For each file in folder A, is it anywhere in PC?

[joema]

I frequently encounter this situation when managing video/image files:

(1) I receive a group of files, most of which I already have. Yet I am not certain.

(2) For each file in the newly-received folder, I need to verify it exists somewhere in the directory tree of my PC.

Manually the procedure is:

(a) Inspect size/date of each file in newly-received folder
(b) Search entire PC to see if it exists

Is there some automated method of using Beyond Compare or any other utility to achieve this?

[joema]

I figured out the answer to my own question. Procedure/scenario: incoming new files are in a folder on a removable hard drive. You suspect most of them are somewhere on your PC, but aren't sure.

(1) Do a folder compare between folder with incoming new files (right side) and the root drive of PC (left side)

(2) Select "ignore folder structure", and "show right orphans".

(3) Any files in the right side folder which are not present anywhere in the PC folder structure will show up.

Also tested it on Mac beta version 4.0 build 17677.

[Aaron]

Are the files in the folders uniquely named? If so, you could use the Folder Compare, and load two targets (the folder, and the possible tree destination), then use the View menu ->Ignore Folder Structure. This would remove all folders, and align any items in any folder based on name. If the items are uniquely named, they will be the ones that line up, then you can inspect the path to see where the item is located.

If they are not uniquely named, the first match is aligned (which may or may not be the one you want). The other files with the same name would then appear nearby if sorted alphabetically.

[Aaron]

And this reply loaded as I submitted my own. Great! If you have any questions, let us know.