FAFolder Autopsy
FOLDER AUTOPSY FIELD MANUAL

Better folders.
Calmer handoffs.

Ten practical, deeply researched guides for reviewing what you share, archive, and hand off.

SHARING · LONG READ

A practical checklist before you share a folder

A careful handoff starts with understanding the audience, removing accidental baggage, and reviewing the final package as a recipient would.

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PRIVACY · LONG READ

Hidden files are not necessarily private files

Hidden files are a display convention, not a confidentiality control. They can travel with archives and folder uploads even when a file manager does not show them.

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ORGANIZATION · LONG READ

Escaping final-final-REAL version chaos

Version chaos is usually a coordination problem expressed through filenames. A modest convention and a clear source of truth can restore confidence.

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STORAGE · LONG READ

Duplicate files: when copies become clutter

Copies can be useful safeguards, but unexplained copies create uncertainty, waste space, and make people edit the wrong document.

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PRIVACY · LONG READ

Why local-only folder analysis matters

A privacy tool should minimize the information it collects. For folder inspection, the strongest default is to process names, paths, metadata, and optional content on the device.

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PROJECTS · LONG READ

Should your handoff include Git history?

Git history can be valuable context or an unintended record of old files, identities, internal paths, and abandoned experiments. The right answer depends on the recipient.

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PROJECTS · LONG READ

Project junk, caches, and regenerable folders

Modern projects accumulate dependency trees, caches, build products, test coverage, and editor state. Some are reproducible; others contain valuable evidence.

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SECURITY · LONG READ

How to review suspicious and double-extension filenames

A misleading filename can make an executable resemble a document. Review should be calm, evidence-based, and avoid opening questionable material.

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ORGANIZATION · LONG READ

Designing folder structures that travel well

A portable folder structure is understandable without tribal knowledge. It uses moderate depth, stable names, and a clear entry point.

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ARCHIVING · LONG READ

Preparing a project folder for a trustworthy archive

An archive should preserve context as well as bytes. Preparation means deciding scope, documenting dependencies, checking integrity, and recording what was omitted.

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