Anki default data folder at C:

Anki Help
1

Is it possible to change the default folder in which Anki keeps the media and other files? My C: drive is SSD and it’s not big in size. How can I move it to any other internal drive of my Windows 10 desktop? I’m using the latest Anki version. Thank you in advance for your help!:blush:

2

You can do that by moving the data to the other drive and telling Anki how to find it.

  1. Copy the C:\Users\%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Anki2 folder to another drive (Let’s say you moved it to D:\anki-profile).
  2. Righ-click somewhere on your desktop and choose New > Shortcut.
  3. type the following as the destination of the shortcut: start "Anki" "C:\Program Files\Anki\anki" -b D:\anki-profile (be sure to replace the D:\... part with the actual location).
  4. You can also change the icon of the shortcut by going to its properties and clicking Change icon... then providing Anki’s path: like C:\Program Files\Anki\anki.exe . This should show you Anki’s icon to choose. Just select it and click Ok.
  5. Always launch Anki from this shortcut, or it will access the default folder instead.

See Anki Manual

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3

Thank you, Abdo, for answering my question emoticon_smiley.png
I’ve made a folder F:\AnkiDataFolder, copied C:\Users%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Anki2 to my new folder. Till this stage it went OK.
Then I made an empty shortcut at the desktop and got this:
1.jpg
It looks like I did something wrong.
As to changing the icon (item 4) I didn’t quite understand if you meant the newly made icon (which is working right) or the initial Anki icon.
Sorry for my inexperienced monkey questions emoticon_smiley.png

4

Try "C:\Program Files\Anki\anki" -b D:\anki-profile as the target of the shortcut instead. This should make step 4 unnecessary.

If you already have an existing shortcut to Anki on your desktop, you can simply modify it as described in the manual instead:

If you always want to use a custom folder location, you can modify your shortcut to Anki. On Windows, right-click on the shortcut, choose Properties, select the Shortcut tab, and add “-b \path\to\data\folder” after the path to the program, which should leave you with something like

"C:\Program Files\Anki\anki.exe" -b "C:\AnkiDataFolder"
5

Hi Abdo! Thank you for your additional instructions. I’ve modified the original Anki shortcut from “C:\Program Files\Anki” into “C:\Program Files\Anki\anki.exe” - b “F:\AnkiDataFolder”. It works, but every time I enter Anki it give me this sign:

1.jpg
So each time I have to hit OK to open Anki. Maybe it’s not a bit deal, but still annoying. Does anyone know how to get rid of this bug?

Also, since I understand I’ll be using Anki Data location at my Windows desktop F: drive ( by the way it’s formatted as NTFS) and accumulate my new cards and media info there, how would I upgrade Anki soft when upgrades are available? Should I upgrade the soft by entering Anki soft at C: location, or it will figure by itself while I am in an open Anki by the usual way - hitting the above shortcut?

Thank you again!

6

Make sure there are no spaces between - and b in -b, otherwise Anki will think you’re trying to import a file.
Also, if the path after -b has spaces in it, you should enclose it in double quotes like "C:\Program Files\Anki\anki.exe" -b "F:\anki data folder"

When upgrading, Anki places a new shortcut on your desktop. I think you should keep the modified shortcut safe somewhere else to prevent it from being replaced and remember to always launch Anki from the modified shortcut.

As you moved your data somewhere else now, I recommend deleting the C:\Users\%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Anki2 folder to prevent confusion about whether Anki is using the old or the new location especially since they have identical data now.

7

Hi Abdo !

Thank you for your prompt answer.

Yes, there was a space between – and b, I’ve removed it and this solved my problem. I’ve also deleted the C:\Users%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Anki2 folder - that was a great advice of yours, special thanks to you for it. I will use my Anki F: shortcut from a special desktop folder and let the shortcuts from every Anki update replace each other.

One more question: I’d like to automatically backup my F: AnkiDataFolder at MEGA cloud, do you think it could be a problem for Anki operation ?

Thank you again, you’ve helped me a lot!

8

Yes, you should never run backup software while Anki is open as that can cause data corruption.
Run MEGA only when Anki is closed.

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