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Why does Organizer create duplicate images?

Explorer ,
Nov 20, 2017 Nov 20, 2017

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I've been told in a response to a related questions I asked in another thread that when I move photos within Organizer the files will be renamed with a -1 suffix. But the original photos are actually duplicated, not overwritten!! Why?!

Upon opening Organizer for the first time, I decided to better organize my photos and moved around hundreds of them. That's what you do with an organizer, right?!

So I check my Windows 10 Pictures folder and find hundreds of exact duplicates (same size, dimensions, etc) of the photos I moved. These duplicate photos do NOT show in Organizer, only on my hard drive. I deleted them only to find that Organizer now says these photos are missing....and I have to reconnect each.

Why does Organizer make duplicates? They consume disk space, a precious commodity for those of us who have a very modestly sized Solid-state drive.

-1.jpg

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correct answers 1 Correct answer

Community Expert , Nov 20, 2017 Nov 20, 2017

fotografffic  wrote

I've been told in a response to a related questions I asked in another thread that when I move photos within Organizer the files will be renamed with a -1 suffix. But the original photos are actually duplicated, not overwritten!! Why?!

Upon opening Organizer for the first time, I decided to better organize my photos and moved around hundreds of them. That's what you do with an organizer, right?!

So I check my Windows 10 Pictures folder and find hundreds of exact duplicates (same

...

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Community Expert ,
Nov 20, 2017 Nov 20, 2017

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fotografffic  wrote

I've been told in a response to a related questions I asked in another thread that when I move photos within Organizer the files will be renamed with a -1 suffix. But the original photos are actually duplicated, not overwritten!! Why?!

Upon opening Organizer for the first time, I decided to better organize my photos and moved around hundreds of them. That's what you do with an organizer, right?!

So I check my Windows 10 Pictures folder and find hundreds of exact duplicates (same size, dimensions, etc) of the photos I moved. These duplicate photos do NOT show in Organizer, only on my hard drive. I deleted them only to find that Organizer now says these photos are missing....and I have to reconnect each.

Why does Organizer make duplicates? They consume disk space, a precious commodity for those of us who have a very modestly sized Solid-state drive.

-1.jpg

My answer is that I don't believe the organizer has created any duplicate.  It has found duplicates and I can't explain what is going on in your computer. I have seen cases where the duplicates have been created by other processes (sync with the Cloud, Acronis services creating new drive letters... not only editing programs like Picasa) I don't understand at all how you have put your files on the computer after 'cleaning' the Pictures folder.

In other posts I have said that only the downloader can import duplicates on certain circumstances if you import from camera or card reader.

Even the 'watched folders' service only searches and indexes files in the catalog (only links).

I have never read of a similar case in this and other Elements forums.

What I have seen and I can explain is:

1 - The organizer is programmed to prohibit importing (indexing) duplicate files in the catalog.

2 - Duplicate file for a catalog are file with the same size in Kbytes and date_taken

3 - The result is what you are seeing: you have more files in your folder than in the catalog

4 - In the import process, the files are scanned to check if they are similar to those in the catalog (which explains that duplicates can be found in a batch process with an empty catalog at start. The first file found is imported, the duplicate is rejected and you get messages that files have not been imported because they are already in the catalog - they were not in the empty catalog, but they appeared in the course of the import process.

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Explorer ,
Nov 20, 2017 Nov 20, 2017

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Okay, thank you again.

For what it's worth, I found some information about duplicate files.

http://smallbusiness.chron.com/delete-duplicates-photoshop-elements-46056.html

"A common problem that arises when using Photoshop Elements is that it creates duplicate files of the images you are editing."

But I don't recall editing any of the photos that are duplicates. Only relocated them to different folders within Organizer. As you said, it must be something else.


"If you can't beat, join 'em."

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Community Expert ,
Nov 20, 2017 Nov 20, 2017

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fotografffic  wrote

Okay, thank you again.

