Overview

Every directory can have its own .sift.toml, giving it its own strategy, unknown-file handling, Watch stability window, and declarative rules — independent of every other directory.

~/Music/.sift.toml
~/Pictures/.sift.toml
~/Documents/.sift.toml
~/Downloads/.sift.toml

Generating a starter config

sift init ~/Downloads

Writes a starter, canonical .sift.toml with example rules. Use --force to overwrite an existing one.

Validating a config

sift config check ~/Downloads

Validates the effective policy for a directory — local .sift.toml, global config, or built-in defaults, whichever applies — without touching the filesystem.

What lives in .sift.toml

• strategy — how files are classified: type (default), date, audio, video, photos, or documents. See Strategies.
• unknown — what happens to a file type doesn’t recognize: other (default) or skip.
• template — the destination pattern for metadata-driven strategies.
• [watch].stability_seconds — how long a file must sit unchanged before Watch organizes it. See Stability Window.
• [[rules]] — explicit, declarative overrides that always win over the strategy. See Rules.

What .sift.toml never does

Saving a .sift.toml never itself authorizes or starts any mutation — it describes how a directory should be organized, not whether automatic organization is currently running. That’s Watch’s job, and Watch requires its own explicit --auto-apply and sift watch start. See Watch → Overview.

Pages in this section

• .sift.toml — the full file shape, field by field.
• Rules — Move / Trash / Skip, and destination safety.
• Rule Priority — how conflicts between rules resolve.
• Configuration Lookup — exactly which file wins, and in what order.