Help and FAQ

Yes. The free version has no time limit and allows up to 5 rules, with every condition and every action. A paid license removes the limit and adds Start from a file, rule groups, and pausing a folder. See the Sortcerer page for prices.

A Mac running macOS 13 Ventura or later, Apple silicon or Intel.

No. It keeps watching your folders in the background even when its window is closed. A menu bar icon shows its status. From the menu bar item you can open Sortcerer, turn notifications on or off, and turn Launch at Login on or off.

• The file’s name and its type.
• Dates, such as how old a file is.
• The contents of PDFs and text files, including scanned PDFs, which are read on your Mac.
• Where a file was downloaded from, when your browser recorded it.

Text can be matched exactly, as a pattern, or as a date found inside the document. Conditions can be combined, and combined in groups with AND and OR.

It can rename a file, move it to a folder, file it into a subfolder named from what Sortcerer found in it, or move it to the Trash. Names and folders can include values found in the file, such as a date from a statement, and the file’s own dates.

Rules for the same folder run from top to bottom, and the first rule that matches wins. You control the order, so put the most specific rules first.

By default Sortcerer adds a number to the new file’s name, such as “name 2.pdf”. Each rule has a setting to choose a different behavior, including replacing the existing file. A replaced file goes to the Trash.

Yes. Choose File → Export All Rules… to save a .sortcererrules file, and File → Import Rules… on the other Mac. Before importing, Sortcerer shows a preview where you can uncheck rules and choose a different folder for any that don’t exist on that Mac. Imported rules arrive switched off. Ready-made files are on the recipes page.

Use the test panel at the bottom of the window. Choose a sample file and it shows which conditions matched and exactly what the rule would do. It is a dry run and changes nothing. Test every new rule before you switch it on.

Only if you give a rule a Move to Trash action, or tell it to replace existing files. In both cases the file goes to the Trash, where you can use Put Back. We can’t promise a file can always be recovered, so keep backups of anything important, as the license terms say.

• Choose the file as the sample in the test panel. It shows which conditions matched and which didn’t.
• Check that the rule is switched on, and that it is for the folder the file is in.
• Check the order. Another rule for the same folder may match first.
• On the free version only the first 5 rules run. Rules over the limit are locked and don’t run.
• For a scanned or oddly formatted PDF, test a rule on that exact file, since the text Sortcerer reads may differ from what you see.

When Sortcerer can’t process a file, a banner in the window and the menu bar item list it with the reason. It keeps retrying with longer waits. Choose Retry Now to try again immediately. Changing the rules or replacing the file also retries sooner.

The window shows the service status at the bottom of the folder list. If it says the service isn’t running, quit and reopen Sortcerer, which re-registers its background service when it opens. Email us if it persists.

No. Sortcerer runs entirely on your Mac, with no account, no analytics and no upload. It contacts the internet only to check your license and to look for updates. See the privacy policy.

Sortcerer looks for updates on its own, and you can choose Check for Updates… to look right away. Updates within the version you bought are free.

In Sortcerer, choose Help → License Info… and use Deactivate this Mac, then enter the same key on the other Mac. A license works on up to 3 Macs at once, and a Household license on up to 15. More on the support page.

It is in the receipt email from Polar, our payment provider. If it’s gone, email us from the address you bought with and we’ll send it again.

Yes, within 10 days of your purchase. Email sortcerer_support@arkleyinteractive.com from the address you bought with. Details are in the license terms.