For what it's worth, I found some information about duplicate files.

http://smallbusiness.chron.com/delete-duplicates-photoshop-elements-46056.html

"A common problem that arises when using Photoshop Elements is that it creates duplicate files of the images you are editing."

But I don't recall editing any of the photos that are duplicates. Only relocated them to different folders within Organizer. As you said, it must be something else.


"If you can't beat, join 'em."

That's not information.

Nothing like what you are experiencing now.

I am pretty sure that what she means is that  YOU (the user) can create duplicate files of the images you are editing. Those are not duplicates like those you are seeing: real duplicates according to the size/date definition. They are 'visual' duplicates or versions.

If we forget the organizer for a moment, we can see that photo editing and organizer tools have many reasons to create several kinds of duplicates; that explains the number of dedicated softwares to kill or manage duplicates.

What you'll find about importing duplicates are many complaints about the downloader (from camera or card reader). In some circumstances, especially in older versions (mainly MACS) the downloader does not or did not filter already imported files from cards.

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Community Beginner ,
Jan 30, 2018 Jan 30, 2018

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this is not, i repeat, a solution or even an explanation of the duplicate problem. i spent an hour with an apple tech. checking my computer. my mac is not the problem. i had a total of over two hours between online chats and an extended telephone call with adobe techs and they DO NOT have an explanation much less a solution. they were not even aware that this is a widespread problem. i only hope my experience will escalate adobe's effort to solve this.

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Community Expert ,
Jan 31, 2018 Jan 31, 2018

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robertl12222787  wrote

this is not, i repeat, a solution or even an explanation of the duplicate problem. i spent an hour with an apple tech. checking my computer. my mac is not the problem. i had a total of over two hours between online chats and an extended telephone call with adobe techs and they DO NOT have an explanation much less a solution. they were not even aware that this is a widespread problem. i only hope my experience will escalate adobe's effort to solve this.

You may repeat it, but what is widespread is that there are many risks of creating duplicates on your computer with or without Elements. That has probably happened to all photographers. What you may consider as widespread is that people are importing several times the same files from camera or otherwise (even with the filter in the downloader). We have just seen in various forums a handful of cases of users reporting the issue and thinking that Elements creates spontaneously duplicates. No way to reproduce the problem.

The import problem has been discussed for more than ten years and complaints have become rare. The only reason I might have quoted Macs is because the file size criteria in kb may have been handled differently in older versions. Obviously, you can't expect an explanation by Mac experts.

So, if you want to convince anybody that Elements creates duplicates on its own, you need first to prove that its not the downloader (that is easy if you control the files you import). The automatic import created by 'watched folders' must be controlled as well. If you find new duplicates after that (easier to check by visual browsing of chronological sorted files or 'visual searches') it will be easier to find the user process or command which has triggered the duplication, backup and restores or the like.

Good practices in my opinion:

- don't use the default 'bulk' import, use the 'import' selectively from folders.

- Importing from card, either remove the files after they have been downloaded, processed and backed up or check the selection before importing (I always do)

- Be prudent in using 'watched folders' with automatic import.

- Using a single catalog is much safer than using several because the filter on import will not find 'already present files in the catalog' and import again with a suffix in the same subfolder.

- If you see duplicates, check if they have the same date_taken or file size in kB.

- To troubleshoot, also check 'Import batches'. Very often, if you find one file, the other files in the batch will be other duplicates, even for different dates.

- Good practices to avoid 'visual duplicates' (different sizes) is to avoid creating or exporting copies on your computer, rather create only temporary copies for printing, for a slideshow or creation. You can add the files to albums and reexport them as you want for different purposes. Be sure there is a good reason to 'import' exported files.

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Community Beginner ,
Feb 02, 2018 Feb 02, 2018

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You might as well be talking a foreign language. I do not comprehend what

you are trying to say.

