Read-only source
The app never creates, rewrites, renames, moves or deletes anything in your photo folders. The source directory is treated as read-only.
Read-only source · no import
Your folders stay untouched.
Live Gallery builds a local index of the library you already have on Windows 11. It is completely read-only toward your source directories: it does not create, modify, rename, move or delete the originals.
- Read-only source
- Windows 11
- No second copy
The library you already have
Point it at a folder. That is the import.
There is no “import everything into our library” step. You choose the folders, Live Gallery scans them in place, and the original files remain exactly where your backup already looks for them. The app writes only its own index and thumbnail cache under app data.
No second copy
The app stores an index and thumbnails, not a duplicate of your photo archive. A terabyte of photos does not become two terabytes.
No upload
The library is read and indexed on your PC. The photo app contains no network code; the separate installer handles updates.
Choose the folders
Point Live Gallery at the folders and drives that already hold the library, including external drives.
Let it index
The worker reads filenames and metadata, builds thumbnails and writes a local SQLite index under app data. The source folders are not touched.
Browse the real library
Open the gallery, people, tags, locations or timeline. Explorer still sees the same files underneath.
The honest part
What this does not mean
- It is not a backup tool. Keep backing up the originals independently.
- The app writes its database, thumbnails and face crops under app data, not in your source folders.
- There is no cloud sync, account or remote library.
- It is a manager, not an editor; it does not replace your editing app.
Good questions
Local photo library, answered.
Does Live Gallery write to my source folders?
No. It never creates, modifies, renames, moves or deletes files in your photo folders. The source is read-only; the index and cache live under app data.
Does it copy my photos?
No. It indexes the folders you choose and stores thumbnails and a database index. The original image files stay where they are.
Does it modify the originals?
No. It reads them. New tags, ratings and descriptions are stored in the app database; the app does not write XMP or IPTC back into the file.
Can I use folders on an external drive?
Yes. The library can index local or attached drives. If a drive is offline, its files are unavailable until it reconnects.
Keep exploring
Related features.
Facial recognition
Face detection that stays local.
Find and group the people in your library without sending a face to a server.
Photo metadata
The story is already in the file.
Read keywords, ratings, dates, camera and GPS from the library you already have.
Duplicate photos
Find the copies. Keep the keeper.
An optional content-hash scan for exact and near duplicates, with review before removal.
See it on your own library
Bring the folder.
Keep the originals.
Download the free beta, point it at a folder and try this on your own photos. No account, no upload, no card.
Windows 11 · Free 5,000-photo beta · No account needed