Moving from WinOS to MacOS

[ptomic]

So I've been in a long-term relationship with Calibre on Windows — years of commitment, shared memories, a carefully curated plugin collection. But now I'm packing my bags and eloping with a Mac. 💔🍎

Good news on the moving front: I already successfully smuggled my entire library across the border — nearly 8,000 books — like a literary refugee who planned at least that part of the escape route properly. 📚✅

My remaining question is deceptively simple (much like myself):
How do I drag the rest of my Calibre life — settings, plugins, all my little customizations — across the OS border without losing my mind or my metadata?

Is it just a matter of copy-pasting the Calibre settings folder like some kind of digital moving van, or is this going to turn into a whole thing — you know, the kind where I need a flowchart, three Stack Overflow tabs, and a strong coffee? ☕📦

Thank you in advance.

[rantanplan]

You can just create a backup of your Calibry library and that includes all plugins etc.

[theducks]

Export/import all Calibre data is by far the simplest. That feature is found on the Library Icon.
It can do ALL Known (on the switch list) Libraries. as well as plugins and other settings.

[ptomic]

Oh, and plot twist! 🎭

I should mention that I'm not running your average, garden-variety Calibre installation on Windows — oh no, I'm fancy. I'm running Calibre Portable, living its best nomadic life in a mapped folder on my NAS. Very minimalist. Very "I own nothing, I control everything" energy. 🏕️

The downside of this bohemian lifestyle? No Import/Export option. Calibre Portable apparently doesn't believe in formal goodbyes.
Now, I did try the smart approach — I pointed my shiny new Mac version of Calibre straight at the library folder sitting on the NAS, like a bloodhound on a scent. And it worked... sort of. 🐕

Calibre on Mac found the books just fine — all 8,000 of them, bless its heart — but when it came to Settings and Plugins? It looked around, shrugged, and said "Sorry, not my department." 🤷

So the books are there, but my carefully assembled plugin empire and all my settings are apparently still stuck in Windows, staring out the window, wondering where everyone went. 🪟😢

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by ptomic

Oh, and plot twist! 🎭

I should mention that I'm not running your average, garden-variety Calibre installation on Windows — oh no, I'm fancy. I'm running Calibre Portable, living its best nomadic life in a mapped folder on my NAS. Very minimalist. Very "I own nothing, I control everything" energy. 🏕️

The downside of this bohemian lifestyle? No Import/Export option. Calibre Portable apparently doesn't believe in formal goodbyes.
Now, I did try the smart approach — I pointed my shiny new Mac version of Calibre straight at the library folder sitting on the NAS, like a bloodhound on a scent. And it worked... sort of. 🐕

Calibre on Mac found the books just fine — all 8,000 of them, bless its heart — but when it came to Settings and Plugins? It looked around, shrugged, and said "Sorry, not my department." 🤷

So the books are there, but my carefully assembled plugin empire and all my settings are apparently still stuck in Windows, staring out the window, wondering where everyone went. 🪟😢

You need to open the Mac calibre configuration directory and copy in all of the files from your Windows calibre configuration directory. It's that simple.

[ptomic]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

You need to open the Mac calibre configuration directory and copy in all of the files from your Windows calibre configuration directory. It's that simple.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner! 🏆🎉
Turns out the solution was exactly as advertised — simple, elegant, and slightly embarrassing that I didn't think of it myself. Just open the Mac Calibre configuration directory, dump in all the files from the Windows Calibre configuration directory, and... that's it. That's the whole recipe. No flowchart needed. No Stack Overflow rabbit holes. No emergency coffee. ☕ (Well, I had the coffee anyway, but that was purely recreational.)
I followed the instructions, held my breath like I was defusing a bomb, and — boom — every single setting, every beloved plugin, every tiny customization I've hoarded over the years came marching over to Mac like they owned the place. 🎊
My 8,000-book library now has its settings and plugins reunited with it, and somewhere in the digital universe, a Windows config folder is finally getting the closure it deserved. 🪟💔➡️🍎❤️
To the person who provided this solution — you have my eternal gratitude, my deepest respect, and if I could reach through the screen I'd bake you a cake. 🎂
You made this literary refugee's migration complete. 🙏📚