Indexly Tagging System

Learn how to use Indexly’s powerful file tagging system to categorize, organize, and search files effortlessly. Supports bulk tagging, recursive folder tagging, and instant tag lookups.
Categories:
Tags:

The Indexly Tagging System allows you to add, remove, and list tags for files and folders. Tags can be applied to single files, multiple files, or recursively to entire folders.

🚀 Quick Start

  1. Index your folder (if not already indexed):
indexly index "/path/to/folder"
  1. Add tags to files or folders:
# Single file
indexly tag add --files "/path/to/file.txt" --tags important

# Multiple files
indexly tag add --files "/path/to/file1.txt" "/path/to/file2.txt" --tags report

# Entire folder, top-level only
indexly tag add --files "/path/to/folder" --tags projectX

# Entire folder recursively
indexly tag add --files "/path/to/folder" --tags projectX --recursive
  1. Remove tags:
# Single file
indexly tag remove --files "/path/to/file.txt" --tags important

# Folder recursively
indexly tag remove --files "/path/to/folder" --tags projectX --recursive
  1. List tags:
indexly tag list --file "/path/to/file.txt"

⚡ CLI Command Overview

Action Target Example Command Notes
Add Single file indexly tag add --files "file.txt" --tags tag1 ✅ Adds tag1 to file.txt
Add Multiple files indexly tag add --files "file1.txt" "file2.txt" --tags tag1 tag2 ✅ Adds tags to multiple files
Add Folder indexly tag add --files "/folder" --tags tag1 Only top-level files unless --recursive
Remove Single file indexly tag remove --files "file.txt" --tags tag1 ❌ Removes tag1 from file.txt
Remove Folder indexly tag remove --files "/folder" --tags tag1 --recursive Removes tag1 from all files recursively
List Single file indexly tag list --file "file.txt" Displays tags on the file

🖼️ Workflow Diagram 

flowchart TD
    A[Start Tagging Command] --> B{Action Type}
    B -->|Add| C[Single File]
    B -->|Add| D[Folder Optional Recursive]
    B -->|Remove| E[Single File]
    B -->|Remove| F[Folder Optional Recursive]
    C --> G[Normalize Path]
    D --> H[Scan Folder with Recursive Option]
    E --> I[Normalize Path]
    F --> J[Scan Folder with Recursive Option]
    G --> K[Apply Tags to DB]
    H --> K
    I --> L[Remove Tags from DB]
    J --> L
    K --> M[Invalidate Cache]
    L --> M
    M --> N[Display Feedback Added/Removed/Warning]
    N --> O[End]

📝 Tips & Best Practices

  • Tag Naming: Use lowercase, no spaces, or underscores (e.g., project_x).
  • Folder Tagging: Use --recursive for large folders to include subfolders.
  • Positive Feedback: ✅ Tags added, ❌ Tags removed, ⚠️ Warnings.
  • Cache Awareness: Changes are reflected immediately in search results.

⚠️ Error Handling

  • Adding tags without specifying --tags → warning: "⚠️ No tags provided, nothing to do."
  • Removing tags that don’t exist → warning: "⚠️ Tag 'example' not found for file.txt"
  • Folder provided without --recursive → only top-level files are processed.
  • Listing tags for non-existing files → displays "No tags".

Example Workflow 

# Index folder
indexly index "/projects/docs"

# Add tag to single file
indexly tag add --files "/projects/docs/report1.md" --tags important

# Add tag to entire folder recursively
indexly tag add --files "/projects/docs" --tags projectX --recursive

# Remove a tag from a folder recursively
indexly tag remove --files "/projects/docs" --tags projectX --recursive

# List tags of a file
indexly tag list --file "/projects/docs/report1.md"

✅ Summary

The tagging system supports:

  • Single-file tagging (add, remove, list)
  • Multi-file tagging
  • Folder tagging with optional recursive flag
  • Automatic database updates
  • Cache invalidation for immediate effect
  • Clear CLI feedback

This unified approach makes it easy to manage metadata and organize your indexed files effectively.