on Mac).
• Click on the “Performance” or “File Handling” tab. In the “Camera Raw Cache Settings” section, you will see the current location of the cache.
• To change the location, click on the “Choose” button and navigate to the desired location on your computer. Select the new location and click “OK”.
• You can also adjust the “Maximum Size” of the cache in this settings menu. Increasing the cache size can improve performance, especially when working with large files.

It is recommended to store the Camera Raw Cache on a fast internal drive, preferably one that is not your operating system drive. Using an external USB drive for the cache is not advisable as it can hinder Lightroom's performance.

How to improve the speed of the Lightroom import process

The Lightroom import process can be sped up by building previews on import. However, this will slow down the import process. Building standard-sized previews is recommended as it will make the Library module more responsive when reviewing imported images.

• Put your Catalog File on an SSD.
• Make your Camera RAW cache bigger.
• Toggle using your System Graphics Card.
• Pause XMP writing when editing.
• Pause address and face lookup.
• Pause image syncing.
• Build 1:1 previews before you edit.
• Apply Develop edits in an optimal order.
• Optimize your Catalog.
• Restart Lightroom.
• Update Lightroom.

Additionally, ensure you have enough space allocated to your Camera Raw Cache.

Frequently asked questions