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Folder Management

Tools for organizing and maintaining clean folder structures in your Unreal Engine project.

Overview​

Folder Management features:

  • Delete empty folders recursively
  • Clean up redirectors
  • Fix broken folder structures
  • Batch folder operations
  • Blueprint-accessible folder utilities

Delete Empty Folders​

Remove folders that no longer contain any assets.

What's Considered Empty?​

A folder is empty if it contains:

  • ❌ No .uasset files
  • ❌ No subfolders with assets
  • ✅ Only redirectors (optional)
  • ✅ Only metadata files

Recursive Deletion​

Starting from a base folder:

  1. Scan all subfolders recursively
  2. Identify empty folders
  3. Delete from deepest level upward
  4. Continue until no empty folders remain

Usage​

From Content Browser:

Right-click folder → Elys Asset Tools → Delete Empty Folders

From Blueprint:

UERP_AssetToolsEditorSubsystem* Subsystem =
    GEditor->GetEditorSubsystem<UERP_AssetToolsEditorSubsystem>();

Subsystem->DeleteEmptyFolders("/Game/Content");

From C++:

void UERP_AssetToolsEditorSubsystem::DeleteEmptyFolders(const FString& BasePath)
{
    TArray<FString> EmptyFolders;
    FindEmptyFoldersRecursive(BasePath, EmptyFolders);

    for (const FString& FolderPath : EmptyFolders)
    {
        DeleteFolder(FolderPath);
    }
}

Redirector Management​

Redirectors are created when assets are moved or renamed. Over time, they can accumulate and should be cleaned up.

What Are Redirectors?​

When you move an asset:

  1. UE creates a redirector at the old location
  2. The redirector points to the new location
  3. This ensures references aren't broken

But redirectors:

  • Take up space
  • Clutter the content browser
  • Can cause confusion
  • Should be cleaned up periodically

Clean Up Redirectors​

After Move Operations:

// Automatically cleaned after moves
Subsystem->StartMoveAssets(Sources, Destination);
// Cleanup happens automatically

Manual Cleanup:

// Clean redirectors in a folder
Subsystem->FixRedirectorsInFolder("/Game/OldLocation");

UE Built-in Tool:

Right-click folder → Fix Up Redirectors in Folder

Detect Redirector-Only Folders​

Find folders that contain only redirectors:

bool IsFolderOnlyRedirectors(const FString& FolderPath)
{
    TArray<FAssetData> Assets;
    AssetRegistry.GetAssetsByPath(*FolderPath, Assets, false);

    for (const FAssetData& Asset : Assets)
    {
        if (Asset.AssetClassPath.GetAssetName() != "ObjectRedirector")
        {
            return false; // Found non-redirector
        }
    }

    return Assets.Num() > 0; // Has redirectors only
}

Folder Operations​

Check if Folder Exists​

bool FolderExists(const FString& FolderPath)
{
    IAssetRegistry& AssetRegistry = FModuleManager::LoadModuleChecked<FAssetRegistryModule>("AssetRegistry").Get();

    TArray<FAssetData> Assets;
    AssetRegistry.GetAssetsByPath(*FolderPath, Assets, false);

    return Assets.Num() > 0;
}

Get All Assets in Folder​

TArray<FAssetData> GetAssetsInFolder(const FString& FolderPath, bool bRecursive = false)
{
    TArray<FAssetData> Assets;
    IAssetRegistry& AssetRegistry = FModuleManager::LoadModuleChecked<FAssetRegistryModule>("AssetRegistry").Get();

    AssetRegistry.GetAssetsByPath(*FolderPath, Assets, bRecursive);

    return Assets;
}

Count Assets in Folder​

int32 CountAssetsInFolder(const FString& FolderPath, bool bRecursive = true)
{
    TArray<FAssetData> Assets = GetAssetsInFolder(FolderPath, bRecursive);
    return Assets.Num();
}

Get Subfolders​

TArray<FString> GetSubfolders(const FString& BasePath, bool bRecursive = false)
{
    TArray<FString> SubPaths;
    IAssetRegistry& AssetRegistry = FModuleManager::LoadModuleChecked<FAssetRegistryModule>("AssetRegistry").Get();

    AssetRegistry.GetSubPaths(BasePath, SubPaths, bRecursive);

    return SubPaths;
}

Planned Features​

Flatten Folder Structure​

Coming Soon: Flatten nested folders into a single level.

// Before: /Game/Root/Sub1/Sub2/Assets
// After:  /Game/Root/Assets

Subsystem->FlattenFolder("/Game/Root", true);

Bulk Rename​

Planned: Rename multiple folders at once.

// Rename pattern
TMap<FString, FString> Renames;
Renames.Add("/Game/Old1", "/Game/New1");
Renames.Add("/Game/Old2", "/Game/New2");

Subsystem->BulkRenameFolder(Renames);

Folder Documentation​

Planned: Add README files to folders.

// Create folder README
Subsystem->CreateFolderREADME("/Game/MyFolder", "This folder contains character assets");

// Read folder README
FString ReadMe = Subsystem->GetFolderREADME("/Game/MyFolder");

Best Practices​

Regular Cleanup​

Clean up your project regularly:

  1. Weekly: Delete empty folders
  2. After big moves: Fix redirectors
  3. Before committing: Clean up the project
  4. Before releases: Remove unused content

Folder Organization​

Maintain a clean structure:

  • Use consistent naming conventions
  • Group related assets together
  • Avoid deeply nested folders (> 5 levels)
  • Document folder purposes

Automation​

Automate cleanup tasks:

// Editor utility widget for automated cleanup
void RunProjectCleanup()
{
    UERP_AssetToolsEditorSubsystem* Subsystem =
        GEditor->GetEditorSubsystem<UERP_AssetToolsEditorSubsystem>();

    // 1. Delete empty folders
    Subsystem->DeleteEmptyFolders("/Game");

    // 2. Fix redirectors
    Subsystem->FixRedirectorsInFolder("/Game");

    // 3. Log results
    UE_LOG(LogElysAssetTools, Log, TEXT("Project cleanup complete"));
}

API Reference​

See Subsystem API for complete folder management API documentation.

Next Steps​