Google Takeout import not detected — treated as normal folder import
Desktop✅Solved
Hi,
I’m trying to import my Google Photos into Ente using the Google Takeout workflow, but Ente is not detecting the Takeout structure and is treating it as a normal folder import.
Here’s exactly what I’ve done:
Exported Google Photos using Google Takeout (multiple 10GB ZIP files).
Extracted all ZIP files into a single folder on an external SSD.
Final extracted size is ~256GB.
Folder structure is:Takeout_Unzipped_All
└── Takeout
└── Google Photos
├── Album folders
├── “Photos from YYYY”
└── Untitled folders
Inside the Google Photos directory, I can confirm that .json metadata files exist alongside the media files.
When I open Ente Desktop:
I click Import folders
I select Google Takeout
I click Select Folder
I navigate into Takeout_Unzipped_All
I select the Takeout folder (the one that directly contains Google Photos)
I click Open
However, instead of Ente detecting this as a Google Takeout import, it shows the normal import screen:
“Create album”
“Uncategorized”
It does not trigger the Takeout metadata parsing flow.
I’ve verified:
The folder structure matches the expected Takeout structure.
JSON files are present.
The SSD remains connected during selection.
I am using the Google Takeout import option (not normal folder import).
Is there something specific Ente expects in the folder structure that I may be missing? Or is there a known issue where the importer fails to detect the Takeout format?
I’m trying to import my Google Photos into Ente using the Google Takeout workflow, but Ente is not detecting the Takeout structure and is treating it as a normal folder import.
Here’s exactly what I’ve done:
Exported Google Photos using Google Takeout (multiple 10GB ZIP files).
Extracted all ZIP files into a single folder on an external SSD.
Final extracted size is ~256GB.
Folder structure is:Takeout_Unzipped_All
└── Takeout
└── Google Photos
├── Album folders
├── “Photos from YYYY”
└── Untitled folders
Inside the Google Photos directory, I can confirm that .json metadata files exist alongside the media files.
When I open Ente Desktop:
I click Import folders
I select Google Takeout
I click Select Folder
I navigate into Takeout_Unzipped_All
I select the Takeout folder (the one that directly contains Google Photos)
I click Open
However, instead of Ente detecting this as a Google Takeout import, it shows the normal import screen:
“Create album”
“Uncategorized”
It does not trigger the Takeout metadata parsing flow.
I’ve verified:
The folder structure matches the expected Takeout structure.
JSON files are present.
The SSD remains connected during selection.
I am using the Google Takeout import option (not normal folder import).
Is there something specific Ente expects in the folder structure that I may be missing? Or is there a known issue where the importer fails to detect the Takeout format?
Solution
Hey, if you click on "Create album", you'll see options to choose "Separate albums". Please check the 10th point here: https://ente.io/help/photos/migration/from-google-photos/
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