{"id":"privacy-safety.do-rules-touch-brand-new-files","url":"/faq/privacy-safety/do-rules-touch-brand-new-files","category":{"id":"privacy-safety","title":"Privacy & safety"},"subcategory":{"id":"file-safety","title":"Keeping your files safe"},"question":"Could an automatic rule move a file I'm still working on?","alt_questions":["Will Storage Studio move files I created today?","How old must a file be before rules move it?","storage studio rules recent files","Do rules respect files in use?"],"short_answer":"Rules only act on items older than the age you set, and global floor sliders can raise that minimum. Smart Quiet Hours also holds automatic actions while you're active, on low battery or in a meeting.","answer_markdown":"Rules act only on things older than the age you set for each rule, and the global floor sliders in **Settings → Rules** can raise that minimum for every rule so nothing brand-new is moved by accident.\n\nAutomatic actions also follow **Quiet Hours**: in **Smart** mode they hold off while you're active, while the battery is low, or while your camera or microphone is in use. Before a move, apps using files in the folder are detected and asked to quit gracefully rather than forced.","answer_html":"

Rules act only on things older than the age you set for each rule, and the global floor sliders in Settings → Rules can raise that minimum for every rule so nothing brand-new is moved by accident.

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Automatic actions also follow Quiet Hours: in Smart mode they hold off while you're active, while the battery is low, or while your camera or microphone is in use. Before a move, apps using files in the folder are detected and asked to quit gracefully rather than forced.

","answer_text":"Rules act only on things older than the age you set for each rule, and the global floor sliders in Settings → Rules can raise that minimum for every rule so nothing brand-new is moved by accident.\n\nAutomatic actions also follow Quiet Hours: in Smart mode they hold off while you're active, while the battery is low, or while your camera or microphone is in use. Before a move, apps using files in the folder are detected and asked to quit gracefully rather than forced.","tags":["rules","age","quiet hours"],"related":[{"id":"privacy-safety.what-if-a-file-is-in-use-during-a-move","question":"What happens if an app is using a file when Storage Studio wants to move it?","url":"/faq/privacy-safety/what-if-a-file-is-in-use-during-a-move"}],"applies_to":"all","last_reviewed":"2026-10-01","title":"Could an automatic rule move a file I'm still working on? — Storage Studio FAQ","description":"Rules only act on items older than the age you set, and global floor sliders can raise that minimum. Smart Quiet Hours also holds automatic actions while you're active, on low battery or in a meeting.","crumbs":[{"name":"Home","path":"/"},{"name":"FAQ","path":"/faq/"},{"name":"Privacy & safety","path":"/faq/privacy-safety/"},{"name":"Could an automatic rule move a file I'm still working on?","path":"/faq/privacy-safety/do-rules-touch-brand-new-files"}],"jsonld":{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","url":"https://storagestudio.us/faq/privacy-safety/do-rules-touch-brand-new-files","inLanguage":"en","dateModified":"2026-10-01","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Could an automatic rule move a file I'm still working on?","alternateName":["Will Storage Studio move files I created today?","How old must a file be before rules move it?","storage studio rules recent files","Do rules respect files in use?"],"acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Rules act only on things older than the age you set for each rule, and the global floor sliders in Settings → Rules can raise that minimum for every rule so nothing brand-new is moved by accident.\n\nAutomatic actions also follow Quiet Hours: in Smart mode they hold off while you're active, while the battery is low, or while your camera or microphone is in use. Before a move, apps using files in the folder are detected and asked to quit gracefully rather than forced.","url":"https://storagestudio.us/faq/privacy-safety/do-rules-touch-brand-new-files"}}]},"fragment":"
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Privacy & safety · Keeping your files safe

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Could an automatic rule move a file I'm still working on?

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Short answer: Rules only act on items older than the age you set, and global floor sliders can raise that minimum. Smart Quiet Hours also holds automatic actions while you're active, on low battery or in a meeting.

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Rules act only on things older than the age you set for each rule, and the global floor sliders in Settings → Rules can raise that minimum for every rule so nothing brand-new is moved by accident.

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Automatic actions also follow Quiet Hours: in Smart mode they hold off while you're active, while the battery is low, or while your camera or microphone is in use. Before a move, apps using files in the folder are detected and asked to quit gracefully rather than forced.

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