🧭 Tutorial — Organize Your External Drive Using ChatGPT

Here’s a clear tutorial for organizing the content of an external drive using ChatGPT.

It includes a ready-to-use prompt, an explanation of the workflow, and instructions on how to use GPT or another A.I. tool.

🧰 Tools Needed

✅ On macOS

DiskCatalogMaker – Export a file list in .txt or .csv format (use tab-separated or comma-separated values).

✅ On Windows

Directory List & Print Pro – This powerful tool lets you export the entire content of a drive or folder as a space- or tab-separated .csv file. Use the “CSV export” option under “Export / Save” > “File List” tab.

🔄 Step-by-Step Process

1. Scan your drive

Use DiskCatalogMaker (Mac) or Directory List & Print (Windows) to scan your external drive.

2. Export your file list

Export the contents as a CSV file. Make sure it includes:

File name

Size

Type (document, folder, audio, image, etc.)

Modification date

💡 Use tab- or space-separated values for best compatibility.

3. Upload the CSV to ChatGPT

Go to your ChatGPT chat and upload the CSV file. Make sure you’re using GPT-4 with file capabilities.

💬 Copy-Paste Prompt to Use in ChatGPT

Here is the ready-to-use prompt to get the most out of the AI:

Hi ChatGPT, I’ve uploaded a CSV file listing the content of my external drive (exported from DiskCatalogMaker / Directory List & Print). Please help me:

1. Clean and categorize the contents by file type and usage (e.g., Projects, Audio, PDFs, etc.).

2. Suggest a clear, numbered folder structure to organize the drive (e.g., 01_Projects, 02_Documents…).

3. Place each file inside a folder — nothing should be left loose or “orphaned”.

4. Output the full plan as a list I can follow or copy.

Once done, please offer to generate a final CSV export showing the suggested folder for each file.

✅ What You’ll Get from ChatGPT

A clean, detailed plan to reorganize all files.

A list of folders to create with all file assignments.

Optionally: a downloadable CSV for backup or implementation.

I thought this might be helpful because I don't always organize my files systematically over time, and things get a bit messy after a while. So, this method is really convenient for restoring some order to your hard drives.

Antonio

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