Hello!
Is there any way a folder - or watched folder - could be added in FontBase without having all of their contents copied (maybe use shortcuts instead?) to FontBase folder located in the system hard drive (C:\Users\User\FontBase\FONTS)? Other font managers have this option which is very handy when dealing with huge collections containing some thousands of fonts.
Thanks in advance.
Manos
Hello Manos, thank you for your message and welcome to the forum.
What you’re referring to is actually the linked folder functionality built into FontBase and will do exactly what need. You can try adding a linked folder by clicking on the plus in the bottom left corner of the application and following the queues from there.
We also have a set of tutorials on FontBase - YouTube which you might find of use.
Hope this helps,
Yuriy
FontBase Dev Team
Thank you Yuriy!
So, watched folder are linked folders? When i right-click the watched folder shortcut created in \Users\User\FontBase\ folder, properties look like those of a normal folder (along with total size, number of files, etc) and not of a shortcut.
Thanks,
Manos
Thank you for the quick follow-up Manos.
Hm, that’s interesting.
Does the folder icon (in your file explorer) have a white square with an arrow in the bottom left?
Also, if you check the root folder size (\Users\User\FontBase) in your file explorer (right-click → properties …), does in increase if you add a watched folder in FontBase?
Thank you,
Yuriy
Yes, the folder icon is a shortcut. Here are both root and content folders’ properties:
Also, i don’t know if this is a feature or a bug, but deleting the FONTS folder from the FontBase directory, deleted the real folder and all its contents from its original location, which gave me a heart attack since this is a collection i’ve been maintaining since 1997 (fortunately, i’ve restored it from Google Drive’s bin)! So, it’s obvious the two folders are linked, but i’m not sure if this is the way it should work. Deleting something from the original location should be mirrored in FontBase’s copy, but not the other way around.
Thank you for such a detailed and quick reply.
Just to clarify - when you deleted the FONTS folder, did you do it within FontBase, i.e. using the right-click pop-up menu on the folder in the sidebar and selecting “Delete”?
Indeed, FontBase does not intend to delete anything outside of it’s root folder, so the behaviour you’re describing definitely looks odd.
Would it be possible for you to confirm this behaviour by creating a dummy folder with any font copies in it, then adding it to FontBase and deleting it just as you did with FONTS and seeing if the dummy folder is affected in the same manner? That would really help us in understanding where the root of the problem might be.
Also, you mentioned Google Drive. Was the FONTS folder you added as a watched folder in your Google Drive by any chance?
Thank you,
Yuriy,
FontBase Dev Team
Yes, my FONTS folder is in Google Drive. The folder was deleted from Googe Drive when i deleted the FONTS folder in the Users/Fontbase location from Windows Explorer while having FontBase running in the background. I made a test with a dummy folder (two different tests actually, one on a physical hard drive and one on Google Drive) and after deleting them from within FontBase, the original folders remained intact.
Sorry for the delay in replying and thank you for running the checks.
We can only influence FontBase functionality, the way WIndows/Mac interacts with Google Drive can be a different matter. So, at least for now, to prevent the unfortunate situation that you’ve had initially it would be safer to stick to FontBase folder management through the app itself, not by direct manipulation within the root folder.
Hope this helps.
Hello. Is there any solution on this old issue. It seems that FontBase keeps copying all content of a added “watched folder” into it’s root folder e.g. user\username\FontBase, and not linking it as it should do according the information given. Is this feature only available on paid version? I’m using it free, and my actual font files are not on a cloud drive, they are located on the same machine, only on a different drive. Please see attached screenshot. On the left side there are the properties of the root folder, and on the right - the properties of the actual folder containing the font files, as you can see the folder is added as a “watched folder”. Please respond if you have a solution or workaround for this issue. Thanks in advance.
Hello @kimbaten, thank you for your post and welcome to the forum 
When viewing folder properties on Windows the link properties will reflect the source folder properties, the one it links to. This is why in your screenshot both folders have the same size, while one is the folder on your hard drive and the other is a link (created by FontBase from what I understand).
This is no issue and not a bug at all. If you check the total volume of free and used space on your hard drive you will be able to see and confirm this. Just did it myself to double-check and everything adds up.
Watched folders are not a paid feature, no, it works in the same way for all FontBase users.
Hope this helps,
Yuriy
FontBase Dev Team
Thanks sir, didn’t thought of checking free space remaining. I’ve tested it according your advice and now I can confirm that folder in root directory do not occupy any space. I’ve checked it even with a third party software and it shows “0 bytes” on the root folder. Thanks again and keep up the good work! 
Glad it worked out and thank you for your support
