Problems in organizing seasons and anime OVAs

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No, it is not normal for the files to remain after you Plex dance.

The important steps of the dance are:

  • 1: Remove the files from the folder where the library is looking. As said above, if your anime is called Trigun (1998), it SHOULD be here:
    /Anime <–library points here
    –/Trigun (1998)
    ----/Season 01
    --------/S01E01.ext
    --------/S01E02.ext
    --------/etc etc
    Remove the Trigun (1998) folder and all its contents. Move them elsewhere on the disk, but make sure it is not in /Anime or any subfolders within it.
  • 2: Scan Library. This will make Plex detect the absence of the file. If done right, there should now be a red trash can icon on each episode if you look at them. Playing the file should also fail.
  • 3: Empty Trash. This tells Plex that any file that is missing (has the red trash icon) is ok to remove from the library. This clears out any references to the missing item, including watched status. It will be as if you never had the item in the first place.

Now, with those 3 steps done, move the folder back into the location. Using my example as above, again, it should look like:
/Anime <–library points here
–/Trigun (1998)
----/Season 01
--------/S01E01.ext
--------/S01E02.ext
--------/etc etc
----/Specials
--------/S00E01 - OVA 1.ext
--------/S00E02 - OVA 2.ext
--------/etc etc
In Trigun’s case, the only special it has is the movie, Badlands Rumble, but I hope you get the idea.

Once you place it in there - including with Season and Specials folders, tell the library to scan one more time so it can detect the new files.

NOTE: If the files are stored on the same machine as the server itself, it will likely AUTOMATICALLY scan a folder when any file is added or removed. This can be useful if you add files with the right name originally, but can cause some major issues if you move a file to a folder and THEN rename files. If you ever rename a file in a folder and rescan, Plex will notice that name change and WILL NOT attempt to “identify” the file based on its name. It is why it is ALWAYS best to remove a file from the library location, do whatever you need to do to it, then add it back in again.

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