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New Here ,
Feb 02, 2018 Feb 02, 2018

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I have the same problem and am wondering why?  I have Photoshop Elements 2018 and run it on a Mac.  Not only does it duplicate every picture that was imported, but it also creates new photos of the people from face recognition.  I have approx. 19,000 pictures and have just completed the face recognition. 

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Community Expert ,
Feb 03, 2018 Feb 03, 2018

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jaym45916686  wrote

I have the same problem and am wondering why?  I have Photoshop Elements 2018 and run it on a Mac.  Not only does it duplicate every picture that was imported, but it also creates new photos of the people from face recognition.  I have approx. 19,000 pictures and have just completed the face recognition. 

The big problem in this discussion is the title.

"Why does Organizer create duplicate image"

This is not a question, that's an affimation. And a totally false one until some proof is established.

The question might be more generally:

"Why do I get duplicates using the organizer ?"

I would like it a bit more precise, just like:

"Why do I get duplicates using the downloader ?"

This question has been discussed many times and you should read again my previous post about  reasons and workarounds. It is also useful to be clear about what you call duplicates. Same file names? Same size/date properties? Same visual similarity? Duplicates on the computer or in the catalog?

You are mentioning face recognition as a factor to create duplicates.

That is a very precise potential issue; one which would deserve a different discussion.

One one hand, I am very skeptical about that affirmation,

on the other... I don't use and absolutely don't want to use it. I need photography and organization tools, not forensics. I need to tag persons, not faces and that is perfectly done with the catalog tags hierarchies. So, I am very curious to know what makes you think you get duplicates from face recognition.

Please provide some details about those duplicates. There are other users in this forum using face recognition successfully, they could help you in this matter.

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Community Beginner ,
Feb 03, 2018 Feb 03, 2018

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I am finding two different types of duplicate images. The first have

suffixes. For example, 42-1, 42-2, 42-3. These all appear in the catalog.

The other type is really baffling because they are simply duplicate without

any id. For example, I will see 42 and 42. These are NOT duplicated in the

catalog.

In addition, the ap runs excruciatingly slow and often freezes and I have to

force quit it.

I recently spent over two hours each with representatives from Apple and

Adobe and they cannot find any explanation for these problems. I even

uninstalled and reinstalled premiere and elements but that did not change a

thing.

I got the feeling from one Adobe rep. that he knew there was a compatibility

problem with OS 10.13 but that an update would take a long time. As it

stands the ap is totally unusable.

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Community Expert ,
Feb 04, 2018 Feb 04, 2018

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robertl12222787  wrote

I am finding two different types of duplicate images. The first have

suffixes. For example, 42-1, 42-2, 42-3. These all appear in the catalog.

The other type is really baffling because they are simply duplicate without

any id. For example, I will see 42 and 42. These are NOT duplicated in the

catalog.

Just out of curiosity: are those names for scanned files?

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Community Beginner ,
Feb 04, 2018 Feb 04, 2018

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What do you mean by ³scanned files²?

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Community Expert ,
Feb 04, 2018 Feb 04, 2018

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robertl12222787  wrote

What do you mean by ³scanned files²?

Sorry, I meant "files imported from a scanner, not from a camera or card reader".

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Community Beginner ,
Feb 05, 2018 Feb 05, 2018

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I have not tried scanning photos for import.

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New Here ,
Oct 15, 2018 Oct 15, 2018

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I have the same issue and I cannot remember how this occurred but I started with photoshop elements 5, I thought something might have changed since then.  I KNOW I did not create all these duplicates that have a -1 or if 2 duplicates a -2 etc. 

I finally found a post where someone is answering this in regards to importing pictures via a camera and bringing in duplicates. The original photo and the duplicates have been cataloged in the same catalog assuming because they have a different name.

https://forums.adobe.com/thread/2167213

I know this is an old post but maybe you will be notified that someone replied on it.

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Community Beginner ,
Jul 20, 2020 Jul 20, 2020

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I have the same problem, Many exact duplicates which I cannot explain.

