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The most documented route is to export Google Photos with Google Takeout, keep the archive and its JSON sidecars together, then import the media into a self-hosted Immich server with immich-go. The importer scans the photos, videos and JSON metadata, matches records, can recreate albums, and uploads the result into Immich. Treat the process as a migration to verify—not a one-click guarantee: edited files, bursts, duplicates and unusual Takeout records can prevent perfect matching.
Before deleting anything from Google Photos, preserve the original Takeout archive, confirm that important dates, locations, descriptions and albums appear correctly in the new gallery, and establish separate backups for both Immich’s database and its media files.
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A migration is safer when the destination, temporary workspace and recovery copies are planned first. Your working set can be substantially larger than the final gallery because you may need the downloaded archive, extracted files, the Immich library and at least one independent backup.
Choose how Immich will hold the files
Immich offers two relevant storage approaches. An upload library copies imported assets into Immich’s managed upload storage. An external library leaves files in an existing folder and lets Immich index that location.
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| Choice | How it works | Important trade-offs |
|---|---|---|
| Immich upload library | Imported photos and videos are placed in Immich’s normal upload storage. | Requires enough space at the configured UPLOAD_LOCATION and a separate filesystem backup. Immich’s database backup does not contain the media. |
| Immich external library | Immich indexes files that remain in a mounted folder instead of copying them into the ordinary upload path. | The Immich FAQ documents no official mechanism for creating albums in an external library. Duplicate checking is limited and performed per library, and a read-only mount cannot save metadata edits. |
Takeout plus immich-go |
A Takeout-aware import scans media and JSON, matches metadata, uploads assets and can synchronize albums. | immich-go is community-maintained. Its behavior and compatibility can change, so validate your own export and review the result. |
For a Google Photos migration where album recreation and Takeout metadata matter, the Takeout-plus-immich-go workflow is the documented starting point. An external library can make sense when you already have an organized folder and deliberately want Immich to index it, but it changes how albums, duplicates and edits work.
Plan storage and a recovery copy
- Choose an
UPLOAD_LOCATIONwith enough free capacity for the destination library. - Reserve working space for the downloaded Takeout archive and its extracted contents. Do not assume the final Immich size is the only space requirement.
- Decide where an independent copy of the media will live, such as another disk or NAS that you control. Existing hardware may be sufficient; the documentation does not establish a required capacity, model or price.
- Keep the original Takeout archive until the migration has been checked and your backup can be restored.
Storage planning must be based on your collection rather than a universal number. Include photos, videos, Live Photo components and any duplicate or edited files that you intend to retain.
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Before exporting, record the approximate item count, the albums that matter most, and a few representative examples: an old photo, a recently edited image, a video, an item with GPS data, a description, a burst and a duplicate. This gives you a small test set for post-import checks. It is not a substitute for checking the complete collection, but it makes obvious failures easier to spot.
Export Google Photos with Google Takeout
Google Takeout is the source-side step recommended by Immich’s Quick Start for an existing Google Photos collection. The export produces an archive that can contain media files and JSON metadata. Keep those two types of file together because the importer uses the JSON to match information to photos and videos.
- Open Google Takeout and start a new export.
- Clear selections for services you do not need and select Google Photos.
- Continue through the export settings and request the archive. Large libraries may be split into more than one archive; retain every part.
- Download all resulting archive files to a storage location with enough free space for the compressed and extracted data.
- Extract the archives without deleting or renaming the JSON sidecars. Keep the original compressed archives unchanged as a recovery copy.
- Check that the extracted tree contains the expected photos and videos as well as JSON files before beginning the import.
Do not treat file modification time as a reliable replacement for the original capture date. The Takeout-aware importer is designed to use the metadata in the export and to map original capture dates rather than simply trusting filesystem timestamps.
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Prepare the self-hosted Immich destination
Set the upload location and permissions
Follow the current Immich Quick Start to deploy the server and set UPLOAD_LOCATION to the storage volume intended for managed uploads. Confirm that the container or service account can read and write that location. A path that is mounted but not writable can allow the server to start while causing imports or metadata operations to fail later.
