An easy way to import into your EagleFiler library is to add files to the To Import from the Finder or other applications. You can add files to the To Import folder even if EagleFiler is not currently running. For example, you can save new files into this folder and add tags directly from the system’s Save panel.
The To Import folder is located in the library folder, next to the .eflibrary file in the Finder. You may wish to drag the To Import folder to your Dock or to the Finder’s sidebar so that it’s easy to find.
Files added to the To Import folder are imported as top-level records in EagleFiler. You can view them in the source list under Records or Unfiled.
See also: The Files Folder.
When Imports Happen
EagleFiler checks the To Import folder when the library is first opened, whenever you bring its window to the front, and also periodically while the library remains open. EagleFiler imports any new files into the library and then deletes them from the To Import folder.
Duplicate Files
If Allow duplicate files in library is unchecked, EagleFiler will move any duplicate files in the To Import folder into the Unable to Import folder, rather than importing them into the library.
Don’t Copy Folders
It is recommended that you only copy files, not folders, into the To Import folder. Copying a folder may take a while, and EagleFiler has no way of known when it’s completed. Thus, EagleFiler may start importing before the copy is complete. It is better to use one of the other ways to import if you need to import a folder.
Files That Don’t Import
Sometimes you may see files that stay in the To Import folder, as if EagleFiler hasn’t noticed them yet.
EagleFiler tries to protect you from importing files that have not been completely written to disk yet. This is because, if EagleFiler tried to copy a file that was in the process of being written, you could end up with an incomplete version of the file in your library. Some data would be lost, and the file might not even open.
There is no sure way to know whether a file is complete, so EagleFiler assumes that it’s incomplete that if the file is marked as busy or if another application still has it open. EagleFiler will wait until the file is closed before importing it into the library.
Some applications may incorrectly leave files open, even after they have finished writing to them. EagleFiler will leave these files in the To Import folder until they are closed. You can see which files are open by using the lsof command in Terminal. If you need to import one of these files right away, you can use one of the other ways to import, such as the Files folder. Restarting your Mac will also close any open files. EagleFiler will then import them the next time you open the library.
EagleFiler only checks whether a file is open when importing using the To Import folder. This is because EagleFiler checks the To Import folder for new files on its own schedule, which might not coincide with the files being completely saved to disk. For other types of imports, you are specifically telling EagleFiler to import the files right then, so EagleFiler assumes that you know the files have been completely written to disk.