The Watch Folder feature connects a folder from a hard drive to a VeryBusy project so that any file you drop in the watched folder is automatically uploaded.
By connecting set to VeryBusy, there's no delay in kicking off the retouching process. You (and your collaborators) can refine selects, make notes, and loop in retouchers without missing a beat.
Available in all plans.
How to start watching a folder
Open the project (or a folder inside a project) where you want images to be uploaded
Click the New button on the left
Select Watch Folder from the dropdown
Your operating system's folder picker opens. Select one folder.
File sync progress for the watch-session is visable in the upload box.
Note: Only files directly inside the folder you select will be synced. Subfolders are not included.
🔒 Available only to Beta users for now.
A common workflow: capture flows directly into post
Here's how a shoot day flows with Watch Folders:
Point Capture One or other tethering program to export to a folder on your computer
Assign that folder as a watched folder VeryBusy (Open your project, click New → Watch Folder, and select the folder)
Shoot directly to the watched folder OR export images to the watched folder
Files appear in VeryBusy automatically — within ~15 seconds
Your team starts reviewing on the spot. Art directors, producers, and retouchers can collaboratively rate, comment, draw markups, and approve right from VeryBusy without waiting for the shoot to wrap
💡 Set a Watch Folder and markup on iPad for the full on-set review flow.
What gets uploaded and when
On first watch: Every supported file currently in that folder is uploaded as the initial sync.
Ongoing: VeryBusy checks the folder while the VeryBusy browser window is open and your computer is awake. New files are synched on the next polling cycle and uploaded through the same upload pipeline as a manual upload.
Re-watching the same folder later: VeryBusy keeps a record of which files have been synced per project and watched folder. Re-watching only uploads new files, not any files already in VeryBusy.
How rounds and stacking work when using Watch Folder
Watch Folder runs without confirmation popups, so it uses strict matching only:
Filename match → | Behavior |
Exact filename match → | Auto-stacked as a new round, silently |
Partial match (suffix, base, extension) → | Treated as a new asset — no stacking attempt |
No match → | Uploaded as a new asset |
🔒 Smart Round matching for ambiguous filenames is not supported today. For round-stacking on filenames that aren't exact matches, upload them manually. Learn more about Smart Rounds.
How to stop watching
Click Stop watching in the Upload Box → ends the session immediately, files already uploaded are kept
Close the VeryBusy tab in your browser
Quit the browser → ends the session
Permissions
Available to anyone with upload permissions: Project Owners, Managers, and Editors. Reviewers don't see the New button, and therefore do not have access to activate a watched folder.
Carry over Star Rating Metadata
Additionally, with Watch Folders, star ratings made on set will also carry over.