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Decide whether the import should be managed or indexed
Use the upload-library route when you want Immich to manage the imported assets in its normal storage layout and you can provide the required capacity. Use an external library only when the files must remain in an existing folder and you accept its documented limits: no official external-library album-creation mechanism, duplicate checks limited to each library, and no metadata writes on a read-only mount.
Keep the destination isolated during testing
If this is your first migration, import a small copy or a limited subset first. A test lets you confirm permissions, database connectivity, album behavior and metadata matching before committing the full archive. Do not delete the Google library or the original Takeout files after a test that has not been fully reviewed.
Import the Takeout archive with immich-go
The documented immich-go Takeout workflow has four logical phases: scan the files, catalog the media and JSON, match metadata to each asset, and upload the resulting records to Immich. The guide supports one or more Takeout ZIP files or an already extracted folder.
Run the importer against the complete source
- Choose the importer input that matches your export: the downloaded ZIP files or the extracted Takeout directory.
- Let the tool scan both media and JSON files. Do not point it only at images and videos; omitting the JSON removes information needed for matching.
- Enable the documented album-synchronization option if you want Takeout album structure recreated in Immich.
- Choose filters deliberately. The guide documents controls for archived items, trashed items, partner-shared items and unmatched files.
- Start the upload and monitor its progress. Keep the source archive available until the run and subsequent checks are complete.
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Understand what the importer can match
The importer documentation describes reading descriptions, original capture dates, GPS coordinates and album associations from Takeout JSON. It also documents duplicate checking and notes that matching can be difficult for edited files, bursts and duplicates. These are capabilities and known conditions, not a promise that every record in every export will map perfectly.
| Data or case | Documented handling | What you should verify |
|---|---|---|
| Original capture date | Mapped from Takeout metadata rather than relying only on file modification time. | Compare old and new timelines for photos from different years and for files copied between devices. |
| Description | Read from Takeout JSON when a matching record is found. | Open several assets with captions, including edited images. |
| GPS coordinates | Imported when present in the matched metadata. | Check an image from a known location on the map or details view. |
| Albums | Album synchronization is available as an importer option. | Compare important album membership and names; do not assume every edge case is identical. |
| Archived, trashed or partner-shared items | Filters are documented for these categories. | Decide whether each category belongs in the destination and record the filter choices you made. |
| Unmatched media | Can still be included, but the guide warns that unmatched files have less metadata. | Review dates, locations, descriptions and album membership for the unmatched set. |
Handling unmatched files
An unmatched file is not necessarily unusable. If you include it, the media can be uploaded with less metadata than a successfully matched item. Keep a report of unmatched items if the importer provides one, then inspect the most important files manually. If an item is valuable, preserve its original Takeout file and any sidecar while you investigate why matching failed.
Review the completed migration
Do not declare the move complete merely because the importer finished without an error. Use a representative and then broad review.
Check counts and coverage
- Compare the number of imported photos and videos with your source inventory. Differences can be legitimate if you excluded trash, archives, partner shares or duplicates, but unexplained gaps need investigation.
- Look for missing years or months in the timeline. A quiet period can indicate a filter or matching problem rather than an empty source.
- Open several large videos and motion or burst-related items to confirm that they are playable and represented as expected.
Check metadata
- Verify original dates on files from multiple years and on images whose filesystem timestamps changed during copying.
- Inspect descriptions and GPS data on known examples.
- Check albums that contain edited photos, bursts, duplicates or shared items, since these are situations where matching can be harder.
Check albums and sharing expectations
Album synchronization can recreate the structure described by the importer, but an individual Takeout export may contain records that do not map cleanly. Compare your most important albums by name and membership. Also decide whether partner-shared or archived content should be present; those categories are controlled by importer filters and may not be included in a default run.
Use XMP sidecars when you have them
Immich separately documents XMP sidecar support. It can read supported descriptions, ratings, date and time, GPS coordinates and tags from specified XMP fields. A sidecar must share the media filename base. Examples include IMG_0001.jpg.xmp and IMG_0001.xmp.
