Q: Can I avoid using Lightroom’s backup routine and have my backup software do it?

A The answer is yes, you can, but….

  • If you rely on backup software and target your actual Lightroom catalogue you are taking some risk that the catalogue may be open when the scheduled backup kicks in. There’s a faint chance and a long but obscure history of such backups being unusable.
  • You also have to fiddle around with your backup software so it doesn’t include the potentially-huge but non-critical previews lrdata folders.
  • Lightroom’s backup routine also includes a catalogue integrity check.

So it’s generally best to let Lightroom make its backups to another drive, and then point your backup software at this location.