clearing cache on Linux

watdryhope · March 10, 2022

Hi

I was wondering how I can clear the cache of downloaded files in my Zotero (I'm using Arch linux). I am syncing with WebDav and have the Sync set to "Download Files as Needed". I want to effectively delete all local PDFs without deleting the index, or the PDF in WebDav.

Thanks

dstillman · March 10, 2022

An upcoming version will let you set how long to keep downloaded files in order to manage disk space usage when using download-as-needed mode.

For now, your only option would be to delete files manually (via right-click → Show File) or search for all PDFs within the Zotero data directory and delete them that way. To be safe, I'd first do a Reset File Sync History from the Sync → Reset pane of the preferences and sync once to make sure that everything has been uploaded. That shouldn't be necessary, but it can't hurt. (The upcoming automatic feature will check that files have been synced before deleting them locally.)

watdryhope · March 11, 2022

Thanks for this. Do you think there would be a noticeable improvement in performance if I remove some of the largest pdfs?

dstillman · March 11, 2022

No, the number of attachment files you have on disk shouldn't make any real difference in performance. It's just about disk space.

(Technically Zotero has to scan them all to see if their modification times changed to determine if they need to be uploaded, but that should be very fast.)