I used to occur in version 10 and 14 I am now trying 2020, But the same happens again

another problem is if I stack photoś I have to pack them one by one and not in bulk as it used to be.

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Community Expert ,
Jul 20, 2020 Jul 20, 2020

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another problem is if I stack photoś I have to pack them one by one and not in bulk as it used to be.

May I suggest to start a new discussion about this issue?

Please provide a little more details about what you want and what did work which no longer does.

 

For the duplicate issues, let's follow the present discussion, stating if you are on Mac or Win and which version?

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New Here ,
Aug 10, 2020 Aug 10, 2020

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I have the same problem as what is described above on a PC running Windows 10, build 1904. I'm using Elements 2020 and have not had a good experience with this product after using Photoshop CS5 previously on a Windows 7 PC without these types of problems.

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Community Expert ,
Aug 11, 2020 Aug 11, 2020

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I am sorry to say that when someone writes "I have the same problem as what is described above" I don't believe it at all and I translate: "I have similar issues as the above problem".

What is new in your case is that you are on the latest Windows 10, which is indeed interesting because that excludes Mac specific issues like the one mentioned by Kiakr; by the way the link to that issue has been lost in the migration of the forum... I believe it's something about the incompatibility of Time Machine with the backup/restore feature, or with video items.

Re-reading the whole discussion might help you to describe your issue in more detail so that we have a chance to help you find what is the reason of the duplicates and how to avoid them in the future.

- are they duplicates in the same subdirectory with -1 suffixes?

- are they in batches in different subdirectories?

- are they strictly duplicates in the downloader criteria (same date_taken, same size in kilobytes?) and not visual duplicates in several sizes or crops?

- do you use different catalogs? (even older catalogs and their converted more recent versions)?

- are you able to find duplicates for a given event by using the sorting option by date_taken?

- can you find subfolders showing files with -1 suffixes which are obvious duplicates imported at different times?

 

If  you have a recurring problem downloading files from camera or card readers and the downloader does not filter out duplicates, you can generally select the latest files to import by showing them in date order, clicking on the thumbnail of the oldest one, than shift clicking on the thumbnail of the lasted, which highlights the recent batch, then clicking on the selection box and starting the import?

 

 

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Community Beginner ,
Aug 11, 2020 Aug 11, 2020

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I had the same with multiple duplicates. Originally it was diagnosed as
multiple physical files in different locations.
Now I am not so sure. In one instance I had some file that were more than 20
times. I gave up.
Now I am letting the system search for duplicates an then I stack them and
delete the duplicates

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New Here ,
Aug 16, 2020 Aug 16, 2020

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I have a simular problem. I am using Windows 10. The photos were taken on an iPhone 8, and are in the iCloud. Before I used Organizer, I had one copy of each photo, now, after adding the file to Organizer I have two copies of each photo. For example, one is called IMG_0043, after I put it in Organizer, another file appeared called IMG_0043.HEIC._00_  The original file now has a stutus of Waiting to Sync. The files are in the cloud, so space isn't really an issue, it's just that it makes the files bigger and messier.

 

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Explorer ,
Jan 04, 2021 Jan 04, 2021

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I'm on this thread because I have a very similar problem:

I download an image from my camera via the Organizer/USB cable on Windows 10.

The downloaded image appears in the Organizer as two identical images in looks, size and image number - no suffix. I have never downloaded, edited, or tagged that image previously.

I am looking for a solution:  How can I keep the Organizer from downloading duplicate images?

 

Possible causes I've heard mentioned:

* Some of us may have duplicate Catalogs from cloning drives or some other reason.

* Some of us may have other photo organizers or editors installed that may trick Elements into duplicating its download.

* It may be a bug in Elements Organizer.  When an unintended, trouble-making event occurs in a program experienced by many people under diverse conditions, it is a bug that needs to be addressed.

