Syncing attached files

npreus
I have a question about file syncing--not exactly troubleshooting, more just looking for an explanation for something (good) Zotero seems to be doing that I don't understand.

I have Zotero's unlimited storage option, and I store lots of pdfs and notes along with my citations. Here's what seems like magic to me: when I edit notes I've already attached in Zotero in another program (I use NValt), and when I reopen the file in Zotero, it retrieves an updated version of the note. This only seems possible if when I attach a file Zotero is storing source directory info (i.e. the location of my NValt notes) as well as saving the file in Zotero's own directory.

This makes it seem like attached files might operate like linked files. So for instance if I open Zotero on another device with the same directory structure for my notes, and the original note is updated (say because I'm using dropbox), will Zotero still retrieve the updated version of the attached note? Would be suuuuper cool if so.

It's also possible I'm completely misunderstanding this. Thanks for your help!
  • dstillman Zotero Team
    No, that wouldn't happen unless you're using linked attachments (or, say, the ZotFile extension, which can automatically turn stored attachments into linked attachments).

    Note that, even with linked files, Zotero can do what you describe regarding multiple computers — you can set your linked attachment base directory to Dropbox, and even if Dropbox is at a different path on different computers (e.g., /Users/user/Dropbox and C:\whatever\Dropbox), Zotero will still be able to find the files based on their relative paths.
  • npreus
    Thanks for the info. Am I right on the first count, though, that Zotero is storing the source directory of files I attach, and that's why when I reopen them after editing in another app, they're updated? If not, I wonder how this might be occurring.
  • dstillman Zotero Team
    See Files Copies and Links. There are two different ways to add files to Zotero. You're describing linked files.

    More info here: https://zotero-manual.github.io/zotero-manual/adding-files
  • npreus
    Figured it out. NValt is doing the updating, not Zotero.
  • dstillman Zotero Team
    Well, NValt is just saving files normally. Any file in Zotero — linked or stored — will reflect the changes made in any external program as long as you're editing the same file that Zotero is pointing to.

    In the case of stored files, Zotero can sync those changes itself to other computers. In the case of linked files, you have to sync them yourself (e.g., using Dropbox).

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