Organize files on your PC
Let a bot sort, rename, and tidy files in one folder on your own computer, with you approving each step.
Normally a bot works on its own computer in the cloud. In this guide you let it work on your computer instead, using This PC, to tidy up a folder: renaming files, sorting them into subfolders, or cleaning up a spreadsheet.
You'll start carefully: one small folder, and the bot asking before every action. Once you trust how it works, you can loosen that.
What you'll end up with: a tidy folder, and a good feel for how a bot works on your computer and how to stop it.
Time needed: about 15 minutes.
What you need first:
- Machine Desktop installed, signed in, and running. The bot can only reach your computer while Machine Desktop is open (minimized to the tray is fine).
- A small folder to practise on, like a folder of photos or downloads. Make a copy of it first if the files matter to you.
Working with files and commands in a folder works on Windows and Mac.
Start a new thread
Right-click your bot in the sidebar and choose New thread. Each thread has its own setting, so this thread can work on your computer while your other threads stay in the cloud.
This PC works in a bot's own threads, not in group chats.
Switch the thread to This PC
- Above the message box, click the chip that says Cloud. (If the bot is working, stop it first. You can't switch in the middle of a turn.)
- Choose This PC.
- The first time, Machine Desktop asks to connect this computer to Machine. The message explains what the bot will be able to do. Read it, and confirm to continue.
Share one small folder
A window opens: Choose a folder Machine can work in. Pick a folder and click Share this folder.
Pick the smallest folder the job needs. For example, choose
Documents\Invoices 2024, not all of Documents. The bot can only open and
change files in folders you've shared with this thread.
The chip now shows This PC and your folder name. If you cancel, the thread stays on Cloud. Next time, the window opens next to the last folder you chose.
Turn on "Ask before each action"
Click the folder chip above the message box to open the folder menu. Under Control, turn Ask before each action to On. Now the bot asks before every file change, command, and click, and you approve each one.
It's Off by default. Keep it on while you're learning, and for any work that matters.
In the same section, if the job is only about files, you can turn Apps, mouse and keyboard to Off (Windows and Mac). Bots on this computer are then limited to files and commands, and won't use your screen.
Ask for a plan first
Before the bot moves anything, ask it to look and tell you what it would do. For example:
Look at the files in this folder and tell me how you'd organize them into subfolders. Don't move or rename anything yet.
Read its plan. If it looks right, tell it to go ahead. Some other requests you can try:
Rename every photo in this folder to the date it was taken, like 2024-06-01-001.jpg.
Move every PDF into a subfolder called PDFs and every image into one called Images. Leave everything else where it is.
Open budget.xlsx, add a column for the monthly change, and make a chart on a new sheet.
To point at a specific file, type @ in the message box and choose it from
your shared folder.
Approve or deny each step
As the bot works, a line under the chat header shows what it's doing, for example This PC · Invoices · Opening budget.xlsx.
With Ask before each action on, you approve each step before it happens. Read what the bot wants to do. If you don't understand it, deny it and ask the bot to explain.
If the bot needs something outside your shared folder, like another folder, it has to ask. Machine Desktop jumps to the front and shows a card like:
Assistant wants to use C:\Users\you\Documents\Receipts
- Allow shares it with this thread. The bot carries on from where it stopped.
- Deny (or press Esc) refuses. The bot is told no.
If several requests come in, you see them one at a time, oldest first.
Know how to stop it
You can always stop a bot that's working on your computer:
| How | What it stops |
|---|---|
| The Stop button in the chat header or message box, or send the word stop | This thread. |
| Ctrl+Alt+Esc (Windows) or ⌘⇧Esc (Mac), from any app | Everything any bot is doing on this computer. |
| Stop on the red Machine controlling this screen banner | Everything on this computer. |
After a full stop, the thread shows Stopped on this computer. Just send your next message to carry on.
What a folder does and doesn't protect
The shared folder limits which files the bot can open and change directly. But a command or program the bot runs works with your normal user permissions and can reach anything you can. For important work, keep Ask before each action on, so you approve every command before it runs.
How you can tell it's using your screen
If Apps, mouse and keyboard is on and the bot uses your screen, the edges of your screen glow purple, the window it's using has a purple frame, and a banner at the top says Machine controlling this screen. On Windows, the bot's own purple pointer glides to each spot it clicks, and your mouse pointer is handed back after each click. On a Mac, a purple ring follows your mouse pointer. The glow fades a few seconds after the bot stops.
Screenshots the bot takes are sent to Machine so the bot can see them. Close anything private before letting a bot use your screen.
Tips
- Start small. One small folder and Ask before each action on. Widen things once you're comfortable.
- Say exactly what not to touch. "Don't delete anything" or "Leave files from this year where they are". Bots don't delete anything unless you clearly asked.
- Need a different folder? Click the folder chip, then Change… next to the folder's name.
- A big job to run while you're away? In the folder menu, turn on Keep this PC awake. Your computer won't go to sleep while it's connected and plugged in (the screen can still turn off). You can check on the thread, and send it more, from your phone.
- On a Mac, using the screen needs permissions. Files and commands work without them.
- Messages waiting with "Choose a folder on This PC to start…"? The thread has no folder yet. Click Choose folder.
