In this article I’ll explain how to update to Lightroom Classic 9 from any prior version. The process is usually very straightforward and takes just a few clicks, but it does require that Lightroom upgrade your Lightroom catalog, so in this article I’ll prepare you for what can occasionally go awry. If you prefer to watch a video tutorial on this process, go to this post instead.

1.  Be Sure That Your Operating System Is Supported

With Classic 9, support for macOS Sierra and Windows versions 1703 and 1709 has been dropped. To update you’ll need macOS High Sierra, Mojave or Catalina, Windows 1809 or later, or Windows 7 SP 1.

2. Understand Where Your Lightroom Catalog Is

Lightroom usually finds your old catalog and upgrades it, but just in case it doesn’t, before starting go into your old version of Lightroom, then in the menu bar in the top left go to Edit (PC) or Lightroom (Mac) > Catalog Settings, and click on the General tab. Make a note of the location and file name of your catalog:

3. Option to Revert

If there’s any chance you’re going to cancel your subscription and want to revert to your old non-subscription version of Lightroom (if your operating system will even still support it) then out in Mac Finder or Windows Explorer, make a copy of the catalog file and the associated Previews file and put them in a separate folder (such as “Lightroom 6 catalog). (In my opinion copying these files isn’t critical, but it will make reverting slightly easier.)

4. Subscribe to Adobe’s Photography Plan If You Haven’t Already

If you are coming from Lightroom 6 or another non-subscription version, you’ll need to subscribe to Adobe’s Creative Cloud Photography Plan which gives you Lightroom Classic, Photoshop, and the cloud-based Lightroom (which you can try out but I don’t recommend using together with Lightroom Classic unless/until you study the implications carefully.) Alternatively you can subscribe to the All Apps / Complete Cloud plan if your interests go beyond photography. After subscribing, download Adobe’s Creative Cloud application – you’ll update and otherwise manage your Lightroom and Photoshop software from it.

5. Install or update to Lightroom Classic 9

Find Lightroom Classic version 9.0 and click on Update or Install.

6. Launch Lightroom Classic and Upgrade Catalog

When Lightroom launches after updating you should see an upgrade catalog dialog box:

Lightroom will make a copy of your catalog and upgrade it, naming it as shown – this should be the same location and the same name as that of your previous catalog (that you wrote down), with “-2”  appended (or another number depending on your previous catalog name). If it is a different location or a different catalog name, then you’ll need to tell Lightroom to upgrade and open the one you wrote down. To do this, click on Choose a Different Catalog. If the one you wrote down is then listed, click on it and choose Open. If it’s not, click on Choose a Different catalog again, then navigate to and select the .lrcat file, click on Choose, and then on Open.

7. Make Sure All Is Well

At this point you should be in Lightroom Classic 9, and you should see all your photos and work. You can confirm you’re in Classic 9 by going to Help>System Info – the version will be at the top.  If Lightroom has no photos in it, or some subset of your photos that isn’t everything you saw back in step 2, then you didn’t select the correct catalog in step 4: go to File > Open Catalog, navigate to and select the .lrcat file you wrote down, and let Lightroom launch and upgrade this correct catalog.

8. Your Desktop / Dock / Taskbar Lightroom Icon

If you’re coming from Lightroom 6 or earlier, or from Lightroom Classic CC 8.1 or earlier, then the Desktop / dock / taskbar icon you were using will not launch Lightroom Classic 9, even though the icon is the same s for Classic 9. (The one you’re looking for is “Adobe Lightroom Classic”, not “Adobe Lightroom” or “Adobe Lightroom Classic CC”.) If you’re on Windows and you have a shortcut to “Adobe Lightroom Classic”, use that one and drag any others to the Recycle Bin. If you’re on Mac, remove the old one from your Dock – right-click on it > Options > Remove from Dock. Next, open Finder, go into Applications, open the Adobe Lightroom Classic folder, and drag the program file (with the Lr icon) to your Dock.)

9. “Upgraded Version of Catalog Found”

If when you launch Lightroom Classic from your Desktop / Dock / Taskbar you receive the message, “Upgraded Version of Catalog Found. Would you like to use the newer catalog instead?”, then Lightroom is still trying to open your old catalog. Go ahead and choose “Yes, use the newer, upgraded catalog”, and then go into Preferences, and on the General tab under Default Catalog “When starting up use this catalog”, click on the dropdown and choose the new one (the renamed one in #7, or the one with the largest number (“-2”, “-3”, “-2-2), etc – it will most likely be second in the list.

10. Rename Your Lightroom Catalog and Related Files(optional)

Your upgraded Lightroom catalog file name is now a bit cryptic, with a “-2”, “-2-2”, or some other number appended to it. This won’t hurt anything, but if at any point you’d like to rename it, you may. Close Lightroom and follow the instructions in my video, “How to Safely Rename Your Lightroom Catalog”.

11. Delete Your Old Catalog

Once you’ve been using Classic 9 for a while and all is going well, and assuming you don’t plan to revert to your prior Lightroom version, you can delete the old catalog – the one you wrote down in step 2 – both the .lrcat and the Helper file that otherwise has the exact same name as the .lrcat file.

At this point you should be set and you can enjoy the new features. Read my article on what’s new in Lightroom Classic 9 to learn about them.

A Note About Lightroom Plugins

Because there is a change in the Lightroom catalog database structure, some Lightroom plugins that you use may not work with Classic 9. If yours don’t, check with plugin developers for availability of updates.