Duplicate File Finder – FAQ

In the section “Similar Folders” you see the folders that have both similar files and other files that are unique for every folder. Duplicate File Finder is the only app that finds similar folders.

Duplicate folders are the folders that have absolutely identical content, including files and subfolders. Similar folders are the folders that include both identical and unique files.

Duplicate pictures are absolutely identical files that have the same size, extension, and binary data. Similar photos are slightly different shots of the same scene. Similar photos usually just look alike but are not exactly the same.

Yes. To find duplicate by name, just type the name in a search field. Duplicate File Finder will filter a list of duplicates by name.

Yes. Go to Duplicate File Finder Settings from a menu bar, choose Skip List tab and add folders to this list.

Yes. Go to Duplicate File Finder Settings from a menu bar and as well, add the files to Skip list.

When you remove duplicates with Duplicate File Finder By default files and folders go Trash. If you want to remove them permanently, go to the app settings and in a a Remove tab select the Removal method.

Yes. For this option, you need to enable the Remove empty folders option in Settings.

Auto Select button selects automatically selects duplicates that have in their names words such us “copy”, “copy 2”, “copy of”, etc. Such names are created by default when you copy a file and paste it in the same folder. You can customize the Auto Select command using the auto select rules in the app settings.

Yes, you can search for duplicates even in hidden folders. Go to Duplicate File Finder settings and enable the Scan Hidden Folders option.

Yes; however, by default this option is disabled. Go to application settings and enable the option Allow removing all duplicate copies in the Advanced tab.

There are several ways to select duplicates in a specific folder:

1. Use the context menu. Right-click on the duplicate file in the right section of the app and select the option “Select All Copies in this folder.” All duplicates in this folder will automatically be selected, and duplicates in subfolders will not be selected.
2. Use Settings. Go to the app’s settings → Auto Select tab → Add folders to the Always Select list. Then use the Auto Select button in the app. It will automatically select duplicates in the folders added to the Always Select list. Read more >>
3. Use the Select Duplicates in Folder option. Read more >>

Yes. You can choose a specific folder to remove duplicates from. Open the context menu on any duplicate file and use the command “Add to Always Select List” or “Add to Never Select List.”

You can also manage duplicate folders in the settings → Auto Select tab. Read more >>

Duplicate File Finder allows you to move duplicate files to the Trash by default. However, you might not have permission to do that. This may happen in the following cases:

• The file is being used by another program.
• You don’t have the necessary user account permission to remove it. To get the permission, switch to Finder, select the file and use “Get Info” command from the context menu or by using Cmd+I key shortcut. Change the file permission in the Sharing & Permissions category.

If you are scanning an external storage, then the reasons for the message might be:

• Your external drive does not have a Trash bin yet. A Trash bin for external storage is created when you remove a file via Finder. So to resolve this issue you should remove any one file on external storage in Finder.
• Your disk is connected to your external storage as a read-only. This could happen, for example, if you have connected your disk with NTFS and don’t have a driver to write to NTFS. You should therefore install the necessary extension to allow removal of the duplicates.

Yes, you can. Go to Menu Bar → click Window → History → select files and click to Restore. Read more >>

Yes, you can. Duplicate File Finder allows you to scan for duplicates on any readable drive on macOS. Read more >>

Sure. Sort the duplicates by size in the list of files, and preview the duplicates arranged according to their total size. You will find the duplicates which occupy the most disk space.

Yes. With the app you can merge Similar folders. For this, go to Similars tab → click Merge Folders → specify preferences and confirm merging. Read more >>

When you use the Select Duplicates in Folder feature, you compare different folders for identical files. The outside duplicate is a copy of your duplicate files kept in another folder.

Please note, all duplicate files are absolutely equal and they have the same size, extension and binary data. The duplicates may differ each from another by the file name only. It is impossible to say which files are originals and which files are the copies. That’s why Duplicate File Finder displays all duplicate files. You should select by yourself which files you want to keep and which files you want to delete.

If you downloaded Duplicate File Finder from our website, the number of Macs for using one license depends on the option you chose when purchasing the app.

If you downloaded Duplicate File Finder from the App Store (the PRO version or Free version with the In-App purchase option), you can use it on up to 5 Mac computers with the same Apple ID. Also, you can use Apple Family Sharing to install the app being signed in by the Apple ID of your family members.

Open Duplicate File Finder, open the Upgrade to Pro window and in the appeared window click the Restore button.

Once you purchase a license key for the app, the license will be automatically sent to your registered email address. In case you don’t see the message, please check your Junk or Spam folders.
If you purchased using PayPal, the email will be sent to the address registered with PayPal.
It is also possible that you registered an incorrect email address. In this case, please contact our support team at support@nektony.com. We will check and send you your license.

Please note, that the App Store edition of Duplicate File Finder doesn’t support license keys purchased from the website. To activate the Pro version with the license purchased from the website, do the following:

1. Close and delete the App Store edition of Duplicate File Finder.
2. Download the site edition of the app from this link.
3. Install the site edition of the app.
4. Open the app and click the Unlock Full Version button.
5. Click Enter License Key in the appeared window.
6. Copy your License Key.
7. The key will be activated automatically.

Yes. You can find the old version of the app on this page. However, note that it’s possible to download only the site version of the app.

If you purchased the app from the App Store, follow these steps:

1. Open the App Store.
2. Tap your name in the bottom left corner —> go to Account Settings.
3. Scroll down and locate Subscriptions.
4. Click Manage.
5. Select Duplicate File Finder from the list of purchased apps and click to cancel your subscription.

If you purchased the app from our website, do the following:

1. Log in to your PayProGlobal account.
2. Click Subscription in the left panel.
3. Locate Duplicate File Finder and click to cancel the subscription.

Follow these steps to manually uninstall the app:

1. Quit Duplicate File Finder.
2. Go to the Applications folder → remove Duplicate File Finder to Trash.
3. In the Finder’s menu bar, click Go → Go to Folder → in the window that appears, type ~/Library, and hit Go.
4. Within the Library folder find and remove Duplicate File Finder service files. Note, depending on the version of the app you use, you will need to find and remove different folders.

If you downloaded the free version of the app from the App Store, find and remove the following files:

• ~/Library/Application Scripts/com.nektony.Duplicates-Finder
• ~/Library/Containers/com.nektony.Duplicates-Finder

If you purchased directly the PRO version of the app on the App Store, find and remove these files:

• ~/Library/Application Scripts/com.nektony.Duplicates-Expert
• ~/Library/Containers/com.nektony.Duplicates-Expert

If you downloaded the app from the site, find and remove these files:

• ~/Library/Application Scripts/com.nektony.Duplicate-File-Finder-SIII
• ~/Library/Application Support/com.nektony.Duplicate-File-Finder-SIII
• ~/Library/Caches/com.nektony.Duplicate-File-Finder-SIII
• ~/Library/Preferences/com.nektony.Duplicate-File-Finder-SIII.plist

Once you removed all service files, empty your Trash bin to completely uninstall Duplicate File Finder.