We report on the performance and the operational experience of the LCLS RF gun copper photocathodes used during the LCLS run I, II, III and IV. We discuss the problems of cathode surface contamination and our experience with methods to remove such contamination. Techniques to obtain high quantum efficiency (QE) while preserving the low emittance quality are discussed. Furthermore, we will present the current status of the installed cathode, its quantum efficiency and the typical injector emittances of the extracted beam.