Simple Folder Compare for Newbie

[dchass]

I am using Beyond Compare with the aim of sorting 100+ Gb of accumulated photos. These have bee stored in various folders, and copied between folders and to the cloud at various times, meaning that the same set of images is sometimes stored in separate folders but with different time stamps, even though the file size is generally unchanged.

My requirement therefore is to sort the bulk of my images based on file size ONLY, and not time stamp. I am having some difficulty finding the correct Beyond Compare settings to do this, and I can see that the settings I am using are not producing the correct results. I must be using too many rules/override/attribute options, possibly.

My images are generally stored in folders and subfolders, on a PC using Win 8.1. I have watched the Beyond Compare videos, read the Help files and perused this Forum, without luck to date.

With this simple task, there must be some fairly simple default settings to achieve my aim. Could someone please describe the correct settings for me, or advise where to find them.

[Chris]

It sounds like you're trying to search for duplicate files within a single drive or folder structure. Beyond Compare doesn't have a dedicated duplicate file search.

As a workaround, you can list files without folder structure, then sort by file size.

Open Beyond Compare 4's Folder Compare.
Use the left browse button to the load the parent folder of the folders you want to sort.
Select "View > Ignore Folder Structure" from the menu.
Click on the Size column header to sort by file size.

If you see two files with matching sizes as you go through the list, select both of them, then right click and select "Open" to open them in a comparison to verify they're the same.

If you have a large number of duplicates, you might want to use a dedicated duplicate file finding utility instead of Beyond Compare. I can't recommend a specific tool, but if you search for "duplicate file" in Google it should suggest some good candidates.

[dchass]

Folder Compare Problem Solved

Thank you for your very prompt response.

I should have explained - I am trying to isolate duplicate folders rather that duplicate images, and believe that I have now solved the problem. The errors I was seeing were due to the fact that in some cases I was comparing folders on the hard disk with folders online on Onedrive. Now that I have made the OneDrive folders available offline, Beyond Compare is producing results as expected and I am easily able to see the duplicate compared to non-identical folders.

Now (with the timestamp turned off under Rules > Comparison > Compare Timestamps), folder icons show as black on both sides (as do all items within folders) as expected when identical folders are compared. This makes visual comparison very quick and simple. And the odd image which turns up as corrupt is also very easily identified.

I must say that Beyond Compare 4 is a very useful program. Having now researched other similar programs, Beyond Compare appears far more powerful and sophisticated than the competion. I am sure I will find it of great benefit in my lengthy task of sorting and reviewing a huge photo library.

[Aaron]

Thanks!

Keep an eye out for the BC 4.1 release. We're working on a new Profile type that we hope to get in there that might interest you.