How to move the Evernote Database to an external SSD

[philrodo 60]

How can I move the Evernote Database to an external drive? I'm on a Mac running macOS v 13.2 (Ventura). 

[PinkElephant 8,174]

Officially you can’t.

In reality you can use a symbolic link (Symlink) - google for it.

[philrodo 60]

12 hours ago, PinkElephant said:

Officially you can’t.

In reality you can use a symbolic link (Symlink) - google for it.

Thanks. But where is the database located on a Mac? 

[PinkElephant 8,174]

Here:   /Users/myuser/Library/Application Support/Evernote

It is a hidden folder, you need to unhide them first by running a command in the terminal. Replace myuser by your user name.

[philrodo 60]

11 minutes ago, PinkElephant said:

Here:   /Users/myuser/Library/Application Support/Evernote

Thanks, but it's not there. I'm on macOS Ventura v 13.2 in case the OS makes a difference. 

Could this be the path I'm looking for? 

/Users/user/Library/Containers/com.evernote.Evernote/Data/Library/Application Support/Evernote

So if this is the folder I'm looking for, do I move the folder and it's contents to an external SSD and then replace the folder with an alias pointing to the folder on the external SSD? 

[PinkElephant 8,174]

As I said this is a hidden folder.

You have to make it visible first.

[philrodo 60]

2 hours ago, PinkElephant said:

As I said this is a hidden folder.

Thanks for the feedback. I realize I'm going down a rabbit hole... 🤓

I think you misunderstood when I said that the Evernote folder is not at: 
/Users/myuser/Library/Application Support/Evernote

I meant it's NOT there. I use PathFinder from Cocoa Tech, and at a click of a button I can reveal hidden files and folders. A folder named Evernote does not exist at that path. 

As I mentioned previously, I did locate an Evernote data folder at:
/Users/user/Library/Containers/com.evernote.Evernote/Data

And this folder contains a bunch of subfolders, like
/Users/User/Library/Containers/com.evernote.Evernote/Data/Library
which in turn contains many subfolders. The Library folder contains a total of 8.5 GB of data, most of which is found in an subfolder named "Application Support". 

The folder at the following path, appears to contain all the Evernote data:
/Users/User/Library/Containers/com.evernote.Evernote/Data/Library/Application Support/Evernote

So it seems to me that things have changed and the folders and files have been relocated. Doesn't Evernote provide any documentation for this information? I can move this Evernote folder and then place an Alias there pointing to the folder that I moved it to, but there are so many other items related to Evernote in this and other folders, I'm concerned I'm going to mess things up. 

I suppose I should contact TechSupport and see what they have to say, though I suspect that their first tier support will not have that information available. Thanks again for your assistance. 

 

[PinkElephant 8,174]

Wherever you found it ... (Screenshot from Mac Mini, M1, Ventura), the blurred part in the thread is my user name, the folder holds more than 30GB of EN local data. But this is from MY Mac, and it may be that on YOUR Mac it is located elsewhere. Why not, if it is not there, it is not there, and if it is in another place, than be it :

If you want to move it elsewhere, it still works through a Symlink.

No, this is not official. Yes, Symlinks are official, and you find a ton of advise about it with Google or in YouTube.

No, I don't know if support will assist on this, but I have my doubts, because nothing of this is official. But Yes, of course you can try.

No, you can't really damage anything, worst case it will not work, and you can download a fresh copy. Yes, in case you want to try before you go all in, you can create a second, Free account, put some stuff in there, and try to move the local folder away. The main data will be in the Resource-Cache-Folder, with one subfolder per user.

No, I haven't moved my database ever, I bought an SSD with sufficient space, and enjoy the rrrrrracecarfast function of the primary SSD on these new Apple Silicon Macs. But yes, I know how it works.

I think this answered your questions. Good luck - and maybe you come back here to tell how it worked out.

[agsteele 2,954]

Could the location depends on whether this a direct download installation or the Mac store version?

Certainly the Windows versions install in different locations.

[PinkElephant 8,174]

Probably yes - I am on the direct download.

Haven’t thought about it …

[philrodo 60]

Look what I accidentally found in the Downloads folder: a hidden Evernote folder that contains a number of subfolders which include some file attachments to Notes. The total space take by these hidden folders is about 11 MBs, not much, but still concerning if Evernote is storing stuff all over the drive in hidden folders. I see no reason for Evernote storing a hidden folder in the Downloads folder--am I missing something? 