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XMP is field-specific in Immich. Fields outside the documented supported set may remain in the sidecar but will not be searchable in Immich. Therefore, retaining an XMP file does not mean every value it contains becomes a searchable gallery field. Keep the sidecars with the media in your backup even when Immich does not index every property.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Back up Immich correctly after the import
An Immich database dump and a media backup solve different problems. The database stores file paths and user metadata; it does not contain the photo and video files, and Immich does not scan the library folder to reconstruct all database information automatically. A database-only backup cannot restore the collection.
Back up the database
Use Immich’s documented database-backup process and retain copies that are independent of the running server. The database backup preserves metadata and the information Immich needs to relate files to users, albums and other records.
Back up the filesystem media
Immich’s filesystem guidance identifies these critical original-content folders under UPLOAD_LOCATION:
| Folder | Why it matters |
|---|---|
UPLOAD_LOCATION/library |
Contains critical original library content. |
UPLOAD_LOCATION/upload |
Contains critical uploaded content. |
UPLOAD_LOCATION/profile |
Contains critical profile content. |
Copy those folders to your separate backup storage according to a schedule you can maintain. Backing up additional generated content can reduce the work required after a restore, but the original media folders and the database are the essential pair. Keep the original Google Takeout archive until you have tested that both the database backup and filesystem copy are usable.
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Test a restore before relying on it
A backup is only useful if it can be read. Periodically verify that the database dump can be restored to an Immich instance and that the corresponding filesystem copy contains the paths and files it references. Test a few original photos, a video, an album and metadata such as a description or location.
Common problems and practical fixes
The importer finds media but little metadata
First confirm that the JSON files were included in the input and that the archive was extracted without separating or renaming them. If files remain unmatched, include them only with the understanding that the importer documents reduced metadata for that case. Preserve the originals and investigate representative failures rather than editing the whole collection blindly.
Dates look wrong
Compare the Immich date with the original capture date shown in Google Photos or the Takeout metadata. File modification time can change during download, extraction or copying, while the importer is intended to map original capture dates. Edited files and duplicate records can still complicate matching, so inspect several examples before making a bulk correction.
Albums are missing or incomplete
Confirm that album synchronization was enabled and that the source records were included by your filters. Then compare a small set of important albums. A successful upload does not prove that every album edge case was recreated, particularly when source files were edited, duplicated or shared.
The upload stops because storage is full
Check free space in the configured UPLOAD_LOCATION as well as the space consumed by the extracted archive. Expand or relocate the destination before rerunning. Keep the source archive unchanged so that a resumed or corrected import can be audited.
Metadata edits do not persist in an external library
Immich’s FAQ states that read-only external-library mounts cannot save metadata edits. Remount the location with appropriate write access if that is acceptable for your design, or use the managed upload library when Immich needs to own the files and their changes.
Duplicates appear
The importer documents duplicate checking, but matching behavior can be affected by edited files, bursts and duplicate source records. External-library duplicate checking is limited and per library. Review duplicate results rather than deleting source files automatically; retain the Takeout archive and an independent filesystem copy until you are certain which records are safe to remove.
A completion checklist
- All Google Takeout archives are downloaded and preserved.
- Extracted media and JSON sidecars remain together.
- The destination storage has sufficient capacity and correct permissions.
- You selected the intended upload or external-library model.
- Importer filters for archived, trashed, partner-shared and unmatched items were recorded.
- Counts, timeline coverage, dates, descriptions, GPS data and important albums were checked.
- Unmatched and duplicate cases were reviewed rather than assumed to be correct.
- An Immich database backup exists.
- The
library,uploadandprofilefolders have an independent filesystem copy. - A restore test has opened representative photos, videos, albums and metadata.
Once those checks pass, you can make Immich your primary self-hosted gallery while retaining the Takeout archive and the independent media backup as recovery options. The documented workflow is practical, but the evidence supports verification of each collection—not a guarantee that every Google Photos edge case transfers perfectly.
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