A question about UUIDs (when importing duplicate files)

I have two records:

Existing Item and Imported Item

Both are identical, hence when I import Imported Item both show as duplicates.

My questions are:

  • Does Imported Item thus inherit the UUID of Existing Item; and
  • If so, does Imported Item continue to have the same UUID as Existing Item even when Existing Item is deleted (and hence Imported Item is no longer a duplicate);
  • If Imported Item is amended while it’s still a duplicate (so that it’s then no longer a duplicate) will it inherit the links to it which it would have had as a duplicate of Existing Item?

The latter is the crucial question.

I do appreciate a little experimentation might provide the answer but I need to be absolutely clear so have thrown myself at the mercy of the forum (again!).

Stephen

I hope not. But it’s easy to find out: click on the 'Copy link` entry in the context menu for each record and have a look.

Basically, if an item is imported, you create a new record in DT. A new record gets a new UUID. That the content of the record might be identical to another one, is not important in this context. Especially since you could go ahead and change one of them, in which case you certainly would want the UUIDs to differ.

I must admit that I do not understand this question. Do you mean “I have a document which is linked to from other documents. Now I change this document, will the links to it remain the same?” Or something else? A duplicate does not “inherit” something, it is just a copy of something. As such, it has the same content (at the beginning). But this content an change, of course. Ok, I’m babbling now. Enough. Just try to clarify what you mean with the last bullet point, please.

<Sigh>. This always seems to happen when I try to be really clear about what I mean.

Yes, indeed…partly that. But forget it…duplicates do have separate UUIDs. I have probed…

I shal battle on. Sorry for the confusion.

Stephen

Indeed, they do as they’re individual files that have been added.

That, of course, is perfectly sensible - unlike the original questions. Sorry, have had a very bad day!

Stephen

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There’s actually more to those questions than meets the eye. I gave somebody pretty bad advice here once, because the only way I could figure out to solve their problem was to mass duplicate files and delete the originals; turns out they were using the UUID to address their files via a third-party app though, so the whole thing would have gone up in smoke so to speak. The user clocked the problem before causing any damage, fortunately. Whilst it has to be the case that every record is assigned its own UUID, it’s easy to forget (well, it was for me, anyway…). So, dear Stephen, I don’t think there was anything wrong with the questions. Bad day or no.

I wish you a better day tomorrow :slight_smile: But don’t stop asking questions - that’s the beginning of the end.

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May be they should somehow emphasize the first U, the one that means unique? Like UUID.

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Shut up :crazy_face::kissing_heart:

Anyway, nowadays only superlatives really mean anything (so, the government being absolutely crystal clear, for example - or, in German, a Super-GAU; so UUID needs to be RATUUID or some such). Things need to change™️.