Frequently Asked Questions

General Questions

What is File Organizer?

File Organizer is an AI-powered local file management system that automatically organizes files using local LLMs (large language models). It supports multiple organization methodologies like PARA and Johnny Decimal, with zero cloud dependencies.

Is my data safe?

Yes. File Organizer:

Runs 100% locally
Never uploads files to cloud
Uses local AI models
Keeps all data on your device

What are the system requirements?

Python: 3.11+
RAM: 8 GB minimum (16 GB recommended)
Storage: 10 GB for AI models
Ollama: Latest version

Can I use it on Windows/Mac/Linux?

Yes. File Organizer runs on all three platforms.

Installation Questions

How do I install File Organizer?

Three options:

Docker (recommended): docker-compose up -d
Python Package: pip install local-file-organizer
From Source: Clone repo and pip install -e .

See Installation Guide.

Do I need Ollama?

Yes, Ollama provides the AI models. Install from https://ollama.ai

Which AI models should I use?

We recommend:

Text: qwen2.5:3b-instruct-q4_K_M (~1.9 GB)
Vision: qwen2.5vl:7b-q4_K_M (~6 GB)

Both are optimized for balance between speed and accuracy.

Usage Questions

How do I organize my files?

Upload files
Click Organize
Choose methodology (PARA, Johnny Decimal, etc.)
Review preview
Click Apply

See Organization Guide.

What file types does it support?

File Organizer supports 43+ file types:

Documents: PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Markdown
Images: JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP, TIFF
Video: MP4, AVI, MKV, MOV, WMV
Audio: MP3, WAV, FLAC, M4A, OGG
Archives: ZIP, 7Z, TAR, RAR
Scientific: HDF5, NetCDF, MATLAB
CAD: DXF, DWG, STEP, IGES

How do I undo an organization?

Click Undo immediately after organizing (or Ctrl+Z).

Or use Organize → Original Structure to revert all organization.

Can I organize files without uploading them?

Yes. Click Organize → Browse Local Folder to organize files already on your system.

How do I find duplicate files?

Click Analysis → Detect Duplicates, choose folder(s) to scan, and wait for results.

Performance Questions

Organization is slow

Optimizations:

Use smaller batches
Close other applications
Check available disk space
Use GPU if available

Memory usage is high

Solutions:

Close browser tabs
Reduce maximum file size
Limit batch size
Restart service

Files aren't being found in search

Check search syntax
Try broader search terms
Verify files aren't excluded
Refresh browser

API Questions

How do I use the API?

Generate API key in Settings → API Keys
Include in requests: Authorization: Bearer YOUR_KEY
See API Reference for endpoints

Can I use API keys from scripts?

Yes. Store in environment variables:

export FILE_ORGANIZER_API_KEY="fo_your_id_your_token"

Then use in your script.

Is the API rate-limited?

Yes. Free tier: 100 requests/minute.

See API Reference for details.

Configuration Questions

How do I change the workspace path?

Click Settings → Workspace → Path

Note: Service must be restarted.

How do I enable 2-factor authentication?

Click Settings → Security → 2FA

Choose authenticator app or SMS.

Can I customize organization rules?

Yes. Click Organize → Custom to create custom rules.

Deployment Questions

Can I run this in production?

Yes. See Deployment Guide for production setup.

How do I set up HTTPS?

Configure reverse proxy (nginx, Apache) with SSL/TLS certificate.

See Deployment Guide.

How do I backup my data?

# Backup database
docker-compose exec db pg_dump -U postgres file_organizer > backup.sql

# Backup files
rsync -av /path/to/files /path/to/backup

See Admin Guide.

Troubleshooting Questions

Ollama connection fails

Start Ollama service:

ollama serve

Verify: curl http://localhost:11434/api/version

Port already in use

Use different port:

file-organizer serve --port 8001

Out of memory