[ilacad.erik]

Hi everyone! I've been using MSP since 2016, and it's really fantastic. I've used my Samsung 12.2 tab for 6 years and is now migrating to a new tablet. I have to admit that I wasn't very organized before. Now that I'm on a new tablet, I want to organize the file structure. But to do that, I have to understand first what's happening.  For context, here is how I did my syncing/importing:

Scenario A: If file is from PC/laptop:
1. On PC: I drag the PDFs or images into my Google Drive
2. On Tablet: I click IMPORT > Google Drive > then import the files.
-- end of story --

Scenario B: If file is from tablet (e.g. downloaded from the net, or pictures from gallery)
1. On Tablet: I click IMPORT > Local File > then import the files.

Here are my questions:

1. As for scenario A, I can imagine that the files now exist locally in the tablet. Is this correct?
   
2. As for scenario B, does the local file get copied to another "MSP" folder? (Hence, making the file exist twice in the tablet) -- If yes, can I delete the PDFs/images in tablet's gallery?
   
3. With the "Sync Library > Synchronize to a cloud folder" function, is it sensitive to folder structures and filenames in the cloud? (i.e. if a file is already synced, then I transferred the same file into a different folder, or renamed it, will it be considered a new file?)
   

I know I can experiment around to get answers to these questions, but I'm afraid that I might mess up my whole library and can't undo. The last thing I want is to have double of everything, everywhere. lol


On another topic: How do you guys organize your library? I was thinking of creating a google drive account solely for sheet music, and that's the only folder I'll import from/sync into MSP. Would love to hear your ideas!

Thanks for your patience in reading this!

[Frank Cox]

I've really just started using MSP so I'm nothing like an expert, but my method for doing this is as follows.

I have all of my music sorted into various directories on my (Linux) computer, and I copy it from there to corresponding directories on my Android tablet.

So I have a directory structure that looks something like this:

sheet music/
sheet music/songbooks
sheet music/songbooks/movies
sheet music/songbooks/Frank Sinatra
sheet music/songbooks/Christmas

And so forth.

I set MSP so the database will be stored in a directory on my tablet that I can access and I just back that up to my computer as needed using rsync.

I create a csv file for each of my pdf's and import them into MSP that way.

Seems to work fine.  All of my music is stored both on my computer (from where it gets backed up along with all of my other data) and on my tablet, and the database files are stored on my computer too so if the tablet decides to die I think I'll be able to just get a new tablet, copy the music and the database from my computer and let 'er rip.  I haven't actually had any need to do that yet, but I don't see any obvious reason why it shouldn't work that way if the situation arises.

[Zubersoft]

As far as your questions:

1) Yes, MobileSheets has to have a local copy of every file in the library, so it downloads the file off the cloud and places it in the storage location.
2) By default, yes it will get copied to the storage location listed under Settings->Storage->Set the MobileSheets Storage Location. If you uncheck "Let MobileSheets Manage my Files" (which is only available on Android), then MobileSheets will use your files from their original location, meaning no copy will be made. If the files are copied into the storage location, then yes, you can delete them after they are imported. This is an option in the storage settings to automatically do this if it fits your workflow.
3) Yes, it is very sensitive to folder structures and filenames. In fact, this not designed to allow you to manage the files/folders on the cloud yourself. MobileSheets must manage all of the files in the cloud sync folder and you should not edit them in any way, or it will break the next sync you perform. This is different than a standard file sync as MobileSheets actually has a complete copy of the library in the cloud (including the database) so that it can handle merging differences between multiple devices. In the future I may implement a simple sync feature that is akin to a file sync, but for now, it does not operate that way.

Mike

[ilacad.erik]

Sorry for the late response @Zubersoft Mike & @Frank Cox

Thanks for the very clear and detailed explanation. I now get it, and can now purge my tablet with apparent duplicate files. Thanks again!

[andyshakms18]

I'm a new member, so still a lot to learn. Thanks for this forum and thanks Mike for the terrific support.
Q: If you SYNC to the cloud, such a Google Drive, is there any need to do a BACKUP to the cloud? Would doing a backup to the cloud be just doubling up unnecessarily?

I suppose if the SYNC is somehow corrupted, then the BACKUP would be there, as a backup!
Thanks.

[Zubersoft]

If the sole purpose is to have a full backup of your library, including settings, custom stamps, annotation favorites, etc, then periodically creating a full library backup is recommended. The library sync will not contain your application settings or any of the things I just mentioned. The sync will just backup the songs, files, and the library metadata.

Mike