Deleting file attachments for all records on one click

There should be a feature to remove all file attachments from all records on one click.

  • Sometimes you want to email an EndNote file to share the citation information, but the payload of attachments is too much and often not required for the purpose. There shoulbe a way to remove this “unwanted” information on one click so that one can make a copy of their libary and rip this information and be able to email just the library with citations.

This is a good point. In fact, you would probably be in breach of digital copyright law if you sent the library, with attachments, to someone at another institution. Many of your attachments would have been obtained from databases to which your institution subscribes, and it is illegal (however commonplace!) to send such material to somebody who is not attached to your institution.

I think there is a fairly easy workaround. The attachments are not stored in the .enl file, but in a folder within the DATA folder. So, in Windows Explorer or My Computer, make a copy of the .enl file and give it a new name. Then go to EndNote and open the new .enl file. EndNote will create a DATA folder for the .enl file, but of course the DATA folder will not contain the attachments. So if you try to open any of the attachments from the new library, you will get an error message. You can compress the new library, and send it to a colleague, with an explanation that the attachments are not included.

This is something that we have on our “To Do” list and hope to get to for the next version of EndNote - but there are no guarantees:

“Compressed Library (.enlx) Expansion:”

  • “Add ability to compress & email the following as their own file: a record, a selection of records, a Group of records.”
  • “Add option/preference to compress & email records but NOT include attachments and images.”

Jason Rollins, EndNote Product Development

Is there a safe way to clear the folders on a copy of the library to achieve this, for the time being? 

Not that I know of. Perhaps an export that does not include the “File Attachments” and “Figure” fields might work.

Jason Rollins