# Folders and Files

As a user, you might occasionally want to see where a specific file is stored. Sometimes it's simple curiosity, other times you may want to inspect logs, review saved settings, or work directly with the files for troubleshooting or development.

And since LumiFind is privacy-focused software, everything is kept transparent so you can always see what is on your computer and why it is there.

## Application Logs (system locations)

While running, LumiFind writes background logs with names following the pattern `lf.YYYYMMDD_HHMM_XXX.log`. Depending on how LumiFind was installed, these are stored at:

<table id="bkmrk-operating-system-loc"><thead><tr><th>Operating System</th><th>Location</th><th>Comment</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Windows</td><td><code>&#37;LocalAppData&#37;&#92;MIDILLI Tech&#92;LumiFind&#92;Logs&#92;</code></td><td>Only exists if installed **for the current user**.</td></tr><tr><td>Windows</td><td><code>C&#58;&#92;Program Files&#92;MIDILLI Tech&#92;LumiFind&#92;Logs&#92;</code></td><td>Only exists if installed **for all users**.</td></tr><tr><td>macOS / Linux</td><td><code>&#126;&#47;&#46;lumifind&#47;logs&#47;</code></td><td>Auto-saved session logs appear here when enabled (see below).</td></tr></tbody></table>

## The .lumifind Folder

<table id="bkmrk-operating-system-pat" style="width: 42.9762%; height: 91.425px;"><thead><tr style="height: 29.6px;"><th style="width: 36.0596%; height: 29.6px;">Operating System</th><th style="width: 63.6842%; height: 29.6px;">Path</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr style="height: 30.9125px;"><td style="width: 36.0596%; height: 30.9125px;">Windows</td><td style="width: 63.6842%; height: 30.9125px;"><code>C&#58;&#92;Users&#92;&#37;username&#37;&#92;&#46;lumifind</code></td></tr><tr style="height: 30.9125px;"><td style="width: 36.0596%; height: 30.9125px;">macOS / Linux</td><td style="width: 63.6842%; height: 30.9125px;"><code>&#126;&#47;&#46;lumifind</code></td></tr></tbody></table>

This is the default folder for settings, license files, analysis metadata and analysis contents.

<p class="callout info">**Tip:** [Settings](https://docs.midilli.tech/books/lumifind-user-guide/page/settings) → **Open Settings Folder** opens this directory directly.</p>

### Files and folders inside .lumifind

<table id="bkmrk-file-%2F-folder-purpos"><thead><tr><th>File / Folder</th><th>Purpose</th><th>Comment</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><code>settings&#46;json</code></td><td>Contains user settings for LumiFind.</td><td>Can be edited manually, but with care! See [Settings File](https://docs.midilli.tech/books/lumifind-user-guide/page/settings-file).</td></tr><tr><td><code>license&#46;json</code></td><td>Contains device- and user-bound license information.</td><td>If deleted or tampered with, the license cannot be activated again. Licenses must be released only using the [License Manager](https://docs.midilli.tech/books/lumifind-user-guide/page/license-manager).</td></tr><tr><td><code>search&#95;history&#46;json</code></td><td>Lists the last performed search queries.</td><td>If you are using [console mode](https://docs.midilli.tech/books/lumifind-user-guide/page/console-mode), history will not be kept.</td></tr><tr><td><code>lumifind&#95;db&#46;sqlite3</code></td><td>Database keeping track of analyzed files and their metadata. Usually small in size.</td><td>Default location may vary between installation types (directly under <code>&#46;lumifind</code>, or inside the index folder). Its path can be changed via the <code>db&#95;file</code> setting in <code>settings&#46;json</code>.</td></tr><tr><td><code>lumifind&#95;db&#47;</code></td><td>Folder holding the actual analysis data for documents, images, voice and videos. May grow as the number of analyzed files increases.</td><td>Location can be changed via the <code>index&#95;folder</code> setting in <code>settings&#46;json</code>.</td></tr><tr><td><code>thumbnails&#47;</code></td><td>Smaller versions of the analyzed images, used both for detecting changes and displaying them in the interface. Follows the same folder structure as the indexed content.</td><td>Can be relocated via the <code>thumbnail&#95;folder</code> setting.</td></tr><tr><td><code>models&#47;</code></td><td>Cached copies of downloaded AI models (embedding, transcription and detection models).</td><td>Can be relocated via the <code>models&#95;folder</code> setting.</td></tr><tr><td><code>&#60;model&#95;name&#62;&#46;pt</code></td><td>Object detection model weights downloaded on demand for frame analysis.</td><td>Stored at the root of <code>&#46;lumifind</code>; safe to delete, they will be re-downloaded when needed.</td></tr><tr><td><code>manifest&#46;json</code></td><td>Cached update information used by the built-in updater.</td><td>Refreshed automatically when checking for updates.</td></tr><tr><td><code>logs&#47;</code></td><td>Folder storing important information and error logs in the event of a problem.</td><td>If you enable [Settings](https://docs.midilli.tech/books/lumifind-user-guide/page/settings) → **Auto Save Logs**, session logs also appear here after each run.</td></tr></tbody></table>

## Inside the Index Folder (lumifind\_db)

Besides your analysis data, LumiFind keeps small marker files here:

<table id="bkmrk-file-purpose-.lumifi"><thead><tr><th>File</th><th>Purpose</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><code>&#46;lumifind&#95;indexing&#46;lock</code></td><td>Temporary marker while an indexing operation is running, preventing concurrent index writes.</td></tr><tr><td><code>&#46;lumifind&#95;readonly</code></td><td>Marker indicating the index is currently read-only (e.g. during maintenance or after an interrupted operation).</td></tr></tbody></table>

<p class="callout warning">**Note:** Do not delete marker or database files manually while LumiFind is running. If an indexing operation was interrupted unexpectedly, remove the lock markers only after making sure no LumiFind process is active.</p>

## Model files from Hugging Face

<table id="bkmrk-os-folder-purpose-wi" style="width: 100%;"><thead><tr><th style="width: 12.8694%;">OS</th><th style="width: 25.143%;">Folder</th><th style="width: 61.9638%;">Purpose</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td style="width: 12.8694%;">Windows</td><td style="width: 25.143%;"><code>C&#58;&#92;Users&#92;&#37;username&#37;&#92;&#46;cache&#92;huggingface</code></td><td style="width: 61.9638%;">Model files downloaded from Hugging Face.</td></tr><tr><td style="width: 12.8694%;">Linux/macOS</td><td style="width: 25.143%;"><code>&#126;&#47;&#46;cache&#47;huggingface</code></td><td style="width: 61.9638%;">Model files downloaded from Hugging Face.</td></tr></tbody></table>