[Feature] Extra Conditional Logic with Albums and Tags in Storage Templates

[Facinorous-420]

I have searched the existing feature requests, both open and closed, to make sure this is not a duplicate request.

• Yes

The feature

Right now, Immich doesn’t support nested albums due to sharing complexity (discussion 2073), but it would be awesome if we could use tags and albums in the storage template with basic conditional logic. That way, we could organize files into nested folders based on their tags and albums, without needing actual nested albums.

Example Use Case:

If a file’s album is Driving and it has the tag Accidents, let us store it at /Driving/Accidents/File.
If the tag is Close Call, put it at /Driving/Close Call/File.
So the storage template could use something like:

{{album}}/{{#if contains(tags, 'Accidents')}}Accidents{{/if}}{{#if contains(tags, 'Close Call')}}Close Call{{/if}}/{{file}}

Or, conditional logic that matches the album and tag 100% such as:

{{#if contains(albums, 'Driving')}}Driving/{{#if contains(tags, 'Accidents')}}Accidents{{/if}}{{#if contains(tags, 'Close Call')}}Close Call{{/if}}/{{file}}

Why?

• This would let us build folder hierarchies using tags and albums, getting around the nested album limitation

  It would be nice if we can achieve something like this using storage templates, albums, and tags:
  (PR 2168)

• Since files can have multiple tags (PR 11980), it gives us way more control over how folders are created and which tag or album gets used.

• It also helps avoid the album sharing and permissions issue we have for nested albums, since tags don’t have the same restrictions.

Possible Challenges:

• Need a way to pick which tags (and in what order) get used when there are several. Could default to latest tag when using {{tag}}, similar how albums are handled currently.
  Then have {{#if contains(tags/albums, 'name')}} for specific album/tags.

  Where conditional logic that specifies an album/tag would have priority over the blanket {{tag}} and {{album}} logic.

• Should be clear how conflicts or duplicate folder paths are handled.

• Template syntax needs to be user friendly, allowing for multiple lines of conditional logic.

If this was added, it’d make organizing and backing up photos so much easier for a lot of us, especially since everyone has their own way of organizing their files and this would open up massive opportunity for everyone to organize it exactly how they see fit.

Thanks for considering!

Platform

• Server
• Web
• Mobile

[bo0tzz]

Conditionals are already supported; is this request asking for anything more than exposing tags to the storage template?

Closely related: #6810

That aside, the storage template is already quite complex (more than I'd like), I'm hesitant to add even more to it. Any template that meaningfully uses tags seems like it would have quite a few layers, and tags (many per asset) are conceptually kind of incompatible with filesystem organization (one path per asset).

[Facinorous-420]

Conditionals are already supported; is this request asking for anything more than exposing tags to the storage template?

Closely related: #6810

The bulk of this request is for exposing tags to storage templates, as this would unlock nested folders (folders for tags inside of folders for albums).

• This is the main thing I personally want, as it will allow me to put pictures in an album and then create nested folders in that album based on the tags for the items.

Another part of the request is to add further conditional logic to target specific albums or tags and place them in specific folders.
{{#if contains(tags, 'Close Call')}}, for example, would target the Close Call tag specifically.

• This one is less important, to me, but would allow people to be more clear with exactly how they want to lay out their folders, and allow even deeper folder structure than just album/tag/item (or dates if you add those variables).

That aside, the storage template is already quite complex (more than I'd like), I'm hesitant to add even more to it. Any template that meaningfully uses tags seems like it would have quite a few layers, and tags (many per asset) are conceptually kind of incompatible with filesystem organization (one path per asset).

Completely understand not wanting to make things complex.
If tags are passed to the storage template, we could handle them similar to how albums are handled currently in the storage templates.
You can have a single file in multiple albums, similar to how you can have a single file with multiple tags. For this I'd imagine the best route would be to select the most recently created tag similar to how we select the most recently made album.

In regards to one path per asset, I am not sure what the general opinion is for these but we could utilize hard links as well if that is something that is possible, so that a file can appear more than once in folders but we really are only keeping 1 copy.
Hard links are compatible with Windows, Linux, and MacOS.
Though, I personally think if a file ends up in multiple folders then you need broader structure to ones organization but everyone is different and maybe someone may like having one picture appear in different folders.

[bo0tzz]

but we could utilize hard links as well

This has been considered and dismissed; people love their weird FUSE mounts and such, and hardlinks don't work on those.

[romain2929]

Thanks for your message and for taking the time to propose a direction.
I fully support anything that gets us closer — even partially — to nested folder-style organization in Immich.
Even alternative solutions that move in that direction are of great interest.
Thanks again!