Hi- The first time I ran a scan I got too much, like video files from games, cutscenes from games, and so forth. How do I remove them from my library without deleting them from my computer?
And- If, for instance, a movie is tucked away in a folder, it seems I have to add the whole folder to get it scanned up into the library. Is there a way I can scan my whole hard drive and have Plex "not accept" certain video files, like files under five minutes, something like that? How can I order the files that I have by time so that I can begin to see what I want to take out of the library (but not delete from the computer)?
Honestly everything would 'sort itself out'.....if you just sorted your drive and media. Scanning the entire hard drive would not be a 'best practice'.
Scan your 'My Videos' folder or whatever, not the entire drive and then checking each file for length.
Windows explorer depending on filetype will tell you lengths, may have to change the custom view.
That seems very peculiar. Just change the folder your library is set to and update library, it will remove the entries no longer applicable w/ o 'erasing' them.
There are some plexignore (search the forums) but I think it just does filetypes and directories...not the very granular setting you are referring to.
@dmanes said:
Seriously how Do I remove a library from plex without deleting the files off my computer
Just remove the library from the Plex server. Unless you’ve given Plex the ability to delete files (which I believe is disabled by default), you can merely remove a library and the files are not touched.
I’m with everyone else, and these nonsense “you don’t want to do it” or “it’ll sort itself out” answers aren’t the least bit helpful. I have a TV series, in a library, that I want to remove from the library without removing from the disk. Moving them around on the disk doesn’t seem to have done the trick. This shouldn’t be impossible. It feels very reasonable.
@robertlabrie I agree with others that it is a terrible idea to be scanning areas on a drive that doesn’t contain media for Plex. If you have moved the items out the scanned location, they should disappear after trash has been emptied. However it is possible that Plex continues to show them as still being there. Take a look at the following support article:
Move the files to a location where Plex cannot see them. That is a location that is not a directory a library points at or a member of a directory tree that starts at a directory where a library is pointed.
Go into Plex web
Go into the library they were showing up in and click on the little circular arrow toward the upper right to refresh the library.
After the refresh finishes In Plex’s web interface home page click on the three dots … next to the word “Library.”
Choose “Empty Trash” and click it then, after it finishes, repeat the selection and choose “Clean Bundles.”
When all of that is done the file(s) you moved will no longer be displayed in the Plex interface.
It “sounds” complex when described in words but it is really quite simple and the only part that takes any time is the period while the library refreshes if you have a large library.
The .plexignore is a great way to ignore files from a specific folder. But my problem is this:
I’m currently downloading a show from a torrent, and the way torrent works is, it downloads the file information and stores it in the folder prior to downloading the file content. Plex sees this as a complete file.
I have a show that is currently populating, but PLEX has added it to its library.
I want to go in and (after the fact) remove the show, and re scan the drive so it doesn’t show up until it’s fully downloaded.
However, once the file is added to the library, Plex seems to ignore the .plexignore file. I can’t seem to remove these shows from my library, and “moving them to a new location” is not an option, while they are still populating.
Why is it not possible to remove (without deleting the files) and then re-update a show from the library taking the new .plexignore file into account?
@crooker said:
The .plexignore is a great way to ignore files from a specific folder. But my problem is this:
I’m currently downloading a show from a torrent, and the way torrent works is, it downloads the file information and stores it in the folder prior to downloading the file content. Plex sees this as a complete file.
I have a show that is currently populating, but PLEX has added it to its library.
I want to go in and (after the fact) remove the show, and re scan the drive so it doesn’t show up until it’s fully downloaded.
However, once the file is added to the library, Plex seems to ignore the .plexignore file. I can’t seem to remove these shows from my library, and “moving them to a new location” is not an option, while they are still populating.
Why is it not possible to remove (without deleting the files) and then re-update a show from the library taking the new .plexignore file into account?
That is also something you should not really do…
It is better to download outside the Library space and when the Torrent is done move it to the Library if you wish to continue seeding.
And you should know that torrenting is murder on a physical Hard Drive and eventually will cause that drive to fail which is why I have a 1TB temp drive reserved just for saving torrents in progress.
To solve your issue however…You could also shut off automatically updating the library (on changes or Schedule) and just update the library manually.
As for how to remove files that have been added already…
Move them out of the library space, Scan the section, Empty Trash when the scan is done…
I am already using MCEBuddy to monitor my Recorded TV folder, match, rename and structure both TV and Movies, cut out the advertisements, convert the WTV files to MP4 for direct play, then stick the final products into the appropriate Movie or TV Show folder automatically. If you don’t want MCEBuddy to touch your files it’s easy to have it just rename them and copy them unaltered into your Plex Ecosystem leaving the original files right where they were - hands free. I can leave my ‘auto-update’ on and when MCEBuddy delivers new material to the libraries Plex finds, indexes, creates preview thumbs and all I have to do is press play when it shows up.
