📷 by @davehappyminion
Backup Photos
Find, organize, and deduplicate photos scattered across the filesystem.
1. Scan Source Locations
Search these directories for image and video files (jpg, png, heic, raw, mov, mp4, etc.):
~/Desktop
, ~/Downloads
, ~/Documents/Photos
, ~/Pictures
- Any additional paths the user specifies
Report: total files found, breakdown by location, total size, and date range.
2. Classify Files
Categorize each file:
- Photos — Real camera/phone photos (has EXIF camera data)
- Screenshots — Screen captures (screen dimensions, "Screenshot" filenames)
- Downloads — Images from the web (no camera EXIF)
- Videos — Video files co-located with photos
- Unknown — Cannot classify confidently
Present the classification summary before proceeding.
3. Detect Duplicates
Identify duplicate files:
- Exact duplicates (identical content by hash)
- Cross-format duplicates (same photo as HEIC + JPG, or RAW + JPG)
For each duplicate group, prefer the highest-resolution version with intact metadata.
4. Propose Organization
Suggest a target structure like
~/Pictures/Organized/
with subfolders for Photos (by year/month), Screenshots, Videos, and a Duplicates staging folder. Ask the user to confirm or customize.
5. Present Action Plan
Show a summary of what will happen: files by category, duplicates found, and space impact. Do NOT proceed without explicit user confirmation.
6. Execute
Once approved:
- Copy (not move) files to the new structure
- Verify copies succeeded before removing originals
- Move duplicates to the staging folder — do NOT delete them
- Report progress for large batches
7. Final Report
Summarize: files organized, duplicates staged for review, any errors. Remind the user to review the Duplicates folder.
Safety Rules
- NEVER delete any file without explicit permission. Duplicates go to a staging folder.
- NEVER overwrite an existing file. Append a suffix on name conflicts.
- Always copy-then-verify-then-remove. Protect against interrupted operations.
- Preserve all EXIF metadata.
- Do not process files in system directories (
/Library
, /System
).
- If total files exceed 10,000, confirm the user wants to proceed.
Notes
- On-demand only, no schedule.
- HEIC-to-JPG conversion can be offered but not done by default.
- This workflow is local filesystem only — no cloud uploads.