I've sent a message to Tech Support about this, but I've been using Evernote since Jan 2008  and I haven't been very impressed with their Tech Support. I'll let you know if I get any response from them. 

Here's the file structure under the hidden folder (I've only expended one of the subfolders to show the PDF attachment, but each of the suborders labeled "external-edits" contain a subfolder that includes the file attachment--see highlighted lines):

/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/14c9fbb6-1406-1c0e-67c4-5db5decead27
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/14c9fbb6-1406-1c0e-67c4-5db5decead27/3f80a05502d48d7de0d23c7342b41252
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/14c9fbb6-1406-1c0e-67c4-5db5decead27/3f80a05502d48d7de0d23c7342b41252/Scannable Document on Feb 13, 2023 at 1_23_34 PM.pdf
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/14c9fbb6-1406-1c0e-67c4-5db5decead27/.DS_Store
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/45ade2f2-6dc7-47c6-a9f9-c1e3ac70aa3e
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/3263ba6e-b826-ad3e-1d0d-e391ab38765b
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/d674ca49-fde0-47e7-b754-15897f22aa7e
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/.DS_Store
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/.DS_Store
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/.DS_Store
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.DS_Store
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.localized

[eric99 986]

14 minutes ago, philrodo said:

Look what I accidentally found in the Downloads folder: a hidden Evernote folder that contains a number of subfolders which include some file attachments to Notes. The total space take by these hidden folders is about 11 MBs, not much, but still concerning if Evernote is storing stuff all over the drive in hidden folders. I see no reason for Evernote storing a hidden folder in the Downloads folder--am I missing something? 

I've sent a message to Tech Support about this, but I've been using Evernote since Jan 2008  and I haven't been very impressed with their Tech Support. I'll let you know if I get any response from them. 

Here's the file structure under the hidden folder (I've only expended one of the subfolders to show the PDF attachment, but each of the suborders labeled "external-edits" contain a subfolder that includes the file attachment--see highlighted lines):

/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/14c9fbb6-1406-1c0e-67c4-5db5decead27
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/14c9fbb6-1406-1c0e-67c4-5db5decead27/3f80a05502d48d7de0d23c7342b41252
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/14c9fbb6-1406-1c0e-67c4-5db5decead27/3f80a05502d48d7de0d23c7342b41252/Scannable Document on Feb 13, 2023 at 1_23_34 PM.pdf
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/14c9fbb6-1406-1c0e-67c4-5db5decead27/.DS_Store
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/45ade2f2-6dc7-47c6-a9f9-c1e3ac70aa3e
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/3263ba6e-b826-ad3e-1d0d-e391ab38765b
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/d674ca49-fde0-47e7-b754-15897f22aa7e
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/external-edits/.DS_Store
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/628660/.DS_Store
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.evernote/.DS_Store
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.DS_Store
/Users/UserAcct/Downloads/.localized

I think these are temporary files, used while editing note attachments until they are saved back on the EN server. These files should have been removed afterwards. This is actually a disk leak, I'm afraid.

Anyhow, these files may be neglected for your symbolic linking...

 

[macfixer 705]

On 2/14/2023 at 8:05 PM, philrodo said:

Thanks for the feedback. I realize I'm going down a rabbit hole... 🤓

I think you misunderstood when I said that the Evernote folder is not at: 
/Users/myuser/Library/Application Support/Evernote

I meant it's NOT there. I use PathFinder from Cocoa Tech, and at a click of a button I can reveal hidden files and folders. A folder named Evernote does not exist at that path. 

As I mentioned previously, I did locate an Evernote data folder at:
/Users/user/Library/Containers/com.evernote.Evernote/Data

And this folder contains a bunch of subfolders, like
/Users/User/Library/Containers/com.evernote.Evernote/Data/Library
which in turn contains many subfolders. The Library folder contains a total of 8.5 GB of data, most of which is found in an subfolder named "Application Support". 

The folder at the following path, appears to contain all the Evernote data:
/Users/User/Library/Containers/com.evernote.Evernote/Data/Library/Application Support/Evernote

So it seems to me that things have changed and the folders and files have been relocated. Doesn't Evernote provide any documentation for this information? I can move this Evernote folder and then place an Alias there pointing to the folder that I moved it to, but there are so many other items related to Evernote in this and other folders, I'm concerned I'm going to mess things up. 