Lots of options for automated delivery with perfectly named files for Plex in the Plex approved structure.
This is especially hard now since the last plex update took a few steps backward. I used to be able to select all movies rated G, PG, or PG-13 for kids to watch, but now I can only filter one option at a time. Also, you can no longer delete things from plex like I’ve seen others explaining in this discussion. Now if you want to remove a video from plex you have to delete the file and update the library. So since I’m trying to create different libraries for kids and adults I have to copy all movies to a different folder and create a library in plex using each one, and manually go through some 1000 movies to move over to the other folder. FML, F- Plex
@rjordanglad said:
This is especially hard now since the last plex update took a few steps backward. I used to be able to select all movies rated G, PG, or PG-13 for kids to watch, but now I can only filter one option at a time.
@rjordanglad said:
This is especially hard now since the last plex update took a few steps backward. I used to be able to select all movies rated G, PG, or PG-13 for kids to watch, but now I can only filter one option at a time.
That’s never worked for me, I ask it to filter the content rating and anyway I do it, it only gives me a list of 30 or so movies that have no content rating at all. Not to mention some of the other UI glitches. Either way, I can’t do it like I used to, and since they want you to pay extra for parental control it’s not something they’re going to fix.
Also I never said you could delete, I said others said you could, so calm down buddy
What would also be great would be if we could have right-click integration (in my case Windows) whereby I could just right-click (in the Windows UI, not plex itself) on the folder/file and select from the plex options>ignore from library.
So for example, I have all the Star Wars films ripped, but I also have the de-specialised versions of Episodes IV, V and VI. Now I’d like to have Plex show all 8 of the Star Wars films, but not the despecialised versions that are in a separate folder. (in my main Films folder) It would be great if I could just right-click on this file containing the de-specialised version to be omitted from Plex.
[Edit] Ended up just splitting the file within the Plex interface (web) and editing the names to show which version of the film was which. It would be easier to have right-click functionality, but at least I can do it without having to add a .plexignore file (read the article on how to create one, but have no idea as to what I should include in the file)
I think this thread is everything that is wrong with the current state of Plex and its support mechanisms. I used to love Plex but the fact is it has been left behind by better and free options.
A simple question, it can’t be answered without the thread derailing all over the place nor can this simple task be done. it is absurd to have to continue to do the “plex dance” to edit or delete one simple item. On a paid program no less.
Other simple threads remained unanswered for months or years.
Development on this program has stalled for years now. Either release Plex back into the open source world so we can revive development or give it the proper burial it deserves.
@MrMultipass said:
A simple question, it can’t be answered without the thread derailing all over the place nor can this simple task be done. it is absurd to have to continue to do the “plex dance” to edit or delete one simple item. On a paid program no less.
A simple question with a very complex answer. When Plex scans a library, it builds a database. What you see displayed in clients is a readback of those tables, not a live representation of the files that are present. It can’t know what files you’ve moved or deleted until it does another proper full scan, or in the safest scenarios, the Plex Dance. It’s expecting to see the last thing it saw when it looked.
It’s like organizing your kitchen cabinets, then going back and blindly reaching for things where you expect them to be. You won’t know what’s gone or moved until you either find them missing by touch, or you open your eyes and take a hard look again.
This really isn’t a problem at all, once you understand how the system works. It’s a database, and a server… and behaves thusly. If you want a live view, then use a file explorer… which doesn’t have any of the cool artwork and descriptions that you’ll get with written tables.
Then allow me to simply hide the 3 duplicate albums that point to nothing, so I don’t have to rebuild my entire database and move files and move them back. The when I finally do a rebuild, they will get deleted and I wont have to worry about it.
You’re giving me technical explanations of why important and basic user features can’t be done. I get it, but then you end up with a program only an engineer will wan to to use or maybe no one. If you cannot find workarounds for simple tasks, then maybe it is time to move on. I know many a user has. Because we just want something that works.
I maintain my PMS but I don’t use a single front end anymore. Its all Kodi. Because I gotta go with what works.
+1 on this request (namely, ability to hide in the library a file that is physically present, without having to move the file to a different location). A good analogy is iTunes - when you delete from the iTunes database, it permits you the option either to delete the media file or to leave it in place; which allows for a variety of workflows and organization schemes.
I’m having a problem where Plex thinks that a movie file is also a TV show.
The movie is correctly matched in the movies tab and in the tv shows tab it shows that grey artwork…
Changing the file name is not an option because it need to be seeded back. Why isn’t there a hide button, guys?
