Don't allow duplicate filenames in the same folder

[robduarte]

Fusion 360 allows you to save multiple designs into the same project/folder with the same name. I'd argue that it should prompt you when attempting to save with a duplicate name - same as 99% of other software that we use. 

[charegb]

@robduarte The duplicate file name restriction exists on desktop applications because of OS/file system limitations. There isn't such a limitation in the cloud so we let users create duplicates if they want to.

Is there a workflow issue that would be addressed by blocking duplicates?

Thanks,

Bankim

[robduarte]

I hope this doesn't sound flip, but I can't think of a possible workflow that would *benefit* from having multiple files with the same name, in the same folder. I understand that the cloud is not limited to having unique filenames. I'd argue, however, that just because it's technically possible, it doesn't mean that it's a good idea in practice. The obvious problem with duplicates is that is makes for confusion: you accidentally name a document with the same name as an existing one and you're not notified of this. Searching by name later or trying to browse a folder (especially one that is not sorted by name) are examples of where confusion can occur. I filed this as a bug and the reply was that one should use the thumbnail to distinguish one design from another. (Why then do we have names at all?) The main frustration that lead me to request this is that I accidentally had more than one design with the same name - they were different versions of the same basic design actually. Looking at the thumbnails I could not distinguish the two. Also, one of the designs had lots of its components hidden at the last save point, making for a thumbnail that was not very descriptive.

[charegb]

That's a fair point Rob. Now even if we don't allow dup names in the future, the discussion needs to cover what we do with existing dup file names.

I'm making this under review while we evaluate ideas here.

Thanks,

Bankim

[stevenr]

I agree with Rob wholeheartedly, and would even go one step further.....I would like an option to not allow duplicate file names across ALL of my project folders; my workflow is such that I sometimes use parts of one project in another project, and have suffered the anguish of forgetting that one part is shared in an un-related project, and then making a change to one of them. I end up with two parts with the same name that aren't the same...and I then have to try and figure out which one is which....

My own local document management system I have for my other CAD program has a check box option to "allow" or "disallow" duplicate file names throughout the entire system.

Steve R.

[charegb]

Factoring this into some projects we are working on early next year.