Windows 8.1 and PSE10 - duplicate photo files

[KevPride]

Earlier this year I went from a desktop computer to a new Laptop with W8.1. I backed up my photo files to an external drive and when uploaded to the Laptop I have ended up with a duplicate set of files in a different Directory.

The problem I have is that I did not notice immediately and it would appear some of my 2015 uploads appear in either areas.

My files are simply saved date taken I have not cataloged any at this point.

Is there a simply way with PSE10 to move the late 2014 & 2015 files from the Directory I do not wish to use and to still have PSE recognize those files and not treat as "missing" or to loose any files.

I await your help.

Kevin

[ameerat42]

If I understand, you just have a ?whole copy of a folder on your laptop? Can you identify that you have with Win's File Explorer?
They are not somewhere in a library? What you say about PSE10 is, I guess, its way of identifying and cataloging files.

If you can determine that they are a completely different and separate set, then just use Win's File Explorer to delete the whole folder.
BUT FIRST, make sure you have a backup still, maybe on the external drive you used to xfer them to the laptop.

If this is NOT what you're saying, then let us know.
Am.

[arthurking83]

I reckon we're going to need some more info Kev.

Going from the small amount of info you've provided, I assume that you had images on the PC as well as the external drive?
Without knowing this info, it's hard to explain what is happening.

So lets say you had lots of photos backed up in your "Pictures directory" already, and you did a backup and transfer routine when you went from the desktop to the laptop.
(again, the lack of any info about this makes it hard to help)
.. if you did a backup-transfer-restore transfer of data from the old PC to the laptop ... and then again via another program(PSE?) .. then PSE will probably try to back them up to another directory, different to the one you may have done with the PC to laptop data transfer.

honestly, it's hard to offer any advice without more info as to what processes you have already done.

Some more info for 'ya to consider.

1/. when transferring data from an external device to a computer of any sort .. always call it download. (it avoids confusion)
(some useless info about this: the host device is the computer, the dumb device is the external storage(or connected device or network area(eg internet) .. you always download to the host device .. upload to the connected device .. maintaining that language avoids confusion that may be deleterious to your saved files!!)

2/. once you have backed any files onto the external device, even tho you downloaded those file back onto the computer unless you specifically did something to change this .. the files should still be on the external device(which I assume is an ext hard drive).

3/. the program you choose to use for any data transfer can be important in keeping track of all manner of periphery data attached to the important files.
This part is important!!
as a quick exampleand dealing with a raw file type workflow!! .. jpg can be different)
lets say you simply used Windows Explorer(not Internet Explorer!!) to transfer all your images from the old desktop PC to the ext drive.
But lets say you catalogue those images with PS(I really don't know if you can actually do this .. I assume you can).
Windows Explorer does not recognise any of the catalogue info created via PS, so when you upload the files to the ext HDD, only the images will be transferred over .. not the catalogue info attached to those images(unless the catalogue info is embedded in a jpg file).
There is a very high probability that PS will see the images you transferred via Windows Explorer as different files to what it expects to see taking it's own catalogue info into consideration.

in a graphic kind of way, let say you have an image called DSC_0001.raw, and on your desktop you added some tagged info via PS.
If you move(upload/download/transfer/archive/etc) this file with any other program other than the one that set the catalogue info, later on using the program you added the catalogue info it almost certainly will see this file DSC_0001.raw as a totally different file to the one it originally may have tagged.
So on this new attempt to start using PS again on the new computer, PS may want to re catalogue all those (now uncatalogued) files on your ext HDD.
So it will start a new catalogue all over again. Because of this you will have duplicate files, as PS doesn't want to overwrite the old files with the same filename!

Just quickly, and definitely with a zero level of certainty .. if you have downloaded the files from the ext HDD to the new laptop, did you clear out the ext HDD?
The normal routine would be that whatever program you used didn't do that .. so all the archived files you originally transferred to the extHDD from the old desktop should still be there after to may have transferred them to the PC.
Actually a more pertinent question is: are you using the files directly off the ext HDD or did you transfer them to the laptop too?
Either way, once you're in PS, and the ext HDD is disconnected .. it can't harm the files on the ext HDD.
So if you see duplicate files via PSE and the ext HDD is not connected, then it surely must have backed them up to a location on the laptops hard drive as well.

Like I said earlier, without a lot more info, there really isn't a lot we can help you with, as (I think) any advice anyone gives may delete data that you don't want to lose.

Do you have your images tagged for cataloguing purposes at all?
Is this important to you?
If so, what method do you use?

Just quickly, to try to give you an almost answer to your question.
Yes(there should be) a way to manage files via PSE (hopefully someone with PS knowledge will come to the rescue).
As for losing any files in the process, if the files you definitely want to keep are definitely on the ext HDD and the ext HDD is not connected to the laptop, they can't be harmed in any way.
The catalogue for them may get deleted and they may be reimported as different files again, but the files won't be lost.

With any good cataloguing program, you should be able to delete the file(from the database), or physically remove the file from the location(ext HDD, PC, etc)

Again, not having ever used PSE, I don't know how this is done, or worded.
In Lightroom, I think they are the terms used.

ps. image file management is so much easier in a non Adobe environment.

[KevPride]

Thanks for the advice, I had backed up all the photos to 2 separate external HDD before using the Laptop.

All the other non photo files I wanted kept I backed up to one of the external HDD at the same time. What I think may have happened is that HDD that I used to image the old Desktop still had the last backup of my photo files up to 2014. When I moved this all to laptop, it moved both the previous backup files and the image of the desktop to the Laptop thus creating 2 "Picture" folders.

The "image" added the "picture" files to the "C" drive and looked for all just like my old Desktop however when I started loading new camera files these initially went into the duplicated "picture" folder not the "image" area I wanted to use - Photoshop could see them located in an area I initially did not see until I opened a properties box on an image I was Photoshopping. This was when the penny dropped I had 2 separate "picture" folders.

I have formatted another small external HDD and in the process of backing all the 2014 and earlier files to that and will delete the second "picture" folder. Once finished I will spend some time just checking the remaining "picture" folder to see if any dates are missing.

Thanks again for your help with this.

[pixelsaurus]

My personal experiences have been difficult using PSE Organizers. I have found that a) they often find rubbish on your drives and incorporate them into your catalogue and b) the Organizer often does not reconnect files and can take a long time to inform you of that. I have had innumerable issues with PSE4,6,9 and 11 organizers to the extent that my catalogue is one unholy mess. I now have to find all my backup disks to rebuild it again but this time, I will use a non PSE organizer. There have been complaints over the years about PSE Organizers but little seems to be done about it. A duplicate file finder and eliminator would have been nice but all Adobe seemed to have done is put more whistle and bells on it without improving reliability.