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Welcome to i-DeClone!
If you leave this tips window on for a while, we will show you some useful tricks, how to make the most of the program. Click on next tip to start or untick "show me tips every day" to stop daily tips.

Finding duplicates is easy: connect any external devices you want scanned and click Start scan toolbar button to start a new project, or select one of the saved or recent scans to repeat.
connect

Duplicate files are organized in groups and shown in bands with alternating background colors. Tick inside boxes to mark clones for removal. bands

i-DeClone has a few toolbar buttons for its basic operations. Some buttons have a few extra commands in a drop-down menu. Click on the little arrow to see a button's menu.
drop menu

Some search options deemed complicated or "dangerous" are disabled and only available when you turn on expert mode from program settings. Most scans can be adequately performed without advanced options expert

If you cannot find any clones try expanding your search scope. The easiest way is to scan your entire PC and all attached devices, starting from ThisPC folder (Search everywhere menu)
everywhere

If you don't specify a starting folder to scan, one is selected automatically depending on the kind of files you are searching for. If you search for duplicate photos, i-DeClone will search in My Pictures folder, My music for music and so on

Search results appear in a pane similar to windows explorer — for familiar file management. You can double-click to open a file found, select one or more items with the mouse, right click to access the shell context menu so on.

Select items with the mouse for working with them in the short term — most menu commands act on selected items. Use the checkboxes to Mark duplicates for removal. Checked state is long term and survives filtering.
marked

To mark many items in one go, select them e.g. using <Ctrl> and mouse click, then press <SPACE> key to tick them all together (or untick them). Alternatively right click on one of the selected items and use Mark as duplicate menu command.
multi-mark

Most dialog boxes include quick instructions. Leave the mouse hovering over an input box to see specific help in a popup tooltip. For detailed explanations press <F1> key and the help file will open at the correct location for the dialog box in hand.
baloon

You can pause and resume a scan clicking on the clock button next to the scan progress bar. Click cancel to abandon a search that doesn't look promising.
pause

During a clones scan, you can't do much other than wait for it to end. The scan progress bar gives you an idea of the percent remaining to completion. The taskbar button also shows a progress bar.
taskbar

The status bar shows brief explanations for toolbar buttons and menu commands as you select them. It is also used for simple error messages. If you hear a ding then have a look at the statusbar for the error. If the message has disappeared, double click on READY
statusbar

If you don't like the results press <Ctrl+R> to revise scan parameters, e.g. leave the Name property out to search for renamed duplicates. Revisions are much faster as they work with the files already in RAM.

Untick Files must have same extension box to broaden the search to files of different type. For example you can find documents that are both in DOC and PDF formats, or songs encoded as both MP3 and FLAC.
different types

Deleted clones are sent to the recycle bin if possible, so you can undo accidents. Be careful though: some folders cannot use the recycle bin (e.g. networks, mobile phones etc) so deletions are hard to recover. recycler

The easier way to pick a folder to search for duplicates is to right click on a folder icon (e.g. in windows explorer) then use i-DeClone duplicates menu command. This will start i-DeClone ready to search in the chosen folder. This works also for connected phones inside ThisPC folder.
desktop menu

i-DeClone is keyboard friendly. For instance, to start a scan you can press <Ctrl+F> keys. Shortcut keys are mentioned next to menu commands and toolbar buttons.
keyboard

Right click on a file to open its container folder (where the item is located). You can do many things inside i-DeClone too: press <Ctrl+C> to copy selected files, press <Del> key to delete them, <Alt+Enter> for the property page etc.
container

The result details you see depend on what you searched for. For music you will see song duration, for photos their dimension and so on. Right click on the header row to choose other file details.
select columns

Click on a column header to arrange results by its content; click again to reverse the order. A little arrow indicates the sort direction. sort

To break duplicate groups apart when sorting, right click on the sort header and untick Keep results grouped menu item. Use this command again to re-group the clones. keep group

Right click on the results pane background (any empty space) to change view mode to thumbnails — to see little pictures of files. If you scan for photos this is turned on automatically. bg menu

The preview pane works for many file types: for MP3 files you will hear the music, see text for documents etc. Use the little pin to dock the pane, keeping it permanently visible. Drag the splitter bar to make it larger. Grab its titlebar with the mouse and place it in any window side you like. preview

Use Filter results box to show only items that match the search keyword. If you don't see this filter bar, right click on the toolbar. To show all results (cancel filtering) click on X button.
filterbar

Whenever items are hidden from view (e.g. if you applied a filter) a funnel icon appears on the statusbar (bottom right edge of i-DeClone window). To see all items double click on this icon
fout

When searching for similar photos, 2 consecutive groups may be related. Select one item from the second group and press <F9> key, then they will all be merged in a single group.

Click on Settings toolbar button to adjust i-DeClone's behavior to your liking. You can change scan options, presentation and preview settings and more
f12

Most program settings are of Yes/No type. Double-click on a setting label to flip it on/off or use the drop down arrow on the far right to choose your option from the drop-down list.
yesno

Select one or more search results then press <Alt+C> keys to copy their full paths as clipboard text for use with other programs. For more useful keyboard shortcuts check the manual

Whatever you see in i-DeClone can be exported as text. Press <Ctrl+A> to select everything then right click and pick Export selection from the menu. Or use Export CSV command from Clean-up toolbar button menu.
export

If you have any question or problem using i-DeClone just send an email to the support team and you will get help. Use Email support menu command next to the Help toolbar button
email

Press both left and right mouse buttons simultaneously on a search result to see a large draft preview on the spot. Let go of the mouse and the preview goes away. Peek preview also works with <ALT+Q> keyboard shortcut

In expert mode, you can delete selected (not necessarily ticked/marked) files using <DEL> key as you would in any file manager, bypassing constraints imposed by Clean-up manager (e.g. you can delete an entire group of duplicates)

If you don't care for many search options enable express mode from settings (<F12> key). This beginner mode offers 3 most common duplicate scans that will get you going immediately!

This is the last tip. However there's much more to do with i-DeClone, please continue learning with the manual (or press <F1> key)