I suppose I should contact TechSupport and see what they have to say, though I suspect that their first tier support will not have that information available. Thanks again for your assistance. 

 

Word to the wise: An alias to a file is not the same as a symbolic link. If you're unsure of how stuff works, this article may be of use.

I apologize if this comes across as 'gatekeeping,' — but once one starts moving Evernote data around in a manner that is not officially supported, bad stuff can happen.

[philrodo 60]

2 minutes ago, eric99 said:

I think these are temporary files, used while editing note attachments until they are saved back on the EN server. These files should have been removed afterwards. This is actually a disk leak, I'm afraid.

Anyhow, these files may be neglected for your symbolic linking...

 

Thanks. But the Evernote folder was added on 1/31/23, which I'm pretty sure was the first day I set up the MacMini and of course, Evernote was one of the first apps I installed. Obviously, these files were abandoned as Evernote has not deleted them in days. 

Yes, I realize that they're not needed for linking. Thanks. 

With Apple making their internal SSDs small and very expensive to upgrade, you'd think that every app that stores large amounts of data locally, would have a method for easily relocating their files to an external SSD. So far, I've only found specific instructions for relocating the Apple Photos library...

[philrodo 60]

49 minutes ago, macfixer said:

Word to the wise: An alias to a file is not the same as a symbolic link. If you're unsure of how stuff works, this article may be of use.

I apologize if this comes across as 'gatekeeping,' — but once one starts moving Evernote data around in a manner that is not officially supported, bad stuff can happen.

Thanks. No apologies necessary. I appreciate the feedback. 

[PinkElephant 8,174]

…. and you don’t need to relocate the Photos library, if you use „Optimize my Mac“ plus an iCloud-subscription.

With the newer Macs better avoid the smallest SSDs - they only have half the speed of the larger ones. You probably won’t notice it on regular file operations, but you will notice it if MacOS starts swapping when it is running out of RAM.

Since in the Mini I think the smallest of the fast breed SSDs is the 512GB, it should have no problem to host the EN database.

[macfixer 705]

1 hour ago, philrodo said:

So far, I've only found specific instructions for relocating the Apple Photos library...

The Apple Photos Library dates back to the iPhoto / Aperture days, when photo libraries would sometimes fill your startup drive, causing OS X to grind to a halt or completely crash. Apple was smart enough to include that feature but hide it unless you absolutely needed it.

[philrodo 60]

3 hours ago, PinkElephant said:

…. and you don’t need to relocate the Photos library, if you use „Optimize my Mac“ plus an iCloud-subscription.

With the newer Macs better avoid the smallest SSDs - they only have half the speed of the larger ones. You probably won’t notice it on regular file operations, but you will notice it if MacOS starts swapping when it is running out of RAM.

Since in the Mini I think the smallest of the fast breed SSDs is the 512GB, it should have no problem to host the EN database.

True, one should avoid the 256 GB SSD, as it's very slow, comparatively. The M2 MacMini comes with a 256 GB SSD unless you upgrade it. But you're right, the M2 Pro comes with a minimum of 512 GB SSD and that's the one I got. The M2 Pro, comes with four Thunderbolt/USC-C ports, whereas the M2 only comes with two ports, which wouldn't work for me. 

[philrodo 60]

2 hours ago, macfixer said:

The Apple Photos Library dates back to the iPhoto / Aperture days, when photo libraries would sometimes fill your startup drive, causing OS X to grind to a halt or completely crash. Apple was smart enough to include that feature but hide it unless you absolutely needed it.

True, but at least Apple makes available step-by-step instructions on how to move the Photo Library. I wish other apps would provide this information as well. 

Frankly, I never experienced Aperture filling up the start-up drive, but this was long before SSDs becoming widely available, so getting a one or two TB HDD on a Mac wasn't as expensive as it's currently with their SSDs. 

[PinkElephant 8,174]

You just need to google for symbolic link Mac, and you get a ton of hits. Here is one of them, already a bit older, but it should still work. Symlinks are nothing specific for the Mac, so it probably doesn't need to be explained for the Mac. 

https://www.howtogeek.com/297721/how-to-create-and-use-symbolic-links-aka-symlinks-on-a-mac/

Why Apple will not post information about how to use SymLinks on 3rd party apps is self explaining: They never do. They expect us to configure a Mac in a way it will just make it work - surprisingly they don't take the price for storage upgrades as an argument 😉