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Watch Folders

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What Are Watch Folders?

Watch folders are directories that Tag-AI scans for images to process and tag. These folders (and their subfolders) are the source of all images in your Tag-AI database.

Watch Folders Configuration

When you run a scan, Tag-AI will:

Managing Watch Folders

Viewing Current Watch Folders

To see your current watch folders:

  1. Open the Configuration Editor (Actions → Edit Config)
  2. The watch folders are listed at the top of the configuration

Adding Watch Folders

To add a new watch folder:

  1. Open the Configuration Editor
  2. Click the + button in the Folders section
  3. Enter the folder path directly or click Find... to browse
  4. Click Save to confirm changes

Removing Watch Folders

To remove a watch folder:

  1. Open the Configuration Editor
  2. Click the Remove button next to the folder you want to remove
  3. Click Save to confirm changes

Removing a watch folder does not delete any data from the Tag-AI database. Images from that folder will remain in the database until you use the Purge tool.

Folder Structure Recommendations

Tag-AI works with any folder structure, but certain organizations can improve efficiency:

Hierarchical Organization

A hierarchical structure with logical subfolders works well:

Photos/
  ├── 2023/
  │   ├── January/
  │   ├── February/
  │   └── ...
  ├── 2024/
  │   ├── January/
  │   └── ...
  └── Events/
      ├── Vacation2023/
      └── Wedding/

Multiple Root Folders

You can set multiple separate watch folders for different collections:

C:/Users/username/Pictures  (personal photos)
D:/Professional/ClientPhotos  (work photos)
E:/Archive/OldPhotos  (archived collections)

Performance Considerations

Folder Size

The number of images in your watch folders affects performance:

Subfolder Depth

Very deep folder hierarchies may slow down scanning:

Excluded Files

Even in watch folders, Tag-AI skips certain files:

Automatically Excluded File Types

Filtering by File Type

Tag-AI only processes files with these extensions:

Standard Image Formats

RAW Image Formats

Remote and Network Folders

Tag-AI can work with network and remote folders, but with some limitations:

Mapped Network Drives

UNC Paths

Cloud Storage

Cloud storage solutions with local sync folders work well:

Direct cloud URLs without local sync are NOT supported. Files must be accessible through the local filesystem.

Best Practices

Organization Tips

Performance Tips