DeskSort
A small Windows app that clears loose files off the desktop into a sorted folder, after showing you exactly what will move.
Tech stack
- Python
- tkinter
- PyInstaller
- JSON settings
What it does
- Finds both your local Windows desktop and your OneDrive desktop, and sorts them separately or into one folder
- A preview lists every item and where it will go. Untick anything you want to keep, and those choices are remembered when you rescan.
- Sorting rules: keywords in a file's name are checked first, as whole words, then everything else is sorted by type into Documents, Code, Images, Media, Archives, Installers and 3D/CAD
- An ignore list you can edit in the app, with exact names or wildcards, and a DNM tag in a file's name to keep it on the desktop
- Skips shortcuts, Office lock files, hidden and system files, and its own sorted folder
- Undo last sort puts the last batch back
How it works
- Uses only Python's standard library, with a tkinter window and settings saved as JSON in the user's AppData folder.
- Never overwrites anything: a name that's already taken becomes name_copy, then name_copy (2), and so on.
- Files open in another program are skipped and listed in the window, and anything unexpected shows a pop-up instead of crashing.
- Every move and undo is written to a log file.
- Builds into a standalone .exe with PyInstaller, and starts without a console window.