REALLY, REALLY slow deleting large batch of files

[JohnFLand]

I have been trying to DELETE about 60,000 files from one directory on the a private share for the better part of a WEEK. There has GOT to be a bad bug in the MCH firmware (which is 7.13.1-163 – the unit has not updated itself to 7.14.0-130).

All of the files have the form *.wdseml – old Thunderbird email summary files. Example name:

md5%3A9zx%2FYq%2Be9b49Jp9AwFIrMw%3D%3D.wdseml

I’ve tried using File Explorer, Directory Opus, Beyond Compare (both directly on the PC and remotely) – no joy. The deletion rate is about ONE file per MINUTE.

Note that I deleted thousands of other file types from the private share at a decent rate (not nearly as fast as the public share – more on that below). So there’s something in the MCH firmware that has trouble with the number of files in this one directory and/or the file name format.

The PC is running Windows 10 Pro, latest updates. The PC is on a gigabit Ethernet network, as is the MCH (through the same gigabit switch). There are no other PCs on the network. I remotely access the PC via RemotePC (the PC belongs to an assistant in another state). The only major applications running on the PC are RemotePC and whichever of the above file management programs I’m trying (I’m currently using Beyond Compare).

I can copy and delete files from the PC to a public share on the MCH at a normal NAS type rate, so the communication path cannot be the culprit. Further, writing file content is not the issue since I’m only trying to delete, so again the network link is not the problem.

The 60,000 files on the private share that I’m trying to delete are a duplicate subset of what was on the public share. It took 15-20 minutes to delete all 60,000+ duplicate files PLUS about 100,000 other similar *.wdseml files from the public share. That’s the rate I’d expect.

I try to delete the obstinate files overnight, so only run about 8 hours per day to not interrupt my assistant’s work. At the current rate, it will take over 120 days to delete them all.

Any suggestions on what to try to speed things up??

[Gas920]

Try to delete from the mobile app.

[tekram]

This is an interesting suggestion as the MCH may be trying to sync with the mobile device(s) and the processes slowed when it is unable to do so. When the MCH was first introduced and WD support was more talkative, there used to be good discussions on how the mechanics worked under the hood for MCH and it was suggested that the slow speed were due to the use of the free and open source Syncthing in MCH. In Feb 2018, it was explained by WD support this way:

Sync-conflict

@Kampie SOURCE: FAQ — Syncthing documentation When a file has been modified on two devices simultaneously and the content actually differs, one of the files will be renamed to .sync-conflict--.. The file with the older modification time will be marked as the conflicting file and thus be renamed. If the modification times are equal, the file originating from the device which has the larger value of the first 63 bits for his device ID will be marked as the conflicting file. If the conflict is be…

So the suggestions for the case use for MCH would be not to try to sync frequently updated and editable files such as Excel, Word and email client database files such as those from Thunderbird.

Sync-conflict

I’m having the same experience… It looks like MY CLOUD HOME was only designed for storing photos & music. As soon as you try to store editable files such as an excel or word file and start editing them you get overwhelmed with sync conflicts. Feels like the software developers never considered that a file will ever be edited. Btw I’m editing the files locally it’s just the fact that those folders are ‘synced’ with WD Mycloud home.

[JohnFLand]

I had a real NAS – WDC MyCloud. It died. So I thought I was simply replacing it with the MCH. My huge mistake.

[JohnFLand]

tekram, I can’t see that the syncing check even applies. I’m not trying to write modified files over older files, I just want to DELETE existing files. And note, the ONLY files that I’m having a hard time deleting from the private share are the ones in a single directory having the extension “.wdseml”.

[JohnFLand]

Gas920 – Deletion from the mobile app DOES seem to work fast!

Now – how do I select 60,000 files at once to delete? It appears that I have to get in a Select mode and then poke EACH AND EVERY FILE I WANT TO DELETE. Is there a “select all” function I’m missing?

[JohnFLand]

Never mind, found the “select all”!

[JohnFLand]

Well, the “select all” function does not actually select ALL – it only selects 153 or so files unless you manually scroll down and thus load up more files in the display. Still, while it will take an hour or two, I guess I can accomplish my goal of just deleting these pesky WDSEML files.

[JohnFLand]

OK, fortunately, I verified that the ONLY files in the one pesky folder are WDSEML files, so I went up a directory level and selected DELETE for the entire directory – and it worked. My specific deletion problem now solved (the underlying problem with the MCH software is NOT solved).

[BobbyMac]

I’m having the same problem. I have a large folder that I would like to delete. It’s not sync’ed with anything, just a backup folder that I don’t need any more. Not having any issues with reading or writing.