Troubleshooting

imagic crashed right after updating, on an old photo library

If imagic crashes the moment it opens, right after an update, on a computer that has had imagic installed before, the usual cause is a photo library file (imagic.db) left over from an older version that could not finish upgrading. Your licence key and your photos are never affected: the crash happens reading the library file, before anything else runs.

Since version 1.4.4, imagic retries the library upgrade automatically when the file is briefly busy, and no longer skips a step silently. If every step still cannot finish, it shows a plain message asking you to close every imagic window and start again, instead of a crash. If you are already on 1.4.4 or later and still see this, the steps below get you working again right away.

Steps

1. Update to the latest version

Download the current installer from imagic.ink/desktop and run it over your existing install. This alone fixes most cases, since 1.4.4 and later retry a stuck upgrade instead of giving up on it.

2. Close every imagic window, including the system tray icon

If it still crashes, make sure no imagic process is left running anywhere, including a minimised window or an icon near the clock, then open imagic again.

3. Still crashing? Rename the library file

Press Windows + R, paste %USERPROFILE%\.imagic and press Enter (on a Mac, use Finder's Go > Go to Folder with ~/.imagic). Rename imagic.db to imagic-old.db. If imagic.db-wal or imagic.db-shm are also there, rename those the same way, adding -old before the extension.

4. Open imagic again

It creates a fresh, empty library and opens normally. Nothing was deleted: your old library is kept as imagic-old.db, and your licence key stays activated on this computer.

Frequently asked questions

Will I lose my edits or my licence?

No. The crash happens while opening the old library file, before anything is changed or deleted. Renaming it to imagic-old.db keeps everything exactly as it was, and your licence key activation is tied to your computer, not to the library file.

Why did this happen in the first place?

A library created by a much older version of imagic was missing newer columns the current version expects. On a release before 1.4.4, if the upgrade step got interrupted (often by a second imagic window, or an installer that launched the app automatically), it could fail silently and crash on the very next launch.

Related

What's new in each release Your first shoot: a full walkthrough Email help@imagic.ink

Other common issues

Sliders do not seem to do anything when I edit a photo Windows blocked the installer (SmartScreen) Where do my exported photos go? Why did my export create photo_1.jpg? Move your imagic licence to a new computer Which Mac download do I need: Apple Silicon or Intel?

Still stuck?

Email help@imagic.ink and a person replies, usually within hours.

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