Big Library Organization

Plex Media Server
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Server Version#: 1.26.2.5797

This is not a problem per se with Plex, but a request for suggestions or guidance. I know this has been asked several thousand times, but I seem to be having problems finding an answer, either with google-fu or here in the forums.

Is there a suggested method for organizing large libraries? I’m a long time user (10+ years) and have a library greater than 1k+ movies. For years I have been organizing into genre’s to (hopefully) better organize my library. But I’ve also found that having multiple libraries tends to make it harder to find information, such as movies for specific actors, or related movies. Is there a suggested or better way to organize my collection? Does the one big folder of everything work better, or would it make sense to have the genre folders and lump all those directories into one big movie library.

It would be really nice if there was something pinned to help the clueless (me) better understand how we can organize our large collections.

That said, any help here would be much appreciated!

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One big library works for me – mostly.
I’ve got one additional libraries for short films and one for alternative cuts/editions (although you could also keep those in the same library).

I use collections to group movie franchises / universes or other groupings that are significant to me. I know users who also use collections to quickly access certain aspects of their libraries without the need to use filters (e.g. smart collections for certain genres, directors…). Personally I haven’t felt the need for those yet.

As for folders…
There’s no need to separate things on that level. One library-level folder with folders per movie are perfectly fine.
I’ve seen users reporting they also want to be able to drill into their libraries in the file system and have therefore grouped them in additional top-level folders (e.g. alphabetical, decade top-level folders) – then again… that’s not adding anything to the Plex experience.