MemoryLane

Help & support

Getting started with MemoryLane

Install MemoryLane, add your photo folders, and learn the main ways to explore your archive.

Visit r/MemoryLaneApp View release history

1. Installation

Windows

Download the Windows installer, open MemoryLane-Setup.exe, and follow the installer. Launch MemoryLane from the Start menu; it runs locally and opens in your web browser.

Mac

Download the Mac disk image on an Apple Silicon Mac, open MemoryLane-arm64.dmg, and move MemoryLane to Applications. Open it from Applications. If your archive is on an external drive, allow MemoryLane access when macOS asks.

2. First setup

On first launch, create the administrator account for this archive. Next, select one or more folders containing your photos and videos. MemoryLane indexes those folders in place—it does not upload, rename, move, or duplicate your originals. You can begin browsing while the initial scan and background analysis continue.

3. How MemoryLane works

MemoryLane builds a local index and thumbnail cache from your existing folders. Browse follows your folder structure; Timeline and Moments organize dated media; Favorites, Collections, and Tags organize selections without changing files; Locations, Reports, and the gear views use photo metadata. Cleanup holds items you mark for review, while Settings controls folders, analysis, plugins, storage, and your account.

4. Installing plugins

Open Settings → Plugins. Choose an available plugin and select Install; MemoryLane downloads the compatible version and starts it for you. AI Search and People require AI Runtime. Plugins can be updated, disabled, or removed from the same screen. See the plugin overview for available features.

5. Adding more scan folders

Open Settings → Folders & Exclusions. MemoryLane needs the complete path to the folder on the computer where MemoryLane is running—not a web address, shortcut, or individual photo.

Windows examplesD:\PhotosC:\Users\Maria\Pictures
Mac examples/Users/maria/Pictures/Volumes/Photo Drive/Archive

Finding the path on Windows

  1. Open the folder in File Explorer.
  2. Click the address bar, copy the complete path, and paste it into Folder path.
  3. If you use Copy as path, remove any quotation marks around the pasted path.
  4. Select Add Folder, then Scan Now.

Finding the path on Mac

  1. Find the folder in Finder and select it.
  2. Press Option–Command–C to copy its pathname, then paste it into Folder path.
  3. Select Add Folder, then Scan Now.

Choose the highest useful folder. Adding D:\Photos also scans folders such as D:\Photos\2025, so you do not need to add every subfolder separately. If separate drives or archives should appear independently on the Home page, add each one as its own scan folder and drag them into your preferred order.

External and network storage: connect or mount the drive before scanning. On Windows, keep the same drive letter; on Mac, the drive normally appears under /Volumes. If macOS blocks access, allow MemoryLane under System Settings → Privacy & Security → Files and Folders, then reopen it.

If a path will not add: confirm that it exists, points to a folder rather than a file, and can be opened by the same computer and user running MemoryLane. Removing a scan folder later only removes its MemoryLane index—your original files are not deleted.

6. Favorites & Collections

Use the star in a photo grid or viewer to add an item to Favorites. Use Collections to create named groups across different folders: create a collection, open it, and choose Add photos. Removing an item or deleting a collection only changes the MemoryLane organization; original files stay where they are.

7. Timeline

Timeline arranges the library by year and month using each file’s EXIF capture date. Choose a year, then open a month to browse its media in capture order. Items without a usable capture date do not appear here.

8. Moments

Moments groups nearby capture dates into days and multi-day events. Use Broad, Balanced, or Detailed detection to control how readily separate days become one event, then open a moment to follow it chronologically.

9. Gear Museum

Gear Museum groups photographs by camera or lens and shows when each item was used. Search or sort the gear list, switch between cameras and lenses, or lower Min photos if less-used equipment is hidden. Results depend on the EXIF data stored in your files.

10. Gear Timeline

Gear Timeline shows your camera or lens history chronologically, including first and last use and photographs by year. Select a piece of gear or a year to open the matching photographs.

11. Reports

Reports filters photographs by camera, lens, make, aperture, ISO, focal length, and date range. Combine filters to answer specific questions, open matching photographs, or export the result as CSV. If recent files are missing metadata, allow background analysis to finish.

12. Tags

Open a photo and add your own tag in the viewer. The Tags page lists tags across the archive and lets you browse every matching item. Imported keywords and optional AI-generated tags may also appear; removing a tag in MemoryLane does not modify the original file.

13. People

Install AI Runtime and People, then turn on face analysis under Settings → AI & Analysis. MemoryLane processes faces locally and groups likely matches for you to name, confirm, merge, or reject. Processing a large archive takes time. Face data can be deleted from Settings without affecting your photographs.