Moving macOS Calibre to external SSD

wladdy · 06-07-2020, 06:40 AM

Hello,

I use the latest version of Calibre on macOS 10.15.5. My main computer is a MacMini 2018 with a 3,2 GHz 6-core Intel Core i7 processor and 32GB RAM. The hard drive is the 1TB SSD original built in the computer.

I have two libraries. One is ~270GB and contains ~33k books. The other is ~60GB and contains ~7k books.

The performance speed is acceptable. Whenever I open the large library, the first search takes ~20''. Subsequent ones are much quicker, usually <5''. Once found, opening a given book is almost instantaneous.

I want to move my libraries on an external SSD. I expect to run them mostly on the same Mac, but I would like occasionally to work on a MacBook or another MacMini.

Before implementing this project, some advice from the Calibre community would be very helpful.

1/ Calibre Portable or Calibre for macOS?

It seems that Calibre Portable exists only for Windows (the installer is an .exe file). Is there a way to have a similar solution for Mac, where one SSD holds both the book files and the Calibre software/database ?

If not, it seems to me that I would need to install a local version of Calibre on every Mac where I want to open the library. If that's the case, how would the library reflect the changes done on another Mac? Would I need every time I switch Macs to create new libraries based on the folder with the book files? More generally, what are the best practices?

2/ SanDisk or Samsung

Another area of questioning is the hardware. I am considering buying either a SanDisk Portable Pro or a Samsung T7. Any recommendations or warnings would be very welcome. Also, should I expect to see a notable drop in perfomance?

3/ Backup strategy

Finally, do you have any suggestions of a sound backup strategy I could use? I am thinking of keeping the book files in a DropBox account, but all better or alternate ideas will be appreciated.

In any case, I appreciate you reading this post and thank you in advance for any replies to it.

kovidgoyal · 06-07-2020, 09:41 AM

Regarding (1) on macs all applications are portable. Simply move calibre.app from /Applications to wherever you want it.

wladdy · 06-07-2020, 06:11 PM

Thanks Kovid, I didn't realize that.

But during installation, besides the 'Calibre' program being copied to the 'Applications' folder, a few hideen folders and files are also created in subfolders of the '~/Library' folder, which is located on the internal hard drive, not on the external SSD.

Such files include:
com.calibre-ebook.ebook-edit.plist
com.calibre_ebook.ebook-viewer.plist
net.kovidgoyal.calibre.plist

Such folders include:
~/Library/Application Support/calibre-ebook.com
~/Library/Caches/calibre
~/Library/Preferences/calibre

Can I miss these small, hidden files and folders and still use the 'Calibre' program copied on the SSD without losing essential parameters when moving to another computer?

Thanks in advance! W.

kovidgoyal · 06-07-2020, 11:34 PM

These are basically the calibre cache and configuration directories. You can control their location via environment variables: https://manual.calibre-ebook.com/cus...ment-variables

hstriepe · 07-25-2020, 01:10 PM

Whether to have Calibre locally installed on each machine is a matter of preference. I have settled to keep all apps in /Applications for security purposes, easier to manage. I also set ownership to root:wheel to avoid issues. But calibre certainly works from a portable drive. Note that it will still keep its preferences in `/Library/Preferences/calibre. You would need to replicate that on each machine as needed or use a folder on your portable drive with a symbolic link in ~/Preferences.
I keep my calibre folder in home as ~/calibre and use iCloud for backup and sync between systems. I use ChronoSync to keep the folders in sync. This allow me some security in case I mess up the local folder.
The calibre library itself is self-contained in its data folder.

06-07-2020, 06:40 AM	#1
wladdy Enthusiast Posts: 28 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2010 Device: iPad / Kindle DX	Moving macOS Calibre to external SSD Hello, I use the latest version of Calibre on macOS 10.15.5. My main computer is a MacMini 2018 with a 3,2 GHz 6-core Intel Core i7 processor and 32GB RAM. The hard drive is the 1TB SSD original built in the computer. I have two libraries. One is ~270GB and contains ~33k books. The other is ~60GB and contains ~7k books. The performance speed is acceptable. Whenever I open the large library, the first search takes ~20''. Subsequent ones are much quicker, usually <5''. Once found, opening a given book is almost instantaneous. I want to move my libraries on an external SSD. I expect to run them mostly on the same Mac, but I would like occasionally to work on a MacBook or another MacMini. Before implementing this project, some advice from the Calibre community would be very helpful. 1/ Calibre Portable or Calibre for macOS? It seems that Calibre Portable exists only for Windows (the installer is an .exe file). Is there a way to have a similar solution for Mac, where one SSD holds both the book files and the Calibre software/database ? If not, it seems to me that I would need to install a local version of Calibre on every Mac where I want to open the library. If that's the case, how would the library reflect the changes done on another Mac? Would I need every time I switch Macs to create new libraries based on the folder with the book files? More generally, what are the best practices? 2/ SanDisk or Samsung Another area of questioning is the hardware. I am considering buying either a SanDisk Portable Pro or a Samsung T7. Any recommendations or warnings would be very welcome. Also, should I expect to see a notable drop in perfomance? 3/ Backup strategy Finally, do you have any suggestions of a sound backup strategy I could use? I am thinking of keeping the book files in a DropBox account, but all better or alternate ideas will be appreciated. In any case, I appreciate you reading this post and thank you in advance for any replies to it.

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06-07-2020, 09:41 AM	#2
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 45,240 Karma: 27110894 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	Regarding (1) on macs all applications are portable. Simply move calibre.app from /Applications to wherever you want it.

06-07-2020, 06:11 PM	#3
wladdy Enthusiast Posts: 28 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2010 Device: iPad / Kindle DX	Thanks Kovid, I didn't realize that. But during installation, besides the 'Calibre' program being copied to the 'Applications' folder, a few hideen folders and files are also created in subfolders of the '~/Library' folder, which is located on the internal hard drive, not on the external SSD. Such files include: com.calibre-ebook.ebook-edit.plist com.calibre_ebook.ebook-viewer.plist net.kovidgoyal.calibre.plist Such folders include: ~/Library/Application Support/calibre-ebook.com ~/Library/Caches/calibre ~/Library/Preferences/calibre Can I miss these small, hidden files and folders and still use the 'Calibre' program copied on the SSD without losing essential parameters when moving to another computer? Thanks in advance! W.

06-07-2020, 11:34 PM	#4
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 45,240 Karma: 27110894 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	These are basically the calibre cache and configuration directories. You can control their location via environment variables: https://manual.calibre-ebook.com/cus...ment-variables

07-25-2020, 01:10 PM	#5
hstriepe Junior Member Posts: 3 Karma: 10 Join Date: Apr 2016 Device: kindle	Whether to have Calibre locally installed on each machine is a matter of preference. I have settled to keep all apps in /Applications for security purposes, easier to manage. I also set ownership to root:wheel to avoid issues. But calibre certainly works from a portable drive. Note that it will still keep its preferences in `/Library/Preferences/calibre. You would need to replicate that on each machine as needed or use a folder on your portable drive with a symbolic link in ~/Preferences. I keep my calibre folder in home as ~/calibre and use iCloud for backup and sync between systems. I use ChronoSync to keep the folders in sync. This allow me some security in case I mess up the local folder. The calibre library itself is self-contained in its data folder.

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