Metadata file used by Apple iPhoto, a program used to manage digital photos; stores information about the user's library of images; stores the schema for the metadata as well as search, browsing, organization, and previewing information used by iPhoto.

IPMETA files are stored in the following directory: [user]/Pictures/iPhoto Library/Metadata Backup/. Common IPMETA files include BackupStatus.ipmeta, Globals.ipmeta, Keywords.ipmeta, Schema.ipmeta, and AlbumX.ipmeta, where "X" represents a number. IPMETA files do not contain images. They only contain information about images used by iPhoto. You can delete IPMETA files, but they will be regenerated by iPhoto the next time the application is opened. NOTE: iPhoto was discontinued and replaced by Photos in 2015.