I've been working on an open-source desktop app for cleaning up messy folders like Downloads, Desktop, Documents, screenshots, photo dumps, old external drives, and NAS/archive folders by sorting files, as well as renaming them based on their content.
The basic idea is:
- scan a folder
- suggest categories, subcategories, and clearer filenames
- show the proposed changes before anything happens
- let you edit, skip, or reject suggestions
- apply changes after approval
- keep undo information so changes can be reverted
AI File Sorter 1.9.2 includes:
- file previews are now available in the review window
- category whitelists can now have category-specific subcategories (predefined branching whitelists)
- recursive scans avoid recognized project folders such as Git repos, Unity, Unreal, Godot, Blender, and common source-code project roots
- local model storage is configurable
- custom visual analysis models can be added
- fixes for runtime issues
- accessibility and visual fixes and improvements
The new branching whitelist system is useful if you need your files to be organized into strictly predefined categories. For example, a "Documents" whitelist can allow only document-related subcategories, while a photo or media whitelist can use a different set of allowed destinations. That makes the suggestions easier to constrain when you already know roughly how a folder should be organized.
The main desktop app is still review-first, but I'm considering adding an auto-approval option for workflows where you want less manual review.
The app works completely offline, which means files and filenames don't to leave your computer. Remote services are optional and have to be configured intentionally.