Copy my Zotero library on my computer

Hi there!
Is it possible to copy the Zotero library on the desktop of your computer keeping the very same division in collections and subcollection with all the documents stored in their specific collections?
I tried already the button Export Library but it gives me a list of numbered folders randomly created and my documents order is all messed up.
It is basically useless.
Is there a way to overcome this problem?
I just would like to have the library as I created it in Zotero, not a randomly generated list of folders.
Many thanks for your help
Silvia
  • edited January 22, 2021
    What exactly are you trying to accomplish?

    If you just want to make a backup of your Zotero database, see Backing Up Your Zotero Data.
  • I backed up already my data, but it saves them in random folders. I would like to save the library with all the folders and subfolders as they appear in Zotero.
    I am doing this because I reached 60 GB of storage and now I don't want to upgrade the subscription...so I planned to save the library, delete some of the items, and upload it again on Zotero. But, as I see, Zotero exports the files in random order...and therefore I cannot choose which one I want to delete.
    Is it clear now? Thanks!
  • edited January 22, 2021
    I backed up already my data, but it saves them in random folders
    No, you didn't. An export isn't a backup. To do a proper backup, you need to follow the instructions I provided.

    But what you're trying to do makes no sense. The whole point of Zotero is that it contains both metadata and files, so this isn't something that can just exist in folders on your disk. There's no way you can clear some data manually. Even if what you were describing were possible, an export and re-import would break links to any citations in word processor documents, reset dates, and possibly lose some data. And there's just no reason to do it.

    If you want a copy of just your PDFs, you can just do a search for all PDFs within your Zotero data directory and copy them to a folder, or you can drag individual PDFs out of Zotero before deleting them from Zotero. Or you can just not use file syncing and keep everything in your Zotero library locally without paying for storage.

    But the place to delete things, if you want to delete things, is in Zotero, keeping everything else that you want to keep.
  • That's what I imagined. I was hoping that there was a file extension/type that could possibly save this metadata even outside Zotero (keeping the division in collections) to then later re-upload them on the platform.
    Yes maybe I should just stop syncing but is it risky?
    Thanks for advice
  • Depends what you mean by risky. The point of syncing is 1) to let you access your data and files online or on other devices and 2) to serve as an extra backup of your data, in addition to whatever local backups of your computer you're hopefully making.

    Note, too, that data syncing is free and unlimited. It's just file syncing that has a quota.

    See Syncing for more information.
  • Do you mean for "file syncing" the saving of linked documents on the storage? pdfs mainly in my case? I can sync for free only metadata but not files?
  • They're "stored" files, not "linked" files, but yes.
  • I take advantage of your kindness here to ask one more question...
    if I stop syncing "stored" files what is going to happen to these files? Do I just see them only on one computer? Is that all or they also need to be saved locally to my laptop to be accessible in Zotero?
  • edited January 22, 2021
    The files will remain on the computer where you added them, with your Zotero data directory.
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