________________________________________________________________________________________ Fuji HS50EXR, Samsung S9+. Nikon Coolpix P950. Just transitioned from PSE and PE 9 to 2021

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Community Expert ,
Jan 04, 2021 Jan 04, 2021

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* It may be a bug in Elements Organizer. When an unintended, trouble-making event occurs in a program experienced by many people under diverse conditions, it is a bug that needs to be addressed.

My experience from reading thousands of posts in various forums, is that I have read hundreds of posts dealing with duplicates, and I am convinced that will continue.

However, issues like the one of the original post were extremely rare and rather new. Some explanations have been given, but they don't point to 'bugs' or to incompatibilities with the hardware or software environment as you have seen. So, we are far from easily reproduced bugs or even incompatibilities.

'Many people'... you and me don't know, but Adobe has tools to gather this info, not only from the votes in the feedback forum; "Under diverse conditions": that's what makes troubleshooting problematic. Common discussions in this user to user forum are important to make solutions possible and at least to publish docs about existing incompatibilities.

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Explorer ,
Jan 04, 2021 Jan 04, 2021

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My educated guess is that for every person who posts a problem on this site, there are hundreds who experience a similar problem who do not bother and accept the glitch, live with it, and work around it.That is true in politics, health, social relationships and life in general.  Most don't want to be bothered with complaining about, never mind solve a problem/error/bug that is not life threatening or earth-shaking.  They just accept it and live with it.  Some even excuse it or deny its a problem. Consequently software developers have little motivation to determine the cause or correct such glitches.Sent from my Galaxy
________________________________________________________________________________________ Fuji HS50EXR, Samsung S9+. Nikon Coolpix P950. Just transitioned from PSE and PE 9 to 2021

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Community Expert ,
Jan 05, 2021 Jan 05, 2021

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"Consequently software developers have little motivation to determine the cause or correct such glitches."

Very common and huge error from many users in technical forums. In real life, you are not speaking to isolated developers in a garage. Programmers have not their say. You are dealing with very structured and controlled companies. The reality is that each new feature, each bug fix is examined in terms of market share and new sales / consumer fidelity AND cost. The developper is driven by a product manager who has to justify to both marketeers and accountants that the estimated cost (never known at start) will bring a proven advantage. For instance, the same product manager in Adobe deals with both Elements and Photoshop (and more...). He has to find a balance between the 'pro' software in subscription mode and the 'perpetual' one to attract new amateurs: which one is the more profitable?

As you have already seen in the various forums you are using, each forum has its own style and interest. Another frequent question with Adobe and other big companies is why they don't give information in advance about new features or bug fixes. Simple, they are severely controlled for the rules of the stock market and have to prove what they say officially, which means that will be only when the feature/fix is ready. Also, you won't see them publicly discussing issues with other companies, for instance with OS companies or with disputes over software patents.

 

So, with softwares like Photoshop or Elements, with many thousands of features, they have to be tested on an infinity of hardware/software configurations. There are heavy controlled procedures for that, but you see the result especially in the feedback forum: all requests need to be prioritized. Just have a look and try to find a few regular users who are there only to comment on each request, systematically pretending each one is a 'show stopper' hitting nearly most users. The present forum is more balanced with both requests from help and 'how to' questions.

 

You have mentioned that only a small part of the people having issues that come to the forums. Very true, but generally that is a tiny proportion of those who don't have the issue and a tiny proportion of other users who have been lucky to get direct help from Customer Care.

Anyway, with such a large statistical base as Elements, what is known to Adobe is perfectly representative.

Keep in mind that happy users who don't suffer from the bugs don't come to forums to say it.

 

Other source of information for Adobe are also the usage and crash reports you may have agreed to in your licence terms. Once again, a representative tool to know if a feature is frequently used or mostly ignored by users. There are many issues which are acknowledged and seem easily solvable: if nearly nobody uses them, they will be ignored.

 

 

 

 

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