This guide explains the operation of the blacklist in the kDrive desktop app (macOS / Windows / Linux) and in which cases certain local files or folders are no longer taken into account for synchronization.

Introduction

• A file or folder placed on the blacklist by the application has a suffix in its name in the form _blacklisted.
  • This means that the application ignores this item during synchronization operations and it is therefore not transferred to kDrive Web.
  • This marker remains active until the cause of the blocking has been resolved.
• If an excluded folder cannot be deleted locally, it may be automatically added to the blacklist.
  • In this case, you can either delete it manually or re-enable its synchronization in the application settings.
• Once the problem is resolved (for example, after deleting a duplicate, correcting permissions, or reactivating an excluded folder), simply remove the _blacklisted suffix from the item's name so that it is included in the synchronization again.
• These mechanisms ensure the stability of the synchronization process and prevent recurring errors related to inaccessible files, duplicates, or files incompatible with the file system.

Examples of blacklisting

In some cases, a local item can be blacklisted:

• Dehydrated placeholder (Lite Sync only): a placeholder file (not fully downloaded) is added to the blacklist to prevent it from being uploaded to kDrive Web.
• Existing creation on the remote drive: if the creation of a file or folder fails because an identical item already exists on kDrive Web, the local item is marked as blacklisted.
• Insufficient server-side permissions: when a file or folder is created locally but the backend refuses to propagate the changes (e.g., in Common documents), the local item is blacklisted.
• Folder excluded from synchronization: if a folder has been unchecked in the kDrive desktop interface, the application attempts to delete it locally if it is still present. If this fails, it is blacklisted.

Blacklisting can also occur due to incompatible file names: characters such as the tilde ~, the forward slash /, the backslash \, certain system files such as System Volume Information, or certain temporary or technical extensions (.idlk, .parms.db, .directory, ._*, etc.) (other examples).

Rename these items before restarting the synchronization.

Correct a blacklisted item

To identify them:

• Identification: The _blacklisted suffix in the file or folder name indicates that the item is being ignored by the synchronization process.
• Resolution: Correct the cause of the blocking (e.g., access rights, an existing duplicate on kDrive Web, an exclusion setting, or a placeholder status), then rename the item to remove _blacklisted if you want it to be synchronized again.

To avoid this:

• Check your access rights before creating or modifying files in shared spaces, organization folders, or Common documents.
• Avoid creating duplicates when creating or moving files between your computer and kDrive Web.
• Do not uncheck a folder in the desktop application if you continue to add items to it locally.
• With Lite Sync, download the entire file before editing it, rather than working on a dehydrated placeholder.