Server Version#: Version 1.31.2.6810
Player Version#: Version 4.103.2
I addeded Folder X of TV shows to Library Z by accident. I removed Folder X, and have run several scans and rubbish deletions. TV shows in Folder X still show in Library Z and “Recently Added to Library Z” - in fact they - by virtual of their recent addition - completely swap the Recently Added section.
How do I remove them without having to reconstruct Library Z from scratch?
I can’t find anything docs/KB articles covering this case.
I’ve gone through that cycle (with the bundle cleaning) several times over 3 days without making a dent in the unwanted content.
Edit this library,
go to the “Add Folders” tab.
inspect the list of folders shown there.
all of the folder paths listed on there must be:
- existent
- accessible by Plex Server
- not completely empty
Can you confirm that this is the case?
If yes, then
Enable “debug” server logs (do not enable “verbose” logs!)
stop and restart plex server
wait 5 minutes
fetch server logs and post the whole zip file here.
I can confirm that all the folders exist but that completely missed the point: the library is still showing content from folders that have been removed from the library. The problem is not with what is still there
Running scans, emptying waste, cleaning bundles, optimising the database have no effect.
Since this appears to be a longstanding issue (based on other threads from years past) I am in the midst of a complicated Plex Dance to clean out that Library without losing all the metadata belonging to the files in another library.
You can only Plex Dance files which are still in existence.
You can not perform a Plex Dance on files which have already been removed from a library.
Instead of a Plex Dance, you can simply remove the whole library section and let it rebuild.
But before doing that, I urge you to confirm that there is no damage in your database file. The above instructions about server logs were intended to do that.
If you continue to work witrh a damaged database, it could cause complete data loss down the road.
The files have not been deleted so they “are still in existence”. The Plex Dance is to ensure that the painfully-assigned metadata that they have in another Library is not lost. Plex insists on matching the wrong shows and throwing away artwork.
There is no “simply” in “remove the whole library section and let it rebuild.” I assume by “section” that you mean the entire library.
I have found the fastest way to resolve this is to manually delete from the Plex Library every TV series from the folder that had been removed from it 5 days ago. These ghosts all show as Unavailable, but simply can’t be exorcised by expected methods.
The Plex Dance enabled me to keep the metadata in the other Library they normally live in.
The Plex docs and reports of similar issues on other posts suggest that this case has never been tested.
That exactly what the Plex Dance is not doing.
Actually, that is the point. If you have a target folder listed under “Add Folders” that is empty/inaccessible, Plex will think that folder is missing so it will not alter any videos that was from there. This is a safety feature incase these point to a drive that become accidentally unplugged or a NAS that goes offline. If you have such a folder listed here, remove that folder from this list. As long as these folders are still listed, PMS will not remove the content, no matter what you do.
" If you have such a folder listed here, remove that folder from this list. "
The whole point of this post is that removing the folder from the Library list did not remove the content from the library.
Every action since then has been a workaround to that failure (which has been reported on other posts.)
SInce you fail at every point to comprehend what is going on, perhaps bow out?
Please show a screenshot of the “add folder” tab to verify the folder is gone. Then post the xml info for one of these videos that won’t go away.
It’s a moot point now since I have manually removed 65+ TV series one at a time, but I can assure after going back to the Add Folder dialog MANY times over the last week, is that it went when i removed it and never came back.
How can I show you a picture of something that isn’t there?
Can you explain the exact steps you did to remove these TV series? Something is not lining up.
- I moved and renamed the folder that had been erroneously added to Library L2 and added its new location to its original Library L1.
- After several cycles of re-scans, waste emptying and bundle cleaning, where the folder contents still listed in L2, I manually selected each TV series from that and deleted it from the kebab menu. Inspection of individual files (using Get Info) showed all the files from those TV series as “Unavailable” )
Libraries L1 and L2 are now back to the state they were in a week ago.
Deleting stuff is not difficult! Are you really a Plex Employee?
Yes, I work for Plex. For 1 - do you mean you “moved and renamed the folder” through the OS (you haven’t said what OS you are using). When did you remove the folder from the “Add folders” tab? Before or after you did this move?
For 2 - choosing the option to “delete” a show will delete the files themselves. Are you sure, this is what you did? If the files were listed as unavailable, the “delete” feature should not have worked.
Removing the folder from Add folders was done many days ago. Its failure to remove the content from the Library is the reason this post was made. I wrote a few posts above “I have found the fastest way to resolve this is to manually delete from the Plex Library every TV series from the folder that had been removed from it 5 days ago.”
You asked me how I deleted the files, which is what I did today in order to work around the problem. (Server is Windows 11) Individually deleting TV series is extremely tedious but in total it takes far less time than all the rigmarole I’ve gone through while waiting for Plex to do its own housekeeping.
I can assure you that the delete feature works when files are listed as unavailable. I did it at least 65 times today. I’ve done it in the past on occasion.
I was mistaken. You are correct. You can delete an unavailable video. I’m glad to hear you got your library sorted out, but it’s still unclear how this happened. The only time I’ve seen this happen is when the folder was not removed from the “Add folder” list. If you see this happen again, please post again before making any changes and I’d be happy to look into this more.
