How to clean deleted files? CWS8-Pro

Hi Tom
 
100gb  holy crap!
 
This is off the top of my head but I believe it's   tools/clean audio folder.  At that point a window will open,  click on find and it will run a search and then list all the files not used in the project.  At this point I delete all to keep my project size down but I also keep audio in a per project folder.  There is a help menu on that window that will explain it.  Also you may want to apply trimming on finished tracks meaning that any audio outside of the clip is deleted and any audio inside the clip is retained.  This will also reduce the project size. Off the top of my head it is edit/apply trimming   (you have to select the tracks or audio) It's what I do all the time and I've never had a problem.
 
For more details check the manual.
 
Cheers

OK it just got done. Zero files found? huh
 
I delted a few parts right before I ran it.  OK so now what happened to my deleted parts?

Tom the clean audio files utility does not always seem to work properly in my experience. But the good news is that it wont take out important files, it may leave some unimportant ones in there. There is another way, it is slower but seems to be very reliable.

Supposing you have a folder with a project in it and it is called 'Projcet' Create another folder and call it 'Project B' instead. Create another folder inside that and call it Audio. Now open up your project from the original project folder. Make sure all the clips you are looking at are the correct ones etc. Now do a 'Save As' except point the new Save As inside the 'Project B' folder instead. Make sure the 'Copy All Audio with Project'  box is checked. What will happen is you will end up making a new folder but only the required audio files will be copied and go over into the new audio folder. Now close down everything and open up the session from the 'Project B' folder instead. It should come back as before and play normally.

Once you are satisfied, you can blow away the original 'Project' folder. And all the unnecessary clips will blow away too.

It is a good idea to backup projects as they are completed onto DVD's etc and not let your audio drive folder build up too much. I have only got an 80 Gig audio drive and it is empty most of the time for this very reason. It should only have the current and perhaps a few projects back folders on it. If that drive decided to **** itself you would be in trouble.

And here is some more worldy advice. I have got one of those nifty little USB drives that require no external power supply and plug into a USB port. (250 G) It has been great and even plays back large projcets without a hitch. I formatted it on a MAC so I could use it on a MAC and a PC. The other day I did something strange in terms of disconnecting it from the MAC and in an instant it blew everyhting away on that drive. So be careful with these things too. Fortunately there were only copies of things on that drive but I am sure I have also lost some stuff too. I cannot even remember what was on it which makes it even worse.

I'm still amazed on how many people miss on the awesomeness of the CWAF (Cakewalk Audio Find Tool).  The OP had it right the first time.  Notice this is NOT the same as the Clean Audio Folder Tool, which is an older version and must NOT be used.

To the OP:

Scan your Audio HDD with the CWAF Tools as you did before.  Once it is finished, you will notice it lists the status of each file found as "Referenced" (file being used by a project) and "Orphaned" (file NOT being used in ANY project).  Go ahead and select those orphaned files (the easiest way is to click on the "Status" Tab so that they are all grouped together), the click on "Move File..." and send them all to the Recycle Bin (which should be the default location).  Re-scan your HDD to make sure you didn't delete any file that's needed in a project.  If everything checks out OK (ALL files are referenced), you can now empty your trash can.


HTH

Yeah, you just click on the project file that's on the window above (after it scans your HDD, you'll see all your projects listed in that window) and it will highlight the respective audio files for that project.  It's a great tool, though there are things that need upgrading.  But MUCH better than the archaic Clean Audio Tool, that's for sure.

Glad I was able to help you Jeff.

Lanceindastudio


I am all about saving the project to a new folder ;)
Love this technique-

 
Yeah, but that gets tedious when you have several projects to clean up.
 
I can almost guarantee you won't use that method again after you try the CWAF Tool once.
 
Either way, whatever works for you my friend :-)
 
 
Take care!
 
 

YEA!! The CWAF is a great tool 97.6% of the time.. LOL

I suggest backing up your project(s) before using it, if there not backed up already.
Cj

> The CWAF is a great tool 97.6% of the time.. LOL

CJ may be laughing, but the CWAF tool provided me with at least a dozen false positives, and I deleted in-use files.

I was able to restore them from the backups.

I prefer the SAVE-AS process, as can immediately test for success.

J

===========
FYI:  many people do not review their yahoo and google bulk/spam folders for false positives, nor empty them.  And the google spam folder is hidden. And it is a stupid process to make it off.

A client of mine, who is blind, and uses Outlook, did not know the yahoo bulk filter is on by default. 12k messages in the folder, not accessable via OL.

"Anything free is worth what you pay for it." Heinlein

Ya, it was the CWAF. Made me sad.

The clean audio folder tool seemed limited, don't ya know. Should not be on the menu.

J

jm24


Ya, it was the CWAF. Made me sad.

The clean audio folder tool seemed limited, don't ya know. Should not be on the menu.

J

I agree, the clean audio tool shouldn't be there anymore.
 
 
 
@Tom,
 
It's good to leave the thread open for others with the same issue or question to find it.
 
You don't have to do anything, but adding "SOLVED" to the title will let others know it was, well, solved :-)
 
 
Take care!