Admin-configurable backup priority: choose whether photos or videos are uploaded/synced first (global or per-user)

[VolkerNemrod]

I have searched the existing feature requests, both open and closed, to make sure this is not a duplicate request.

• Yes

The feature

I have searched existing feature requests:
Yes (I searched both open and closed feature requests and did not find an equivalent proposal.)

The feature I'd like to propose:
Add an administrator-configurable setting that defines the backup/upload priority between photos and videos. The admin should be able to specify whether Immich should, by default, prioritize uploading/syncing photos first or videos first when processing new media.

This setting should be configurable at two levels:

1. Server-wide default – a global setting in the admin panel that applies to all users.
2. Per-user override – an optional per-user setting that allows the admin to define a different priority for specific users (e.g., power users with lots of video).

Why this would be useful:
In self-hosted / homelab environments, storage I/O, network bandwidth, and transcoding resources are often limited. Videos are typically much larger and more expensive to process (transcoding, thumbnails, motion photos, etc.). Depending on the use case, an administrator might prefer:

• Photos-first policy:

  • Ensure that recent photos from phones appear quickly in the timeline and are safely backed up, even if large videos are still pending.
  • Improve perceived responsiveness for end users who care most about recent photos.

• Videos-first policy:

  • Prioritize large video files when bandwidth or upload windows are limited (e.g., nightly backup windows, slow uplinks).
  • Reduce the risk of videos never completing upload if the queue is always dominated by new photos.

Currently, the upload/sync order appears to be implementation-defined and not user-controllable. Giving admins a simple toggle would make it easier to tune Immich for different environments without changing code or Docker configuration.

How it could work (UI / behavior):

• In the Administration panel, add a setting such as:

  • "Default backup priority" with options:
    • Photos first
    • Videos first

• For each user (in the user management view), add an optional override:

  • "Backup priority for this user":
    • Use server default
    • Photos first
    • Videos first

• The mobile and desktop upload/sync logic would then use this preference when deciding the order in which pending assets are processed.

• This should not change what is backed up, only the order in which items are uploaded/processed.

Additional context:
This feature is primarily aimed at self-hosted deployments where admins want to optimize:

• Limited uplink bandwidth
• Limited CPU for transcoding and machine learning
• Backup windows (e.g., only at night)

It would be especially helpful in multi-user households or small organizations running a single Immich instance with mixed photo/video workloads.

Platform

• Server
• Web
• Mobile

[bo0tzz]

#3120