ShareGPT

You can solve this problem on Linux, but the best approach isn’t a “placeholder file” trick — it’s using a consistent way of tracking what you’ve already downloaded, and then comparing new downloads against that record before accepting them.

Below are practical solutions with increasing levels of automation.

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1) Track Files by Hash (Best General Solution)

Instead of tracking filenames (which change when you move files), track file content using a cryptographic hash (MD5/SHA1/SHA256). You build a database of hashes for everything you’ve downloaded; before accepting a new download, compare its hash to the database.

How it works

1. Every time you add a downloaded file to your archive, compute a hash:

   sha256sum /path/to/song.mp3 >> ~/download_hashes.txt
   

2. When a new file arrives, compute its hash:

   sha256sum newfile.mp3
   

3. Check if the hash exists in your index:

   grep -F "$(sha256sum newfile.mp3 | cut -d' ' -f1)" ~/download_hashes.txt
   

4. If there's a match, skip/ignore it.

Automating this

You can write a simple Bash script to do the check before you move a file:

#!/bin/bash

HASHFILE=~/download_hashes.txt

for f in "$@"; do
    h=$(sha256sum "$f" | cut -d ' ' -f 1)
    if grep -qx "$h" "$HASHFILE"; then
        echo "Already downloaded: $f"
    else
        echo "$h" >> "$HASHFILE"
        mv "$f" ~/Music/Library/
        echo "Added: $f"
    fi
done

Usage:

download-check file1.mp3 file2.mp3 …

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2) Use a File Indexing Tool

If you prefer a tool-based approach, use a filesystem indexer like recoll, Tracker, or Beagle:

• These tools index metadata and file contents.
• You can query the index for song titles/artist names.
• You can script queries against the index to see if a new download already exists.

Example with grep on an indexed database isn’t as reliable as hashes, but it helps.

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3) Soulseek-Specific Strategies

Soulseek clients don’t typically track moved files automatically because they only see the download directory.

Workarounds:

A) Keep your archive and download directory separate

• Configure Soulseek to download into a dedicated “incoming” folder.
• After moving to your archive, immediately run your hash script.
• Soulseek won’t know where the file went, but your system does.

B) Use symlinks/placeholder files

In theory you could leave small “marker” files where the original download was:

song.mp3     -> real file in /Music/Library/song.mp3

But this is fragile:

• You must keep the filename the same.
• Soulseek may overwrite or delete the placeholder.
• You’d need Soulseek settings to never replace existing files.

In practice, the hash-based index approach is safer.

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4) Automatic Deduplication Tools

If you want periodic cleanup rather than manual checking:

fdupes / rdfind / duff

These tools scan directories and identify duplicates by content.

Example:

fdupes -r /Music/Library

Advanced script:

fdupes -r ~/Downloads ~/Music/Library

to find duplicates across download and library.

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5) A Full Workflow Example

1. Soulseek downloads to /home/user/Downloads/soulseek-incoming

2. Run a script:

   • Compute hashes for new files
   • Check against ~/download_hashes.txt
   • Move unique files to /home/user/Music/Library
   • Remove duplicates automatically

3. Optionally index your library with Tracker/recoll to support search.

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Summary of Options

Method	Tracks Moves?	Automatable	Soulseek-aware
Placeholder files	No (fragile)	Low	Limited
Hash database	Yes	High	Independent
Indexing tool	Yes	Moderate	Independent
Deduplication scan	Yes (after the fact)	High	Independent

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Recommendation

Use a hash index. It reliably identifies duplicates regardless of filename changes or directory moves, and it can be fully automated with scripts.