File presentation error. duplicate links #98493

https://thebrain.zendesk.com/agent/tickets/98493

Hello Raymond,

Thank you again for documenting this so carefully, the screenshots and your detailed notes are very helpful.

From what we can tell so far, the duplicates you’re seeing aren’t separate files, but rather two internal records in the database that both reference the same physical file. The file itself exists only once on disk, which matches what you confirmed in Finder.

At this point, we haven’t been able to reproduce the same behavior internally, so any detail you can recall about what led up to it would really help, for example, whether you were dragging files into TheBrain, syncing from another device, editing attachments, or reorganizing thoughts right before it appeared. That context might help us isolate the exact trigger.

In the meantime, it’s perfectly safe to:

1. Open the thought folder (Command + Shift + F) and back up the file.
2. In TheBrain, open each duplicate link, one will open correctly, one might not.
3. Delete only the one that doesn’t open.
4. Then run File › Utilities › Rebuild Brain Index / Data Integrity Scan to clean up any stray attachment records.

Once we can narrow down the conditions that cause it, we’ll take a closer look at what’s happening in the background. Thank you again for catching and tracking this so carefully.

Best regards,

John